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By President Joseph Fielding Smith
President, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
My dear brothers and sisters:
We welcome you, and all those who hear and see on radio and television. We welcome you to the sessions of the 141st Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
We are here today to wait upon the Lord, to worship him in spirit and in truth, to be fed the bread of life, and to receive counsel and instruction from those whom he has chosen to administer in the affairs of his church.
I sincerely hope that all who attend and all those whose lives are touched in any way by the proceedings of this conference will put themselves in tune with the Spirit so they will be built up in faith and in testimony and in the desire to keep the commandments and do those things which please the Lord.
We are engaged in the Lord's work; this is his church; he is the author of the plan of salvation; it is his gospel which we have received by the opening of the heavens in this day; and our desire and whole purpose in life should be to believe the truths he has revealed and to conform our lives to them. No person in or out of the Church should believe any doctrine, advocate any practice, or support any cause that is not in harmony with the divine will. Our sole objective where the truths of salvation are concerned should be to find out what the Lord has revealed and then to believe and act accordingly.
Since the Lord has revealed his everlasting gospel anew to us in this day and has made The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints the custodian and dispenser of its saving truths, I desire now to restate for the Church and for the world a few of those eternal principles which must be accepted by mankind if they will save themselves. Our knowledge of these simple and yet profound doctrines has come to us by revelation in this dispensation.
We know that our Heavenly Father is a glorified, exalted personage who has all power, all might, and all dominion, and that he knows all things. We testify that he, through his Only Begotten Son, is the Creator of this earth and of worlds without number, all of which are peopled by his spirit children.
We testify that he is infinite and eternal and that he ordained the laws whereby his spirit children might have power to advance and progress and become like him.
We know that salvation is in Christ; that he was the Firstborn Son of the Eternal Father; that he was chosen and foreordained in the councils of heaven to work out the infinite and eternal atonement; that he was born into the world as the Son of God; and that he has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
We believe with perfect surety that Christ came to ransom men from the temporal and spiritual death brought into the world by the fall of Adam and that he took upon himself the sins of all men on condition of repentance.
We testify that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan of salvation; and that through our Lord's atoning sacrifice all men shall be raised in immortality, to be judged by him according to the deeds done in the flesh; and that those who believe and obey the fullness of gospel law shall be raised also unto eternal life in our Father's kingdom.
We believe it is by grace that we are saved after all that we can do, and that building upon the foundation of the atonement of Christ, all men must work out their salvation with fear and trembling before the Lord.
We proclaim that to gain salvation men must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, repent of their sins, be baptized by immersion by one who has authority, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and then press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, keeping the commandments and enduring to the end.
We announce that this plan of salvation, this gospel plan, has been revealed to men in successive dispensations beginning with our father Adam, the first man; that it was known to Enoch and Noah, to Abraham and Moses; that it was proclaimed in plainness to the ancient inhabitants of the American continent; and that it is the same plan which was taught by Jesus and Peter and Paul, and the former-day saints who lived in the meridian of time.
And further-and this is exceedingly important where all men now living are concerned-we believe that following a long night of darkness, unbelief, and departure from the truths of pure and perfect Christianity, the Lord in his infinite wisdom has again restored to earth the fullness of the everlasting gospel.
We know Joseph Smith is a prophet; that the Father and the Son appeared to him in the spring of 1820 to usher in this final gospel dispensation; that he translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God; that he received keys and authority from angels sent for this very purpose; and that the Lord revealed to him the doctrines of salvation.
We announce that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kingdom of God on earth, the only place where men may come to learn the true doctrines of salvation and find the authority of the holy priesthood.
We believe the Holy Ghost is a revelator and that he will bear testimony to honest people everywhere that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that Joseph Smith is a prophet, and that this church is "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth."
There is no need for anyone to remain in darkness; the light of the everlasting gospel is here; and every sincere investigator on earth can gain a personal witness from the Holy Spirit of the truth and divine nature of the Lord's work.
Peter said: " God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted" by him, which means that the Lord will pour out his Spirit upon the faithful so they will know of themselves of the truths of this religion.
Now, as one among you who has come to know, by the power of the Holy Ghost, that the Lord has restored his gospel and set up his kingdom again on the earth for the last time, I bear my testimony to the truth of these things.
I know that God lives; I know that Jesus Christ is the Only Begotten of the Father; and I know that Joseph Smith and his successors have been the instruments in the Lord's hands of making the blessings of heaven available to men on earth in this present day.
And I pray that the Lord's purposes on earth, both in and out of the Church, may speedily be brought to pass; that he will bless his faithful Saints; and that the hearts of hosts of men who seek truth and whose hearts are right before the Lord may become inheritors with us of the fullness of the blessings of the restored gospel.
I say this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
Acting President of the Council of the Twelve
Beloved brothers and sisters and friends, I fully subscribe to all that President Smith has just said, and I testify that he is God's prophet upon the earth today.
History repeats itself, and we need only return to the past to learn the solutions for the present and the future. The Corinthians seem to have been troubled by the same conflicting messages we hear in our own time. Paul told them:
"For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?
" for ye shall speak into the air.
"There are so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification."
Paul's was an impressive voice, powerful and strong, never silenced in all the interim centuries.
There are voices all about us. Some are harsh and raucous, others sweet and penetrating.
Paul's revelations included visions of these latter days. His voice is saying:
" in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
"Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
"Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats. "
Voices again! Rasping voices proclaiming "doctrines of devils," saying there is no sin; there is no devil; there is no God. Saying that we will "eat, drink, and be merry" like the antediluvians who never believed that the flood would really come.
Many voices of seducing spirits advocate carnal pleasures and unrestrained physical satisfactions. Our world is now much the same as it was in the days of the Nephite prophet who said: " if it were not for the prayers of the righteous ye would even now be visited with utter destruction. " Of course, there are many many upright and faithful who live all the commandments and whose lives and prayers keep the world from destruction.
We are living in the last days, and they are precarious and frightening. The shadows are deepening, and the night creeps in to envelop us.
The clear voice of Paul:
" in the last days perilous times shall come.
"For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous blasphemers, disobedient to parents unholy,
"Without natural affection incontinent,
" lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God."
A prominent columnist wrote of our day: "One thing is certain. We shall be given no centuries for a leisurely and comfortable decay. We have an enemy now-remorseless, crude, brutal and cocky that we are in an advanced state of moral decline ripening for the kill."
Recently people on the street responded to the question "Is chastity outmoded?" The answers: "Morals have changed; virginity is on the way out. Love is in." "Virgins are really weird." "There are few people these days who are virtuous." One girl said, "Chastity is outdated because in these enlightened days, people are freer."
Yes: Free to commit sin; free to break laws. Free to contract VD. Free to shorten life; free to deny God; free to be free of all real freedoms.
We see our world sinking into depths of corruption. Every sin mentioned by Paul is now rampant in our society.
Men and women are "lovers of their own selves." They boast in their accomplishment. They curse. They blaspheme. Another sin is disobedience of children to parents and parents' disobedience to law. Many are without the natural affection, which seems to be eroding family life as they seek to satisfy their own selfish wants.
There are said to be millions of perverts who have relinquished their natural affection and bypassed courtship and normal marriage relationships. This practice is spreading like a prairie fire and changing our world. They are without "natural affection" for God, for spouses, and even for children.
Paul speaks of continence-a word almost forgotten by our world. Still in the dictionary, it means self-restraint, in sexual activities especially. Many good people, being influenced by the bold spirit of the times, are now seeking surgery for the wife or the husband so they may avoid pregnancies and comply with the strident voice demanding a reduction of children. It was never easy to bear and rear children, but easy things do not make for growth and development. But loud, blatant voices today shout "fewer children" and offer the Pill, drugs, surgery, and even ugly abortion to accomplish that. Strange, the proponents of depopulating the world seem never to have thought of continence!
Libraries are loaded with books with shocking pictures, showing people how to totally satisfy their animal natures, but few books are found on the self-control of continence. With a theory that "life is for sex," every imagination of the minds of men devises ways to more completely get what they call "sexual fulfillment," which they demand at the expense of all else-family, home, eternal life. There should be from press and lecture platform and pulpit deep and resounding voices urging man to rise above the carnal and rest his mind on things clean and sacred.
Paul preached continence and self-mastery. He practiced it, being years in the mission field. Was that not his meaning when he said:
"For I would that all men were even as I myself.
" It is good for them if they abide even as I."
"But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection. "
Paul speaks of "lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God." Does that not describe the wanton sex permissiveness of our day?
Paul speaks of those who "creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts."
Immorality seems to now receive the wink of approval of the once honorable people. Debauchery never gave birth to good of any kind, and Paul said: "But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth." But now comes a heavenly voice: "Thou shalt not commit adultery; and he that committeth adultery, and repenteth not, shall be cast out."
Many voices, loud and harsh, come from among educators, business and professional men, sociologists, psychologists, authors, movie actors, legislators, judges, and others, even some of the clergy, who, because they have learned a little about something, seem to think they know all about everything.
This egotism and pride is prompted by the cunning father of lies. Hear the voice of a Nephite prophet describing their acceptance of the "cunning plan of the evil one":
" to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God."
" When they are learned they think they are wise supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness. And they shall perish."
Peter's voice was sure when he called the evil ones brute beasts who would perish in their own corruption. He called them "spots and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings," "having eyes full of adultery"; "beguiling unstable souls." He speaks of their "lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness"; and those who return to their sin after having been cleansed he likens to the dog returning to its vomit and the sow that has been washed returning to her wallowing again in the mire.
Sustaining Peter comes the voice of Paul to Titus:
"Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
"They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate."
Much has been said about the frustration of youth. While we can hardly justify their eccentricities and disobedience and their apparent loss of faith, perhaps part of the blame for their frustrations can be laid at the feet of those parents who gave them an example of disobeying both government and God's laws.
Certainly, some blame can be attached to the voices from lecture platforms, editorial rooms, or broadcasting stands, and even from the pulpit.
Such voices may have to answer for their perpetuating falsehood and their failure to give true leadership in combating evil. " as with the people, so with the priest. " The term priest is here used to denote all religious leaders of any faith. Isaiah said: "The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant." From among the discordant voices we are shocked at those of many priests who encourage the defilement of men and wink at the eroding trends and who deny the omniscience of God. Certainly these men should be holding firm, yet some yield to popular clamor.
I give some quotes from the press:
"Many churchmen are reluctant to give a definite yes or no to marijuana." "It depends upon circumstances."
They have developed "situation ethics," which seem to cover all sins.
Other religious leaders are saying: " precise rules of Christian conduct should not necessarily apply to problems of sexuality."
In contrast hear the strong voice of a prophet. Peter prophesied:
"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that brought them.
"And many shall follow their pernicious ways. "
Only this month the press quoted the retired head of a populous church proposing "revival of old-style betrothals which would permit young unmarried couples to sleep together with the church's blessing," and "it would not be regarded in the moral sense as fornication."
And now, the voice of a commentator: "Recently, the screen industry solemnly announced that henceforth perversion and homosexuality would no longer be barred from the screen. We are drowning our youngsters in violence, cynicism and sadism piped into the living room. "
Quoting from fairly recent publications: "The __________ church conference today approved recommendation that homosexuality between consenting adults should no longer be a criminal offense. "
The voice from a much-read magazine: " a group of __________ ministers in San Francisco thinks the churches ought to drop their strictures against homosexuals. "
It was reported that groups of ministers and their wives attended a party given by homosexuals and lesbians to raise funds for the perversion program. The magazine quoted: " that all Bay area schools would have to close down immediately if all homosexuals currently working in the school systems were discovered and in keeping with state law, dismissed."
The minister quoted is reported to have said: " two people of the same sex can express love and deepen that love by sexual intercourse."
Those are ugly voices-they are loud and raspy.
Why do we speak in this vein? Why do we call to repentance when there are such pleasant subjects? It is because someone must warn the world of its doom if life does not change directions.
We remember Pope's verse:
Some voices must cry out against them. Ours cannot remain silent.
To the great Moses these perversions were an abomination and a defilement, worthy of death. To Paul it was unnatural, unmanly, ungodly, and a dishonorable passion of an adulterous nature and would close all the doors to the kingdom.
When parents are indiscriminate in their sex behavior and when writers, authors, religious leaders, and others condone such transgression, how can we save from the darkness the bewildered, frustrated youth searching for an example, a hitching post, and something right in which to believe-a safe harbor.
"The group that tolerates sexual anarchy is endangering its very survival," says sociologist Sorokin.
One prominent voice booms out that there are many steepled edifices in which the word sin has not been mentioned for a long time, and a preachment against it cannot be remembered.
In direct contrast to the permissive voices above comes a voice of authority from the Lord's church:
" Man is a biological unit," said President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., "an animal, but he is more than this, he is the temple of an immortal spirit; that spirit can be defiled by the flesh, and defilement comes when the laws of chastity are violated.
"Our very civilization itself is based upon chastity, the sanctity of marriage, and the holiness of the home. Destroy these and Christian man becomes a brute.
" the family relationship continues through eternity. It is the loftiest and most sacred human relationship we know."
The voice of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in unmistakable terms warns:
" sexual sin-the illicit sexual relations of men and women-stands, in its enormity, next to murder. The Lord has drawn no essential distinctions between fornication, adultery, and harlotry or prostitution. Each has fallen under his solemn and awful condemnation. escape the punishments and the judgments which the Lord has declared against this sin. The day of reckoning will come just as certainly as night follows day."
Then speaking of those who condone and justify evil whether from press or microphone or pulpit, they continue:
"They who would palliate this crime and say that such indulgence is but a sinless gratification of a normal desire, like appeasing hunger and thirst, speak filthiness with their lips. Their counsel leads to destruction; their wisdom comes from the father of lies."
Then comes the vibrant voice of Paul again:
"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwelleth in you?
"If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."
And the voice of Deity: "I am Jesus Christ;
"I command thee that thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife; nor seek thy neighbor's life."
Sex involvement outside of marriage locks doors to temples and thus bars the way to eternal life.
We extend to every listener a cordial invitation to come to the watered garden, to the shade of pleasant trees, to the unchangeable truth.
Come with us to sureness, security, consistency. Here the cooling waters flow. The spring does not go dry.
Come listen to a prophet's voice and hear the word of God.
The Lord does not change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His church stands firm and unchangeable. Sin will not be tolerated, but sincere repentance will be rewarded with forgiveness.
The Lord who suffered for us says:
" I command you to repent lest your sufferings be sore-how sore you know not, how exquisite you know not, yea, how hard to bear you know not.
"For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;
"But if they would not repent, they must suffer even as I;
"Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore. "
May the voices of the Lord's servants prevail, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
The past few days my thoughts have turned repeatedly to that great message of strength, " for I, the Lord, love him because of the integrity of his heart, and because he loveth that which is right before me. " What a blessing it is to be one who loves that which is right.
There seems to be a tendency among many of us in our society today to live by compromise, rationalization, comparison, and self-justification. Love of right has been replaced by love of acceptance and convenience. Some mistakenly think the pathway of safety is somewhere between the path of righteousness and the road to destruction. Others seem to have convinced themselves that the way to perfection is reached by traveling the highway of compromise.
The other day a mother referred to the conduct of her college-age son with a mild tone of satisfaction when she said, "He may not do any studying, but at least he isn't participating in campus riots." An inmate of a prison, being confined because of a burglary sentence, seemed to have a ring of status in his voice when he pointed to another prisoner and said, "At least I'm not as bad as that guy. He's in here for second degree murder." A shoplifter seemed to feel she was only mildly dishonest because she was caught taking a hat while others have been convicted of stealing dresses. What kind of thinking is exhibited when someone is heard to say, "I may burn up a couple of packages of cigarettes a day, but I'm not on drugs"?
The pressures of the world upon the young and old alike to conform and experiment are real and mounting. Many of us are startled today when we are made aware of the fact that there are drug users even among the twelve- to thirteen-year-old group. What should be more shocking are the tactics being used to talk our youth into trying drugs. I have learned from youth who are entangled in this vicious pastime that approaches such as the following are being widely used: "Drugs are a fun escape from the lousy world in which you must live," "Drugs are a friend to the lonely," "Drugs will give you that mature and self-sufficient image so much desired," "Drugs are a people substitute."
I wish to declare, with all the forcefulness I possess, that these damaging approaches are of the evil one. Young people are being led to believe that the "trips" drugs take them on are the safe, "in" way to travel between pious righteousness and destruction.
Drugs are causing many of our young people to drop out before they start. Drugs rob an individual of his sense of values. Drug-tampering youth are playing copycat in a subculture element.
May I recommend, as we look at drug abuse or other social problems, that we focus on the cause rather than the symptoms.
When a youth asks the question of himself or a friend, "Why shouldn't I take drugs?" he is very possibly asking the wrong question. What he may really want to know and need to know is "Why should I want to take any kind of a stimulant or depressant at all? What is there in my life that I am unhappy enough about to want to escape into a diabolic world of illusion?" If we as parents and friends advise our youth that drugs are bad, evil, and immoral, and yet we do not try to understand why our youth turn to this evil substitute for reality, then the drugs themselves become the issue and not the symptom of the greater issue of unhappiness. We need to know why our loved ones want to run from their present life to the unknown yet dangerous life of addiction. What causes a strong, lovely, vibrant young person to allow a chemical to control his or her behavior? What is there at home, school, work, or church that is so uncomfortable that an escape seems necessary?
If we were not faced with the evils of marijuana, LSD, speed, and heroin, we would be faced with some other type of escape mechanism, because some of us as brothers, sisters, parents, friends, and teachers have not yet been able to reach our youth in such a way as to give them the confidence and love they seek. Some of us are not providing the stability in the home, the respect, and the care that every person needs. They need more than Church upbringing-they need a loving home life.
Where better can we teach our young people a love for the right than in a happy home situation? Our young people will not want a "people substitute" if we provide a home atmosphere with loving personal relationships, where a mother, father, sisters, and brothers really care.
Parents, let's make certain our youth are not continually exposed to the idea that the stresses of daily life require chemical relief. Factual information about drugs should be constantly stressed rather than attempts to frighten or shame. We must try to rear our children so that they are neither deprived of affection nor spoiled. We must give our children responsibilities according to their capabilities and never overprotect them from the difficulties they will encounter. As sure as some adults-mothers and fathers-continue to sow the wind, they will reap the tornado. Let us more firmly entrench ourselves in the true purposes of family life and sow oneness and reap joy.
When temptations and challenges come there will be painful, trying times not only for our youth but also for their parents. Yet then, more than ever, it is imperative that there be love, understanding, and acceptance in the home so our youth can learn that only steadfast pursuit of God's ways will bring a rich, happy life.
It is time for us to reaffirm the great truth that God's paths are straight. They not only provide safety, but they also lead to happiness and eternal progression.
Speaking of staying on the straight paths, I will never forget an experience I had with a friend in central Utah a few years ago. He had for his hobby mountain lion hunting. With other associates, dependable horses, guns, and well-trained dogs, he would seek to track the lions down, or tree them for capture. One day when I visited his place of business, he had a full-grown hunting dog tied to one of his sheds. "Isn't he a beauty!" I commented. He responded with "He's got to go. I can't be bothered with him." "What's the problem?" I continued.
"Since he was a pup, I have trained him to track lions. He knows what I expect. The last time we were out on a three-day hunt, he took off after a deer, then a coyote, and finally some rabbits, and was gone the best part of a full day. He knows he must stay on the trail of the lion to be one of mine. Our business is mountain lions. Yep, he's for sale pretty cheap."
How often are we led from the right track by distractions like drugs that cross our paths? Do we sometimes seek the available "rabbit" when the big game is available up the path?
The drug problem is severe today, and the Church is deeply concerned. Families, parents, and Church officers should do all possible to prevent or treat these evils. The rise of drug use is almost a subsociety within the larger worldwide society. People, young and old, who are part of the drug scene tend to adopt unusual dress, hair styles, and other mannerisms which set them apart. But unless they become offensive or unacceptable by reason of extreme behavior, we do only harm by rejecting them from our meetings and general fellowship. It is hoped that we will avoid the pitfall of giving excessive publicity to wrongdoers at the expense of the majority who live virtuous lives.
At the same time, we must not react with panic to what is a symptom of greater illness. In fact, there are indications that we have saturated the youth in and out of the Church with information on drugs. We have unintentionally taught them how and where to obtain drugs by our massive campaigns.
The Church recognizes and supports the efforts of reputable people and organizations who are attempting to combat and treat drug problems. Bishops and other priesthood leaders should help drug users find resources of cure and rehabilitation.
When people are curious and tampering with drugs, we should help to strengthen their homes and personal lives through warm, loving reeducation around basic gospel principles. Our youth are looking for purposeful leadership. We need to lead the lost back from where they are. We must teach the others to continue to choose the right and stay on His paths.
May I reiterate that while drugs are a most serious problem, and while the Church is a flexible instrument in the Lord's hands, we must not be diverted from our eternal and most effective course by problems that, though serious, are only symptoms of greater ills.
Lofty standards of behavior will always be based upon a love for the right. Wickedness in any form will never lead to happiness. We must be aware of those who would have us believe there is no heaven, there is no hell, and that the only road to happiness is marked with compromise and convenience. Satan is real and he is effective. Drug abuse is one of his tools. He would throw men down, and by his cunning he would have all mankind strangers to God. Let us not be deceived. God lives, and through him and with him we can accomplish all things. We must not permit ourselves to become entangled in the sin of drugs or the sin of compromising our standards, but rather we must learn to avoid all the ways of Satan.
Our Heavenly Father is so concerned that we do right that he will bless each of us with a sign, if we will ask his counsel. Do we realize that the Lord has promised us a physical manifestation if we but ask him to direct us in the right? In the ninth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, verse 8, we have this commitment from the Lord:
"But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right."
Brothers and sisters, we compromise our blessings, we rationalize ourselves out of the sure and safe way, when we do not ask our God to guide us in the decisions that are part of our daily lives.
The Lord has promised that he will help us in our pursuit of happiness if we will trust in him and follow his path. The abundant life will be ours if we rely on his strength. If we will magnify the priesthood we hold and share our talents every day, Satan will have no power over us, and our Heavenly Father's strength will make all righteous things possible. Ammon, in his comments to his brother Aaron in the twenty-sixth chapter of Alma, verse 12, points to a way of life that brings security: "Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; for which we will praise his name forever." All we need to do to enjoy eternal, happy lives is to live the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Following one of our recent general conference sessions, a troubled mother approached me and said, "I need to know what is meant by the statement, 'No success can compensate for failure in the home.'" Knowing a little of the burdens this friend of mine carries in her mind and heart because of a rebellious, wayward daughter, I shared this meaning with her: I believe we start to fail in the home when we give up on each other. We have not failed until we have quit trying. As long as we are working diligently with love, patience, and long-suffering, despite the odds or the apparent lack of progress, we are not classified as failures in the home. We only start to fail when we give up on a son, daughter, mother, or father.
A few days ago, I had the pleasurable assignment of visiting some of our Lamanite friends in Supai, at the base of the Grand Canyon, in Arizona. While on the canyon trails, I had the opportunity of visiting with some hippie-type young people who had traveled to that secluded area in their search for escape. Drugs and a basic desire to get away from everyone and everything, according to their own admissions, prodded them on to this area and yet other areas when this one becomes routine. "No one cares about us, and frankly, we don't care about the establishment" is the message they left with me; however, I assure you these were not the exact words they used. As I told one young man, and I share this same thought with our other young friends who are at present involved in the drug habit, "As surely as you can walk out of this Grand Canyon in three to four hours with all of your worldly possessions strapped to your back, you can walk out on this drug habit. There are a lot of us who care about you and would like to help you back up the trail to the main highway."
To our young friends and bewildered parents caught in the vicious grip of drug abuse and its heartaches, we declare to you that there is a way back. You can make it. There is hope.
I bear witness to you this day that a love for that which is right will bring us our Heavenly Father's strength and protection. In his paths we will find security. My prayer is that we will have the desire in our hearts to earnestly seek the pathways of safety from evils such as drugs by honestly keeping all of his commandments.
As we unitedly work to help our youth in combatting and avoiding all of the temptations of the day, may we be reminded, " let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God." I pray for our Heavenly Father to help us teach and love that which is right, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
Of the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters-seen and unseen throughout the world: I thus address you on this solemn, yet joyful, occasion because of my conviction, supported by holy scripture, that we are all in very deed brothers and sisters, children of the same Heavenly Father in the spirit.
We are eternal beings. We lived as intelligent spirits before this mortal life. We are now living part of eternity. Our mortal birth was not the beginning; death, which faces all of us, is not the end.
-William Wordsworth
As eternal beings, we each have in us a spark of divinity. And, as one who has traveled over much of this world, on both sides of the iron curtain, I am convinced that our Father's children are essentially good. They want to live in peace, they want to be good neighbors, they love their homes and their families, they want to improve their standards of living, they want to do what is right, they are essentially good. And I know that God loves them.
And as his humble servant, I have in my heart a love for our Father's children. I have met them in so-called high places and low. I have visited with them in their homes, in their fields, on their small farms, in their shops, on the highways of the earth, and in the air. I have had the privilege of meeting with them in large and small meetings, worshiping with them in their churches, including a small Baptist chapel filled to overflowing in Moscow, Russia.
Again I say, our Father's children, my brothers and sisters, are essentially good. I know the Lord loves them. And as his humble servant, I have love in my heart for them. May God bless you wherever you are and be close to you, as he can and will through his spirit.
Yes, as we travel through this topsy-turvy, sinful world, filled with temptations and problems, we are humbled by the expectancy of death, the uncertainty of life, and the power and love of God. Sadness comes to all of us in the loss of loved ones. But there is gratitude also. Gratitude for the assurance we have that life is eternal. Gratitude for the great gospel plan, given freely to all of us. Gratitude for the life, teachings, and sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, whose resurrection we will commemorate in the immediate days ahead.
Thank God for the life and ministry of the Master, Jesus the Christ, who broke the bonds of death, who is the light and life of the world, who set the pattern, who established the guidelines for all of us, and who proclaimed:
"I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
"And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. "
"If a man die, shall he live again?" asked Job, the prophet, anciently. My good friend Senator Everett Dirksen, shortly before his death, responded impressively to Job's question in these words: "What mortal being, standing on the threshold of infinity, has not pondered what lies beyond the veil which separates the seen from the unseen?
"What mortal being, responding to that mystical instinct that earthly dissolution is at hand, has not contemplated what lies beyond the grave?
"What mortal being, upon whom has descended that strange and serene resignation that life's journey is about at an end, has not thought about that eternal destination and what might be there?
"Centuries ago the man Job, so long blessed with every material blessing, only to find himself sorely afflicted by all that can befall a human being, sat with his companions and uttered the timeless, ageless question, 'If a man die, shall he live again?' In the Easter Season, when all Christendom observes the Resurrection and seeks answers to many questions, there in the forefront is the question raised by Job, 'If a man die, shall he live again?'
"If there be a design in this universe and in this world in which we live, there must be a Designer. Who can behold the inexplicable mysteries of the universe without believing that there is a design for all mankind and also a Designer?
"'If a man die, shall he live again?' Surely he shall, as surely as day follows night, as surely as the stars follow their courses, as surely as the crest of every wave brings its trough."
Yes, life is eternal. We live on and on after earth-life, even though we ofttimes lose sight of that great basic truth.
Our affections are often too highly placed upon the paltry perishable objects. Material treasures of earth are merely to provide us, as it were, room and board while we are here at school. It is for us to place gold, silver, houses, stocks, lands, cattle, and other earthly possessions in their proper place.
Yes, this is but a place of temporary duration. We are here to learn the first lesson toward exaltation-obedience to the Lord's gospel plan.
Yes, there is the ever expectancy of death, but in reality there is no death-no permanent parting. The resurrection is a reality. The scriptures are replete with evidence. Almost immediately after the glorious resurrection of the Lord, Matthew records:
"And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
"And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many."
The apostle John on the Isle of Patmos "saw the dead, small and great, stand before God" And so we may quote on and on from holy writ, ancient and modern.
The spirit world is not far away. Sometimes the veil between this life and the life beyond becomes very thin. Our loved ones who have passed on are not far from us. One great spiritual leader asked, "But where is the spirit world?" and then answered his own question. "It is here." "Do go beyond the boundaries of this organized earth? No, they do not. They are brought forth upon this earth, for the express purpose of inhabiting it to all eternity." " when the spirits leave their bodies they are in the presence of our Father and God; they are prepared then to see, hear and understand spiritual things. If the Lord would permit it, and it was His will that it should be done, you could see the spirits that have departed from this world, as plainly as you now see bodies with your natural eyes. "
Yes, life is eternal, so:
What is death like? Here is a simple incident as told by Dr. Peter Marshall, chaplain of the United States Senate:
In a certain home, a little boy, the only son, was ill with an incurable disease. Month after month the mother had tenderly nursed him, but as the weeks went by and he grew no better, the little fellow gradually began to understand the meaning of death and he, too, realized that soon he was to die. One day his mother had been reading the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, and as she closed the book the boy lay silent for a moment, then asked the question that had been laying on his heart. "Mother, what is it like to die? Mother, does it hurt?" Quick tears filled her eyes. She sprang to her feet and fled to the kitchen, supposedly to go get something. She prayed on the way a silent prayer that the Lord would tell her what to say, and the Lord did tell her. Immediately she knew how to explain it to him. She said as she returned from the kitchen, "Kenneth, you will remember when you were a little boy, you would play so hard you were too tired to undress and you tumbled into your mother's bed and fell asleep. In the morning you would wake up and much to your surprise, you would find yourself in your own bed. In the night your father would pick you up in his big strong arms and carry you to your own bedroom. Kenneth, death is like that; we just wake up one morning to find ourselves in the room where we belong because the Lord Jesus loves us." The lad's shining face looked up and told her there would be no more fear, only love and trust in his heart as he went to meet the Father in heaven. He never questioned again and several weeks later he feel asleep, just as she said. That is what death is like., pp. 272–73.)
Yes, life is eternal. Death is not the end. It is most fitting at this Easter time that our thoughts be turned to that most glorious event, the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
As I have gratefully testified many times-
I know that Jesus is the Christ-the Savior and Redeemer of the world-the very Son of God. He was born the Babe of Bethlehem. He lived and ministered among men. He was crucified on Calvary. On the third day he rose again.
To the sorrowful, inquiring women at the tomb the angels proclaimed: " Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen. " There is nothing in history to equal that dramatic announcement. "He is not here, but is risen."
No other single influence has had so great an impact on this earth as the life of Jesus the Christ. We cannot conceive of our lives without his teachings. Without him we would be lost in a mirage of beliefs and worships, born in fear and darkness where the sensual and materialistic hold sway. We are far short of the goal he set for us, but we must never lose sight of it; nor must we forget that our great climb toward the light, toward perfection, would not be possible except for his teachings, his life, his death, and his resurrection.
May God hasten the day when people everywhere will accept his teachings, his example, and his divinity; yes, when they will accept as a reality his glorious resurrection, which broke the bonds of death for all of us.
Yes, we must learn and learn again that only through accepting and living the gospel of love as taught by the Master and only through doing his will can we break the bonds of ignorance and doubt that bind us. We must learn this simple, glorious truth so that we can experience the sweet joys of the spirit now and eternally. We must lose ourselves in doing his will. We must place him first in our lives. Yes, our blessings multiply as we share his love with our neighbor.
To the extent that we stray from the path marked out for us by the Man of Galilee, to that extent we are failing in our individual battles to overcome our worlds. But we are not without his help. Again and again he told his disciples, and all of us, "Let not your heart be troubled. "
"If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."
"I will not leave you comfortless. "
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. "
We feel his comforting spirit in the sweet prayer of a child and the quiet abiding faith of all who have let his gospel permeate their lives. What a priceless gift it is that we can know him through our own prayers and through the sacred and solemn testimonies of those who have seen him, known him, felt his presence.
My brothers and sisters, on the threshold of Easter morning more than nineteen hundred years after his resurrection, I give you my solemn witness and testimony that I know that Jesus the Christ lives. He was in very deed raised from the dead, as we shall be. He is the resurrection and the life.
He appeared unto many in the Old World after his resurrection.
And according to modern scriptures, sacred to me, he spent three glorious days, before his ascension, with his "other sheep" here in America-the New World-and he lives today.
I quote from a vision given to the Prophet Joseph Smith and his associate Sidney Rigdon, February 16, 1832:
"And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!
"For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father-
"That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
Yes, my friends, Jesus is the Christ. He lives. He did break the bonds of death. He is our Savior and Redeemer, the very Son of God.
And he will come again, as the Holy Bible proclaims: " this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven."
Yes, this same Jesus has already come to earth in our day. The resurrected Christ-glorified, exalted, the God of this world under the Father-appeared to the boy Joseph Smith in 1820. This same Jesus who was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Moses, the Creator of this earth, has come in our day. He was introduced by the Father to Joseph Smith in these words: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
The appearance of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ to the boy prophet is the greatest event that has occurred in this world since the resurrection of the Master. As the restored Church of Jesus Christ, we humbly and gratefully bear this witness to all men. This message is a world message. It is the truth, intended for all of our Father's children. Some three million members of the Church throughout the world bear this solemn testimony.
Today twenty thousand missionary-messengers of truth and the three freely carry this all-important message to the world. Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of mankind, the Redeemer of the world, the very Son of God. He is the God of this world, our advocate with the Father.
Today twenty thousand missionary-messengers of truth and the three million members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-the Mormon Church-bear witness that God has again spoken from the heavens, that Jesus Christ has appeared again unto man, that the resurrection is a reality.
Today I testify to the truth of the message which they bear and add my solemn witness, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion G. Romney
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends, I earnestly seek an interest in your faith and prayers. I particularly need the Spirit of the Lord today because I have decided to speak about his enemy, "Satan-The Great Deceiver."
You may be able to recall something of what I say by remembering a daughter's statement to her mother: "I cannot marry John because he does not believe in the devil," and mother's response: "Go ahead and marry him. You and I will change his mind on that question."
A corollary to the pernicious falsehood that God is dead is the equally pernicious doctrine that there is no devil. Satan himself is the father of both of these lies. To believe them is to surrender to him. Such surrender has always led, is leading now, and will continue to lead men to destruction.
Latter-day Saints know that there is a God. With like certainty, they know that Satan lives, that he is a powerful personage of spirit, the archenemy of God, of man, and of righteousness.
The reality of the existence of both God and the devil is conclusively established by the scriptures and by human experience.
Abraham's account of the great pre-earth heavenly council identifies both God and Satan as participators in that council.
Marvelous and important is the knowledge revealed in that account-knowledge of things as they were in the distant past, concerning God the Father and his spirit children, and concerning his plans for the creation of this earth. It refers to the gospel plan and identifies Christ and Satan.
Amplifying the truths revealed to Abraham, the Lord said to Moses: "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."
Old Testament prophets knew about Satan and his role in the great council. As though speaking directly to him, Isaiah said:
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
"For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God:
" I will be like the most High.
"Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit."
In this last dispensation, the Lord has confirmed what he revealed in former dispensations concerning Satan's role in the great council. In September 1830 he said to the Prophet Joseph:
" the devil was before Adam, for he rebelled against me, saying, Give me thine honor, which is my power; and also a third part of the hosts of heaven turned he away from me because of their agency."
In February 1832 Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon testified that they saw in vision "that an angel of God who was in authority in the presence of God, who rebelled against the Only Begotten Son was thrust down from the presence of God and the Son,
"And was called Perdition, for the heavens wept over him-he was Lucifer, a son of the morning."
Joseph Smith succinctly summed up the great pre-earth controversy when he said:
"The contention in heaven was-Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the devil said he could save them all, and laid his plans before the grand council, who gave their vote in favor of Jesus Christ. So the devil rose up in rebellion against God, and was cast down, with all who put up their heads for him."
When Satan and those who followed him were "thrust down," they came to the earth.
During the vision given to Moses, the Lord said:
" because 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.
"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."
Satan was in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve before the fall. Not only so, but he continued to tempt them and their children after they had been driven from the Garden. When Adam and Eve received the gospel they rejoiced in it, "blessed the name of God, and made all things known unto their sons and their daughters.
"And Satan came among them, saying: I am also a son of God; and he commanded them, saying: Believe it not; and they believed it not, and they loved Satan more than God. And men began from that time forth to be carnal, sensual, and devilish."
From then until now Satan has been in the earth. We read in the Book of Job:
"Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them.
"And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it."
In his diary for August 11, 1831, the Prophet wrote:
" after we had encamped upon the bank of the river, at McIlwaine's Bend, Brother Phelps, in open vision by daylight, saw the destroyer in his most horrible power, ride upon the face of the waters; others heard the noise, but saw not the vision."
Satan is evil: totally and always. He ever seeks to defeat the gospel plan and "destroy the souls of men."
" he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him."
At the last supper just prior to his ordeal in Gethsemane, Jesus warned Peter: "Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat."
Satan is irrevocably committed to countering and overcoming the influence of the Spirit of Christ upon men. He is the representative, promoter, and advocate of that "opposition in all things" referred to by Lehi in his instructions to his son Jacob.
Satan's methods are various, devious, and countless.
" by every possible means he seeks to darken the minds of men and then offers them falsehood and deception in the guise of truth. Satan is a skillful imitator, and as genuine gospel truth is given the world in ever-increasing abundance, so he spreads the counterfeit coin of false doctrine. 'the father of lies' he has become, through the ages of practice in his nefarious work," such an adept "that were it possible he would deceive the very elect."
At the opening of every dispensation he has made a frontal attack against the advent of truth. As already noted, he deceived the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve in the first gospel dispensation.
At the beginning of the Mosaic dispensation, "Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, son of man, worship me."
In the days of Jesus, Satan attacked the Master himself.
That Satan was present and contested the opening of this last dispensation, we learn from the Prophet's statement:
" 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. Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction."
Satan's attack against the coming forth of the Book of Mormon is detailed in the tenth section of the Doctrine and Covenants.
Another evidence of the devil's effort to thwart the spread of the gospel is Heber C. Kimball's account of Satan's attack upon the brethren who took the gospel to England in 1837.
The general acceptance of Satan's declaration, "I am no devil, for there is none", accounts in large measure for the decadence in our deteriorating society.
We Latter-day Saints need not be, and we must not be, deceived by the sophistries of men concerning the reality of Satan. There is a personal devil, and we had better believe it. He and a countless host of followers, seen and unseen, are exercising a controlling influence upon men and their affairs in our world today.
An ancient American prophet, envisioning our day and observing what is going on, prophesied that if Satan is not checked, he will bring this generation to destruction. Addressing himself to our present situation, Nephi said:
" the kingdom of the devil must shake, and they which belong to it must needs be stirred up unto repentance, or the devil will grasp them with his everlasting chains, and they be stirred up to anger, and perish;
"For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.
"And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well-and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.
"And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none-and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance."
Now I am not calling attention to these things to frighten, stampede, or discourage anyone. I refer to them because I know they are true, and I am persuaded that if we are to "conquer Satan, and escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work", we must understand and recognize the situation as it is. This is no time for Latter-day Saints to equivocate.
Nor is it a time for us to panic. The difficulties of our times have not come upon us unawares. A hundred and forty years ago the Lord clearly revealed the tenor of our times. We know that as the second coming of the Savior approaches, the tempo of Satan's campaign for the souls of men is being and will continue to be accelerated. We know that the experiences of the intervening years will try men's souls.
We also know that God lives; that his "eternal purposes shall roll on." We know that to qualify us to prevail against Satan and his wicked hosts, we have been given the gospel of Jesus Christ. We know that the Spirit of Christ and the power of his priesthood are ample shields to the power of Satan. We know that there is available to each of us the gift of the Holy Ghost-the power of revelation which embraces the gift of discernment by which we may unerringly detect the devil and the counterfeits he is so successfully foisting upon this gullible generation. Our course is clear and certain. It is to strictly obey the commandments of the Lord, as they are recorded in the scriptures and as they are being given by the living prophets.
In conclusion, I bear you my witness to the truth of the things I have been calling to your attention in these remarks.
I know that God lives. Through my own experiences I have come to know of his Spirit and his power. I know also that Satan lives. I have detected his spirit and felt of his power-not to the extent as did the Prophet Joseph, but in like experience.
I know that at the second advent of Christ, the signs of which are now mounting, "Satan shall be bound have no place in the hearts of the children of men."
I bear further witness to the truth of the Savior's prediction that at the time of his coming "they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived - shall abide the day.
"And the earth shall be given unto them for an inheritance;
"For the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver."
That we may take the Holy Spirit for our guide, recognize Satan, his representatives and their works, and not be deceived by them, to the end that we may be partakers of the promised blessings, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters, I am in complete harmony with every word that Elder Romney has just said to us, and with that which was said in the meeting this morning by our prophet leader, and by those who followed him in speaking the truth of the everlasting gospel.
I desire now to speak, if I may, for a few minutes of a matter that concerns each and every one of us. This is a simple subject but it is one that bears our watching.
When Solomon declared: "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city", he knew that individual spiritual development cannot be realized without self-discipline.
Someone has said, "The size of a man may be measured by the size of the things that make him angry." How true that is! To become upset and infuriated over trivial matters gives evidence of childishness and immaturity in a person.
We are constantly exposed to irritations as we mingle with others-and even when we are alone. How we react to these irritations is a reflection of our personalities and temperaments. It would seem reasonable to believe that in order to develop a healthy, pleasing personality and to become useful and an influence for good, one must avoid being easily provoked to anger. Not only would we show, thereby, more maturity, but we would also be able to resolve disturbing situations more intelligently, because seldom, if ever, is any good accomplished while persons are in a rage. Anger does not contribute to good. It is a destroyer, not a builder.
Not only does intemperate anger affect us physically and mentally, in a negative way, but at the same time it also destroys wisdom and sound judgment. When we become upset, reason is suppressed, and anger rushes in. To make decisions while infuriated is as unwise and foolish as it is for a captain to put out to sea in a raging storm. Only injury and wreckage result from wrathful moments.
When anger rules, tempered judgment flees. Actually, the person who is composed has a distinct advantage over one who is angered. Somewhere I read this statement: "When one is in the right, he need not lose his temper; and when he is wrong, he cannot afford to."
Ungoverned anger is seen too often in daily life. President Spencer W. Kimball, in his excellent book The Miracle of Forgiveness, tells us in effect that anger is "a sin of thought" which, if not controlled, may be the forerunner of vicious and violent acts.
Anger against things is senseless indeed!
Because a wrench slips and we bruise our hand is no reason for throwing the wrench halfway across a wheat field. Having a flat tire on a busy downtown street will not be remedied by a tirade of words.
Anger against things is bad enough, but when it is directed against people and it flares up with white-hot fury and caustic words, we have the makings of tragedy! For example, let some selfish driver cut in too close in front of another car as he passes, and then let the offended driver fail to reduce his speed and angrily "tailgate," or do something else "to get even"; then a tragedy is in the making.
Even in our families, situations may arise that could cause irritations. It is then that parents must be calm and exemplary. The man with an uncontrolled temper is like an undisciplined child-he expresses his emotions explosively or by sulking, and disregards the feelings of those about him. In the home, anger should be controlled and love should abound. When, in his most impressionable years, a child experiences ugly situations that result from uncontrolled tempers, when he hears unkind words exchanged between his father and mother, and when he sees contention crowd out an atmosphere of kindness and mutual respect-when these conditions make a child's environment, what chance has he to become refined and noble? The minds of children are like the sensitive plates of a photographer; they record every incident, good and bad. Our children may forget what is said, but they never forget that which they are made to feel.
Someone has said:
The words of President Brigham Young ring out to us. In regard to this, he said, in appealing to husbands and fathers on behalf of their wives and children: "Cease your anger, and sullenness of temper. Do not get so angry that you cannot pray. "
And I think I have read somewhere where he also said, If you don't feel like praying together, get on your knees and pray until you do feel like it. I believe that is good counsel.
A few years ago, President David O. McKay made this appeal to fathers and mothers: "Never set an improper example before them. Never let them hear a cross word. You should control yourself! He is a weak man who flies into a passion whatever he may be doing. "
Frustrations often offer us the means of progression, for by overcoming them harmoniously, we grow and become more Christlike.
As with most all strong emotions, anger is manifest both in righteousness and in unrighteousness. Righteous anger is an attribute of Deity, whose anger is everlastingly kindled against wickedness.
Likewise, an inspired man might be led to speak or act in righteous anger, as did Moses when he broke the tablets upon which the Ten Commandments were written by the Lord.
But to lose our temper, to explode, to become ugly, punitive, and hateful when faced with frustrations is inexcusable!
Why is it inexcusable to explode with anger and become vindictive? Simply because the power has been given us to control and to overcome such tendencies. If not curbed, such tendencies soon lose for us the respect and love of others.
Jesus set the example in personal conduct regarding anger when, although he had been falsely accused and made the subject of railings and mockery, he stood majestically and completely composed before the perplexed Pontius Pilate. He did not retaliate in anger. Rather, he stood erect, poised, unmoved. His conduct was divine. What an example for all of us!
Listen to these marvelous words of the Savior, the master teacher:
"Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
"But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."
I agree that this is not naturally easy to do, but, my brothers and sisters, we must each conscientiously work at it if we are to achieve our purposes in life.
If we will do this, we will be more greatly blessed as individuals and our homes will reflect the sweet spirit of love and harmony and peace. To this I testify, and pray for the help of the Lord in bringing this about, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
" and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." So said the Lord to Peter as he prepared himself and his apostles for his great sacrifice. This statement might have startled Peter. Certainly it pricked him, for he said, "Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death." Then the Lord told Peter that "the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me."
Mark records that Peter's vehement declaration of devotion was echoed by the remainder of the apostles in these words: "Likewise also said they all." Yet when the moment came and a maid accused Peter of being a disciple, he denied the acquaintance. The remaining ten, likewise, despite their own declarations, did not do as they had declared they would do.
Peter had been in the whole service of the Lord for three years. He had seen but did not seem to realize what the Lord meant by "when thou art converted."
From now on things were to be different. There would be a crucifixion, one of the most painful methods of execution ever devised by men and one which also tore at the vital emotions of any who witnessed such a death. There would be a resurrection-the first ever to occur on this earth-and from it a resurgence of joy and hope. The Lord would depart. He would leave his work in the hands of the eleven who had been constantly with him-men who had listened for three years to him, had not quite understood what he meant, had seen him executed, and had touched with their hands his risen body, and even yet they would not know what it was to be converted until the Holy Ghost visited them and touched their souls with living fire.
We see what it means to be converted in the inspired acts of Peter on the day of Pentecost, as compared to his wavering denials on the night of the arrest of the Lord. The man who stood forth on Pentecost was not the same man who had fearfully protested he "knew not the man." The Paul who after his baptism and reception of the Holy Ghost boldly declared the truth to Agrippa was a completely changed man from the man who was going toward Damascus, seeking out Christians to destroy them.
Peter believed and denied. Peter was converted and became a rock against which the power of Satan was impotent. He became determined, fearless, pushed by an inward power strong and true. Paul persecuted because of disbelief, thinking that he did God's service. Paul was converted and became like Peter.
Conversion brings strength, determination to defend the work of the Lord on earth and to expand it. This conversion comes when one receives the baptism of fire, the witness of the Holy Ghost.
And now the keys of it all, given to Peter before, would have for him their true meaning. From now he would bear the burden, the full responsibility, to carry forth the work of the Lord to all the world. He would have to direct the others of the Twelve and the work of the ministry both to the gentiles and in the organized branches.
All eleven had been given the Comforter-which up until now they had not yet experienced-by which they were to teach all things, by which all things would be revealed, and without which they should not teach.
The burden of teaching the world was theirs! What did they know about the world? its extent? its bounds? They knew of Rome, but only in name. They had heard of Athens and Alexandria. They had better knowledge of Damascus and Tyre, of Ephesus and Sidon. But surely the world of India or of China or of Indonesia, the immensity of the African continent or even of Europe were not even imagined. They knew Ethiopia by legend. By and large "the world" was nebulous in their minds.
Yet bravely they set forth. The Spirit whispered, and each one, newly attuned, felt to go to a place, be it Athens, Ephesus, or Rome. From there the whispering directed each one to still another place. And to another-until they must have encompassed most of the known world of their day. We know of Paul's travels because someone wrote of them and because fourteen of his letters have been preserved. But where the others went is mostly tradition.
Today things are different. These are the last days. Today we know the field. We know the location of every nation on earth. We know the means by which we may reach each land. We know what to expect from climate and from other natural forces, and we have the means to go to each place.
The eleven apostles witnessed that they saw the Lord ascend; Joseph Smith witnessed that he saw the Lord descend, and more, for he saw the Father standing with his beloved and exalted Son.
Yesteryear we read of the visit of an angel to John on Patmos, but today we read of the visits of many angels-of Moroni, of John the Baptist, of Peter and James and John, and of Moses and Elias and Elijah-each one declaring his keys and passing them to Joseph Smith.
We see with our own eyes the beginning of the fulfillment of many ancient prophecies and the complete fulfillment of others.
We know how to go out to teach. We know how to find people and how to cultivate their interest. We know how to apply sound teaching methods. All we need to do now is for each of us to become converted, to arise and go forth in the power of our knowledge and by the Spirit. Truly the admonition of the Lord to Peter, "and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren," is happening today. As the Holy Ghost descended upon Peter and his associates at Pentecost, so has this divine gift been given freely to us. We have had, ever since 1830, the power of the Holy Ghost guiding and strengthening our leaders and loyal members. The gospel has been carried through the fervent witness of untiring missionaries and members until we now have organized units of the Church in more than two-thirds of the countries throughout the world, but there are uncounted millions yet to hear.
From 1830 to 1846 whole families were involved in the work. They warned their neighbors; they were all involved. A father left home every spare minute and went out teaching and preaching. The children at home were a part of it, for they had to work hard to make up for their father's absence.
After 1846, when the Saints moved to the mountain valleys of Utah, families were not so much engaged. While fathers sometimes went, more often the sons went, until in the twentieth century the sons were carrying the actual travel burden. During the same time families began to feel that their part was to support a missionary, not to go out to teach or proselyte or make friends.
Now with correlation established, we have returned to the original premise. Families are involved. Father, mother, and children unite in the grand and noble effort to seek out those who may be persuaded to listen. And with their effort will come the strengthening by which Peter was admonished to perform. As they seek those to whom they preach, they themselves will be strengthened and in their turn will convert and strengthen other brethren until the happy day that all men see the glory of the Son of God and witness the fulfillment of his word that the gospel should roll forth until it has filled all the earth.
The seventies of the Church are called by revelation to this work, and the detail of that work is by appointment so that the work may be orderly. In each ward the seventies mission leader is to plan the work and supervise its execution under the bishop's direction. The home teachers bear a most important responsibility to persuade every family of Latter-day Saints to make friends with their nonmember neighbors and to persuade these to accept the missionaries. The methods are many, but the gospel is to save the souls of men. Become converted, my brethren; go perform. You have the spirit; do it.
I look at the First Presidency and the Twelve, who direct us. I see in their actions the result of their conversion, and witness to you that they stand in their places as did Peter, filled and inspired by the Holy Ghost. They are the leaders appointed by the Lord in this day. Let us follow their guidance and by our own conversion in our turn strengthen our brethren.
I know, too, that Jesus Christ the Lord leads this latter-day work and that he lives. This is his restored gospel; I testify to it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Milton R. Hunter
Of the First Council of the Seventy
We still hear the voice of Jehovah as it thundered down from Mount Sinai, commanding, "Thou shalt not commit adultery." For over three thousand years this commandment has reverberated throughout the Hebrew and Christian world. It has been the guideline by which millions of people have patterned their lives.
Many people throughout the Church and, generally speaking, throughout the world have now abandoned the anciently cherished Hebraic-Christian moral standard of chastity. Frequently married people commit adultery and single people indulge their passions in acts of fornication. The results are unhappiness, the loss of love, breaking up of homes and destroying of family life, increase in the number of divorces, shame, loss of spirituality, apostasy, and eventually loss of eternal salvation.
Let us cite only a few of the numerous cases that have come to my personal attention recently. A few months ago a mother of five children came to my office. She wept bitterly as she told me that her husband had spent most of his time during the past year with another man's wife. She explained that on a number of occasions she followed him in her car to the other woman's place. Naturally, the sinful husband was miserable, the wife was very sorrowful, and the children were brokenhearted. " wickedness never was happiness."
About a year ago a young man came to my office and wept as if his heart would break. He said, "I committed adultery about two years ago. The sin is causing me such mental anguish that I cannot bear it any longer. If I must be excommunicated, please have the Church take action soon. My suffering is beyond description. I want to do what I can to pay for that terrible sin."
Cases could be multiplied. But these two examples should be enough to illustrate the gravity of the sin of adultery.
We are living today in a very permissive society. Having abandoned the ancient Christian morality, many people claim to accept a new morality, which in reality is to live contrary to the laws of chastity as proclaimed by God. We are living in a day when a sexual revolution is being proclaimed. Enticements to illicit behavior are found everywhere. Day by day a flood of them is growing worse in novels, magazines, movies, TV, and advertising.
Many religious leaders have ceased teaching that sin exists. Where are the Christian ministers who stir their audiences with sermons on chastity; who proclaim condemnations of adultery and of all manners of immoral acts? Some ministers and religious teachers have become converted to modern permissive thinking and even have become advocators of it.
On May 17, 1970, certain newspapers reported that several prominent Christian ministers had completed a three-year study on a proposed new sex code for a prominent Christian church. Although that church is absolutely against adultery, such liberalized statements on moral behavior appear in the report of a committee as follows:
"We recognize that there may be exceptional circumstances where extra-marital activity may not be contrary to the interests of a faithful concern for the well-being of the marriage partner.
" the difficult decision must be made 'by and on the responsibility of the person taking the exception.' But a principal point is that the final judge is not the Bible or the church or even God-it is the individual and his or her conscience."
The new permissiveness, or new morality, as it is often called, is nothing more than ancient immorality dressed in new clothing. In ancient times, the people worshiped fertility gods and goddesses. Many of their ceremonies were centered in gross immorality against which Israel's prophets denounced continuously.
In the days of Noah, practically all flesh became corrupted by immorality. The result was that God destroyed the world with a flood.
The Bible contains excellent examples of men who otherwise would have been great. But when they broke the law of chastity it broke them. For example, Samson, a man of powerful physical strength, with an uncontrollable lust for women, was betrayed by Delilah and finally committed suicide while in chains of bondage to the Philistines. God blessed Solomon with great wisdom; nevertheless, he debauched his life with numerous concubines.
David, whom the Lord loved and who is regarded by many people as Israel's greatest king, spent the latter part of his life in brokenhearted sorrow over his sin against Uriah and his adultery with Bathsheba. His deep feelings were expressed in one of the most pitiful prayers in the holy scriptures:
"Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy loving kindness:
"Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
"For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me."
Having an understanding of the plan of salvation and a thorough knowledge of the seriousness of the gross sins of adultery and murder which he had committed, King David in anguish cried out unto the Lord: " thou wilt not leave my soul in hell."
More than two thousand years after King David's death and only 127 years ago, Jesus Christ spoke from heaven and informed us that because of David's sin against him in the case of Uriah and his wife, David "hath fallen from his exaltation" and his wives have been given to another.
Perhaps the most famous Bible example of a stalwart and noble man who was tempted but retained his chastity was Joseph, the young, handsome servant of Potiphar, the Egyptian ruler. He resisted the vile allurements of Potiphar's wife, refusing to commit adultery with her. Joseph's reply was: " how can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? " And then he fled from her presence.
Rather than betray his ideals, he went to jail, where he was confined in a dungeon for several years.
God, the Eternal Father, through Jesus Christ, has revealed to mankind a gospel plan of salvation. Its purpose is to give all who will accept and obey it peace and happiness in this world and eventually eternal life in the presence of God in celestial glory. The greatest of all laws in this gospel plan pertains to marriage for life and eternity. Thus it pertains to the family eternal. The sweetest joys and greatest blessings that can be gained in mortality and in the life to come are attained through family life lived in accordance with the gospel plan.
Thus, a basic law in marriage is the law of chastity. Men and women cannot defile the fountain of life and reap a fullness of joy. Happiness and purity of heart and mind go hand in hand.
What are some of the rewards for chastity and some of the terrible results of adultery?
The Book of Mormon is very explicit regarding the seriousness of sex immorality. Alma's son Corianton committed sin with the harlot Isabel. Alma, being a good father and a great prophet of God, declared unto his son:
"Know ye not, my son, that these things are an abomination in the sight of the Lord; yea, most abominable above all sins save it be the shedding of innocent blood or denying the Holy Ghost?
"Now my son, I would that ye should repent and forsake your sins, for except ye do this ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God."
Throughout the ages the prophets of God have proclaimed that no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of God.
Jesus Christ while in mortality vigorously taught the law of chastity. He said: "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
"But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."
Jesus also declared: "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God."
Nearly two thousand years have passed since Alma and Jesus gave their teachings on chastity. Has God withdrawn the laws relative to chastity? Isn't it a sin to commit adultery today?
Jesus Christ has spoken from heaven in our day and restored his gospel and church. He has reconfirmed the age-old commandment in several different revelations of "Thou shalt not commit adultery."
For example, to the people of his church, through the Prophet Joseph Smith, Jesus Christ gave the following commandment:
"Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else.
"And he that looketh upon a woman to lust after her shall deny the faith, and shall not have the Spirit; and if he repents not he shall be cast out."
Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon were shown the fate of adulterers after death in the world to come in telestial glory. The Lord told them:
"These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers.
"These are they who are cast down to hell to suffer the wrath of the Almighty God. "
The Lord commanded the priesthood holders in our dispensation as follows:
" let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
"The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth. "
May we think clean thoughts and refrain from all impure actions, living by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God. Then shall we have joy in this life and prepare to come back into the presence of the Lord to be crowned with glory and eternal life.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters; as a text for my remarks I would like to quote an interesting line from Ecclesiastes in which the wise man Solomon said, "My heart had great experience."
Certainly the most successful lives are those that have the most worthwhile experiences. The religion of Christ itself is not so much a set of ideas as it is a set of activities. The purpose of the Church is to help us translate the principles of the gospel of Christ into constructive, meaningful human experience. And everyone should work toward this end by a daily practice of thinking some uplifting thoughts, listening to some fine music, reading some stimulating literature, doing some good deeds, and having some great experiences every day.
Because we draw so much from the rebellion, weakness, and evil with which we are surrounded, we tend to load ourselves up too heavily with guilt complexes, mental problems, insecurity, and mediocrity. I recently heard of a man who compounded the problem by hoarding his mistakes. He often referred to the fact that his D.F.T. drawer was the largest file in his office. Someone once asked him what these file letters stood for, and he said they identified a collection of the damn fool things that he had done. Most of us are not bad people-we just let our D.F.T. files get too large.
The scriptures themselves make almost as many references to fools as to sinners. And if we were trying to make the most effective application of Solomon's text, we might take the positive approach and make a written collection of our experiences-not just those that we have had in the past, but those that we plan to have in the future. For whenever excellence is recounted, it is increased.
Recently a group of bishops were asked for a report on their work. They were told not to discuss their problems, but to describe what they did better than anyone else. This philosophy of excellence was demonstrated by the artist Whistler, who once painted a tiny picture of a spray of roses. The artistry involved was magnificent. Never before, it seemed, had the art of man been able to execute quite so deftly a reproduction of the art of nature. The picture was the envy of the artists who saw it, the despair of the collectors who yearned to buy it for their collections, but Whistler refused steadfastly to sell it.
"For," said he, "whenever I feel that my hand has lost its cunning, whenever I doubt my ability, I look at the little picture of the spray of roses and say to myself, 'Whistler, you painted that. Your hand drew it. Your imagination conceived the colors. Your skill put the roses on the canvas.' Then," he said, "I know that what I have done I can do again."
Then he gave us a great philosophy of success. He said, "Hang on the walls of your mind the memory of your successes. Take counsel of your strength, not your weakness. Think of the good jobs you have done. Think of the times when you rose above your average level of performance and carried out an idea or a dream or a desire for which you had deeply longed. Hang these pictures on the walls of your mind and look at them as you travel the roadway of life."
Now I am not going to burden you this afternoon with the contents of my D.F.T. file, but I would like to tell you about some of my great experiences. Great experience number one is that I managed to get myself born, and I have been very pleased about that ever since.
Henry Thoreau, an early American philosopher, once said that we should thank God every day of our lives for the privilege of having been born. And then he went on to speculate on the rather unique supposition of what it might have been like if we had not been born. Just suppose that you had never been born or that your parents had never been born. Think of all of the excitement and opportunities you would have missed as a consequence. What Mr. Thoreau may not have known was that one-third of all of the children of God never were born and never can be born because they failed to pass the requirements of their first estate. And yet, every spirit child of God hungers for a body. We remember the unembodied spirits who appeared to Jesus in his day who preferred to have the bodies of swine rather than not to have any bodies at all.
In my own case, I didn't find out that I had been born until quite a long time after it happened. And I am still finding out many important things about the good fortunes of my birth. I eventually discovered that I had inherited two parents who were very interested in my welfare. And I am very glad that they were not members of this modern breed of abortionists who are followers of King Herod in his program of slaughtering the innocents. My parents were pretty poor in material things, but I have discovered that even a little adversity can have many advantages. The poet helps us with this idea when he says,
-Author unknown
One of my great delights in being born was to find that I had been born an American. I am very grateful that God raised up wise men to establish this nation upon Christian principles and that he provided our founding fathers to stand in the forefront of our civilization to give our nation its start toward its destiny.
One of my greatest experiences was that my parents taught me the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Someone has said:
Eight years after I was born, I learned something about the great principle of repentance by which we can clear out our D.F.T. files and be born again. And so, on August 27, 1911, I was born of the water and of the Spirit in the exact manner prescribed by the Savior of the world. I became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had the gift of the Holy Ghost officially conferred upon me.
Then I had another great experience. I discovered that I could be reborn as many times as I desired, and that each time I could be reborn better. Phillip Brooks was once asked when he was born and he said, "It was one Sunday afternoon when I was twenty-five years old, just after I had finished reading a great book." Saul of Tarsus was reborn on the Damascus road. Joseph Smith was born again after reading a great scripture.
In 1932, Walter Pitkin wrote his book Life Begins at Forty, but that is ridiculous. Life begins every morning. Life begins when we begin. And our real lives begin when we determine to live by every word of the Lord.
I had another great experience when I was nine years old. In sacrament meeting one Sunday someone mentioned an article in the Improvement Era that had been written by President Heber J. Grant. And while I didn't understand all about it, I was impressed that it was very important. And I thought what a great experience it would be if I could get possession of this magazine so I could go over it as many times as necessary for me to thoroughly understand it. Finally I took my small savings and subscribed to this great magazine. I don't read as many good things as I should now, but back in those cow-herding days I had a little more free time and I read every article, including every advertisement in each issue. And sometimes I went over some of them many times. And I was born again each time a new issue was published.
Later I was married to a wonderful wife in the temple of the Lord, and our family is sealed together for time and for all eternity. I have in my possession a Holy Bible, and I have run each of its teachings through my mind many times. I also have three great volumes of new scripture, outlining in every detail the simple principles of the gospel of Christ. And each is attested by a "thus saith the Lord." And I was born again when I firmly resolved to live every one of these important precepts of salvation.
Through my occupation I have had some part in helping to carry forward the work of the world. But I have also had a part in helping to carry forward the work of the Lord, and I may have as much of a part as I desire in that great enterprise in which God himself spends his entire time.
I am presently in possession of the world's most valuable information. I know that God lives, that we were created in his image, and that by obeying the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the offspring of God may eventually hope to become like their eternal parents.
But all of my great experiences are not in the past. Branch Rickey, the great baseball manager, was once asked to describe his greatest day in baseball. He said, "I can't because I haven't had it yet." And most of our greatest experiences are yet ahead of us. One of them will be the glorious second coming of Jesus Christ, when with his mighty angels in flaming fire he will come to cleanse the earth of its sins and to inaugurate the millennial reign upon this earth. Every one of us will have a literal bodily resurrection, and what a great experience that will be! Charles F. Kettering, the mechanical wizard of General Motors, once said, "My interest is in the future, because I am going to spend the rest of my life there."
And my wish for each one of you is that you may spend your eternal life in the celestial kingdom of God. Then you may say, "My heart hath had its greatest experience." And that it may be so, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, I feel it both a privilege and a blessing to be present at this inspirational conference, and I know that the answers to many of today's problems are to be found in the messages being given by our leaders.
Regardless of the difficulties existing in the world today, we as a people must recognize that we have been blessed abundantly with the resources of this world; yet we know that whatever we have is the Lord's and that he has blessed us with these things to see how we will use them.
I think it might be said, Life is God's greatest gift to man, and what we do with our life is our gift to God.
President Brigham Young, in referring to making our life a gift to God, had this to say: "Our religion is worth everything to us and for it we should be willing to employ our time, our talent, our means, our energies, our lives."
And, "If we do right, there will be an eternal increase among this people in talent, strength and intellect, and earthly wealth, from this time, henceforth, and forever."
"No blessing that is sealed upon us will do us any good unless we live for it."
It is interesting to note that here, as elsewhere in the scriptures, promises of earthly wealth and increased talents are made to those who live the gospel principles, and counsel is given to use our talents and wealth for the building of the kingdom. Many scriptures, however, contain words of admonition regarding temptations brought about through the acquisition of wealth and its use for unrighteous purposes.
The great apostle Paul, in writing to his beloved associate Timothy, told him that "the love of money is the root of all evil," and to "charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute. "
Throughout the history of the Church its leaders have taught the value of the principles of work, industry, and thrift; and as they have been practiced, Church members have prospered in numerous ways. Likewise, members have been counseled to establish and maintain their economic independence, and employment-creating industries have been encouraged.
In furtherance of these teachings, every man who has property and means should live so as to obtain wisdom to know how to use them in the best possible way to produce the greatest amount of good for himself, for his family, for his fellowmen, and for the kingdom of God.
Again quoting from President Young: "When this people are prepared to properly use the riches of this world for the building up of the Kingdom of God, He is ready and willing to bestow them upon us. I like to see men get rich by their industry, prudence, management and economy, and then devote it to the building up of the Kingdom of God upon the earth."
Andrew Carnegie, one of this country's great philanthropists, stated his attitude toward wealth as follows: "This, then, is held to be the duty of the man of wealth: First, to set an example of modesty, unostentatious living, shunning display or extravagance; to provide moderately for the legitimate wants of those dependent upon him; and after doing so to consider all surplus revenues which come to him simply as trust funds, which he is called upon to administer, and strictly bound as a matter of duty to administer in the manner which, in his judgment, is best calculated to produce the most beneficial results for the community-the man of wealth thus becoming the mere trustee and agent for his poorer brethren, bringing to their service his superior wisdom, experience, and ability to administer, doing for them better than they would or could do for themselves."
With this philosophy of wealth in mind, one might properly say, "What I am worth is what I am doing for other people."
In many respects the real test of a man is his attitude toward his earthly possessions.
In line with this thinking, our business, then, should be to build the kingdom of God. Many of us have said, in our more generous and unselfish moments, "If I only had the wealth, I would build a beautiful church, provide a school for underprivileged children, supply a hospital where it is needed, etc."
Probably few of us will have the great wealth needed to do any of these things by ourselves; nevertheless, each of us, as we have the desire, can have a share in such wonderful projects by our contributions, including the payment of our tithes and offerings.
Throughout the ages the Lord has commanded his people to remember the needy and to pay tithes and offerings for the purpose of building the kingdom.
In this dispensation the Lord has revealed to us that "it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people." I think it should be noted that a very substantial number are today honestly meeting this requirement. Yet, on the other hand, many are negligent in the payment of their tithes and offerings.
The Lord has said: "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."
Tithes are sacred funds, and the Lord in this dispensation has revealed that tithing "shall be disposed of by a council, composed of the First Presidency of my Church, and of the bishop and his council, and by mine own voice unto them, saith the Lord."
With the accelerated growth of the Church throughout the world, more and more buildings and facilities are required-chapels, schools, seminaries, temples, hospitals, mission homes, visitors centers, and many other buildings.
Not only does the construction of these new church facilities require the expenditure of large sums of capital, but the operation and maintenance of these buildings become heavy financial responsibilities.
The Church is designed to take care of the spiritual and temporal needs of its members, both living and dead; and the pattern encompasses programs such as educational, missionary, welfare, auxiliary, social services, genealogical, and many others. These programs functioning on a worldwide basis likewise require great financial assistance.
We have been looking to this day for more than one hundred years, and I am sure that as we keep the commandments of the Lord, he will open up the way whereby we can meet the financial obligations relative to the growth and development of the Church, as well as our own responsibilities.
The apostle Paul, in writing to the Corinthian Saints, told them that "he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
"Let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."
In this dispensation the Lord has said, "Thou shalt not covet thine own property, but impart it freely."
As we consider ourselves trustees of wealth for the benefit of God's children, we should not worship property, whether it be of great or small value. If we are guilty of worshiping property, then we have need to repent and straighten out our values.
A person who places the wealth of this world in the scales against the things of God evidences little understanding of eternal values.
We talk about making sacrifices to build the kingdom of God, but the word to me is a misnomer-to be able to participate in building the kingdom is a great privilege and blessing.
Recently I dedicated a beautiful little chapel, and at that time I was told that in order to pay the balance of the ward's share of the construction cost, the bishop had asked all members to limit Christmas presents to small children and to donate the amount thus saved to the building fund. The members responded beautifully, considering this an opportunity to receive a blessing rather than as a sacrifice, and at the dedicatory service many bore witness to this effect.
As long as one is honest with the Lord, the amount paid is not material. The widow's or child's mite is as important and acceptable as the rich man's offerings. When men, women, and children are honest with God and pay their tithes and offerings, the Lord gives them wisdom whereby they can do as much or more with the remainder than they could if they had not been honest with the Lord. Many times they are blessed and prospered in various ways-spiritually, physically, and mentally, as well as materially. I bear my witness to you that this is true, and I am sure that many of you can bear such a testimony.
Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive."
What are riches for, then? To be used in doing good. Therefore, let us dedicate our means to the building of the kingdom of God. Let us this day resolve to be honest with the Lord in the payment of our tithes and offerings.
I know that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior and Redeemer, and this is far more important than earthly riches.
And I know that the gospel in its fullness has been restored in this dispensation through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and that there is a living prophet at the head of the Church today, President Joseph Fielding Smith. This is likewise of more value than any amount of earthly wealth.
However, a testimony alone will not save us. It is the keeping of the commandments of God-living the life of a true Latter-day Saint. It is important, then, to appreciate that the gospel has to be lived in order to be fully realized and its power received.
Therefore, let us dispense the means which the Lord has given us to enrich the lives of others who are less fortunate than we are and to build the kingdom of God, that we may make of our life a good gift to God, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
Three great civilizations have occupied the Western Hemisphere. Two have passed into oblivion.
Those that disappeared died by virtual suicide. They brought about their own extinction as they defiled the land and defied their God by extensive crime, sexual deviation, and other loathsome sins of almost every kind.
Now our modern nations have succeeded them in the occupancy of this hemisphere. Much of the corruption which is common among us today resembles in striking detail the degradation that afflicted them.
In most of the Americas, for example, we have an advancing crime rate which is staggering, to say the least, reaching an annual cost to the public of more than 40 billion dollars in the United States alone.
Our moral collapse is appalling, but surprisingly, many attempt to justify it. Within recent weeks one of the highest officials of a leading Christian denomination publicly announced that he favors premarital relationships between young people, and his speech was carried internationally by the Associated Press.
Because of promiscuity, the dreaded social diseases have reached the epidemic stage. One health official said that actually they have surpassed epidemic proportions, and he called the condition a plague. These social diseases now affect more people than any communicable disease except the common cold.
In one of our best known western cities health officials estimate that one in every ten persons between the ages of fourteen and twenty-five has a venereal disease. It is almost unbelievable.
The International Herald Tribune recently said that easy abortion has now removed the stigma from immorality, making free sex even freer still.
Our inconsistency in the present situation is frightening.
While millions accept promiscuity as a new way of life and excuse adultery even though it wrecks marriages and breaks up homes, at the same time we make it illegal to offer a prayer in some of our public places.
While we teach sex in schools and publicly portray the vilest of filth on the movie screen, we virtually make a criminal of a schoolteacher who would bring a Bible into the classroom or who might ask the students to recite the Lord's Prayer. So far have we lost our sense of values!
Some Americans protest reference to the Almighty in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag, while others would eliminate "In God We Trust" from our coins.
Church attendance in most denominations is falling off at a rapid rate. Bible sales are down 25 percent, and some members of the clergy have lost their faith.
The Almighty provided that we should observe a sacred Sabbath each week. We have flouted this law to his face, and most of us have turned his holy day into one of pleasure or of "business as usual," and yet the Sabbath was given as a symbol of allegiance to our Creator.
How true it is that "first we pity, then endure, then embrace" the repeated and relentless incursions of iniquity.
Are we caught in a tidal wave of atheism and its accompanying corruption?
Are we any better than the civilizations which preceded us here and which were swept away because of iniquity?
Those civilizations were taught a stern lesson pertaining to their occupancy of this hemisphere.
They were told that this is a land of special significance to the Almighty and that only those nations which serve God may remain here.
We of today must heed this warning if we ourselves are to survive.
We do not say that sin in other parts of the world is less reprehensible or to be excused in the least degree, for sin is always sin regardless of the philosophies of men and no matter where it appears.
But in this hemisphere a different situation exists. God has dedicated this land to the work of his Beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will not tolerate continued desecration of it.
In so reserving this land for his divine purpose, he decreed "that whoso should possess this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true and only God, or they should be swept off when the fulness of his wrath should come upon them."
In plain, blunt words, then, we are told that whatever nations occupy this land must serve God or die!
The great men of modern America have given us similar warnings, peculiarly enough.
A generation ago, Roger Babson, at that time one of our leading economists, said: "Only religion can prevent democratic rule from developing into mob rule. A nation can prosper only as its citizens are religious, intelligent, capable of service and eager to render it." And then this great man said, and it is something to which we should give careful attention, "Every great panic we have ever had has been foreshadowed by a general decline in observance of religious principles."
Abraham Lincoln told the people of his day that America "need fear no danger from without. If danger were ever to threaten the United States, it will come from within. 'As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide. '"
Then the great emancipator added this:
"We have grown in numbers, wealth and power. But we have forgotten God. It behooves us then to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness."
It was George Washington, our first president, who said: " we ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained. "
One of the most stern of all warnings came from the great statesman Daniel Webster when he said: "If we and our posterity reject religious instruction and authority, violate the rules of eternal justice, trifle with the injunctions of morality and recklessly destroy the political constitution which holds us together, no one can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us, that shall bury all our glory in profound obscurity."
God has revealed that in the last days he would warn the people through the voice of tempests, earthquakes, and seas heaving themselves beyond their bounds. Do we hear his voice now and recognize it?
When an estimated half million people are stricken in one hurricane in Pakistan, when one hundred thousand are left homeless in a single quake in Chile, and when these two disasters come within a few weeks of each other, can we ignore the warnings which they give?
When two devastating hurricanes wipe out entire communities in Mississippi within a few months of each other, when oft-repeated earthquakes strike Los Angeles with death and a half-billion-dollar devastation, do we hear in them the voice of God as a fair warning to the rest of us?
Can we relax and feel at ease because we take out insurance against earthquakes, fire, and storm damage?
Can an insurance policy prevent a hurricane or stay an earthquake?
Who can control such awesome forces?
Who is the God of nature?
Who stood in a storm-tossed boat with a group of frightened fishermen and rebuked the storm by simply saying "Peace be still," and the wind abated and there came a great calm?
The extinct civilizations of the past now speak to us out of the dust of the ages, giving warning against the same conditions which brought them down to oblivion.
Listen to what they say!
The ancient prophets who lived in America among those destroyed civilizations saw us of today through the eye of revelation. They referred to us as gentiles, and one of these prophets said: " O ye Gentiles, how can ye stand before the power of God, except ye shall repent and turn from your evil ways?
"Know ye not that ye are in the hands of God? Know ye not that he hath all power, and at his great command the earth shall be rolled together as a scroll?
"Therefore, repent ye, and humble yourselves before him, lest he shall come out in justice against you. "
Another ancient American prophet, long since dead and now speaking to us out of the dust, said:
" behold, this is a land which is choice above all other lands; wherefore he that doth possess it shall serve God or shall be swept off; for it is the everlasting decree of God. And it is not until the fulness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are swept off.
"And this cometh unto you, O ye Gentiles, that ye may know the decrees of God-that ye may repent, and not continue in your iniquities until the fulness come, that ye may not bring down the fulness of the wrath of God upon you as the inhabitants of the land have hitherto done."
An ancient prophet named Mormon, who lived here in America fifteen hundred years ago, said: "Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.
"And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts; and there are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities. "
There are many people on this Western Hemisphere who have in their veins the blood of some of the tribes of Israel. To them this prophet said: "Know ye that ye are of the house of Israel.
"Know ye that ye must come unto repentance, or ye cannot be saved.
"Know ye that ye must come to the knowledge of your fathers, and repent of all your sins and iniquities, and believe in Jesus Christ, that he is the Son of God. "
And then we have this, also pertaining to us who live today, and coming from another ancient American prophet who speaks out of the dust to us today: " these things doth the Spirit manifest unto me; therefore I write unto you all. And for this cause I write unto you, that ye may know that ye must all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, yea, every soul who belongs to the whole human family of Adam; and ye must stand to be judged of your works, whether they be good or evil;
"And also that ye may believe the gospel of Jesus Christ, which ye shall have among you. "
And finally, one of the greatest of all the prophets who lived in ancient America spoke this to you and to me who live today:
"I exhort you to remember these things; for the time speedily cometh that ye shall know that I lie not, for ye shall see me at the bar of God; and the Lord God will say unto you: Did I not declare my words unto you, which were written by this man, like as one crying from the dead, yea, even as one speaking out of the dust?
"And God shall show unto you, that that which I have written is true.
"And again I would exhort you that ye would come unto Christ, and lay hold upon every good gift, and touch not the evil gift, nor the unclean thing."
If the modern nations of the Americas will repent and serve the Lord, great blessings will be theirs, for the prophet has said: " this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ. "
How long will the Almighty be patient as we ignore or defy him?
Shall we comfort ourselves by accepting the philosophy which says that there is no God, that the Bible is but a myth, that the Book of Mormon is not true, and that therefore repentance is unnecessary?
We testify to you that God does live, that he is the eternal judge of all mankind, and that each one of us must face the record of our own deeds on his judgment day.
Jesus Christ does live. He is the God of this land. It is his gospel, and only his gospel, which can save us from destruction.
God grant that we may awaken to our plight and change our course while there is yet time, is my humble prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
My dear brethren of the priesthood:
I greet you tonight as fellow citizens in the household of faith, as brethren in the kingdom of God, as holders of the holy priesthood; and I invite you to join with me in considering some of the grave responsibilities which rest upon us because we hold the Lord's divine authority.
We are the Lord's agents; we represent him; he has given us authority which empowers us to do all that is necessary to save and exalt ourselves as well as his other children in the world.
We are ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our commission is to represent him. We are directed to preach his gospel, to perform the ordinances of salvation, to bless mankind, to heal the sick and perhaps perform miracles, to do what he would do if he were personally present-and all this because we hold the holy priesthood.
As the Lord's agents we are bound by his law to do what he wants us to do regardless of personal feelings or worldly enticements. Of ourselves we have no message of salvation, no doctrine that must be accepted, no power to baptize or ordain or marry for eternity. All these things come from the Lord, and anything we do with reference to them is the result of delegated authority.
When we join the Church and receive the priesthood, we are expected to forsake many of the ways of the world and live as becometh saints. We are no longer to dress or speak or act or even think as others too often do. Many in the world use tea, coffee, tobacco, and liquor, and are involved in the use of drugs. Many profane and are vulgar and indecent, immoral and unclean in their lives, but all these things should be foreign to us. We are the saints of the Most High. We hold the holy priesthood.
To ancient Israel, by the mouth of Moses, the Lord said: " if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
"And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation."
This promise is ours also. If we will walk in paths of virtue and holiness, the Lord will pour out his blessings upon us to a degree we have never supposed possible. We shall be in very deed, as Peter expressed it, "a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people." And we will be peculiar because we will not be like other people who do not live up to these standards.
To the extent we have overcome the world we are already a holy nation and a peculiar people. But unfortunately there are those among us who have not as yet put first in their lives the things of God's kingdom and who do not live in harmony with the standards of the Church.
I call upon the Church and all its members to forsake the evils of the world. We must shun unchastity and every form of immorality as we would a plague. We must not dam up the wellsprings of life by preventing childbirth. We must not be guilty of unrighteous and evil acts of abortion.
No member of the Church can be accepted as in good standing whose way of life is one of rebellion against the established order of decency and obedience to law. We cannot be in rebellion against the law and be in harmony with the Lord, for he has commanded us to "be subject to the powers that be, until he reigns whose right it is to reign. " And one of these days he is going to come.
As servants of the Lord, our purpose is to walk in the path he has charted for us. We not only desire to do and say what will please him, but we seek so to live that our lives will be like his.
He himself set the perfect example for us in all things and said to us: "Follow thou me." Of his Nephite disciples he asked: " what manner of men ought ye to be?" and then answered: "Verily I say unto you, even as I am."
Now we are engaged in the greatest work in the world. This priesthood which we possess is the power and authority of the Lord himself; and he has promised us that if we magnify our callings and walk in the light, as he is in the light, we shall have glory and honor with him forever in his Father's kingdom.
With such a glorious hope before us, can we do less than forsake the evil ways of the world? Shall we not put first in our lives the things of God's kingdom? Shall we not seek to live by every word that proceedeth forth from his mouth? Shall we not magnify our callings and become in very deed a kingdom of priests and righteous brethren?
The blessings we shall receive, if we keep the commandments, exceed anything we can now comprehend. I am grateful for the gospel, for the Church and kingdom of God on earth, and for the hope of eternal life which the Lord has given us.
I testify that the work is true and pray that all of us may be true and faithful to our covenants, and having received peace and joy in this life, may go on to an inheritance of eternal joy and glory in the world to come. I say this soberly, humbly, and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
Merchants tell us that customers are influenced to make purchases by the way products are displayed or by the way they are packaged. The color of the container, the attractiveness of the wrapping, or the shape of the package has an effect upon the consumer's decision to buy. The visual image often makes or loses the sale. A dish of ice cream is enjoyed by nearly everyone, but it is often improved by ribbons of chocolate cascading down the sides, a fluff of whipped cream around the base, a light sprinkling of chopped nuts, and a cherry on top. Eyes open wider and lips smack with each addition that is made. The same principle applies to the teaching of lessons. Good visual aids and instructional materials increase the interest and assist in the learning processes.
Meetinghouse libraries have come into being and are being stocked with instructional materials to be used by the teachers in the Church to create more interest in lessons, to display them in the most attractive way to sell the idea, to visualize the point, to teach the gospel. Meetinghouse libraries add the chocolate and the nuts, and they put the cherry on top. The teaching may be excellent, but the materials from the library make it better. Abstract ideas may be difficult to understand, but when principles can be visually demonstrated to students, they comprehend more readily.
A discussion of the travels of Paul through the old part of the world is interesting; yet names such as Cyprus, Galatia, Macedonia, Ephesus, or Thessalonica are often unlocated places in our minds. Picture a teacher with a group of enthusiastic students around a large colored map. As the story is being told, they place pins at the points in Paul's travels, then stretch different colored yarns from pin to pin to show his different missionary travels and his last journey to Rome. Now the lesson becomes fascinating. A picture is worth a thousand words. Advertisers know this, merchants know this, but no one knows it better than the teacher who is anxious about his or her students.
The Lord has been explicit in our day about the responsibility of the bearers of the priesthood to teach the gospel. The Church was less than one year old when the Lord gave a revelation through the Prophet Joseph Smith at Kirtland in which teaching was mentioned in these words:
"And again, the elders, priests and teachers of this church shall teach the principles of my gospel, which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, in the which is the fulness of the gospel.
"And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them, and these shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit."
Thumbing through the Doctrine and Covenants to the eighty-eighth section, we find this statement of the Lord:
"And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
After this injunction to teach one another, to seek wisdom out of the best books, and to seek learning, the Lord gave further instructions and suggested in very few words that programs be established to carry out these responsibilities. This is how he said it should be done: "Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing. "
If we are to teach one another, if we are to seek wisdom and learning by study and by faith, we must organize and prepare every needful thing. These words form the basis upon which the idea of the meetinghouse library is conceived-to "prepare every needful thing" for more effective teaching.
From the scriptures I have just read and the many others that might be cited, several things are made abundantly clear:
Every bearer of the priesthood within his sphere of influence and responsibility is to teach the gospel through precept and example. That is, he should be teaching by the example of living the gospel; also through words, learning experiences, and instructional materials.
Every bearer of the priesthood is to prepare himself to be an effective teacher by study, prayer, and faith.
Every bearer of the priesthood should seek the direction of the Spirit to guide him in his own life and to inspire him in his teaching efforts.
Every bearer of the priesthood has a sacred stewardship in the kingdom of God. Our time, our talents, our property, our priesthood callings are part of this stewardship.
Thus, in our teaching responsibilities we are blessed with the opportunity to respond by participating in the divine plan of saving men's souls. As we serve we grow in our callings and can be fully accountable for our stewardship when called upon to do so. The meetinghouse library program is designed to help us be more effective in our teaching responsibility.
The Church Library Coordinating Committee was organized in 1968 under the direction of the First Presidency and has been given the responsibility of coordinating the methods and procedures to be followed in all of the library functions of the Church. This committee supervises the meetinghouse library program, which has been in operation for only a short time. Details of the program were carried to all areas of the Church during the first half of last year. A number of publications have been issued concerning the establishment and operation of the program. They include the Meetinghouse Library Bulletin, the Meetinghouse Library Handbook, and the Meetinghouse Library Technical Manual.
Let me review briefly the essential instructions, supervision, and features of the program.
The First Presidency established the policy that there would be one meetinghouse library in each meetinghouse of the Church. Regardless of the number of wards or branches meeting in the building, one library would serve all of them. Plans and specifications for such a facility may be secured from the Church Building Department. There are five alternate plans that make it possible to have a meetinghouse library in every type of Church building.
The program as it relates to the stake is to be supervised by the stake president through a stake director of libraries.
The meetinghouse library is to be supervised by a meetinghouse librarian. Associate librarians are called where more than one ward or branch use the building. Library assistants to help individual organizations may be called as members of the library staff.
The meetinghouse library is to house all equipment and instructional materials needed for adequate teaching. Equipment should include motion picture, slide, and overhead projectors; audio-tape and record players; a spirit duplicator; a screen; a dry-mount press; and other equipment as needed. Instructional materials to be included are books, magazines, manuals, handbooks, music, printed articles, pictures, charts, maps, slides, filmstrips, overhead transparencies, motion picture films, and other types of teaching materials that would be used by teachers.
The meetinghouse library program is now a permanent program of the Church to assist in better teaching of gospel principles. The quality of teaching will be greatly improved by the implementation of this library of instructional materials, and it will be needed in every meetinghouse. The statistics presented yesterday to the meeting of the Regional Representatives of the Twelve indicate that 72 percent of our meetinghouses now have such libraries. We strongly urge that those who have been slow in moving forward do so as rapidly as possible.
Now we come to the portion of the program which makes the library a vital part of teaching. There has just come from the press this booklet that I hold in my hand. You are not close enough to see its contents, but let me explain them to you. This is known as the Instructional Materials Catalog. In this publication are miniature illustrations of all the pictures related to topics now being taught in all the classes of the priesthood and auxiliary organizations, together with all those that will be taught during the coming year. All picture packets for lessons for the year 1972–73 are to be eliminated, and it will be necessary for materials normally supplied through packets to be ordered, filed, and circulated by and through the meetinghouse library for use in classes.
In this catalog, each of the pictures has been given an identification number. They will be ordered from the General Church Distribution Center by this number, and they will be filed in the library by this number. Lesson manuals will make reference in each lesson to the materials to be used by this standard number. The catalog will be available to the libraries and to all teachers. The writers of lessons will have this standard reference work available while preparing future lessons so they can prescribe materials that will be in the library. These visual aids will be referred to in the lesson manuals by the library number.
The Instructional Materials Catalog is in loose-leaf form so it can be expanded to include additional materials for future lessons. Many other types of materials will be added also, such as overhead transparencies, motion pictures, filmstrips, slides, tapes, and other media.
This is an exciting program, one that will give teachers the much-needed helps to make their teaching effective. The well-organized, adequately stocked, and competently staffed library will become the nerve center of the ward or branch for more excellence in teaching. You can now see why it is important to move forward in every meetinghouse to "prepare every needful thing," as stated in the revelation from the Lord, for Churchwide uniformity in teaching assistance to all priesthood and auxiliary organizations. We encourage each member of the priesthood to make use of the meetinghouse library. Its purpose is to provide you, as well as the sisters who have teaching functions within the Church, with the materials and equipment to increase the quality of teaching.
I testify to you that the meetinghouse library program is divinely inspired. It is guided by the hand of our Heavenly Father to make teaching in the Church more effective. It has the immediate promise to increase the activity of the entire membership of the Church through making the messages of the gospel more vital in our lives. I pray we may be successful in this effort to "prepare every needful thing," in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder David B. Haight
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
At a seminar held in Warsaw, Poland, attended by students and leaders of the Communist party, a student posed this question: "Please don't be angry, sir, but could you explain the 'meaning of life?'" Poland's leading Marxist philosopher reported that as he glanced at the hundreds of pairs of eyes silently staring at the party leadership, he recognized the seriousness of this question and a weakness in their philosophy that has neglected to deal with this challenging problem.
We as members of this church know the meaning of life. It has been revealed in its truthfulness and purity and is available to all who seek, will listen, and believe. The mission and responsibility of this church and its members have been made abundantly clear-to proclaim the Lord's teachings unto the entire world. We must be prepared to accomplish what the Prophet Joseph Smith proclaimed-to see that "the truth of God forth boldly, nobly till it has penetrated every continent swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished. " The Lord has said: "Prepare ye the way. " Then it is our duty to prepare all of our members so that we might develop a strong foundation and belief in the true gospel of Jesus Christ. The Church-wide teacher development program was developed to help accomplish this purpose. It is now in various stages of implementation in the stakes and the wards and in English-speaking missions throughout the world.
The aim of the teacher development program is to improve teaching wherever teaching is done in priesthood quorums, auxiliary organizations, and in our homes so as to bring about worthwhile changes in the lives of boys and girls, men and women. The First Presidency initiated this program knowing full well the importance of the teaching moments in our classrooms and because of their conviction that all teachers can improve. This program combines the most effective teaching techniques with spiritual principles.
This priesthood-sponsored program, directed by the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve, places the responsibility for its success with the stake presidents and then the bishops.
The able and highly competent committee appointed by the First Presidency, with Brother Rex Skidmore as chairman and Brother Ruel Allred, Sherman Sheffield, Stephen Covey, and others, has under inspiration developed what is now considered the most effective teaching program in use anywhere.
You stake and ward leaders have performed magnificently with the instruction given to you through the Regional Representatives of the Twelve in organizing, ordering the material, and getting this program off to an auspicious start. There have been shipped to the wards, stakes, and missions 917,598 copies of instructional material. Even with this vast quantity shipped, we apologize to a few who have yet to receive some material, because your orders far exceeded the quantities estimated. A fourth printing was necessary. All back orders are being distributed this week.
I am sure you would like to know how the teacher development program is progressing. The old adage that nothing succeeds like success certainly applies to this program. A stake teacher development director in Idaho reports, "We have now finished our sixth basic lesson in all of the wards. The stake inservice leaders contact me two weeks before the stake leadership meeting to review the filmstrips so they will be properly prepared for their meetings. There is a strong positive response in our stake. Participants taking the first basic course observed our present teaching and were shocked. Their eyes have been opened to the principles of effective teaching."
A Regional Representative of the Twelve reports, "Teacher development exceeding expectations. Excellent!"
From California: "All ten wards in our stake are half through the basic course.
When the Primary began these new inservice lessons, they had only one person teaching the entire group. Now the inservice leader has several Primary workers also as teachers, and they break up into smaller groups so everyone can be involved and report their experiences. Some were concerned with micro teaching. Now they use it and enjoy it."
From a New York stake: "The teacher development materials are excellent and the concepts aid anyone in teaching. I have even used some of these techniques in the public school system.
"Members are asking to be enrolled in the basic course. They are 'standing in line,' my wife being one of them."
One lady reported her teaching improved after the second lesson. She began to use the "eye to eye" approach. She began to "teach with the spirit and heart rather than with the book."
This story from a Utah rural area: "Twenty-four years ago, as a young man, I was called to teach a Sunday School class of thirteen- and fourteen-year olds. I thought my first lesson was pretty good, but I didn't have enough material to last through the class period. During my second lesson, again I was out of material. I resolved it would never happen again, but it did the next Sunday. I gave the books back to the Sunday School superintendent. All of these years I have carried a feeling that I was a failure as a teacher, yet I still wanted to teach.
"Now I have taken the basic course. I know what a teacher should be. I know how to prepare. I know how to involve my class, and now I am teaching and fulfilling my lifelong desire. I have developed a foundation for teaching."
I am sure you have been impressed with the advice and encouragement that President Joseph Fielding Smith and President Harold B. Lee give to the entire Church membership in the film You Make the Difference. This film, which every stake has in its library, outlines the need and demonstrates the methods for calling the participants and implementing the program. The proper influencing of the behavior of individuals through enlightened knowledge is our challenge.
As you know, the program is in three phases:
First: The eleven-week basic course is conducted every week in wards and branches. When one group of participants is graduated, another group starts the course. All officers and teachers, as well as prospective teachers, at some time, should take the basic course.
Second: The monthly inservice lessons are for all priesthood and auxiliary officers and teachers, and will be a continuous program. Each year a new series of inservice lessons will be prepared. The second series will begin in September 1971. Inservice lessons for subsequent years are now in preparation.
Third: "Supervision in Teaching" will be introduced in September 1971 with a supervision manual and other aids to assist the leaders and teachers to understand this new concept of effective supervision. This concept is not in its traditional use but is supervision using priesthood principles of love and understanding.
This entire teacher development program is being made available to units of the Church all over the world. Translation into sixteen languages is in progress. Non-English-speaking missions and stakes are receiving detailed instructions regarding distribution and suggested programming in their areas.
To develop great teachers takes effort, dedication, faith, and believing-the kind of believing expressed by some graduate students involved in this program in one of the student wards at one of the large California universities: "We have studied this program, and we know the program is inspired. Our problem and challenge is to see that it is properly implemented and put into effective use."
The Church is now beginning an interesting period when members of this true church in increasing numbers will be able to proclaim "I know," for they will have been effectively taught.
It has been said that teaching is one of the noblest professions. The Savior gives us some insight into the importance of our teaching responsibilities as he admonished Peter in that great encounter on the seashore when he queried Peter: " lovest thou me more than these?" And then, to the dismay of Peter, he repeated his instructions three times, saying, "Feed my lambs," and then, "Feed my sheep. Feed my sheep."
We must understand these instructions and our responsibility to "teach one another the doctrine of the kingdom", but to teach it effectively so that all of us, our children, our children's children, and generations yet unborn will be able to perceive and comprehend the true meaning of life as proclaimed by the Master, and then have a desire to live it and eventually gain exaltation in the kingdom of our Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Of the Presiding Bishopric
My dear brethren: I am deeply grateful to be with you in this great priesthood meeting of the Church. I pray that my remarks will be in harmony with the Spirit of the Lord. With his help I will attempt to explore with you some of the responsibilities we priesthood holders have by virtue of the fact that we have been ordained by proper authority to act officially in the name of God. This applies to twelve-year-old deacons as well as to high priests.
First, we should understand who we are. Before we were born, our spirits dwelt in heaven with our Heavenly Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, who is our elder brother. We were faithful to him during that period of our existence. Had we not been faithful, we would have followed Satan as did one-third of the hosts of heaven. This would have prevented our coming to this earth as mortal beings, which was necessary if we were ultimately to attain eternal life and return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. We were faithful, and we are here in mortality with all the potentiality of exaltation.
One of the basic principles upon which his plan was based was free agency. We had our free agency in heaven and made the right choices. As mortal beings now, we also have our free agency. We may choose whom we will follow, either Satan or the Savior. "Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves-to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life."
Our mortal environment and its influences upon us may be somewhat different from those of our premortal existence. Nevertheless, there were positive and negative influences in the spirit world. If it were not so, why would one-third of our spiritual brothers and sisters have followed Satan into captivity? The alternatives available to us in this life are the same as they were before. It is either Jesus Christ and eternal life or Satan and bondage. Here is what we find in the scriptures regarding this subject:
" they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
Being sons of God, we were created in his image. In other words, our physical appearance is similar to his, just as it is to our earthly father. Recognizing, then, that we are literally spiritual sons of our Father in heaven-" And I, the Lord God, had created all the children of men for in heaven created I them" -and recognizing that we are created in his image, that this human form of flesh and bone is the tabernacle for our spirits in this mortal life, that we had the wisdom to make proper choices in the life before this, and further that we who are present in this priesthood meeting have the authority to act in his name and officiate in his holy ordinances here among men-recognizing all of this, it should not be difficult to catch the vision of the responsibilities associated with such blessings, responsibilities far and beyond those held by those who do not hold the priesthood.
Let us consider just a few of these responsibilities. In the scriptures we read, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." The Lord defined some very basic differences between men and women. He gave the male what we call masculine traits and the female feminine traits. He did not intend either of the sexes to adopt the other's traits but, rather, that men should look and act like men and that women should look and act like women. When these differences are ignored, an unwholesome relationship develops, which, if not checked, can lead to the reprehensible, tragic sin of homosexuality. In other words, we have a responsibility as priesthood bearers to be examples of true manhood.
The Lord commanded men and women to multiply and replenish the earth. "And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." To insure that this would take place, he gave to each a powerful emotion which causes a male and female to be attracted to each other. To man he gave a mind with which to reason so that he might have dominion over "every living thing that moveth upon the earth." With this mind he also expects man to have dominion over himself. He expects man to exercise control over his sexual drives.
Sexual activity is to be indulged in only within the bonds of marriage. When this is the case, it is one of the most rewarding and satisfying experiences man can have. When this is not the case, the same experience becomes base and evil. Notwithstanding the attitude of much of the world toward sexual permissiveness, the Lord has never changed his commandment in this regard. He said, "Thou shalt not commit adultery."
Infidelity and promiscuous sex activity destroy the basic, vital institution of the family, which in turn destroys all that is good in life. If we as priesthood holders are to bring honor to that priesthood, we will refrain from any sexual activity outside the bonds of matrimony. Otherwise, we bring disgrace to ourselves and to the priesthood we bear.
Acknowledging the fact that this mortal body is the tabernacle of the spirit and that the spirit was fathered by our Father in heaven, it behooves us to show respect for our bodies by not abusing them through the use of harmful and destructive substances. Here again, one who holds the priesthood has a responsibility far greater than one who does not, a responsibility to abstain completely from the use of such things as alcohol, tobacco, and drugs.
We have been discussing matters which may be classed primarily as moral. Morality, however, is not limited to the question of sex or drugs. It is much broader in its scope. I should like now to branch into another phase of morality. Three statements by President David O. McKay very forcefully introduce this vitally important moral principle:
"Honesty and sincerity are the basic virtues of a noble character."
"Honesty is the first virtue mentioned in the Thirteenth Article of Faith. It is founded on the first principles of human society and is the foundation principle of moral manhood."
"It is impossible to associate manhood with dishonesty. To be just with one's self, one must be honest with one's self and with others. This means honesty in speech as well as in actions. It means to avoid telling half-truths as well as untruths. It means that we are honest in our dealings-in our buying as well as in our selling. It means that an honest debt can never be outlawed, and that a man's word is better than his bond. It means that we will be honest in our dealings with the Lord, for 'true honesty takes into account the claims of God as well as those of man; it renders to God the things that are God's, as well as to man the things that are man's.'"
Some time ago I had occasion to visit with a man from New York City. He has been in the field of finance for many years. His associates are nationwide. During the course of our conversation, he made a remark that has given me much food for thought. He said: "Over the years, I have had dealings with many Mormons. I have yet to run into a dishonest one."
I countered by saying, "If a Mormon truly lives his religion, he must be honest." However, I indicated that I was afraid there were some who did not live their religion fully, whereupon he replied, "I hope I never have the shattering experience of meeting a dishonest Mormon."
I had almost forgotten this conversation until the other day when I visited with another financier from New York City. We were discussing a rather negative article published recently about Salt Lake City and the Mormons and some of the feelings against the Church in earlier years. He said, "That may have been true in the past, but now it is a point of distinction to be known as a Mormon," inferring that being a member of the Church is now considered worthy of great respect.
Within the next three or four months, over four hundred young men holding the office of priest in the Aaronic Priesthood will be going to Hawaii for employment in the pineapple fields. I am quite sure none of them solicited this job. How, then, did they obtain it? Last year some of our young men found employment with this same firm. Their conduct and performance were so outstanding, the company this year wants four hundred of the same kind. I hope these four hundred young men are present in this priesthood meeting. Each one carries the reputation of the holy priesthood on his shoulders. If they honor their priesthood, they will be honest in all their dealings. They will be men of integrity, totally dependable. If they do this, they will bring honor to themselves, their families, their church, and their God. Certainly their Father in heaven will be proud to acknowledge them as his sons.
I am told that currently recruiters for major national corporations rank the Master of Business Administration graduates from the Brigham Young University with those from the top four or five business schools in the nation, not because of their academic prowess alone but because of the kind of men they are, men of honesty and integrity.
You may ask what all of this has to do with the responsibility of a priesthood holder. My answer is, Everything. The Lord has said, "He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight."
Alma, speaking of the people of Ammon, said, "And they were among the people of Nephi, and also numbered among the people who were of the church of God. And they were also distinguished for their zeal towards God, and also towards men; for they were perfectly honest and upright in all things; and they were firm in the faith of Christ, even unto the end."
The dictionary says integrity implies trustworthiness and incorruptibility to a degree that one is incapable of being false to trust, responsibility, or pledge. Honesty implies a refusal to lie, steal, or deceive in any way.
President Joseph F. Smith, in writings to the membership of the Church, summarizes the message I have tried to give tonight:
"Then we have a mission in the world: each man, each woman, each child who has grown to understanding or to the years of accountability, ought to be an example to the world. They ought not only to be qualified to preach the truth, to bear testimony of the truth, but ought to live so that the very life they live, the very words they speak, their every action in life will be a sermon to the unwary and to the ignorant, teaching them goodness, purity, uprightness, faith in God and love for the human family."
"Let every man's life be so that his character will bear the closest inspection, and that it may be seen as an open book, so that he will have nothing to shrink from or be ashamed of. Let all men who are elevated to positions of trust in the Church live so that no man can point to their faults, because they will have no faults; so that no man can justly accuse them of wrongdoing, because they do no wrong; that no man can point out their defects as 'human' and as 'weak mortals,' because they are living up to the principles of the gospel, and are not merely 'weak human creatures,' devoid of the Spirit of God and the power to live above sin. That is the way for all men to live in the kingdom of God."
"The first and highest standard of correct living is to be found in that individual responsibility which keeps men good for the truth's sake. It is not difficult for men who are true to themselves to be true to others. Men who honor God in their private lives do not need the restraint of public opinion which may not only be indifferent, but positively wrong."
"No member in good standing in the Church will be drunken or riotous or profane or will take advantage of his brother or his neighbor, or will violate the principles of virtue and honor and righteousness."
Brethren, as sons of God holding his holy priesthood, we have an obligation to bring honor to his name. We are his emissaries in the world. He has shown unbounded love for us through the blessing of the priesthood and through having given his life that we might have eternal life. In return for all of these blessings, he has said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." That we may do this more perfectly each day I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Wendell J. Ashton
Church Leadership Committee
Last week several of us were in the office of my former missionary companion, Elder Gordon B. Hinckley, shortly after he had received his notice from the First Presidency as to when he would speak at this great conference.
Elder Hinckley turned serious and almost wan, then said, "You know, this frightens me terribly. It does every time general conference approaches."
Elder Hinckley has been coming up here twice a year and performing ably for thirteen years. But can you see how one of us feels coming to this world-conference pulpit for the first, and perhaps only, time?
And so tonight, with your approval and President Smith's permission, I should like to speak to only two of you here, as I respond to the request of the First Presidency to represent the Church Leadership Committee, headed by Elder Thomas S. Monson. I shall feel more comfortable chatting with only two of you, but you all may listen if you care to. The two are our two sons: Owen, a priest, and Kay, a teacher.
The General Authorities are concerned about you two boys, and your sisters too. Our Church leaders are aware of the tremendous challenges and opportunities facing all of our youth.
Four years ago the presiding brethren launched a leadership training program. It began with the General Authorities themselves, in a school-of-the-prophets meeting each Wednesday in the Church Administration Building. They taught themselves in the leadership skills of Jesus and his prophets. From this modern school of the prophets came outlines and source materials for leadership training in the stakes and missions-at stake priesthood leadership meetings, stake priesthood meetings, Saturday evening leadership meetings of quarterly stake conferences, and at similar meetings in the missions. There have also been leadership seminars for Regional Representatives of the Twelve. These representatives then conduct regional meetings twice a year for stake priesthood and auxiliary leaders. This year, leadership instruction has been extended to a bishops' training course, to monthly quorum meetings of high priests, and to other areas.
This leadership training aims particularly to help young priesthood holders like you to better meet the challenges of this fast-changing world. And how it is changing!
In 1900 only 4 percent of the college-age group attended college. Now it is 40 percent. A national business magazine notes that "it is estimated at the present time that an engineering degree represents knowledge that becomes obsolete after ten years. Changes are coming so fast that degrees will soon be out of date after five years. " Another publication reports that 80 percent of the jobs in the future will require less than four years in college, but will demand vocational-technical education for skills such as those of carpenters, auto mechanics, secretaries, and salesmen.
A book, The Year 2000, talks about some of the developments likely ahead for you: mining and farming on the ocean floors, three-dimensional photography, artificial moons for lighting large areas at night, and many others.
Even more sobering, though, are thoughts regarding other changes that some say are ahead: the phasing out of family life and of the moral code that helped make this and other nations great.
As priesthood bearers, we must be prepared to meet change and to resist with all our might those changes that would strike at the basic institution of the Church and of society generally-the home.
You will know wisdom, Owen and Kay, when you fully realize that the lasting lessons in leadership do not change. They are eternal. They helped make Noah and Abraham and Moses giants in the land, giants in character, in leadership, in bringing men and women closer to God. These same unchanging principles of leadership are helping Latter-day Saint priesthood leaders and holders become mighty leaders today, not only in the remarkable growth of the Church but also in government, business, education, and the professions of the world. These eternal principles can help you lead in a world that cries out for real priesthood leadership.
May I give you one or two examples. Let's begin with that noble forebear of many of us-Joseph, who was sold into Egypt. As a youth he was rejected. His own brothers cast him into a pit and then sold him as a slave. While still a young man, he was bound in a dungeon because he turned away from a woman who tempted him. He was confined in that dungeon for over two years. When he was brought out, he was taken before the Pharaoh, who was troubled with a dream. He had heard of Joseph the prisoner's reputation for interpreting dreams. Catch Joseph's reply to Pharaoh's request for an answer to his dream, Joseph's first recorded words after emerging from the dungeon: "It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace," said Joseph.
Joseph had kept the faith-faith in his Heavenly Father. He had remained free as a slave and as a prisoner because he had kept close to the Lord. Yet there are young men and women today who become slaves when they are free because they unfortunately reach for a pill when they suffer a reverse or feel rejected.
Remember some years ago, Owen, when you and I together prepared a family home evening lesson while on a vacation at Flathead Lake in Montana? The lesson was on David and Goliath. The account in Samuel said that Goliath was six cubits and a span tall. We figured that was nearly ten feet. Samuel said that Goliath wore a coat of mail weighing 5,000 shekels. We did more figuring. That coat weighed approximately 160 pounds. Goliath was not only big; he was strong. Listen now to David the shepherd boy's words as he faced the giant in the Valley of Elah, after Goliath had roared out his ridicule.
David replied, "This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand. "
Owen and Kay, you are going to face some Goliaths ahead-big challenges. Don't fear them. Meet them. Move into them, knowing that the Lord is with you, if your cause is righteous.
There are more lessons to be learned from Nephi and Naaman, from Joshua and the brother of Jared, from Samuel of Israel and Samuel the Lamanite, and from many others. The most powerful lessons, however, you will find, come from that leader among leaders, Jesus the Christ.
And so, Owen and Kay, from the prophets and from the Prince of Peace, learn how to lead, beginning with yourselves. Stand on your own feet. Stand tall. Hold your heads high as though you are truly sons of God, which you are. Walk among men as holders of powers beyond your own, which you have, through the priesthood. Move on the good earth as though you are partners of the Lord in helping to bring immortality and eternal life to mankind, which you are. Walk quietly, as in stocking feet; but walk fearlessly, in faith. Don't let the ill winds sway you. Walk as leaders with the priesthood in the government of God. Walk with hands ready to help, with hearts full of love for your fellowmen. But walk with a toughness in righteousness.
If you do, Owen and Kay, I promise you as your father and as the presiding priesthood bearer in our home that you will know the meaning of that blessing of a father of old to his son, when Lehi spoke to Jacob: " men are, that they might have joy."
I give you this witness, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
I am always happy, my brethren, for the privilege I have of meeting with the priesthood. As I have said before, I have met with men in high places in different countries, holding responsible positions, leaders, executives, and so on, but never do I feel the same as when I meet with the priesthood.
As we were listening to and enjoying these fine talks, and as I looked over this audience and thought of all those who are gathered tonight-President Lee said 170,000-and enjoying the friendship and brotherhood of our brothers in the priesthood, I have been thinking of and wondering about the lad out there who is not with us, who is not a part of this group, because he thinks he is not wanted, understood, or loved.
There are in every ward boys ranging in ages from twelve to seventy who, though they would deny it, are hungry for attention, for brotherhood, and for an active life in the Church.
Let us as leaders, and all of us, always remember and never forget that everyone is looking for happiness. Everyone wants to be happy. It is our great privilege and responsibility to show him the way to happiness and success. Often some little thing, some slight, or a misunderstanding causes one to become inactive. There are those who are discouraged and inactive because they have felt neglected or have been offended; or they are guilty of some transgression of their own, and as a result feel that they are outcasts or that there is no place for them, that they are not worthy or wanted. They feel that they are lost and cannot be forgiven. We as leaders must let them know and make them know that we love them, and help them to understand that the Lord loves them, and that the Lord will forgive them if they will truly repent.
We have an old song, "Where Is My Wandering Boy Tonight?" and I was wondering if that could not be changed to mean more to us in these words: "Why is my boy wandering tonight?"
If those two sons of Brother Ashton will follow their father's directions, and if all who listened to Bishop Brown this evening, and those who listened this afternoon and this morning to the general conference, will follow the instructions that were given them, they will not be wandering boys.
But sometimes boys do wander because, as I said before, of the way they are treated, the way they are neglected; because they feel they are not wanted.
The Lord gave us the parable of the Lost Sheep, and I should like to read it because I think it is important:
"Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.
"And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.
"And he spake this parable unto them, saying,
"What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
"And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
"And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.
"I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance."
Every bishop, every stake president, every leader of any organization knows someone who needs attention, and you and we have the responsibility of going to find that lost sheep. If we had knowledge tonight that some young man was lost, if anyone knew of someone who was drowning, we wouldn't hesitate one minute to do all in our power to save that individual, to save the one who was lost, the one who was drowning, the one who was in need of our help. These young men and these older men who are inactive in the Church, who have strayed away from the Church because of inactivity or for any reason, need our help and need our attention just as much. They need our prayers and our consideration, and nothing will bring us greater joy and happiness than to see one come back into activity.
By saving one, we might save a family. We might even save a generation. By losing one, we may lose not only the individual but a family and his posterity. The responsibility is great. Some of us seem to be very happy if we have from 40 to 70 percent attendance. If you have 40 percent attendance, you have 60 percent who are not in attendance. And if you have 70 percent in attendance, there are still 30 percent not attending, and those are the ones who need our attention, and they need it badly.
I was greatly impressed as I attended a stake conference and called on a bishop to speak. As he spoke, tears came to his eyes, and it was difficult for him to speak when he said, "I want to acknowledge here tonight at this meeting my home teacher. I was an inactive senior Aaronic Priesthood holder, and this home teacher worked with me. I didn't want to see him at first; in fact, I refused, but he continued until I would let him come into my home and teach me. And here I am now, his bishop. I want to express to him my deep appreciation." Thank the Lord for such worthy men, who will not fail to do everything in their power to save those who are wandering.
I think possibly I have told this experience that I had myself. I saw a young man when I was stake president; he was a very able young man; he had been trained in agriculture, and we needed an agricultural adviser in our welfare committee. He wasn't active in the Church. I knew that he wasn't keeping the Word of Wisdom, but I called and asked him to go to lunch with me one day; and as we sat and talked, I told him what I wanted of him. I said, "You are the best prepared, able young man to do this job. We need you, and you need activity."
We talked for some time, and he said, "Well, President Tanner, you know that I don't keep the Word of Wisdom."
I said, "Well, you can, can't you?" Probably that wasn't fair.
And he said, "President, that is a different approach. My bishop came to me last month and asked me if I would take a job in the ward. I told him that I wasn't keeping the Word of Wisdom. And he said, 'Well, we will get somebody else.'"
So I talked with him for a little while longer, and I said, "Listen, brother, you need activity in the Church, but we need you, we really need you."
After we had talked a little while, he said, "Do you mean that if I took a position like this I couldn't even have a cup of coffee?"
I said, "Yes, that is exactly what I mean. Any leader must be a leader, and you must be an example. If you were taken into a stake committee, we would expect you to live the gospel the way a man should live it."
He said, "Well, then, I shall have to think it over." I said, "You think it over. But remember, you need activity, and we need you."
He said, "Well, I will let you know."
He didn't call me the next day. He didn't call me the next day, and he didn't call me the next day, and he didn't call me the next day-and he didn't call me the sixth day. And I thought, well, he doesn't want to admit that he can't keep the Word of Wisdom.
On the eighth day he called me. He said, "President Tanner, do you still want me to do that job?"
I said, "Yes, that is the reason I called you and talked to you about it the other day."
He said, "Then I will do it, and on your terms."
And he did it, and he did it on my terms. He was a single man, but he was thirty-some years of age. He came into activity, and there was a young woman who was stake president of the Mutual, a very fine young woman, and he met her and became very well acquainted with her and fell in love with her and married her.
And then he became a bishop and then he became a high councilor and then he became a member of the stake presidency. You know, it has given me a great deal of satisfaction to know that that young man became active, and his family is active. He has children now that are active.
Brethren, regardless of where we are or who we are, we should realize that we have out there a boy, a young man, an older man who is not active, and he wants to be active, if we can just find a way to interest him and let him know that he wants to be active.
I would like to leave this challenge with you tonight, my brethren, that each bishop determine that within the next month he will begin very actively to bring some young man into activity; and each counselor would do the same thing; and each man who holds office in that ward or stake would do the same thing. Brethren, there is nothing more important in your whole lives than to save souls. We have programs and we have planning outlines for teachers, and we give them teacher helps, and all those things to take care of those who are attending, but I fear too often we are forgetting and neglecting and ignoring those who are not always there, satisfied to say we had 50 percent or 60 percent in attendance.
I don't care at all for percentages or statistics, but I do care for that boy and the outside young man, and I appeal to you tonight, my brethren, every one of you who is holding the priesthood of God, and particularly those who hold office in the Church, to set about to do as the Lord said, to find that lost sheep, bring him back into the fold, so that you will find joy with him when you meet your Heavenly Father.
And to you young men, there is no fun in being lost, and you can keep from being lost if you will honor your priesthood all the time and help the boys who are having difficulty to honor their priesthood, that they might be happy.
I bear you my testimony, my brethren, that we hold the priesthood of God. This is his church and kingdom. He has given us the responsibility of teaching and helping to save our fellowmen. May we do it in a way that will be acceptable to him, which will bring joy to us and help to prepare us for eternal life, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
First Counselor in the First Presidency
Thank you, President Tanner. I would have you remember a remark of Brother Marvin J. Ashton in his very excellent address today when he said no home is a failure until it gives up on that son, or that daughter, or that husband, or that wife. It must not give up, no matter how difficult the task to save one of ours.
Horace Mann, that great educator somewhere back in the time of Abraham Lincoln, told how he was the speaker at the dedication of a great boys' school, and in his talk he said, "This school has cost hundreds of thousands of dollars; but if this school is able to save one boy, it is worth all that it cost." One of his friends came up to him at the close of the meeting and said, "You let your enthusiasm get away with you, didn't you? You don't mean what you said that if this school, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars, were to save just one boy, it was worth all that it cost? You surely don't mean that."
Horace Mann looked at him and said, "Yes, my friend. It would be worth it if that one boy were my son; it would be worth it."
I want you to know that it would be worth it if it were my grandson, or one of mine. It would be worth it if it were one of yours.
As I have listened to these talks today, there has been a flood of concern about the terrible situations that confront the youth of today, and a pleading for the coaches to teach the quarterbacks; and the quarterbacks not to be the men on the field, but to do their job of quarterbacking; and the coaches not to try to be the quarterbacks, but to be sure of their coaching.
I came across a statement from the late President Eisenhower in the Reader's Digest some years ago. He said, "Unfortunately many people nowadays have become so bemused by the excesses of a small minority of American youth, that they forget to note the decency and intelligence of the overwhelming majority. This is a great injustice to you young folks and a disservice to America.
"Judge Lester H. Loble of Montana, who has done so much to check juvenile delinquency in his state, has said that 97 percent of our youngsters today are as good as those of any generation, but the three percent who are hoodlums are worse. I might go one step beyond and suggest that in a good many ways, today's young people are better than my own generation. Certainly, you are better educated, better informed about the world, have a far broader outlook on life than we did at your age. Moreover, most of you I talk with-and I do talk with hundreds every year in student and political gatherings and elsewhere-have fine motives and a sound moral attitude."
As I read that, I recalled a statement made by Dr. Fisher, former educational director of the Boy Scouts of America, who here in the Assembly Hall made an interesting remark. He said, "If the youth of today were not twice as good as were the youth of two generations ago, they wouldn't be half as good as they are." If you analyze that, I think you can understand why he would make that remark.
May I conclude now by reading you something that means something beyond what we can do in teacher development, in leadership training, or in providing library materials, and this was said by the Lord in a great revelation.
"For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
"Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
"For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.
"But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.
"I command and men obey not; I revoke and they receive not the blessing.
"Then they say in their hearts: This is not the work of the Lord, for his promises are not fulfilled. But wo unto such, for their reward lurketh beneath, and not from above."
Brethren of the priesthood, in your own circle, in your own home, in your own lives, you must do all you can of your own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness. Our job and your job, my job, is to look after the man behind the one in front of you. That is a little difficult for some people to figure out. And when you find out that one, and put him in line, then you are prepared to go out and search for the other ones. I pray that the Lord may help you to find out that one and put him in line, then you are prepared to go others round about you, and we will be on our way to a glorious future.
That the Lord may help us so to do, I pray humbly, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
By President N. Eldon Tanner
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
We have heard a great deal lately about the Last Lecture Series, in which those who lecture choose their subject as though it were the last they would give. With that in mind, I chose my subject for this conference as though it were to be my last lecture-the most important message I could leave with the people.
The subject I have chosen, then, is taken from Joshua: " choose you this day whom ye will serve; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Shortly after saying this, Joshua, being 110 years old, died, leaving this as his parting message.
As we have listened to the wonderful talks that have been given in this conference, and as we shall listen to those that will follow, I am sure we will realize that all of them emphasize the importance of serving the Lord.
We all remember how Moses led the children of Israel out of bondage, and how the Egyptians were destroyed by the Red Sea; how the Lord gave the Amorites and the people of Jericho into their hands so that they might possess their lands, and how Joshua reminded his people of the words of the Lord:
"And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat."
Then Joshua said: "Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord.
"And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
And then he warned: "If ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good." And frightened, they responded: "The Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey."
A parallel to this is found in the story of our pioneer forefathers, who because of their religious convictions had to flee from their beautiful city and homes. Though they suffered much, and many died, they remained true to their faith, and even in the face of all their hardship as they toiled across the plains, they sang: "And should we die before our journey's through, Happy day! all is well." They blessed the name of the Lord, their God, and continued to serve him, and through their righteous endeavors he has blessed and prospered them and their posterity.
As we read the scriptures and as we read the history of the world, we find numerous examples where individuals, communities, and even nations who chose to serve the Lord were saved and prospered-not through their human genius alone, but by the will of God-while others who refused to do so suffered his wrath, were defeated and destroyed.
As recorded in the Book of Mormon: "Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ. "
What a glorious promise! But we find the same "if" restriction that Joshua warned his people about: "If ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you." The promise in Ether is conditional only "if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ." Are we headed for destruction by failing to serve Jesus Christ, by failing to live according to his teachings?
In his book Civilization on Trial, published in 1948, Arnold J. Toynbee seems to catch this message, as he refers to the rise and fall of civilizations, and recognizes the reason for their declines. He defines history and its pattern of repeating itself, and then he says:
"Our present situation is formidable indeed. A survey of the historical landscape in the light of our existing knowledge shows that, up to date, history has repeated itself about twenty times in producing human societies of the species to which our Western society belongs, and it also shows that with the possible exception of our own, all these representatives of the species of society called civilizations are already dead or moribund. Moreover, when we study the histories of these dead and moribund civilizations in detail, and compare them with one another, we find indications of what looks like a recurring pattern in the process of their breakdowns, declines, and falls. We are naturally asking ourselves today whether this particular chapter of history is bound to repeat itself in our case. Is that pattern of decline and fall in store for us in our turn as a doom from which no civilization can hope to escape?"
He goes on to express his opinion that the pattern of earlier successes or failures does not necessarily have to be repeated. He says: "As human beings, we are endowed with this freedom of choice, and we cannot shuffle off our responsibility upon the shoulders of God or nature. We must shoulder it ourselves. It is up to us." He suggests what we should do to be saved, politically, economically, and religiously, and states: "Of the three tasks, the religious one is, of course, in the long run by far the most important."
I suggest to you that if we were spiritually sound, if we were living the teachings of Jesus Christ, whom we must serve if we are to survive as individuals and nations, then the political and economic problems already would be solved, because by living the Ten Commandments and other teachings of God we could all live together in peace and prosperity. As we review these teachings we can find nothing in them which, if lived, will not make us better and happier in every way.
We are reminded of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Sodom being the chief town in its settlement in the center of the Garden of Jehovah; of Tyre and Sidon, with Tyre a flourishing city of great wealth and beauty, and perhaps the largest city which the Savior is known to have visited; and of Jerusalem, and other great cities and civilizations which have fallen because they turned away from God and became a wicked and adulterous people. And I fear that this is happening rapidly in our own land.
Rudyard Kipling's prophetic poem "God of Our Fathers, Known of Old," was a warning to the great and powerful British Empire, when it was at the height of its glory, and should be a warning to all nations. He wrote:
-Hymns, No. 76
These examples emphasize so clearly that there is strength in humility and weakness in pride. If we do not repent and change our ways, we will be repeating the history of Sodom and Gomorrah. Let us analyze our accomplishments and find out where our values are. We have made great strides of advancement in scientific fields. We have sent men to the moon and back, developed a nuclear bomb, and made great progress in the methods of war, but what have we done in the interest of peace? What have we done in the field of human relations? What progress have we made in spirituality?
Can anyone fail to see that we too are living in a wicked and adulterous world; that we are failing to serve God, that we are surely on our way to destruction when in nearly every newspaper and magazine and on the radio and TV stations you read or hear of every law of God being broken: stealing, burning and plundering, killing, adultery, rape, death and calamity through drunkenness, churches empty and stores and parks and highways full on Sunday. Too many of us who claim to be Christian are guilty of some of these things.
As someone has said: "If we were to be arrested for being Christians, I wonder if there would be enough evidence to convict us?" We have been warned and forewarned. We cannot plead ignorance. If we are to save ourselves, our families, and our country, we must, as Peter taught, repent, be baptized, change our ways, and turn and serve the Lord and keep his commandments. The responsibility rests on us as individuals. We need a spiritual renaissance.
Can you imagine what a glorious world it would be to live in if everyone were living the teachings of the gospel, loving God, and keeping his commandments? If we all loved one another, if there were no backbiting, no killing, no stealing, if everyone were honest, true, chaste, and benevolent? We would have no wars, but peace and heaven here on earth, and we could use the money now spent on war, law enforcement, and crime for worthy purposes to aid the needy, the sick, and unfortunate.
When the Lord told Abraham that he was going to destroy Sodom because of its wickedness, Abraham pleaded first for its preservation if there were but fifty righteous, and then finally for even ten righteous. The Lord agreed, but they failed to find even ten righteous, so the city was destroyed. Let us be sure that we can be counted among the righteous for whose sake the Lord would spare our city and our country. It is most important that we decide whether or not we are going to serve the Lord. He himself said: "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
The choice to serve God, worthily made, does not necessarily preclude a home or sufficient money or income, or the things of this world which bring joy and happiness, but it does require that we must not turn away from God and the teachings of Jesus Christ while in the pursuit of our temporal needs.
My experience throughout my life has shown me beyond question that if we will live the principles of the gospel as taught by Jesus Christ and the prophets, serving the Lord and keeping his commandments, it will contribute greatly to our success in the worthwhile things of life, both temporally and spiritually. We will raise better families and contribute more to the community than those who deny the Lord and ignore his teachings. In fact, if you look at the people whom you know, you will find that those who live truly Christian lives are happier, and more loved and respected, while preparing for eternal life.
The Lord said also: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
"But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
I wonder about our undue concern for material possessions, for shrines and monuments, which crumble and decay. Just the other day I read a news item telling of the deterioration of the Lincoln Memorial. This is disturbing news indeed to all of us who honor those who have done so much to build and serve their country. But as we read in detail about the limestone walls and marble columns of the forty-eight-year-old monument deteriorating, its mortar flaking away, stalactites and stalagmites transforming its basement into an eerie cavern, millions of spiders and tiny, winged midges swarming over the ceiling, it gives us an outstanding example of the fact that moth and rust doth corrupt treasures on earth. As we pay homage to the revered memories of persons and places, let us at the same time be diligently engaged in our spiritual duties and the preservation of treasures which cannot be effaced by time.
I am reminded of Henry Van Dyke's story "The Mansion," where he tells of the rich man who lived in a mansion on earth but was shocked to find that he had only a tiny hut when he reached heaven. But the poor man found to his surprise that he had a mansion in heaven because he had been laying up for himself treasures in heaven.
As we go through life we are continually making choices which will determine what we get out of life. Are we going to take advantage of our opportunities to improve, or waste our time? Are we going to do right, or wrong? Are we going to go to church, or desecrate the Sabbath? Are we going to serve God, or mammon? We cannot have divided homage. Life must find its mastery.
This does not mean that man is wholly bad nor wholly good, but at any moment he must have a dominant direction, and the choice of God or mammon helps us to determine the other choices we will make in life.
In order to get full enjoyment from the blessings God has promised to those who serve him and keep his commandments, it is important that parents teach their children faith in God. The Lord has warned:
"And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.
"And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
Realizing the importance of such training, the Church urges its members religiously to observe family home evenings, to attend seminaries, institutes, schools, colleges, and auxiliary organizations to assist in preparing ourselves and our children to serve the Lord. We must not procrastinate in this duty and obligation.
I was greatly impressed as I listened to the BYU alumni president, Ernest L. Wilkinson, M.D., tell of an emergency call that took him to the Intensive Coronary Care Unit of the LDS Hospital, where a close personal friend of his of several years' duration was in critical condition with a massive coronary thrombosis. He said: "As I approached his bedside he grasped my hand and through an oxygen mask, though gripped with pain and breathing in a labored manner, he muttered, 'Oh, Doctor, can you save me? I have so many things I have been putting off and wanting to do.'
"As we labored into the hours of the morning, utilizing all of the modern electronic gadgetry that medical science can provide, and as it became increasingly evident that my friend would not survive, I was haunted by his comment and its inference. Are we thinkers or are we doers? How many of us procrastinate the really important decisions in life? Will we be found wanting when we too are at the crossroads of life and death?"
This is a serious and urgent question indeed. We are all nearing the crossroads of life and death ourselves. How fortunate we are to be able to make a choice. What a glorious thing it is to know that we can choose our course, write our destiny and determine our blessings. It is not too late to choose. The choice is ours, but we must choose this day whom we will serve.
I thank the Lord every day that I know that God the Father, whose children we are, lives and wants us to succeed, and that he "so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
"For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."
Yes, Jesus Christ gave his life for us and gave us the plan by which we can enjoy life to the full and work out our salvation. As Richard L. Evans so beautifully stated: "Our Father in heaven is not an umpire who is trying to count us out. He is not a competitor who is trying to outsmart us. He is not a prosecutor who is trying to convict us. He is a loving Father who wants our happiness and eternal progress, and who will help us all he can if we will but give him in our lives an opportunity to do so."
I sincerely pray that we will have the courage and strength to humble ourselves, accept our Savior, Jesus Christ, and serve him and thereby enjoy the blessings which he has promised. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop John H. Vandenberg
Presiding Bishop
A young mother, having had the trying experience of losing a little child in an accident, came to a church leader for a blessing to comfort her in her grief. As she left, she asked through her tears, "Must there always be pain in this life?"
As we consider this question, let us recall the first family on earth. We read in the Bible that Eve "conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord.
"And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground."
And in the process of time Cain became wroth because the Lord had respect unto Abel's offering of the firstlings of his flock, but unto Cain's offering of the fruit of the ground he had not respect.
"And Cain talked with Abel, his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
"And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
"And said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground."
Pain, sorrow, and tragedy trave been with the human race ever since this event. Yet from this episode in the scriptures there is brought to our attention the question, "Am I my brother's keeper?"
What do we think about that question? What charge has the Lord given us relating to it? Let us refer to 1 John, chapter 3:
"For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
"We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
"Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
"My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth."
What is the seed of mother love? Is it not sacrifice? Such love is considered to be the deepest and most tender. Is this because a mother passes through the valley of the shadow of death to give birth to her child and is continually sacrificing for that child's welfare?
Is this why Christ loves the world? Because he toiled to make it? Because he sacrificed his life for the world and its people? We are told that "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son" to save it from ruin, and the Son was willing to suffer for the salvation of that for which he had toiled.
We all love that for which we sacrifice. Giving and serving to the point of sacrifice creates love. The term religion encompasses concern for our brethren, as we are told in James 1:27: "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction. "
When people say, "Religion is all right for some, but I am not religious, and it means nothing to me," is it because they have not experienced the uplift that comes from sacrificing for and serving their fellowmen?
Perhaps they have simply not recognized the needs of their neighbors. Everyone has a need. Man does not stand alone. Edwin Markham puts the basic needs of man before us clearly and simply in these words:
"Three things must a man possess if his soul would live and know life's perfect good-
"Three things would the all-supplying Father give-bread, beauty and brotherhood."
Truly our Father in heaven has made it possible for us to receive our daily bread, for he said, referring to the keeping of his commandments:
"Verily I say, that inasmuch as ye do this, the fulness of the earth is yours, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and that which climbeth upon the trees and walketh upon the earth;
" whether for food or for raiment, or for houses, or for barns, or for orchards, or for gardens, or for vineyards;
"Yea, all things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the benefit and the use of man, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart;
"Yea, for food and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul.
"And it pleaseth God that he hath given all these things unto man.
"And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments."
Since God has been so good to us, he has asked us to be good to our brethren who may not be so fortunate as we, for he has admonished us: "And behold, thou wilt remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support that which thou hast to impart unto them.
"And inasmuch as ye impart of your substance unto the poor, ye will do it unto me; and they shall be laid before the bishop of my church. "
This commandment of providing for our needy brethren is found in the principle of fasting, as we read in the Documentary History of the Church:
"Let this be an ensample to all saints, and there will never be any lack for bread: When the poor are starving, let those who have, fast one day and give what they otherwise would have eaten to the bishops for the poor, and every one will abound for a long time; and this is one great and important principle of fasts, approved of the Lord. And so long as the saints will all live to this principle with glad hearts and cheerful countenances they will always have an abundance."
Brigham Young addressed the Saints as follows:
"You know that the first Thursday in each month we hold as a fast day. How many here know the origin of this day? Before tithing was paid, the poor were supported by donations. They came to Joseph and wanted help, in Kirtland, and he said there should be a fast day, which was decided upon. It was to be held once a month, as it is now, and all that would have been eaten that day, of flour, or meat, or fruit, or anything else, was to be carried to the fast meeting and put into the hands of a person selected for the purpose of taking care of it and distributing it among the poor. If we were to do this now faithfully, do you think the poor would lack for flour, or butter, or cheese, or meat, or sugar, or anything they needed to eat? No, there would be more than could be used by all the poor among us. It is economy in us to take this course, and do better by our poor brethren and sisters than they have hitherto been done by. Let this be published in our newspapers. Let it be sent forth to the people that on the first Thursday of each month, the fast day, all that would be eaten by husbands and wives and children and servants should be put in the hands of the Bishop for the sustenance of the poor. I am willing to do my share as well as the rest, and if there are no poor in my ward, I am willing to divide with those wards where there are poor. If the sisters will look out for rooms for those sisters who need to be taken care of, and see them provided for, you will find that we will possess more comfort and more peace in our hearts, and our spirits will be buoyant and light, full of joy and peace. The Bishops should, through their teachers, see that every family in their wards who is able, should donate what they would naturally consume on fast day to the poor."
I encourage the bishops to hold this principle before their people today in order that we may more fully supply the essential bread and other needs of our brethren who are in unfortunate circumstances.
Edwin Markham, you remember, said that our all-supplying Father would give us not only bread, but also beauty and brotherhood.
Has the Lord supplied mankind with beauty? Anyone who doubts it need only to open his eyes to the sunrise and the sunset and his ears to the sound of rain and wind, to marvel at the colors of the flowers and the rainbow, to perceive the variety in the scenery of the desert and the forest, the fields of grain, the mountains, rivers, and oceans. At this time of year we are beginning to thrill with the new life of springtime, and as we loose ourselves in the teeming life about us, we become a part of it.
All the earth, with no sterility in it, gladdens the heart. In our concern as our brother's keeper, we can help one another understand the gift of beauty which is ours. Let us take the time to see and to feel and to enjoy all that God has created for us. Margaret L. White brings this responsibility to our minds as we follow her words:
"I took a little child's hand to lead him to the Father. My heart was full of gratitude for the glad privilege. We walked slowly. I suited my steps to the short steps of the child. We spoke of the things the child noticed. Sometimes we picked the Father's flowers and stroked their soft petals and loved their bright colors. Sometimes it was one of the Father's birds. We watched it build its nest. We saw the eggs that were laid. We wondered, elated at the care it gave its young. Often we told stories of the Father. I told them to the child, and the child told them again to me. We told them, the child and I, over and over again. Sometimes we stopped to rest, leaning against one of the Father's trees, and letting his cool air cool our brows, and never speaking. And then, in the twilight, we met the Father. The child's eyes shone. He looked lovingly, trustingly, eagerly up to the Father's face. He put his hand into the Father's hand. I was for the moment forgotten. I was content."
Beauty-a gift of the all-supplying Father.
What of brotherhood, the third need of man-perhaps the greatest need? Surely in this modern world, where hate and envy seem to abound, the call to "love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind" and to "love thy neighbour as thyself" is essential if peace is ever to be found.
It seems that man knows no bounds to the physical conveniences he can produce. We boast how our knowledge is expanding as new discoveries are made which open up the materialistic world. Yet progress in solving the problem of how to live with our brethren seems so slow in comparison.
One of many stories to be found in the scriptures relating to love of brethren is that of the book of Esther, the story of the beautiful Jewess who found favor with the king and became queen. Haman, who had been set above all the princes, became wroth when Mordecai, the uncle of Esther, refused to bow down to him, and made a plan to destroy all the Jews. Mordecai, having heard the proclamation of death, sent word to Queen Esther to "charge her that she should go in unto the king, to make supplication unto him, and to make request before him for her people."
Esther explained the law and replied "that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days."
Mordecai replied, " thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed."
At this, Esther realized her responsibility for her brethren and answered, "Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so I will go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish."
As a result of this decision to put the matter into the hands of the Lord, Esther was able to perform this great service for her brethren and save them.
Our brethren are with us constantly, and we must not only be mindful of them, but also of the stranger in our midst. Let us be reminded of this obligation by these words of Burton Hillis:
"If there is a stranger in your neighborhood today, better check up on him. He may need a friend. If he is still a stranger tomorrow, better check up on your neighborhood."
An example of brotherhood in action occurred a few weeks ago in the San Fernando Valley in California. The major jolt of the earthquake was at six o'clock in the morning; but home teachers, Relief Society leaders, and priesthood quorums almost immediately began to do their part in helping hundreds who were evacuated from their homes. Many of these families found refuge in the homes of Church members.
Within thirty minutes a pair of home teachers stopped by their bishop's home to check for special instructions before making a quick survey of their assigned families. Other home teachers called priesthood leaders, who in turn reported to bishops, and bishops reported to stake presidents. Within six hours after the first jolt, some wards could account for most of their members.
Stake presidents attempted to pinpoint the hardest hit areas and offer assistance where it was most needed. A priests quorum in Granada Hills moved a family with seven children to another home. A first counselor in the bishopric woke up as his chimney toppled onto his roof, breaking through some of the rafters and knocking a hole in his ceiling; but he said, "I wasn't as concerned about that as I was my neighbor's home, which immediately caught fire. No one had any water, so we got up on our roofs to beat out sparks."
A bishop who was on his way to work when the quake struck was concerned about being unable to contact his home or ward members for several hours. But in his absence the priesthood members had gone into action, and by early afternoon every family in the ward had been contacted. His wife reported that as soon as the telephone was restored to order, she had constant calls from families offering to take evacuated people into their homes. "People have been great," she reported. "It renews your faith the way they pitch in when the chips are down."
The chips are down someplace every day, although not always so drastically. The Lord knows that we need one another, and for that reason he has made us brothers.
Let us show our appreciation for these basic needs our Father in heaven has supplied by living that which we profess to believe and truly being our brother's keeper. If we are to enter again into God's presence, it will be by reaching out to others, for you cannot reach closer to God than you can to your fellowmen, which I testify in the name Jesus Christ. Amen.
Fast day was regularly observed throughout the Church on the first Thursday of each month until November 5, 1896, when, at a meeting of the First Presidency and the apostles, it was decided that the first Sunday of the month should be observed instead, and on Sunday, December 6, 1896, was the first time it was held on Sunday.
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My dear brothers and sisters, you have joined this meeting to listen to the Tabernacle Choir sing its singularly beautiful music, to worship on this Sabbath day, and to learn something more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In the next few minutes I would like to explain the message of this church.
It is the message of the restored gospel. I speak of the restoration, for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the restored church. In organization and power, it is as the Savior established it when he walked the earth. The Church of Jesus Christ of "Latter-day Saints" distinguishes it from the Church of Jesus Christ of former-day saints. It has been established in what the Lord has called "the dispensation of the fulness of times" or the last gospel dispensation.
The cornerstone of our message is the divine sonship of Christ. He was the Son of God, the Eternal Father, from whom he inherited immortality, or the power to live. He was the son of Mary, from whom he inherited mortality, or the power to die. Hence, he could say: "No man taketh from me, but I lay it down of myself. This commandment have I received of my Father."
As the Son of God, he had power to atone for the sins of all mankind. He broke the bonds of death, initiated the resurrection, and became the first fruits thereof. In another seven days, on Easter morning, the Christian world will celebrate the resurrection of our Savior. He arose from the grave, took up his earthly body, and, the scriptures say, "he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:
"And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and
" two men stood by them in white apparel;
"Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have see him go into heaven."
Salvation is in Christ; that is, in and through him, his atonement and his resurrection, we can be saved by obedience to the principles and ordinances of his gospel.
Jesus Christ is the central figure of all the world. He came in the meridian of time as had been predicted. Old Testament prophets prophesied of his coming. The Lord promised Adam that a Messiah would come. In fact, the law of sacrifice was given to Adam and his posterity. It was symbolic of the death of the Lamb of God. This sacrifice was dramatically explained by Moses in the Feast of the Passover. A lamb, a male of the first year, without blemish, was to be slain. Its blood was to be shed, but no bones were to be broken. This ordinance was to turn men's hearts and minds toward the day when the Lamb of God himself would be sacrificed for the sins of men. The sacrifice which the Father gave of his Only Begotten Son ended sacrifice by the shedding of blood.
In its place and to point our minds back to the atoning sacrifice, the Savior instituted the ordinance of the sacrament:
" the Lord Jesus took bread:
"And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
"After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
"For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come."
We declare the divine Sonship of Christ. We know he lives today. We know he shall come the second time, as was prophesied.
After the Savior had called the twelve apostles and established his Church, it was not many years until, as prophesied, the Church gradually fell into apostasy. The priesthood authority to administer the ordinances was lost. The Church dwindled in unbelief. Political power usurped what was left of the organization, and complete apostasy occurred. Just as this falling away was prophesied, so also was the time of restoration-or "the times of restitution of all things."
In the spring of 1820 a boy not yet fifteen, whose "mind was called up to serious reflection," pondered the question which, if any, church was true. He followed the scriptural injunction to "ask of God." He records:
" I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.
" When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
This marvelous vision, the personal appearance of both the Father and the Son, clarified once and for all the fact of their existence. The fact that they lived. The fact that they are separate, distinct beings. And the fact that they love us.
Subsequent to this vision, heavenly messengers bestowed additional powers and blessings to Joseph Smith. He prophesied. He taught gospel principles. He translated. He brought forth books of scripture-both ancient and modern. He built temples and cities. He was a revealer of the knowledge of Christ. He was the authorized servant of God. He fulfilled every requirement to complete the profile of a prophet. In due time Joseph received the "keys of the kingdom." With this apostolic power he reestablished the true church in its fullness and power. The Lord said to him: " this generation shall have my word through you."
There is no greater prophet in any dispensation than Joseph Smith. He translated the Book of Mormon from ancient plates. Its purpose is to be another witness that Jesus is the Christ. Concerning this book, the Lord declared: "And he has translated the book, even that part which I have commanded him, and as your Lord and your God liveth it is true."
We know that it is not a popular thing to teach that a backwoods boy from Vermont, reared in New England and trained on the frontier, was a prophet. But, popular or not, it is a fact! Joseph Smith was a prophet, and all of the calumny and aspersion to the contrary cannot controvert that fact. Anyone who has concern for the welfare of his eternal soul should give attention to this message. Every man who has lived since the days of Joseph Smith is subject to accepting him as a prophet of God in order to enter into our Heavenly Father's presence.
If you do not know of the divine calling of Joseph Smith, perhaps it is because you have not considered it. Of those who consider the Book of Mormon and the message he restored, more than two hundred people daily receive the witness that he was indeed a prophet of God. He suffered martyrdom. He sealed his testimony with his blood.
We declare that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true and that there is today a living prophet at its head.
The Lord himself has said it is "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well pleased. "
Our present prophet has been chosen by the Lord to direct his affairs and be his mouthpiece. At ninety-five he is moving a bit beyond middle age! But then, the Lord has never specified how old or young a prophet should be. Nor has he said how short or tall. He has not required that he be possessed of any particular academic degrees. But he has made it abundantly clear that he must be "called of God" and empowered by him. It is to be so called and ordained that qualifies President Joseph Fielding Smith. He is like other men, it is true. He will chuckle at a pleasantry. If you prick him he will bleed. His great tender heart will cause him to weep at another's sorrow. He is subject to sickness and pain. But there is one thing different about President Joseph Fielding Smith-you see, he is the prophet of God. I know this man. I love him. He has lived a life of rigorous service in which there was always intense opposition from the evil one. He has withstood all of that. The Lord has honored him by this great call to be his prophet. I love the stalwart counselors at his side. I love the Twelve. I love all my brethren.
Now, what is the destiny of this church? It will go forward. It cannot fail. It will grow until it fills the whole earth. With Christ at its head, in constant communication with the leaders of this church, we are destined to carry out the work God has assigned it. This church will carry the gospel message to all of our Father's children. It will save the living and the dead. This church will be maligned. It will be attacked. Many will doubt. Some will apostatize. However, it will bring the righteous and honest in heart into its fold and set their feet on the way to exaltation. Some think it strange today that so many Christian churches are empty. They wonder why this church progresses and grows. To us it is understandable. We know that an apostasy occurred in ancient days. We know that there has been a restoration of the true gospel in our day. We know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been organized with power and authority and with a living prophet to head it. We know its great destiny, and we are willing to live in order to achieve it. We know Christ is our head. We believe in the final, inevitable triumph of truth expressed in the gospel of Jesus Christ. We know we shall succeed. We invite all men of goodwill to join us in achieving this great destiny. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My dear brethren and sisters, humbly I seek the direction of the Holy Spirit.
This is April, this glorious time of the year when nature again comes alive. It is a season of promise, a time of beauty. It is a time for falling in love.
This morning I noticed a handsome young man and a beautiful girl walking hand in hand toward this building, a diamond on her finger, and I surmised that soon they will be married, as will scores of thousands of others across the land when April turns to May and May to June.
And then I recalled just such a couple who requested some years ago that I perform their marriage ceremony. I shall call them Tim and Sue. They were a young man and woman of great promise. They had come from good homes. They were well educated. They professed a deep affection one for another. The ceremony was such that it should have been unforgettable, with eternal blessings pronounced under authority of the priesthood of God.
The years have passed, and three children have come to that home. From outward appearances they have been a happy family, but recently Tim and Sue came to see me again, this time each alone. There were no smiles, only tears. They came to talk of divorce. Words of love, once spoken in deep earnestness, had now become words of accusation. It was unbelievable. It was like a vicious March storm that suddenly follows the warmth of the first soft day of spring.
"What of the children?" I asked. Sue replied that she thought separation preferable to exposing the children to their constant quarreling. The children, she said, were old enough to feel the meanness of those arguments. They were sensitive enough to experience deep wounds that will leave ugly scars.
What had happened to Tim and Sue? What is happening to tens of thousands like them? Why is it that in this country approximately one in three or four marriages ends in divorce?
Some 400,000 couples are divorced each year in the United States. They are the parents of more than half a million children. More than six million of the adults of this nation are now divorced or separated.
Even in those lands where divorce is difficult if not impossible to obtain, the same disease is evident-the same nagging, corrosive evils of domestic misery, of separation, of abandonment, and of immoral and illegal relationships.
Here is one of the tragic reasons for mounting juvenile delinquency: literally millions of children who come from homes where there is no parental love and consequently very little child security. Here is a root cause of our soaring public welfare burden, which is devouring billions of our treasure. Here is a denial of the kind of family ordained of God from the beginning. Here is heartbreak and failure.
I do not wish to dwell further on the problem. It is all too obvious. Rather, I desire to say a few words about the prevention of such tragedy.
To those of you who, with glad hearts, dream of marriage and the establishment of a home, I wish to repeat what was said of old: "Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it."
May I quickly suggest four cornerstones upon which to build that house? There are others, but I choose to emphasize these. They come of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They are not difficult to understand nor difficult to follow. They are well within your reach with a little effort; and I do not hesitate to promise you that if you will establish the home of which you dream on these foundation stones, the perils of your married life will be diminished, your love for one another will strengthen through the years, you will bless the lives of your children and of your children's children, and you will know happiness in this life and joy eternal.
The first of these I call Respect for One Another, the kind of respect that regards one's companion as the most precious friend on earth and not as a possession or a chattel to be forced or compelled to suit one's selfish whims.
Pearl Buck has observed, "Love cannot be forced. It comes out of heaven, unasked and unsought."
This respect comes of recognition that each of us is a son or daughter of God, endowed with something of his divine nature, that each is an individual entitled to expression and cultivation of individual talents and deserving of forbearance, of patience, of understanding, of courtesy, of thoughtful consideration. True love is not so much a matter of romance as it is a matter of anxious concern for the well being of one's companion.
Companionship in marriage is prone to become commonplace and even dull. I know of no more certain way to keep it on a lofty and inspiring plane than for a man occasionally to reflect upon the fact that the help-meet who stands at his side is a daughter of God, engaged with Him in the great creative process of bringing to pass His eternal purposes. I know of no more effective way for a woman to keep ever radiant the love for her husband than for her to look for and emphasize the godly qualities that are a part of every son of our Father and that can be evoked when there is respect and admiration and encouragement. The very processes of such actions will cultivate a constantly rewarding appreciation for one another.
The second thing I mention is a very simple thing, but I regard it as a very basic thing. For want of a better phrase I call it The Soft Answer.
It was said of old that "a soft answer turneth away wrath."
We seldom get into trouble when we speak softly. It is only when we raise our voices that the sparks fly and tiny molehills become great mountains of contention. To me there has always been something significant in the description of the prophet Elijah's contest with the priests of Baal. The scripture records that "a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
"And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice."
The voice of heaven is a still small voice; likewise, the voice of domestic peace is a quiet voice.
There is need for a vast amount of discipline in marriage, not of one's companion, but of one's self.
I know of few more meaningful statements for fathers and for fathers-to-be than this counsel given by President David O. McKay. Said he: "A father can do no greater thing for his children than to let them feel that he loves their mother."
How much greater the peace in the homes of the people, how much greater the security in the lives of the children, how much less divorce and separation and misery, how much more gladness and joy and love there would be if husbands and wives would cultivate the discipline of speaking softly one to another, and if both would so speak to their children.
Declared Paul: " ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath. "
I repeat, the voice of domestic peace is a gentle voice.
I turn now to the third cornerstone on which to establish a stable and happy home. I title it Honesty with God and with One Another.
A wise man with long experience as a lawyer, as a counselor, as a church leader once told me that he was convinced that money is perhaps the major factor in strained marital relations and the tragic consequences that flow therefrom.
My young friend of whom I spoke earlier accused his wife of being extravagant, a waster of their means. In bitterness she told me that he was stingy, a poor provider. Their bickering over pennies had led to the erosion of their love.
I am convinced that there is no better discipline nor one more fruitful of blessings than for those who establish homes and families to follow the commandment given to ancient Israel through the prophet Malachi: "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."
Marriage usually brings with it the incurring of many obligations. To you, my young friends, I should like to suggest that you make it your first obligation to live honestly with God in the payment of your tithes and offerings. You will need his blessings; oh, how much you will need them! I give you my solemn testimony that he does that which he has promised to do. Among those blessings will be peace in the home and love in the heart.
As you discipline yourselves in the expenditure of your means, beginning with your obligations to your Father in heaven, the cankering selfishness that leads to so much strain in domestic affairs will go out of your lives, for if you will share with the Lord whom you do not see, you will deal more graciously, more honestly, and more generously with those whom you do see. As you live honestly with God, you will be inclined to live honestly with one another.
Now in conclusion, as the fourth cornerstone I should like to suggest Family Prayer.
I know of no single practice that will have a more salutary effect upon your lives than the practice of kneeling together as you begin and close each day. Somehow the little storms that seem to afflict every marriage are dissipated when, kneeling before the Lord, you thank him for one another, in the presence of one another, and then together invoke his blessings upon your lives, your home, your loved ones, and your dreams.
God then will be your partner, and your daily conversations with him will bring peace into your hearts and a joy into your lives that can come from no other source. Your companionship will sweeten through the years; your love will strengthen. Your appreciation for one another will grow.
Your children will know the security of a home where dwells the Spirit of the Lord. You will gather them together in that home, as the Church has counseled, and teach them in love. They will know parents who respect one another, and a spirit of respect will grow in their hearts. They will experience the security of the kind word softly spoken, and the tempests of their own lives will be stilled. They will know a father and mother who, living honestly with God, live honestly also with one another and with their fellowmen. They will grow up with a sense of appreciation, having heard their parents in prayer express gratitude for blessings great and small. They will mature with faith in the living God.
The destroying angel of domestic bitterness will pass you by and you will know peace and love throughout your lives which may be extended into all eternity. I could wish for you no greater blessing, and for this I humbly pray in your behalf, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Richard L. Evans
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brethren and sisters-everywhere:
Some weeks ago some of us were considering what would attract the attention of people as they passed through a busy airport-moving to and from many places, intent on many purposes. The often-quoted questions came to mind: Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where are we going?-but a variation of one of these suggested itself: Where are you really going? And to this we might have added: What do you really want?
We use much of our time in rushing around, not thinking always what we ought to be, nor what it is that matters most.
Sometimes we set our hearts on things we feel we have to have, and when we get them find they don't mean as much as once we thought they would.
And so the years move by-and even while yet young we become aware that we are older than we were.
Soberingly, more than one-fourth of this year already has passed-partly in pursuit perhaps of things that don't matter very much-which reminds us of a dream that John Ruskin said he had:
"I dreamed," he said, "that I was at a child's party, in which every means of entertainment had been provided by a wise and kind host. The children had been set free in the rooms and gardens, with no care whatever but how to pass the afternoon rejoicingly. There was music all manner of amusing books a workshop a table loaded with everything nice to eat and whatever a child could fancy but in the midst of all this it struck two or three of the more 'practical' children that they would like some of the brass-headed nails that studded the chairs, and so they set to work to pull them out. In a little while all the children, nearly, were spraining their fingers in pulling out brass-headed nails. With all that they could pull out they were not satisfied; and then everybody wanted some of somebody else's. And at last the really 'practical' and 'sensible' ones declared that nothing was of any real consequence that afternoon except to get plenty of brass-headed nails. And at last they began to fight for nail heads, even though they knew they would not be allowed to carry so much as one brass knob away with them. But no! it was 'Who has most nails? I must have as many as you before I leave the house or I cannot possibly go home in peace.' At last they made so much noise that I awoke, and thought to myself, 'What a false dream that is of children. Children never do such foolish things. Only men do.'"
Well, I haven't dreamed a dream as Ruskin said he did, but countless times I have searched and prayed and thought this through.
Beloved young friends, beloved older friends, where are you really going? What do you really want?
Some months ago I spoke at the funeral service of a beloved old friend. He had, I would suppose, little of the things of this life, but I heard his grandson say, "Once a week Grandfather was with all his family-grandchildren and all. He taught the gospel to them. He was never negative. He always expressed faith and encouragement. There was no 'generation gap.'"
And I thought how blessed and satisfied I would feel if a grandson of mine could sincerely say this of me when this life runs out its short, uncertain length.
I thought of places where we've been, worldwide, where hundreds of millions have never had the privilege of learning to read and write. And then I thought of other places where young people drop out and ignore their opportunities. In a world that more and more demands training and competence and skill, where do they really think they are going?
My beloved young friends, every day is part of eternity. What happens here and now is forever important.
And I would plead with you, wherever you are, to prepare yourselves for opportunities that await you here and now, as well as for a future that is forever. "What is opportunity," asked George Eliot, "to the man who can't use it."
The laws of nature, the laws of God, the laws of life, are one and the same and are always in full force. We live in a universe of law. Spring follows winter. This we can count on. The sun will show itself on time again tomorrow morning. This we can count on.
And the moral laws and spiritual laws are also in full force. This also we can count on. All of us will realize the results of how we live our lives. And don't let anyone say that mere men have the right or power to repeal God's commandments or ever set them aside-commandments that are so practical and essential, a part of life, dealing as they do with health and happiness and peace, with honesty and morality and cleanliness, and excellence, and all else that pertains to life.
If someone tells you, my beloved young friends, that you can set the commandments of God aside without realizing the results-if someone tells you that, then you may know that you are listening to someone who doesn't know, or isn't telling you the truth.
These minds, these bodies God has given, with their wondrous physical functioning, must last a mortal lifetime-and to impair or dull the senses, or damage their physical functioning, or abuse or fail to care for them-to indulge in body-destroying, mind-dulling, spirit-blighting substances is a foolish, wicked unwisdom. Whatever is not good for man should not be used by man-or done by man.
But it isn't only physical punishment that comes from departing from the laws of life, but also mental and spiritual punishment, and the anguish of the soul inside. As Juvenal said: "The worst punishment of all is that in the court of his own conscience no guilty man is acquitted."
Well, we ought to live as we ought to live, not only because it would please God, not only because it would please our parents, but as a favor for ourselves-for every commandment, every requirement God has given is for our happiness, for our health, and for our peace and progress. O my beloved young friends, even selfishly it is smart to keep the commandments God has given.
Now along with the physical side there must be concern also with pollution of the mind and soul-concern for the purveyors and exploiters of pornography, those who for profit or for other purposes would fill people's minds with vile, debasing pictures and impressions in print.
O surely we should use such means as are available to roll back such evil-an evil that will never put limits on itself, but will become ever more pervasive and sinister as long as we let it.
We have an obligation to safeguard children in their innocence and honesty. And besides the rising cry to clean up physical pollution, let there be like concern to clean up pollution of mind and manners and morals. Our concern for physical pollution is surely not more urgent than our concern for the pollution of the minds and souls of men.
Now, as we go along in life, two things should surely be considered: the power of prevention and the power of repentance.
Why run against the laws of life? Why run headlong into ill health and unhappiness? Why live contrary to conscience? Think of the heartbreak and waste and regret that could be prevented by living as we ought to live. No one can set aside consequences. As Cecil B. DeMille said: "We cannot break the Commandments. We can only break ourselves against them."
But wherein we may have failed in this, then let us turn with all our hearts to the power of repentance.
The heavy weight of wrongdoing is too big a burden. I have heard President Lee say that the heaviest burden in all the world is the burden of sin. It isn't a happy sight to see those-young or old-in the anguish of carrying that weight around, wishing to heaven they had done differently.
But thanks be to God for the principle of repentance, for a Father who understands us and who has assured us he will accept our repentance so long as it is sincere. This he has said:
"By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins-behold, he will confess them and forsake them."
" he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more."
This you can count on. O turn from those ways which will take you where no one really wants to go. Turn to that which will bring you peace and self-respect and cleanliness and a quiet conscience.
I don't presume to know the timetable of our Father's plans and purposes, but I do know that with each of us the time to turn and begin to go where we ought to go is not later than now.
Where are we really going? As we come again to the season that celebrates the coming forth of our living Lord and Savior, we would well remember the divine plan and purpose that in due time would take us from this swift passing life to a real and personal everlastingness of life, with limitless eternal possibilities, and with our loved ones with us, always, and forever. This is our Father's plan and purpose. This is why it really matters where we're going and why we need his gospel to tell us how to get there.
Thank God for his revelations to his prophets, past and present, and for not leaving us alone. He has told us more than we have ever lived up to, and he will tell us more as we serve him and keep his commandments.
I leave you, my beloved friends everywhere, my witness that God does live, that same God and Father who made us in his own image; that he sent his divine Son, our Savior, to show us the way of life and redeem us from death; that the heavens have been opened and the fullness of the gospel brought again, to save and exalt us all, if we are willing, which is God's purpose: to bring our immortality and eternal life to pass.
I know that my Redeemer lives, and pray his peace and blessings upon all men everywhere, in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. Amen.
By President Harold B. Lee
First Counselor in the First Presidency
I sincerely pray for the spirit of this great conference during the few moments that I shall stand here.
Sometime ago there appeared in the Wall Street Journal a thought-provoking article, written by an eminent theologian at the Columbia University, under the subject heading "An Antidote for Aimlessness," which you recognize as a condition that is prevalent in the world today. I quote from this article by Rabbi Arthur Herlzterg:
"What people come to religion for, is an ultimate metaphysical hunger, and when that hunger is not satisfied, religion declines the moment that clerics become more worldly, the world goes to hades the faster.
" Religion represents the accumulation of man's insight over thousands of years into such questions as the nature of man, the meaning of life, the individual's place in the universe. That is, precisely, the question at the root of man's restlessness.
"Man seeks something to end his state of confusion and emptiness in the latest parlance, an antidote for aimlessness. We do not know if the truths of religious tradition can be interpreted to satisfy this need, but we are sure that here, not in political activism, is religion's path to relevance."
As an answer to those who may be wandering aimlessly, searching for something to satisfy their need and to end their state of confusion and emptiness, I would like to introduce a few thoughts by relating a remarkable vision which came to an ancient prophet by the name of Lehi-600 years before Christ. To the faithful members of the Church this will be an oft-related incident recorded in the Book of Mormon. To those not of our faith this may, if they will ponder seriously, be very significant in the light of many trends in our modern society.
In this dream, or better called a vision, the prophet Lehi was led by a heavenly messenger through a dark and dreary waste to a tree laden with delicious fruit which proved to be very satisfying to his soul. He beheld a river of water nearby along which was a straight and narrow path leading to the tree laden with delicious fruit. Between the river bank and the path was a rod of iron, presumably to safeguard the travelers from falling off the narrow path into the river.
As he looked, he saw large groups of people crowding forward to gain access to the spacious field where the tree with fruit was located. As they pressed forward along the path, a great mist of darkness arose, so dense that many who started lost their way and wandered off and were drowned in the murky water or were lost from view as they wandered into strange paths. There were others, however, likewise in danger of being lost because of the blinding mist, who caught hold of the iron rod and, by so doing, held their course so that they too could partake of the delicacies which had beckoned them to come, despite the hazardous journey. Across, on the opposite side of the river, were multitudes of people pointing fingers of scorn at those who made the journey safely.
As with many other ancient prophets in biblical history, dreams or visions of this nature were effective means by which the Lord communicated with his people through prophet-leaders. Just so, this dream had great significance, as the Lord revealed to the prophet Lehi. The tree laden with fruit was a representation of the love of God which he sheds forth among all the children of men. The Master himself, later in his earthly ministry, explained to Nicodemus how that great love was manifested. Said he: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life"; and then the Master added: "For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."
The rod of iron as seen in the vision interpreted was the word of God, or the gospel of Jesus Christ, which led to the tree of life that the Master explained to the woman at the well in Samaria was as "a well of water springing up into everlasting life."
Those, as seen in the vision, who were across the river pointing fingers of scorn represented the multitudes of the earth which are gathered together to fight against the apostles of the Lamb of God. The scorners, so the Lord revealed, represented the so-called wisdom of the world, and the building itself in which they were gathered was the "pride of the world."
If there is any one thing most needed in this time of tumult and frustration, when men and women and youth and young adults are desperately seeking for answers to the problems which afflict mankind, it is an "iron rod" as a safe guide along the straight path on the way to eternal life, amidst the strange and devious roadways that would eventually lead to destruction and to the ruin of all that is "virtuous, lovely, or of good report."
These conditions as they would be found in the earth when these scriptures, now called the Book of Mormon, were to be brought forth were foreseen by the prophets. As I read some of these predictions, I would have you think of conditions with which we are surrounded today:
"And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts; and there are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts; unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities because of the pride of your hearts.
" behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted."
The apostle Paul also spoke of a time of peril when "men be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
"Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those things that are good,
"Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
"Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. "
There are many who profess to be religious and speak of themselves as Christians, and, according to one such, "as accepting the scriptures only as sources of inspiration and moral truth," and then ask in their smugness: "Do the revelations of God give us a handrail to the kingdom of God, as the Lord's messenger told Lehi, or merely a compass?"
Unfortunately, some are among us who claim to be Church members but are somewhat like the scoffers in Lehi's vision-standing aloof and seemingly inclined to hold in derision the faithful who choose to accept Church authorities as God's special witnesses of the gospel and his agents in directing the affairs of the Church.
There are those in the Church who speak of themselves as liberals who, as one of our former presidents has said, "read by the lamp of their own conceit." One time I asked one of our Church educational leaders how he would define a liberal in the Church. He answered in one sentence: "A liberal in the Church is merely one who does not have a testimony."
Dr. John A. Widtsoe, former member of the Quorum of the Twelve and an eminent educator, made a statement relative to this word liberal as it applied to those in the Church. This is what he said:
"The self-called liberal is usually one who has broken with the fundamental principles or guiding philosophy of the group to which he belongs. He claims membership in an organization but does not believe in its basic concepts; and sets out to reform it by changing its foundations.
"It is folly to speak of a liberal religion, if that religion claims that it rests upon unchanging truth."
And then Dr. Widtsoe concludes his statement with this: "It is well to beware of people who go about proclaiming that they are or their churches are liberal. The probabilities are that the structure of their faith is built on sand and will not withstand the storms of truth."
Here again, to use the figure of speech in Lehi's vision, they are those who are blinded by the mists of darkness and as yet have not a firm grasp on the "iron rod."
Wouldn't it be wonderful if, when there are questions which are unanswered because the Lord hasn't seen fit to reveal the answers as yet, all such could say, as Abraham Lincoln is alleged to have said, "I accept all I read in the Bible that I can understand, and accept the rest on faith."
How comforting it would be to those who are the restless in the intellectual world, when such questions arise as to how the earth was formed and how man came to be, if they could answer as did an eminent scientist and devoted Church member. A sister had asked: "Why didn't the Lord tell us plainly about these things?" The scientist answered: "It is likely we would not understand if he did. It might be like trying to explain the theory of atomic energy to an eight-year-old child."
Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled in secular learning could hold fast to the "iron rod," or the word of God, which could lead them, through faith, to an understanding, rather than to have them stray away into strange paths of man-made theories and be plunged into the murky waters of disbelief and apostasy?
I heard one of our own eminent scientists say something to the effect that he believed more professors have taken themselves out of the Church by their trying to philosophize or intellectualize the fall of Adam and the subsequent atonement of the Savior. This was because they would rather accept the philosophies of men than what the Lord has revealed until they, and we, are able to understand the "mysteries of godliness" as explained to the prophets of the Lord and more fully revealed in sacred places.
There were evidently similar questions and controversies in the Master's time. In one terse answer, he gave the essential ingredients to safety amidst the maze of uncertainty:
To settle an apparent controversy among his disciples as to who would be the greatest in the kingdom of God, he said: " except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of."
To become converted, according to the scriptures, meant having a change of heart and the moral character of a person turned from the controlled power of sin into a righteous life. It meant to "wait patiently on the Lord" until one's prayers can be answered and until his heart, as Cyprian, a defender of the faith in the Apostolic Period, testified, and I quote, "Into my heart, purified of all sin, there entered a light which came from on high, and then suddenly and in a marvelous manner, I saw certainty succeed doubt."
Conversion must mean more than just being a "card carrying" member of the Church with a tithing receipt, a membership card, a temple recommend, etc. It means to overcome the tendencies to criticize and to strive continually to improve inward weaknesses and not merely the outward appearances.
The Lord issued a warning to those who would seek to destroy the faith of an individual or lead him away from the word of God or cause him to lose his grasp on the "iron rod," wherein was safety by faith in a Divine Redeemer and his purposes concerning this earth and its peoples.
The Master warned: "But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."
The Master was impressing the fact that rather than ruin the soul of a true believer, it were better for a person to suffer an earthly death than to incur the penalty of jeopardizing his own eternal destiny.
The apostle Paul impressed also the danger of false teachings by bad example. Said he: "But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak.
"And through thy knowledge shall the weak perish, for whom Christ died?
"But when ye sin so against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, ye sin against Christ."
Speaking to the learned and highly sophisticated generation in his time, the prophet Jacob said something which seems to be so often needed to be repeated today: " When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not.
"But to be learned is good if they hearken to the counsels of God."
We fervently thank the Lord for the faithfulness and devotion of many in and out of the Church who are in high places in business, in governmental circles, in the legal profession, doctors, trained social workers, nurses, and those in the fields of the sciences and the arts. Particularly are we grateful for those who accept positions of leadership in the Church, who serve as home teachers or class leaders in the priesthood or in the auxiliaries, who make themselves available for volunteer service in helping to care for the unfortunate in all lands and among minorities within and without the Church, and in giving particular attention to the needs of the widows and the orphans.
I say to all such, as did Jesus to Zacchaeus: "This day is salvation come to house." These are they who are holding fast to the "iron rod" which can lead us all, in safety, to the tree of life.
I read recently from a column in the Washington Post, by George Moore, who styled himself as the "hermit of Mount Vernon." In this article he said, "I have spent the last twenty years of my life at Mount Vernon reducing my ignorance." He claimed that a person never learns anything until he realizes how little he knows. In this article he makes this most illuminating observation about George Washington:
"Washington never went to school. That's why he was an educated man, he never quit learning."
What George Moore said of himself I suppose could be said of many of you and of myself: "I have spent more than three score years of my life reducing my ignorance."
Therein, it is my conviction, is the challenge to all who achieve distinction in any field. Some quit learning when they graduate from a school; some quit learning about the gospel when they have completed a mission for the Church; some quit learning when they become an executive or have a prominent position in or out of the Church.
Remember, as George Moore said of Washington, "We can become educated persons, regardless of our stations in life, if we never quit learning."
The late President Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote this: "Any man who does his work well, who is justifiably self-confident and not unduly disturbed by the jeers of the cynics and the shirkers, any man who stays true to decent motives and is considerate of others is, in essence, a leader. Whether or not he is ever singled out for prominence, he is bound to achieve great inner satisfaction in turning out superior work.
"And that, by the way, is what the good Lord put us on this earth for."
With the restoration of the true gospel of Jesus Christ and the establishment of the Church in the dispensation of the fulness of times, we were given instructions by revelation, the magnitude of which, as the late President Brigham H. Roberts explained, was "not merely as to whether baptism should be by immersion or for the forgiveness of sins, but the rubbish of accumulated ages was swept aside, the rocks made bare, and the foundations of the Kingdom of God were relaid."
It may seem preposterous to many to declare that within the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be found a bulwark to safeguard against the pitfalls, the frustrations, and the wickedness in the world. The plan of salvation formed in the heavens points clearly to the straight and narrow path that leads to eternal life, even though there are many who refuse to follow that way.
In a great revelation, the Lord gave instruction by commandment to the leaders of the Church of that early day that they should be seekers after truth in many fields.
First, of course, he commanded that they should "teach one another the doctrine of the kingdom in all things that pertain the kingdom of God. "
Then he counsels as to the wide sweep of learning about which we should seek. His church was not to be an ignorant ministry in various fields of secular learning.
And then the Lord addressed his revelation to all others who may not have faith: " seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
One might well ask: How does one get "learning by faith"? One prophet explains the process: First, one must arouse his faculties and experiment on the words of the Lord and desire to believe. Let this desire work in you until ye believe in a manner that you can give place even to a portion of the word of the Lord; then, like a planted seed, it must be cultivated and not resist the Spirit of the Lord, which is that which lighteneth everyone born into the world; you can then begin to feel within yourselves that it must be good, for it enlarges your soul and enlightens your understanding and, like the fruit of the tree in Lehi's vision, it becomes delicious to the taste.
It was an English novelist who was quoted as saying: "He who seeks God has already found him."
Let no one think that "learning by faith" contemplates an easy or lazy way to gain knowledge and ripen it into wisdom.
From heavenly instructions and added to which are the experiences of almost anyone who has sought diligently for heavenly guidance, one may readily understand that learning by faith requires the bending of the whole soul through worthy living to become attuned to the Holy Spirit of the Lord, the calling up from the depths of one's own mental searching, and the linking of our own efforts to receive the true witness of the Spirit.
The mission of this church is to bear witness of the truths of the gospel and put to flight the false teachings on every side that are causing the restlessness and the aimlessness that threaten all who have not found the straight path and that which could be an anchor to their souls.
My fervent prayer is that I may hold up that true Light of Christ to all the world. I would that all may know with assurance, as I, from study, prayer, and faith, know for a certainty, as the Master declared to Martha, who was mourning the death of Lazarus, that the Lord and Master is indeed "the resurrection, and the life; he that believeth in, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
"And whosoever liveth and believeth in shall never die. "
I thank the Lord that I can answer, as did Martha and as did Peter of old: "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."
"Yea, Lord: I believe thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world."
To this I do bear my solemn witness, in the sacred name of our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, even so. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
We are living in what may be termed one of the most important periods in the history of the world. This is the dispensation of the fulness of times, a time when the keys of all former dispensations have been given to the prophets of the restoration; a time when God has spoken from the heavens, angels have appeared to man; a time when men and women have the Holy Ghost conferred upon them. Moroni has said that by the power of the Holy Ghost we may know the truth of all things. There is need for this great power in the earth today-this steering power. It is our duty and responsibility to live worthy of the blessings that we enjoy. Where much is given, much is required. We are required to live exemplary lives, to keep the commandments of the Lord, and it is also our responsibility to carry the true gospel message to all mankind.
A prophet of the Book of Mormon said: " men are, that they might have joy." Pleasure is not necessarily joy. Lehi was undoubtedly not speaking of temporary pleasure, but of eternal joy. In referring to man he was not limiting his existence to mortality. He was speaking of eternal man. Man can have joy in accomplishment, particularly eternal accomplishment. If he fails to live in such a way as to receive the blessing of eternal life in the kingdom of his Father, he will reap misery and disappointment.
The Lord showed unto Abraham the intelligences that were organized before the world was. And God saw these souls, that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said unto those who were with him:
"We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
"And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
There were many there who did not keep their first estate, their spiritual existence, who were disobedient, and as a result they were not added upon; they did not have the privilege of passing through this second estate. They had their free agency, and they chose the course for which Lucifer contended.
And there are many in this second estate who will not keep this estate and therefore cannot expect to have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever, because they have not kept the commandments which the Lord their God has given them.
These commandments are given for our welfare and blessing here as well as hereafter.
We must pay a price for everything we get, whether of a temporal or spiritual nature, and we generally get about what we pay for. If, for instance, I should purchase a suit of clothes, in order to get the best material, the best style, and the proper fit, I must pay a higher price than if I am satisfied with a suit made of shoddy material and poor workmanship. Likewise if I desire to purchase a home, an automobile, or whatever it may be. If I seek intellectual values, I must pay the price by study, research, by devoted effort and ofttimes sacrifice.
The same is true of spiritual values. One cannot expect to inherit eternal life if he is not willing to pay the price and to do the things required for such salvation and exaltation. We are told that "there is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated-And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated." Our goal is salvation in the celestial kingdom of our Heavenly Father and to receive the glory that awaits the faithful there.
The Savior of the world unselfishly and willingly paid the utmost price, even that of his own blood, in order that mankind might be redeemed from the grave. Death before that time was a matter of serious concern. The grave seemingly had won a victory. There was indeed the sting of death. His offering made it possible for us to come forth from the grave, to break the bondage of the tomb. He bought us with a price, the price being his own blood. He has also set the price which we must pay in order to obtain salvation in his presence and that of our Heavenly Father, and that price is the keeping of his commandments. Those commandments are God's laws-nature's laws too-and the breaking of them brings penalties; observance brings the promised blessings.
The Lord has told us, " my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." This does not mean that one can receive exaltation in the kingdom of our Heavenly Father at bargain prices. There are those who offer such bargains, but one gets merely what he pays for. If we are to attain eternal life in our Father's kingdom, it is not sufficient that we have mere passive belief in our Lord and Savior and his great redeeming sacrifice. Surely one cannot expect to receive the greatest blessings that the Father has in store for his faithful children by paying bargain prices.
There are those who seem to take the attitude that inasmuch as they have been baptized by immersion and by one having proper authority, and have had hands laid upon their heads for the reception of the Holy Ghost, their salvation is assured. Others seem to think that if they have had the priesthood conferred upon them, there is nothing further required at their hands. Aren't we as badly mistaken when we fail to live the life of a Latter-day Saint, after we come into the Church, as are those who think that mere belief in the Lord is sufficient? Where much is given, much is required, and if after the light of Christ comes into our souls we allow that light to become dimmed, we are under greater condemnation than those who have not had the light. Of what good is the priesthood to one if he does not honor it and live worthy of that great power?
The gospel is the power of God unto salvation unto everyone that believes and obeys it.
The injunction to those who accept the gospel is that they "add to faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
"And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
"And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
"For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Just as in this enlightened age the inventive mind and the creative hand have added greatly to man's obligations, so has the fact that the Spirit of the Lord has borne testimony to our souls of the truth of this work added greatly to our responsibilities.
In his Sermon on the Mount the Lord said:
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
And again:
"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
"And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
The Lord has given us in this dispensation a life-giving, life-shaping purpose when he gave us the gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel is given for the benefit of man. We too must have the necessities of life. We are living in the time of a great civilization. It is only natural and proper that we should desire the things that make life wholesome and pleasurable; but with all our struggle for the necessities and luxuries of life, we must not overlook the great purpose of life, which is eternal salvation and exaltation of the souls of men. Like Israel of old, we are a peculiar people. We are peculiar in the sense that we believe in constant revelation from God and that he is revealing to us his truth. The ultimate goal of life is to assist in the fulfillment of God's plan for his children, the salvation of human souls, and that, of course, pertains to our own souls also. It is our responsibility to bring a knowledge of these things to our Father's children wherever they may be, to bring to them a living knowledge of the truth. It is also important that we go into the temples of the Lord and do vicarious work for those who have passed to the great beyond so that they too may have the blessings that we enjoy if they accept the message when it is brought to them in the spirit world.
Life is largely worthless unless it is held together, given shape and form by some great purpose, and there is no greater purpose than that of helping our fellowmen as well as ourselves to attain the glorious salvation which our Lord has promised to his obedient children.
The possibility of salvation applies to all of God's children, both the living and those who have passed to the existence beyond. The conditions upon which salvation in our Heavenly Father's kingdom may be attained are incorporated in the plan that was formulated in the heavens before we came here, and there is no possibility of such salvation without obedience to that plan. We must accept Jesus Christ as the author of our salvation. The salvation that I am thinking of, the salvation that Latter-day Saints seek, is eternal life in the presence of our Heavenly Father and his divine Son, not only eternal existence but eternal growth and activity. This is the joy of which Lehi spoke.
Truly, "the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." May the Lord bless and inspire us in our efforts to attain this goal.
I testify that Jesus is the Christ and that he is the author of the restored gospel, the plan of life and salvation, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Bruce R. McConkie
Of the First Council of the Seventy
When I was a mission president in Australia, I once said to those of my missionaries in Tasmania: "Tomorrow we shall climb Mt. Wellington and hold our missionary meeting on the top. We shall there seek to commune with the Lord and partake of his Spirit."
We made the climb, and while on top of the peak we visited a television broadcasting station. A bright young man explained to us in words I had never heard, and using principles I could not and do not understand, how the sounds and scenes of television were broadcast into the valley below.
That night, back in the city of Hobart, my two young sons and I sat before a television set that was tuned to the proper wave band, and we saw and heard and experienced what had been described to us in words.
Now I think this illustrates perfectly what is involved in the receipt of revelation and the seeing of visions. We can read about visions and revelations in the records of the past, we can study the inspired writings of people who had the fullness of the gospel in their day, but we cannot comprehend what is involved until we see and hear and experience for ourselves.
This Tabernacle is now full of words and music. Handel's Messiah is being sung, and the world's statesmen are propagandizing their people. But we do not hear any of it.
This Tabernacle is full of scenes from Vietnam and Washington. There is even a picture of men walking on the surface of the moon. But we are not seeing these things. The minute, however, in which we tune a radio to the proper wave band and tune a television receiving set on the proper channel, we begin to hear and see and experience what otherwise remains completely unknown to us.
And so it is with the revelations and visions of eternity. They are around us all the time. This Tabernacle is full of the same things which are recorded in the scriptures and much more. The vision of the degrees of glory is being broadcast before us, but we do not hear or see or experience because we have not tuned our souls to the wave band on which the Holy Ghost is broadcasting.
Joseph Smith said: "The Holy Ghost is a revelator." And, "No man can receive the Holy Ghost without receiving revelations."
Moroni said: " by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
The Comforter knoweth all things; he is commissioned to bear witness of the Father and the Son, to reveal, to teach, and to testify-and he is broadcasting all the truths of salvation, and all the knowledge and wisdom of God, out into all immensity all of the time.
How this is done we do not know. We cannot comprehend God or the laws by which he governs the universe. But that it does happen we know because here in the valley below, when we attune our souls to the Infinite, we hear and see and experience the things of God.
The laws governing radio and television have existed from the time of Adam to the present moment, but only in modern times have men heard and seen and experienced these miraculous things. And the laws have always existed whereby men can see visions, hear the voice of God, and partake of the things of the Spirit. But millions of people everywhere live and die without tasting the good word of God, because they do not obey the laws which implant the revelations of the Lord in their souls.
And may I say that the only way to gain true religion is to receive it from the Lord. True religion is revealed religion; it is not a creation of man's devising; it comes from God.
Man did not create God, nor can he redeem himself. No man can resurrect himself or assign himself to an inheritance in a heavenly kingdom. Salvation comes from God, on his terms, and the things men must do to gain it can be known only by revelation.
God stands revealed or he remains forever unknown, and the things of God are and can be known only by and through the Spirit of God.
True religion deals with spiritual things. We do not come to a knowledge of God and his laws through intellectuality, or by research, or by reason. I have an average mind-one that is neither better nor worse than the general run of mankind. In the realm of intellectual attainment I have a doctor's degree, and I hope my sons after me will reach a similar goal. In their sphere, education and intellectuality are devoutly to be desired.
But when contrasted with spiritual endowments, they are of but slight and passing worth. From an eternal perspective what each of us needs is a Ph.D. in faith and righteousness. The things that will profit us everlastingly are not the power to reason, but the ability to receive revelation; not the truths learned by study, but the knowledge gained by faith; not what we know about the things of the world, but our knowledge of God and his laws.
Joseph Smith said that a man could learn more about the things of God by looking into heaven for five minutes than by reading all the books ever written upon the subject of religion. Religion is something which must be experienced.
I know people who can talk endlessly about religion but who have never had a religious experience. I know people who have written books about religion but who have about as much spirituality as a cedar post. Their interest in gospel doctrine is to defend their own speculative views rather than to find out what the Lord thinks about whatever is involved. Their conversations and their writings are in the realm of reason and the intellect; the Spirit of God has not touched their souls; they have not been born again and become new creatures of the Holy Ghost; they have not received revelation.
It is the privilege and the right of every member of the Church to receive revelation and to enjoy the gifts of the Spirit. When we are confirmed members of the Church, we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, which is the right to the constant companionship of that member of the Godhead, based on faithfulness. The actual enjoyment of this gift depends upon personal worthiness. "God shall give unto you knowledge by his Holy Spirit," the revelation says to the Saints, "yea, by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost. "
Speaking of the revelations received by his father, Nephi said: " he truly spake many great things which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord. "
Of these same revelations, Laman and Lemuel said: " we cannot understand the words which our father hath spoken. "
Nephi asked: "Have ye inquired of the Lord?"
They replied: "We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us."
Then Nephi came forth with this glorious pronouncement: "How is it that ye do not keep the commandments of the Lord? How is it that ye will perish, because of the hardness of your hearts?
"Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?-If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you."
It is the right of members of the Church to receive revelation. Joseph Smith said: " God hath not revealed anything to Joseph, but what he will make known unto the Twelve, and even the least Saint may know all things as fast as he is able to bear them. "
Also: "It is the privilege of every Elder to speak of the things of God; and could we all come together with one heart and one mind in perfect faith the veil might as well be rent today as next week, or any other time. "
Religion must be felt and experienced. In the record of the ministry of the resurrected Lord among the Nephites, we find this account: Jesus "knelt upon the earth; and behold he prayed unto the Father, and the things which he prayed cannot be written, and the multitude did bear record who heard him.
"And after this manner do they bear record: The eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvelous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father;
"And no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father."
Then of a subsequent prayer the scriptural account says: "And tongue cannot speak the words which he prayed, neither can be written by man the words which he prayed.
"And the multitude did hear and do bear record; and their hearts were open and they did understand in their hearts the words which he prayed.
"Nevertheless, so great and marvelous were the words which he prayed that they cannot be written, neither can they be uttered by man."
Religion comes from God by revelation and deals with spiritual things; and unless and until a man has received revelation, he has not received religion, and he is not on the path leading to salvation in our Father's kingdom.
I bear testimony of these things because I have received revelation-revelation which tells me that Jesus Christ is the Son of God; that Joseph Smith is a prophet, through whom the knowledge of Christ and of salvation has been restored for this day; and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in literal reality the kingdom of God on earth. And of these things I do testify, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Some years ago while I was serving in the navy and was away from home, a very prominent and well-to-do farmer died in my home neighborhood. Upon my return I was talking with my cousin about the estate of the deceased, and I asked the inevitable question, "How much did he leave?" My cousin said, "He left it all; he didn't take any of it with him."
That struck me as being a great truth that very, very few men seem ever to comprehend. Certainly many of us act as though we are going to take it all with us when we go; of course, we are not. In terms of material things, each of us leaves it all. In the words of Paul to Timothy, "For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out."
Well, isn't there anything good we can take with us when we go, we may ask? The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that the knowledge and intelligence gained here in this life would go with us when we leave.
"And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come.
"There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated-
"And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated."
This being true, then it would seem that we all should place the pursuit of light and truth, or intelligence, uppermost in our selection of goals, since we may have them eternally. We must seek after enlightenment. Since "the glory of God is intelligence", if we would be like our Heavenly Father, our course is fixed.
Ignorance is expensive; in fact, it is the most expensive commodity we know anything about. Certainly we make many mistakes through ignorance. If it is a violation of a commandment of God which we have never received and thus do not know, then the Lord does not hold us guilty of the sin. " to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." And in Paul's words, " where no law is, there is no transgression." But even though we may not be guilty of the sin because of our ignorance, neither can we receive the blessing, which is predicated on obedience, without rendering obedience to that law. Therefore, we are denied the blessing through our ignorance. If it is a traffic law we have violated through ignorance, the penalty assessed us is exactly the same as if we had known. Also, if we stick a finger in an electric light socket, we will receive the same shock, irrespective of our knowledge of electricity. I repeat, ignorance is expensive. Particularly is this true since the Lord has decreed, "It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance." For surely no man is truly enlightened unless he knows the Lord.
Why is it we are so slow to learn, to receive the light? Is it because the Lord is slow to speak or doesn't want to be bothered? Not according to his word to James wherein he says he "giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not. "
Then the real problem is in that we receive not the light! " and here is the condemnation of man," saith the Lord; "because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light.
"And every man whose spirit receiveth not the light is under condemnation."
But why do we receive not the light? The Lord tells us why over and over again in the scriptures. Simply stated, the reason we do not learn is because we are not in condition to learn. We are not in condition to receive the light because we are not willing to receive it. We just plain don't want it. Now most of us would violently disagree with this statement, I am sure. Of course we want light and learning from God, our Heavenly Father. Still, the words of the Lord are true. In speaking of those who would be resurrected from the dead but would not receive a degree of glory, he said:
"And they who remain shall also be quickened; nevertheless, they shall return again to their own place, to enjoy that which they are willing to receive, because they were not willing to enjoy that which they might have received.
"For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift? Behold, he rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift."
Then Cassius's words to Brutus in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar apply equally to us. "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings." We must look to ourselves for the reason for our ignorance.
We are prone to say that we are waiting on the Lord to receive light and truth when, as a matter of fact, the Lord is waiting on us-waiting for us to get into condition so he can reveal the light we seek and so desperately need.
The Lord has well stated our plight. "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men darkness rather than light, because their deeds evil." I repeat: "because their deeds evil."
Revelation, light, and knowledge come through the power of the Holy Ghost. The words of the Master as recorded in John are expressive. "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." And again, " he will guide you into all truth and you things to come." In fact, we can neither teach nor learn gospel truths without the Holy Ghost. In this day the Lord has reconfirmed this great truth in these words:
"Therefore, why is it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by the Spirit of truth?
"Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together.
"And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness.
"That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.
"Wherefore, he is possessor of all things; for all things are subject unto him, both in heaven and on the earth, the life and the light, the Spirit and the power, sent forth by the will of the Father through Jesus Christ, his Son.
"But no man is possessor of all things except he be purified and cleansed from all sin.
"And if ye are purified and cleansed from all sin, ye shall ask whatsoever you will in the name of Jesus and it shall be done."
A great Book of Mormon prophet, Alma, after preaching a great sermon on obedience under the influence of the Holy Spirit, stated in part how he received such knowledge and power. "Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me."
Sometimes members appear to feel that fasting and prayer is all that is necessary to receive the answers to their problems. Sometime ago a young lady came into my office concerned because she had fasted and prayed for two days to know if a certain young man should marry her, and she felt that she had received an answer in the affirmative. Shortly thereafter, the young man became engaged to another girl. Her question to me was, "How can this be, since I received an answer that he should marry me?"
Upon further interview it became apparent that there were a number of commandments of which she was certainly aware but was not keeping. It takes more than fasting and prayer. We must begin again; we must repent-confess and forsake our sins. We must study the scriptures, yea, search the scriptures; we must keep the commandments of God, and keep them precisely. For the commandments are calculated to get us in condition so that we can receive light and truth, even intelligence, which is communication from God, our Father, which we so desperately need and which is the only thing of real worth we can take with us when we go.
May I bear witness to you, my brethren and sisters, that what you have heard from this place in this conference is the mind of the Lord, the will of the Lord, and the word of the Lord for the salvation of his saints at this particular juncture in time, for he lives and speaks to his servants today. We must give heed to the word of the Lord; therefore, it is tremendously important that we give heed to these words, and work out our salvation with fear and trembling before him, as we precisely keep these commandments. May we do so, and may it be said of us when we depart that "he took with him a clean, free, enlightened and happy spirit, and a conscience void of offense to his fellowmen." That this may be our happy state, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Consider these words of the Savior as he spoke to the woman of Samaria at Jacob's well: "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
"But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."
What greater way to demonstrate the saving, healing principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ than to relate them to life-sustaining water-water that is essential for every human being in order to live.
The Savior was telling the woman that if she drank from her well she would thirst again, but if she drank from his well and partook of the principles that he taught, she would never thirst again, but her soul would be nourished and she would have eternal life.
We live in a complex and challenging world. Young and old seem to be going to and fro and in their own way drinking from different wells, searching for that water that will begin to feed their souls, that will quench some inner thirst.
To youth who associate themselves with various causes, some popular, many designed to accomplish much good, and a few militant; to the adult who can find no satisfaction in his vocation and perhaps only frustration in his marriage and emptiness in his life; to the militant who spends his life bitterly denouncing what he is against but never quite certain what he is for; to the person who turns to drugs, perhaps even attempting to equate it with a spiritual experience, and then realizing that for every high there is some kind of dismal low-perhaps these people and many others seize upon special issues and act unpredictably more from an inner need to satisfy a yearning soul than because of the face value of that in which they are involved, however worthy it may be.
Even in Russia, where its people have drunk at the well of socialist morality for fifty years, there is an indication of a desire for something more nourishing. In studying religion in Russia today, journalist Paul Wohl states that "socialist morality has been accepted as the official yardstick of good behavior, but whether Soviet man is more harmonious than his predecessor is a moot question. A scientific outlook is there," says Wohl, "but so is religion. Its comeback," he says, "is a phenomenon which the ideologists of communism cannot explain and about which they prefer to remain silent." He states that the move toward religion is primarily sparked by young people.
The writer tells of a simple Russian woman who received the visit of her neighbor, a young engineer-physicist. "I know you are a believer," said the engineer. "Can you tell me about God? The philosophy of dialectical materialism does not satisfy me. I would like to know the viewpoint of believers."
It is most interesting to note that there is something fundamental and basic in the makeup of man that will sooner or later turn him to his Creator, provided he does not completely strangle this inclination through evil works on chronic unbelief, and provided he doesn't condition himself to settle for less by insisting that what he doesn't know or hasn't experienced just isn't so.
Speaking of the Savior, the prophet Alma says:
"Behold, he sendeth an invitation unto all men, for the arms of mercy are extended towards them, and he saith: Repent, and I will receive you.
"Yea, he saith: Come unto me and ye shall partake of the fruit of the tree of life; yea, ye shall eat and drink of the bread and the waters of life freely;
"Behold, I say unto you, that the good shepherd doth call you; yea, and in his own name he doth call you, which is the name of Christ. "
And after Alma teaches the people those things relative to the gospel of Jesus Christ and what they can do in order to nourish their souls, and find peace, and prepare for eternal life, he then says:
"And now I, Alma, do command you in the language of him who hath commanded me, that ye observe to do the words which I have spoken unto you.
"I speak by way of command unto you that belong to the church; and unto those who do not belong to the church I speak by way of invitation, saying: Come and be baptized unto repentance, that ye also may be partakers of the fruit of the tree of life."
As this last scripture indicates, it is possible for a person to have the fruit of the tree of salvation readily available to him, but to no avail if he does not partake!
I am reminded of two young men who came in to see me some months ago. They had been recommended by their priesthood leaders. From the moment they stepped into the office, they began in a very sincere way questioning certain doctrines and teachings and procedures of the Church. Their attitude, however, was not antagonistic, as they were sincerely looking for answers.
I asked them finally if their questions perhaps represented the symptoms of their problem and not the cause. Wasn't their real question whether or not this church is true? Whether or not it is actually the Church of Jesus Christ? And whether or not it is led by divine revelation? The young men agreed that perhaps if they were sure of the answers to these questions, they could take care of the other questions that seemed to arise in their hearts.
I asked them if they were willing to participate in an experiment. One of them appeared to be athletically inclined, and so I turned to him and asked, "If you wanted to learn about the chemical properties of water, would you go to the local sports stadium and run four laps around the track?"
He said, "Of course not."
I asked, "Why not?"
He said, "The two are not related." We then turned to John, chapter seven, and read: "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it he of God, or whether I speak of myself."
If we are going to experiment with the things of Christ, then we are going to have to put these things to a spiritual test-a test that the Savior himself has outlined for all those who wish to know, a test of doing.
I asked them if they read the scriptures.
They said, "No."
I asked them if they prayed.
They said, "Not often."
I asked them if they kept the Word of Wisdom.
They said, "Occasionally."
I asked them if they went to church. They said they'd stopped.
I asked them if they would be interested in a three-month experiment. They said they would try but were not anxious to commit themselves until they found out what I had in mind.
"During the next three months will you attend all your church meetings and listen carefully to what is being said, even taking notes of the principal points being made by the teachers and how these points might apply to your lives?"
They thought for a moment and said they would.
"During the next three months will you reinstitute in your personal life prayer, night and morning, thanking God for the blessings you enjoy and asking him to help you know if the Church is true and if the things you are doing are meaningful to your lives?"
One of these young men, who considered himself an agnostic, balked at this, but then he finally agreed to do it on the basis that for the sake of the experiment he would accept the premise that there is a God and would appeal to this God for the light and knowledge which he was seeking.
I asked them if in the next three months they would refrain from drinking, smoking, and drugs. Although this created some anxiety, they resolved to do it.
I asked them if in the next three months they would resolve to keep themselves morally clean and in harmony with the principles of virtue which the Savior taught. They said they would. And then I suggested they establish a schedule, on their own, during the next three months to read the Book of Mormon from cover to cover-a few pages each day, with a prayer at each reading that the Lord would bless them to know if the book is true and actually from him. They agreed.
Anticipating what might happen, I said, "Now, if you feel disposed to tell your friends about this, probably their first comment will be 'Boy, has Brother Dunn snowed you.' You may even feel that way a time or two during this experiment, but don't let it keep you from doing what you have agreed to do. If you think that might be a problem, then keep it in the back of your mind, and go ahead and honestly experiment, and let this three-month experience speak for itself." I added, "If things go properly, you'll notice some by-products, such as a growing awareness and concern for your fellowman and greater appreciation and consideration for other people." They accepted the challenge and left.
Of course, what was really hoped for was the experience that every member has a right to enjoy and everyone else has the right to receive, and that is the knowledge of a personal testimony. I think Brigham Young described it best when he said:
"There is no other experience known to mortal man that can be compared with the testimony or witness of the Holy Ghost. It is as powerful as a two-edged sword and burns in the breast of man like a consuming fire. It destroys fear and doubt, leaving in their stead absolute unqualified, and incontrovertible knowledge that a principle or thing is true.
"This same testimony has sustained faithful saints to the present day and will be a lamp to their path forever. The effect of this testimony reaches above and beyond all physical or earthly things and makes relationship with God the Father a literal, pulsing fact. Every fiber of both body and spirit respond to the witness of that testimony and the soul knows and lives the truth."
And so to those who have tasted the water at many wells only to find that the unquenching thirst of the soul drives them on in search of that which will bring peace and nourishment to the heart-to you, whoever you are, member or nonmember-will you come and drink from this well, and taste and experiment and see if you have not found the waters of life where you can drink to your soul and thirst no more but be full with the joy of the true knowledge of Jesus Christ and his teachings and the purpose of your own life?
And to this invitation I bear you my witness that I know God lives. I know he lives and that Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and his Son. Joseph Smith saw what he said he saw, and we have a prophet of God sitting with us, presiding today. I bear you that witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
One of the most interesting stories in the Old Testament is the story of Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream. In his dream the king saw a great image whose brightness was exceeding great and whose appearance was most terrible. Yet a stone rolling down from a mountain smashed the idol into a thousand pieces. This experience so disturbed the king that he sought an interpretation of his dream.
In his interpretation of this dream, Daniel the prophet said that later on God would set up a kingdom which would never be destroyed, and that kingdom would eventually consume all other kingdoms and would stand forever. The scripture then records his words:
"Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure."
Most religious writers and certainly all Christian authors correctly assure us that this kingdom which was to come is the kingdom of Jesus Christ. A serious question arises, however, as to when that kingdom was to be set up. Most Christians assume that this dream referred to the ecclesiastical kingdom which began with the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. They forget that Christianity as it was practiced through the centuries fostered kingdoms rather than replaced them. People also forget that Jesus Christ himself told of an apostasy to come. In speaking of the latter days, Jesus warned:
"For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."
He foretold the death of his apostles, which we now know actually took place. Before the destruction of these apostles, Paul warned the saints of his day:
"That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
"Let no man deceive you by any means; for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first. "
The literal fulfillment of the scriptural predictions of a universal apostasy is made so plain by a reasonable study of ecclesiastical history as to be unmistakable. Nevertheless, Daniel's prophetic interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream must eventually go into fulfillment. The question to be answered is: When?
There is a related prophetic utterance from the prophet Isaiah that I would like to cite at this time:
"And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
"And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem."
It has been revealed in these latter days that the kingdom of Jesus Christ has already been restored again to man:
"The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth."
When the early missionaries of this church went forth into Canada, they preached that restored gospel of Jesus Christ. They announced grand and glorious tidings of great joy as they explained how God had spoken again from heaven. That gospel stone was not cut out of the mountain by the hand of any man. The stone was rolled forth by God himself when he revealed himself to Joseph Smith and, pointing to his Son, proclaimed: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
It was Jesus Christ, the Son, who restored to man through the person of Joseph Smith a divine message of restored truth and hope. The gospel of Jesus Christ came from the "mountain." The "mountain" is just another way of speaking of the kingdom of Jesus Christ. This restored kingdom of Jesus Christ was revealed in a day when other kingdoms on the earth were rapidly being eliminated. There are only a few kingdoms left, and these are principally constitutional monarchies. The day will soon come when the only kingdom to survive will be that ecclesiastical kingdom of Jesus Christ which is to replace all other kingdoms on the face of the earth.
When the missionaries proclaimed that message of truth and hope in eastern Canada, my great grandfather, Samuel Burton, Jr., heard it.
Because it had a familiar sound, he accepted it with his family as gospel truth. After becoming members of the Church, he and his family left to join the rest of the Church at Nauvoo. Before he arrived there, however, Joseph and Hyrum were martyred, so the family then turned west to join the Church on the prairies at Winter Quarters. His beloved wife, Hannah Shipley Burton, suffered from the hardships of the journey and died on the plains on the banks of the Missouri River. This grief-stricken man undoubtedly complained loudly as has many another man who has suffered hardships and trials while being proved by the Lord. If we understood completely the designs of the Lord, we would be more patient in our suffering and would not complain as much as we so often do when hardships come and we are asked to sacrifice.
Joseph Smith, however, understood the plans of God better than did his contemporaries. Before his death he prophesied that the Saints would be driven into the Rocky Mountains and there become a great and a mighty people. It seems incredible, in the face of a prophecy such as this, that the Saints and some of their leaders would have tried to move elsewhere. I was recently on Vancouver Island off the west coast of Canada and thought it one of the loveliest places on earth. I can well understand why people love that beautiful area with its mild climate. In the early days of the Church when the Saints were seeking a new home, they petitioned the British government to let them settle on Vancouver Island. Many were bitterly disappointed when their request was denied.
Later on other members even left the Church when Brigham Young refused their request to lead the migrating Saints on to settle in beautiful, prosperous California. Why should they stop to settle on a desert waste-land in the top of the Rocky Mountains? Because only there could the prophecy of Isaiah be literally fulfilled.
Remember that the mountain or kingdom of the Lord had to be established in the top of the mountains. It had to be in mountains exalted above the hills. There the Saints were to gather instructions and strength, and the gospel, or stone, of Jesus Christ was to roll forth from there to fill the whole earth. This prophecy has been and is even now being fulfilled as thousands of missionaries go forth from this gathering place to proclaim the divine message that God lives and has spoken again from the heavens. Where else can you find such literal fulfillment of these two divine prophecies?
That gospel of Jesus Christ is found contained in the Bible, which had its beginnings at Jerusalem; so the word of the Lord as found in the Bible did come from that very city. The Book of Mormon, which is the second divine witness of Jesus Christ, also had its beginnings at Jerusalem. Surely the word of the Lord has been sent forth from Jerusalem. On the other hand, the law of the Lord given in the Doctrine and Covenants, and which is also revealed through living prophets for the governing of the kingdom of Jesus Christ, comes from Zion, which is on this, the American continent.
But there is one more part of this prophecy to be considered, and that concerns the house of the God of Jacob. The house of Jacob are the children of Israel, but what is the house of the God of Jacob? Why, the house of the God of Jacob consists of temples erected in the mountains, on the tops of the everlasting hills. There the people of the world have gathered, and there in the house of the God of Jacob they have been taught the ways of God. Now that the people have received this power and strength given in these temples, they have moved forth from the mountain stronghold to bring the message of the gospel to all the earth. As strength has been built up elsewhere, temples have been built in other places, and eventually they shall be found in every corner of the earth. In these temples, additional knowledge of God and his ways is revealed. In the house of the God of Jacob, the children of God receive needed spiritual strength to live better than they otherwise would have done.
As we understand this concept of going to the house of the God of Jacob to receive strength, we understand how important it is to attend the temple frequently. If members holding the priesthood reject the opportunity to go to the temple regularly, they reject the very God who made them and with whom they have covenanted to always remember him and to walk in his ways. The covenants we make in the temple of God are so important that we violate them at the peril of our eternal salvation. Therefore, as often as possible, the members of the Church who hold the priesthood should go to the temple as individuals, with priesthood quorums, and also with their wives, to have their spirits strengthened and their souls revived. Only by regular attendance at the temple can we remember the importance of the commitments we have made to serve the Lord with all our heart, might, mind, and strength.
I urge every Latter-day Saint to remember these two great prophecies. They have great significance to every one of us. Qualify yourselves as rapidly as you can by righteous living to go to the temple often and there worship and serve the true and living God. I plead with you for your own well being and happiness to practice the promises and covenants you make with the Lord in those temples. As the Lord has warned us: "For if you will that I give unto you a place in the celestial world, you must prepare yourselves by doing the things which I have commanded you and required of you." If we desire to receive celestial blessings, we must keep the celestial law.
To those not yet members of the Church, I ask you to examine your own hearts. You will recognize that what I have said about these two great prophecies does have a familiar ring! These prophecies are going into complete fulfillment even now. Before your very eyes the plans of the Lord are being revealed to you, if you will only open your eyes and observe what is happening about you. Waste no more time in speculation and questioning, but investigate these principles more closely and you will know for yourselves the truth of what I have spoken. Come join with us in serving the only true and living God, and qualify yourselves to receive those great blessings which God has reserved for you in these last days. You too can become a savior on Mount Zion for your family and friends, as that stone cut out of the mountain without hands rolls forth to fill the whole earth. That the kingdom of God is now is process of expanding under the leadership of true prophets of God, I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters: Jesus Christ is the head of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and he has asked that we teach his commandments and promised that he would be with us even unto the end of the world. That is the commandment.
When the Savior lived on this earth, he taught that we are to love God and keep his commandments. Jesus said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." This is the first and great commandment. It is much easier to know the commandment than it is to live it.
Why should the Lord command his children to love him with all their heart, and with all their soul, and with all their mind? There is great wisdom and divine security for mortal man in full and complete love for God.
God created the heavens and the earth and all plant and animal life upon the earth. God created the universe with all of its profound greatness and blessings. The greatest of all miracles is God's creation of man in his own image and likeness; eyes that can see, ears that can hear, minds that can reason were created within our mortal mothers. We know that our mortal mothers do not know how to make eyes that can see and ears that can hear and mortal minds that can reason. God said that he created man in his own image and likeness. Our creation and mortal birth is evidence of divine power. All that we have that is good for this life and eternal life comes from God. We owe our full respect, dedication, allegiance, and love to him.
The alternatives are to love Satan or some other part of God's creations. Satan did not participate in any of the creations that were for the good of man. We owe him absolutely nothing. But some pay tribute to Satan through bad temper, quarreling, dishonesty, adultery, covetousness, drugs, disrespect for God and Jesus Christ, disrespect for the Sabbath day, nonpayment of tithes, hatred, etc.
Satan is an enemy to man and seeks to destroy his freedom and his obedience to the Lord and to keep man from developing his divine nature and godliness. Satan is the author of evil, sin, and wickedness, and we should not by our thoughts or acts love or serve him.
Jesus Christ said, "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." And may I say that we cannot serve both God and Satan. Some try but no one has succeeded.
Love for God brings love and respect for his children, and love for man's relationship to the Lord, and a desire to commune with him. Prayers are uttered by many sincere people to various concepts of a supreme being or power. The pagans, the Buddhists, the Hindus, the Mohammedans, the sun and nature worshipers, and many others have their way of praying. Because of many man-made ways of praying, Jesus Christ gave a commandment on the proper way to pray. Here is the commandment-and many do not know that it is a commandment:
"After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
"Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
"Give us this day our daily bread.
"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."
This prayer contains the essentials of a sincere, dedicated, Christlike prayer. If we love our Father in heaven, we should pray and talk to him. We should desire to do his will and to have a program for his kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. The prayer teaches us to pray to be kingdom builders and to help build the kingdom of God on this earth. When we love God and sincerely pray for the kingdom of God to come to this earth, as it is in heaven, we commit ourselves to the giving of our time and talents and money.
When we say, "Father, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven," we should be subject to the will and desires of our Heavenly Father, even as a little child is subject to the will of its earthly parents. To sincerely submit and agree with the Lord that his will be done shows respect, love, and oneness.
Jesus Christ is the example of one who was dedicated and submitted himself to the building of the kingdom of God upon this earth and in doing the will of the Father. He said, "I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me." He also said, "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise."
The prayer directs that we should ask our Heavenly Father to meet the temptations and adversities of this life. If we love and trust God, we should ask him to deliver us from evil. There is peaceful assurance and comfort in sincerely asking to be delivered from evil. In our family prayers, we should teach our children to ask the Lord to deliver them from evil. When did you ask, and follow the commandment of the Lord to be delivered from evil, and teach your children and those that you have the privilege of teaching?
The price the Lord has asked us to pay to be delivered from evil is to sincerely ask him.
The prayer closes with these heavenly oriented words: "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever." It keeps our minds on the goal that we are all seeking-the kingdom of God.
I would like to read the law from the Lord that is used to finance the building of the kingdom of God on this earth-the law of tithing as it is recorded in the Holy Bible.
The Lord said, "For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
"Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts.
"But ye said, Wherein shall we return?"
And the Lord said, "Will a man rob God?" Within the sound of my voice there are some that do. "Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
"Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation."
And the Lord commanded, "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
"And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts."
Will a man rob God by not paying his tithes and offerings?
Remember, the first and great commandment is to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. If we keep this commandment, we will not rob God.
I recall a personal experience. A few years ago when my wife and I were involved with a young family, we were struggling to meet our financial needs, and we were in debt, and we were not honest in our payment of tithes and offerings. We were attending church and I thought that we loved the Lord, but one day my wife said to me, "Do you love God?" and I answered, "Yes."
She said, "Do you love God as much as you love the grocer?"
I replied, "I hope that I love him more than the grocer."
She said, "But you paid the grocer. Do you love God as much as the landlord? You paid him, didn't you?" She then said, "The first and great commandment is to love God, and you know we have not paid our tithing."
We repented and paid our tithes and offerings, and the Lord opened the windows of heaven and poured out blessings upon us. We consider it a great privilege to pay tithes and offerings to the Lord.
I would like to mention that when we were not honest with the Lord, we were disturbed and had difficulties and problems.
We can perfect our lives by living the Lord's commandments. And as has been quoted many times in this conference, the Lord has said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
The Lord said to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1831, " the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion."
We are in perilous times, and many love pleasure more than they love God. The devil has power over his own dominion. However, in these perilous times there is hope. The Lord is still at the head of his church. It is a great blessing to live in the latter days and to be a Latter-day Saint. The children of our Heavenly Father can receive peace, security, and happiness from loving him with all their hearts, and with all their souls, and with all their minds, and in keeping his commandments.
I know that God lives and that my Redeemer lives. I know that I am a child of God and that I was created by God in his image and likeness. This is my greatest knowledge. God revealed this knowledge to me, and I have great peace and happiness from this witness.
I express love for my Heavenly Father and for my Savior, Jesus Christ, and for the Holy Ghost, and for all mankind, and do so in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
It was one year ago today, in a solemn assembly, that we had the privilege of raising our hands to sustain the authorities of the Church, much as we have done this morning. It was on that April morning that I heard my name read as one presented for your sustaining vote as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. It became my obligation to stand with those other living men who have been called as special witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ upon the earth.
You must have wondered, as I did, why this call should come to me. It seemed accidental at times, that I was preserved in worthiness, yet there was always the constant, quiet, lingering feeling about being guided and being prepared.
It has been our privilege this morning to raise our hands to sustain the President of the Church. I count that a great privilege and special obligation, for I have a witness about him.
Some weeks before the meeting of last April, I left the office one Friday afternoon thinking of the weekend conference assignment. I waited for the elevator to come down from the fifth floor.
As the elevator doors quietly opened, there stood President Joseph Fielding Smith. There was a moment of surprise in seeing him, since his office is on a lower floor.
As I saw him framed in the doorway, there fell upon me a powerful witness-there stands the prophet of God. That sweet voice of Spirit that is akin to light, that has something to do with pure intelligence, affirmed to me that this was the prophet of God.
I need not try to define that experience to Latter-day Saints. That kind of witness is characteristic of this church. It is not something reserved to those in high office. It is a witness, not only available but vital, to every member.
As it is with the President, so it is with his counselors.
North of us in the Wasatch Range stand three mountain peaks. The poet would describe them as mighty pyramids of stone. The center one, the highest of the three, the map would tell you is Willard Peak. But the pioneers called them "The Presidency." If you should go to Willard, look to the east, and up, way up, there stands "The Presidency."
Thank God for the presidency. Like those peaks, they stand with nothing above them but the heavens. They need our sustaining vote. It is sometimes lonely in those lofty callings of leadership-for their calling is not to please man, but to please the Lord. God bless these three great and good men.
Occasionally during the past year I have been asked a question. Usually it comes as a curious, almost an idle, question about the qualifications to stand as a witness for Christ. The question they ask is, "Have you seen Him?"
That is a question that I have never asked of another. I have not asked that question of my brethren in the Quorum, thinking that it would be so sacred and so personal that one would have to have some special inspiration, indeed, some authorization, even to ask it.
There are some things just too sacred to discuss. We know that as it relates to the temples. In our temples, sacred ordinances are performed; sacred experiences are enjoyed. And yet we do not, because of the nature of them, discuss them outside those sacred walls.
It is not that they are secret, but they are sacred; not to be discussed, but to be harbored and to be protected and regarded with the deepest of reverence.
I have come to know what the prophet Alma meant:
" It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him.
"And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full."
There are those who hear testimonies borne in the Church, by those in high station and by members in the wards and branches, all using the same words-"I know that God lives; I know that Jesus is the Christ," and come to question, "Why cannot it be said in plainer words? Why aren't they more explicit and more descriptive? Cannot the apostles say more?"
How like the sacred experience in the temple becomes our personal testimony. It is sacred, and when we are wont to put it into words, we say it in the same way-all using the same words. The apostles declare it in the same phrases with the little Primary or Sunday School youngster. "I know that God lives and I know that Jesus is the Christ."
We would do well not to disregard the testimonies of the prophets or of the children, for "he imparteth his words by angels unto men, yea, not only men but women also. Now this is not all; little children do have words given unto them many times which confound the wise and the learned."
Some seek for a witness to be given in some new and dramatic and different way.
The bearing of a testimony is akin to a declaration of love. The romantics and poets and couples in love, from the beginning of time, have sought more impressive ways of saying it, or singing it, or writing it. They have used all of the adjectives, all of the superlatives, all manner of poetic expression. And when all is said and done, the declaration which is most powerful is the simple, three-word variety.
To one who is honestly seeking, the testimony borne in these simple phrases is enough, for it is the spirit that beareth record, not the words.
There is a power of communication as real and tangible as electricity. Man has devised the means to send images and sound through the air to be caught on an antenna and reproduced and heard and seen. This other communication may be likened to that, save it be a million times more powerful, and the witness it brings is always the truth.
There is a process by which pure intelligence can flow, by which we can come to know of a surety, nothing doubting.
I said there was a question that could not be taken lightly nor answered at all without the prompting of the Spirit. I have not asked that question of others, but I have heard them answer it-but not when they were asked. They have answered it under the prompting of the Spirit, on sacred occasions, when "the Spirit beareth record."
I have heard one of my brethren declare: "I know from experiences, too sacred to relate, that Jesus is the Christ."
I have heard another testify: "I know that God lives; I know that the Lord lives. And more than that, I know the Lord."
It was not their words that held the meaning or the power. It was the Spirit. " for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men."
I speak upon this subject in humility, with the constant feeling that I am the least in every way of those who are called to this holy office.
I have come to know that the witness does not come by seeking after signs. It comes through fasting and prayer, through activity and testing and obedience. It comes through sustaining the servants of the Lord and following them.
Karl G. Maeser was taking a group of missionaries across the Alps. As they reached a summit, he stopped. Gesturing back down the trail to some poles set in the snow to mark the way across the glacier, he said, "Brethren, there stands the Priesthood. They are just common sticks like the rest of us but the position they hold makes them what they are to us. If we step aside from the path they mark, we are lost."
The witness depends upon sustaining his servants as we have done here in sign and as we should do in action.
Now, I wonder with you why one such as I should be called to the holy apostleship. There are so many qualifications that I lack. There is so much in my effort to serve that is wanting. As I have pondered on it, I have come to only one single thing, one qualification in which there may be cause, and that is, I have that witness.
I declare to you that I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that he lives. He was born in the meridian of time. He taught his gospel, was tried, was crucified. He rose on the third day. He was the first fruits of the resurrection. He has a body of flesh and bone. Of this I bear testimony. Of him I am a witness. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Alma P. Burton, Karl G. Maeser, Mormon Educator, p. 22.
Elder Alvin R. Dyer
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
On the day of Pentecost in Old Jerusalem, the apostle Peter declared unto the people that Jesus Christ, who had before been preached unto them, would come again, but that that day would be delayed until the restitution or restoration of all things, and that this event had been promised since the world began. The organization of the Church of Christ, known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in this day and age, is part of that restoration.
On this day we reaffirm our conviction and testimony of that which transpired in the organization of the Church of Christ in this dispensation 141 years ago today. Upon that occasion, unto those who were assembled, the Lord referred to that which had already been accomplished in the restoration of the gospel through his servant Joseph Smith. Here are his words:
"And gave unto him commandments which inspired him;
"And gave him power from on high, by the means which were before prepared, to translate the Book of Mormon;
"Which contains a record of a fallen people, and the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles and to the Jews also;
"Which was given by inspiration, and is confirmed to others by the ministering of angels, and is declared unto the world by them-
"Proving to the world that the holy scriptures are true, and that God does inspire men and call them to his holy work in this age and generation, as well as in generations of old;
"Thereby showing that he is the same God yesterday, today, and forever. Amen."
The Church of Christ has been restored in this the last of all dispensations, which is called by the Lord "the dispensation of the fulness of times." When completed, it will produce a welding together of all former dispensations, with their keys, principals, and intelligence down from the time of Adam. Being the last, this dispensation presages the doctrines of last things in the preparation for the second coming of Christ the Lord and of the end of the mortal existence of man upon the earth.
The question of the nearness of the second coming of the Son of Man rests upon many in our present day. In pondering the question I have often thought of three things. The first is observed in these words of the Lord: "But of that day, and hour, no one knoweth; no, not the angels of God in heaven, but my Father only."
There are signs, however, which indicate the nearness of this great event. For instance, and secondly, living in the last dispensation; we must be aware of the fact that there will not be another. It follows that all that God has intended for the redemption and salvation of man upon the earth through the gospel plan will culminate in this dispensation. Actually, the Lord identifies this present day, in particular, as a time of preparation. Here is the instruction he gave by revelation in the early days of the Church:
"Pray unto the Lord, call upon his holy name, make known his wonderful works among the people.
"Call upon the Lord, that his kingdom may go forth upon the earth, that the inhabitants thereof may receive it, and be prepared for the days to come, in the which the Son of Man shall come down in heaven, clothed in the brightness of his glory, to meet the kingdom of God which is set up on the earth.
"Wherefore, may the kingdom of God go forth, that the kingdom of heaven may come, that thou, O God, mayest be glorified in heaven so on earth, that thine enemies may be subdued; for thine is the honor, power and glory, forever and ever. Amen."
The culmination of this dispensation in the sequence of the Lord's time will see the glorious coming of the Son of Man.
The third condition which I often ponder concerns the day of the gentile, which day is now, wherein the gospel is being taken to the gentile nations of the earth, that they may, if obedient to the call, come in and be numbered with the house of Israel.
The Lord, in a revelation to Joseph Smith, related this period to the nearness of his second coming. I quote:
"And when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel."
But there will be many among them who will not receive it. Of these the revelation continues:
"But they receive it not; for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from me because of the precepts of men."
But as to the identification of the time that the gospel is taken to the gentiles, I quote from the same revelation:
"And when the light shall begin to break forth, it shall be with them like unto a parable which I will show you-
"Ye look and behold the fig-trees, and ye see them with your eyes, and ye say when they begin to shoot forth, and their leaves are yet tender, that summer is now nigh at hand;
"Even so it shall be in that day when they shall see all these things, then shall they know that the hour is nigh."
The turbulent and awesome conditions of the last days of mortal existence, some of which we now observe, have been spoken of by many of the prophets. The Lord's remarks about these days are most direct, which he gave when asked these words by his disciples:
" Tell us when shall these things be which thou hast said concerning the destruction of the temple, and the Jews; and what is the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world. "
He gave them specific answers as to what would happen to the Jews and then gave attention to the conditions of the last days. Here are his words, in part:
"And they shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars.
"Behold I speak for mine elect's sake; for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
"And again, because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold; but he that shall not be overcome, the same shall be saved.
"And again, this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come, or the destruction of the wicked."
By way of assurance and hope, to build strength in the hearts of the Saints, the Lord has given this counsel by revelation, with which I close my remarks:
" I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine.
"And again, I say unto you that the enemy in the secret chambers seeketh your lives.
"Ye hear of wars in far countries, and you say that there will soon be great wars in far countries, but ye know not the hearts of man in your own land.
"I tell you these things because of your prayers; wherefore, treasure up wisdom in your bosoms, lest the wickedness of men reveal these things unto you by their wickedness, in a manner which shall speak in your ears with a voice louder than that which shall shake the earth; but if ye are prepared ye shall not fear."
Ye shall not fear, for as the Lord said upon another occasion, the gathering and the faithfulness of the Saints is for a refuge against the awesome conditions which we must face. The Lord has given to us the pattern in all things, that we may not be deceived, for Satan is abroad in the land and he goeth forth deceiving the nations.
I know, my brethren and sisters, that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that the message of the restoration is true, and if we are faithful, we need not fear that which must come about. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
As I thanked Brother Hinckley this morning for his great sermon Sunday, I mentioned a recollection of two men, one of whom had just given a great talk. The other thanked him and commended him and said, "That was a great sermon. I wish I had given it." The other said, "You will."
I suspect many of us will be giving some of the great sermons we have heard at this conference.
My theme this morning is practicing what we preach. I suppose everyone understands what that means. Last Sunday in Logan I heard a choice teacher report her conversation with a little girl in a class. She had asked the little girl, "What does it mean to practice what you preach?" "Oh," said the youngster, "that means writing your talk and saying it over and over again before you give it in church."
I would like to say a few words this morning about the more conventional interpretation of practicing what we preach.
I visited the hospital the other evening to see my desperately ill sister. Her husband and family were surrounding her bed, holding their family home evening, led by their fourth missionary son just returned from foreign fields. I joined them, and then went home rejoicing and thanking God for that kind of example, and met my own family who were waiting, and prayed that we might do a better job of practicing what we preach.
I visited her this morning and talked with her to the Lord, and in the spirit of that sobering experience offer my testimony this morning.
What do we believe that we should be practicing, or practicing more effectively, many of us? What is our duty? What are we commanded? What do we preach?
Well, one important thing we preach is that parents are to love and teach their children and set an honorable example before them, and that children are to honor and obey their parents. Parents are to love and cleave to each other; and children, as Benjamin said, are to "love one another and serve one another." We are taught to meet together in a weekly family home evening, to pray together as families, to give an account together of the tithes we pay, to attend sacrament meeting and worship together as a family. We are expected to fast together and to give an amount equivalent to the cost of what we did not eat to the bishop for the care of those who have needs.
As a family we are to greet the home teachers and respond to their instructions and inquiries. Motivated by the lofty stature of the family in Church belief, we should be reading and learning together, working together, having pleasant, happy occasions at our mealtimes, supporting each other in school, church, and civic involvements. We should be planning and enjoying projects together, building our customs and traditions into a continuity of generations.
All of this we are taught and encouraged to do.
But it is not of duty or commandment or admonition that I wish to speak this morning, cherished and holy as those words are. I would like instead to speak of invitation, of opportunity, of privilege, of love, of gratefully taking time while there is time to enjoy the blessing of our family and home.
How much joy are we missing that we could be having and are meant to have, joy that we could experience only in our own home and no other place, only with our own family and with no other group?
It is instructive to look at the music we sing. Our little ones sing "I am a child of God, and he has sent me here, Has given me an earthly home With parents kind and dear." Our wonderful young people sing as they have sung in testimony this morning, and they sing other songs: "We'll build on the rock they planted The rock of honor and virtue, Of faith in the living God." From our singing mothers comes the great strain "Love one another," and all of us sing "Love at home."
Our ties with God and each other are everlasting. Our homes are sanctuaries from the things and cares of this world. Our family is the heart of our eternal hopes. Our love is the tender thread that ties us to an endless, creative, increasing union. These are the things we believe and preach. Can we do more to enjoy the blessings of such concepts in our lives, in our homes, in our families? Can we do better while there is time at practicing what we preach?
Matthew Arnold wrote, in Empedocles on Etna:
May we for a moment this morning, each of us, look within himself and home and family as I offer a happy example or two of what I am talking about.
About twelve years ago I had a call early in the morning from a beloved friend who is a physician. He asked me to come to the hospital to administer with him to his infant son, just born and fighting for his life. We reached our hands into the incubator and laid them on this tiny boy and prayed, and then sat and waited with Larry's mother while he took a turn for the better. We were there when the pediatrician came to announce that he was going to make it. He came through that difficult ordeal with a fine mind and a strong, indomitable spirit. Only a pair of legs that are not quite as strong as they one day will be remain to remind Larry how blessed he is to be alive.
Recently this little boy's big brother returned from having served an honorable mission for the Lord abroad. A perceptive uncle, observing the reunion at the airport, wrote a letter to Larry that I had the privilege of reading. I asked if I might have permission to quote it and have been given that permission. I would like you to know about a Latter-day Saint boy just ordained a deacon who tries to practice what we preach.
"Dear Larry," the letter said. "Yesterday I got a lump in my throat without even swallowing a frog; and I got a tear in my eye without even inhaling a hippy's breath! More than that, I got a picture tatooed on my memory that I'll never forget.
"It's only right that I thank you for the lump, the tears, and the picture, for a handsome boy named Larry Ellsworth gave me all three of them and he didn't even know it or ask me for a receipt.
"It started when he stood waiting for his brother to return from serving our Heavenly Father as a missionary for two years in a far-off land named Chile. You could see that the two years had been longer for this boy than for anyone else. He was so intense, so pale, so absorbed with just watching and waiting.
"Then to see his face light up when he saw his brother again! It was like a flashlight in a dark room.
"Someone whispered that this wonderful boy had been saving his nickels, dimes, and quarters for two years to buy his big brother a basketball a more than $30 'best there is' basketball because he loved him! He wouldn't let anyone else contribute. It was his idea and his gift the best way, out of money he could have spent for himself but chose not to because he loved someone else so much!
"Then I watched this fine boy stand, without saying a word, at the side of his brother, happy just to look way up at his face, hold on to his leg, and see him home again.
"I have a special love and admiration for both of those boys: the giant who went far away all alone to do what was right and the little brother who waited and planned and remembered.
"Larry, you're a fine boy. I'm sure that you'll be a great man for you have a big heart and a tender conscience. Some can run faster, jump higher, walk farther, play longer just because they had an easier time getting born into this world. That's no credit to them. But you have more than most to be thankful for, because Heavenly Father sent one of his favorite sons to live in your body and it's who lives in a house that makes all the difference. Thanks, Larry, for the lesson an old dumb uncle learned yesterday just by watching. Love, Uncle Dick."
A few weeks ago I listened to a stake president exhort his people to build strong families and to enjoy them. It was a great sermon, and the high point of it for me was his account of the family skiing trip when a four-year-old wanted to go to the top with the rest of the family and ski down. When they arrived it was discovered that he had to snowplow all the way down because it was just a bit too tough a run for his age and experience. The mother started to accompany her four-year-old son down the hill, but her teenage son voluntarily took over and lovingly shepherded his little brother down instead of swooping down himself as he could have done. He cheerfully sacrificed one swift run down the mountain and blessed a whole family with a sweet spirit of love and concern and appreciation.
Among many who do wonderfully well at practicing what we preach, there is one other I would mention for a moment this morning. To our home periodically over the past several years has come a special kind of man as our home teacher. He has brought with him a dear son who, like Larry of the letter, had a difficult time getting born and has had some major problems to contend with. The father and son have sat many times side by side in our home, hands gently clasped or arms intertwined, or a hand on a knee, communicating, always expressing without language, an exchange of love. How we admire this man and his beloved son.
These are some of the simple chords of melody that make a home harmonious and happy. Kindness, consideration, courtesy, care, laughter, unselfishness, prayer, thoughtfulness, doing things for each other, forgiving each other, sustaining each other, loving each other-these are notes that form a family symphony happily enjoyed and eternally remembered.
If a family loses its cherished human values and deteriorates into only the form of a family, it has lost what a family is for. Whatever changes are said to have occurred in our time, there is left to the family the most important purpose of all-the satisfaction of the basic emotional and spiritual needs of its members. In any era, one has written, society is a "web of which the family forms the central strands." In home, family, and love lie the resources that fulfill the life of the individual and the life of the community; indeed, the resources that would redeem our troubled world and bring it lasting peace. Children must be safeguarded and reared. Only in the home can children be assured of the love and direction they need to live life, and only parents who genuinely love can meet those needs. But it must be more than a preached or pronounced love; it must be love that takes time, makes the effort, listens patiently, gives freely, forgives generously, "provides the amenities that will grace and adorn and make beautiful the relationships of family life."
But I must add today that I do not speak by authority or from authority, but with authority, for I myself know these things to be true. I know them to be true because I have experienced them, I have lived them, I have been there.
The home I grew up in had the kind of love of which I speak, though it had little of material things. I hope and pray that our happy home has done as well. Of course, I have said what I have said today in part for myself and our own family, for we still have the privilege and blessing of seeking to improve. I am grateful to thank the Lord for that. I do not know a greater accolade in this life, and believe there is none, than a note from a six-year-old who writes: "Guess what, Mom, I love you," or a teenager's gracious gift: "Dad, you are my friend and I will love you forever," or from a dad or mom to a choice son or daughter: "I love you. I am proud of you."
Does not this motivate us to want to be what we can be?
Jesus said, "As I have loved you love one another."
God help us, parent and child, to accept the opportunity, while there is time, in our homes and families, to practice what we preach.
I know the gospel is true, and I know the gospel includes that which he has taught us of relationship to each other in our homes and families. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brethren and sisters, as I stand before you here today I seek an interest in your faith and prayers as I deliver the things that I have in my heart.
Marriage in the temple for time and eternity should be the goal of every member of the Church, for marriage is ordained of God. Marriage is a commandment. Marriage was instituted by divine edict.
The Lord said: "And again, verily I say unto you, that whoso forbiddeth to marry is not ordained of God, for marriage is ordained of God unto man.
"Wherefore, it is lawful that he should have one wife, and they twain shall be one flesh, and all this that the earth might answer the end of its creation;
"And that it might be filled with the measure of man, according to his creation before the world was made."
Marriage is a sacred relationship entered into primarily for the rearing of a family, in fulfillment of the commandments of the Lord.
Marriage with children, and the beautiful family relationship which can come of it, is the fulfillment of life. If things were as they should be, we would see a mother and father in a home having been married in the temple for time and eternity. The father honoring his priesthood, presiding in his home in righteousness. Father and mother loving each other and their children. Children loving and respecting each other and mother and father. All actively engaged in their church responsibilities. The Lord intended that marriage performed for eternity in the temple should endure forever. This was his plan. President Joseph Fielding Smith has said: "Marriage, as understood by Latter-day Saints, is a covenant ordained to be everlasting. It is the foundation for eternal exaltation, for without it there could be no eternal progress in the kingdom of God."
"What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." It is evident from the scriptures that marriage performed in the Lord's way should not be dissolved.
It is sad, indeed, to see how lightly some take their marriage vows. There is great concern among the Brethren as to the increasing number of divorces in the Church today.
Even though the divorce rate among members of the Church is considerably less than the national rate, and the rate of divorce among those married in the temple is less than with those married civilly, yet the rate is alarmingly high.
Divorce is usually the result of one or both not living the gospel. I suppose this is the same reason divorce was finally permitted in the time of Moses, as referred to by the Savior as he answered the Pharisees, when he said: "Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so." And so in our day members do not abide by the law of the gospel in its fullness, and, as in the day of Moses, divorce is permitted, when deemed necessary, although it was never intended to be.
If, in marriage, both parties would make gospel standards and principles the basis of their marriage, few problems would arise they could not handle. When one or the other or both begin to compromise gospel standards, problems follow. Marriage is a sacred relationship, and good members of the Church would know that it is entered into primarily for the rearing of a family. Other important desires and plans in marriage should be well understood by both parties as well.
President McKay said, in reference to the seriousness with which we enter the marriage contract: " to look upon marriage as a mere contract that may be entered into at pleasure in response to a romantic whim, or for selfish purposes, and severed at the first difficulty or misunderstanding that may arise, is an evil meriting severe condemnation, especially in cases wherein children are made to suffer because of such separation."
Possibly to list some of the most common causes for which civil divorces are sought might be helpful in avoiding these problems: incompatibility, adultery, money matters, physical abuse, dishonesty, not living the gospel, infidelity, not honoring priesthood, desertion, constant bickering, apathy, drunkenness, uncontrolled temper.
Incompatibility has come to be such a common word, it seems to be the justification for many problems. I'm sure there are occasions where this is justified, but what is incompatibility? Doesn't this indicate selfishness? Are we truly unselfish, do we love our neighbor as ourself when we are not compatible? Have we made every effort to compromise our likes and dislikes with those of our spouse? If we were truly living the gospel, there would be much less incompatibility.
President McKay said of incompatibility, "For a couple who have basked in the sunshine of each other's love to stand by daily and see the clouds of misunderstanding and discord obscure the lovelight of their lives is tragedy indeed. In the darkness that follows, the love sparkle in each other's eyes is obscured. To restore it, fruitless attempts are made to say the right word and to do the right thing; but the word and act are misinterpreted, and angry retort reopens the wound, and hearts once united become torn wider and wider asunder. When this heartbreaking state is reached, a separation is sought."
I have been shocked in learning the extent to which men are physically abusive to women. In the October conference of 1951 President McKay said, "I cannot imagine a man's being cruel to a woman. I cannot imagine her so conducting herself as to merit such treatment. Perhaps there are women in the world who exasperate their husbands, but no man is justified in resorting to physical force or in exploding his feelings in profanity. There are men, undoubtedly, in the world who are thus beastly, but no man who holds the priesthood of God should so debase himself."
The matter of disinterest, lack of voluntary expression, lack of affection are common causes for breakdown of marriage. President Harold B. Lee recently said this to a group of priesthood leaders: "I say to you brethren the most dangerous thing that can happen between you and your wife or between me and my wife is apathy, for them to feel that we are not interested in their affairs, that we are not expressing our love and showing our affection in countless ways. Women to be happy have to be loved and so do men."
To take lightly the law of chastity or to violate the moral teachings of the Savior is a sober matter. It seems incredible that priesthood holders and women who have been considered worthy to hold a recommend to the temple and be married therein are so often guilty of adultery, infidelity, and other sex sins.
In this day when so many women are working out of the home, as men and women work together, many homes are broken up by what at first starts to be an innocent association.
President McKay gave some sober direction to the men when he said, "A man who has entered into a sacred covenant in the house of the Lord to remain true to the marriage vow is a traitor to the covenant if he separates himself from his wife and family just because he has permitted himself to become infatuated with the pretty face and comely form of some young girl who flattered him with a smile. Even though a loose interpretation of the law of the land would grant such a man a bill of divorcement, I think he is unworthy of a recommend to have his second marriage performed in the temple."
No matter what the reason for divorce, those usually hurt most are the children. Too often the children are robbed of the basic needs to prepare them for life.
President McKay said there are three fundamental things to which every child is entitled: a respected name, a sense of security, opportunities for development. The possibility of any of these is lessened in divorce.
As Sister Cullimore and I went to the temple to be married, President George H. Brimhall called us into his office. He gave us some direction we have appreciated through the years. He said: "The four fountains that will keep your 'Garden of Eden' from becoming a desert are constant confidence, constant counsel, constant compromise, constant courtship."
Important to any marriage is complete confidence-trust in all things. The confidence born of true love, never doubting, never questioning the integrity of each other. Someone has said: "Society is built upon trust, and trust upon confidence in one another's integrity."
To counsel with each other and make decisions together is so important to a happy marriage. Counsel which includes the whole family might build good family relationships.
Counseling with each other in all that is done will strengthen the bonds of marriage.
I suppose there is no surer need in marriage than constant compromise. It is through compromise that we grow closer to each other. As we acknowledge our own faults and recognize the virtues in the other and make the adjustments, we strengthen our marriage.
Henry Watterson has said: "I would compromise war. I would compromise glory. I would compromise everything at that point where hate comes in, where misery comes in, where love ceases to be love, and life begins its descent into the valley of the shadow of death. But I would not compromise Truth. I would not compromise the right."
Constant courtship. President McKay has said: "The seeds of a happy married life are sown in youth. Happiness does not begin at the altar: it begins during the period of youth and courtship."
Neither should courtship end at the altar. How important it is to constantly be conscious of our marriage and work at it every day we live, keeping alive our courtship by kind acts, thoughtfulness, and consideration always. Archibald F. Bennett, in his writings on family exaltation, expresses this beautifully: "Too many couples have come to the altar of marriage looking upon the marriage ceremony as the end of courtship instead of the beginning of an eternal courtship. Let us not forget that during the burdens of home life that tender words of appreciation, courteous acts are even more appreciated than during those sweet days and months of courtship. It is after the ceremony and during the trials that daily arise in the home, that a word of 'thank you,' or 'pardon me,' 'if you please,' will contribute to that love which brought you to the altar. The wedding ring gives no man the right to be cruel or inconsiderate, and no woman the right to be slovenly, cross or disagreeable."
May we keep sacred our marriage vows and live so that we might enjoy its eternal blessings, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
This past November I stood on a very old bridge which spans the River Somme as it makes its steady but unhurried way through the heartland of France. Suddenly I realized that fifty-two years had come-then gone-since the signing of the Armistice of 1918 and the termination of the Great War. I tried to imagine what the River Somme looked like fifty-two years before. How many thousands of soldiers had crossed this same bridge? Some came back. For others, the Somme was truly a river of no return. For the battlefields of Vimy Ridge, Armentieres, and Nueve Chappelle took a hideous toll of human life. Acres of neat, white crosses serve as an unforgettable reminder.
-John McCrae
I found myself saying softly, "How strange that war brings forth the savagery of conflict, yet inspires brave deeds of courage-some prompted by love."
As a boy, I enjoyed reading the account of the "lost battalion." The "lost battalion" was a unit of the 77th Infantry Division in World War I. During the Meuse-Argonne offensive, a major led this battalion through a gap in the enemy lines, but the troops on the flanks were unable to advance. An entire battalion was surrounded. Food and water were short; casualties could not be evacuated. Hurled back were repeated attacks. Ignored were notes from the enemy requesting the battalion to surrender. Newspapers heralded the battalion's tenacity. Men of vision pondered its fate. After a brief but desperate period of total isolation, other units of the 77th Division advanced and relieved the "lost battalion." Correspondents noted in their dispatches that the relieving forces seemed bent on a crusade of love to rescue their comrades in arms. Men volunteered more readily, fought more gallantly, and died more bravely. A fitting tribute echoed from that ageless sermon preached on the Mount of Olives: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
Forgotten is the plight of the "lost battalion." Unremembered is the terrible price paid for its rescue. But let us turn from the past and survey the present. Are there "lost battalions" even today? If so, what is our responsibility to rescue them? Their members may not wear clothes of khaki brown nor march to the sound of drums. But they share the same doubt, feel the same despair, and know the same disillusionment that isolation brings.
There are the "lost battalions" of the handicapped, even the lame, the speechless, and the sightless. Have you experienced the frustration of wanting but not knowing how to help the individual who walks stiffly behind his Seeing Eye canine companion, or moves with measured step to the tap, tap, tap of a white cane? There are many who are lost in this trackless desert of darkness.
If you desire to see a rescue operation of a "lost battalion," visit your city's center for the blind and witness the selfless service of those who read to those who can't. Observe the skills that are taught the handicapped. Be inspired by the efforts put forth in their behalf to enable them to secure meaningful employment.
Those who labor so willingly and give so generously to those who have lost so tragically find ample reward in the light that they bring into the lives of the sightless.
Do we appreciate the joy of a blind person as his nimble fingers pass quickly over the pages of the Braille edition of the New Testament? He pauses at the twelfth chapter of John and contemplates the depth of meaning in the promise of the Prince of Peace: "I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness."
Consider the "lost battalions" of the aged, the widowed, the sick. All too often they are found in the parched and desolate wilderness of isolation called loneliness. When youth departs, when health declines, when vigor wanes, when the light of hope flickers ever so dimly, the members of these vast "lost battalions" can be succored and sustained by the hand that helps and the heart that knows compassion.
In Brooklyn, New York, there presides today in a branch of the Church a young man who, as a boy of thirteen, led a successful rescue of such persons in Salt Lake City. He and his companions lived in a neighborhood in which resided many elderly widows of limited means. All the year long, the boys had saved and planned for a glorious Christmas party. They were thinking of themselves, until the Christmas spirit prompted them to think of others. Frank, as their leader, suggested to his companions that the funds they had accumulated so carefully be used not for the planned party, but rather for the benefit of three elderly widows who resided together. The boys made their plans. As their bishop, I needed but to follow.
With the enthusiasm of a new adventure, the boys purchased a giant roasting chicken, the potatoes, the vegetables, the cranberries, and all that comprises the traditional Christmas feast. To the widows' home they went carrying their gifts of treasure. Through the snow and up the path to the tumbledown porch they came. A knock at the door, the sound of slow footsteps, and then they met.
In the unmelodic voices characteristic of thirteen-year-olds, the boys sang "Silent night, holy night; all is calm, all is bright." They then presented their gifts. Angels on that glorious night of long ago sang no more beautifully, nor did wise men present gifts of greater meaning.
I gazed at the faces of those wonderful women and thought to myself: "Somebody's mother." I then looked on the countenances of those noble boys and reflected: "Somebody's son." There then passed through my mind the words of the immortal poem by Mary Dow Brine:
What was the message of the Master? "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these ye have done it unto me."
There are other "lost battalions" comprised of mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, who have, through thoughtless comment, isolated themselves from one another. An account of how such a tragedy was narrowly averted is this occurrence in the life of a lad we shall call Jack.
Throughout Jack's life, he and his father had many serious arguments. One day, when Jack was seventeen, they had a particularly violent one. Jack said to his father: "This is the straw that breaks the camel's back. I'm leaving home, and I shall never return." So saying, he went to the house and packed a bag. His mother begged him to stay, but he was too angry to listen. He left her crying at the doorway.
Leaving the yard, he was about to pass through the gate when he heard his father call to him: "Jack, I know that a large share of the blame for your leaving rests with me. For this I am truly sorry. I want you to know that if you should ever wish to return home, you'll always be welcome. And I'll try to be a better father to you. I want you to know that I'll always love you."
Jack said nothing but went to the bus station and bought a ticket to a distant point. As he sat in the bus watching the miles go by, he commenced to think about the words of his father. He began to realize how much love it had required for him to do what he had done. Dad had apologized. He had invited him back and had left the words ringing in the summer air, "I love you."
It was then that Jack realized that the next move was up to him. He knew that the only way he could ever find peace with himself was to demonstrate to his father the same kind of maturity, goodness, and love that dad had shown toward him. Jack got off the bus. He bought a return ticket to home and went back.
He arrived shortly after midnight, entered the house, and turned on the light. There in the rocking chair sat his father, his head in his hands. As he looked up and saw Jack, he rose from the chair and they rushed into each other's arms. Jack often said, "Those last years that I was home were among the happiest of my life."
We could say here was a boy who overnight became a man. Here was a father who, suppressing passion and bridling pride, rescued his son before he became one of that vast "lost battalion" resulting from fractured families and shattered homes. Love was the binding band, the healing balm. Love-so often felt; so seldom expressed.
From Mt. Sinai there thunders in our ears, "Honour thy father and thy mother." And later, from that same God, the injunction, " live together in love."
There are other "lost battalions." Some struggle in the jungles of sin, some wander in the wilderness of ignorance. In reality, each one of us is numbered in what could well have been the lost battalion of mankind, even a battalion doomed to everlasting death.
" by man came death. For as in Adam all die." Each of us is a partaker of the experience called death. None escapes. Were we to remain unrescued, lost would be paradise sought. Lost would be family loved. Lost would be friends remembered. Realizing this truth, we begin to appreciate the supreme joy which accompanied the birth of the Savior of the world. How glorious the pronouncement of the angel: Behold, a virgin "shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins."
While the rivers of France witnessed the advance of those who rescued the "lost battalion" in World War I, so did yet another river witness the commencement of the formal ministry of a universal rescuer, even a divine redeemer. The scripture records, "And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
Today, only ruins remain of Capernaum, that city by the lakeshore, heart of the Savior's Galilean ministry. Here he preached in the synagogue, taught by the seaside, and healed in the homes.
On one significant occasion, Jesus took a text from Isaiah: "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound", a clear pronouncement of a divine plan to rescue the "lost battalion" to which we belong.
But Jesus' preaching in Galilee had been merely prelude. The Son of Man had always had a dread rendezvous to keep on a hill called Golgotha.
Arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane after the Last Supper, deserted by his disciples, spat upon, tried, and humiliated, Jesus staggered under his great cross toward Calvary. He progressed from triumph-to betrayal-to torture-to death on the cross.
In the words of the hymn, " the scene was changed; the morn was cold and chill, as the shadow of a cross arose upon a lonely hill." For us our Heavenly Father gave his Son. For us our Elder Brother gave his life.
At the last moment the Master could have turned back. But he did not. He passed beneath all things that he might save all things-the human race, the earth, and all the life that ever inhabited it.
No words in Christendom mean more to me than those spoken by the angel to the weeping Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they approached the tomb to care for the body of their Lord: "Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen."
With this pronouncement, the "lost battalion" of mankind-those who have lived and died, those who now live and one day will die, and those yet to be born and yet to die-this battalion of humanity lost had just been rescued.
Of him who delivered each of us from endless death, I testify he is a teacher of truth-but he is more than a teacher. He is the exemplar of the perfect life-but he is more than an exemplar. He is the great physician-but he is more than a physician. He who rescued the "lost battalion" of mankind is the literal Savior of the world, the Son of God, the Prince of Peace, the Holy One of Israel, even the risen Lord, who declared, "I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father."
As his witness I testify to you that he lives. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
Brethren and sisters, as I stand before you today in the closing session of this great inspirational conference, I express my love for my Father in heaven and for his great love that gave us his Only Begotten Son, and for his great atoning sacrifice, and for the great honor and privilege that has been mine through the years to represent him as one of his ambassadors of eternal truth, to be a witness to his divinity. I do testify to you today that I know that Christ lives, that he is the Redeemer of the world, and that he has given us his church through restoration in this dispensation through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and a pattern of life to live by through his gospel that will bring us joy and happiness in this life and exaltation through the worlds to come.
Last Friday in our meeting of the Regional Representatives of the Twelve, Brother Marion D. Hanks, who, as you know, is such a wonderful storyteller, as we witnessed again this morning, gave this illustration in talking to the brethren. He said that the old leaves have to fall from the trees to make room for the new leaves to come. I applied that to myself. I am one of the old leaves in this church. I am one of the oldest men. I think I can truthfully say that there is no other living man on the face of the earth today who has stood at this pulpit as many times as I have in a general conference of this church except President Joseph Fielding Smith. If I figure correctly, this is the seventy-fourth general conference in which I have been privileged to speak. As I listen to the testimonies of my brethren, there come to me the words of the song that we sing:
-Hymns, No. 46
I wonder where in all this world men could go today and listen to such sermons as we have heard here, which will exalt men and women in bringing them happiness in this life and eternal exaltation in the world to come, with their loved ones and with the sanctified and redeemed of our Father's children.
Then I think of the words of Jeremiah of old. He saw our day. He said:
"Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you. " What a covenant! " And I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding."
Where could you go in all the world today and find a fulfillment of that statement as we have witnessed during the sessions of this conference? Then I think of the statement in the Articles of Faith, given to us by the Prophet Joseph Smith, when he said: "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God."
That I believe with all my heart, and I thank God for these volumes of scripture.
And then I think of the words of another of our Articles of Faith, which reads like this: "We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God." That I believe with all my heart.
I love to study the prophecies of the scriptures. Many of them have found their fulfillment in this the dispensation of the fulness of times, and others await their fulfillment.
Then I think of the words of Jesus when he said, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." What a statement! Then following his resurrection, as he walked along the way by two of his disciples to Emmaus, and we are told that their eyes were holden, that they did not recognize him, when he heard what they had to say about him and his ministry and his crucifixion, he realized that they did not comprehend what he had been trying to teach them, so he said, "O fools, and slow of heart, to believe all that the prophets have spoken", and commencing with Moses and the prophets, he showed them how that in all things the prophets had testified of him. There isn't time to consider those promises and prophecies this afternoon, but they prophesied even of the casting of lots for his clothing at the time of his crucifixion.
Peter then tells us that he opened their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures. We have the words of Peter where he said:
"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
I believe that the words of the prophets are the most sure guide we have in this world today. I believe what Jesus said: "Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."
Now it is a wonderful thing to think of the things that have transpired. In the time allotted to me, I can only mention briefly some of them.
Isaiah saw our day. He saw the wilderness made to blossom as the rose. He saw the rivers flow in the desert where we have built these great irrigation canals under the inspiration of the Almighty, after our pioneers were led here to these valleys of the mountains, a wasteland, and nothing but their hands with which to labor, far away from transportation or commodities of any kind. He saw the waters flow down from the high places where it had been reservoired in these mountain fastnesses. He saw the daughters of Zion come up and sing in the heights of Zion. Where can you find anything in the history of this whole world to fulfill that like the singing of our Tabernacle Choir, singing now for over forty-two years without a break? Now with the Telstar, it is singing to the entire world. No wonder President Nixon said in his visit here last November that it was the greatest choir in all the world.
Isaiah saw the mountain of the Lord's house established in the top of the mountains in the latter days, and he named the latter days, when they would say: "Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem."
How literally that has been fulfilled, in my way of thinking, in this very house of the God of Jacob right here on this block! This temple, more than any other building of which we have any record, has brought people from every land to learn of his ways and walk in his paths.
I could tell you many stories about the great sacrifices our early pioneers and converts have made, when they would sell everything they had in this world and leave behind their loved ones and their friends and their occupations to come to a faraway land and learn a strange language. What brought them here? The house of the God of Jacob, that they might learn of his ways and walk in his paths.
Jeremiah saw the day when it should no longer be said:
"The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
"But, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them. "
Just contemplate that statement for a few moments. Think how the Jews and the Christians all through these past centuries have praised the Lord for his great hand of deliverance under the hands of Moses when he led Israel out of captivity, and yet here comes Jeremiah with this word of the holy prophet, telling us that in the latter days they shall no more remember that, but how God has gathered scattered Israel from the lands whither he had driven them.
And Jeremiah saw the day when the Lord would do this very thing, when he would call for many fishers and many hunters, "and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks." Where do you find those fishers and hunters that we read about in this great prophecy of Jeremiah? They are these 14,000 missionaries of this church, and those who have preceded them from the time that the Prophet Joseph Smith received the truth and sent the messengers out to share it with the world. Thus have they gone out, fishing and hunting, and gathering them from the hills and the mountains, and the holes in the rocks. I think that is more literal than some of us think!
When I was president of the Southern States Mission, I remember going to a conference down in west Florida. It seemed to me as if we traveled a hundred miles and never saw a house, and when we arrived at one of those little chapels, there it was filled with 250 people, and I said, "If you didn't come out of the holes in the rocks, I don't know where you came from. The Lord may know, but I don't!" Well, that was literal, and we see that being fulfilled right before our very eyes.
Malachi saw before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord when the Lord said he would send Elijah the prophet to "turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Just think of that statement. The Jews are still waiting for his coming.
When I was in Israel, a year ago last July, in one tour we visited three synagogues, and there hanging on the wall was a big armchair. I asked the rabbi why it was there. He said, "So we can lower it if Elijah should come, that he might sit in it." And then I thought how they remain in darkness, and here we know that Elijah has come. It is hardly within the capacity of an ordinary man to comprehend and understand what has happened in this world because of Elijah's coming: this great genealogical work; this library that can't be equaled anywhere in the world; these great vaults out here in the bowels of these mountains, where millions of records are being kept.
No wonder Isaiah called it a marvelous work and a wonder, when the people would draw near to him with their mouths, and honor him with their lips, but their hearts would be far removed from him; and they would teach for doctrine the precepts of men. These are some of the things, and many, many more have transpired in our day in fulfillment of the words of the prophets. No wonder the prophet said: "We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God."
There isn't time to go into the details, but Jeremiah described the gathering of our people here in these valleys of the mountains in just as definite terms as our historians have written it-how they should travel along the rivers of water. They traveled along the Platte River for over five hundred miles. Then he adds that they should come with their multitudes, "both young men and old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow. And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness. " And that is why our people will respond to every call that comes to them, because the God of heaven created the feelings of the human breast, and like Nephi of old said, the Lord "hath filled me with his love, even to the consuming of my flesh."
There are many other things that are yet to be fulfilled. I will just mention a couple of them. The Lord put it in my heart as a young man to have a love for the Jewish people, and someday they are going to be one of the great movements of this church. In the Book of Mormon we read in the preface that that book was preserved for the convincing of Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the very eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations. And how can that book do that to the Jews unless we take it to them? And so, in his own due time and way the Lord will inspire our leaders to send messengers to that people.
We read in the Book of Mormon that we should turn our hearts to them. There isn't time to read that prophecy to you. He said many of the Gentiles would say: "A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible." And then the Lord said, " what thank they the Jews for the Bible? "
Then in a revelation from the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith three years after this church was organized, in the ninety-eighth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord said: "Therefore, renounce war and proclaim peace, and seek diligently to turn the hearts of the children to their fathers, and the hearts of the fathers to their children; And again, the hearts of the Jews unto the prophets, and the prophets unto the Jews; lest I come and smite the whole earth with a curse, and all flesh be consumed before me." Trust not the wisdom of men. That is the wisdom of God, the Eternal Father, as he gave it to the Prophet Joseph in this day.
Jeremiah saw the day when the house of Judah would walk with the house of Israel; and then we are told by Ezekiel that the day would come when there should no more be two kingdoms, but one kingdom, and one God should rule over them all.
I pray that the Lord will help us to go on, still fulfilling his promises of all that he has revealed that has not yet been fulfilled. And I would like to live long enough to see a little more even of these marvelous accomplishments, as a part of this great gospel dispensation.
With all my heart and soul, I bear you my witness of the divinity of this work, that God the Eternal Father has decreed its destiny. It is built on the foundation of apostles and prophets, with Christ our Lord as the chief cornerstone. And he is guiding his church today, and will continue to do so until he comes in the clouds of heaven as the holy prophets have declared, and I leave you that witness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church
After Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden, they were taught the principles of the gospel and the plan of salvation-the plan by which they could return to their Father in heaven. They were also instructed to teach this gospel plan to their children.
His children generally did not accept his teachings-except Abel. Abel was killed; then, among other children, Seth was born, who did accept the teachings of Adam.
The Lord promised Adam that he would have a righteous seed which would last to the end of the earth, which is recorded in the Book of Moses: "And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam, which beareth record of the Father and the Son, saying: as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed, and all mankind, even as many as will."
In the next chapter we read: "Now this same Priesthood, which was in the beginning, shall be in the end of the world also.
"Now this prophecy Adam spake, as he was moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and a genealogy was kept of the children of God. "
This became the record of the royal seed, which is a record in part, at least, of the fulfillment of this promise. This we have today, at least in part, which is known as the Bible.
Modern revelation gives it to us thus:
"This order was instituted in the days of Adam, and came down by lineage in the following manner:
"From Adam to Seth, who was ordained by Adam at the age of sixty-nine years, and was blessed by him three years previous to his death, and received the promise of God by his father, that his posterity should be the chosen of the Lord, and that they should be preserved unto the end of the earth."
This promise was repeated again to Abraham, who was Seth's posterity:
"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."
"And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice."
We have a choice record in the Pearl of Great Price, the Book of Abraham, describing how this blessing relates to us today. Speaking to Abraham, the Lord said:
"And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee above measure, and make thy name great among all nations, and thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed after thee, that in their hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations;
"And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father;
"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee and in thy seed, for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal."
This blessing was renewed to Isaac, the son of Abraham, and then to Jacob, who became Israel, and then divided among his twelve sons, each becoming a tribe, referred to as the tribes of Israel.
When a person receives a patriarchal blessing, he is entitled to receive a pronouncement of the blessings of Israel, or a declaration of the tribe of Israel through which his blessings shall come. This is the right to the blessings of those recorded in the book of remembrance started in the days of Adam.
This does not mean that all the nations of the earth will become literal descendants of Abraham, though his seed may be scattered in all nations, but as it says, all shall receive the blessings through those who are the seed of Abraham and shall be accounted his seed, and rise up and bless him as their father.
If members of the Church are literal descendants of Abraham, they will receive such a blessing. If they are not literal descendants of Abraham and join the Church and receive the gospel, they shall receive the priesthood blessings, even eternal life, through those who are of Israel or which would be referred to as by adoption.
Hence, all nations and families of the earth may receive the blessings of the gospel and eternal life through their faithfulness. To fulfill this promise given to Adam, then, the necessity is apparent of a renewing of priesthood leadership through a prophet of God at various intervals throughout time. These intervals have been called dispensations: from Adam to Seth-to Enoch-to Noah-to Abraham-to Moses-to Elias-to John the Baptist-to Jesus Christ-to the apostles Peter, James, and John.
Each dispensation brings with it a reemphasis of the priesthood; a restrengthening of the opportunity given to man to receive the blessings of the gospel by proving himself in resisting the powers of the adversary.
The last dispensation is to be the dispensation of the fulness of times. Apostle Paul described this in his epistle to the Ephesians:
"Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
"That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him."
The Prophet Joseph Smith put it this way: " that the dispensation of the fulness of times is made up of all the dispensations that ever have been given since the world began, until this time", this being the time referred to as the end of time to prepare for the coming of the millennial reign of the Lord Jesus Christ on this earth.
I testify to you-this is that time. The gospel of Jesus Christ is here now, with all the keys of the priesthood, to open the way for his coming.
Joseph Smith was called by revelation, as were the prophets of old. John the Baptist restored to him and Oliver Cowdery the keys of the Aaronic Priesthood, followed by Peter, James, and John, who restored the keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood. Elijah returned in the Kirtland Temple and restored the keys of the sealing blessings for the living and the dead.
Joseph Smith bestowed all the keys upon the Quorum of Apostles before his death. These keys of priesthood authority have been thus preserved to this day and shall continue to usher in the millennial reign of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
We invite all to hear, accept, and embrace this gospel. This invitation is to all the nations and families the world over, that all may receive the blessings of eternal life and be recorded in the Lamb's book of remembrance and share the blessings of the royal seed of the righteous, even the blessings of eternal life. I testify that this is his kingdom, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Paul H. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I am deeply honored, my beloved brothers and sisters, to occupy this pulpit again and to add my testimony to those that have been borne so strongly and adequately. I want President Brown to know the great feeling of love and appreciation we have for him and how much we have missed his presence during this conference. Our thoughts and prayers are ever with him.
Yesterday as I came over to one of the sessions, one of my returned missionaries was kind enough to introduce me to an investigator. We had a wonderful chat and in the course of the conversation the investigator said, "I finally think I have found out the secret to your success as wonderful, righteous people." I said, "What's that?" She said, "You attend so many meetings you don't have time to commit a sin."
I have thought about that, and it prompted me to turn to this little verse. It goes:
I suppose as a church we have reduced those odds considerably. I can't resist one other. My father said on one occasion:
Now I would like to address a few remarks to our wonderful young people, particularly those twenty years of age and under, and I would like to include my new adopted son, Loren.
Sometimes we are asked by our young people why we stress so much the commandments of God. As one little person put it to me just the other day, "Why do you have to be so churchy?" I would like to share a feeling or two concerning that inquiry. It is because, young people, we love you, are concerned about you, your well-being, and your ultimate welfare. It is important to know that we as parents have taken upon ourselves a very sacred oath and covenant to bring you up in the ways of the Lord, and that is very, very important to us, as it is to him.
One of the scriptures many of your moms and dads take literally is the one recorded in the sixty-eighth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, which says: "And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents."
Now that is rather serious to those of us who sit in such a responsible position. I once asked my mother, "How does it feel, Mom, to have all my sins placed upon your head?" She said, "Oh, but you forgot one thing, Paul. I have transferred them back to you because I have taught you the doctrines of the kingdom." In a sense that is what we are trying to do, young people: to prepare you to live a happy and full life both now and in the future, and true joy and happiness comes in knowing and living the commandments of our Father in heaven.
Would you listen to the words of Alma, that great Book of Mormon prophet. They ring true and clear. He said, "O, remember, my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of God." That is why we as parents are concerned. We want to teach you how to get back into the presence of our Heavenly Father by keeping all of the commandments. You can't keep what you don't know or understand.
Someone once said, "You know we want to help you young people in the worst way," and I suppose some of us are guilty of doing it in just about that way.
A young mother recently shared with me a story called "The World's Meanest Mom," and I would like to share it with you here. She said:
"I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids had no breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs, and toast. When others had pop and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. My mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang. She had to know who our friends were and what we were doing. She insisted that if we said we'd be gone for an hour, that we would be gone for one hour or less.
"I am ashamed to admit it, but she actually had the nerve to break the child labor law. She made us wash the dishes, make beds, learn to cook, and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she lay awake nights thinking up mean things for us to do. She always insisted that we tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
"By the time we were teenagers she was much wiser, and our lives became even more miserable. None of this tooting the horn of a car for us to come running. She embarrassed us to no end by making our dates and friends come to the door to get us.
"My mother was a complete failure as a mother. None of us have ever been arrested or beaten a rap. Each of my brothers has served a mission, and his country. And whom do we have to blame for this terrible way we turned out? You're right-our mean mother. Look at all the things we have missed. We never got to take part in a riot, burn draft cards, and a million and one other things that our friends did. She made us grow up into educated, honest adults. Using this as a background, I am trying to raise my children. I stand a little taller and I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. You see, I thank God that he gave me the meanest mother in the whole world."
How truly blessed is a person who has a mother who cared. I too am grateful for my parents, who applied the gospel of love in such a wonderful way. And although I often remind my mother of our round-table discussions, in which she chased me around the table, I learned the truths of the gospel by example from her and from my father.
As with the bud, so with the blossom. A boy is the only thing known from which a man can be made. I hope that we as parents are teaching our children that they are the sons and daughters of God, and that they have the capacity to become like him. It was the old Edinburgh weaver who prayed, "O God, help me to hold a high opinion of myself." Likewise I would counsel young people to hold a high opinion of themselves, to remember who they really are, and to put their faith in their Heavenly Father.
In today's fast-moving, materialistic world, unfortunately many fathers place their business affairs ahead of their children. I am appalled as I look around me, as was Eddie Cantor some years ago, when he said that a man will spend a whole week figuring out what stocks to buy with $1,000-but he won't spend an hour with his child, in whom he has a greater investment.
Is it any wonder that many of our young people are troubled with identity problems? We who are older speak of building a better world, but our progress is slow. Real generosity to the future lies, then, in giving all that we have to the present.
Now, you young people, listen to the counsel of your parents. They love you. We are not perfect. One day you will stand where we stand, and you will have a similar challenge of rearing your young. Will you go with us the extra mile in trying to understand our true nature and purpose?
Depend on and trust in the great counsel of wise parents. I would also remind you that the Lord has not left you or them unattended in our challenging world. Since the beginning of time the Lord has revealed his mind and will and has counseled us through his prophets on how to find true happiness.
For just a moment, I would like to invite you to come with me into the scriptures, wherein you might become a little more excited about the gospel as it is related to us by great prophets. And I would hope that on your own and in family home evening, church study classes, you could become more excited about our wonderful scriptures. We tend to support and want to do those things we understand. For instance:
Not long ago when I was residing in Southern California, I made a trip from our home in Downey to the University of Southern California, where I was working. One morning as I traveled down a street in order to find a new route to work, I took a road where a beautiful house was under construction, and it caught my eye because it was quite similar to one my wife hoped we would build one day, although it was somewhat out of our financial reach. I took great personal interest in this house because of its familiar floor plan and style, but I noticed several weeks later that the workmen had ceased their labor, and I wondered about it. I thought for a minute maybe there was a strike, or perhaps they had run short of finances, and other possibilities entered my mind. Several months came and went, and that once shiny new lumber seemed to deteriorate. The wood gradually changed to yellow, then brown, and finally commenced to rot.
As I viewed this scene, young people, and this is so typical of the scriptures, I thought of the great truths that our Savior taught in the New Testament, and my mind was immediately attracted by that house to the fourteenth chapter of Luke. Now if you can, picture in your mind for a moment the Savior teaching the Pharisees and Sadducees, some sinners, publicans, and others who even sought his life. They had asked questions and he turned and made this observation. He said, "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
"Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,
"Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
"Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
"Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace."
Could I just translate that scripture into 1971 language for you young people? The Lord might say, if he were here today, and he does through his leaders, "For which of you, intending to build an eternal life, sitteth not down first to consider what it is going to cost, lest haply some of you will commence to build and will not finish." And you and I know you don't have to look very far at your school to see some lives that are standing idle because they didn't count the cost. The cost of a wonderful home, the cost of getting an education, the cost of properly marrying, the cost perhaps in many cases of a wonderful mission, the cost of doing the right thing for the right reason. That is what our Heavenly Father would have us tell you. It is a timeless message. We need to plan and prepare if we are to achieve eternal goals.
Let me just conclude with one other as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus said again to a multitude that had gathered around him, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son."
And to help fill the courts with guests the king sent his servants out and they did bring them in.
The Savior continues, "And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment."
Now wedding suits were a very important part of the wedding celebration during this period. "And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
"Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
I used to be a little puzzled about that last part, and now I think I know why we have so many Latter-day Saint dentists.
Again let me translate that marvelous scripture, using a little more modern phraseology for you young people. Think now of the wedding garment as yours and my character. And when the king, our Heavenly Father, came in to see us, his children, he saw there one of us who had not on a good, moral character.
And he saith unto him, "How comest thou in hither, not having a pure, undefiled character?" And you and I were speechless. And then our Heavenly Father said, "Bind him, and take him out of my presence forever."
I didn't say that, young people. The Lord did. And our purpose here is to teach you the doctrines of the kingdom. Know of our love, faith, and trust in you, for the future looms bright in terms of your gospel commitment. May you and I together walk down the Lord's road in peace and harmony is my humble prayer, as I bear witness to these things, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Delbert L. Stapley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters: This has been a wonderful conference. Most worthwhile messages have been given, which recalls a statement by a young man in his late teens. He sought out his stake president following a stake conference attended by our beloved brother, the late Elder Thorpe B. Isaacson, and enthusiastically said, in the jargon of youth, "President, this conference really shook me. Elder Isaacson was really round." And then he added, "This was a hairy conference." Now you dig his meaning.
The first part of the thirteenth Article of Faith states: "We believe in being honest." Honesty embraces many meanings, such as integrity, sincerity, according to the truth, just, honorable, virtuous, purity of life, moral character, and uprightness in mutual dealings.
These principles are required virtues of true Latter-day Saints.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands for the highest ideals, principles, and standards known to man. There is nothing about the Church, its teachings, or what it represents that we need be ashamed of. The Church has immeasurable influence for good in the lives of men and women everywhere.
Robert Burns said: "An honest man's the noblest work of God." Today, with honesty and integrity among men of high position at a low ebb and becoming lost virtues, some group must diligently teach, practice, and enthrone these principles as cardinal qualities in the character of man. It is more and more important that we have complete moral integrity in the men who shape our destinies, else the freedoms of this country will be sacrifices. The reports of dishonesty, graft, and corruption in government, business, professional, and financial circles in our national life lessen our position and strength as a world leader.
In all humility and sincerity we must admit a power higher than ourselves from whom is derived a positive moral code that will give our lives significance and purpose. We also must remember once and for all that honesty, respect, and honor as such are not for sale on the market block. They are ingredients that you and I and all people should put into our daily lives.
Carlyle said: "Make yourself an honest man, and then you may be sure there is one rascal less in the world." Can there be a truly honest man without him being a good man, or can there be a truly good man without him being an honest man? It seems honesty must begin with oneself; otherwise we could not recognize this quality in others. We see things not as they are, but as we are. It is the responsibility of each of us to be honest ourselves-honest in our dealings and relationships, honest in our church membership, honest in keeping the commandments of God.
It was said of King Mosiah's sons: " they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before him."
Honesty and integrity as perfected virtues in parents are more likely to become the heritage and rich endowments of their children. Parents cannot give to their children that which they do not possess. All these fine ideals and principles that are a part of the gospel teachings, together with all the virtues that make for good character and good life, should be perfected in each of us. In that perfection they become a part of our nature, and when parenthood comes, these virtues are more apt to be transmitted to our children. We read in Proverbs: "The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him." How true and basic this statement is!
As parents, are we honest with our children? Do they hear us tell little white lies to excuse ourselves from certain responsibilities? Can we blame them too much if they follow the example of their erring parents? The instruction to parents is found in the Doctrine and Covenants: "And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
In order to teach children to walk uprightly, the example must be set by parents. Husbands and wives, are you faithful and true to your mate? Are you living lives of moral soundness and purity? We cannot afford to support iniquity. To do so would be dangerous to our eternal salvation and that of our children. We must walk uprightly before the Lord and be scrupulously honest, and thus be blessed with a high moral and ethical sense that governs all our actions.
George Eliot has said: "There is only one failure in life possible and that is not to be true to the best one knows."
Throughout our lives we must correct not only the mistakes made against us, but also those in our favor. Now that seems a simple thing, but in the building of character it is very important, for little omissions lead to more serious errors and subtle practices. How often have you gone into a place of business and had given back to you more change than you were entitled to? It quite frequently happens. And it also happens that you are occasionally shortchanged. One never loses an opportunity to call attention when a mistake occurs against him. Honesty, to be true and perfect, must work both ways.
If employers, are we honest with our employees? Do the rules apply to all or are there exceptions, and do these exceptions apply to the same few?
If employees, are we giving an honest day's work? Do we fudge on the lunch hour, or take time to run unnecessary errands under false pretense? In dealing with our fellowmen, do we give more than is expected, or do we try to get by with the minimum amount of service?
If in business, do we "pad the bill" to get a little extra benefit we are not entitled to, thinking that no one will ever know? While a person may seemingly get away with such tactics, surely he is cognizant of his own dishonesty, as likewise are those whom he has cheated. Cheating is a form of dishonesty. It hurts both the individual and those around him.
And you teachers, are you honest in the grades you give? Do you mark according to what the student has earned, or do you let personalities interfere? The juggling of grades or disregarding rules and regulations to produce winning teams are acts of dishonesty and should be avoided. When winning becomes more important than the character and spiritual values these activities are planned to produce, then there is something lacking in leadership. We must not justify ourselves doing what the law or rule does not encompass. Laws and rules cannot make people honest. Evil practices encourage youth to be dishonest. It is the small and seemingly unimportant practices that lead to more serious habits of dishonesty, dishonor, and lack of strong moral integrity. We must inculcate into the heart and character of an individual the virtues that he so much needs to meet honorably the problems of life.
And on behalf of students and youth, do we honestly and sincerely listen to their wants and needs? Do we really try to understand them, or are we giving them what we think they should have?
And those of us who teach in church organizations-are we honest in living as we teach, or do we have a double standard? It was observed recently that a young married woman teacher appeared at church in a very short mini-dress. Can she be honestly teaching the dress standards of the Church while not keeping them herself? Shakespeare said it so well: "This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
One's purpose in life must exemplify honesty and sincerity. A person should always abide by his agreements and be willing to pay for his own mistakes. Honesty and integrity build confidence, friendships, and secure the goodwill and support of people that so often pay satisfying dividends. When a person sees the honesty and integrity of another, he will go out of his way to be of help and assistance to such a sincere and reliable individual.
An early lesson in honesty was taught a boy many years ago by his father. When he was just a young lad, he went to the store owned by his father and two business partners and, wanting a pocketknife, proceeded to take one from the display case. Word got to the boy's father. The father took the lad back to the case and had him replace the knife. Then he pointed out that he had two other partners in the business, and two-thirds of the pocketknife belonged to them. It was not the boy's privilege, as his son, to take anything from the company because it was not all his. This father was honest and upright in his dealings; he was a man of integrity. When he made a bargain or a deal, he kept it regardless of what the cost to him might be. His reputation was for fairness with people. To him this attribute was more important than money.
One can overlook many sins, but the sin of dishonesty is most difficult to forgive. We are sympathetic to the weaknesses of men and tolerant in our relations with them, but there is nothing that upsets or disturbs confidence more than dealing with a dishonest individual.
George Washington placed emphasis upon honesty when he said: "I hope that I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man."
How can honesty be mentioned without relating a preliminary event that led to the Savior's crucifixion? When Jesus was brought before Pilate to be tried by the chief priests and scribes, Pilate found no fault in the Savior, but he was willing to satisfy those who clamored for his life, considering prestige above honesty and integrity, and therefore he yielded to their demands.
My brothers and sisters, we belong to the true church of Christ. Membership in it is a glorious privilege, opportunity, and blessing. We of all people must stand firm in sustaining the revelations the Lord has given for the guidance of his children. Let us be true to the principles, ideals, standards, and covenants in all our doings and relationships. Let us be honest and truthful. Let us be sincere and upright and fully practice what we teach.
Yes, "we believe in being honest." We also believe in "being true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men."
I have a firm conviction, my brethren and sisters, to the truths of the gospel of Christ. I know they are given for our guidance, benefit, blessing, and the salvation of man.
I bear witness to you of these things. I know that we must be Christlike in all of our relationships with our fellowmen. If so, we will be exemplary and will be fit servants of the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder William H. Bennett
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
While serving in the army during World War II, I was required to take the Ishihara eye test, which makes use of different colors, designs, and numbers to diagnose color blindness in its various forms. Under this test, those affected by certain forms of color blindness are able to distinguish the solid colors without difficulty, but the shaded areas in between the solid colors present problems. Those who are color blind do not discern correctly; and, no matter how hard they try, they are not able to distinguish the differences in hue that are obvious to the normal eye.
In this Ishihara eye test I found an important message, one that has broad application in our lives.
Is there not similarity between the color-blind condition just described and the condition of a member of the Church who claims that he is seeking the truth, is anxious to develop a strong testimony pertaining to the truth, and yet is not willing or able to humble himself before the Lord, to exercise faith, and to live the gospel? By failing to do these things, he is letting his sins of omission close the door to the great source of all truth-our Father in heaven. As a result, his vision is faulty.
As we journey along through life we, as individuals, come in contact with many shaded areas, twilight zones, and even dark alleys, where we, unless aided by a higher power, are not able to see clearly, to interpret correctly, and to come to sound conclusions. Some of these shaded areas are found in the physical world, some in the intellectual world, and some in the realm of the spiritual. Let us remember, however, that the Lord has said that all things unto him are spiritual.
"Wherefore, verily I say unto you that all things unto me are spiritual, and not at any time have I given unto you a law which was temporal; neither any man, nor the children of men; neither Adam, your father, whom I created.
"Behold, I gave unto him that he should be an agent unto himself; and I gave unto him commandment, but no temporal commandment gave I unto him, for my commandments are spiritual; they are not natural nor temporal, neither carnal nor sensual."
As individuals, we have some limitations when it comes to our understanding of things as they really are. We can see so far, and then the earth and the sky come together, so to speak, and we cannot see beyond. But there is something beyond. In the physical world, all we have to do to realize this is to improve our vantage point by getting on top of a building, on a mountain, or in an airplane.
We need to improve our vantage points in all aspects of our living-in the intellectual and the spiritual realms as well as in the physical. As we attempt to do this, we should remember that, in every situation, there are facts and there are opinions. There are also causes of difficulties and there are symptoms that express themselves. To the extent that we are willing and able to get at the facts and at the causes and to see relationships among them clearly, we are in a good position to interpret correctly and to arrive at sound conclusions. But to the extent that we just fool around with opinions and symptoms, we may prolong our difficulties and postpone the time for arriving at lasting, satisfying solutions.
It is important that we remember also that no matter how intelligent we may be, no matter how hard we work, no matter how good our teachers are or how favorable the other conditions for learning, in our allotted span of years on earth we can master only a very small fraction of the total field of knowledge; and what we do master usually is in a narrowed-down, specialized area. Consequently, we, in and of ourselves, have limitations. Our thinking is often highly selective and segmented and our judgment is often faulty. Should we not, then, be willing to heed the counsel given by Solomon:
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
"In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."
Without divine guidance, we will have difficulty in the shaded areas of life. But we need not walk alone. Our Father in heaven and his Son Jesus Christ and the prophets-both ancient and modern-have given us a well-charted course for our journey through life. We can find joy and happiness and we can arrive at our destination in safety if we will but heed the road signs and follow the directions that have been given to us.
What are these road signs and directions? They are recorded in detail in holy writ and in the inspired utterings of our present-day prophets. Let me mention just a few of them. I should like to begin with a statement made by the Lord himself as recorded in John, chapter 7, verses 16 and 17:
"Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans, chapter 1, verses 16 and 17, we read:
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
"For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."
In Second Corinthians, chapter 5, verse 7, we read: "For we walk by faith, not by sight."
From the Book of Mormon, in Alma, chapter 26, verse 22, these words spoken by Ammon: "Yea, he that repenteth and exerciseth faith, and bringeth forth good works, and prayeth continually without ceasing-unto such it is given to know the mysteries of God; yea, unto such it shall be given to reveal things which never have been revealed. "
From the Doctrine and Covenants we read in section 88, verse 63: "Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."
And, in section 18, verse 18, the Lord, speaking to Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, and David Whitmer, said: "Ask the Father in my name, in faith believing that you shall receive, and you shall have the Holy Ghost, which manifesteth all things which are expedient unto the children of men."
And, in section 121, verses 45 and 46
"Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
"The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever."
The Lord has told us in the Book of Mormon, in Moroni, the tenth chapter and the fifth verse, that by the power of the Holy Ghost we may know the truth of all things. What a wonderful promise that is; and it can be realized by all of us who are members of the Church, because during our confirmation, following baptism, hands were laid on our heads, and one having authority gave us the gift of the Holy Ghost. If we will just live the way we should and do our part, we can experience what a great strength and blessing the Holy Ghost can be in our lives. It can broaden and extend our horizons and can turn the lights on for us so that we can see more clearly in the shaded areas of life and, in fact, in all areas of our living.
Some people seem to be more inclined to disbelieve the scriptures and the teachings of our present-day prophets than they are to believe them. I have said in my heart that if they would put forth the same effort to believe that they do to disbelieve, and would humble themselves, exercise faith, and study diligently, the Holy Ghost would help them, and they would find that they believe many of the things they now think they disbelieve.
The Holy Ghost can give us a sure conviction that man is a child of God. Altogether too frequently, when men, unaided, try to understand the relationship of man to God, they look at things through mortal eyes only and consider only mortal conditions. But this life is not the beginning, neither is it the end. To understand man's relationship with God, we must broaden our perspective with the help of the Holy Ghost and consider the preexistent state and also the life after death.
The Holy Ghost can help us see more clearly in the shaded areas. But in order for it to be the power that it can be and should be in our lives, things must be right within us. We must be truly humble, exercise strong faith associated with good works, pray regularly and sincerely, couple prayer with fasting, study the gospel diligently, live the gospel, keep active in the Church, and give of ourselves in unselfish service to others and to building the kingdom of God here upon the earth.
I have felt the power of the Holy Ghost in my life-in the classroom-in military combat-in my church assignments-and in my daily living. The influence has been most pronounced when I have humbled myself before the Lord and have prepared myself by exercising faith, studying hard, living the gospel, and through fasting and prayer.
I testify to you that God lives, that the gospel is true, that this is the true church of Jesus Christ, and that we have a true prophet of God leading us today. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
As visits are made to the stakes throughout the Church and one observes the faithful, devoted service of you brothers and sisters, he is impressed by your earnest willingness to serve the Lord and to help your fellowmen.
This desire to serve is based upon a strong conviction that this is truly the Lord's work in which you are engaged. That conviction is called a testimony, an impelling, driving force that results in righteous deeds and positive actions. As one observes this dedicated service, he concludes that the underlying strength of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in the testimonies of its individual members.
Every member of the Church is entitled to know that God our Heavenly Father lives; that he is not dead. He is also entitled to know that our elder brother, Jesus Christ, is the Savior and Redeemer of the world, and that he has opened the door for us, that we, through our individual acts, may receive salvation and exaltation and dwell once again in the presence of our Heavenly Father. This assurance and witness must be earnestly sought. Heber C. Kimball, a counselor to President Brigham Young, warned the Saints in 1856 that many trials would come to test their faith; that the time would come that no man or woman would be able to endure on borrowed light. Each must gain a personal knowledge of the truth and be guided by the light within himself.
President McKay assured a group of young people that a knowledge of the truth and a testimony of the gospel could come to them if even in their youth they would learn one great lesson: "That purity of heart, and a sincere heart seeking after the Savior's guidance daily, will lead to a testimony of the truth of Christ's gospel. " This counsel indicates that testimonies may be gained through clean living and prayer.
Joseph Smith, although only a youth, had faith and prayed to our Heavenly Father for an answer to a problem which was of sincere concern to him. He was blessed with a personal visitation from our Father in heaven and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Saul of Tarsus, who was a persecutor of the followers of Jesus, became Paul the apostle, defender of the Christ, following a dramatic experience while on the road to Damascus. A light was seen in the heavens, and he heard a voice saying, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" And he answered and said, "Who art thou, Lord?" And the Lord replied: "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks."
These two incidents were rare manifestations, but the impressions made by the Holy Ghost can be equally deep and lasting. President Joseph Fielding Smith has said, "Therefore, the seeing, even the Savior, does not leave as deep an impression in the mind as does the testimony of the Holy Ghost to the spirit. the impressions on the soul that come from the Holy Ghost are far more significant than a vision. It is where spirit speaks to spirit, and the imprint upon the soul is far more difficult to erase."
This truth is further illustrated by the experiences of the three witnesses to the Book of Mormon. Each of the three-Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris-saw the angel, saw and handled the gold plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated, and heard the voice of the Lord declare that the record was true. Yet later, all three, becoming disaffected and out of harmony with the leaders, dwindled in unbelief and apostasy. But the imprint of the Spirit had been so indelible that not a single one of them ever denied his testimony, which is still printed in each copy of the Book of Mormon. The testimony of the still small voice whispering to our innermost beings is of more worth than outward signs or manifestations.
As a young man living in Kirtland, Ohio, Lorenzo Snow, fifth president of the Church, was converted and baptized in 1836. He had studiously and conscientiously compared the teachings of the missionaries with the teachings of the Savior. Becoming convinced of the truths of the gospel, he had sought baptism by immersion.
Following confirmation, he constantly anticipated an assurance that he had received the Holy Ghost. Two or three weeks following his baptism, he reflected that he had not yet received a testimony of the truth. Being uneasy, and laying aside his books, he left the house and wandered through the fields. A gloomy spirit and indescribable cloud of darkness seemed to envelop him. It was his custom, near the close of day, to retire to a nearby secluded grove and engage in secret prayer. This night he had no inclination to do so. The spirit of prayer had departed, and the heavens seemed like brass over his head. But, determined not to forgo his evening practice, he sought his accustomed place and knelt in solemn prayer.
"I had no sooner opened my lips in an effort to pray," recalled President Snow, "than I heard a sound, just above my head, like the rustling of silken robes, and immediately the Spirit of God descended upon me, completely enveloping my whole person, filling me, from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet, and O, the joy and happiness I felt! No language can describe the almost instantaneous transition from a dense cloud of mental and spiritual darkness into a refulgence of light and knowledge. I then received a perfect knowledge that God lives, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and of the restoration of the holy Priesthood, and the fulness of the Gospel. It was a complete baptism-a tangible immersion in the heavenly principle or element, the Holy Ghost; and even more real and physical in its effects upon every part of my system than the immersion by water."
In this manner Brother Snow received comforting assurance as the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and the Holy Ghost blessed him with a testimony that remained with him to the close of his earthly existence.
A testimony is a priceless gift from God. But even though a person may receive a witness through the Holy Ghost, there is no guarantee that this testimony will remain steadfast unless the person exerts constant effort to keep that testimony alive. Testimonies gained may be lost through carelessness, indifference, and/or neglect.
Testimonies need to be nourished and fed. President Lee wisely counseled: "If we are not reading the scriptures daily, our testimonies are growing thinner, our spirituality isn't increasing in depth."
The Savior, while teaching at the temple, was questioned by the Jewish teachers as to the source of his doctrine, which was astounding to them. Whence came his wisdom? they asked. Jesus answered their troubled inquiries, saying: " my doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
The Lord's answer was direct and applies to us today, just as it did to the people to whom he was speaking. If we will do our Father's will and keep his commandments, the Holy Ghost will manifest the truth unto us-it's as simple as that. May this be our lot, I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
My dear brethren and sisters:
As we come to the close of another glorious and inspirational conference, our hearts are filled with gratitude for the abundant blessings which have been poured out upon us.
We have feasted upon the word of Christ; our minds have been quickened by the power of the Holy Spirit; and we have worshiped the Lord in spirit and in truth.
To all that has been said, may I now add my personal testimony of the truth and divinity of this great work and leave with the faithful Saints in all the world my blessing.
I say to you, and to the whole Church, and, for that matter, to the whole world, that a gracious and loving Father has in these last days spoken again from heaven to his servants the prophets.
His voice has been one inviting all men to come to his Beloved Son, to learn of him, to partake of his goodness, to take his yoke upon them, and to work out their salvation by obedience to the laws of his gospel. His voice has been one of glory and honor, of peace in this life, and of eternal life in the world to come.
I know that God lives and that he sent his Only Begotten Son into the world to work out the infinite and eternal atonement.
I know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that he received from his Father the power to ransom men from the spiritual and temporal death brought into the world by the fall of Adam.
I know that the Lord has set up his church and kingdom on earth for the last time; that in this latter-day kingdom are found the power and authority of the holy priesthood; and that this church administers the gospel and makes its blessings available to all who will believe and obey.
I am not unmindful that there are good and devout people among all sects, parties, and denominations, and they will be blessed and rewarded for all the good they do. But the fact remains that we alone have the fullness of those laws and ordinances which prepare men for the fullness of reward in the mansions above. And so we say to the good and noble, the upright and devout people everywhere: Keep all the good you have; cleave unto every true principle which is now yours; but come and partake of the further light and knowledge which that God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever is again pouring out upon his people.
Now I pray that our Father in heaven will bless his people-bless them abundantly and in full measure.
I pray that the Saints shall stand firm against the pressures and enticements of the world; that they shall put first in their lives the things of God's kingdom; that they shall be true to every trust and keep every covenant.
I pray for the young and rising generation that they shall keep their minds and bodies clean-free from immorality, from drug abuse, and from the spirit of rebellion and defiance of decency that is sweeping the land.
Our Father, pour out thy Spirit upon these thy children that they may be preserved from the perils of the world and kept clean and pure, fit candidates to return to thy presence and dwell with thee.
And let thy preserving care be with all those who seek thy face and who walk before thee in the integrity of their souls, that they may be lights to the world, instruments in thy hands to bring to pass thy purposes on earth.
And may thy Spirit be with us now and forever, I pray, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
My dear brethren and sisters. I bid you welcome to another general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and rejoice in the privilege that is mine to stand before you and bear testimony to the truth and divinity of this great latter-day work.
We the Latter-day Saints are a blessed and favored people. It is our privilege to become "a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation." The Lord has chosen us, as he chose our fathers anciently, "to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth."
Our position is one of strength because it is founded on eternal truth. We need not fear the fiery darts of the adversary, nor be troubled by world conditions, as long as we walk in that light which a gracious Father has so abundantly shed forth upon us in this final gospel dispensation.
In his infinite wisdom, and to fulfill the covenants and promises made to the prophets of old, the Lord has restored in these last days the fullness of his everlasting gospel. This gospel is the plan of salvation. It was ordained and established in the councils of eternity before the foundations of this earth were laid, and it has been revealed anew in our day for the salvation and blessing of all our Father's children everywhere.
According to this great and eternal plan, salvation is in Christ. It comes because of the infinite and eternal atonement which he wrought by the shedding of his blood. He is the Son of God, and he came into the world to ransom men from the temporal and spiritual death that came because of what we call the fall.
Through his goodness and grace all men will come forth from the grave, to be judged according to the deeds done in the flesh. Then those who have believed and obeyed his laws shall receive an inheritance of eternal life in his Father's kingdom. This glorious blessing is available because of his atoning sacrifice, and it is given to those who love and serve him with all their strength.
Now I testify that these laws which men must obey to gain salvation, and which comprise the gospel of Jesus Christ, have been revealed in this day to prophets and apostles, and that they are now administered by his church, which he has again established upon the earth.
But these great and eternal truths, to which men must conform if they are to be saved, have not been revealed for our good only. They are for all men of every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.
Nearly six hundred years before Christ-that is, his coming-the great prophet Nephi said to his people: " there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth.
"And the time cometh that he shall manifest himself unto all nations. "
That promised day is now dawning. This is the appointed time for the preaching of the gospel in all the world and for the building up of the Lord's kingdom in every nation. There are good and upright people in all nations who will respond to the truth; who will come into the Church; and who will become lights to guide their own people.
In our recent conference that was held in Manchester, England, we saw many illustrations of the strength and leadership ability of the British people. The Church has come of age in Great Britain, and the British Saints are prepared and able to administer the gospel to those of their nation.
And as it is among them, so it is or will be in other nations. The gospel is for all people, and the Lord expects those who receive it to live its truths and to offer them to those of their own nation and tongue.
And so now, in the spirit of love and brotherhood, we invite all men everywhere to give heed to the words of eternal life revealed in this day through the Prophet Joseph Smith and his associates.
We invite our Father's other children to "come unto Christ, and be perfected in him," and to deny themselves of "all ungodliness."
We invite them to believe in Christ and his gospel, to come into his church, and to be one with his saints.
We have tasted the fruits of the gospel and know they are good, and we desire that all men shall receive the same blessings and the same spirit that have been poured out so abundantly upon us.
Our responsibility in the Church is to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth, and this we are seeking to do with all our heart, might, and mind. Jesus said: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."
We believe that worship is far more than prayer and preaching and gospel performance. The supreme act of worship is to keep the commandments, to follow in the footsteps of the Son of God, to do ever those things that please him. It is one thing to give lip service to the Lord; it is quite another to respect and honor his will by following the example he has set for us.
Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is the great Exemplar. Our mission is to pattern our lives after him and do the things he wants us to do. " what manner of men ought ye to be?" he asked his Nephite disciples, and then he answered: "Verily I say unto you, even as I am."
I rejoice in the privilege of following in his footsteps. I am grateful for the words of eternal life which I have received, I am very glad to say, in this world, and for the hope of eternal life which is mine in the world to come if I will remain faithful and true to the end.
All my life I have studied and pondered the principles of the gospel and sought to live the laws of the Lord. As a result there has come into my heart a great love for him and for his work and for all those who seek to further his purposes in the earth.
I know that he lives, that he rules in the heavens above and in the earth beneath, and that his purposes shall prevail. He is our Lord and our God. As he himself said to Joseph Smith: "The Lord is God, and beside him there is no Savior.
"Great is his wisdom, marvelous are his ways, and the extent of his doings none can find out."
I feel to say with Job of old, whose knowledge came from the same source from which mine has come: "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth," and that "in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold. "
And as I join my testimony with that of Job, may I also unite with him in thanksgiving, for the cry, uttered out of the anguish and sorrow of his soul: " the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."
I pray that we may all be guided by the power of the Holy Spirit, that we may walk uprightly before the Lord, and that we may inherit eternal life in the mansions and kingdoms that are prepared for the obedient.
This is my prayer in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
It has been my privilege during the last thirty days to meet with missionaries and members in Great Britain, South America, South Africa, and here in North America. Always as we meet we find a common question that confronts us. Members of the Church, especially our missionaries, often hear this statement: "If there is anything I resent, it is those that say they are right and everybody else is wrong." They object, of course, to the declaration concerning the exclusive delegation of authority in this church.
Now I understand, of course, why one would feel that way. Nevertheless, I would say to him: "Hold on, think for a moment. Surely you can't believe that in the great confusing variety of religious beliefs, not one of them is true, is right."
Such a proposition generates atheism. When I think of an atheist, I believe with Sister Carol Lynn Pearson in what she wrote in her verse dedicated to the atheist:
The other view, the one most widely held, is that all of them are right, that they are all alike. If there is a typical response to our missionaries, it is, "I already have a church. One is just as good as another and it doesn't matter really which one we belong to, or if we belong to any. We will all end up in the same place anyway."
Surely no one who really thinks would hold to that position. Nevertheless, many people accept it when they would not for a moment apply it or relate it to any other phase of their life. They would not, for instance, take the same position with regard to education. Who would not smile at a statement that all schools are alike, that one is just as good as another, and that a person deserves the same diploma no matter which school he attends, or which course he takes, or for how long?
Would you agree to send students to just any school, taking any variety of courses, and then award them specialized degrees, anything they wanted-in architecture, law, medicine? Such an attitude would suggest that a man would be just as good a surgeon by not studying for it as he would by following the prerequisite courses. No person who has given it real substantial thought would take such a position, and neither you nor I would want to be under the knife of a surgeon who had been trained, or maybe I should say "untrained," in such a pattern.
Isn't it strange, then, that so many are able to apply such a view toward religion. They advocate: Go to any school, take any course, or go to no school at all, and we'll all end up in the same place with the same heavenly diploma.
That just isn't reasonable, nor is it true.
The position that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true church upon the face of the earth is fundamental. Perhaps it would be more convenient and palatable and popular if we were to avoid it; nevertheless, we are under a sacred obligation and a sacred trust to hold to it. It is not merely an admission; it is a positive declaration. It is so fundamental that we cannot yield on this point.
Now to those who think us uncharitable, we say that it was not devised by us; it was declared by Him, for he gave commandments to the early brethren, and I quote:
" to lay the foundation of this church, and to bring it forth out of obscurity and out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well pleased, speaking unto the church collectively and not individually."
Now this is not to say that the churches, all of them, are without some truth. They have some truth-some of them very much of it. They have a form of godliness. Often the clergy and adherents are not without dedication, and many of them practice remarkably well the virtues of Christianity. They are, nonetheless, incomplete. By his declaration, " they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof."
The gospel might be likened to the keyboard of a piano-a full keyboard with a selection of keys on which one who is trained can play a variety without limits; a ballad to express love, a march to rally, a melody to soothe, and a hymn to inspire; an endless variety to suit every mood and satisfy every need.
How shortsighted it is, then, to choose a single key and endlessly tap out the monotony of a single note, or even two or three notes, when the full keyboard of limitless harmony can be played.
How disappointing when the fullness of the gospel, the whole keyboard, is here upon the earth, that many churches tap on a single key. The note they stress may be essential to a complete harmony of religious experience, but it is, nonetheless, not all there is. It isn't the fullness.
For instance, one taps on the key of faith healing, to the neglect of many principles that would bring greater strength than faith healing itself. Another taps on an obscure key relating to the observance of the Sabbath-a key that would sound different indeed, played in harmony with the essential notes on the keyboard. A key used like that can get completely out of tune. Another repeats endlessly the key that relates to the mode of baptism and taps one or two other keys as though there were not a full keyboard. And again, the very key he uses, essential as it is, just doesn't sound complete when played alone to the neglect of the others.
There are other examples, many of them where parts of the gospel are endlessly stressed and the churches build upon them, until alone they sound nothing like they would if blended with the full measure of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We don't say that the key of faith healing, for example, is not essential. We not only recognize it-we rely on it and experience it; but it is not the gospel itself, nor its fullness.
We would never hold that baptism is not essential, absolutely essential, for it constitutes the official enrollment in the church and kingdom of God. If that key, however, is played alone, without the counterpart key of authority, the fullness and the harmony are gone and it becomes dissonant. And without the key of faith and of repentance, it is meaningless, and perhaps worse, it is counterfeit. This happens when the authority we speak of is lacking.
Now we do not say they are wrong so much as we say they are incomplete. The fullness of the gospel has been restored. The power and the authority to act for Him is present with us. The power and the authority of the priesthood rests upon this church. The Lord revealed:
" this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.
"Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.
"And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh."
Now in these last days when the consummate power of evil moves against us, the great apostasy spoken of in the scriptures moves to its inevitable conclusion. The Christian churches that should be the bulwark against it seem to provide little substance for their members or for their clergy. And we see the frightening specter of empty churches and a clergy promoting causes they, above all, should resist.
In these last travels I mentioned, it has been frightening to me to see the churches closed, boarded up, with weeds growing in the yard, or open but empty. We face the frightening thought of a generation raised without any contact with scripture.
It is not unusual to find people who take an interest in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but give only casual attention to the ideal that the fullness of the gospel is here.
They become attracted by a single key, a doctrine, often one to which they take immediate exception and object to. They investigate it by itself alone. They want to know all there is about it without reference, in fact, with specific objection and rejection, to anything else.
They want to hear that key played over and over again. It will give them little knowledge unless they see that there is a fullness-other complementary ideals and doctrines that present a warmth and a harmony, and a fullness, that draw at the right moment upon each key, which if played alone might seem discordant.
Now that danger is not limited to investigators alone. Some members of the Church who should know better pick out a hobby key or two and tap them incessantly, to the irritation of those around them. They can dull their own spiritual sensitivities. They lose track that there is a fullness of the gospel and become as individuals, like many churches have become. They may reject the fullness in preference to a favorite note. This becomes exaggerated and distorted, leading them away into apostasy.
I counseled, think about this matter. More than that, I would urge you to pray about this matter. Thinking alone can be the basis for man's wisdom. There is another more perfect manner of communication through the spirit: " for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God."
Paul, speaking to the Corinthians, said: "Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
Any soul has the right, indeed the obligation, to make an appeal through prayer for the answer to this question: Is there a true church? That is how it all began, you know, with a fourteen-year-old boy who went into a grove. Two questions: Which of all the churches is true? and Which should he join? There he experienced a marvelous vision of the Father and the Son, and the dispensation of the fulness of times was ushered in. Subsequently the authority to act for Him was restored and rests yet with this church. We heard in this meeting a prophet of God, Joseph Fielding Smith.
I bear witness that he is a prophet of God. I have a witness that Jesus is the Christ. He lives. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true and living church upon the face of this earth, of which I bear witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
"To an Atheist," in The Search, p. 34.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
The prophet Abraham found favor in the sight of the Lord. He was given the assurance that he was a great and noble intelligence before coming to this earth. He learned that the earth was created as a place for the intelligences to dwell after their birth as mortal beings. Here they would be tested and tried to see if they would do all things that the Lord God would command them to do. Earth life would thus become a testing ground.
It was not intended that the earthly road would be smooth, nor would the path be easy. Satan, the father of lies and deceit, and his evil followers would be permitted to use their wiles and influence to blind men to the truth and try to lead them astray. But man was to be allowed his free agency, the right to choose. It was contemplated that God, through his prophets, would provide guidelines known as commandments, which, if followed, would bring joy and happiness. However, it would be man's privilege and responsibility to make a choice between good and evil. He himself must make the decisions. This was all part of the gospel plan. Joseph Smith, the Prophet, has given assurance that we were present as spiritual beings at a council when the plan was presented, and we gave it our approval.
This is a glorious time in which to live here upon the earth. The gospel and priesthood have been restored. The Church has been reestablished. While Jesus the Christ is head of the church that bears his name, men whom we sustain as prophets, seers, and revelators are giving guidance to us.
As we travel through life upon this earth, there come times when we must stand up and be counted. These are times of testing. Are we on the Lord's side, keeping his commandments? Do we sustain our leaders and uphold them? Do we stand steadfast and unwavering?
Lyman Wight, known as "The Wild Ram of the Mountains," was one of the early apostles in this dispensation. He was strong-willed, determined, and a man whom few could influence. However, he loved and respected the Prophet Joseph and was obedient to him. After the martyrdom of the Prophet, he said on one occasion, "The only man in the world that can control me is now gone." He disassociated himself from Brigham Young and the other members of the Twelve and led a group to Texas, where he finally fell into obscurity and oblivion, while Brigham Young and the faithful went west and gained in stature and prominence. Lyman Wight was tested and found wanting.
Simon, a fisherman, who was to be known later as Simon Peter, or Peter, was introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew, who already had a testimony that Jesus was the Messiah.
When Jesus first beheld Simon he said: "'Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone,'. So from that time, Simon was known as Simon Peter or 'Simon the Rock.'"
The rocklike characteristics that Jesus saw in Peter were not formed all at once. Near the time when Judas was betraying the Savior, Peter three times denied knowing Jesus. But in the deep grief that followed the crucifixion of the Savior and out of the deep silence of his suffering, there finally came that strength which Christ had urged upon him ever since he called him Peter. Simon was severely tested and tried before he finally qualified as Peter the Rock.
Joseph Smith, the Prophet, was tried as few other men have been tried. From that day when he testified to the world that he had been blessed by a personal visitation from God, our Heavenly Father, and his Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, all the evil forces of the adversary seem to have been turned loose upon him.
Slandered, maligned, tarred and feathered, unjustly cast into prisons, subjected to inhuman treatment and humiliation, his soul was deeply tried.
There were times when Joseph wondered if the Lord as well as his friends had deserted him. From the very depths of his anguished soul he cried out: "O God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?" He then pointed out the wrongs and unlawful oppressions inflicted upon the Saints. Then came this comforting assurance from the Lord: "My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
"And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.
"Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail thee again with warm hearts and friendly hands."
Joseph Smith was true, faithful, and unwavering to the trust placed in him. His associates were proud to declare to the world: "Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it. He lived great, and he died great in the eyes of God and his people; and like most of the Lord's anointed in ancient times, has sealed his mission and his works with his own blood. "
Joseph Smith truly was tested, tried, and not found wanting. He measured up to every requirement expected of him.
Every generation since the world began has had its peculiar temptations, with Satan as their author. Today we have ours in abundance.
There are those who scoff at the idea that there is a Supreme Being. They declare and teach that God is dead.
Others ridicule the belief that there is a life after this. They contend that death is the end, that there will be no time of judgment, no accounting for our actions here in mortality, so why not live and be merry, for tomorrow we die?
There are those who would have us believe that the use of liquor, tobacco, and drugs is not harmful or injurious to the body; that illicit sex is acceptable, and dishonesty is justified if it helps to achieve an end.
It is a temptation to become so involved in the things of the world that we lose sight of more important values, the things of the spirit.
Not only the young people of the Church have trials and temptations, but each of us does. Like the Savior, we will all have our Gethsemane. And although the road may be rough at times, if we will hold fast to the rod of iron, spoken of by Lehi, it will lead us through the mist of darkness. If we will not be dissuaded by the mocking voices of the world or lose our way and fall into the river or wander in strange roads, we will pass the challenging test of life that Abraham foresaw.
All the effort and struggle and sorrow will be well worth it, for we will earn the greatest of all gifts, the gift of eternal life. May this be our happy lot, I humbly pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church
Let us go back together in our thoughts to the time before this earth was created-to the time of the great council in heaven, when you and I and all of us were instructed by our Father in heaven as to the purpose and opportunities of this earth life.
"And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
"And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.
"And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first.
"And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him."
Lucifer, who was another of our elder brothers, a son of the morning, must have made a very attractive offer. I can imagine his saying, "Follow me and I will give you a new plan-the old one is outdated; you don't have to take a chance. I'll guarantee that all will return; none shall be lost." He was a good psychologist. He appealed to our desires for security. He made his plan so attractive that a third of the hosts of heaven followed him.
They gave up their right and claim to free agency. They didn't learn of the full consequences of that decision. They lost their right to choose-the right to make their own decisions.
A war in heaven followed, and Lucifer and his followers were cast out. They were put here on earth to test us, and they are doing a good job of it.
Free agency requires that there must be a choice. There must be an opposing force. There is no growth, no movement, no accomplishment or progress without overcoming an opposing force.
Lucifer and his agents provided that opposing force, which made free agency possible for us in this life.
The right to make a decision, then, is now ours, and it is the greatest asset we have on earth. The Lord will not, and cannot, and does not intend to take it away from us. He intends for us to use it. He is constantly advising us and teaching us how to use it for our own good and further growth, even to attain eternal life.
I would think God would be very unjust to put Lucifer here with all his power, to test us and try us, if he did not give us power to resist or overcome him.
Remember, Lucifer did not come here of his own choosing. He lost that war in heaven and was put here to do a job, and he is doing a good job.
God is just. Lucifer, then, can do on this earth only what he is permitted to do.
Remember the story of Job? In each trial Job was subjected to, Lucifer asked for permission to test Job. He was given permission to go just so far, one step at a time. Job lost his wealth on one test, his family on another, his health on another. Then the Lord gave Satan full control over Job, except he could not destroy his soul.
One step at a time, Job became strengthened to withstand all. Then Job uttered that immortal testimony which we have heard referred to here today:
"For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:
"And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
"Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me."
If we are to attain a degree of perfection, we too must come to that stage where, if the Lord desired, he could loose Satan on us with his full power, except not to destroy the soul. If we withstand that, then we will have attained a stage of perfection, even exaltation.
As with Job, so with us, the Lord will not permit Satan to try us beyond our ability to resist or withstand his efforts, if we will accept his help.
Here, then, is a key to help us make correct decisions. The Lord told Oliver Cowdery when he tried to translate the record:
"Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.
"But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.
"But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me."
The Lord has said, "Seek and you shall find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you. Ask and you shall receive."
It's your decision. Each individual must make his own decisions. No one can live someone else's life for him.
If you ask the Lord for help, he will give you strength, power, and ability to overcome Lucifer and withstand his efforts, and thus you will be strengthened and made more perfect. We must seek the Lord's help in prayer.
The Lord has made no promise to those who try to go it alone. As soon as you think you can lick the devil alone, on your own, without the Lord's help, you have lost the battle before you start.
I have heard numerous stories of people who have tried to change their habits, to live the Word of Wisdom, or to pay their tithing, all on their own, without the Lord's help, and have failed, but when they have asked the Lord for help, it has become easy, and then they have also received a testimony of the gospel.
The Lord has given us many laws and commandments to follow. We must have his help to follow them. These are given for the most part to test our ability to make a decision on our own: to see if we will accept what is generally referred to as the first law of heaven, the law of obedience.
When you desire to do what the Lord wants you to do because he wants you to, then ask him for help; then keeping these laws and commandments becomes easy.
It is your decision!
-Hymns, No. 90
I encourage all to realize the importance, and the great asset that is ours, of free agency, and learn to use it wisely by making decisions with the help of the Lord through prayer.
I pray for the blessings of the Lord upon all who seek to do his will, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
From the sixty-eighth section of the Doctrine and Covenants come these familiar words: "And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.
"For this shall be a law unto the inhabitants of Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized.
"And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.
"And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
To help us with these sacred responsibilities, the Lord has given us the revelation of family home evening. But at the basis of the successful home evening there has to be the proper relationship between the parents and the other members of the family.
For instance, I believe there is no finer relationship in all the world than the special one that can exist between a father and his children-a relationship born of love and those deep abiding feelings which are initially there by instinct and later nurtured and developed by love and kindness and consideration.
I mention here the relationship of a father to his children-not to demean in any way the tremendous role of the mother, but having never been a mother, I feel that I am not qualified to speak from that point of view. Not only that, but I firmly believe that, generally speaking, the mothers of the Church are in need of a little more help from the fathers of the Church in building those special ties between parents and children that tend to make the family organization a little bit of heaven on earth.
I am impressed by the fact that the plan of redemption and salvation for all mankind was worked out between a father and his son, even God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ.
I believe that one of the significant parts of the Joseph Smith story was when the angel Moroni told young Joseph to go to his father and relate to him everything that had happened.
Even in the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Lord was careful to recognize the relationship of this young boy to his father, and he made sure that nothing would damage it. Yes, the association of a father with his children can and should be a very special one.
Certainly the outcome of children cannot always be predicted, and sometimes under the best circumstances something happens that will cause a member of the family to go astray. While these things are sometimes hard to understand, nevertheless, more than one life has been retrieved and altered, for the good, because of the undying love of a father for his son or daughter-a love that will tend to ease the frustrations that young people experience as they try to find themselves amid a conflict of ideals and standards.
One commentator described a typical youth of today as one who is "told he must be strong, beautiful, brave, and so on-a Boy Scout with jet set sophistication. He is swamped with plugs for beer, cigarettes, credit cards, and trips to Hawaii. It is suggested to the girl that she is a flat failure unless she looks like an oversized Hollywood queen. No wonder the poor child feels pain when he measures himself against what he is told is the ideal. How to ease the minds of the young is one of the hardest things. It is no good to say it doesn't matter, because it does. It is no good to say that it only hurts for a little while, like hanging. But it might help if the youngster could be convinced that, in spite of the mismatch between himself and the false ideals held up before him, he possesses as much human worth as the next one and need not despair."
This conflict of ideals and standards between what a young person is taught to do by the Church and what is expected by the world creates tremendous frustration, and certainly a father is in the best position to begin to bring these things into perspective, to help his son or daughter understand what is, and is not, important in life, to be there to reassure and to love and to make his children feel important, and to help them to be themselves and to stay close to their standards.
Someone once said that the middle-aged and the old forget how keenly the young are affected and by what. The young haven't had any experience with this amazing process called youth, and we all need to realize that.
As a father in the Church attempts to be a father to his children, there are occasionally some special conflicts. In the 75th section of the Doctrine and Covenants the Lord says: "And again, verily I say unto you, that every man who is obliged to provide for his own family, let him provide, and he shall in nowise lose his crown; and let him labor in the church."
This spells out two basic responsibilities: providing for our families and laboring in the Church. There arise questions sometimes as to a seeming conflict between a father's duty to his family and the many church responsibilities that might be his.
In response to this, certainly all church leaders who have responsibility for organizing and calling administrative meetings should realize that a well-planned, well-organized meeting with the beginning and ending times determined, in advance, will not only make the maximum use of time but will make it easier for the brethren who attend these meetings to receive the support of their wives and children.
A well-planned meeting means that the family knows when they can expect the husband or father home. A well-planned meeting makes the maximum use of time and, therefore, cuts down on the number of intermediate meetings that might needlessly take the father away from the home. Certainly well-planned and well-scheduled meetings are as much a blessing to the families of the fathers of the Church as they are to those fathers who attend the meetings.
On the other hand, as the verse just read in the Doctrine and Covenants indicates, the Lord expects us to take care of our families and to also attend to our duties in the Church.
It may not always be true that a heavy load of church responsibilities is the reason a father does not draw close to his family. My father was a stake president for twenty years. He was installed when I was six and released when I was twenty-six. I can hardly remember a time in my youth when he was not stake president. He had a very large stake, and it took a great deal of his time.
In addition to this, he was a newspaper editor, and there were also great demands here as far as deadlines and other work that simply could not be put off. I can remember that a seventeen-, eighteen-, or nineteen-hour day was not unusual for him. While this could have created difficulties with us as children and our relationship with our father, surprisingly it did not.
In reflecting back to see what he did to keep us close to him, even though he had virtually no time to spend with us, I believe it was his ability to build us into his life. Even on the run, he knew what we were doing and was vitally interested and cared. The questions he would ask and the comments he would make let us know that he was proud of us and interested in us and followed us although he could not always be with us.
I also remember that no matter how tired he and Mother must have been, they never went to sleep until we were in. When I was the only one left at home, he was in the habit of not holding family prayer until I came home, even though he and Mother would be in bed. In situations like that he always called on me to pray. I want to tell you that that had quite an impact on how I conducted myself as a youth, when I knew that I was going to have to end my evening at the bedside of my parents in prayer.
In addition to that, we would have some very profound discussions during those quiet, uninterrupted late night hours. He was always willing to talk if I wanted to talk, no matter what the hour. I would have to say that my father was the greatest man I ever knew, although he didn't have a great deal of time to spend with me.
As I look back on it, I realize that although the amount of time we spend is important, probably the more important thing is the ability to build our children into our lives. If we can express sincere interest in them and let them know that we know what is going on, even if we have to do it on the run sometimes, this seems to be far more important than a parent who has more time but somehow does not convey this interest.
Finally, may I just state how preciously short the time is for a father to influence his children. In the United States and Canada, if your child is nine years old, he has spent approximately one-half the time he is going to spend in your home. By the time a young person is eighteen, he may be off to school or otherwise beginning his own life. By the time he is nineteen, he is on his mission.
In other countries around the world the time may be even shorter.
I was with a bishop the other day who told me of how his eight-year-old daughter came in and woke him up in the middle of the night to ask him a question. The next morning the bishop explained to the girl that he was a very busy man and had a lot of work to do and needed his sleep. He would be most grateful if she didn't wake him up in the middle of the night.
The little girl waited patiently and finally in an almost exasperated manner she said, "Yes, Daddy, but you don't understand. You see, you're the bishop, and I had a problem."
In this sense, oh, may each of us be the bishops of our own home just as the duly authorized bishop is the father of his ward. I would hope too that the bishop of the ward and the home teachers would be especially attentive to those families where the fathers are permanently or temporarily missing.
May we take the time and do what we need to do and want to do with our children now, before it is too late, because the days have a way of escaping into months and then into years.
Like the words of the popular song:
May we strive to rededicate and strengthen our relationships with our children and to lend even greater help and leadership to the lovely mothers of this church as we work to bring the principles of righteousness and truth and joy and peace and happiness to the youth of our families, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
"Sunrise, Sunset," from Fiddler on the Roof, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. Used by permission.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, I stand before you with a humble heart. I am grateful for the privilege of attending this semiannual conference and have been inspired by the words of our great leaders. We have received counsel that will be helpful to us in living a happy and successful life at this particular time in the history of the world.
When Adam was cast out of the Garden of Eden, he was told that "in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken."
I am told that over the entrance to a great European university campus there is an inscription that says that "nothing worthwhile ever comes to a person except by the anguish of his soul and the sweat of his brow."
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, in her beautiful poem entitled "Gethsemane," expressed it this way:
Although it is not customary for one to seek out the difficult or unpleasant experiences, it is true that the trials and tribulations of life that stand in the way of man's growth and development become stepping-stones by which he climbs to greater heights, providing, of course, that he does not permit them to discourage him.
The story of most men and women who attain a degree of greatness and achievement is generally the story of a person overcoming handicaps. It appears that there are lessons that can only be learned through the overcoming of obstacles.
Two of the most interesting and trying experiences of this dispensation are those of the Zion's Camp and Liberty Jail, both of which not only influenced the lives of great men but also greatly affected the history of the Church.
The members of the Church in Missouri were being persecuted, and the Prophet Joseph made it a matter of prayer and received a revelation on February 24, 1834. The Lord instructed the Prophet to assemble at least one hundred young and middle-aged men and to go to the land of Zion, or Missouri.
Zion's Camp, a group of approximately one hundred and fifty men, gathered at Kirtland, Ohio, in the spring of 1834 and marched to western Missouri. By the time they reached Missouri, the camp had increased to approximately two hundred men.
The purpose of the trek was to join the Saints in Missouri and buy lands in Jackson County and surrounding counties and retrieve those lands taken by the mobs who had dispossessed the Missouri Saints of considerable of their property.
Upon reaching Missouri, and after extensive negotiations with Governor Dunklin failed to produce results, it was felt advisable to disband Zion's Camp and await some future opportunity for the redemption of Zion.
Most of those who had formed Zion's Camp returned to Kirtland, which was at that time the center of ecclesiastical activity.
The "journey of Zion's Camp" was regarded by many as an unprofitable and unsuccessful episode. A brother in Kirtland who did not go with the camp, meeting Brigham Young upon his return, said to him, "Well, what did you gain on this useless journey to Missouri with Joseph Smith?" "All we went for," replied Brigham Young. "I would not exchange the experience I gained in that expedition for all the wealth of Geauga County," the county in which Kirtland was then located.
The journey covered more than one thousand miles and there were dissensions within and hostile demonstrations from without. There were hardships and disappointments, but these experiences had real value because from this group many became the leaders in the exodus of 12,000 people from Missouri to Nauvoo, and then later many became leaders in the great western exodus from Nauvoo to the Salt Lake Valley.
In February 1835 those brethren who had accompanied the Prophet Joseph to Missouri as members of Zion's Camp were called together, and from their numbers the Quorum of the Twelve and the Seventies were chosen. The Prophet explained that the trials and tribulations endured by the members of Zion's Camp were not in vain, and it was the will of God "that those who went to Zion, with a determination to lay down their lives, if necessary, should be ordained to the ministry, and go forth to prune the vineyard for the last time."
In the light of these events it is evident that the Zion's Camp experiences were of immense value to both the individuals involved and the Church.
One of the darkest periods in the history of the Church was the winter of 1838–39. The Saints had been persecuted, robbed, and murdered. The Prophet and his associates had been betrayed and were imprisoned in Liberty Jail. Dissension and apostasy were rampant, and the Church appeared to be faced with disintegration and ruin.
But emerging from this dark period were the men who led the Church through trying experiences as well as amazing growth and development. But this was not all. It was during these dark days that the Lord gave to the Prophet Joseph Smith, while in Liberty Jail, a great revelation. Liberty Jail for a time became a center of instruction.
Elder Brigham H. Roberts, in the Comprehensive History of the Church, has this to say: "The eyes of the saints were turned to it as the place whence would come encouragement, counsel-the word of the Lord. It was more temple than prison, so long as the Prophet was there. It was a place of meditation and prayer. A temple, first of all, is a place of prayer; and prayer is communion with God. It is the 'infinite in man seeking the infinite in God.' Where they find each other, there is holy sanctuary-a temple. Joseph Smith sought God in this rude prison, and found him. Out of the midst of his tribulations he called upon God in passionate earnestness."
The answer came as God replied, "My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
"And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high."
The Prophet Joseph was told that if great tribulation should beset him and even "if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.
"The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?"
One of the great truths that came from the so-called prison temple, Liberty Jail, had to do with priesthood and Church government. This is found in the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants, a part of which reads as follows: "Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?
"Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-
"That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness."
On one occasion the Prophet Joseph Smith was asked how he governed his people. His reply was, "I teach the people correct principles and they govern themselves." The doctrine of righteous dominion so beautifully described in the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants is a good example of how the members of the Church are taught correct principles that enable them to govern themselves.
We believe that one of the important purposes of this life is to be proved, tried, and tested. Both the Zion's Camp and Liberty Jail experiences truly constituted a refiner's fire for those who participated in them, and they emphasize the necessity of experiencing difficult and complex situations in life in order to properly develop and draw close to our Heavenly Father. These experiences certainly give us a better understanding and appreciation of the greatness of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the early leaders of the Church.
But what can we learn from the Zion's Camp and Liberty Jail experiences that will be helpful to us?
Certainly two impressive truths are apparent: first, the importance of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and loyalty to our leaders and the Church; second, the need of enduring to the end regardless of how many difficulties we have to surmount.
In order to apply these principles in our lives, let us today commit ourselves to follow the counsel of our leaders, accept every opportunity to serve, and complete each assignment well-yes, endure to the end. Let us avoid setting our hearts upon the things of the world, and as we exercise our priesthood, let us incorporate the great principle of righteous dominion. By so doing and keeping the commandments of the Lord, we shall have joy, happiness, growth, and development and "eternal life, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God."
Like those who participated in the Zion's Camp and Liberty Jail episodes, I can bear witness that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ-the Holy Ghost has borne this witness to me-and that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, and that through him the power to act in the name of God and the gospel in its fullness have been restored to earth. I know that President Joseph Fielding Smith is God's mouthpiece on the earth today, and may the Lord bless and sustain him in his most important calling.
Let us never forget the great lessons to be learned from Zion's Camp and Liberty Jail, and remember that when trials, tribulations, and hardships come to us, as they will, these are the tests that we must meet in order to enjoy eternal life. May we meet them successfully, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
Of the Council of the Twelve
It has been well said that "there comes a time when the general defilement of a society becomes so great that the rising generation is put under undue pressure and cannot be said to have a fair choice between the Way of Light and the Way of Darkness."
We live in a wicked world. Never in our memory have the forces of evil been arrayed in such deadly formation. The devil is well organized. Never in our day has he had so many emissaries working for him. Through his many agents, his satanic majesty has proclaimed his intentions to destroy one whole generation of our choice young people.
Evidence of the dastardly work of evil forces is increasingly evident. On every side we see the sad and heart-rending results. The devil-inspired destructive forces are present in our literature, in our art, in the movies, on the radio, in our dress, in our dances, on the TV screen, and even in our modern, so-called popular music. Satan uses many tools to weaken and destroy the home and family and especially our young people. Today, as never before, it seems the devil's thrust is directed at our youth.
A letter from a concerned father about the evil effects of some popular music is one of many. I quote from this well-informed teacher of youth:
"Music creates atmosphere. Atmosphere creates environment. Environment influences behavior. What are the mechanics of this process?
"Rhythm is the most physical element in music. It is the only element in music that can exist in bodily movement without benefit of sound. A mind dulled by drugs or alcohol can still respond to the beat.
"Loudness adds to muddling the mind. Sound magnified to the threshold of pain is of such physical violence as to block the higher processes of thought and reason.
"Repetition to the extreme is another primitive rock device.
"Gyrations, a twin to rock rhythm, are such that even clean hands and a pure heart cannot misinterpret their insinuations
"Darkness is another facet of the rock scene. It is a black mass that deadens the conscience in a mask of anonymity. Identity lost in darkness shrinks from the normal feelings of responsibility.
"Strobe lights split the darkness in blinding shafts that reduce resistance like the lights of an interrogator's third degree or the swinging pendulum of the hypnotist who would control your behavior.
"The whole psychedelic design is a swinging door to drugs, sex, rebellion, and Godlessness. Combined with the screaming obscenities of the lyrics, this mesmerizing music has borne the fruit of filth. Leaders of the rock society readily proclaim their degeneracy.
"And the most diabolical deceit of this infamy is that it denies evil to be an absolute. Our religion is one of absolutes and cannot be rationalized into a relativistic philosophy of the 'liberal Mormons.' We cannot safely rationalize away righteousness.
"What could be more misguided than fear that 'if rock music were not endorsed by our leaders, we may lose many young people.' Even now we are losing them to the songs of Satan, drugs, sex, riot, and apostasy. We could be well reminded by a message from the Mormon Miracle pageant: 'Moroni knew that you cannot compromise with evil. If you do, evil always wins.'"
This letter from a father, teacher of youth, and member of a college music department, although analytical, expresses the concern of many other parents and youth leaders.
The Church must not compromise standards before popular demands. Surely tobacco, coffee, and alcohol users have been alienated by uncompromising standards as much as today's rocking miniskirts.
Never has the Church had a finer group of young people. They are choice spirits-sent to earth in this most challenging and important period of the world. Charged with the great responsibility of building up the kingdom of God on earth, they have an awesome challenge.
This great and momentous responsibility and challenge comes at a most difficult time. Never have the forces of evil been so insidious, widespread, and enticing. Everywhere there seems to be a cheapening, weakening, downgrading of all that is fine, good, and uplifting-all aimed at our youth while many of their parents are lulled away into a false security as they enjoy their comfortable complacency.
All is not well in Zion. The inspired Book of Mormon prophets saw this day and, as watchmen on the towers, issued grave warnings. I quote:
"For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.
"And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well-and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.
"And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none-and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance.
"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!
"Wo be unto him that crieth: All is well!
"Yea, wo be unto him that hearkeneth unto the precepts of men, and denieth the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost!"
The Lord, through a modern prophet, has given us a solemn charge:
"Verily I say unto you all: Arise and shine forth, that thy light may be a standard for the nations."
"For Zion must increase in beauty, and in holiness; her borders must be enlarged; her stakes must be strengthened; yea, verily I say unto you, Zion must arise and put on her beautiful garments."
"Wherefore, lift up your hearts and rejoice, and gird up your loins, and take upon you my whole armor, that ye may be able to withstand the evil day, having done all, that ye may be able to stand."
We love the youth of the Church and we know the Lord loves them. There isn't anything the Church wouldn't do that's right to help our young people-to save them. They are our future. We have faith in them. We want them to be happy. We want them to be successful in their chosen fields. We want them to be exalted in the celestial kingdom.
We say to them, you are eternal beings. Life is eternal. You cannot do wrong and feel right. It pays to live the good, wholesome, joy-filled life. Live so you will have no serious regrets-no heartaches. Live so you can reach out and tap that unseen Power, without which no man or woman can do their best.
There must needs be opposition in all things. Freedom of choice is a God-given eternal principle. To escape Satan's snares and booby traps by following the Lord is our assignment. It is not an easy one.
Using life as a laboratory, we can observe and study the lives of others as we might through a microscope. Observe that the man of God is a happy man. The hedonist, who proclaims "Do your thing," who lives for sinful, so-called pleasure, is never happy. Behind his mask of mock gaiety lurks the inevitable tragedy of eternal death. Haunted by its black shadow, he trades the useful, happy life for the bleak forgetfulness of drugs, alcohol, sex, and rock.
A study of Satan's methods can alert us to his seductions. In his cunning he knows where and how to strike. It is in youth when his victims are most vulnerable. Youth is the springtime of life when all things are new. Youth is the spirit of adventure and awakening. It is a time of physical emerging when the body can attain the vigor and good health that may scorn the caution of temperance. Youth is a time of timelessness when the horizons of age often seem too distant to be noticed. Thus, the "now" generation forgets that the present will soon be the past that looks to a life left in waste or a past rich in works. These are the ingredients in youth that make Satan's plan of "play now and pay later" so irresistible. Yes, the devil uses many tools.
"A state of confusion is an effective environment for Satan. There is much confusion today. He employs several methods to create it. One is the distortion of definitions. To describe a drug experience he uses the term 'mind expanding' rather than the more accurate description of 'reality shrinking.'
"Freedom, a word of noble tradition, is a favorite confuser. Riots, bombings, arson, and killings are committed in the name of freedom. Obscenities test the freedom of speech. Pornography, drugs, and immorality are claimed to be manifestations of personal freedom, along with miniskirts and nudity. License and anarchy are products of these false freedoms.
"A confusion of definitions includes pornography. A child can identify it, yet some of the supposedly great legal minds of our time cannot define it.
"Tolerance is a word valuable in the service of Satan. Alexander Pope warned 200 years ago that:
"An Essay on Man."
"Ridicule works well in collaboration with confusion. To confuse youth in its searching years, the cynic defends his degeneracy by ridiculing his critics with confusing metaphors. The words of the rock recording 'I Couldn't Get High,' then 'High on the Mountain Top' must be stricken from our songbooks. Scoffing in this manner may bring an easy laugh and a reassurance that all is well in Zion, but it is diabolically dishonest.
"The philosophy of relativism attacks the eternal principles of truth. The relativist will say, 'If one sees filthy implications in a popular song, it is because he has a dirty mind.' The logic of this philosophy finds its fallacy in the word implications. No filth is implied in many of the lyrics. It is proclaimed.
"If there are any doubts as to the insidious evil of rock, you can judge by its fruits. The well-publicized perversions of its practitioners alone are enough to condemn its influence. Its ultimate achievement is that contemporary phenomenon, the mammoth rock music festival. As these diseased celebrations mount into the hundreds, they infect youth by the hundreds of thousands. And where is there today a rock festival that is not also a drug festival, a sex festival, and a rebellion festival?"
The Spirit of the Lord blesses that which edifies and leads men to Christ. Would his Spirit bless with its presence these festering festivals of human degradation cured in LSD, marijuana, and Speed? Would he be pleased by the vulgar display of unashamed nudity and immorality? The speech of the rock festival is often obscene. Its music, crushing the sensibilities in a din of primitive idolatry, is in glorification of the physical to the debasement of the spirit. In the long panorama of man's history, these youthful rock music festivals are among Satan's greatest successes. The legendary orgies of Greece and Rome cannot compare to the monumental obscenities found in these cesspools of drugs, immorality, rebellion, and pornophonic sound. The famed Woodstock festival was a gigantic manifestation of a sick nation. Yet the lurid movie and rock recordings of its unprecedented filth were big business in our own mountain home.
The Lord said, "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me. " It was pleasing unto the Lord where in Third Nephi in the great Book of Mormon we read: " they did break forth, all as one, in singing, and praising their God. " It was pleasing unto Satan when in First Nephi, Lehi's children and the "sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness. "
And now a music scholar points to "a new direction in the rock-drug culture hailed by many ministers and the music industry as a silver lining in the clouds of gold. Religious rock is climbing up the 'Top Ten' charts. The growing resistance to the rock-drug scene is being diverted by this wholesome-appearing retreat from the new morality. But a review of religious rock materials unmasks an insidiously disguised anti-Christ. By reducing revealed religion to mythology, rock assumes the mantle of righteousness while rejecting the reality of sin. Without sin the new morality can continue in its Godless revel behind the pretense of religious robes. By reversing the roles of Jesus and Judas, one fast-selling album fits perfectly the warning of Isaiah: 'Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness.'"
Little wonder that the leadership of the Church felt impelled to speak out against this sacrilegious, apostate deception by calling this wickedness to the attention of the members of the Church in a special item in the Church Priesthood Bulletin of August 1971.
Yes, we live in the best of times when the restored gospel of Jesus Christ brings hope to all the world. And the worst of times, for Satan is raging. With relentless vigor he plunges in the harvest.
How can we thwart his designs? The MIA scriptural recitation for last year gives us a pattern to follow. The Thirteenth Article of Faith of the Church contains an important key: " If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things."
But will we really seek? To seek requires effort.
The record bins that beckon our young people with their colorful and often off-color jackets bury many masterworks that are virtuous or lovely under a vast bulk of crass commercialism.
The magnetism of TV and radio is in the accessibility of their mediocrity. Lovely is not an adjective to describe most of their products. The inventors of these wonders were inspired by the Lord. But once their good works were introduced to the world, the powers of darkness began to employ them for our destruction. In each medium-the phonograph, motion pictures, radio, and television-the evolution of decline from the inventor's intentions can be easily traced.
May I quote from a musician who for many years has observed the influence of music on behavior:
"Satan knows that music hath charms to soothe or stir the savage beast. That music has power to create atmosphere has been known before the beginning of Hollywood. Atmosphere creates environment, and environment influences behavior-the behavior of Babylon or of Enoch.
"Parents who retch at the radio and records reverberating in psychedelic revolt would do well to inventory their own record collection before complaining. If it is small, undiversified, and unused, the complaint must rest on the parent. Seeds of culture are best sown in the fertile ground of infant imitation. No amount of criticizing in the teen years can substitute for the young years of example that are lost. A parent who lost his chance to be a hero-image left a gap for a teen hero."
Most of these heroes that are being glamorized today are no longer noble, accomplished, humble, or righteous. From reports in books, magazines, and newspapers-especially the youth sections-we learn that they are lewd, obscene, immoral, avaricious, and in some cases even cruel. It is the very life-style we are here to avoid that is paraded before our young people by their celebrated peers. To deflect the admiration of youth from these examples of the ugly life, we must start young. The care and feeding of children must include equal concern for their emotional lives as well as their physical, spiritual, and intellectual lives.
For young people to be in the world but not of the world has never been more difficult than today. But this burden must be shared by the parents. The family home evening is an important barrier to the works of Satan. The MIA program must protect our youth against every evil influence and should fill a vacuum left by rejecting worldly enticements. And, of course, a great panacea for all problems and personal doubts: prayer-private and family prayer, night and morning.
The critical and complaining adult will be less effective than the interested and understanding. And love and understanding are only effective when they are genuine. And to be genuine they must be motivated by love. We must love our young people, whether they are in righteousness or in error. In this way we can give them a chance to discern and to learn. But we must also give them a fair choice. Today many are not succeeding.
Yes, "There comes a time when the general defilement of a society becomes so great that the rising generation is put under undue pressure and cannot be said to have a fair choice between the Way of Light and the Way of Darkness."
God grant that we as parents and leaders of youth may have the power and the good common sense to give them "a fair choice," I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Richard L. Evans
Of the Council of the Twelve
Perhaps I could begin with an interesting question posed recently and an equally interesting answer. The question was, "Don't you think the commandments should be rewritten?" The answer was, "No, they should be reread."
This may be a good point from which to take off for consideration of some fundamental facts; namely, the commandments of God are there. They come from a divine source. The experience of the ages has proved the need for them, and has proved what happens if they are ignored.
So why spend life in the frustration and unhappiness and sorrow and tragedy of trying to rationalize and wave them away?
Beginning with the Ten Commandments may be as good a place as any. It would be well to read and reread them and not spend life trying to convince ourselves that they really don't mean what they say.
Some things the commandments say thou shalt not do, and if that is what they say, that's what they mean, and there's a reason for it.
Some of them say this you should do, and there's a reason for it.
It would be interesting sometime to make a list of what our Father in heaven tells us to do and what he tells us not to do. Any parent is faced with the same situation. Any doctor is faced with the same situation.
Essentially this is what the gospel is: counsel from a living Father who says to his children, "You have limitless, everlasting possibilities. You also have your freedom. It's up to you how you use it. This is what you can become if you take my advice-and this is what will happen if you don't. The choice is yours."
We all make choices every day. We all have to live with the results of the choices we make.
It's just that plain. It isn't a question of quibbling or hairsplitting or arguing about the mysteries or brooding about the things God hasn't yet told us, while neglecting the things he has told us. Let's stop quarreling with the commandments and the requirements and just face the facts.
Who knows better than the Creator and Father of us all what is and isn't essential?
Brilliant men, philosophers and others, have wrestled with these questions through the centuries, and haven't arrived at any answers they can agree on among themselves.
I have a great respect for scholarship, for education and research, for academic excellence, and for the magnificent accomplishments of sincere and searching men. But I also have great respect for the word of God, and his prophets, and life's purpose; and it comes to a question of where to place our trust.
I have been privileged to know some of the ablest men on earth-men of many faiths, many professions, many accomplishments, in nearly 150 countries. But I've never known a man who knew enough that I was willing to trust him with my everlasting life.
Sometimes people quibble about the meaning of scripture and rationalize and justify themselves in doing things they well know they shouldn't do. They sometimes say, for example, that "Thou shalt not commit adultery" doesn't include all the other kinds and degrees of immoral sins and perversions, or that the Word of Wisdom, for example, doesn't catalogue all the substances and brand names and all the products and dope and harmful things that have been discovered or concocted that are not good for men.
Obviously, all of them couldn't be catalogued. In the words of King Benjamin: "And finally, I cannot tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin; for there are divers ways and means, even so many that I cannot number them."
The Lord expects us to use wisdom and common sense and not quibble about what obviously isn't good for the body or mind or spirit or morals of man. And before doing or partaking of anything, stop and ask honestly, "Does this contribute to health? Does it contribute to happiness? Would this please God? Will this bless and benefit me and others, or does it drag me down? Is it good or isn't it?"
It doesn't matter what people call things. It matters what they are-what they do. If I may modify Shakespeare considerably: Anything by any name will still be what it is and will still do what it does no matter what you call it.
And if anyone doubts that all forms of moral infraction and perversion are not condemned by scripture, may we assure you that there are scriptures that could be cited for you that prohibit all evils, all impurities and perversions, all uncleanness and excesses, all unwise habits and unbecoming conduct.
Why quibble? Why not simply accept the facts and be honest with ourselves?
" fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."
"If ye love me," said our Savior, "keep my commandments."
But we ought also to keep the commandments simply as a favor to ourselves.
Many years ago Emerson wrote an essay, "Compensation," in which he said:
"The world looks like a multiplication-table, or a mathematical equation, which, turn it how you will, balances itself. Every secret is told, every crime is punished, every virtue rewarded, every wrong redressed, in silence and certainty.
"Cause and effect, means and ends, seed and fruit, cannot be severed; for the effect already blooms in the cause, the fruit in the seed.
"What will you have? quoth God; pay for it and take it. Thou shalt be paid exactly for what thou hast done, no more, no less.
"A man cannot speak but he judges himself. Every opinion reacts on him who utters it.
"You cannot do wrong without suffering wrong.
"The thief steals from himself. The swindler swindles himself.
" it is impossible to get anything without its price.
"Commit a crime, and it seems as if a coat of snow fell on the ground, such as reveals in the woods the track of every partridge and fox and squirrel and mole. You cannot recall the spoken word, you cannot wipe out the foot-track, you cannot draw up the ladder, so as to leave no inlet or clew.
" we gain the strength of the temptation we resist.
"Men suffer all their life long under the foolish superstition that they can be cheated. But it is impossible for a man to be cheated by anyone but himself. "
I heard from President Lee a very short sentence that said essentially what Emerson said, that there are no successful sinners. It is a remarkable sentence to contemplate.
Since there is a law of compensation that is built into life, we ought always to take time to stop and look and consider what we do, and fail to do, and what we will wish we had done.
Now this to our youth: There are persuasive people who will tell you that the commandments of God are not valid, that there are no serious consequences for breaking them.
But if you want a guideline to know whom to follow, who's telling the truth, ask yourself always, "Is what this person is telling me or tempting me to do something that will bring me happiness and peace and lead me to my highest possibilities, or is it something that will lead me to the baser side?"
Don't follow anyone who will endeavor to destroy ideals, reject the commandments, or lead you to lower levels.
I heard a question once asked by President Brown: "Do you want to repent or to rationalize?"
To quote a sentence from Cromwell: "I beseech you, Think it possible that you may be mistaken."
Anyone is mistaken if what he is doing would lead him down physically, mentally, or morally, if it would destroy his peace, or estrange him from his Father in heaven, or impair his everlasting life.
"Pride," said John Ruskin, "is at the bottom of all great mistakes."
At least, pride is one of the principal barriers to repentance, because we can't correct an error without first admitting a mistake.
God bless you, my beloved young friends, and be with you and give you the humility to overcome pride, to admit and correct mistakes.
Respect parents. Confide in them. Respect yourselves. Respect God and the knowledge he has given. Don't gamble with life. It is all we have.
Don't tempt temptation. Don't foolishly see how close you can come to danger or evil, how close you can come to a precipice. Stay away from what you shouldn't do or where you shouldn't go, or what you shouldn't partake of.
And if you've turned toward some dead-end or down some wrong road, turn back as quickly as you can-not later than right now-and thank God for the principle of repentance.
Don't run aimlessly looking to and fro for what has already been found. Don't live by the sophistries and temptations of these times.
Don't tamper with the degrading soul- and body-destroying things of life. Don't deliberately look less than your best, or grubby or unclean, physically or morally.
Parents, set before your children an example of honesty and honor and cleanliness and righteousness and dedication to duty.
Children, love and respect your parents. They've given you life. They'd die for you. Families, draw closer together, in love and kindness, preserving the home, building traditions that will make you proud of each other and grateful to belong and be what you are.
Should the commandments be rewritten? No, they should be reread and become the guide and standard of our lives, if we want health and happiness and peace and self-respect.
I remember the words of a beloved stake president, and I thank him for the thought he left with me some months ago. He said, "I used to ride the range with my father, looking for lost sheep or cattle. And as we would mount a ridge we would look off into a distant hollow or a clump of trees, and my father would say, 'There they are.'" But this stake president said, "My father could see farther than I could, and often I couldn't see them. But I knew they were there because my father said so."
There are many things, my beloved brethren and sisters, that I know and you know are there, because our Father said so. And I know that he lives, that he made us in his image, that he sent his divine Son, our Savior, to show us the way of life and redeem us from death. I know that he will enter into our lives as fully as we let him, and that his church and gospel and way of life are on earth and here with us, and that we will realize our highest possibilities if we accept the counsels God has given, and that we will fall somewhat, somewhere short of what we might have been, or might have had, if we run contrary to his commandments. God bless you and be with you always, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
At the moment I have one special prayer in my heart and that is, that I might say something that would give assurance and encouragement to those who stand in need of it, which is all of us.
We live in a wonderful world! A wonderful era! There are so many choice people, such lovely things, and so much that is desirable. Just to live a normal, useful life is a priceless blessing.
But it is also a time when certain God-given standards and true principles that have long been accepted and respected are being rejected by many. Indeed, it is a day when there is "distress of nations, with perplexity."
The Lord speaks of a time when "the love of men shall wax cold, and iniquity shall abound." Has that time come?
It is most disturbing to learn of the degradation that exists today. Crime and contention are a daily diet to the reader and the listener of news. Crises and violence the world over are arising one after another, and they come to no satisfactory conclusion.
Now the scriptures tell us that the devil is "the foundation of all these things; yea, the foundation of murder, and works of darkness ", and that he has "great power, unto the stirring up of the people to do all manner of iniquity, and to the puffing them up with pride, tempting them to seek for power, and authority, and riches, and the vain things of the world."
Such people "seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world. "
"And they deny the power of God, the Holy One of Israel; and they say unto the people: Hearken unto us, and hear ye our precept; for behold there is no God today, for the Lord and the Redeemer hath done his work, and he hath given his power unto men."
So spoke the prophet Nephi long ago, looking to our day. However, Dr. James E. Talmage gives needed assurance in these words:
"Yet in all these malignant doings, can go no farther than the transgressions of the victim may enable him, or the wisdom of God may permit; and at any time he may be checked by the superior power."
Some may ask: "Why, then, does not God, with that superior power, put an end to all evil doings?" The reason is, of course, as has been decreed by God, that "it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. "
The reason for such opposition is to enable us to evaluate the right against the wrong. All men have the right to direct the course of their own lives, and the Lord will not deny that right.
The Lord's purpose in this is to bring to all the opportunity to prepare for the greatest gift of God: eternal life. Man's progress is to a great degree dependent upon his willingness to remain steadfast and immovable, especially when faced with opposition and adversity. Yet no person will ever be given more opposition than he has the potential to overcome or to endure. Some have a battle with infirmities, some with lust, some with addiction, some with envy or selfishness, some with sorrow.
As I noted that, I jotted down, as I remembered them, the words of that good old song which I like to hear, one verse giving us hope:
All of us have the God-given right to accept the good or to reject it.
As Paul said: " God will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."
This is a time of sifting, a time when, more than ever in the history of the modern world, the adversary and his followers have shown themselves to be enemies of God. Yet as we heard our prophet and president say this morning, we need not fear the fiery darts of the adversary, because each of us has the power to avoid becoming entangled in sin more definitely than ever before. The time has come for each member of the Church to keep close to the Lord, to be steadfast by sustaining and upholding and following the counsel of his divinely appointed servants, avoiding, as the Book of Mormon says, the vainness, the frailties, and the foolishness of men. We must purify our lives and sanctify our homes.
We must teach our children to be loyal, obedient, honest, to respect the law, to have respect for all men, and a love of the Lord and his church. We must live and act with courage, espouse and uphold God-given truth and principles, because to follow the whims, enticements, and the faithless philosophy of men is to risk losing that which is most precious and desirable-peace, liberty, and salvation.
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
"Draw nigh unto God, and he will draw nigh unto you. "
The safe thing is still "Come, follow me."
Yes, this is a wonderful era, primarily because in the restored gospel we have the light of truth which, if applied, will bring sweet peace and serenity into the lives of those who do so. The Lord has made the world a crucible for testing us, a place of sifting from which may come the blessings of a joyous life here and a glorious life to come!
"Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is."
He has given us the ingredients for successful living: his gospel as a perfect plan for happiness and success for all who live it, the Church with inspired leaders, and the promptings of the Holy Ghost to guide us and warn us.
We have all these to a greater extent than ever before in the history of man. Thus, we are living in a time that is unexcelled. Let us make sure that we do progress as we should; that we are "on board the good ship," so to speak! For that ship, the Church, will never fail.
"The works, and the designs, and the purposes of God cannot be frustrated, neither can they come to naught.
"For God doth not walk in crooked paths, neither doth he turn to the right hand nor to the left, therefore his paths are straight, and his course is one eternal round.
"Remember, remember that it is not the work of God that is frustrated, but the work of men."
I conclude with this promise of King Benjamin:
"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it."
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters: There is great responsibility that goes with being a Latter-day Saint. There is no knowledge as important as knowledge revealed to man from God. I like to reflect on the following passage of scripture:
"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them."
Every child should be taught by his parents that he is a child of God and in the image and likeness of God. The world is hungry for this truth.
God also said that he created man from the dust of the ground. Man's mortal creation and birth are living evidence of divine power, and man is left without excuse. The Lord personally gave commandments that would help mankind to grow and develop his Godlike attributes.
This afternoon I am going to read and briefly comment on the Ten Commandments of the Lord. Lower animals do not know or teach the Ten Commandments. We have several animals at our home. We have a peacock that is as colorful and beautiful as almost any creation. It has no use for the commandments of the Lord. It is a lower animal. The Ten Commandments were not given for the lower animals but for man, given for those who are in the image and likeness of God, but some pay little more attention to them than do some of the lower animals.
God has warned and commanded his children not to love and worship idols or false gods made by the minds and hands of men. He said:
"I am the Lord thy God.
"Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
"Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
"And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments."
Fathers, if we fail to love the living God and if we show greater love and interest for worldly things and pleasures, God has said that he will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate him. A father's disrespect for the living God and Creator may be passed on to his posterity. Likewise, a father's love and respect may be passed on to his children.
The apostle Paul warned the saints at Rome of the perils and evils that come to man when he loves and worships false gods and worldly creations more than he loves God. He said:
" when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
"Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.
"Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
"Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator. "
Paul continues on to tell what happens in the lives of men who worship false man-made doctrines and love the creature more than the Creator. He said:
" as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
"Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
"Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents."
The same evil conditions that existed among many of the people in Rome at Paul's time are abundantly with us today. Many do not want to retain God in their knowledge and are disobedient to parents, and as a result they are turned over to a reprobate mind to commit sin and evil acts.
Satan has been permitted to have power over all men who worship false gods and over all who will not hear and follow the voice of God. The Lord gave this important information about the power and influence of Satan. He said, "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."
There is divine growth and safety in knowing and following the voice of God.
Jesus Christ said, "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
To know God and Jesus Christ is divine knowledge.
The Lord also commanded: "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain."
Jesus Christ taught that we should hallow the name of our Heavenly Father; he said, " Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name."
President David O. McKay once said, "Reverence for God's name should be dominant in every home. Profanity should never be expressed in a home in this Church. If there were more reverence in human hearts, there would be less room for sin and sorrow and increased capacity for joy and gladness. "
Ruskin wrote, "Reverence is the noblest state in which a man can live in the world. Reverence is one of the signs of strength; irreverence one of the surest indications of weakness. No man will rise high who jeers at sacred things. "
Nobleness and dignity are the fruits of reverence.
The Lord personally gave counsel to his children regarding the importance and sacredness of the Sabbath day.
He said, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
"Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
"But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
"For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it."
The Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it, and he has asked us to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. It is a day for spiritual thought and growth; a day to meet with the saints and to partake of the sacrament; a special hallowed day to read the words of God as recorded in his sacred scriptures.
Fathers who disrespect that which God hallowed and fail to keep the Sabbath day holy will generally pass this sin on to their posterity. It is a sin to unhallow that which God hath hallowed. Keeping the Sabbath day holy has a hallowing effect on the soul of man, and love for God and his commandments is increased.
The Lord said in another commandment: "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." The Lord gave no exceptions. Respect for father and mother is respect for your own birth and life. Obedience to commandment brings personal growth and lasting happiness.
God said, "Thou shalt not kill." We should have sacred respect for all forms of life. We should not kill just for the pleasure of killing. All life on this earth was created and placed here by God.
God commanded his children, "Thou shalt not commit adultery." God will judge man on the basis of this divine law. Adultery is sex relations with anyone of the opposite sex other than your legally and lawfully wedded husband or wife.
The Lord said: " he that committeth adultery, and repenteth not, shall be cast out.
"But he that has committed adultery and repents with all his heart, and forsaketh it, and doeth it no more, thou shalt forgive;
"But if he doeth it again, he shall not be forgiven, but shall be cast out." I may add that "cast out" may carry the penalty of excommunication from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The apostle Paul said, " be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind shall inherit the kingdom of God."
Fornication and homosexual acts are inspired by the devil and are grievous sins in the sight of God. Fornication and adultery will destroy man's Godlike potential and bring man nearer the lower animal status.
Another divine commandment is "Thou shalt not steal."
The man who is honest with his God in paying his tithes and offerings is usually honest with his fellowmen. The Lord said, "Will a man rob God?" And I add, "Will a man rob his fellowmen?" The stigma of a dishonest mind and countenance is degrading and degenerating. Deep-rooted honesty in the heart of man radiates peace and happiness in his countenance.
The Lord said, "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour." The Lord said, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." All Latter-day Saints are called to save souls and not belittle or condemn them. Bearing false witness against one's neighbor is an act inspired by Satan and will generate within the mind fear, hatred, and godlessness.
The Lord said, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house."
Jesus Christ said, "See that ye love one another; cease to be covetous; learn to impart one to another as the gospel requires."
The God-given Ten Commandments are still a basic part of God's way of life and a basic part of the gospel of the kingdom. The way we live and respect the Lord and his commandments in the home has a relationship to the degree of glory that we will merit in the hereafter. If all mankind would live the Ten Commandments, we would have self-respect, peace, love, and happiness on this earth.
All Latter-day Saints are urgently needed today to live and teach the gospel of the kingdom. Saints, let your light so shine that others seeing your lives and good works will also desire to honor their God.
I bear witness that God lives, that Jesus Christ is our Savior, mediator, and our divine example to follow, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Last fall the Lord announced through his prophet that the Church would hold family home evening on Monday nights. It is interesting that about the same time, the other side announced that there would be professional football games on Monday nights. You might be surprised to know how many families tried to work family home evenings in between half time of the football games. Of course it cannot be done. It appears the prophet's request required too great a sacrifice.
In the fourth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord sets forth the qualifications for the labors of the ministry. He says that they are "faith, hope, charity, and love, with an eye single to the glory of God." The faith, hope, charity, and love we know something about. They are very important. But the eye single to the glory of God is probably the most important of those qualifications. Generally speaking, "an eye single to the glory of God" means sacrifice. It means that instead of endlessly doing what we want to do, we have to do what the Lord wants us to do, but we have to do it in his way when he wants us to do it. This, of course, is not the natural inclination of man.
We hear much in the world today about "doing our own thing." I doubt that this is really new. I think it has been going on since the beginning of time. Perhaps this is just a little different way of saying it. Certainly Lucifer did his own thing, contrary to the will of the Lord. Cain did his own thing, directly contrary to the counsel of his Heavenly Father. They were not concerned with what the Lord wanted them to do but rather only with what they wanted to do. Of course this kind of action has never been very profitable measured in terms of happiness, and happiness is the whole purpose for the existence of man. The prophet Lehi's statement that "men are, that they might have joy" is all-inclusive.
On the other hand, Abraham was told by God to sacrifice his "only" son Isaac as a burnt offering to the Lord. I presume Abraham could not have received a more disagreeable commandment from his Heavenly Father. Still he arose immediately, took his son and the necessary firewood, and started for the designated place. He could not be diverted from his course until an angel of the Lord intervened to stay his hand. And what was the reward for such action? Hear the Lord's statement to Abraham: " because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son:
"That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore.
"And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice."
Jesus, our Lord and Master, was the greatest example of all in following in obedience to his Father's commandments. His great agony in the Garden I presume has never been approached and cannot be matched by human man. He in Gethsemane prayed, saying, "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." The Master did not want to endure what was before him even though he knew this was the major purpose of his coming to earth-but he did what his Father had asked, and because he did, he holds "all power in heaven and in earth" and has, as Paul records, become "the author and finisher of our faith", and as many as receive him become his sons and daughters.
And how was it done? It was possible only through sacrifice. Truly sacrifice does "bring forth the blessings of heaven."
But how and why it happens seems to be difficult to understand, and perhaps few people really do understand it. Maybe this is the reason so few persons are willing to make the required sacrifice to allow the work of the Lord to fully succeed.
The Prophet Joseph in his sixth lecture on faith gives probably the greatest statement extant on this vital subject. The Prophet said, "An actual knowledge to any person, that the course of life which he pursues is according to the will of God, is essentially necessary to enable him to have that confidence in God without which no person can obtain eternal life and unless they have an actual knowledge that the course they are pursuing is according to the will of God they will grow weary in their minds and faint It was through this sacrifice, and this only, that God has ordained that men should enjoy eternal life; and it is through the medium of the sacrifice of all earthly things that men do actually know that they are doing the things that are well pleasing in the sight of God.
"It was in offering sacrifices that Abel, the first martyr, obtained knowledge that he was accepted of God. And from the days of righteous Abel to the present time, the knowledge that men have that they are accepted in the sight of God is obtained by offering sacrifice.
"It is in vain for persons to fancy to themselves that they are heirs with those, or can be heirs with them, who have offered their all in sacrifice, and by this means obtain faith in God and favor with him so as to obtain eternal life, unless they, in like manner, offer unto him the same sacrifice, and through that offering obtain the knowledge that they are accepted of him.
"Those, then, who make the sacrifice, will have the testimony that their course is pleasing in the sight of God.
"But those who have not made this sacrifice to God do not know that the course which they pursue is well pleasing in his sight; for whatever may be their belief or their opinion, it is a matter of doubt and uncertainty in their mind; and where doubt and uncertainty are there faith is not, nor can it be. For doubt and faith do not exist in the same person at the same time; so that persons whose minds are under doubts and fears cannot have unshaken confidence; and where unshaken confidence is not there faith is weak; and where faith is weak the persons will not be able to contend against all opposition, tribulations, and afflictions which they will have to encounter in order to be heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ Jesus; and they will grow weary in their minds, and the adversary will have power over them and destroy them."
From this it is apparent that sacrifice, no matter how disagreeable it may be, is absolutely vital, for it is the only means the Lord has provided for his children to gain the faith and assurance necessary to successfully return to his presence in condition to enjoy eternal life.
Now, what would constitute a sacrifice today? All too often when we hear the word sacrifice we think of burnt offerings or one man laying down his life for another as the Master did for us all. These are valid examples, but surely there are some very modern sacrifices that the Lord has instituted to bless his children today. Some of these might include:
Paying tithing, in a day when prices are increasing at an alarming rate and inflation seems to be running rampant.
Observing the Word of Wisdom, when using stimulants of all kinds is almost a way of life in this and other nations of the world.
Living morally clean and chaste, when these principles are scoffed at from every newsstand and almost every movie screen.
Filling a mission, when serving in the mission field means a break in educational pursuits of our young men and women and sometimes early exposure to military service.
I interviewed a nineteen-year-old young man some time ago with respect to serving in the mission field. When I suggested that this was the course the Lord wanted him to take, he said, "But, Elder Rector, if I did that I would have to drop out of school." I said, "Yes, that is true, but so did the twelve young men who are laboring in your stake and have brought some of your friends into the Church."
Holding family home evening might appear to be a sacrifice when, among the myriads of other distractions, a professional football game competes for prime time on Monday night.
Yes, my brothers and sisters, sacrifice is just as integral a part of the economy of God today as it has ever been. And sacrifice still brings forth the blessings of heaven. Without it no blessings come forth, although serving just to earn blessings is not right either. The service should be rendered because we love the Lord and love his children.
May we serve with an eye single to the glory of God and do what the Lord wants us to do instead of endlessly doing what we want to do, and may we do it because we love the Lord.
I am a witness that God lives. I know he lives and that he hears and answers prayers, for he has heard and answered mine. I bear you my testimony that I know that Jesus is the Christ and that he lives. I know he lives, that he has reestablished his church upon the earth in our own day and time through the great prophet Joseph Smith, wonderful man that he was; that we have a prophet of God on earth today, President Joseph Fielding Smith, whom you heard this morning; that this is the church and kingdom of God, that the decisions are made by revelation in this church under the direction of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, whose church it really is. I bear this witness to you in all soberness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
It is my desire to be led by the Spirit of the Lord in what I say. The wards and branches of the Church have been organized to give activity to a large number of the members, the great majority actually. Yet there are many with no official position or no specific responsibility that calls them to do formal acts for the organization. They belong to the Church; they belong to the stake; they belong to the ward. They are invited to attend various classes and meetings designed for their instruction, but at the conclusion of a meeting they go home, having no particular appointment to arouse them to organizational activity. Many of them feel that they are being left out, that their talents are not wanted. Others do not want to accept any responsible calling.
This may be because they do not understand the responsibility they have to the Church of Jesus Christ. Each of us has the same general calling. Each of us has the same responsibility as a result of entering into the waters of baptism and making the covenant. The Lord will not hold us blameless if we allow organizational responsibility, or the lack of it, to interfere with this special calling. Let me point out some necessary obligations in the words of the prophets.
Jeremiah said to a people who were rebellious and recalcitrant: " do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow."
Of a king he said with approbation, "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know me? saith the Lord."
These thoughts were later reiterated by the Lord through Micah when he told the people that what was required was "to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God."
Paul told the saints to be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving, having charity one to another.
Alma was a little more specific. He urged them to cry to the Lord over all of their activities and their possessions and for the welfare of themselves and those about them. Their whole attitude should be one of prayer to the Lord for all they had and all they were. Then he said, " do not suppose that this is all; for after ye have done all these things, if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need-I say unto you, if ye do not any of these things, behold, your prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites who do deny the faith.
"Therefore, if ye do not remember to be charitable, ye are as dross, which the refiners do cast out, and is trodden under foot of men."
The revelations given to Joseph Smith on this subject are numerous and were among the early ones. To care for the poor is one of the first and early obligations. To help the needy and those who mourn follows close behind. All of us have some time, but those who are not given great responsibility in the organizations have more time to seek out the poor, needy, and helpless.
And this help is badly needed. All about us are those in need of encouragement, assistance, and help-help of a kind we can all give, not money, but time and attention and personal encouragement, especially to those who must bear great responsibility for loved ones and who cannot pass it to others for the simple reason there are no others to whom to pass it.
What great relief would come to a young mother with a sick child if one assisted her for a while. A little time, not just calling on the confined for five minutes, but for an hour, reading, helping, feeding, cheering, will change whole attitudes. You will find the need in many homes.
Once when I had responsibility for an invalid, a good woman said, "I am coming to your house every Friday night from six until ten. You can count on it, so plan to go at six and find relief for those four hours." How blessed she was to me! How good! She blessed both me and the invalid by new cheer, new smiles, new ideas.
There are many lonely people, people whose loneliness is hidden. We need to seek them out and relieve them. There are those who feel they are not accepted, who need to be built up in spirit and helped to find themselves. There are unmarried girls away from home who think no one cares. There are those troubled in spirit. It occurs to me that family home evening could occasionally be timed to bring in some of the lonely ones, some of the fearful, some of the downhearted, some of those troubled in spirit.
I know of a prominent worker with a big church assignment who had no ward responsibilities. Weekly she went to Sunday School and sacrament meeting and came away feeling that she was no part of the program. Then she became aware of a sister who had been raised without a knowledge of the gospel, who would come to the door of the church on Sunday but was afraid to enter, and would then return home. She helped her to enter and to become enlarged in her soul. Then she noticed a man, a nonmember who was almost a member, and changed his outlook into membership. She noticed several single girls without purpose and gave them the desire to be what they could be. She was interested in the aged, and gave encouragement to young men nearing the age to go on missions. Suddenly she found herself a big part of the ward, not by a bishop's appointment but by obeying the law which calls us to be our brother's keeper.
We may be sure that if there are many children or invalids or aged in a home, it is almost a certainty that such homes need help. O ye saints, do not pine if you have not presidency or teaching positions. Be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of your own free will. You may come nearer your heaven by the unobtrusive help you render those standing in need of comfort, succor, and attention. You won't feel important to the organization, but the angels will be smiling as they record the hours of church service given to those whom the Lord loves and to whom he personally directed his own effort-the poor, the downtrodden, the needy, the ill, the discouraged.
We are all church workers; those with specific assignments and those with none are required by revelation to go to the house of prayer weekly to offer up their oblations. We then renew our pledges to remember him who is our Savior and to keep his commandments, the second one of which is to remember to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Having entered into this covenant, it is our responsibility to seek diligently to show this love through our deeds.
Those with no ward assignments have more time to pursue this great work of the salvation of souls. Let us not sit back jealous of those giving attention to the stake, the ward, the auxiliaries, but seek our salvation where the Lord appointed us, among those who, weak in spirit, weak in body, or weak in desire, need to be encouraged, need to be raised up in the kingdom of God on this earth.
I know that home teachers are responsible for these needs, but often those at home conceal the needs from them. I know there are visiting teachers, but still there are many who hide their needs from them. I know the priesthood is expected to be alert, but this responsibility goes beyond the organized priesthood. This is a personal obligation that no living soul who loves the Lord can dismiss. It is one to which we must ever be alert.
The needy neighbor could be next door. The one in need may not be a member of the Church. It can be anybody who stands in need. I know of no one who is exempt from the responsibility of constant succor and personal encouragement to many who never report their difficulties to the bishop, but who, in spite of pride, and even of means, badly need the help, understanding, and love we all can give as individuals.
This echoes what James said: "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."
One last word from the Lord to us in this day: "And remember in all things the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted, for he that doeth not these things, the same is not my disciple."
I know that Jesus Christ lives, and that his Holy Father lives also. I sustain President Joseph Fielding Smith as the living prophet with all my heart. I know too of the blessings that come to both the giver and the receiver when one obeys the injunction that the way to love the Lord is to love and serve his neighbors. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Milton R. Hunter
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My dear brethren and sisters, I humbly ask that the Spirit of God will direct me in what I say today.
The devil is mustering his forces to full strength to bring about discord, sin, and sorrow among the human family. These calamities can be averted to the extent that people live the basic principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is love.
On a certain occasion a lawyer asked Jesus a question, "tempting him, and saying,
"Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
"Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
"This is the first and great commandment.
"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
"On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
In the days of our Savior, the Hebrew scriptures were divided into divisions. The first five books were called the Law. Another group was called the Prophets. In answering the lawyer, the Master quoted Deuteronomy and Leviticus, which were two of the books of the Hebrew Law. Thus, Jesus Christ was declaring that the two great laws of love were the basis of all the religious teachings of the Hebrew scriptures.
Since the first great commandment is to love the Lord our God, how can we show our love for him? We can show our love in our prayers to the Father, given in the name of the Son, and also through our worship of those divine Beings. But, to become all-inclusive, Jesus said: "If ye love me, keep my commandments." In other words, we should "live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
Our Eternal Father and his Only Begotten Son both have intense, comprehensive, and full love for us. They have much greater intelligence and understanding than we have, and so their feelings of love go far beyond our capabilities to love. The attribute of love is so highly developed in these divine Beings that the scriptures state: "God is love." In fact, Deity's transcendent love is above and beyond our deepest feelings and keenest conception. At times of great spiritual experience when we feel an abundance of the Spirit, we have a greater realization of the magnitude of God's love.
God is the Father of our spirits. He placed us upon this earth and provided a gospel plan of salvation through his Only Begotten Son, thereby making it possible for us to come back into his presence and receive exaltation or eternal life. Those who attain that glorious condition will experience the sweetness of love, which surpasses our present understanding.
" God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Jesus Christ also loved us so much that he freely laid down his life and shed his blood for our sins, and also to bring about a universal resurrection. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
Among the entire human family, there is no example where the principle of love was demonstrated as perfectly as was shown in the life of Jesus in Palestine and in his ministry among the Nephites following his resurrection. He healed the sick, raised the dead, restored sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf, and cleansed those who were afflicted with leprosy. His heart was filled with compassion upon the poor and any who suffered afflictions. He lifted them spiritually with his deep understanding.
A beautiful example of Christ's love and compassion is given in the Book of Mormon when he blessed the little children:
"And when he had said these words, he wept, and the multitude bare record of it, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them.
"And when he had done this he wept again;
"And he spake unto the multitude, and said unto them: Behold your little ones.
"And as they looked to behold they cast their eyes towards heaven, and they saw the heavens open, and they saw angels descending out of heaven as it were in the midst of fire; and they came down and encircled those little ones about, and they were encircled about with fire; and the angels did minister unto them."
A superb example of Christ's great love is shown when he was hanging on the cross in pain and agony nigh unto death. Jesus prayed: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."
The central theme and the most dynamic force of the gospel of Jesus Christ is love. The Savior taught his apostles:
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
"By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."
Christ declared that the second great commandment was to love our neighbor as ourselves. The Master Teacher knew that it is human nature for all people to be self-centered. Thus, to be a good Christian, we must love other people as much as we love ourselves. If we loved our neighbors as much as we love ourselves, all our dealings with them would be in kindness, charity, and generosity. All our actions would be tempered by love. Jesus also taught:
"But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
"That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven:
"Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."
What should be the relationship between husbands and wives, especially if they are Latter-day Saints?
A husband and wife should always be gracious and kind to each other. Neither of them should ever say or do anything to hurt the feelings of the other. Deepest love and affection should be shown toward each other continuously. At all times each should make a conscious effort to do everything possible to bring joy and happiness into the life of the other. A husband should show and express appreciation for the accomplishments of his mate, and she should do likewise. We should look for ways to build each other up and make each other happy. Neither the husband nor the wife should let a day pass without expressing love for the other. We should not assume that our mate knows and that it is not necessary to express it. At one time I had the honor of having President Joseph Fielding Smith and his beloved wife Jessie attend a conference to which I had been assigned. In her talk Sister Smith said: "I never let a day go by without telling my husband that I love him, and he never lets a day go by without telling me."
Under these circumstances, God's blessings will shower down from heaven upon the married couple and especially for those married by the power of the priesthood in the house of the Lord. The power from on high will bind the love and marriage of such couples for eternity.
President David O. McKay, always an advocate of love and harmony in the home, stated: "Homes are made permanent through love."
"Learn the value of self-control. You are never sorry for the word unspoken. I believe the lack of self-control is one of the most common contributing factors of unhappiness and discord. We see something in the other which we dislike. It is easy to condemn it. And that condemnatory word arouses ill feeling. If we see it, and we refrain from speaking, in a few moments all is concord and peace instead of animosity and ill will. Controlling the tongue is one of the greatest contributing factors to concord in the home, and one which too many of us fail to develop."
Love should also characterize the center of the family life. Each child should be made to feel at all times by his parents that he is of great importance in the family. Parents should express their love to their children and show them in numerous ways that they love them dearly. Then the Spirit of the Lord will reside in the home. The family will be love-centered and thereby God-centered. The children in turn will reciprocate the love to the parents and strive to please them.
The goal of families who are actuated deeply by love will be to keep the commandments of our Savior in every detail and someday come back into the presence of the Eternal Father and his Only Begotten Son to dwell.
I bear my testimony that the true gospel of our Lord has been restored to earth again, and that the Master's church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
Not long ago I listened to a noted speaker discuss modern trends with regard to youth. He called attention to the fact that young people today are following divergent courses to those traveled by their parents. The speaker pointed out the concern of parents for their children, whom they believe are being misdirected by the modern-day innovations of society.
Considerable time was spent by the speaker discussing the "generation gap" in the modern home between those of the new generation and their parents. He then took a position on the side of youth, claiming that there must be this generation gap if the world is to make real progress because parents are from the past generation, and we need new thinking, new ideas, and a change from the old. His contention was that if children follow the same course as parents, there would never be progress; therefore, we must accept the new even though it is forced by an uprising of the modern generation against the established ways of the past. He asked this question: "Who can say that the old is better than the new until it is tried and tested?"
In continuing his argument, he stated that the breach or the differences between parents and youth need not be permanent, but for the temporary purpose of providing new thought and progress preliminary to a more mature relationship in which parents would better understand the ideals and endeavors of their children, and children would better understand their parents. The relationship between the two would become stronger because of this adjustment, which would weld together the old and the young as their differences were resolved through intellectual compromise.
Then followed an unusual citation of scripture in support of this proposition. The closing two verses of the last book of the Old Testament were read:
"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:
"And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."
No passage in scripture gives students of the Old Testament greater problems of interpretation than this one in the Book of Malachi regarding the sending of Elijah to turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to the fathers. Who is the prophet Elijah who is to come before the great and dreadful day of the Lord? Let me review some of the highlights of his life.
The first mention of Elijah in the record refers to him as being from Tishbeh of Gilead, east of the Jordan in the area of Galilee. The events with which he was associated occurred in the ninth century before the birth of Christ. This great prophet was one of the leaders in defending Jehovah as the true God of Israel against those who were advancing Baal worship. His life is associated with many miracles.
Elijah prophesied to King Ahab that there would be a drouth, and a drouth did come to the land. The prophet went to the east of Jordan by the brook Cherith. The brook provided him with water, and the Lord caused him to be fed by ravens morning and night. Because of the drouth, the brook dried up and he sought another refuge.
The Lord directed him to a poor widow who lived with her only son. Elijah found her at the gate of the city and asked for water and bread. The widow answered: "As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die."
Elijah told her to fear not, that the handful of meal and the cruse of oil would not diminish; and it did sustain them through the long drouth.
During this time the widow's son became ill and died, or was close to death. Elijah called upon the Lord, and the boy began to breathe again and was given his life.
Later the Lord appeared to Elijah and told him to go to King Ahab and the drouth would be broken. Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of the King of Tyre, where the god Baal was worshiped. She brought her religion with her, introduced Baalism to the Hebrews, and carried on an attack against the religion of the Hebrews and against Israel's God.
When Elijah went to King Ahab to tell him of the end of the drouth, Ahab accused him of causing trouble in Israel. Elijah charged Ahab with forsaking the commandments of the Lord and following Baal. He challenged the prophets of Baal, supported by Jezebel, to come to Mount Carmel and determine whether the Lord or Baal was God.
Ahab gathered Israel to the place, and Elijah stood alone against the 450 prophets of Baal while the people watched. The contest was to build two altars-one for the Lord and the other for Baal-and to place thereon sacrificial bullocks on unkindled wood. Whichever deity answered by fire would be accepted as God. The 450 prophets commenced first. They called upon Baal from morning until noon but there was no answer. In their frenzy, they leaped about the altar and cut themselves with their knives and lancets till the blood gushed out, but still no answer.
Then came Elijah's turn. He called for barrels of water to be poured on the sacrifice he had prepared, and he said: " Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
"Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
"Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
"And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God."
The heavens turned black with clouds and wind, and torrential rains came and ended the drouth.
Jezebel became angry and threatened Elijah, and he fled south to Beersheba and into the wilderness of Sinai. His encounter with the Lord in the wilderness has become the theme that Mendelssohn put to music in the beautiful Elijah oratorio.
On the mount he felt the power of the wind, the rocks of Sinai were broken to pieces, there was an earthquake and fire, and in the calm that followed, the voice of the Lord was heard to say, "What doest thou here, Elijah?" He answered, " the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, and they seek my life, to take it away." Two troops of soldiers were sent to capture him, but Elijah called down fire from heaven, and they were consumed.
Elijah, the great defender of Jehovah, and his friend Elisha walked together from Jericho to the Jordan. Elijah took his mantle and smote the waters. They divided, and the two crossed over on dry ground.
"And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven."
The story of Elijah is in the Old Testament and reference is made to him in the New Testament, but without further revelation we would be left in darkness as to his mission and the meaning of the promise stated by Malachi. The very first written revelation of this dispensation, being the statement of the Angel Moroni to the Prophet Joseph Smith, repeats almost the same words used by Malachi and indicates that Elijah was yet to come. Eight years later, a few days after the dedication of the Kirtland Temple, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery had finished praying together in the temple when a marvelous vision was manifested to them. Let me read just a few lines as recorded in the 110th section of the Doctrine and Covenants: "The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened."
The Lord appeared upon the breastwork of the pulpit and spoke to them. Moses appeared, then Elias, and the record continues:
"After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us; for Elijah the prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said:
"Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi-testifying that he should be sent, before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come-
"To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse."
In centuries past many people have lived and died without knowing of the gospel. How will they be judged in the absence of this knowledge? Peter said that after Christ was crucified, "but quickened by the Spirit he went and preached unto the spirits in prison." Then he adds, "For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit." Thus, those who die without knowledge of the gospel will have the opportunity to hear and accept it and to accept baptism.
Does it seem reasonable that persons who have lived upon the earth and died without the opportunity of baptism should be deprived throughout eternity? Is there anything unreasonable about the living performing the baptisms for the dead? Perhaps the greatest example of vicarious work for the dead is the Master himself. He gave his life as a vicarious atonement, that all who die shall live again and have life everlasting. He did for us what we could not do for ourselves. In a similar way we can perform ordinances for those who did not have the opportunity to do them in lifetime.
Not only may baptisms be performed for the dead, but endowments; also sealings, by which wives become eternal companions to husbands and their children sealed to them as a family. The sealing of family units can be continued until the family of God is made perfect. This is the great work of the dispensation of the fulness of times, by which the hearts of the fathers are turned to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers. The uniting and redemption of the family of God was the divine plan before the foundations of the earth were laid.
I bear witness that the same prophet who was fed by the ravens, by the never-depleting handful of meal and cruse of oil, who brought back life to the widow's son, whose sacrifice was consumed by an unkindled fire, who was taken into heaven in a chariot of fire, has appeared in this day, as foretold by Malachi. He is turning the hearts of this and the past generations toward each other.
Prior to the building of temples in this dispensation and the appearance of Elijah, there was little interest in seeking out and identifying families of the past. Since temples have been built, genealogical interest in the world has increased at an accelerating rate. The gathering of hundreds of people to Salt Lake City, representing forty-five nations, for the World Conference on Records is a demonstration of this great interest.
Let me go back to the statements made by the speaker regarding modern youth trends. Could the words of Malachi mean that the mission of Elijah in the last days would be to resolve differences between parents and children, restore domestic tranquillity, and close the generation gap? Of course not. Revelation in this day has given us the true meaning. Let me read to you the words of Joseph Smith in answer to the question:
" this is the spirit of Elijah, that we redeem our dead, and connect ourselves with our fathers which are in heaven, and seal up our dead to come forth in the first resurrection. "
May the spirit of Elijah burn deep into our hearts and turn us toward the temples, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
First Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brothers and sisters, and to those of our friends who are listening over the air, I pray for the guidance of the Spirit during these few moments that I shall stand before you.
Some time ago I was visited by a journalist from a large intermountain newspaper who came to inquire about the missionary activities of the Church. After we had explained our worldwide activities in missions now being expanded into such newer areas as the Fiji Islands, Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Spain, Italy, and heretofore remote areas of Latin America, and among the Indian tribes, she asked, as she contemplated the magnitude of the worldwide missionary activities: "Are you people out to convert the whole world?"
I replied by quoting the Master's commission to his early disciples:
"And he said unto them: Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned."
The Master then spoke of the signs which would evidence the divinity of their callings:
"So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven. "
Then, as the gospel writers have recorded: "And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following."
I then recalled for her the words of a revelation to the Lord's disciples in early years of this dispensation, that through their administration "the word may go forth unto the ends of the earth, unto the Gentiles first, and then, behold, and lo, they shall turn unto the Jews.
"For it shall come to pass in that day, that every man shall hear the fulness of the gospel in his own tongue, and in his own language, through those who are ordained unto this power. "
We are witnessing a great expansion of the work of the Church throughout the world. It would seem that the early revelations of the Lord to the Church pointed us to a preparation for this day, when he promised:
"Behold, and lo, I will take care of your flocks, and will raise up elders and send unto them.
"Behold, I will hasten my work in its time."
During the past several months we have spent much time in countries of the Far East and in the European countries, where we have been brought face to face with large congregations of our members and with others not of our faith.
Never, it seems, has there ever been more unmistakable evidence of a need for spiritual guidance, as we met throughout our visits in these countries those who are seeking for answers to problems that confront them on every side. We have sensed that everywhere there is much dissatisfaction with the churches to which they have belonged. The real reason for this decline seems to stem from the fact, as one columnist has summarized it, "organized religion isn't being attacked. It's busily committing suicide trying to keep up with Jane Fonda and Timothy Leary" type of relevance which would "tune out that corny old Bible, split out of that moldy church and turn on with relevance!"
They want a true definition of what constitutes divine authority.
They are clamoring for security or a salvation, not just in the world to come, but for a temporal salvation here and now that they don't have to die to get. There is a need for their churches to have concern about the personal welfare of the individual, so that each one could be aided to help himself through a unified church effort and a brotherhood in the Church that concerns itself with temporal and social, as well as spiritual, needs.
They are looking for a church where there is not only unity to be found within their local congregations, but which reaches out to a unification of effort in meeting the challenging problems confronting mankind; where a church congregation in one nation links hands with those of a common faith that spans the continents and the oceans and proclaims a universal brotherhood to which they may look with confidence in matters of health and education, strengthening of home ties, and in evolving and promoting constructive church activities where youth are taught correct principles so that they can learn to become effective leaders themselves; where wholesome activities are in such abundance that there is less time to engage in the evils that beckon on every side.
In short, the demand everywhere is for a church that is holding fast to the basic ideals of Christianity, as the apostle James has defined it: "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."
There we have found a strong central authority that inspires a confidence that shows the way ahead-where the strong are marshaled to give liberally of their leadership, of their means, of their talents; where the weak are urged to maximum effort in providing for themselves; where emergency needs can be met in a way that fosters brotherhood, instead of a deadening process that is described, scripturally, as to "grind the faces of the poor."
Never has there been a greater need in the Church for training in leadership and in effective teaching to offset the clever and diabolical methods of evil powers that "pacify, and lull them away into carnal security," stirring them up to anger, saying that all is well and with flattery telling them there is no hell nor is there a devil, for this is the way, as the ancient prophets have warned, that "the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell."
It was frightening to observe that in places where there was the greater prosperity, there was the unmistakable evidence that, like the peoples of other dispensations, when they prospered they forgot God. They were seemingly rich in things that money could buy, but they were devoid of most of the precious things money could not buy.
The prophets have issued a clear signal of warning to those who are lifted up in the pride of their hearts because of their ease and their exceeding great prosperity:
"Yea, and we may see at the very time when he doth prosper his people yea, then is the time that they do harden their hearts, and do forget the Lord their God, and do trample under their feet the Holy One-yea, and this because of their ease, and their exceedingly great prosperity."
And so do we, as we witness these things, lament with those who have gone before us:
"Yea, how quick to be lifted up in pride; yea, how quick to boast, and do all manner of that which is iniquity; and how slow are they to remember the Lord their God, and to give ear unto his counsels, yea, how slow to walk in wisdom's paths!"
There comes back to us more clearly than ever before the application of the words of the Master as he closed his Sermon on the Mount, that only that person or that church which will stand through these testing years, will be that which is founded upon the rock, as the Master declared, by hearing and obeying the fundamental and never-changing principles upon which the true church is founded, when the winds of delusion blow, or when the floods of filth and wickedness engulf us, or when the rains of criticism or derision are rained down upon those who are holding fast to the truth.
Constantly there come among us men and women of great renown, and their observations as they learn of the Church and its far-reaching activities are, in a sense, but confirmation of what the apostle Paul declared long ago to the Romans:
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness."
One renowned lecturer at the Bonneville Knife and Fork Club, Mr. George Rony, remarked to me after I had taken him, at his request, to see some of our Church welfare activities: "Your welfare plan should engulf the world, and I have no doubt after seeing it in operation that one day it will be the master plan for Christian living."
Frequently, prominent visitors have inquired about the educational system of the Church, by which, outside of our Church and school institutions, and within our seminaries and institutes, the Church is reaching out to every home with home Primaries on week days for small children, and with home-study courses for week days for the youth, for the teaching of vital principles essential to Christian living.
These visitors invariably have sought for the secret as to how our school campuses have been able to maintain law and order. This question, of course, has prompted an explanation of the family home evening programs in the homes from which most of our youth have come. Attention is called to the student organizations among our college youth where students themselves are organized into church units and are schooled in how they can communicate responsibly in the way the Lord's plan provides.
These observations, and many others, similarly, are sobering, and they challenge us to strive the more diligently to carry out the perfect plan that has been given us, by which the world may be saved, if all men would be constrained to "search diligently, pray always, and be believing, all things work together for good" and his name's glory.
We have just come from a historic conference of the members of the Church in the British Isles, at Manchester, England. Here we had assembled an all-British congregation of over twelve thousand members. The intensity of the interest there manifest bore eloquent witness to the growing awareness that the kingdom of God, meaning The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is worldwide, and that the people of Great Britain have a firm resolution to establish the Church more firmly in their native land. This was dramatically demonstrated when they concluded the three-day conference with an original song composed by one of their local leaders, entitled "This Is Our Place." This song of theirs concluded with this impressive declaration:
We held the first general conference of this character in the British Isles because of their great contribution to the early growth of the Church, which gave evidence of the great outpouring of the blood of Israel among the people of the British Isles.
As we visit the various countries, whether in the Far East, in the European areas, in the Latin American nations, or in other parts of the world, we have noted, as in the British Isles, the unmistakable signs of a strong desire on the part of our Church members to see the Church grow in their own countries. They are looking for a day when their membership and a developed leadership will be able to assume positions of responsibility to preside over districts and missions and temples, if and when their strength will be so manifest that they can govern themselves after they have been taught correct principles.
It is a standing marvel to see how susceptible these leaders are to training in the Church, when they have been taught by someone to show the way. As Church members catch the spirit of the work, they have an intense desire to go to a holy temple where they can receive the promised blessings of the priesthood, which, through their faithfulness, will gain them heaven's highest privileges in the world to come.
Everywhere we have gone, and here at home, men are asking as to our efforts in behalf of the so-called underprivileged peoples. This has given us the opportunity to explain how, from the finding of new converts, there proceeds, step by step, the introduction of the family home evening program, where parents are helped with family problems, small units of organization, of Sunday Schools, branches and districts, culminating into stakes for a purpose, as the Lord revealed, to provide "for a defense, and for a refuge from the storm, and from wrath when it is poured out without mixture upon the whole earth."
When I recall the words of a heavenly messenger to the young prophet in the early beginning of this dispensation, that the purpose of the restored church was to prepare a people ready to receive the coming of the Lord, I remember that when the disciples gathered around the Master before he left them, they asked him as to the signs of his second coming and the end of the world, or the destruction of the wicked, which was the end of the world. He gave them certain signs that would foretell that this second coming was near, even at their very doors. He spoke of great tribulations, of wars, famines, and earthquakes.
One of the most significant among the other signs of which the Master spoke, and about which I had often wondered, was that prior to his coming there would be false Christs and false prophets who would show great signs and wonders in order to deceive the faithful who are looking forward to that glorious day when the Master will return again to the earth. We are actually seeing this present among us today, where individuals are coming forward with claims of Deity for their leaders. These arch-deceivers are among us, and some have come in person claiming to be God; and we may well expect others to rise up to do likewise in fulfillment of the Master's declaration that false Christs and false prophets would come forth.
The Master gave a sure way for the saints to herald the coming of our Lord again to the earth, as he promised. This is how the Savior said he would appear:
"Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
"For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."
If we could remember that, and put to flight all the foolish ideas about how the Savior will appear, we would be ready when he comes.
In preparation for that marvelous event the Master counseled: "Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh."
Then there was this promise to his servants who had been living faithfully: "Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing."
A few days ago we had a faith-promoting report from a young mission president and his wife who have just been released from presiding over a mission in Peru, where recently there was experienced one of the worst calamities in the history of the world, in which an estimated seventy thousand persons were buried when an earthquake moved an entire mountain over two cities, which were completely destroyed. We had four missionaries laboring there, two in each city. When the earthquake came, they were at the Lord's business; two of our elders were teaching a gospel lesson on the outskirts of the town and the other two were in a preparation meeting in another city.
After the three terrifying days of semidarkness from the choking dust, they philosophized that this might be like the time when the Savior was crucified, when there were three days of darkness, and when he would come again, when two should be grinding at the mill, and one would be taken and the other left; two would be working in the field, and one would be taken and the other one left.
When an earthquake strikes, every person would be taken as he is then living-if at a movie, or a tavern, or in a drunken stupor, or whatever. But the true servants of God, who would be doing their duty, would be protected and preserved, if they would do as the Lord has counseled: to "stand ye in holy places, and be not moved," when these days should come.
So we are saying to our Church members in every land, everywhere, stand in your places and say as the British Saints have sung:
To our faithful Saints everywhere and to all our friends who are the honest in heart, go to your homes following this great conference:
Have your family prayers, keep your home ties strong, and let love abound therein.
You who are the priesthood watchmen, don't fail in the sacred charge to "watch over the church. and be with and strengthen them."
You leaders, put into full gear the total programs that are heaven-sent in these days to stem the tide of wickedness that is rolling over the earth as an avalanche.
Lighten your individual burdens, you leaders, by increasing the activities of others, that all may be benefitted thereby.
Above all, teach the gospel of Jesus Christ with power and authority and continue to bear witness of the divine mission of our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.
And to you, our friends who are the honest in heart and who are sincere seekers after truth, we bear our solemn witness that "through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel", as administered by authorized servants who hold the keys of salvation for both the living and the dead.
I would that all who are within the sound of my voice would be comforted, in this dispensation, as those in other troublous times have been comforted and shielded from the pitfalls of the adversary. Hear the Master's words as he referred to his people as his children:
"Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath given me;
"And none of them that my Father hath given me shall be lost.
"Wherefore, I am in your midst, and I am the good shepherd, and the stone of Israel. He that buildeth upon this rock shall never fall.
"And the day cometh that you shall hear my voice and see me, and know that I am."
And then he said:
"Watch, therefore, that ye may be ready."
I believe with all my soul that that promise is for you and me today, as we qualify ourselves to be worthy to be called his children.
To this I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
One of the Articles of Faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints includes the expression, "We believe in being honest."
But we do not believe in honesty merely as a matter of policy. It is far more important than that. Honesty is a principle of salvation in the kingdom of God. Without it there can be no salvation. Just as no man or woman can be saved without baptism, so no one can be saved without honesty. As we cannot advance in the kingdom of heaven without a resurrection, so we cannot move into celestial realms without honesty.
As God condemns immorality, so he denounces hypocrisy, which is one of the worst forms of dishonesty. When he describes the hell of the world to come, he specifies that dishonest persons will go there. As no unclean thing can enter the presence of the Lord, so no liar nor cheat nor hypocrite can abide in his kingdom.
Dishonesty is directly related to selfishness, which is its origin and source. Selfishness is at the root of nearly all the disorders that afflict us, and man's inhumanity to man continues to make countless thousands mourn.
If all mankind were honest, we could have heaven here on earth. We would have no need for armies or navies, nor even a policeman in the smallest community, for there would be no crime, no invasion of other people's rights, no violence of one person against another.
There would be no grounds for divorce, nor would we have errant husbands or unfaithful wives. Conflict between children and parents would disappear, and juvenile delinquency would come to an end.
But in our society is there anything more widespread than the tendency to lie and deceive?
It is the lie of the drug peddler that tempts a child to indulge, and the lie of the seducer that persuades a girl to surrender her virtue.
It is the lie of the shyster that traps his victim in the fraudulent deal.
It is the lie of the tax evader that puts him behind bars, and the lie of the student that turns him into a cheat at school.
It is the lie of the child-and too often also of the parent-that creates the generation gap.
It is the lie of the shoddy workman that hides a faulty repair.
It is living lie upon lie that makes a man a hypocrite.
It is the lie of a husband or wife that leads to infidelity, and that of the embezzler that makes him falsify his books.
It is the desire to lie and cheat that turns a mother into a shoplifter and the child who assists her into a potential criminal.
It is the lie on the lips of the neighborhood gossip that brings character assassination to many innocent victims.
It is the dishonest one who seeks to take advantage of or to humiliate or to deliberately injure a fellow human being.
It is dishonesty in a householder that persuades him to cheat a little newsboy out of his collections for delivering his newspapers.
It is the lie of a clergyman teaching premarital sex as a type of trial marriage that persuades a girl to lose her virtue. She may be naive or obtuse in accepting his word, but what a price he will have to pay at the judgment bar of God for saying there is no sin in premarital sex when he knows full well that the Almighty has thundered from the heights of Mt. Sinai: "Thou shalt not commit adultery."
It is the lie of the hypocrite who berates his wife and belittles his children and is a beast in the home that persuades him to assume a pious role on Sunday and sing in the choir and partake of the sacred emblems of the Lord's supper.
It is the lie of the infatuated girl who deceives her parents as she enters a life of sin with a boy who would only drag her down.
Breathes there a man with soul so dead who never to himself hath said, We cannot live a lie?
We Latter-day Saints believe in God, and because we believe in him, we also believe there is a devil. But the devil himself is a liar-the father of lies-and those who choose to cheat and lie and deceive and misrepresent become his slaves.
Is it any wonder that the scripture says:
In the following verses, the scripture ties this outburst to another heinous sin that is never without its lies and deception-that of lustful sex, which God says will destroy the soul. In modern revelation the Lord describes the hell of the world to come as he lists those who will suffer it, and he says:
"These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie.
"These are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth.
"These are they who suffer the vengeance of eternal fire.
"These are they who are cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God. "
Most of us claim to be Christians, bearing the name of Christ and worshiping in his holy name. But are we really Christians at heart? Is our worship truly acceptable to him? This we may determine by asking if we truly keep his commandments. If not, are we worthy to bear his name?
One man asked: "If you had to prove in court that you are a Christian, what would you use as evidence?"
Christians must learn that there is nothing Christlike in deception. There is no righteousness in hypocrisy. There is nothing good about a lie.
We must recognize that if we are not honest we are not clean, in the eyes of God, and that no unclean thing may enter his presence. To resort to dishonest practices is to apostatize from the Christian way of life. Apostasy from Christ becomes anti-Christ, and who among us can afford that? To be anti-Christ is to be against him, to fight against him, even in silent disobedience. To fight against Christ is to put God out of our lives, and that above all things invites self-destruction.
Men may philosophize and say there is no God; they may call religion a myth; they may build up their own intellectual concepts, but all to no avail. The evidence for God is overwhelmingly greater than all the protestations and empty theories that seek to abolish him. As one poet has said: "Only the fool contends that God is not."
In this day of great achievement, there is more reason to believe in God than at any other time in our memories. All our explorations, all our scientific accomplishments, even our sending men to the moon, declare the existence and power of God.
There is no precision in chance, and there is no certainty in spontaneity. But there are both precision and certainty in the universe, and these-as our greatest scientists have said-declare the glory of God; and so with the psalmist of old they sing aloud: "The earth is the Lord's and all that therein is."
If we are interested in the gospel in the least degree, we should live it wholeheartedly. There is no point in deceiving ourselves and becoming victims of our own indiscretion. It is a fact so simple that even a child may understand-that if we are to be saved in the kingdom of heaven, we must live its laws honestly, completely, and wholeheartedly. To be halfhearted about it is repugnant to the Lord. He has said to the lukewarm that he will spew them from his mouth!
Why do you suppose he commanded that we serve him with all our heart, might, mind, and strength?
Do we not remember that he has said that if we accept his commandments with a doubtful heart and keep them with slothfulness, we are damned?
If we are to be Christians in deed, we should remember and keep these sayings:
" if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift."
"All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them."
"Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
And do you recall that the Savior gave us this particular commandment: "Thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are"? He further explained that "no man can serve two masters. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
There is also this vital scriptural text: "He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house; he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight."
When the Almighty spoke from Sinai commanding that we should not steal, in the same breath he said: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour," and he also declared that we must covet nothing that is our neighbor's.
In modern revelation he said forcefully: "Thou shalt not lie; he that lieth and will not repent shall be cast out."
And he made an important part of Christian teachings this great precept: "Thou shalt not speak evil of thy neighbor, nor do him any harm."
And then quite on the opposite side of the picture, as he taught mankind to avoid avarice and greed, which leads into all forms of dishonesty, he urged that we take the higher route. Instead of taking from our fellowmen, we must learn to give-to be good Samaritans in very deed; to share with our less fortunate neighbors, and in reality show love for our fellowmen. So he said: " remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support. And inasmuch as ye impart of your substance unto the poor, ye will do it unto me. "
The Savior knows the great burden of sin. He bore that burden in Gethsemane and on the cross for each one of us. He knows that the sinful life is the costly and miserable life, and that wickedness never was happiness. He invites us to bear a lighter burden, one of joy, relief, and deep satisfaction, and he says:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
The Lord makes it clear that all have need of repentance, and that if we truly repent and accept his yoke of love and forgiveness and of obedience, he will receive us.
Through his ancient servant John he said:
" if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
On the other hand he said:
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
"He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
"But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes."
And then we have the words from James that faith without works is dead. We must combine our faith with our works and our works with our faith to be Christians indeed, and our works must be works of truth.
The Spirit of God is the spirit of truth. The Savior is the personification of truth. Describing himself he said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Except through the truth there is no salvation in the kingdom of God, and that truth is Christ. And this is my testimony to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion G. Romney
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brethren and sisters, members of the Church and nonmembers, if we are edified while I am speaking, you and I will both need to be guided by the Spirit of the Lord, because I propose to quote to you what he said as he spoke to his disciples concerning our day, the predicaments in which we find ourselves, and the immediate future to follow.
"And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not." So wrote the disciple whom Jesus loved.
This scripture came to mind recently as I read a statement attributed to Dr. Charles H. Malik, former president of the General Assembly of the United Nations. In it he said that what is needed today is "the challenge of a truly universal message, a vision of something great and tremendous, a call to an heroic mission. The immediate situation presents the aspect of a final and total judgment: everything is being weighed-one's life, one's values, one's culture, the vitality of the whole civilization to which one belongs.
"It is very much then like the last day. And those who believe will tell you that God is there and that most certainly He watches over His own, even if He should sorely chasten them still."
Pondering this analysis of the sad plight of our society, one comes to the conclusion that the predicament in which we find ourselves today has not come about for want of an adequate guide, but rather for want of a listening ear.
In conversing with you this morning, my purpose is to emphasize the fact that in our troubled world there now is and has been for a hundred and forty years a safe and sure guiding light; a light destined to bring joy, peace, and happiness to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people who will follow it.
My witness to you is that our beloved Savior, Jesus Christ, while still in mortality, foresaw and foretold the circumstances in which we find ourselves today. He also at that time revealed the now impending consequences of our present course and prescribed the means he would make available for averting them.
What he then said was and is, in his view, of such importance to us that he has had a record of it preserved in three separate scriptures: the Bible, the Pearl of Great Price, and the Doctrine and Covenants.
The circumstances under which he spoke are most impressive. As he went for the last time from Jerusalem to Bethany, he stood with his apostles on the Mount of Olives. Being concerned over his prediction that of the temple buildings there would not be left one stone upon another, they asked him for an explanation. "Tell us," they said, "when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?"
I shall not recite what he said about the then-impending destruction of Jerusalem. I do, however, because of its relevance to our present and future welfare, invite you to seriously consider with me what he said about the signs of his second coming "and of the end of the world." As to these events, he began by saying: " when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel."
That this prediction referred to our day is established by the fact that that "light" spoken of broke forth in the spring of 1820 when the Father and the Son appeared to the boy prophet, Joseph Smith. During the years immediately following, "the fulness of gospel" was restored to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
These great events were to, and did, usher in "the times of the Gentiles"-that is, the era in which, in this last dispensation, the gospel is to be preached primarily to the non-Jewish people of the earth. You will recall that in the meridian of time it went first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles.
But, back to what the Savior said:
" when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel;
"But they receive it not; for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from me because of the precepts of men."
The fulfillment of this prediction is painfully evident today. The large majority to whom the gospel has been taken reject it. It is because of this rejection, and not because there is no guiding light, that this generation has been and, unless it reverses its course, will continue to be unable to avoid the calamities foreseen and foretold by Jesus. For, said he, in that generation-that is, in which the gospel is preached-"they perceive not the light" and "turn their hearts from me.
" there shall be men standing in that generation, that shall not pass until they shall see an overflowing scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land.
"But my disciples shall stand in holy places, and shall not be moved; but among the wicked, men shall lift up their voices and curse God and die.
"And there shall be earthquakes also in divers places, and many desolations; yet men will harden their hearts against me, and they will take up the sword, one against another, and they will kill one another.
"And now, when I the Lord had spoken these words unto my disciples, they were troubled.
"And I said unto them: Be not troubled, for, when all these things shall come to pass, ye may know that the promises which have been made unto you shall be fulfilled."
Then referring again to the breaking forth of the light, Jesus continued his prophetic utterance to his disciples by saying:
"And when the light shall begin to break forth, it shall be with them like unto a parable which I will show you-
"Ye look and behold the figtrees, and ye see them with your eyes, and ye say when they begin to shoot forth, and their leaves are yet tender, that summer is now nigh at hand;
"Even so it shall be in that day when they shall see all these things, then shall they know that the hour is nigh.
"And it shall come to pass that he that feareth me Shall be looking forth for the great day of the Lord to come, even for the signs of the coming of the Son of Man.
"And they shall see signs and wonders, for they shall be shown forth in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath.
"And they shall behold blood, and fire, and vapors of smoke."
Some of these signs we have already witnessed, and others we shall witness later. For, Jesus continued, " before the day of the Lord shall come, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon be turned into blood, and the stars fall from heaven.
"And the remnant shall be gathered unto this place.
"And then they shall look for me, and, behold, I will come; and they shall see me in the clouds of heaven, clothed with power and great glory; with all the holy angels; and he that watches not for me shall be cut off."
The righteous, however, shall not be cut off. Listen to the promises the Lord made to those who receive the gospel and live it.
"But before the arm of the Lord shall fall, an angel shall sound his trump, and the saints that have slept shall come forth to meet me in the cloud.
"Wherefore, if ye have slept in peace blessed are you; for as you now behold me and know that I am, even so shall ye come unto me and your souls shall live, and your redemption shall be perfected; and the saints shall come forth from the four quarters of the earth."
We are assured by these words that whether we die before he comes or persist in mortality, we shall, if we have been true and faithful, be with him and rejoice at his coming.
And then, after those who are resurrected have come unto him, and the righteous who are living at the time of his coming have come forth from the four quarters of the earth, " shall the arm of the Lord fall upon the nations.
"And then shall the Lord set his foot upon this mount, and it shall cleave in twain, and the earth shall tremble, and reel to and fro, and the heavens also shall shake.
"And the Lord shall utter his voice, and all the ends of the earth shall hear it; and the nations of the earth shall mourn, and they that have laughed shall see their folly.
"And calamity shall cover the mocker, and the scorner shall be consumed; and they that have watched for iniquity shall be hewn down and cast into the fire."
"And Satan shall be bound, that he shall have no place in the hearts of the children of men.
"And at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins.
"For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived-verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day."
"They that are wise and have received the truth" are they who, when they hear the gospel, accept it. They who "have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived," are they who have not only had the gift bestowed upon them, but who have thereafter so lived as to have received the guidance of the Holy Ghost to such an extent that they have not been deceived. Such are they who, whether resurrected at his coming or still living in mortality, "shall abide the day" of Christ's second coming.
"And the earth shall be given unto them for an inheritance; and they shall multiply and wax strong, and their children shall grow up without sin unto salvation.
"For the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver."
This great prophetic pronouncement of Jesus reveals the cause of our predicament, which gave Dr. Malik such concern over the future of our civilization. It confirms the fact that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is the sure light shining in the darkness of our troubled world. The gospel, restored through the Prophet Joseph, is the good doctor's yearned-for "vision great and tremendous." It sounds the "call to an heroic mission." It is "the challenge of a truly universal message." It is what the good doctor says is required today. It confirms his conclusion that the world's "immediate situation presents the aspect of a final and total judgment: everything is being weighed-one's life, one's values, one's culture, the vitality of the whole civilization to which one belongs." It confirms the fact that our times are not only "very much like the last day," but it assures us that they are in very deed the last days and that God is truly "there" watching "over his own."
To the truth of this scripture which we have considered, I bear personal witness. I know that he who spoke it was and is the Son of God, the Creator and Redeemer of the earth and the inhabitants thereof; that he knows, and knew from the beginning, all things; that he spoke eternal truth.
I bear witness that the fullness of the everlasting gospel is in the earth. The predicted light has broken forth. Many others of the predicted signs of Christ's coming have been given. Others are now visible. The rest are imminent.
I testify that God is not dead. He is at the helm. His power-his priesthood-is in the earth; his programs are on schedule; his "eternal purposes shall roll on, until all his promises shall be fulfilled."
To this I bear solemn witness as a special witness of Christ, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
About a month ago I was sent by the First Presidency to hold a series of Church conferences in South America. Frankly, I didn't know quite what to expect of that land. I had thought of South America as a rather primitive jungle area. I expected the people to be a little backward, perhaps in need of education and training in the ways of modern civilization. When I saw those countries and their people, I couldn't have been more astonished.
I saw great cities there with ultra-modern, high-rise buildings and modern conveniences on every side. Traffic was as heavy as in our great cities in North America. They were building apartment houses, offices, subways, roads, and factories with feverish haste to try to meet the needs of an expanding economy.
Frankly, I fell in love with the people of South America. When I first went there I knew no one, but I was received with such warmth and hospitality that when I left a few weeks later I found myself with many new and choice friends, giving them a brotherly abrazo or hug of affection as we parted.
In talking with Church leaders, I found that South Americans face the same problems people generally face in other areas of the world. My friends in South America told me that people there are so intent on filling their material needs that their spiritual needs are being neglected. Churches are losing their hold on their members. People are not interested in present-day religions, and church influence is declining. People are finding neither comfort nor solace in religious teachings and philosophies.
The same thing is true in Europe and the United States. I suppose it is true all over the world. Churches in many areas are becoming centers of political activism. Ministers and priests are leading protest marches for political causes. Pastors are turning to psychology, psychiatry, and social science in an attempt to serve and fill the emotional and spiritual needs of their parishioners. When sermons are given, they are intellectual masterpieces of learned men trained in schools of divinity as orators, but the heart has gone out of their words. They give messages full of man's wisdom, but not of God.
Church leaders feel and know this. As a result, they are seeking to reform their churches. Great changes in doctrine and church procedures are being proposed, and some of these changes have actually been put into practice. Conferences and synods are called into session to try to define points of doctrine, methods of procedure, or the wording of gospel ordinances, etc. It appears to me that men are trying to speak for God instead of letting God speak for himself.
It has been said that what is needed most today is not the voice of man, but the voice of God. Which generation of men and women have ever needed more the voice of a prophet of God to guide them than we do today? In a time in history when we are beset by a clamor of voices from every side saying "Lo, here is truth" or "No, here is truth," where can we find an authoritative voice saying "Thus saith the Lord"? Where is a Moses, or an Isaiah, or a Peter, or a Paul who can speak from personal knowledge of God?
I see, as you see, ideological dissension throughout the length and breadth of the earth. We read in papers and magazines and books various proposals of men who seek to solve moral and ethical problems by the passing of legislation. We see men and women turning to political theory or to science in an attempt to solve the spiritual and moral problems of today's civilization. We are trying to solve our problems by man's philosophy and learning and by human wisdom. I again hear Isaiah's words as he spoke the mind and the will of God:
"Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
"So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."
God's way is the way to solve our political, moral, ethical, even our financial problems. The way of the Lord can eliminate wars, riots, discrimination, suffering, and starvation. What the world then needs is direction from a true prophet who, knowing the mind and the will of God, can speak in his name with power and authority and say, "Thus saith the Lord!"
That day has come! Old Testament prophets made predictions that in the last days God would reestablish his kingdom upon the earth never again to pass away. Daniel spoke of a stone that God would cut out of the mountain by his own hand that should roll forth to fill the whole earth. Micah said this was to transpire in the last days when the earth would be filled with commotion and upheavals. Malachi foretold the coming of Elijah and the restoration of all things. Jesus said that a messenger, or Elias, would be sent before his second coming to restore all things in preparation for that coming event. Peter testified that in the last days a time of refreshing would come and that Jesus would remain in heaven "until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
This restoration, foretold in advance, began so quietly and so un-ostentatiously that the world was not even aware that it happened. It came as quietly and unobtrusively as "a thief in the night." It came not by man's wisdom, but in answer to a simple prayer by Joseph Smith, a young boy in New York State who went into the woods near Palmyra to ask God a simple question: "Which church is right?" That young man had no idea that a new dispensation of God's mercy and kindness was about to begin. At that time there was no prophet living on the earth who could answer Joseph's question. There was no way for God to have that question answered, except for God to answer it himself.
The true knowledge of God had been lost during the centuries following the death of Christ. When Joseph Smith went into those woods to pray, he knew no more about God than did his contemporaries. Up to that time every Christian church believed and taught of a Godhead fused into one. They believed in a God of spirit, unknown and unknowable. You can well imagine the astonishment of Joseph when not one, but two Personages appeared to him in answer to that simple prayer. As the one Personage spoke and pointed to the other, he introduced him with these words: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" It was the living, resurrected Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, who instructed Joseph and who thus opened a new dispensation of the true knowledge of God. He told Joseph that no church then existed on the earth authorized to speak in his name. He told Joseph that after proper preparation and the bestowal of priesthood authority, Joseph was to be the first of a line of living prophets in this day and age who were to instruct and bless mankind, even as did the prophets of old.
Just as foretold by Jesus Christ, heavenly messengers holding the keys of the holy priesthood came to earth and bestowed that priesthood power upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. They gave those men authority to know the mind and the will of God for these latter days. That same power has continued to this very day.
Additional scriptures were given so that in the mouth of two or more witnesses the truth of all things might be established. New revelations were given to restore proper priesthood procedures and to reestablish ordinances as they had been used and practiced in the days of Jesus Christ. The Church of Jesus Christ was restored again with the same powers, gifts, and authority as in former days. Again God had spokesmen upon the earth who had the gift to know the mind and will of God and who had authority to say, "Thus saith the Lord!"
When Joseph Smith rose from his knees in that sacred grove, he knew more about the nature, the power, and the attributes of God than learned scholars could find out through a lifetime of study. This is the genius of the Church of Jesus Christ today. It is the testimony and power of the Holy Ghost that distinguishes this church from others. We need not convene councils of learned men to debate the mind and will of God. We have living prophets and apostles to direct us. If we will follow their counsel, we can avoid the evils of today and have tranquillity of faith and peace of mind.
For this reason there is great inherent power in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to influence men's lives for good. Men and women who know they are doing the will of God will be ready to sacrifice, to share, to serve, and to live in peace one with another. Peace cannot come by legislation or through affiliation with any political philosophy. Man's methods of solving his problems are subject to the misuse of power and the errors which come from inexperience and lack of knowledge. Peace, joy, and happiness can come only through an acceptance of God's revealed plan of life.
I found in South America the same rapid growth of the Church that I had experienced during the past three years on the west coast of the United States and Canada. Our problem is not the problem of empty churches, but of church buildings filled to overflowing. We are building as rapidly as we can to fill those needs, but it is a continuing struggle. I was pleasantly surprised to find our buildings in South America used not only on Sundays, but also on weekdays. Our young people were busy almost every day of the week using the buildings and grounds like a social club. They were playing football on the grounds. They were holding theatrical and musical rehearsals in the cultural halls. Youth seminaries and children's Primary classes were being held in the classrooms. I attended a banquet for young people in Buenos Aires. I visited a beginning Deseret Industries operation in Montevideo where our sisters were learning how to sew, to remodel clothes, to knit, to weave, while building fellowship one with another. In Sao Paulo, Brazil, young and old alike were working together without any generation gap to build a new athletic playing field.
You might well ask, "How was it that you, a stranger, should find such a warm reception in those lands when you couldn't even speak their language?" The reason is that I was accepted as their brother in Jesus Christ. We spoke the same language of the heart. We had the same ideals, the same desires, the same goals. I attended a conference in Brazil where the people of the Church were having such a good time talking and visiting together that it was a little difficult to call the meeting to order. Those people loved one another. They were the smilingest, handshakingest, happiest people I saw in all of South America. With that kind of brotherhood, is it any wonder that the three stakes in Sao Paulo are growing at such a rapid rate that each year about a thousand new converts are absorbed into the Lord's family in each of those stakes?
When I saw those people so happy together and enjoying each other's company so much, I thought how powerful the restored gospel can be. When a man is convinced that he is truly a son of God or a woman is convinced that she is truly a daughter of God, there are no limits to the growth of that person. This is a fundamental concept of our Church membership. As members of a royal family, no longer will we be content to be like other men and women. We feel different. We realize that nothing can keep us from success when we are doing the Lord's work. We are willing to work harder, to sacrifice more, and to share our talents and blessings with others because we know who we are. As Peter taught the members of the church in his day:
"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
"Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy."
If you are discouraged, if you are puzzled, if you are seeking for greater light, greater joy and happiness, investigate these revealed truths. Find out for yourself. Come and listen to a prophet's voice. Join with the people of God to become a covenant son or daughter of the true and living God. Obtain your inheritance in the kingdom of heaven, be assigned your lineage rights, and obtain a knowledge of the real purpose of life. To the people already members of the Church of Jesus Christ, let us develop those gifts which are within us. Let us practice that kindness one for another, and let us show that love for our fellowmen which comes through wholehearted acceptance of the principles of truth.
I bear you my sacred witness that God lives, that Jesus Christ is his living Son-our Savior, our Lord, our king. I testify to you that Jesus Christ now speaks to the inhabitants of this world in this day and age through living prophets. I testify to you that the Melchizedek Priesthood is again upon the earth in all its majesty and power and that true apostles and prophets now live who can and do say, "Thus saith the Lord!"
I bear you this personal witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
I am very grateful to my Father in heaven for the privilege of attending another general conference of the Church with all you faithful Latter-day Saints here present this afternoon.
The Savior said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." I am sure that those of us who have been privileged to attend the last three sessions of this conference have felt a realization that we have truly been fed the bread of life eternal. We have had some wonderful counsel and inspiration given to us by the servants of the Lord.
Bread will keep the body alive, but it takes more than that to keep the spirit alive. The music has been wonderful, and I would like to compliment these singers from Ricks College. I was there just a few weeks ago at their devotional, and we can't help but thank the Lord for all the institutions of his church and what these institutions and educational opportunities are doing for our young people.
Today I thought I would like to say a few words about the kind of a foundation we have for our faith, and what we live for, and what our aims and our ambitions really are. I think of the time the beautiful temple here on this block was erected, over a hundred years ago. When the foundation was being laid, we are told that it was sixteen feet wide, and at one time President Brigham Young came and saw the workmen throwing in chipped granite. He made them take it out and put in those great granite blocks with this explanation: "We are building this temple to stand through the millennium." Isn't that a good thought? Each one of us ought to want to build our lives and help our families to build their lives so that we can stand through the millennium.
As we listened to Brother Romney in this morning's session, outlining the promises of the prophets and the Savior himself regarding his coming, who is there among us who wouldn't want to be walking in a way that would assure us that, when the trump of God shall sound and the dead shall come forth, we, with our loved ones, can be numbered among them and share in his presence.
I think of the words of the apostle John, who was banished upon the Isle of Patmos and was shown by an angel everything from the war in heaven, when Satan was cast out, to the final winding-up scene. He saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works-not just their faith, not just what they say with their mouths, but by their works. And death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them and they were judged every man according to his works.
" and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years."
Who is there whose testimony has ever been touched by the divine Spirit who would be satisfied to remain a thousand years when the trump of God should sound and they might have prepared themselves? And if it takes a sixteen-foot foundation to hold that temple for the millennium, then it takes a lot of obedience on our part to prepare ourselves for that glorious event.
The Savior said, " strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." And so we want to be sure that we are on that straight and narrow way which leadeth to life. He said on another occasion:
" whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
"And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
The kind of foundation upon which we build our lives is just as important for our eternal happiness as is the kind of a foundation upon which they built that holy temple that it might stand through the millennium.
A few years ago while I was president of the Southern States Mission, I delivered a sermon one night in Quitman, Georgia, on the eternal duration of the marriage covenant and the family unit. I read from Brother Rulon S. Howells' book Do Men Believe What Their Church Prescribes? He has a chart there where he lists all the major churches and then their statement and attitude toward the major doctrinal principles, including this one about the eternal duration of the marriage covenant, and not one believes this.
I just cannot understand how they could read the Bible and yet not believe, and how marriages could be performed in the churches all over the world until death do you part. What a flimsy concept! Why don't they go back to the time when God had finished the creation of this earth, and looked upon it and found it good, and placed Adam here, at which time he said: "It is not good that the man should be alone. " He made a helpmeet for him, saying, " and they shall be one flesh." Now what God joins together and makes one flesh, you couldn't separate without having two halves instead of two wholes. Jesus repeated that statement when he said:
"For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
" what therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder."
At the close of that meeting, I stood at the door to shake hands with the people as they left, and a man came up and introduced himself to me as a Baptist minister. I said, "Did I misquote you here tonight?" "No, Mr. Richards," he said; "it is just like you say. We don't all believe all the things that our churches teach." And I said, "And you don't believe them either. Why don't you go back and teach your people the truth? They will take it from you and they are not ready to take it from the Mormon elders yet." He said, "I'll see you again," and that is all I could get from him that night.
The next time I went to that branch to hold a conference, about four months later, my coming was announced in the newspaper because I was the mission president. As I walked up to that little church, there stood that Baptist minister waiting for me. As we shook hands I said, "I would certainly be interested to know what you thought of my last sermon here." He said, "Mr. Richards, I have been thinking about it ever since. I believe every word you said." Then he said, "But I would like to hear the rest of it." How could any man who has a true love for his wife and his children not want to believe that principle?
I like the little verse written by Anderson M. Baten, "To His Wife Beulah," in which he said:
There are people like that who believe that marriage ought to be eternal, but there is no other church in all this world, outside of our church, as far as I know, that believes in the eternal duration of the marriage covenant.
Just think what a difference it makes in our lives when we know that we are to live on and on forever and forever! I would just as soon believe that death is a complete annihilation of both body and spirit as to think that when death came it would separate me from my wife and from my children and that we would not know each other. I tell you, there wouldn't be very much to look forward to. How could you want to live on and on forever without a continuation of the love ties that bind you together here?
We see cases of kidnapping, when children are taken away. I remember years ago, I think it was in 1932, when Colonel Lindbergh's little boy was kidnapped and a note was left asking for $50,000. He would gladly have paid what they asked if he could have gotten his boy back again. And yet here we come along with the knowledge of life eternal. Brother Marion G. Romney quoted this morning the revelation of the Lord where he said that in the resurrection children would come forth and grow up without sin unto salvation.
There are those of us who have laid away our little ones in the grave, and we had that responsibility. A little daughter was born to us over in Holland while I was president of the mission there, and we kept her until she was three and a half years old. My wife has said time and time again that she knew the angels brought that spirit to her because she felt their presence, and yet we laid her away in the grave. If we had to feel that that was the end, we would have given anything in this world to have her back again. And then we come to this great knowledge that we have in the restoration of the gospel, that she will be ours in the eternal world and we will have the joy of seeing her grow up without sin, unto salvation. Sometimes I have thought that probably some of these choice spirits did not need the experience here in mortality like other children, and that is why the Lord has seen fit to call them home.
We had four daughters before we had a son. We were sent to California to preside over a stake down there, and our boy went out with a member of the high council and his boys, and he lost his life in an accident. That is the greatest sorrow that ever came to us, but now we are getting up on the top of the ladder, so to speak, and we look forward, knowing that these love ties are intended by God, our Eternal Father, to endure throughout the eternities. It takes the sting away from death to know that we are going to meet those who are so dear and sacred to us. Thank God for this knowledge! I want to see our foundation here so laid that we will be worthy to stand with our loved ones and with the sanctified and the redeemed of our Father's children.
Brothers and sisters, we are a blessed people. We are blessed in the privilege of living upon the earth when the gospel has been restored and having a knowledge of its truth. We are blessed to have a foundation upon which to build our faith, which makes every day a happy day as we associate with our loved ones. No wonder President McKay so often said that no success in life can compensate for failure in the home. And the nearer men and women live unto God in keeping his commandments, the greater is the love in the home and the greater appreciation of the knowledge that that love can continue throughout the eternities that are to come.
While I was president of the Southern States Mission, a schoolteacher loaned a book to one of our Mormon children; and when the book came back, in it was an Articles of Faith card, and that schoolteacher read it. She went to her minister and said, "Why can't our church have something like this?" The minister could not give her any satisfactory explanation, and so she wrote a letter to the Bureau of Information here in Salt Lake City. They sent her literature, they sent us her name, the missionaries called on her, and she joined the Church.
Then I think, as I read those Articles of Faith written by the Prophet Joseph Smith, how could anybody read those articles and then not believe that we have the truth? No other church in the world has such a foundation to build upon. In closing, I would like to recite some of them:
"We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost." Two separate, distinct personages, the Prophet Joseph taught, with bodies of flesh and bone, and the Holy Ghost a personage of spirit.
"We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam's transgression." There are not very many churches that believe this.
"We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel." Most of the preaching today is that all you have to do is to confess him as your Savior, but our statement is that we have to do what he says.
"We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost." I don't believe there is any other church in the world built upon that foundation, and yet if we turn to the sixth chapter of Hebrews, Paul says:
" leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God.
"Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment."
That is exactly the same as we have it in our Articles of Faith.
"We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof." No other church believes that; they think they have authority by reading their Bibles.
"We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, viz., apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, etc." Paul tells us that his church is built upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, with Christ himself being the chief cornerstone; and no other church has such a foundation.
"We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healings, interpretation of tongues, and so forth."
"We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God." And no man can believe the Bible without knowing that there is another volume of scripture that God has promised to bring forth and put with it and make them one in his hands.
"We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God." In other words, we believe in continuous revelation and that Christ's true church is directed by revelation today.
And then, "We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion will be built upon this continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory." We know these things, and Isaiah tells us that when that day shall come there shall be a new heaven and a new earth in which the lamb and the lion shall lie down together, and we shall build houses and inhabit them, and we shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof. We shall not build that another shall inhabit, but every man shall enjoy the works of his own hands, and they are the blessed of the Lord and their offspring with them.
No wonder we ought to want to lay a foundation comparable to that foundation upon which the holy temple stands, so we can be sure that we will stand with our loved ones through the millennium. May God help each one of us and our families so to do, I pray, and leave you my blessing, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
As I look out over this vast audience, I am conscious that the greatest number on the main floor are priesthood leaders and of that group likely the largest number are bishops.
I have great respect for the bishops of the Church and for their many responsibilities. A bishop is the father of the ward, the presiding high priest of the ward, and a common judge in Israel. One of the areas in which he sits in judgment is when he must determine one's worthiness to hold office in the Church, to officiate in Church ordinances, to hold temple recommends, etc.
It is the bishop's duty to counsel the members of his ward, assist them in their problems, listen to the confessions of the transgressors and assist them in their repentance. Unfortunately, many in the last category, because of their transgressions, are quite inactive and need much attention. Because of their sins, they feel they are lost-that there is no use trying. It is to these members throughout the Church that I would particularly like to direct my remarks today. These are all wonderful sons and daughters of our Father who, in a weak moment or because of circumstances possibly not of their own liking, have slipped. Now in their despair and guilt of conscience, they feel lost. An attitude prevails of "What's the use? There's no hope for me now; I can never be forgiven." Through the devotion of a wonderful bishop who never gives up in working with these individuals, they can be helped. When they learn that there is hope, that God is merciful, that there is forgiveness for sin, a beam of light can begin to shine through the heaviness and depression of transgression.
Listen to a letter received by a bishop from one in such a circumstance. There had been a beautiful interview in which the young lady poured out her heart to the bishop. He had given her the assurance that all was not lost and that there is forgiveness for sin, providing there is complete repentance. After a few days she wrote:
"Somehow you don't realize how bad it has been until the weight begins to be lifted. I know it takes time to make up for wrong done, and maybe the best way I can express my thanks to you and my Father in heaven is to become the person you think I am and the person God knows I can become. In kind of a funny way, I'm scared inside-not scared exactly, just a feeling of how important what we do in this life is. Life has always had so much to offer me, like being able to see and touch and taste and enjoy; like seeing a sunset, hearing a baby's laugh, watching two children playing, or seeing someone overcome an obstacle in his life. But there is always the baby's cry, the children arguing, and someone not quite making it. I don't know where I got this thought, but it seems to be just right.
President Spencer W. Kimball has described just such a situation as I have referred to:
"Sometimes a guilt consciousness overpowers a person with such a heaviness that when a repentant one looks back and sees the ugliness, the loathsomeness of the transgression, he is almost overwhelmed and wonders, 'Can the Lord ever forgive me? Can I ever forgive myself?' But when one reaches the depths of despondency and feels the hopelessness of his position, and when he cries out to God for mercy in helplessness but in faith, there comes a still, small, but penetrating voice whispering to his soul, 'Thy sins are forgiven thee.'"
The scriptures give us great comfort. In First John we read: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
And again we read: "For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance;
"Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven."
Possibly one of the most soul-satisfying scriptures to the transgressor is this: "Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more."
President Kimball has used some sound logic as he explains this matter. He said: " the call to repentance from sin is to all men the call promises forgiveness of sin to those who respond. What a farce it would be to call people to repentance if there were no forgiveness, and what a waste of the life of Christ if it failed to bring the opportunity for salvation and exaltation!"
One of the most beautiful scriptures comes from Isaiah, in which is given the promise of forgiveness to all who repent:
"Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
"Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."
Repentance isn't always easy. It takes great humility. It often requires superhuman courage, especially in major transgression. But the Lord has told us plainly how we can tell if a man or woman has repented of his sins. He said: "By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins-behold, he will confess them and forsake them."
Confession and forsaking, then, are the two important elements of repentance. After one has been brought to realize his transgression and made his determination to turn from it, he must humble himself to make his confession. It would be much easier to simply cease doing the wrong, in the case of serious sin, and say nothing to anyone. But to humble himself to confess it to the ones offended and to the bishop is a more sobering matter and takes real humility.
Following confession, the transgressor should demonstrate with good works his repentance, keeping faithfully the commandments of the Lord. Restitution is also an important part of repentance. Restitution, to the degree possible, should be made to restore that which has been taken or to repair the damage that has been done, demonstrating to those offended by his actions his remorse and determination to make amends.
President Harold B. Lee has expressed this so beautifully:
"That confession must be made first to him or her who has been most wronged by your acts. A sincere confession is not merely admitting guilt after the proof is already in evidence. If you have 'offended many persons openly,' your acknowledgment is to be made openly and before those whom you have offended that you might show your shame and humility and willingness to receive a merited rebuke. If your act is secret and has resulted in injury to no one but yourself, your confession should be in secret, and your Heavenly Father who hears in secret may reward you openly. Acts that may affect your standing in the Church, or your right to privileges or advancement in the Church, are to be promptly confessed to the bishop whom the Lord has appointed as a shepherd over every flock and commissioned to be a common judge in Israel. He may hear such confessions in secret and deal justly and mercifully, as each case warrants. Following confession, one in sin must show forth the fruits of his repentance by good deeds that are weighed against the bad. He must make proper restitution to the limit of his power to restore that which he has taken away or to repair the damage he has done."
After one has confessed his transgression and started in motion the processes of repentance, by demonstrating with good works his sincere desire to be completely forgiven, how do we know when to forgive? When do we know he has truly repented?
In a revelation to the Church in Kirtland, Ohio, in 1831, the Lord said:
" verily I say unto you, I, the Lord, forgive sins unto those who confess their sins before me and ask forgiveness, who have not sinned unto death.
"Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin.
"I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men."
In these explicit instructions to the Church-that we are to forgive all men their trespasses-it doesn't mean that after the bishop hears the confessions of one of his members, he immediately absolves them of all responsibility for their transgressions by his forgiveness. Surely he is forgiving. He puts his arm around them, is kind and understanding, and does everything possible to help them back to complete activity. But in spite of his love and understanding, he may have to impose a penalty, a "time of forsaking" in which the individual is denied certain church privileges for a period of time, depending on the seriousness of the transgression.
Someone is reputed to have asked one of the Brethren, "When is one forgiven of his transgressions?" and he replied, "When he has repented." He was then asked, "How do you know when he has repented?" His answer was, "If you could look into the heart of the individual you could tell. Possibly repentance was at the time of confession, but since we don't know, there must be a time in which the person can demonstrate his repentance through faithfulness to the gospel."
The time of forsaking will likely be determined by the seriousness of the transgression and the repentant attitude of the transgressor. A letter from the First Presidency to a stake president, who was assisting one of the members of his stake to receive forgiveness for a serious moral transgression, included the following enlightening paragraph:
"Confession and forsaking are elements of genuine repentance and must be coupled with restitution, so far as possible, for whatever wrong has been done, and the living of all the commandments of the Lord. There is a question as to whether or not sufficient time has elapsed to determine compliance with the forsaking element. We feel more time should be required to prove this person can live righteously in the future."
The General Handbook of Instructions of the Church indicates a certain time of waiting, after serious transgression, before individuals can be given full Church or priesthood privileges.
But whatever the penalties, however long or arduous the process, even humbling in sackcloth and ashes, repentance is the only course.
Through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ our sins can be washed clear. In the words of Amulek: " he said unto him that the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins.
"And he hath power given unto him from the Father to redeem them from their sins because of repentance."
Now one final bit of assurance that the repentant one may be forgiven: "Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am."
It may not be easy-the road may be long, but I leave you my witness it is the way the Lord has provided in his mercy to us. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Of the Presiding Bishopric
My brothers and sisters, it is my desire and hope that I might say something meaningful to those who find themselves confused, discouraged, and lost in this mixed-up world-something that will give each one encouragement and faith that there is a way to find oneself. The solution is not found in sophisticated, high-sounding formulas but in the simple, plain truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the only true and lasting pathway to real peace and happiness in life.
I recently witnessed the evidence of this truth in a most unusual setting. May I share it with you? In June of this year I was invited to attend a graduation exercise conducted by the LDS Institute of Religion and Church Social Services Department held at the Utah State Prison. Seventeen men received certificates of award: nine received their first-year certificates, five their second-year, and three their third. Twenty-four others had participated in religion classes but did not quite qualify for certificates.
As I recall, only two had been released from prison and had returned that evening to receive their certificates. All of the others were inmates. Many of them were not members of the Church.
One would hardly expect in the environment of the prison to hear the beautiful, stirring hymns "I Need Thee Every Hour" and "Sweet Hour of Prayer." They were sung by two choruses composed of white and black prisoners.
Men dressed in prison uniforms offered humble, sincere prayers to God, expressing gratitude for their blessings and for the knowledge they now have of his gospel. Several stood at the pulpit and testified that they know God lives, and expressed gratitude for his goodness to them. May I tell you of just two of these men-men whose lives were seriously out of step with society; men with internal, personal problems that really are not much different from those of many who have never been in prison. I shall not identify them by their real names.
The first one we will call Jim. Jim comes from a distant state. He is a fine-looking, clean-cut young man not quite thirty years old. He was one of those who opposed the establishment and society in general. He came from a broken home. He had experienced no love in his life. He left home at age seventeen and joined the army. After release from the military, he wandered about the country without goal or purpose in life, finally finding himself in Salt Lake City. He was involved in a theft, arrested, convicted, and sent to prison. He escaped one day, was recaptured, and was placed in maximum security. In his words, "I came out of maximum security and returned to medium, and still did not know what to do with my life."
One of the prisoners, knowing of some of the turmoil Jim was going through, sent him to see the LDS chaplain. This was the beginning of a completely new experience in Jim's life. Even though he found himself in prison, he had taken the first step to a freedom he had not known existed.
After a few weeks of exposure to the program of the Church specially designed for prison life, he said he was able to give up smoking. He became involved in the various religious programs sponsored by the Church social service agency. He said, "I haven't smoked a cigarette since that day. I haven't had a cup of coffee since December of last year." He goes on to tell of the good feeling of accomplishment in overcoming bad personal habits.
He also tells about the family home evening program conducted by his home teachers. He explained that he would have given up in discouragement many times had it not been for this wonderful couple who had been assigned as his home teachers. He said they actually loved him as a son, something he had never experienced in his life, even as a little boy. In his own words: "I have been in this program since June 16, 1970. For these sixteen months, I probably made more changes in my life-inside these walls away from the rat race of society-that I know are going to determine my whole future more than the first twenty-three years of my life before prison. I had no idea at all what the LDS people were or what the Church was until I went to prison.
"I am not proud of being in prison, but I am proud of my experience while being there. I am proud of being a graduate of the program that the LDS people have offered to the inmates at the prison."
This is the young man who conducted the graduation exercises and did it in a most impressive manner. His goal now is to finish paying his debt to society in order to be released from prison so that he might prepare for baptism and membership in the Church.
And now about Ed. Ed also comes from a distant city. Ed started stealing when he was nine. He was arrested for auto theft at age thirteen, later convicted of grand larceny, and sent to prison in another state. He came to Utah, was arrested for and convicted of grand larceny again, and was sent to the Utah State Prison.
Ed became acquainted with the Church social services program conducted in the prison in much the same way as Jim. Once when Ed was on his way to one of the Church meetings, some of the prisoners ridiculed him, as only hardened convicts could. He responded that when he was on the outside he had acted as they did. Now he wanted to change and no one was going to stop him.
Ed had some particularly wonderful home teachers who occasionally brought their own children to the prison to have family home evening with him. The children consider Ed as an older brother. He considers himself a member of their family. Ed was one of those who had been released from prison and had returned to receive his certificate at the graduation exercises. He was invited to speak at the service.
As he stood at the pulpit, he took a piece of paper from his pocket. Holding it up to the audience, he said: "You probably can't read this, but this is the most important document in my life. This is my baptismal recommend that will permit me to be baptized next Thursday." Ed was baptized. After his confirmation, he walked over to a corner of the room where he could be alone and wept. He wept even more when he was ordained a deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood.
What conclusions can we draw from this? Certainly these young men were faced with serious problems. Yes, they had lost their physical freedom by being confined in jail, but this was not the basic problem. Even more serious was the lack of purpose in their lives. They had no place to go. They were lost. Life had no meaning. They had no idea why they were here on earth or where they were going.
Release from the prison would not begin to solve their most urgent problems; and yet, in the environment of prison, they found the release that could ultimately make them truly free men. They found their Savior, Jesus Christ, and his gospel.
There are many who find themselves in circumstances similar to those of Jim and Ed-not necessarily confined to a correctional institution, but nevertheless in prison, a prison from which legal authorities cannot release them, a prison of personal habits such as alcohol, drugs, immorality, selfishness, dishonesty, laziness, aimlessness; yes, these can be more confining and damning than any state prison. Yet there is a way to escape to a freedom that surpasses anything designed by man-the kind of freedom Jim and Ed have found.
This freedom can only be found by accepting the divine plan and keeping the commandments of him who gave his life for each of us that we might find eternal life-even Jesus Christ. For did he not say: "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free"? In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Some years ago, I read an editorial in the Deseret News entitled "The Mechanical Rabbit." I quote:
"Most of our readers must have smiled the other day when they read of the greyhounds in Britain who don't know a rabbit when they see one. So long had they chased a mechanical rabbit around the racetrack, that when a real rabbit bounded across the track, the dogs didn't give it a second look.
"Stupid, eh? But sad too, this perverting of the natural instincts.
"We chase mechanical rabbits, too.
"We chase paychecks, and don't give a second look to the glint of the rising sun on a snow-topped peak.
"We chase our way through the appointments of a crowded desk calendar, and fail to take time to chat with the next-door neighbor or to drop in on a sick friend.
"We chase social pleasures on a glittering noisy treadmill-and ignore the privilege of a quiet hour telling bedtime stories to an innocent-eyed child.
"We chase prestige and wealth, and don't recognize the real opportunities for joy that cross our paths. "
Wordsworth said words appropriate to this condition: "The world is too much with us: late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers."
"Race on, you poor, blind over-civilized hounds. You'll never catch your rabbit until you learn to recognize a genuine one.
"But, you'll have company in your race; the company of unnumbered men who'll never catch the joy they chase until they, too, learn to recognize a genuine one."
This points up our challenge: See "that the things that matter most are not at the mercy of things that matter least."
Someone rephrased this thought: "Too often we are involved in the thick of thin things."
In modern revelation the Lord said:
"Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?
"Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men. "
Here is instruction to straighten out our values.
Note again the admonition: "their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world"-not on the things of the spirit. And they "aspire to the honors of men," rather than seeking approval of God.
Have we sought "so much" for material things while missing, even ignoring, the things of God? The beauty of nature at this or any other season goes unseen and unappreciated.
Our lives are ruled by a schedule and appointments while the Christian acts of kindness wait-ofttimes in vain.
Our most flagrant violations, perhaps, occur in our own homes. We chase worldly pleasures and neglect our own innocent children. When did you tell stories to your children? Or go fishing or hunting with your son? Or help him earn a merit badge? Have you counseled with them concerning their personal achievement program?
The trials through which today's young people are passing-ease and luxury-may be the most severe test of any age. Brothers and sisters, stay close to your own! Guide them safely! These are perilous times. Give increased attention. Give increased effort.
The responsibility rests on the family to solve our social problems. Youth search for security. They search for answers to be found only in a good home. No national or international treaty can bring peace. Not in legislative halls nor judicial courts will our problems be solved. From the hearthstones of the homes will come the answers to our problems. On the principles taught by the Savior, happiness and peace will come to families. In the home youth will receive strength to find happiness.
The world is full of foolish schemes. They contravene and hinder the purposes of the Lord. Some seek to change the God-given roles of the sexes. Some invite mothers to leave the home to work. Others entice fathers to find recreation away from their families. These questionable practices weaken the home!
Some fathers provide a good house, clothing, cars, and food, and forget what real fatherhood is. Fatherhood is a relationship of love and understanding. It is strength and manliness and honor. It is power and action. It is counsel and instruction. Fatherhood is to be one with your own. It is authority and example.
Elder Packer has counseled: "Most fathers concentrate on material security for their children. Security stored up for this lifetime with the world's situation as it is, could, and probably will, vanish. To really secure one's children, give them the memory of a happy home life. This is a pattern, a blueprint for them to follow, an image for them to create, an ideal for them to realize."
Create a wholesome atmosphere in your home. Let seeking minds find adequate family support for growth and development.
Mothers sometimes turn to the business world for their own selfish purposes-sometimes due to necessity. Again the home is weakened. Face the fact that true fatherhood and true motherhood are fast disappearing. The failure of fathers and mothers to assume their rightful responsibilities actually creates the disturbed conditions we face. As Latter-day Saints, we must resist the thrust of the world against our homes. Repentance is in order for many of us. We must put our values in proper perspective. Put time and attention and means on the things that matter most. Few, in their more sober moments of reflection, do not know where true values rest. It takes a reminder, however, to keep them properly in focus.
King Benjamin counseled parents not to "suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither that they transgress the laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with another, and serve the devil. But teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; teach them to love one another, and to serve one another."
The Lord placed upon parents the responsibility to teach their children. This means more than to teach them verbally. There are better, basic ways to communicate values to our children.
For instance, in a society that tolerates divorce as the inevitable result of 50 percent of its marriages, there is great difficulty transmitting the principle of family solidarity. Children from broken homes seldom carry the idea that the family is an adequate problem-solving organization. Children whose entertainment comes largely from television find their needs for involvement in life frequently frustrated. Where a doctor who stops at the scene of an accident may be sued for administering aid, it is difficult to transmit to children the idea of service and responsibility.
In a home where the accumulation of worldly goods has become so important that the father works inordinately at providing financial security at the expense of spending time with his children and sharing his counsel and encouragement; and in a home, likewise, where the mother forsakes her children in order to get more "things," it is a poor place to teach the worth of a human being in terms of love and sacrifice.
The Lord has said: "I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth."
Dr. Popenoe said, "Our youth are not products of their own lives, but of what their parents give them. If we can get parents to set a good example, we will take away the greatest stumbling block between generations."
The Lord said: "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
We must learn, before it is too late, the truth spoken by Elder Richard L. Evans: "There never was a tonic that would cure more social ailments than a healthy, happy home. There never was a greater source of social stability than an affectionate and understanding family. There never was a better way of helping children to happiness than the close confidence of wise and loving and responsible parents."
I was reared in a home of wise, loving, and responsible parents. I was reared in a home where a sweet mother was always awake when I came home, like Brother Dunn's parents. There was always an opportunity to report and to talk. These sessions are some of my choicest memories. In that home was nurtured the testimony that I bear you today. I know that God lives; that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior and our Redeemer. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that President Joseph Fielding Smith is a living prophet today, with the keys of the kingdom. I know that if we will follow the counsel we have been given in this conference, our homes will be better, our service more effective, and our joy more full. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Some time ago, I heard a great businessman give an interesting success formula. He said that when contemplating any accomplishment, one of the first steps to be taken was to definitely decide on those things that should not be done under any circumstances. That is, if one were going into business, there are certain dishonest practices and improper procedures that should definitely and permanently be ruled out of bounds in advance. Or in planning a happy marriage, there are infidelities and disloyalties that must never be entertained. When one has definitely eliminated those things that he will not do, then he can concentrate all of his time and energy on the things that he should do.
But we always run into a great deal of trouble when we fail to make firm and lasting decisions to govern important matters. A psychiatrist once said to a mental patient, "Do you ever have any trouble making up your mind?" The mental patient said, "Well, yes and no." A yes-and-no person is a weak person. An undecided person makes far more than his share of mistakes.
Recently a man seeking help with a moral problem was asked, "What are you going to do about the next temptation?" He answered, "How can I tell until I know what the temptation will be?" If this man can't favorably make up his mind even while suffering his regrets, what chance will he have when his desires are again inflamed by his evil? Certainly we place a serious handicap upon ourselves when we neglect to definitely make up our minds about those important questions of morality, honesty, integrity, industry, and religion.
One of the best illustrations of this procedure for outlawing failure in advance was employed by the Lord himself as he tried to make ancient Israel into the greatest nation on the earth. Three months after they were released from their Egyptian bondage, they were encamped before Mount Sinai. Then God gave them the Ten Commandments, which included a list of things that they just must not do under any circumstances. For even God himself could not make a great nation out of a group of murderers, liars, thieves, atheists, adulterers, and Sabbath breakers.
Apparently the Lord tried to make his presentation as memorable as possible, which recalls the story of the chief engineer of a certain company whose services had been dispensed with. He asked the president why he had been dismissed. The president said, "You let us make a mistake which cost us a lot of money." The engineer replied, "But certainly you must remember that I specifically advised you not to do that." The president replied, "Yes, I remember that you advised us not to do it, but you didn't pound the table when you advised us."
The kind of emphasis that is given to an idea is sometimes about as important as the idea itself. Recently a minister on the radio said that he never talked about the Ten Commandments in his church anymore because they were too far out of date. He also said that their language was too harsh for the weak sensibilities of our day. This minister felt that instead of using such strong terms as command and Thou shalt not, the Lord should have employed some softer words such as I recommend or I suggest or I advise. But soft words frequently produce soft attitudes with weak meanings and built-in violations.
We know that the destructive permissiveness of our present day causes some of our most serious sins. But the Lord allowed no permissiveness to get into the Ten Commandments. He came down onto the Mount in a cloud of fire from which the smoke ascended as from a furnace. He came with such power that the mountain quaked and the people themselves trembled. Then, to the accompaniment of the lightnings and thunders of that sacred mountain, God gave the people their basic law and listed some of those things that they must not do. He said:
Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Honour thy father and thy mother.
Thou shalt not kill.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness.
Thou shalt not covet.
These sixty-seven words can be read in less than thirty seconds, and yet if they were followed, they would quickly transform our earth into God's paradise. But we not only disobey these important laws; many people don't even know what they are. One man once said to his friend, "I will give you five dollars if you can repeat any one of the Ten Commandments." His friend accepted the challenge and proceeded to demonstrate his knowledge by saying, "Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take." His friend said, "Here's the money. I didn't think that you could do it."
But because we are breaking the Ten Commandments, the Ten Commandments are also breaking us. We are fulfilling the prophecy of Ezekiel, who said: " the soul that sinneth, it shall die." Sin is more than ordinarily important, for as Martin Luther once said, "One vice can overcome ten virtues."
A banker may be able to cancel off one liability with an asset of equal size, but you can't do that in the more important accounting of life, as several great virtues can all be made unusable by one vice. Recently, three men were being discussed for an important assignment. Of one it was said, "He is a hard worker and he knows his business, but he is dishonest." Of the second it was said, "He is strictly honest and very capable, but he won't work." Of the third it was said, "He is very capable and well liked, but he is immoral." And while praise is wonderful, yet when the account gets around to the buts, everyone had better pay strict attention. You can't cancel off a little immorality with a little industry, or a little dishonesty with a little ability, or a little atheism with a few good intentions.
The FBI Uniform Crime Report says that last year we had over four million arrests for robbery in amounts over fifty dollars. Of these, some 777,000 were auto thefts. Many people are presently replacing the Ten Commandments with their own version of the new morality. We have millions of practicing atheists, and we have a murder or a suicide committed every fifteen minutes around the clock. This modified code says: Thou shalt not kill unless someone gets in your way, or thou shalt not commit adultery unless you like your partner, or thou shall have no other Gods before me unless you get a better idea. And some have gone so far as to repudiate their own God-given sense of responsibility.
One young woman was recently asked by a reporter for Look magazine if she thought it was wrong to break the Ten Commandments. She said, "Who am I to say what is right or wrong?" And some say that it doesn't matter anyway, either one way or the other. However, in our own day the Lord has reaffirmed and reemphasized these great laws given from Sinai. As recorded in the 59th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, he has said: "Thou shalt not steal; neither commit adultery, nor kill, nor do anything like unto it." We are doing many things that are "like unto" breaking the Ten Commandments. It is easy for half-believers and underachievers to be guilty of those damaging sins of fractional devotion with marginal morals and a minimum performance. Disobedience and sloth always draw down upon us a burden of consequence that is much too heavy for us to bear.
I was not present at Sinai when the Ten Commandments were given, and yet I know just as well as any who were present that it is right to obey God and to honor our parents. I know that those people who keep the Sabbath day holy will be a different kind of people from those who do not. I know as well as the people at Sinai knew that it is wrong to profane, steal, covet, bear false witness, kill, commit adultery, or do anything like unto any of them.
Through Malachi, the Lord said, "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation."
If the people who failed to pay their tithing were robbing God then, and we are doing the same thing, we are robbing God now. And when we rob God, we are also stealing from ourselves. Unless we intend to destroy our own inheritance, we should put up some strong protecting guard rails along the boundaries of that straight and narrow way that leads to the celestial kingdom. We ought to paint some heavy yellow lines running between right and wrong and put some stop signs on those dead-end streets where travel has been forbidden.
God himself has said that he cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance, and that no sin is ever permitted in his presence. And when we assume wrong attitudes, set bad examples, or do wrong things, we are thwarting his purposes. We are violating that great command that says "Thou shalt not bear false witness" when we claim to be the children of God and then go around acting like orphans, sinners, cowards, and weaklings.
Because of our birthright, our intelligence, our covenants, and our assignments, we are all special witnesses for God and have some very important things that we should do. God is our eternal Heavenly Father. We are all his representatives in that greatest of all family enterprises which Jesus referred to as "my Father's business." That is the business of building integrity, character, and eternal life into the lives of his children. And one of the things that we should very frequently do is to go in the strength of the Spirit and again stand before Mount Sinai while we take stock of those things that God himself has placed out of bounds. And the emphasis of a little table pounding will help us to more securely make up our minds to eliminate those things that must not be done under any circumstances. And may God help us so to do, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Delbert L. Stapley
Of the Council of the Twelve
Following the April general Church conference this year, a sincerely devout and concerned Christian gentleman wrote: "God bless you and your wonderful work. I pray that Satan can be kept out of your church since we have failed to keep him out of ours."
Unfortunately, we have not fully kept Satan out of our-or more appropriately, the Lord's-church. We have not all, by righteous living, protected ourselves against the powers of Satan and his hosts.
I sincerely testify that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the last bulwark for everything that is decent, spiritual, worthwhile, and good in life. It is up to all of us members by our example and good works to prove this statement to be true.
The Lord has warned his children that in the last days Satan shall have power over his own dominion. These conditions exist today, as is evidenced by the increased numbers of killings, by lawlessness, and by moral transgressions. All standards that were so sacred in the past are crumbling under the pressure of the ungodliness of agnostic, atheistic, subversive, and radical groups. Evil designing people get financial gain from trafficking in drugs, alcohol, prostitution, pornography, and dishonest schemes regardless of the destruction to the moral, ethical, and spiritual values of life.
The only way Satan can be bound is for people to forsake his temptations and enticements to do evil, and to walk uprightly and circumspectly before the Lord.
Satan and his followers are constantly looking for weakness in our armor of spiritual protection, and when it is found, every pressure and stratagem is placed upon it to infiltrate our souls and destroy us.
Surely if the transgressions of men continue in an upward trend, and the world becomes ripe in iniquity, the judgments of God will be poured out in great measure upon the wicked of the earth. Our only hope of heavenly protection is in establishing righteousness and humility in the hearts of men everywhere. The Lord has promised that he shall have power over his saints and shall reign in their midst. It takes real courage and purpose to live a saintly life.
Possessing the word of God and having an understanding of it, no member should ever yield to the temptations of evil. We have been properly taught, but we are not all living as we are taught. How many of us because of our failure to keep the commandments of God take the devil with us into our lives, into our homes, into the temples of God, into sacrament and other church meetings? We have the scriptures before us and the living oracles of God among us to direct and guide us in all our activities throughout life. The Lord expects us to be different from the people of the world. We should be a special people to him; however, we must prove we are by our conduct and behavior and obedience to his commandments.
Not long ago a Scout leader of national prominence, a nonmember, visiting in Salt Lake City, met with a group of Church Scouters. He commented upon the splendid way the Church had used the Scouting program to the advantage of its boys. In his talk he made the following statement: " I believe the Church will save the world. This is quite a statement but it is true and I hope you will always remember your responsibility."
I wrote this friend asking permission to use his statement. Answering my request, he stated, "I am delighted to say that I haven't changed my mind about the statement you had reference to in your letter. As a matter of fact, I would be extremely proud to have you use it wherever it might be appropriate. You and your associates are doing magnificent work. Keep it up."
What a marvelous and high opinion this friend has of the Church and its members!
I believe The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can save the world if its members will live as saints of God should. Each time we let down in living gospel principles, someone is sure to observe our conduct and form an unfavorable opinion about us and the spiritual values of the Church. Our faithfulness gives meaning to the doctrines we teach. The Savior emphasized this statement by saying: "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."
To save the world is a great responsibility. This responsibility rests not only upon the leadership of the Church, but upon the membership of the Church as well. The true gospel of Christ is the hope of the world. It is the only plan that will unite the ethnic and national groups and break down the barriers that divide mankind today. History has proven that man cannot forsake God or his Son, our Savior, and live in peace and security. No individual or people can be in rebellion against God's commandments and be in harmony with him. Today there is open rebellion in many areas of the world against the established order of decency and obedience to the laws of God and man.
As members of the Church, what are we doing toward saving the world? First of all, we must live the commandments. We must be honest with ourselves and others. We must be morally clean and not live a double moral standard. We must not have two personalities-one for Sunday and another for the other six days of the week.
A recent convert wrote a letter in which he stated that he found the Mormon religion "a breath of sweet fresh air," and then he gave eight reasons for leaving his former church and joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I will list them and comment briefly on each.
Wholesome family life. The home determines one's attitudes and purpose to a greater degree than friends and companions, school or college, business or social life. It is the first great training ground for youth. An ideal LDS home is one where you will find high standards maintained with confidence, peace, companionship, and happiness.
Self-reliance and responsibility. All Church members from the cradle to the grave are taught self-reliance and responsibility. Achieving eternal life is a personal obligation.
Moral and physical discipline. The apostle Paul counseled the Galatian saints, "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, murders, drunkenness. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith."
President David O. McKay always taught that in the control of morals there must be self-mastery, self-discipline, and self-control.
President Joseph F. Smith said, "No man is safe unless he is master of himself, and there is no tyrant so merciless or more to be dreaded than an uncontrollable appetite or passion."
The Savior warned, "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Obedience of children to parents. The apostle Paul counseled the Ephesian youth, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth."
Also to the Hebrew saints he said of the Christ: "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered."
Obedience goes beyond that of earthly parents. It obligates all of us as children of our Father in heaven to be obedient to his laws and commandments.
Striving for perfection and excellence in all things. The gospel is for the perfecting of the saints. The Savior counseled, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."
Jesus asked his disciples this question: " what manner of men ought ye to be? " He answered his own question by saying, " verily I say unto you, even as I am." He lived so perfectly that he challenged his followers to "follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do."
Chastity and holy observance of the marriage covenant. It was very heartening to read about the new Miss America, Laura Lea Shaefer, who courageously responded to questions in her first formal press conference by saying that she didn't believe in and is against premarital sex. She feels that using marijuana leads to hard drugs and that abortions should be illegal. She added: "I am not a typical coed, but I feel my peers and the majority of young people feel the way I do." What a choice example to the youth of America are her personal standards of conduct!
Infidelity is a violation of the marriage covenant and so often results in divorce, which undermines the security of children, frequently leading them into drug use, immorality, other sinful practices, and withdrawal from church attendance and activity. If all couples faithfully observed their marriage covenants, there would be fewer problems and sorrows in the world today. Children would naturally expect their marriages to be sacred and secure if their parents set the example of love and trust and eternal family goals.
High standards in education. We are taught, "The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth." The Lord counseled, "And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
We are also taught: "Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection. And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come."
"Last, but not least," this recent convert said, "is common sense." Common sense suggests ability without sophistication or special knowledge. It is just good, sound, practical sense in judgment. All have been born with a measure of common sense. It is a matter of using it, of thinking things through instead of acting in too much haste.
These eight significant and important reasons are good points for all of us to remember and follow in our personal lives.
The gospel only can inspire people to live its standards of moral and spiritual conduct. We do not sacrifice anything when we give up the ways of the world and faithfully keep the commandments of God. For such worthiness in mortal life entitles us, after we depart this life, to the celestial mansions of our Heavenly Father. What could be a more glorious and satisfying reward?
The prophet Lehi, having been warned of Jerusalem's destruction, took his family and a few others and departed this sacred city. After three days in the wilderness they camped in a valley by the side of a river that flowed and emptied into the Red Sea. En route Lehi experienced serious problems with his two elder rebellious sons. As he considered the running stream, he was impressed to say to his eldest son, Laman: "O that thou mightest be like unto this river, continually running into the fountain of all righteousness!"
Many rivers have their beginning from springs of pure, crystal-clear water gushing forth from a mountainside. As the water wends its way to the sea, there are side tributaries that join the main stream. Some of these tributaries are polluted and contaminate the main stream, which started pure at its source. By the time the river reaches the sea, pollution has occurred in the body of the stream.
How much like life this symbolic representation is! The Lord has revealed that "every spirit of man was innocent in the beginning; and God having redeemed man from the fall, men became again, in their infant state, innocent before God." With this statement in mind, we can understand why the Savior said, "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven."
When a child reaches the age of accountability, the Lord warned, "And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men. "
We learn from this revelation that in the beginning of mortal life all mankind is innocent before God and, therefore, is like the beginning river of water, pure and undefiled. As the polluted tributaries of water enter the main stream, our lives too become polluted when we allow tributaries of evil and wickedness to enter. It is these tributaries of evil we must be concerned about and fortify ourselves against. Wickedness never was happiness, but to the contrary, it is depressing; it destroys conscience and ultimately the spiritual life of the constant, erring individual. A child improperly taught and improperly trained by parents is apt to succumb to the temptations of evil and thus contaminate and ruin his life, both now and eternally. We must remember that no unclean thing can enter into the presence of God. One cannot win by following the path of evil. The earlier in life we learn this lesson, the more rewarding and fruitful our lives will be.
It is my earnest prayer that all of us will be firm, steadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of our Lord, and thus keep Satan out of the Church.
As we address our efforts in this direction, we will be worthy examples of the things we teach. We will earnestly be engaged in sharing a knowledge of the gospel with our friends and associates and in bearing testimony and witness to the divinity of the work in which we are engaged. May God so bless us, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
My dear brethren of the priesthood: I am grateful to be with you in this priesthood meeting and desire to say a few words about using the priesthood to benefit mankind.
This priesthood administers the gospel. It is a delegation of authority from the Lord himself and has been given to us so we can do whatsoever is necessary to save and exalt ourselves and our fellowmen in the celestial kingdom of heaven.
In one of the early revelations to the Prophet Joseph Smith the Lord said: "If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God; for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation."
Now salvation, which is the greatest blessing any man can receive, comes by obedience to the laws of the gospel; and the gospel is administered by the power of the priesthood; and so the priesthood is given to us to bless ourselves and our Father's other children.
It is by the power and authority of the priesthood that the gospel is preached, and what greater blessing can come into the life of anyone than to receive the gospel?
It is by the power of the priesthood that men are baptized for the remission of sins, and that they receive the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost in their lives.
We receive the Melchizedek Priesthood by covenant. We promise to magnify our callings and to live "by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." The Lord promises us that if we will do these things, we shall gain exaltation in the highest heaven of the celestial world.
Marriage for time and for all eternity is an "order of the priesthood," in which the participating parties are promised kingdoms and thrones if they are true and faithful to their obligations.
Brethren who hold the holy priesthood are authorized to administer to the sick in the household of faith, so that the faithful saints may be restored to health and vigor if they are not "appointed unto death."
And so it goes through all the realm of church service. The blessings of the Lord are offered to the Saints and to the world through the ministrations of those who hold his holy priesthood, who represent him, who are in fact his servants and agents and are willing to serve him and keep his commandments.
Now my plea to all the brethren of the priesthood is that they use the authority which they have received to bless first themselves and then their fellowmen-acting always in harmony with the established order of the Church.
Those who can and are worthy should respond to calls to preach the gospel at home and abroad. Husbands should bless their wives and children. All of us should qualify for the blessings of the house of the Lord, which are priesthood blessings bestowed upon us.
My dear brethren, this matter of holding the priesthood is not a light or a small thing. We are dealing with the Lord's power and authority, which he has given to us by the opening of the heavens in this day so that every blessing might again be available to us, as they were when man was first placed upon the earth.
It is my prayer that we may all learn our duties; that we may hold the priesthood in high regard; that we may magnify our callings; and that we may use our priesthood to bless ourselves, our brethren, and all who will give heed to the message of salvation which we carry to all parts of the world.
I wish to give my blessing at this time to all those who have received the priesthood, who have been ordained, who hold some office, and who are faithful therein.
We are under the responsibility not only of receiving this priesthood for our own benefit, but to bless and benefit those who are scattered upon all the face of the earth who are willing to repent and to receive the gospel; and we will take this message of salvation to all parts of the world. That is our responsibility.
I wish to express my appreciation and my willingness to join with you, my good brethren, and do all that is possible to bring salvation to every soul throughout the world who is willing to repent, and I say this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
As I have contemplated this vast audience of priesthood bearers, and what I have in my mind and heart to convey to you this day, my thoughts have turned back to a bewildered and confused young man in a huge city. He had lost his way. In desperation he stopped a man on the sidewalk and said, "How do I get to such-and-such a destination from here?" After considerable thought, with the skyscrapers, dense traffic, confusing streets, winding rivers, freeways, bridges, tunnels, and so on in mind, the man said, "You can't get there from here."
I have often thought of this advice as I have contemplated particularly some of our youth in their present locations in life. Some are lost, bewildered, confused, scared, sick, insecure, and discouraged. What a tragedy to be in these straits and to be told, in answer to the questions "How can I get back to where I was?" or "How can I get to where I want to go?"-"You can't get there from where you are."
The disciples of the devil teach there is no way back: Live it up, everybody is doing it, be with the in-group, and it's more fun to stay lost. The devil is an enemy to the ways of God, and enticeth to sin.
"Wherefore, all things which are good cometh of God; and that which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God, and fighteth against him continually, and inviteth and enticeth to sin, and to do that which is evil continually."
What a happy day it will be when, in contrast to the experience this lost young man had in the big city, he or others can find someone who will say, "Yes, you can get there from here. Come, follow me."
I humbly, but with all of the power in my possession, declare to our "lost" youth, young men and young women worldwide, you can make it back from where you are. The great social services program of the Church, operating as an arm of the priesthood, lends a helping hand to our young people with social and emotional problems. As President Smith has declared to us tonight, by honoring our priesthood we can help them find their way back to joy and stability.
Young people, be not deceived. God loves you. He cares about you. He wants you back in his paths, where there is comfort, companionship, and purpose. We as leaders need to effectively communicate to our youth that God loves them no matter where they are. We need to sacrifice our time and talents in this direction.
"But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased."
I pray to God that we in the future may communicate the positive, the happy, the abundant way of life to those around us.
I would like to share briefly with you a few experiences of some of our friends who are proving you can get there from where you are.
Roger Locke, a friend of mine, is presently confined in the Utah State Prison.
Incidentally, you young Aaronic Priesthood bearers, I would appreciate it if you would remember that when I go to the prison to visit, I have the same trouble as the inmates-in one respect. That is, it is easy for me to get in, but difficult for me to get out. The difficulty comes when I am stopped by prisoners who want to talk. During my last visit, a young man stopped me, and we talked for about fifteen minutes, time I didn't think I had to spare. As I was leaving him he said, and I will never forget it, "Thank you for talking to me." As I drove home that night, I recalled that in fifteen minutes I may have said twenty-four or twenty-five words; however, I believe that is the kind of talking and listening we need to have more of. But that is another subject. Let's get back to Roger. He said:
"I don't want to blame anyone back home for my being in prison today, but it is factual that I had no family relationships. I am involved in the family home evening program at the prison. Without the parents who have been assigned to me through this social services program, many times I would have given up. These people love me as if I were their own son. I have never had that, even when I was a small boy. Now, with their help and that of others, I believe I can now make it back a day at a time. I am not proud of being in prison, but I am proud of my recent experiences while being there. We have a tendency to blame others. We don't want to blame our parents for not loving us, because we know they do, but maybe they didn't have the guidance and direction in their lives to apply when they were bringing us up."
Perhaps in the minds of many of us, Roger would be justified in believing he couldn't make it back. He had detoured too long. But he doesn't believe that. Instead, he is thanking those who are presently helping him and is sincerely grateful for the direction in which his life is moving today.
The Church attenders in prisons are unfortunately in the minority and are often classified by their associates in uncomplimentary terms, but this fine young man, bless his courage, is not ashamed to be identified at the Utah State Prison as a member of "God's Squad." He seems determined to make it back from where he is.
A few weeks ago, I was visiting with an elder in the mission field. During our interview, I inquired, "Is your father a member of the Church?"
He said, "No."
"Is your mother a member of the Church?" he was asked.
He responded with a smile, "Just barely."
I said, "Did your father want you to go on a mission?"
He answered, "No."
"Did your mother want you to go on a mission?"
"She really didn't care whether I went or not."
"Who influenced you most in your decision to go?"
Without hesitation he said, "I did. I've always wanted to go, and I knew I could make a success of it."
I looked into this young man's eyes and said, "From what I hear and what I feel of your spirit, you will succeed." He is a determined individual, one who months ago might have said, "My dad doesn't care. My mother doesn't care. Why should I care?" This wonderful missionary knows the importance of going forward and has the courage to continue in the paths that lead to happiness. He admitted to me that he once was lost, but now he definitely knows where he is going and how to get there.
During a visit to a juvenile detention home some months ago, my attention was drawn to three young girls who were visiting with each other just prior to our religious service. They appeared to be ten to twelve years of age. I found later they were being detained for a few days to see if some problems could be resolved. As I was waiting to participate with them and others in the services, they seemed to be involved in serious conversation. "What could they be talking about?" I wondered to myself. My curiosity prompted me to step closer to them for a chance to catch a few of their words. I was moved when I heard one of the girls raise this question to her friends: "I wonder if someone will come today who will want to take me home. It would be fun to live with someone who wants me."
Here was a ten-year-old who wasn't wanted. Her parents had given the impression to those in charge that they were pleased when she was confined, because they were then free from putting up with her. What a pleasure it was later to learn she had been placed by licensed social services agents of the Church in a new home, adopted, loved, and was receiving parental direction. Loving foster parents are now helping her find her way in the warmth of family unity and oneness.
Many drug abusers are desperately trying to find their way back today. The road is difficult, the challenge tremendous. I am pleased to report many are making it, thanks to friends and volunteer members, priesthood bearers, who are concerned, care, and understand. Very often our glances, our indifference, our hasty comments and lack of patience convey the message, "You are hopeless. You can't get back from here. You are too far down the road."
After visiting with one of our young women who has been lost to drugs for many months, her only encouraging remark after more than three hours of sincere communication was, "Thanks for not chewing me out." Two visits later she asked, "Do you think I would make a good schoolteacher?" To a sincere yes, she said, "Thanks, I'll try. I'm only three semesters away from getting my teaching certificate." This girl is making it back. Someone believes in her. Someone has convinced her she can get there from here. The trip she is on this time will bring her back home.
May I this day challenge all of us as priesthood bearers, young and old, to vigorously locate and lead those who have temporarily strayed. Let us lead them by our example, love, and persuasion. They deserve our help. They want our direction. They need our love. You priesthood bearers this night, honor your priesthood, build yourself by stooping to help someone who has temporarily lost his or her way. Remember that powerful truth found in Matthew 23:37: " how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!"
With your indulgence, I would like to repeat that quotation once more and add just two words of admonition: " how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not help me!"
How many of us are actively helping the Lord gather his flock? How involved are each of us in the responsibilities of our priesthood? How many of us are helping as high council advisers, professional resource volunteers, and helpers with innate skills to our fellow members who need us? When our Savior declared, "If ye love me, feed my sheep", he wasn't referring to just those found safely in the fold. I declare to all of us tonight, he needs our help in finding the lost and bringing them back.
The field is white, ready for harvest. The lost want to know how to get back. They want to be shown they can get there from where they are. Let us not give up. Let us not tire. Let us not weary.
"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."
Jesus set the pattern for us in his invitation, "Come, follow me." I think it is significant our Savior Jesus Christ declared, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father," rather than "He that hath heard me hath heard the Father." The example bore witness. The life was the sermon. The life was the way.
I bear witness to you this day that God lives and this is his work, and that, Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer. I also bear witness that by doing his will and keeping his commandments, we can share in that great joy found in Third John: "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth."
And I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Robert L. Simpson
Of the Presiding Bishopric
My dear brethren of the priesthood: I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for this opportunity. We of the Presiding Bishopric commend you young men of the Aaronic Priesthood for being here tonight. The Lord is pleased to have you where you belong at this hour. Perhaps a mental checklist might not be out of order to set the stage for the few thoughts I would like to leave with you.
Would you check yes or no by the following statements concerning your attendance at this priesthood meeting:
I am here because others of the family came.
I am here because there are no football games on TV tonight.
I am here because Dad said, "You are going to priesthood meeting or else."
I am here because I love the Lord and recognize the priesthood I hold as the most important power for good in the universe.
Whatever your answer might have been to the foregoing statements, the Lord is pleased you are here, and you have already been richly rewarded by listening to some direction from the Lord through a living prophet. I also commend you because for every one of you in attendance at one of several locations tonight, there are four priesthood holders who thought they had more important things to do or who did not have someone who cared enough about them to offer the encouragement they needed to join with us.
Just in case you are not very excited about being part of the largest priesthood gathering in the history of the world, let me give you five important things to think about that have direct relationship to this meeting and what goes on here.
God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ have appeared in this time of the world's history.
All of the keys and powers of the eternal priesthood of God, with all of its attendant authority and blessings for mankind, have been restored to the earth, nevermore to be removed.
No less than nine heavenly beings have appeared by assignment in our time of the world's history to assist in this restoration. Let me name them: God the Father, his Son Jesus Christ, the apostle Peter, accompanied by James and John, John the Baptist, Moroni, Elijah, and Elias.
Three additional books of scripture, totaling 835 pages, have been revealed for the further guidance of mankind and to lend additional direction in these perilous times.
Last but not least, a living prophet stands at our head and presides over this meeting and has just given us the will of the Lord; up-to-the-minute evidence of continuous revelation.
Now, any one of the foregoing facts should rate banner headlines in every newspaper in the world, but about the only response we get from more than three billion people who are supposedly thirsting for truth is, in effect: "Don't rock the boat," or "Who do you think you are to make such fantastic claims as visits from on high, the only true priesthood, additional scriptures, and a living prophet?"
Young men, I do not know all there is to know, but there are a few things I do know by personal revelation, and I think the Spirit of the Lord is anxious to confirm these same truths within each of you if he has not done so already.
The scriptures declare that "many are called, but few are chosen." Do you think that there might be a possibility that you have not only been called but may be chosen as well? Why not! You are one out of five who made a decision to be here in this great meeting. For each of you here, four others who were invited apparently decided that there was something more important to do than attend this priesthood meeting. I do not know how you answered those previous statements about your attendance here tonight, but one thing is crystal clear to me: either you wanted to be here or most certainly the Lord wanted you here, and you had better get excited about it.
"Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?" The Lord tells us why they were not chosen, and here are his reasons:
"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-" And what is this one great lesson? Listen carefully, young men. This could well be one of the most important lessons of your life, and it comes directly from the Lord.
"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."
Well, it is exciting that you are here; you are special! And furthermore, the Lord has something in mind for you to do about it starting right now. The Church has need of every member, and that means not only you but also four of your friends who should be sitting by you in this meeting tonight but who are missing.
A recurring theme during the life of the Savior as he taught the people was that each man is his brother's keeper. No priesthood obligation is more important. The scriptures say something very similar but in another way that I like very much: " when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren."
No one takes upon himself the covenant of baptism nor the honor of the priesthood except he also receives the obligations associated with Church membership and priesthood affiliation.
The world today tells you to leave your friend alone. He has the right to come and go as he pleases. The world tells you that persuasion to attend church or priesthood meeting or to discard a bad habit might lead to frustration and undue pressures; but again I repeat the word of the Lord: You are your brother's keeper, and when you are converted, you have an obligation to strengthen your brother.
"But bishop," you say, "I wouldn't know what to say or how to go about it. I am just a deacons quorum president." And to this the Lord answers that he gives no assignment to the children of men except he prepares a way for them to accomplish that which he has given them to do. He also says: "Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men;
"For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say."
Now at this point the Lord gives a commandment that we must speak in his name with solemnity of heart and in the spirit of meekness, and then he concludes with this promise:
" inasmuch as ye do this the Holy Ghost shall be shed forth in bearing record unto all things whatsoever ye shall say."
Following this divine formula will take your contact with a friend out of the usual lip-to-ear communication category. With the help of the Holy Ghost, there will be a penetration into the heart of your friend. He will be persuaded through a wonderful spiritual process that is reserved for worthy members of the Church. It is the same process by which converts are brought into the Church and will be an important spiritual gift for each of you to develop and improve on a continuing basis.
Yes, the Church has need of every member, and the list of indifferent members is much too long; it concerns the First Presidency; it concerns the Lord.
There will not be a sign or miracle in the heavens to wake people up. It was decided aeons ago that people would be helped by people so far as the Lord's work is concerned. This is an eternal principle and process: " when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." The task is largely up to those of us who are here tonight, and the responsibility is upon the newest deacon as well as the high priest of longest standing. While I have directed my comments primarily to the Aaronic Priesthood-Youth, certainly every principle applies to all of us involved in this great work.
May I conclude with a word of caution as the Lord gave it to the Prophet Joseph Smith. He said this: "What I say unto one I say unto all; pray always lest that wicked one have power in you, and remove you out of your place."
"Many are called, but few are chosen." What a tragedy to be foreordained or to be chosen or to be called and ordained only to have the adversary "remove you out of your place." Don't you allow it to happen. Live beyond his grasp, for I can promise you that there are limits beyond which Satan cannot reach. He will not have claim on the righteous. The challenge for each of us is to stand worthy that we might better assist our brother back into the circle of activity, and may our efforts to do so be centered in that glorious revelation which is pure poetry in a scriptural setting:
" let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
"The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever."
What a promise! What a challenge! Are you special young men? Why, of course, you are! You are one out of five faithful enough to be here tonight.
Are you your brother's keeper? Most certainly! If not you, who? Who else would do it if you didn't do it as a priesthood holder?
Are you converted? You most certainly are, whether you recognize it or not, and "when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren"-for the Church has need of every member. That it might start with more than 100,000 faithful priesthood holders attending priesthood meeting tonight is my humble prayer, and I ask it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Just before this meeting started, Brother Stapley, with a twinkle in his eye, asked me to answer for a story he heard I had told to the All-Americans at BYU last night; and in keeping with my inward response to Brother Petersen's great sermon on honesty today, I must tell the truth.
The story, Brother Stapley, was mythical. It was reportedly the statement of a man who golfed with you and Brother Tanner and who, when he came back, said, "Have you ever played golf and been the only one rained on?" I can testify to you that Brother Stapley gets rained on, and was snowed on two days ago, as I observed. As we went from the place where he had snow deposited on him from a tree limb, just as we came out from a meeting into that beautiful storm, I drove up streets that were littered with limbs of magnificent trees. I was fearful of what I would find when I got home, and my apprehensions were justified. Some of our lovely trees were broken. In our backyard a fence we had built to protect the neighbors while our children grew up was flattened. And I would like to tell you something serious and truthful. I haven't worried a minute about that. I have been thinking about tonight and what we are here discussing.
We are talking about casualties, some that have happened and some that are happening, and some that we want not to happen in the future. God has from the beginning been very interested in his children, those safely in the fold, some who have strayed, and those not yet in.
We are talking primarily tonight about those who are in, or some who may not quite be in as much as they should be and as we would like them to be. I read again with joy what Alma the prophet wrote about some people who were far from the fold, who had once been in. He took three of the sons of Mosiah, two of his own sons, and two other converts and went to teach the Zoramites, who are described as having fallen into great error, for "they would not observe to keep the commandments of God, and his statutes. Neither would they observe the performances of the church, to continue in prayer and supplication to God daily, that they might not enter into temptation. Yea, in fine, they did pervert the ways of the Lord in very many instances; therefore, for this cause, Alma and his brethren went into the land to preach the word unto them."
As that happened, Alma offered to the Lord the kind of prayer that is in our hearts as we listen to these great servants of youth speak tonight. "O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing them again unto thee in Christ. Behold, O Lord, their souls are precious, and many of them are our brethren; therefore, give unto us, O Lord, power and wisdom that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee."
I recently had called to my attention by Brother Joe Christensen an excerpt from Church history that I would like to share with you in part. In the Documentary History of the Church is "A Short Sketch of the Rise of the 'Young Gentlemen and Ladies Relief Society' from the Times and Seasons." You will observe, as the annotator says, that this has more to do with youth than with the Relief Society, but that was the heading.
"In the latter part of January, 1843, a number of young people assembled at the house of Elder Heber C. Kimball who warned them against the various temptations to which youth is exposed, and gave an appointment expressly for the young at the house of Elder Billings; and another meeting was held in the ensuing week, at Brother Farr's school-room, which was filled to overflowing. Elder Kimball delivered addresses, exhorting the young people to study the scriptures, and enable themselves to 'give a reason for the hope within them,' and to be ready to go on to the stage of action, when their present instructors and leaders had gone behind the scenes; also to keep good company and to keep pure and unspotted from the world."
The Prophet then notes that the next meeting was held at his house, and though the weather was inclement, there were many there, to overflowing.
"Elder Kimball," he writes, "as usual, delivered an address, warning his hearers against giving heed to their youthful passions, and exhorting them to be obedient and to pay strict attention to the advice of their parents. "
The Prophet then says something that has touched me and I think will touch you who work with youth: "I experienced more embarrassment in standing before them than I should before kings and nobles of the earth; for I knew the crimes of which the latter were guilty, and I knew precisely how to address them; but my young friends were guilty of none of them, and therefore I hardly knew what to say. I advised them to organize themselves into a society for the relief of the poor, and recommended to them a poor lame English brother who wanted a house built, that he might have a home amongst the Saints; that he had gathered a few materials for the purpose, but was unable to use them, and he has petitioned for aid. I advised them to choose a committee to collect funds for this purpose, and perform this charitable act as soon as the weather permitted. I gave them such advice as I deemed was calculated to guide their conduct through life and prepare them for a glorious eternity."
You see, our efforts to reach youth today are not original. They are about the same, motivated with about the same sense of their need, and certainly by the same spirit that directed those of old. This statement of the Prophet moved me because I have had that same feeling when I have stood before them. As a teacher for years, I have pondered their future as I taught them, and I have lived long enough to see the fulfillment of my fondest hopes, or the beginning of the fulfillment of them, for many of them, and, I am sorry to say, the realization of some of my apprehensions. They are, in fact, a great and remarkable generation, yet like many of you I am well aware of the major problems confronting all of our young people, and that many of them desperately need help.
It would be an interesting experience for some of you to walk through a few days of our relationships with youth as we visit with them in person, by telephone, in interviews, by mail. It is just a few days ago that I deplaned at a major airport, met some of you leaders there, and a beautiful young college-age lady who was waiting for me. She had left her home against the wishes of her parents and others and had hitchhiked to a rock festival. On her way home from that adventure, hitchhiking now with a male companion, she was picked up by officers of the law, arrested for possession of drugs, tried, and sentenced to five years in prison. Through the intervention of our local brethren, who were reached by a distraught mother through the bishop, she was given parole freedom, but the record has been made and her life is hanging in the balance. She has some decisions to make.
On my desk is a current letter, one of many, from an anguished girl crying for help. Three times the words are repeated, "Please help me." Within hours there has been a call, another call, from a disturbed young man seeking guidance for his friend who questions a Church position which he feels he cannot accept, which he thinks makes his position in the Church tenuous or untenable.
In my hand I hold a letter received two days ago from a faithful, brokenhearted father whose son, about the same age as the others, took his own life, notwithstanding the efforts of loving parents and a fine, wholesome family. I wish there were time to read a description of how hard these marvelous parents have tried. This is a missionary family, a committed family, a stay-together family; yet this boy, convinced of his own worthlessness, that he was a failure and that the mistakes he had made were disqualifying, took his own life. His father sent a copy of the note he left, and asked me to make such use of his letter and this letter as judgment and my feelings suggested.
What can we do? How can we help this great young generation meet the challenges of their time? I am certain that we must thoughtfully examine not only their needs and their problems, and what we have to give them, but how we undertake to give it, and what we appear to them to be as they observe it. I have been rethinking my own experience and will give you just an example or two quickly. May I do it in the spirit of a statement that to me for a long time has been very choice: "Neither laugh nor weep, nor loathe, but understand."
What are some of their problems? These basic observations have come from experience with youth and from their own lips and lives. I can sum them up in four or five needs.
First, they need faith. They need to believe. They need to know the doctrines, the commandments, the principles of the gospel. They need to grow in understanding and conviction. They need to worship and to pray, but they live in a time when all of this is so seriously questioned, when doubt is encouraged.
Two, they need to be accepted as they are, and to be included. They need a family, the most important social unit in this world; and even if they have a good family, they need the supportive influence outside their home of others, of neighbors, of friends, of bishops, of brothers, of human beings.
Three, they need to be actively involved, to participate, to give service, to give of themselves.
Four, they have to learn somehow that they are more important than their mistakes; that they are worthwhile, valuable, useful; that they are loved unconditionally.
I knelt with my own family, at the conclusion of a great family home evening, the night before our lovely daughter was to be married in the temple. I think she wouldn't mind my telling you that after we had laughed and wept and remembered, she was asked to pray. I don't recall much of her prayer, the tears and the joy and the sweetness, but I remember one thought: she thanked God for the unconditional love she had received. This life doesn't give one very many chances to feel exultant and a little successful, but I felt wonderful that night, and thank God that she really believes and understands what she said. We cannot, my dear brethren, condition our love by a beard or beads or habits or strange viewpoints. There have to be standards and they must be enforced, but our love must be unconditional.
I read you just a sentence from the letter left by the boy who ended his own life: "I have no hope, only dreams that have died. I was never able to obtain satisfactory interpersonal relationships. I feared the future and a lot of other things. I felt inferior. I have almost no will to achieve, perseverance, or sense of worth, so goodbye. I should have listened to you but I didn't. I started using acid last summer. It's purgatory." What a tragic story!
We need to understand their needs. They need to learn the gospel. They need to be accepted, to be involved, to be loved; and they need, my brethren-my fifth and final point-the example of good men, good parents, good people, who really care.
I went to the funeral of my cousin a few weeks ago, and I pass on to you something that touched me deeply there. Maybe it is the message I can share with those of us who can do something, if we will, for our great young generation. A man who served as his counselor, now himself the bishop, said of my cousin: "Every boy in his lifetime has the right to know a man like Ivan Frame."
God bless us to love them, to accept them, to give to them what they need in order that they may be what they want to be and give what they want to give, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dr. James O. Mason
Commissioner, Health Services Corporation
This is an awesome responsibility, my dear brethren, and with fear and trembling I stand before you, praying that I may be blessed with a portion of that Spirit which has inspired those who have preceded me.
I want you to know that it is a great testimony to have had the opportunity during the past year of working under the direction of the General Authorities of our church. From a distance I have sustained these men as prophets, seers, and revelators through faith. During the past year it has been my privilege to meet with them in counsel, to feel of their spirit, their wisdom, and their love for you and members of the Church everywhere. I have observed their discernment and judgment and their ability to go to our Heavenly Father for answers to perplexing and difficult questions. I bear you my testimony that with every fiber of my body I know that as these men are called of God, and as the mantle of authority falls upon them as they are ordained and set apart, they are in very deed prophets, seers, and revelators, receiving communication from God the Eternal Father and his Son, Jesus Christ.
My appointment as commissioner of Health Services gives me responsibility for the fourteen hospitals that are owned or operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In addition, I have been asked to be concerned and to feel a responsibility toward the health needs of a worldwide Church membership. President Lee has asked me to address myself tonight to the needs of our brothers and sisters who live distant from the United States.
May I share with you, just for a moment, several experiences that have come to me. I can't say that these experiences have all been pleasant or that they have been associated with joy. At times they were associated with sadness and almost overwhelming despair. How wonderful it is to realize that only this church, the church restored in the latter days, has a solution to some of the overwhelming problems that are faced by our brothers and sisters, the children of our Heavenly Father, many of whom live distant from here.
How often we take for granted those things that we enjoy and participate in almost every day-the hospitals, the physicians, the dentists, the nurses, and other professional people who render services.
Read with me a letter that came from the Philippine Islands, from a dear sister who pleaded, "Can our family share with you who live in the United States the blessings of good health, the Primary Children's Hospital, and other facilities where you go to keep your children healthy and strong?" She told how it was necessary to go great distances to find doctors and a hospital.
Go with me to talk with a branch president in an Indian village in Guatemala. Hear him as he explains how four of his nine children died before they reached the age of five because of improper nutrition and poor sanitation, which resulted in dysentery, pneumonia, and other illnesses.
Walk with me into the home of an Indian family living on the high plains of Bolivia. The husband serves as the branch Sunday School superintendent and his wife is the Primary president. See their six-week-old infant daughter dying of starvation because their meager income of eight dollars a month makes them unable to provide food for their baby when the mother becomes sick and is unable to nurse.
Travel with me to a large government hospital, newly built in Tonga and equipped to provide needed services to members and nonmembers alike. But there are insufficient nurses with which to staff the hospital and only limited services can be provided.
We could multiply these examples by the hundreds and see the suffering, the sorrow, the tragedy of life in areas near and far. These problems are not brought on because sin and transgression are more common there than here. These people are not handicapped by lack of intelligence, ability, or industry, but by extreme poverty, lack of education, and insufficient opportunity. How they reach out to us and ask, "Can you help us to enjoy the blessings that you in North America take for granted?"
Brethren, how do we solve these problems that exist in these faraway places where the Church is growing more rapidly than in other parts of the earth-in South and Central America, the islands of the Pacific, and areas of Asia, where baptisms are not measured in the tens or the hundreds, but in the thousands? These people come into the Church and need our help. They need our assistance with health and with every phase of life. What wonderful people they are! You can't help but love them as you meet and talk with them. You want to do something, to reach out and lift them up and share with them the blessings that we have in such great abundance.
Time does not permit me to go into detail on the program that is being developed under the inspiration of the First Presidency. The Church has now begun to send forth specially trained men and women with the calling of the missionary to reach out and lift up our brothers and sisters. A physician has gone to Samoa and a nurse to Tonga. Nurses have been called who will soon be leaving for Guatemala, and other professionally trained missionaries will go forth to other nations to assist those with great needs.
What will these health missionaries do? A guiding principle, in the tradition of the Word of Wisdom, will place emphasis on health education and disease prevention. These health missionaries will work with priesthood leaders. A priesthood-correlated program, utilizing the home teachers, the Relief Society, and the visiting teachers, will bring into the homes of these families temporal blessings that will help them progress spiritually. They will assist families by teaching better nutrition, by teaching how to take care of babies and children so they won't perish from diarrhea and respiratory infection. They will teach proper care of the expectant mother, home sanitation, and many other things that are easy to understand, if there is just a teacher.
I emphasize that problems are not only health related. What if we were to assist that branch president and his wife in the small Indian branch in Guatemala so that four of those nine children had not died?
Even though we may have the ability to prevent their deaths from illness, this family could not have fed the nine children on their income of twelve dollars a month, which was derived from their small cornfield and blanket making. Unless there can be a concomitant economic growth through better agricultural methods-use of fertilizers, irrigation, improved seeds, and plants-unless there is a balanced program, we are not going to be fully effective in meeting the needs of these choice and wonderful people who join us in bearing testimony that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, and that we have a living prophet upon the earth today.
Oh, brethren, I challenge you to prepare for missionary calls, not only to go out and preach the gospel of Jesus Christ at home and abroad, but to go forth in love and brotherhood, using your professional and vocational skills to reach out and lift up. Physicians, dentists, and nurses, social workers, agricultural specialists, people with knowledge in marketing and home industry-all of your skills and talents are required if we are going to be a blessing to those whose needs are so great.
I pray that we might have the vision of this great program, that we might prepare ourselves, that many might receive such a calling and go forth to provide a great service. This is my prayer as I bear testimony to the divinity of this great latter-day work in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dallin H. Oaks
President, Brigham Young University
My beloved brethren who hold the priesthood of God: Over the past several months I have had occasion to ponder the problems and to reflect upon the ideals of education in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As I have studied this subject, my thoughts have been drawn to some lines I read at BYU some twenty years ago. The first of these lines you will think strange as an illustration of the subject of education in the Church. They were written by Thomas Hobbes, the seventeenth century English political philosopher, in his greatest work, The Leviathan.
In describing the nature of man, Hobbes wrote that "the life of man solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." This is a classic example of the philosophies of man. I am grateful that my education exposed me to that thought and others like it, because my familiarity with these thoughts has helped me to understand the world and its peoples and its problems.
But most of all, I am grateful that my educational program was such that at the time I was exposed to this view of man, I was also being taught these lines:
"Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy."
"Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God."
The worlds were created by the Only Begotten of the Father, "and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
"For a wise and glorious purpose thou hast placed me here on earth. "
" they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
"Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God-Wherefore, all things are theirs. "
My personal experience converts me to the wisdom of the educational philosophy that joins spiritual with secular instruction. At Brigham Young University and in the other institutions of the Church Educational System, we are concerned with teaching the fundaments of spiritual and secular knowledge and with bringing those teachings into harmony in the lives of men and women in order to prepare them for a balanced and full life of service to God and fellowman.
From this philosophy I distill four thoughts that I offer for the special attention of the young men of the priesthood:
Rigorous standards and high achievement in any field of learning are not at odds with faith and devotion to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Strive for excellence, use the talents that the Lord has given you, meet and master the learning of men.
In approaching any field of learning, remember the Lord's direction to "seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
Your faith will sustain you and give added meaning and increased accomplishment to your secular studies if you will live to deserve the blessings of the Lord.
Cherish and nourish your spiritual life. Seek spiritual growth at the same time that you are seeking to enlarge your learning in other areas. Nourish your spirit just as regularly as you nourish your body or mind. Don't neglect study of the gospel and activity in the Church during the period of your schooling. It is needed then as much as or more than at any time during your life. If you are not in a Church school-BYU, Ricks, Church College of Hawaii-make the institute or seminary or home study part of your program.
Most of all, live so that you can be guided and taught by the Spirit in all your activities, including all your efforts to learn and gain an education: honor your parents; be true to the teachings of the Church; be clean and faithful in all things; and be loyal to the leaders of the Church.
I am grateful for my membership in the Church. I am proud to hold the priesthood of God. No worldly honor or position can add much to the dignity, beauty, and power of the priesthood. I am thankful to my Heavenly Father for the testimony I have of the truth of the gospel. I have measured its requirements by reason and found them satisfying. I have put its precepts into practice and felt their good effects in my life. I have seen the gospel work good in the lives of others. I have observed miraculous things. But these signs follow them that believe. I know that the gospel is true because my Father in heaven has answered my prayers and borne witness to me by the power of the Holy Ghost. I am devoted to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am loyal to the chosen servants of the Lord, whom I sustain with all my heart.
I bear this testimony to you and ask your prayers and the blessings of our Father in heaven upon every teacher and worker in the Church Educational System, that we may meet our responsibilities to him and to his children.
President N. Eldon Tanner
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
This has been an inspirational meeting indeed. It is a privilege and blessing to all who have been here and to those who have listened in and who will apply what they have heard. Our challenges and our opportunities and our blessings are great and unnumbered; there is no greater power in all the world than the power of God delegated to the priesthood holders of the Church, if we will but magnify the priesthood which we hold.
Sister Tanner and I have just returned from visiting four missions and one stake in Japan, all of which are presided over by Japanese. One couple are natives who were born and raised there, who have filled missions in Japan, and who are doing a great job. We visited the mission in Korea and the one in Hong Kong, each of which is presided over by Americans who had filled missions only ten or twelve years ago; in fact, six of the mission presidents have served in the areas where they now preside, and five of the wives.
It thrilled me to see the marvelous work being done by the missionaries throughout these great countries, to see the growth of the Church, the quality and devotion of the members, old and new, most of whom are young people twenty to thirty-five years of age.
Outstanding leaders were observed in every mission and in the stake, and great strides are being made. We had from 300 to 1,000 people attending the meetings of the members, and one cannot help but have every confidence in the future growth and strength of the Church there. There was a great spirit in every meeting.
Impressions I received while I was there were that these are devoted, able, humble, prayerful, effective missionaries; boys who have developed into men; men with courage, understanding, and leadership ability; ambassadors of the Lord, admired, loved, and respected by the members, carrying heavy responsibility, filling all or any leadership positions and training others to fill these positions, such as branch presidents, heads of auxiliaries, and teachers; baptizing, confirming, and ordaining, etc., encouraging and strengthening the weak, administering to the sick. One bore testimony of a miraculous healing that he experienced where he was the one who gave the blessing to his father.
They are men and women with testimonies who have met and overcome temptation and evil; men who will come home prepared and ready and able to accept any position in a ward or stake; men who have felt important and have been important; men who will strengthen, inspire, and give leadership to your wards and stakes and inspire your youth if you will just give them an opportunity to do so; men deeply concerned about inactive members; men deeply concerned about anyone who has a problem and who are trying to help him solve it. This is one group of men.
I would like to refer to the servicemen. We met some while we were in Korea and in Osaka, and many of these young men are doing a tremendous work in the Church.
When I was speaking to newly called missionaries, I asked for all who were twenty-four years of age to stand, because that is the age Joseph Smith was when the Church was organized. Five stood at this meeting, and I asked one of them to come up and tell us how he happened to come into the Church, and to bear his testimony. He said he was in the armed services in Vietnam, and that while there he met some of our young men, one in particular who was living and teaching the gospel, and as a result this young man is now a member of the Church. He explained the great difference it had made in his life, how he had repented of what he had done, and how he came to understand the purpose of life. And then I asked the other four. Two of them told the same thing in bearing their testimony-that they had joined the Church while in the armed services. It was a thrilling experience to realize the effect of young servicemen who were devoted, who had testimonies of the gospel and the courage to live and teach the gospel and bear testimony, while in the armed services.
It was thrilling to see in the stake and missions how missionaries were able to bring people into the Church, people who regard them very highly. One convert was a university professor; another, a successful businessman; two, outstanding doctors, one of whom was a heart surgeon. It was most humbling to see how these men praised the work of the young men who had brought them into the Church and influenced their lives, and they bore testimony of the great things that the gospel has done for them since they joined the Church.
I was greatly impressed by the leadership in each and every mission and in the stake.
I appeal to the bishops and stake presidents to see that these young men, when they return from their tour of duty, have an opportunity to serve.
And to the young men: Your study and your devotion and experience have prepared you for real service in the work of the Lord. Thank the Lord for the privilege you have had of testing in your lives and improving your testimony. Never feel that you have finished or completed your tour of duty in church service. You have only prepared yourself to be of further service in the work of the Lord. Seek and accept opportunities to serve. Never return to the old gang. Be an example. Let the young girls and boys see what a mission will do for a young man, and never let them down. These youth in the wards and stakes, when you return, will look up to you and expect great things of you; and if you live as you should, you will influence their lives for good, as much as you have the lives of those with whom you have come in contact when you were in the service-the service of your country or the service of the Lord.
Encourage these young men with whom you meet when you come home to prepare themselves for missions, temple marriage, and the blessings that are available to faithful members of the Church. Help them to overcome evil and temptation, to appreciate the priesthood that they hold, and to sustain their leaders. That is the thing I hope these returning men will do.
Magnify your priesthood at all times. Honor and uphold one another. Never, never submit to temptation. Honor womanhood and virtue with your life, if necessary. Never become discouraged or quit. As you continue in active church service you will be more successful, more highly regarded, and happier than you will in any other way. And I want to promise you, my young brethren, that if you will seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and be prepared to serve the Lord wherever you can, the Lord will bless you with greater success and happiness and contentment than you could possibly enjoy otherwise. You will do better in your school work if you will be active in the Church, and you will be an influence for good in the world.
A man with whom I am associated as a director in a large company said to me the other day: "We asked for applicants who were prepared to accept a certain job in the government. We had many applicants, and we got them down to ten, and as we were considering those ten, we noticed that one of them was a member of your church, and we took him just like that."
I said, "Why did you take him?"
He said, "Because we knew that he wouldn't be carousing at night; we knew that we could depend upon him, and we knew that he would do the work assigned to him." And I thought, what a tremendous thing if our young men would all just realize that that is true.
I could read you a letter here tonight that I read to the Regional Representatives, and I think I should read parts of it, at least. Maybe I can tell you what is in it.
The president of the Korea Mission, when I was over there, was telling me of the problems they have with young men in the service because the bishops were not sending the recommends for two or three months after they had arrived. He said that our servicemen do not enjoy-in fact, they resent-being there, and they become lonesome, and there are prostitutes there in great numbers. In fact, he told me that it was a common thing for these soldiers to have a prostitute companion. He told me an experience where one of our priests who was lonely, who had not been too active, became involved with one of these prostitutes. And then one of our young men who was living the gospel and who was interested in trying to save these young men contacted him, worked with him, and finally got him to acknowledge the value of the Church, to repent of his doings, and to strive to work as he should to be worthy of the blessings of the Lord. And then he said if he could have just got hold of that boy when he arrived, he could have helped him and probably prevented this tragedy. He goes on to tell of the experience with many of the young men there, and how many of them bear testimony that it was because somebody met them and worked with them, and gave them companionship and love, that they were able to withstand the temptations so prevalent there.
So, brethren, you bishops and stake presidents, when these young men leave home to go to school, be sure that you send the recommends and the information you have regarding them to that university or college. When they go into the armed services, for goodness' sake, for the sake of these young men, be sure that you are not too busy and that your interest is keen enough to do all in your power to try to save these young men who are going into the armed services. Send information ahead of them to the group leaders or other proper people.
As for these missionaries, when they return, and the young men who are preparing, be close to them. Let your influence be felt. Encourage them. They are on fire when they return from a mission. You know when they are returning. Meet them, greet them, love them, and give them an opportunity to work. I have heard several examples of this-one just last week. A mother said to me, "When my boy returned from his mission, he wasn't given an opportunity to speak in the ward, he wasn't approached by the bishop other than to say, 'Hello, it's good to see you home,' and no one seemed to take an interest in him." Then she said, "I really had to work with that boy to keep up his interest and activity in the Church."
Brethren, you who are returning from these armed services and school and missions, report to your bishops and offer yourselves to be of service. And bishops, I appeal to you to see that when these young people leave your ward, you send on information to the proper officials in schools, universities, and the armed services, so that they might know and be able to give the necessary help and encouragement when they arrive.
May the Lord bless us that we might realize the importance of a soul; that right in our midst we have people needing attention and help, and it is our responsibility to keep them active, to encourage them, and to reach them if they are having problems. May we realize that the priesthood of God is the power of God given us to act in his name. May we do it wise]y, humbly, effectively, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
First Counselor in the First Presidency
During the last week, we have spent an afternoon and all day with our Regional Representatives of the Twelve, directing their attention to a theme, "The Church has need of every member that all may be edified together." We developed some statistics that have now been reduced to charts, which the Regional Representatives will be taking out to the various regional meetings to impress the need for reaching out to those who presently are not active in the Church.
I may take figures from one chart to impress the importance of what we are talking about. On one chart we have 353,000 holders of the Melchizedek Priesthood in the Church, most of whom are fathers, and only 187,000 are active, using attendance at one sacrament meeting and one priesthood meeting each month as helpful criteria. Or, in other words, they were considered active if they did that much. Of the 184,000 men over 21 who hold the Aaronic Priesthood, most of whom are fathers too, only 17,000 are active, mind you. There are also 48,000 adult male members who are unordained, and 117,480 nonmember husbands, most of whom are fathers also. Thus, of approximately 700,000 adult males, many of whom are fathers, almost 500,000 of the total are by these criteria inactive, if we include unordained males and nonmember husbands in describing this scope of our challenge.
Now, brethren, we are going out now with a determined activity to bring these our brethren into activity-activity of some kind. One of the mission presidents, with a group of his missionaries back in the Eastern States some years ago, was meeting in a hall with pillars that ran down the center of the hall, and he said to one of the missionaries, "Get up and push that pillar over."
"Well," said the missionary, "I can't."
"Why?"
"Because the weight of that ceiling is all on top of the pillar."
Then the president asked, "Suppose that weight were lifted off. Could you push the pillar over then?"
The missionary replied, "Why, sure, I think I could."
Then the president said, "Now, brethren, you and I are just like one of those pillars. As long as we have a weight of responsibility in this church, all hell can't push us over; but as soon as that weight is lifted off, most of us are easy marks by the powers that drag us down."
Now we want to put a weight of responsibility on every holder of the priesthood and on every father in every home. You must remember that if we are to multiply the number of those who are so-called inactives, who haven't been to the temple, by the average-size family, you are counting up to hundreds of thousands of members of this church who, unless we do something about it, will not be sealed together in the temple and will not, therefore, belong together in family relationships in the hereafter.
Remember that activity is the soul of spirituality.
We propose that you introduce this kind of program: We want the bishops now to instruct the home teachers and quorum leaders to submit the names of inactive members to their bishops, along with suggestions as to how these individuals might be approached and involved. We want the bishops, in turn, to submit these names to their stake presidents in the same manner, so that there is a continuing effort and evaluation over a period of time in which we focus on individuals rather than numbers, in which we test our love and creativity in terms of how we can best reach and assist fellow members in giving them the opportunity of serving others.
We have had these brethren speak as they have tonight, directing your attention to this vital subject. All of them have touched upon various areas of concern. We have in the Church many men in various professions who have been asking, "Why can't we, instead of being called to go out on a proselyting mission, go on a mission where we can use our talents, our professional skills, in helping the work of the Lord?"
This is a program that we will hear more of, and this is a call to doctors, nurses, agricultural people, and all those whom Dr. Mason has talked about that we are going to try to marshal and call as regular missionaries to go out at their own expense, as all proselyting missionaries do, to give help for a period of time in helping to lift the standards of our people wherever that help is needed. Now we can see in this a great uplift and a great surge of strength that will come from many of these persons who are asking for somebody to give them a chance to serve in the fields where they are able to serve; to reach out to all of these who are in some measure less active than they should be and give them something to do. Use your imagination, you leaders, and see that everyone is given some responsibility, with the feeling that the Church needs them for a specific service.
I recall, and I think I have mentioned this before and I repeat it tonight, the experience of the late Adam S. Bennion when he went out to the Utah State Penitentiary. He was bolder than some of us have been when we have gone out there. He engaged them in conversation. "Boys, I would like to ask you, what happened in your lives that caused you to make the mistakes that brought you here as inmates in the Utah State Penitentiary?" After he broke the ice, as it were, they gave him one answer: "We are here in the state penitentiary because there came a time in our lives when we were made to feel that nobody cared what happened to us."
You and I sit here tonight in a comparative measure of security, but the Lord help any one of us if ever we are made to feel in our hearts that nobody cares what happens to us. A father or a mother or a child, or one who is not active, who feels that nobody cares-that man or woman is in a dangerous state, and we want you to reach out to all of these and bring them now into a measure of some activity, as soon as you can marshal your forces so to do.
I was down in a husbands-and-wives meeting in Provo years ago when a lovely sister bore her testimony as to the joy that had come into her home since her husband had become active in the Church. She told about going through the temple with her husband. She told how he had been inactive, how he had smoked and hadn't been advanced in the priesthood, and how someone took hold of him and finally helped him to become worthy and ready to receive the priesthood; and the bishop had finally given him a recommend to go to the temple. After she had described that wonderful evening, she said, "Here, five little girls came in to be sealed to their father and mother. This man of God pronounced us a family for the eternities." And as she finished this story and bore her testimony, she looked over the pulpit and down in front of her where her husband was seated. She seemed to forget for that moment that there was anybody there but just the two of them, and she said to him, "Daddy, I can't tell you how happy the girls now are and how grateful we are for what you have done for us, because, you see, Daddy, except for you who holds the priesthood, neither the children nor I could be together as a family in the hereafter. Thank God for our daddy who holds the key and unlocks the door to an eternal family home."
I could have wished that every careless father in the Church could have heard that girl's testimony.
Please, we ask you priesthood holders, wake up these fathers now, while it is yet day and while there is time for them to receive their blessings before the darkness comes. May the Lord help us so to do now and to catch the vision and the message that President Tanner and these men who have spoken to you tonight have given you-a glimpse of what we can do if we will only exercise the priesthood, which is the power of God by which he works through men to the salvation of his children. That the Lord might help us so to do, to catch that vision, and to carry out the purposes of what we are trying to do in these years ahead, I pray humbly in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
It is a humbling experience indeed to be called to speak to this great audience assembled here, and to all those who may be listening in. I sincerely pray that the Spirit and blessings of the Lord will attend us as we discuss the significance of God's first question to Adam, "Where art thou?"-a direct and searching question that applies to every one of us today.
To do this intelligently, we need to understand the purpose for man's existence here upon the earth and why God posed this question to Adam, who represents all mankind. In the council in heaven before the world was, the Gods decided to create an earth on which man would dwell, and God said:
" we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
"And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
"And I, God, created man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them.
"And I, God, blessed them, and said unto them: Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth."
"And I, the Lord God, planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there I put the man whom I had formed to dress it, and to keep it.
"And commanded the man, saying: Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat,
"But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it, nevertheless, thou mayest choose for thyself, for it is given unto thee; but, remember that I forbid it. "
It is evident, therefore, that the earth was made as a dwelling place for man, and all things therein were given to him for his use, for his good, and for his enjoyment; but God has pointed out to us, as to Adam, that if we are to enjoy life to the full, there are things we must do and things we must not do. In other words, we are given everything for our benefit and blessing but we must remember that there are a few "forbidden fruits" that will deprive us of full enjoyment and bring sorrow and regret to us if we partake.
At the council in heaven, two plans were presented for man's salvation. Christ's plan was approved and he was chosen as the Savior of the world; and Satan's plan was rejected and he rebelled. The record states:
"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;
"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."
In the Doctrine and Covenants we read:
"Satan stirreth them up, that he may lead their souls to destruction.
"And thus he has laid a cunning plan, thinking to destroy the work of God;
"Yea, he saith unto them: Deceive and lie in wait to catch, that ye may destroy. And thus he flattereth them, and telleth them that it is no sin to lie.
"And thus he leadeth them along until he draggeth their souls down to hell.
"And thus he goeth up and down, to and fro in the earth, seeking to destroy the souls of men."
Immediately after God left Adam and Eve in the garden, telling them to partake freely of the fruit of all the trees except one, of which they were commanded not to partake, Satan began his nefarious plan for their destruction. Following Satan's successful attempt, God returned to the garden; and because they were ashamed, Adam and Eve were hiding from him, so he called: "Where art thou?" a question which can and does apply to every one of us individually and collectively, and one which we might well be asking ourselves as it applies to our relationship to God and our fellowmen.
Adam replied: " I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
"And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?"
Adam, as we all are inclined to do, tried to blame someone else, and replied:
" The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat."
And Eve said: " The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat."
Conditions surrounding Adam and Eve, and those surrounding us today, point up clearly the influence of Satan and the frailties of man, the temptations and problems that he has to meet in life, and how the Lord has prepared a way for him to overcome.
When God said "Where art thou?" he knew where Adam was. With his omniscience he knew what had taken place, but he was calling Adam to consider the seriousness of his actions and to report to him. But Adam had hidden himself because he was ashamed.
We are all like Adam in that when we partake of "forbidden fruits" or do the things we are commanded not to do, we are ashamed, and we draw away from the Church and from God and hide ourselves, and if we continue in sin, the Spirit of God withdraws from us. There is no happiness in disobedience or sin. We have all learned from our childhood that we are happier when we are doing right.
Sometimes we do not understand why it is necessary for us to keep the commandments and do certain things to receive certain blessings, except that the Lord commanded it. We cannot explain why we should be baptized or have the laying on of hands or other ordinances. Some even question the teachings of God. But if by faith we obey his commandments, we will receive the promised blessings. Jesus said that unless we become as little children, who have such great faith, we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. We must learn to have explicit faith.
Then, too, we must understand the importance of obedience. The prophet Samuel taught that "to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." The scriptures give us many examples of obedience by faith alone. After Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden, the Lord "gave unto them commandments, that they should worship the Lord their God, and should offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord. And Adam was obedient unto the commandments of the Lord.
"And after many days an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me.
"And then the angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth."
When Nephi was recording the history of his people, he explained that he had received a commandment to make two sets of records-one for an account of the ministry of his people, and the other for an account of the reign of the kings and the wars and contentions of his people. Then he said:
"Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not.
"But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men. "
This, as we now know, proved to be of great importance at the time of the translation of these records. If we will only have the faith to keep the commandments, whether we fully understand them or not, we will be blessed, and just as surely, we will reap the results of disobedience.
I remember so well that when I was just a young man, to be obedient to the teachings of the Church I refrained from the use of tea, coffee, liquor, and tobacco. At that time the world did not understand, and scientists had not proven, that the use of these things was detrimental to the body and not good for man. Today they have proven that these things are harmful and that we should not partake of them; and yet in spite of this knowledge there are many in the world today who are suffering ill health, much unhappiness, and even death as a result of partaking of these "forbidden fruits."
In fact, most of the contention, strife, and unhappiness in the world are caused by our refusing to accept and live the commandments of the Lord. As was pointed out before, we are here to prove ourselves, and no matter how busy we are, or how successful, we must realize that death will come to us and is not far away. We might well ask ourselves: What am I doing to prepare for death and eternal life? Where am I when it comes to the performance of my duty to God and to my fellowmen?
Our duty lies in studying the word of God, developing our faith in him, supporting our faith by our actions, and in the heavy responsibility of teaching our families their duty. Again we might ask: Where am I when it comes to teaching my family, by example as well as by precept, to walk uprightly before the Lord, to be honest and honorable in all their dealings, including the payment of tithes and offerings to the Lord? Are we keeping the Sabbath day holy, or do we compromise in certain respects? Are we observing the Word of Wisdom strictly, or do we tamper with any of these "forbidden fruits"? Am I aware of the increasing availability of illegal drugs, and warning my children of the dangers involved? What am I doing in my community to clear up problems pertaining to drug addiction, alcoholism, sexual promiscuity and disease, which are more prevalent than most parents realize? In your own community these are threatening the children of every home.
Where am I when it comes to loyalty to my country? Am I teaching my family to be loyal citizens? Am I teaching them that in order to enjoy the good things in life they must accept responsibility as citizens and contribute to making theirs a better community? Is my home an example of love and harmony and peace? Am I holding regular home evenings so as to be close to my family? Are we having family prayer regularly in order that we may report to the Lord "where we are" and ask for his help and guidance?
I was impressed the other day when I read an article on the family. The author said that juvenile crimes of the times do not reflect on the great body of the young people involved as much as they reflect on the manner in which the adult population is discharging its responsibility. This observation was voiced recently by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in Ontario, Canada. The group that is causing most of the trouble, he contends, is the product of the undisciplined homes and irresponsible parents.
We must realize that it is our duty and privilege to be good neighbors, especially to those who have no families, and to visit the sick, the poor, and the needy. The Lord has said that the second great commandment is to love our neighbors as ourselves. Are my family and I qualifying in this respect? Are we interested in their welfare and ready to help wherever possible? We read in James that "pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction."
We are aware that there has always been a conflict between right and wrong, righteousness and evil, good and bad. We must prepare ourselves to meet these conflicts and teach our children and help others to choose the right and make the decisions that will keep them from yielding to temptation. Someone asked me the other day why we have all these temptations, and why the Lord has given us the desires such as appetites and passions, and why we have to be tempted and tested.
One reason is to help us develop and grow through the schooling we receive in the experiences we encounter in mortal life. Brigham Young said: "I am happy for the privilege of having temptations." Temptations are necessary for our advancement and our development. "When temptations come to you, be humble and prayerful, and determined that you will overcome, and you will receive a deliverance and continue faithful, having the promise of receiving blessings."
All of these temptations-these appetites and passions-are for our good and enjoyment if we will but let wisdom's voice control. Temptations come to all, but long before we are faced with them, we and our children must have determined what our course will be. It is too late if we wait until the moment of temptation before making our decision. If we have been taught and determined always to choose the right and resist evil, we will have the strength to overcome.
We must remember that Satan is always on the job, determined to destroy the work of the Lord and to destroy mankind, and as soon as we deviate from the path of righteousness, we are in great danger of being destroyed. The scriptures and history give us many examples of men in high places who, when they turned from and despised the teachings of the Lord, or in any way deviated from the path of righteousness, suffered much sorrow, loss of position, loss of friends and even family.
Conditions in the world today cause us to reflect on the prophecy made by Paul to Timothy, wherein he said:
"This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
"For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
"Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
"Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
"Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away."
This causes us to ask: Where are we individually on each of these counts? Where are we as a nation and as the world? Are conditions in this great country and in the whole world comparable to the conditions that caused the downfall of Sodom and Gomorrah and Rome and other civilizations that have fallen because of moral decadence? How far have we moved, and how rapidly are we moving away from God and his teachings? Again, where are we and what will be our destiny if we as individuals and as a country and the world refuse to repent and turn to God, and quit hiding ourselves from him?
How fortunate we are to have the gospel of Jesus Christ as a guide, and the promise that if we will serve God we will be saved from destruction and, in fact, enjoy life to the full here and eternal life hereafter. Christ's whole mission was to make it possible for us to enjoy immortality and eternal life, and he gave us the plan by which we can accomplish this.
If every family in the Church were to live the principles of the gospel, the influence for good in the world would be tremendous. And if every family in the world would accept and live the teachings of Jesus Christ, we would have none of the prevalent ills, and all would be living together in love and peace. Such a thought staggers the imagination!
However, in the Book of Mormon we read of such a condition:
"And it came to pass the people were all converted unto the Lord, upon all the face of the land and there were no contentions and disputations among them, and every man did deal justly one with another because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people.
"And there were no envyings, nor strifes, nor tumults, nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of lasciviousness; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God."
As individuals, families, communities, leaders, and governments, we must turn to God, acknowledge him as the Creator of the world and the universe, and as Father of us all, and seek his guidance and keep his commandments. No one can state too plainly or emphasize too strongly this eternal truth that only through the atonement of Christ can mankind be saved. Because of his atoning sacrifice all men will be raised in immortality and live forever as resurrected beings, but only those who believe and obey his laws will enjoy exaltation and eternal life.
I humbly pray that we may have the wisdom, knowledge, desire, courage, and strength to overcome and repent. I make a special appeal to our youth that they will always keep themselves clean and pure, and never be guilty of doing anything that will bring sorrow to them and their families and make them feel to hide from the Lord because they are ashamed.
I appeal to each member of the Church to ask himself: Where am I? Am I ashamed so that I want to hide, or am I where I should be, doing what I should be doing, and preparing to meet God? Let each of us determine to humble ourselves and repent, and prove ourselves worthy of the great promise that those who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads forever and ever. May this be our happy lot I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop John H. Vandenberg
Presiding Bishop
In the Book of Job we read where the Lord spoke to Job and said:
"Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.
"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
"Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
"Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
"When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"
This bit of scripture, we believe, alludes to our preexistence with God when we, in his presence, rejoiced at his announcing to us, his children, the plan of the creation of the earth on which the human race would dwell. We believe that, as the plan was presented, we agreed to it and received the privilege of progressing in our eternal existence.
William Wordsworth must have given a great deal of thought to the mystery of life when he was inspired to write his "Ode on Intimations of Immortality," in which he says:
Henry Ward Beecher has said: "God asks no man whether he will accept life. That is not his choice. He must take it. The only choice is how." Parenthetically, I would say we did make the choice to come to earth. God does not force his children.
The choice we are now concerned with is how we are going to live our lives. We have the agency to make that choice as we react to the conditions in which we find ourselves during our life span. We must make choices, as we are surrounded by the elements and resources of the earth as well as by the people with whom we associate. From the words of the prophets to the words of the atheists, the question is: How will we emerge? Will we rise or fall? Will we fulfill our life's purpose, or will it be wasted?
In accepting life, we must relate to the world as it is-to the struggle between good and evil. There are, of course, some who would have us believe that there is no such thing as good or evil, but this philosophy runs counter to the natural laws of opposites that exist, such as heat and cold, light and dark, gravitation and vacuum, and many others. We need to use our eyes that we may see, our ears that we may hear, and our minds that we may be able to think and make our own decisions as we sift out the chaff of all we see and hear, so that we may know the truth of that which we feel in our hearts, as it is affirmed by the Holy Spirit.
Faith in God is a prerequisite to the influence of the Holy Spirit. To have a belief in God is the foundation of a full and happy life. Without this belief, life can be wasted. Evidence of God's existence spreads throughout the universe.
Abraham Lincoln said: "I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how he could look up into the heavens and say there is no God." I believe I know what Lincoln meant when he made that statement.
Some years ago I accepted an invitation to a fathers and sons outing, where the participants spent an arduous but interesting day mounted on horses on a trip to Bloomington Lake in the mountains of Bear Lake County, Idaho. Late at night, after the campfires had all burned out and everyone had settled down under the open heavens, I lay on my back, gazing overhead. It was a moonless night, and I have never seen such a beautiful sight. The heavens were alive with the brightness of stars and planets. How small I felt in comparison to that vast universe! A sense of appreciation came over me as I thought of God's glory, of his handiwork, the earth, the heavens, all created for one purpose-his children, mankind. That experience has remained with me. I was overwhelmed by the magnitude of it.
It calls to mind an incident I read that tells of the naturalist, William Beebe, who made a visit to another naturalist whose name was Theodore Roosevelt. In describing the visit, William Beebe said that each evening, after a talk in Roosevelt's home at Sagamore Hill, the two men would go out on the lawn and gaze up at the sky to see who could first detect that faint spot of light-mist beyond the lower left-hand corner of the Great Square of Pegasus. Then one or the other would recite: "That is the Spiral Galaxy of Andromeda. It is as large as our Milky Way. It is one of a hundred million galaxies. It is 750,000 light-years away. It consists of one hundred billion suns, each larger than our sun." After an interval Beebe reported that Mr. Roosevelt would grin at him and say, "Now I think we are small enough. Let's go to bed."
Can you imagine how Moses felt when he said: "Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed" after he "was caught up into an exceedingly high mountain, And he saw God face to face, and he talked with him"? We read in the first chapter of Moses that "Moses looked, and beheld the world upon which he was created; and Moses beheld the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created; of the same he greatly marveled and wondered."
And then Satan appeared and tempted Moses and commanded in a loud voice: "I am the Only Begotten, worship me.
"And Moses began to fear exceedingly; and he saw the bitterness of hell. Nevertheless, calling upon God, he received strength, and he commanded, saying: Depart from me, Satan, for this one God only will I worship, which is the God of glory.
"And now Satan began to tremble, and the earth shook; and Moses called upon God, saying: In the name of the Only Begotten, depart hence, Satan.
"And Satan cried with a loud voice and he departed hence, even from the presence of Moses.
"And when Satan had departed Moses lifted up his eyes unto heaven, being filled with the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of the Father and the Son;
"And calling upon the name of God, he beheld his glow again, for it was upon him. "
And Moses beheld the earth and the inhabitants thereof. And he beheld many lands. And "Moses called upon God, saying: Tell me, I pray thee, why these things are so, and by what thou madest them?
"And behold, the glory of the Lord was upon Moses, so that Moses stood in the presence of God, and talked with him face to face. And the Lord God said unto Moses: For mine own purpose have I made these things.
"And by the word of my power have I created them.
"And worlds without number have I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son I created them, which is mine Only Begotten.
"But only an account of this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, give I unto you. For behold, there are many worlds that have passed away by the word of my power. And there are many that now stand, and innumerable are they unto man; but all things are numbered unto me, for they are mine and I know them.
"And Moses spake unto the Lord, saying: Be merciful unto thy servant, O God, and tell me concerning this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, and also the heavens, and then thy servant will be content.
"And the Lord God spake unto Moses, saying: The heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man; but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine.
"And as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof even so shall another come; and there is no end to my works, neither to my words.
"For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Think of the impact of that statement. All the creations of God were made for this one purpose-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of his children.
Moses became aware of the magnitude of the creation and its purpose firsthand, by talking face to face with God and beholding his works. There are few who have had that experience. But others have beheld God's majesty through his works. Abraham Lincoln stated his conviction when he said that he could not conceive how anyone could look up into the heavens and say there is no God. I had an unforgettable witness to God's handiwork as I lay on my back in the mountains of Bear Lake County, Idaho. No doubt many could concur in such an experience, for it has been said, "We must, despite ourselves, turn heavenward our eyes."
As the Lord talked to Moses, he told him of the creation of the earth and how he formed man and instructed him to teach his children to know good from evil and to teach them "that all men, everywhere, must repent, or they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God, for no unclean thing can dwell there.
" I give unto you a commandment to teach these things freely unto your children, saying:
"That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory;
"For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified;
"Therefore it is given to abide in you; the record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment.
"And now, behold, I say unto you: This is the plan of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the meridian of time."
And so the creation of the world, the plan of salvation-all this is for us. It behooves all parents to know of it, that they may respond to desires of the child that are so aptly stated by Mamie Gene Cole in her poem "The Child's Appeal":
What a responsibility for a mother and father, to answer this appeal from their child: "Give me, I pray you, those things that make for happiness." The first thing that comes to mind is that we cannot give that which we do not have. Do we, as parents, have those things that make for happiness, the basis of which is the understanding of God's plan as revealed to Moses, and try to live our lives in accordance to that plan?
Do you think of yourself as a happy person? A young man once made a list of all the things he thought would bring happiness in life. He included such things as wealth, fame, honor, success, and love. It was quite a long list, and he thought he had covered everything; but when he showed it proudly to an elderly friend, he was told, "You have left out the most important thing of all-peace of mind." The young man said he could not, at that time, understand how right his friend was.
Peace of mind, a clear conscience, was declared by President David O. McKay as the first condition of happiness. He said: "It is glorious when you can lie down at night with a clear conscience that you have done your best not to offend anyone and have injured no one. These and countless other virtues and conditions are all wrapped up in the Gospel of Jesus Christ."
Some other conditions that make for happiness are the ability to follow that which you know to be true, to control your appetites and passions, to be able to make your own decisions, to feel no envy of another, to be able to commune with God in prayer, and to be free from bonds, and to be master of yourself.
The second appeal of the child to his parents-train me to be a blessing to the world-is companion to happiness, for it calls for action by the individual in an expression of service, of losing himself in helping his fellowman.
You've heard that statement that each of us is either a part of the problem or a part of the answer, with the understanding that this world is beset with problems. If you are a part of the answer, then you are a blessing to the world and can train your children to follow in your footsteps. Those who are a blessing to the world will try to do these things: lend a helping hand, refrain from infringing upon the rights of others, obey God's laws and the laws of the land, stand up for the right and fight against evil, and share the truth with others, remembering, and remembering well, that the greatest gift of God is his plan of salvation.
May we guide our lives and those of our children in this direction, I pray humbly in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Paul H. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
We have been taught well in this great conference, my brothers and sisters, and I have been thinking a great deal about teaching and great teachers. Last evening, Elder Marion D. Hanks brought to our attention the situation concerning his departed cousin, a Brother Frame, who had a deep impact on humanity. He mentioned that one of the great tributes paid at his funeral was that every boy should have a Brother Frame in his life.
I have thought about that, and I thank God repeatedly for such an individual in my life. He was a 78-year-old man who was assigned to be a priests adviser to six of us who were in our struggling teens and challenged with the future. His name was Charles B. Stewart. His son is here today as president of the great Tabernacle Choir.
I don't know what you thought about a 78-year-old man when you were 16, but some of us questioned the wisdom of our bishop, for we thought he had literally brought Moses back.
I remember the first day I reported to my class in that rickety old upper room of the Hollywood Ward. There was that kind, gentle man to greet me. He took me by the hand as he had the other boys and said, "You're Harold Dunn's son, aren't you?"
I said, "Yes, sir."
He talked a little bit about me, my family, and showed a great personal interest. And then he said, "Paul, one of the requirements for being a member of this class is to think a new thought every day." He said, "Do you have one this morning?"
Well now, I hadn't had a new thought in years, and he could see my plight, and he said, "All right, I will teach you one. Listen carefully. 'Attention is the mother of memory.' Now can you repeat it back?" And I tried and finally gave it back to him. He permitted me to enter.
We had a wonderful class. It ended; as I went to leave he said, "I forgot to tell you-before you go home you've got to give me another new idea." I thought, I won't go home. I didn't have one, and so he said, "Now listen very carefully and I will teach you one that you'll always remember." He said, "'Oh, what a tangled web we weave, When first we practise to deceive.'" I've never forgotten it.
Another week passed, and we went through a similar experience. I still didn't have a new thought. He said, "Listen very carefully. 'There's an odd little voice ever speaking within that prompts us to duty and warns us from sin. And what is most strange, it makes itself heard, though it gives not a sound and says never a word.'" And I've never forgotten that one.
I started to go home and found he wouldn't let me go until I cited another. When I couldn't he said, "Listen carefully. 'There was a wise old owl who sat in an oak, and the longer he sat the less he spoke. The less he spoke, the more he heard. Oh, Paul, why can't you be like that wise old bird?'"
I've thought a lot about that since. Still another week and another great thought. He said, "'Remember, young man, example sheds a genial ray which men are apt to borrow. So first improve yourself today and then your friends tomorrow.'" And I haven't forgotten that concept either.
Time won't permit a number of others. Two years later I found myself in the fighting forces of our country. I was on the island of Okinawa. I received a letter from Mrs. Stewart, and it told me of the sad news that my kind friend and adviser had passed away. In it she had attached a half-written letter from Brother Stewart to me, and he said: "Dear Paul, I've been thinking about you in that far-off country, discouraged, I'm sure, and somewhat depressed; and in order to build your spirits, I have included some additional gem thoughts." There were twenty-five new ideas, and I have never forgotten them.
Thank God for people who care, for the Frames and Stewarts. I have since counted on my hand five such teachers who have influenced me for good. I would agree with Elder Hanks; there ought to be a Brother Stewart and a Brother Frame in every boy's life.
What is a teacher? The teacher is a prophet. He lays the foundation of tomorrow.
The teacher is an artist. He works with the precious clay of unfolding personality.
The teacher is a friend. His heart responds to the faith and devotion of his students.
The teacher is a citizen. He is selected and licensed for the improvement of society.
The teacher is an interpreter. Out of his mature and wider life, he seeks to guide the young.
The teacher is a builder. He works with the higher and finer values of civilization.
The teacher is a culture-bearer. He leads the way toward worthier tastes, saner attitudes, more gracious manners, higher intelligence.
The teacher is a planner. He sees the young lives before him as a part of a great system that shall grow stronger in the light of truth.
The teacher is a pioneer. He is always interpreting and attempting the impossible, and usually winning out.
The teacher is a reformer. He seeks to improve the handicaps that weaken and destroy life.
The teacher is a believer. He has an abiding faith in God and in the improvability of the race. It was James Truslow Adams who said, "There are obviously two educations. One should teach us how to make a living, and the other how to live."
We are engaged in teaching people how to live.
Elbert Hubbard said, "You can't teach anybody anything. You can only help him find himself."
That was the genius of the Savior. He taught us divine principles we could apply to ourselves and thus solve our personal problems. The Savior had no peer as a teacher.
For just a moment, let me walk you through the fifteenth chapter of Luke, wherein this great master teacher tells us how to solve problems that we all face. Luke records that there drew near him a great multitude, the publicans, the sinners, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and he spake unto them this parable, saying: "What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine and go after that which is lost."
Then he tells about the rejoicing moment when the sheep is found. And then, without even a pause, he goes into a second parable like unto it, which says: "Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it." And she too rejoices with her neighbors.
And then he goes into that parable of parables, the Prodigal Son: "A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me.'" And we recognize how with his agency he squandered it all.
I used to wonder, as a teacher so-called, why the Savior would spend time citing three parables about things that get lost. And then one day it dawned. People do get lost in various ways, and here in this great chapter of Luke we find the Savior counseling how to recover them.
Permit me this observation: The Savior might say to us today, if he were to teach this parable again, that sheep are not basically sinners by nature or even choice, but people, like sheep, get confused in what's important. In other words, they have misplaced values. And I am sure the Savior would say to the teacher in the classroom, to the adviser, "If you want to retrieve this kind of person, put a higher value in place of the one he now elects." Family, service, brotherhood are all greener pastures for today's sheep. Feeding here brings them home.
Next, he talks about lost coins. This whole conference has talked about precious coins that become lost-young people, if you please. And there are those of us who are the responsible agents who, like the woman of this great teaching parable, let these priceless gems slip through our fingers. Certainly we wouldn't recover this kind of lost article the way we would a sheep. He would say love, care, and attention would be the process used to recover lost coins.
And then the great parable of the Prodigal Son, with the Savior saying that there are those who get lost by choice; and in the concluding of that parable, he says: "And when he came to himself he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare. "
There are those who get lost because their free agency takes them down that path. We can't do a lot at some points to recover this kind of a person except open our arms and our church doors and let them know they are wanted. Teachers and advisers are really needed here. But note: he came to himself. He repented, sought forgiveness, and came home. Many people are like the Prodigal Son.
Let me just say as a concluding thought that this is a positive gospel. We ought to be the happiest people in the world. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a great building force. It teaches people to be happy and to always wear a smile. But sometimes we neglect the simple things that mean the most. Most people in the rush of modern life never know real friendship and the warmth that the gospel and even a smile can bring.
An acquaintance of mine recently said to me as we walked down the street and noticed a man with a sour face, "He looks like he was weaned on lemon juice and a dill pickle."
I also heard about a mother and her young daughter who were listening to a public speaker when the child said to her mother, "Isn't that man happy?" The mother replied. "I guess so." To which the girl remarked: "Why doesn't he tell his face?"
I think our Heavenly Father would be most disappointed if he saw the expressions of some of us who have all that the world contains and fail to incorporate it into our lives and share it with others. The meaning and purpose of the gospel of Jesus Christ to me is that it brings joy and happiness, peace and contentment.
We all have problems. The world is sick with problems. And yet in these sacred words, in the standard works, are the solutions to the problems we face. Let us encourage the world to know the word of God.
There are forty-three other parables in the New Testament that teach us how to help people. Search the scriptures, for in them ye shall find the way to eternal life.
My testimony is that the gospel is true and that it works.
Such is the gospel of Jesus Christ, to which I bear solemn testimony in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Alvin R. Dyer
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I feel honored this morning, my brothers and sisters, to be in the presence of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and my fellow associates in the cause of Jesus the Master. This vast congregation is also most humbling. I have sought the inspiration of the Spirit in the few thoughts I have prepared.
Men seek for a phrase or a slogan to motivate and give impetus to action under certain conditions. History refers to such statements as, "Give me liberty, or give me death!" or "I have not yet begun to fight," and "Surrender? Never! We will die first." Modern slogans have also had their effect, such as "V" for victory, and the peace and freedom symbols of crowds of demonstrators.
Formulas for living-how to attain a peaceful world civilization-are common today, as exponents of opposing ideologies hurl their challenges. Men are constantly seeking for an answer to an easier and better way of life.
Be that as it may, concerning slogans as an answer to the problem, I am not prepared to say; but for a realistic and productive life, the Prophet Joseph Smith gives the following statements, which might well be a panacea for our troubles:
"Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated."
This is a very controversial subject, with many different ideas. I once heard of a man by the name of Wilson who slept so much that his friends nicknamed him "Rip Van Wilson." He said, "I don't sleep long. I just sleep slow."
A great thinker of our modern day supports the statement of the Lord concerning idleness, for said he:
"When a man shuns effort, he is in no position to resist temptation. So, through all the ages, idleness has been known as the parent of all the vices. The dryrot of ennui, the vague self-disgust of those who cannot 'deal with time,' is the natural result of idleness. The indolent ennui of the hopelessly rich and the indolent misery of the helplessly poor have this much in common. 'Life drives him hard' who has nothing in the world to do."
Concerning chastity and cleanliness, as associated with righteous dominion, the Lord gave this direction:
" let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
"The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever."
Concerning our fellowman and our attitude toward him, the Prophet Joseph Smith gave this purposeful thought:
"And let every man esteem his brother as himself, and practise virtue and holiness before me.
"And again I say unto you, let every man esteem his brother as himself."
For a man to seek ascendance over another man by the suppressing of his rights is not virtuous and would not tie in with the words of the Master, who said:
"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."
As to sleep and rest, the Prophet Joseph Smith, in saying "Cease to sleep longer than is needful," does not mean, as Dr. John A. Widtsoe states it, that "one should sleep a certain minimum number of hours. Nine hours is a minimum for some adults, while others seem to keep healthy on seven or less."
Authorities on child nutrition insist that many undernourished children are lacking not good food but enough sleep. Perhaps the late TV shows are taking a toll in this regard.
What I believe that the Prophet is saying about more sleep than is needful concerns the individual who goes far beyond the need, developing slothful and lazy habits, which deaden the senses and become a retarder of accomplishment. To overcome these things in life requires discipline and restraint.
Soon after Adam and Eve, our first earthly parents, were driven from the Garden of Eden because of their yielding to temptation, they came to know the difference between right and wrong and good and evil, for thus the Lord declared: " Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil. "
Without a knowledge of good and evil, the divine principle of agency would be ineffectual. The application of this law, while serving to elevate man, can also condemn him. For that in which we participate, whether it is good or evil, either defiles or exalts us. Concerning this, the Master has said: "There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man."
There is weakness in the thought that one can indulge heavily in both evil and good things at the same time. Many centuries ago Jesus said that "man cannot serve two masters," he will either love one and despise the other or hate the one and love the other. The apostle James emphasized the importance of constantly choosing right over wrong. To those who attempt an allegiance to both right and wrong, he declared: "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."
Man is the sum result of what he thinks and does. Habit is the instrument that molds his character and makes of him essentially what he is. Habit can become a monster to tarnish and destroy, yet proper behavioral traits can bring lasting joy and achievement. To say no at the right time and then stand by it is the first element of success.
The effect that both good and bad habits have on our lives is all too real to be ignored. Bad habits that violate the commandments of physical health and of moral behavior, given by revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith many years ago, will threaten and destroy all opportunities for real happiness.
The experience of countless families, the demonstration of crowded hospitals, treating pitiful cases caused by drug addiction in its many forms, such as alcohol, tobacco, the use of capsules, and injections of a high and stimulating nature, are straining the stability of our present civilization.
Sicknesses such as these, which sometimes induce improper and wrongful habits, should, of course, be treated with modern techniques. It is nevertheless true, however, that all too often that which we are unwilling to cope with, and which otherwise could be controlled by personal restraint, is regarded in our modern way of thinking as a form of sickness, and therefore the indulger is led to believe that he is free of moral obligation. Where such is the case, where one is led to believe that he can excuse injurious acts of indulgence upon the basis that what he does is the result of a sickness and that he is really not to blame, the psychological effect is most devastating and in reality is a compounding of the wrongful indulgence.
The practice of restraint is a necessary attribute of every gentle and good man. Women without it become coarse and unrefined. To curb the appetites and passions, to screen wisely the thoughts that are permitted to enter our minds, to avoid the habit that does not produce the spiritual and abundant life, are experiences of life to be concerned with if the crown of achievement and the nobility of good character are to be possessed.
Choosing good over evil and right over wrong is the crowning achievement of life, and in so doing man becomes the masterpiece of the Creator and fulfills the basic purposes of his mortal probation. An ancient prophet speaks of it in this way: " he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city."
Among the last words spoken unto the beloved apostle John, while in vision on the Isle of Patmos, are these: "He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son."
The fusing of ritual and commandment with everyday living calls for the best that is in us, that by our agency we may feel the affected condition by choosing good rather than evil, thus not only glorifying ourselves but glorifying Him who has made all things possible.
Concerning the need of fusing obedience to the will of God, the Prophet Joseph Smith once gave this important counsel:
"We take the sacred writings into our hands, and admit that they were given by direct inspiration for the good of man. We believe that God condescended to speak from the heavens and declare His will concerning the human family, to give them just and holy laws, to regulate their conduct, and guide them in a direct way, that in due time He might take them to Himself, and make them joint heirs with His Son. But when this fact is admitted, that the immediate will of heaven is contained in the Scriptures, are we not bound as rational creatures to live in accordance to all its precepts? Will the mere admission, that this is the will of heaven ever benefit us if we do not comply with all its teachings? Do we not offer violence to the Supreme Intelligence of heaven, when we admit the truth of its teachings, and do not obey them? Do we not descend below our own knowledge, by such a course of conduct?"
I bear my testimony to you, my brothers and sisters, that I know that the gospel is true. When I entered the top floor of the temple in the late afternoon Thursday, with General Authorities and the Regional Representatives of the Twelve and our wives, it seemed as though a thousand voices unseen were saying, "The gospel is true; the gospel is true."
I have had the assurance of this since the day, as a young missionary in Pennsylvania, when I placed a Book of Mormon in the hands of an investigator who went directly to a clump of bushes in a park to ask God if this book were true. He returned convinced and asked for baptism. And again when a farmer in Pennsylvania met us at the farm gate to say, "I have been expecting you. I have seen you in my dreams." After a day and night of giving them a message of the restoration, I witnessed this family of five request baptism, which was accomplished by damming the creek in back of their barn.
I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph Smith and his successors, including President Joseph Fielding Smith, are prophets of God.
Of this I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
Acting President of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends: Much is being said of deep crime which darkens heaven's windows. We shudder at immoralities which terrify us. We nearly panic at the divorce frequency and broken homes and delinquent children about us. But perhaps sometimes we should stop to reflect that all are not criminals, all are not bad, and all are not rebellious.
More than once I have repeated an experience I had in getting my portrait painted.
In the temple on the fourth floor is the room of the Council of the Twelve Apostles with large chairs in a semicircle. Here important meetings of that body are held. Around its walls are portraits of the Brethren. When I came to this service, I looked upon them with admiration and affection, for these were truly great men with whom I was associated.
Sometime later authorization was given by the First Presidency of the Church for my portrait to be added to the others.
Lee Greene Richards was selected as the artist, and we began immediately. I sat on a chair on an elevated platform in his studio and tried very hard to look handsome, like some of the other brethren. With paints, brushes, and palette ready, the artist scrutinized my features and daubed on the canvas alternately. I returned many times to the studio. After weeks the portrait was exhibited to the First Presidency and later to my wife and daughter.
It did not pass, and I was to submit to a redoing.
The angle was changed, the hours-many of them-were spent, and finally the portrait was near completion. This particular day was a busy one like most others. I suppose I was daydreaming, and quite detached from this world. Apparently he had difficulty translating my faraway gaze onto the canvas. I saw the artist lay down his palette and paints, fold his arms, and look straight at me, and I was shocked out of my dreaming by the abrupt question: "Brother Kimball, have you ever been to heaven?"
My answer seemed to be a shock of equal magnitude to him as I said without hesitation: "Why, yes, Brother Richards, certainly. I had a glimpse of heaven just before coming to your studio." I saw him assume a relaxed position and look intently at me, with wonder in his eyes. I continued:
"Yes. Just an hour ago. It was in the holy temple across the way. The sealing room was shut off from the noisy world by its thick, white-painted walls; the drapes, light and warm; the furniture, neat and dignified; the mirrors on two opposite walls seeming to take one in continuous likenesses on and on into infinity; and the beautiful stained-glass window in front of me giving such a peaceful glow. All the people in the room were dressed in white. Here were peace and harmony and eager anticipation. A well-groomed young man and an exquisitely gowned young woman, lovely beyond description, knelt across the altar. Authoritatively, I pronounced the heavenly ceremony which married and sealed them for eternity on earth and in the celestial worlds. The pure in heart were there. Heaven was there.
"When the eternal marriage was solemnized, and as the subdued congratulations were extended, a happy father, radiant in his joy, offered his hand and said, 'Brother Kimball, my wife and I are common people and have never been successful, but we are immensely proud of our family.' He continued, 'This is the last of our eight children to come into this holy house for temple marriage. They, with their companions, are here to participate in the marriage of this, the youngest. This is our supremely happy day, with all of our eight children married properly. They are faithful to the Lord in church service, and the older ones are already rearing families in righteousness.'
"I looked at his calloused hands, his rough exterior, and thought to myself, 'Here is a real son of God fulfilling his destiny.'
"'Success?' I said, as I grasped his hand. 'That is the greatest success story I have heard. You might have accumulated millions in stocks and bonds, bank accounts, lands, industries, and still be quite a failure. You are fulfilling the purpose for which you were sent into this world by keeping your own lives righteous, bearing and rearing this great posterity, and training them in faith and works. Why, my dear folks, you are eminently successful. God bless you.'"
My story was finished. I looked up at the portrait artist. He stood motionless in deep thought, so I continued: "Yes, my brother, I have had many glimpses of heaven.
"Once we were in a distant stake for conference. We came to the unpretentious home of the stake president at mid-day Saturday. We knocked at the door, and it was opened by a sweet mother with a child in her arms. She was the type of mother who did not know there were maids and servants. She was not an artist's model, nor a society woman. Her hair was dressed neatly; her clothes were modest, tastefully selected; her face was smiling; and though young, she showed the rare combination of maturity of experience and the joys of purposeful living.
"The house was small. The all-purpose room into which we were welcomed was crowded and in its center were a long table and many chairs. We freshened up in the small bedroom assigned to us, made available by 'farming out' to the neighbors some of the children, and we returned to this living room. She had been very busy in the kitchen. Her husband, the stake president, soon returned from his day's labors and made us welcome and proudly introduced us to all of the children as they returned from their chores and play.
"Almost like magic the supper was ready, for 'many hands make light work,' and these numerous hands were deft and experienced ones. Every child gave evidence of having been taught responsibility. Each had certain duties. One child had quickly spread a tablecloth; another placed the knives and forks and spoons; and another covered them with the large plates turned upside down. Next came large pitchers of creamy milk, high piles of sliced homemade bread, a bowl at each place, a dish of fruit from storage, and a plate of cheese.
"One child placed the chairs with backs to the table, and without confusion, we all knelt at the chairs facing the table. One young son was called on to lead in family prayer. It was extemporaneous, and he pleaded with the Lord to bless the family and their schoolwork, and the missionaries, and the bishop. He prayed for us who had come to hold conference that we would 'preach good,' for his father in his church responsibilities, for all the children that 'they would be good, and kind to each other,' and for the little cold shivering lambs being born in the lambing sheds on the hill this wintry night.
"A very Little one said the blessing on the food, and thirteen plates were turned up and thirteen bowls filled, and supper proceeded. No apologies were offered for the meal, the home, the children, or the general situation. The conversation was constructive and pleasant. The children were well-behaved. These parents met every situation with calm dignity and poise.
"In these days of limited families, or childless ones, when homes often have only one or two selfish and often pampered children, homes of luxury with servants, broken homes where life moves outside the home, it was most refreshing to sit with a large family where interdependence and love and harmony were visible and where children were growing up in unselfishness. So content and comfortable were we in the heart of this sweet simplicity and wholesomeness that we gave no thought to the unmatched chairs, the worn rug, the inexpensive curtains, the numbers of souls that were to occupy the few rooms available."
I paused. "Yes, Brother Richards, I glimpsed heaven that day and many days, in many places." He seemed uninterested in his painting. He stood listening, seemingly eager for more, and almost involuntarily I was telling him of another flight into heavenly situations.
"This time it was on the Indian reservation. While most Navajo women seem to be prolific, this sweet Lamanite wife in their several years of marriage had not been blessed with children of her own. Her husband was well employed. These new converts to the Church were buying their weekend groceries. As we glanced at the purchases in the large, well-filled basket, it was evident that only wholesome food was there-no beer, no coffee, no cigarettes. 'You like Postum, do you?' we asked them, and their reply touched our hearts: 'Yes, we have had coffee and beer all our lives, but since the Mormon missionaries told us about the Word of Wisdom we use Postum, and we know it is better for the children and they like it.'
"'Children?' we asked. 'We thought you were a childless couple.' This brought from them the explanation that they had filled their home with eighteen Navajo orphans of all ages. Their hogan was large but their hearts even larger. Unselfishness-the milk of human kindness! Love unfeigned! These good Indians could shame many of their contemporaries who live lives of selfishness and smugness."
I said to the artist: "Heaven can be in a hogan or a tent, Brother Richards, for heaven is of our own making." I was ready to return to the picture but apparently he was not so inclined. He stood and listened intently.
"This time I was in Hawaii in the beautiful little temple at Laie. It was a missionary group. The spirit was there; the proselyters could hardly wait their turns to bear testimony of the Lord's gospel. Finally, the little Japanese missionary gained the floor. By the pulpit in her stocking feet she knelt reverently, and with a heart near bursting with gratitude for the gospel and its opportunities, she poured out her soul to heaven.
"Heaven was there, my brother, in that little room, in that sacred spot, in that paradise of the Pacific with those sweet, consecrated young soldiers for Christ."
I continued: "Heaven was in my own home, too, Dr. Richards, when home evening was held. Through the years the room was filled with our children, when each, eager for a turn, sang a song, led a game, recited an Article of Faith, told a story, and listened to faith-promoting incidents and gospel teaching from parents who loved them.
"Again, I found heaven in Europe:
"Elder Vogel was a local convert German boy of great faith. His parents refused to assist him in the mission which he so desired to fill. A kind American member helped with a monthly check to assist with the mission expenses. He enjoyed his work and all went well for a year and a half. One day a letter came from the wife of his sponsor, advising that her husband had been killed in an auto accident and it would be impossible to send any more money.
"Elder Vogel kept his disappointment hidden and prayed earnestly for a solution. As he and his American companion, Elder Smith, passed a hospital one day, a solution to his financial problem was born in his mind. The next day he made an excuse and was gone for a time. When he came back he said little but went to bed early. When asked the reason, he said he was a little extra weary. A few days later Elder Smith noted a small bandage on the arm of the German brother, but his question was passed off lightly.
"Time passed and Elder Smith became suspicious of the periodical bandages until one day, unable to keep his secret longer, Elder Vogel told him: 'You see, my friend in America is dead and can no longer give support to my mission. My parents are still unwilling to help me, so I visit the blood bank at the hospital so I can finish my mission.' Selling his precious blood to save souls! Well, isn't that what the Master did when he gave his every drop in the supreme sacrifice?
"Do you believe in heaven, Brother Artist?" I asked. "Yes, that is it. Heaven is a place, but also a condition; it is home and family. It is understanding and kindness. It is interdependence and selfless activity. It is quiet, sane living; personal sacrifice, genuine hospitality, wholesome concern for others. It is living the commandments of God without ostentation or hypocrisy. It is selflessness. It is all about us. We need only to be able to recognize it as we find it and enjoy it. Yes, my dear brother, I've had many glimpses of heaven."
I straightened up in my chair and posed again. The artist picked up his palette and brushes and paints, did some touching up of the portrait, and sighed contentedly as he said, "It is completed."
In due time it was placed with those of others of the Brethren in the Council of the Twelve room on the fourth floor of the Salt Lake Temple, where it hangs to this day.
The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches men to live righteously, to make the family supreme, the home inviolate. It moves the characters of its adherents toward faultlessness. It is the true way. If lived rightly it will ennoble men toward Godhood.
May the true gospel of the Master reach into the lives of all of us, I pray. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My dear brethren and sisters: I am grateful for the prayer of President Shute. I earnestly hope that the petition therein expressed will be answered in our behalf.
Recently I stood in Trafalgar Square in London and looked up at the statue of Lord Nelson. At the base of the column are his words uttered on the morning of the Battle of Trafalgar: "England expects that every man will do his duty." Lord Nelson was killed on that historic day in 1805, as were many others; but England was saved as a nation, and Britain became an empire.
The image of duty and obedience has been seriously tarnished since that time. This is not exactly new; it is as old as human history. Isaiah declared to ancient Israel: "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:
"But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it."
I recall sitting in this Tabernacle when I was fourteen or fifteen-up in the balcony right behind the clock-and hearing President Heber J. Grant tell of his experience in reading the Book of Mormon when he was a boy. He spoke of Nephi and of the great influence he had upon his life. And then, with a voice ringing with a conviction that I shall never forget, he quoted those great words of Nephi: "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."
There came into my young heart on that occasion a resolution to try to do what the Lord has commanded. I would that I might have the power, through the Spirit of the Lord, similarly to touch someone in this congregation today.
What marvelous things happen when men walk with faith in obedience to that which is required of them! I recently read the interesting story of Commander William Robert Anderson, the naval officer who took the submarine Nautilus beneath the polar ice from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean, a daring and dangerous feat. It recounted a number of other exploits of similar danger. It concluded with a statement that he carried in his wallet a tattered card that had on it these words, which I commend to you:
I too believe that God will always make a way where there is no way. I believe that if we will walk in obedience to the commandments of God, if we will follow the counsel of the priesthood, he will open a way even where there appears to be no way.
Facing Trafalgar Square in London is the National Art Gallery of Britain, in which hangs Sir Joshua Reynolds' painting of the boy Samuel, who as a child heard a voice and replied, "Speak; for thy servant heareth."
From that day Samuel walked in obedience to the commandments of God and became the great prophet of Israel. He it was who selected and ordained both King Saul and King David. And it was to Saul that he declared in a rebuke that has rung down through the ages, " to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams."
I draw strength from a simple statement made concerning the Prophet Elijah, who warned King Ahab of drought and famine to come upon the land. But Ahab scoffed. And the Lord told Elijah to go and hide himself by the brook Cherith, that there he should drink of the brook, and that he would be fed by the ravens. And the scripture records a simple and wonderful statement: "So he went and did according unto the word of the Lord."
There was no arguing. There was no excusing. There was no equivocating. Elijah simply "went and did according unto the word of the Lord." And he was saved from the terrible calamities that befell those who scoffed and argued and questioned.
It is not always easy to be obedient to the voice of the Lord. We may feel inadequate. I frequently draw comfort from the conversation Moses had with Jehovah, who called him to lead Israel out of Egypt. Moses was a fugitive and a herder of sheep. How totally inadequate he must have felt!
"And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue."
"And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth?
"Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say."
In 1837, when the Church was struggling in Kirtland, Ohio, the Prophet Joseph Smith called Heber C. Kimball to go to England to open the work there. Brother Kimball exclaimed in self-humiliation: "O, Lord, I am a man of stammering tongue, and altogether unfit for such a work; how can I go to preach in that land, which is so famed throughout Christendom for learning, knowledge and piety and to a people whose intelligence is proverbial!"
But then on reflection he added: "However, all these considerations did not deter me from the path of duty; the moment I understood the will of my Heavenly Father, I felt a determination to go at all hazards, believing that he would support me by his almighty power, and endow me with every qualification that I needed; and although my family was dear to me, and I should have to leave them almost destitute, I felt that the cause of truth, the Gospel of Christ, outweighed every other consideration."
He traveled over the sea and commenced the work in Preston, Lancashire, with the very devils of hell opposing him and his companions. And thus began a work in that part of the world that has blessed for good the lives of hundreds of thousands. The great conference recently held in Manchester was but the lengthened shadow of that fearful but faithful beginning.
The assignments given us may be distasteful. Naaman the leper came with his horses and with his chariot, with his gifts and his gold, to the Prophet Elisha to be cured. And Elisha, without seeing him, sent a messenger saying, "Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean."
But Naaman, the proud and haughty captain of the Syrian host, was insulted at so distasteful a thing and went away. Only when his servants pleaded with him was he humbled enough to return. And the record says, "Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean."
There sits in this hall a man known to many of you. Some years ago he received a missionary call to the Western States Mission with headquarters in Denver. He had been to Denver a number of times as a member of the university debate team. It was only over the mountain. He and his parents had dreamed of a more exotic field, of one of those "faraway places with the strange-sounding names." His friends smiled. Some dear to him doubted the wisdom, the inspiration of his call. Why should so choice a young man be called on a mission from Salt Lake City to Denver? But he went. He became a powerful missionary. There are those today who thank the Lord for his coming. He was named counselor to his mission president and experienced marvelous opportunities for training in leadership. He met there a beautiful girl whom he later married. Out of the remarkable and peculiar opportunities of that mission, there emerged within him qualities that have made him preeminent in his chosen vocation. Today he sits here as one of the Regional Representatives of the Twelve.
I think I should add that a man who sits here behind me, President Harold B. Lee, went to the same field, under similar circumstances, and out of that obedience came some of those great and marvelous qualities which we have witnessed in his life, and for which we dearly love him.
May I share with you something of a personal and sacred testimony?
Nearly forty years ago I was on a mission in England. I had been called to labor in the European Mission office in London under President Joseph F. Merrill of the Council of the Twelve, then president of the European Mission. One day three or four of the London papers carried reviews of a reprint of an old book, snide and ugly in tone, indicating that the book was a history of the Mormons. President Merrill said to me, "I want you to go down to the publisher and protest this." I looked at him and was about to say, "Surely not me." But I meekly said, "Yes, sir."
I do not hesitate to say that I was frightened. I went to my room and felt something as I think Moses must have felt when the Lord asked him to go and see Pharaoh. I offered a prayer. My stomach was churning as I walked over to the Goodge Street station to get the underground train to Fleet Street. I found the office of the president and presented my card to the receptionist. She took it and went into the inner office and soon returned to say that Mr. Skeffington was too busy to see me. I replied that I had come five thousand miles and that I would wait. During the next hour she made two or three trips to his office, then finally invited me in. I shall never forget the picture when I entered. He was smoking a long cigar with a look that seemed to say, "Don't bother me."
I held in my hand the reviews. I do not know what I said after that. Another power seemed to be speaking through me. At first he was defensive and even belligerent. Then he began to soften. He concluded by promising to do something. Within an hour word went out to every book dealer in England to return the books to the publisher. At great expense he printed and tipped in the front of each volume a statement to the effect that the book was not to be considered as history, but only as fiction, and that no offense was intended against the respected Mormon people. Years later he granted another favor of substantial worth to the Church, and each year until the time of his death I received a Christmas card from him.
I came to know that when we try in faith to walk in obedience to the requests of the priesthood, the Lord opens the way, even when there appears to be no way.
Ten years ago last Friday I was sustained in this great Tabernacle as a member of the Council of the Twelve. These have been wonderful years, fraught with a thousand faith-promoting experiences in many parts of the earth. But of all the experiences I have had, the most rewarding have come in participating in the weekly meetings of the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve in the temple that stands to the east of us. Here there is prayer, an earnest pleading for the will of the Lord. And in this sacred place is manifest the spirit of revelation as decisions and programs affecting the Church are proposed and presented.
Out of the experiences of these ten years I give you my testimony that God is constantly making known, in his way, his will concerning his people. I give you my witness that the leaders of this church will never ask us to do anything that we cannot perform with the help of the Lord. We may feel inadequate. That which we are asked to do may not be to our liking or fit in with our ideas. But if we will try with faith and prayer and resolution, we can accomplish it.
I give you my testimony that the happiness of the Latter-day Saints, the peace of the Latter-day Saints, the progress of the Latter-day Saints, the prosperity of the Latter-day Saints, and the eternal salvation and exaltation of this people lie in walking in obedience to the counsels of the priesthood of God. "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet, To guide us in these latter days."
Help us, O God, to be willing and obedient, that we may eat the good of the land. Help us, Father, to place our trust in thee, to go forth with willing, subdued hearts, that we may be worthy of thy blessings, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I sincerely hope and pray that I may have the Spirit of the Lord to be with me as I speak to you this afternoon.
Many thoughtful people are deeply concerned about the religious and social conditions that prevail in our society. It is the contention of some students of history and men of learning that our civilization is rapidly deteriorating and we are drifting into a decadent period of existence.
We have made remarkable progress in scientific research and education, in transportation and communication. Science has found the cure for many dread diseases, alleviated pain, and lengthened the span of life. Superstition has been overcome to a great extent and we have been blessed with such comforts of life as our forefathers never dreamed possible. But in spite of these remarkable developments, there is great confusion and uncertainty in the realm of religion.
The thing that is needed more than anything else today is a return to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in the gospel plan that he gave. Today, as perhaps seldom if ever before, civilization is in need of a knowledge of the true and living God. Yes, the cure for the ills that beset the world today is true religion. We need the humility of prayer, and a determination to learn God's will and to keep the commandments that he has given. We need faith that our Savior lives, faith in his redeeming sacrifice. In other words, Christ and his teachings should become the center of our lives.
Our late president, President David O. McKay, in an interview with a leading journalist sometime ago, was asked: "If you had the power to grant unto America one great wish, what would it be?" His answer was: "I would wish that America had a testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ and would obey his principles; that would bring peace on earth. I believe that is the greatest blessing that can be given."
Do we need Jesus today? Do we need his teachings? If we are to survive, if our civilization is to persist, we must accept him and his inspiration and guidance. Someone has said that "the world needs a bath in Christ's pure religion. Only a dedication to Christ can wash the dirt out of our society."
A noted lecturer and traveler was recently asked: "What is the greatest message that could be broadcast to the world today?" And he answered that the greatest message would be the message that God has again spoken to man.
There are those who have wished that they might have had the privilege of living when the Savior was upon the earth, that they might have known him and heard the sound of his voice and felt the touch of his hands. Yes, it would have been a great privilege and blessing to have been with him when he walked upon the earth had we been among his followers and had faith in his mission. Very few at that time recognized him as the creator of heaven and earth and the Savior of mankind.
It would have been a marvelous experience to have been as closely associated with him as were his disciples, but even they did not fully appreciate his mission. Though he explained his mission to them and told them that he would lay down his life for the salvation of mankind, that he would come forth again from the tomb on the third day, that he would take upon himself the sins of all mankind, it was difficult for his followers to understand these things.
After his crucifixion and his body was placed in the tomb, Peter and others of the apostles returned to their nets and their fishing. Those in other occupations no doubt manifested a similar attitude. They did get a glimpse of his Messiahship on one occasion before his crucifixion when Jesus asked his disciples:
"Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
"And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
"He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
"And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
"And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven."
Peter and others were permitted to witness the Master's transfiguration, and they had seen the wonderful miracles that he had performed; yet it was not until after his resurrection and his appearance and association with them prior to his ascension and after they had been endowed with the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost that they were prepared to proclaim to the world without fear that he was the Christ, the Son of the living God.
The holy scriptures tell us that following his resurrection, the risen Lord was seen by Mary Magdalene at the sepulcher.
He appeared unto two of his disciples as they walked and went into the country, and they knew not that it was he.
He appeared to his apostles on several different occasions following his resurrection, and, according to Apostle Paul, he was seen by above five hundred brethren at once.
Yes, and following his resurrection and ascension, he appeared to the people on this the American continent and established his church and proclaimed his gospel to the people.
Through his prophets on this continent, the Lord told the Nephites before he came into the world that at the time of his birth there would be great lights in heaven, insomuch that the night before his birth there would be no darkness and it would appear to man as if it were day. The record tells us that this is just what happened on this continent at the time of his birth. Christ, the light of the world, was born; the influence of that light permeated the whole earth.
And then at the time of his death and crucifixion, as had been prophesied by Samuel the Lamanite, there was darkness upon this continent for three days while Christ's body lay in the tomb. There was thick darkness over the face of the entire land. The light of Christ had gone out of the world, and darkness, thick darkness, covered the earth.
And so it is with our own lives when we have the Spirit of the Lord, which we can only have if we keep his commandments. There is light in our souls; there is joy and happiness. But when we fail to keep the Lord's commandments and wickedness prevails, darkness comes into our lives, and great is the darkness when the Spirit of the Lord withdraws from us.
Nearly two thousand years have passed since that time, and in our dispensation the resurrected Christ, our Lord and Savior, has appeared to men again. The dispensation in which we live was introduced by the appearance of the Father and his Beloved Son to a boy in the woods near Palmyra, New York, in answer to sincere and humble prayer. The heavens were opened and he beheld with his eyes and heard with his ears the voices of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, two separate individuals. Light and knowledge were revealed to the boy regarding God and the restoration of his kingdom that could come from no other source. It was the introduction of the last dispensation of the gospel, the dispensation of the fulness of times.
The Savior has also appeared to men at other times in this dispensation. As recorded in the 76th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, he appeared to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon in vision in February 1832, and they bear witness of this occasion to the following effect:
"And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!
"For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father-
"That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
And again:
"And this is the gospel, the glad tidings, which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us-
"That he came into the world, even Jesus, to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness;
"That through him all might be saved whom the Father had put into his power and made by him."
Then again, in the 110th section of the Doctrine and Covenants the Prophet Joseph and Oliver Cowdery relate this experience:
"The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened.
"We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber.
"His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:
"I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father."
Others in this dispensation have seen the Lord. We are not restricted to the testimonies of Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Oliver Cowdery, and others who have seen the Lord in this day and time. We may and do know for ourselves that Jesus the Christ does live, that he is the mediator between us and the Father. We have that gift and power that Peter had when he said: "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."
We have had hands laid upon our heads by men of divine authority, men holding the priesthood of God, which has been restored to earth in our time, and have received the gift of the Holy Ghost, which is the spirit of prophecy and revelation. The Holy Ghost manifests and bears witness concerning the existence of the Father and the Son and the truth of the restored gospel of Christ.
Yes, the world needs contact with the heavens in this day and age. The world needs a prophet. Little does the world generally realize that the Lord is revealing his mind and will through his living prophets today. As Latter-day Saints and members of the Lord's church, we are truly a light set upon a hill, and it is our privilege and responsibility to assist in the great work of the Savior in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.
It is of the utmost importance that we as Latter-day Saints have the light of truth, which comes from the Lord himself, burning within our souls, and that that light shall so shine that others may be led to find the way to salvation, exaltation, and eternal life. Jesus has said: "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."
Our message to the world, which we have been proclaiming for more than 140 years, is that God lives and that Jesus was and is the living Christ; that the heavens have been opened to man; that the Father and the Son have appeared in this dispensation; that the plan of life and salvation has been restored; that the time of the Savior's second coming is near at hand; that the Lord, through his church, is preparing the way for that appearance; and that the only way in which peace can come to the earth is through obedience to the restored teachings of Jesus Christ. Yes, I testify to you that he is the Prince of Peace, and it is his will that all mankind may hear this message and give heed thereto.
May the peace that passeth understanding come into the hearts of men and women everywhere through a knowledge of these things, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Bruce R. McConkie
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I desire to give some rather plain and affirmative counsel as to how to worship the Lord. There is probably more misinformation and error in this field than in any other area in the entire world, and yet there is no other thing as important as knowing who and how we should worship.
When the Lord created men and placed them on earth, he gave "them commandments that they should love and serve him, the only living and true God, and that he should be the only being whom they should worship."
Jesus confirmed this most basic of all commands when he said: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve"; and the constant cry of all the prophets of all the ages is: "O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand".
As the spirit children of the Eternal Father, we have been placed on earth to be tried and tested, to see if we will keep his commandments and do those things which will qualify us to return to his presence and be like him.
And he has planted in our hearts an instinctive desire to worship, to seek salvation, to love and serve a power or being greater than ourselves. Worship is implicit in existence itself.
The issue is not whether men shall worship, but who or what is to be the object of their devotions and how they shall go about paying their devotions to their chosen Most High.
And so, at Jacob's well, when the Samaritan woman said to Jesus, "Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship," we find him answering: "Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
"Ye worship ye know not what; we know what we worship; and salvation is of the Jews.
"And the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the Father seeketh such to worship him. For unto such hath God promised his Spirit.
"And they who worship him, must worship in spirit and in truth."
Thus our purpose is to worship the true and living God and to do it by the power of the Spirit and in the way he has ordained. The approved worship of the true God leads to salvation; devotions rendered to false gods and which are not founded on eternal truth carry no such assurance.
A knowledge of the truth is essential to true worship. We must learn that God is our Father; that he is an exalted and perfected personage in whose image we are created; that he sent his Beloved Son into the world to redeem mankind; that salvation is in Christ, who is the revelation of God to the world; and that Christ and his gospel laws are known only by revelation given to those apostles and prophets who represent him on earth.
There is no salvation in worshiping a false god. It does not matter one particle how sincerely someone may believe that God is a golden calf, or that he is an immaterial, uncreated power that is in all things; the worship of such a being or concept has no saving power. Men may believe with all their souls that images or powers or laws are God, but no amount of devotion to these concepts will ever give the power that leads to immortality and eternal life.
If a man worships a cow or a crocodile, he can gain any reward that cows and crocodiles happen to be passing out this season.
If he worships the laws of the universe or the forces of nature, no doubt the earth will continue to spin, the sun to shine, and the rains to fall on the just and on the unjust.
But if he worships the true and living God, in spirit and in truth, then God Almighty will pour out his Spirit upon him, and he will have power to raise the dead, move mountains, entertain angels, and walk in celestial streets.
Now let us ask how we should pay our devotions to him who lives and rules and is. The key to true worship is contained in a revelation given to Joseph Smith in 1833 in which the Lord revealed anew the testimony of an ancient disciple.
This record certifies that Christ was "in the beginning" with the Father; that he is "the Redeemer of the world," and the light and life of men; that he "dwelt in the flesh" as "the Only Begotten of the Father"; that in his mortal progression "he received not of the fulness at the first, but continued from grace to grace"; and that finally, in the resurrection, "he received a fulness of the glory of the Father; And he received all power, both in heaven and on earth, and the glory of the Father was with him, for he dwelt in him."
Then the Lord said: "I give unto you these sayings that you may understand and know how to worship, and know what you worship, that you may come unto the Father in my name, and in due time receive of his fulness.
"For if you keep my commandments you shall receive of his fulness, and be glorified in me as I am in the Father; therefore, I say unto you, you shall receive grace for grace."
In other words, true and perfect worship consists in following in the steps of the Son of God; it consists in keeping the commandments and obeying the will of the Father to that degree that we advance from grace to grace until we are glorified in Christ as he is in his Father. It is far more than prayer and sermon and song. It is living and doing and obeying. It is emulating the life of the great Exemplar.
With this principle before us, may I now illustrate some of the specifics of that divine worship which is pleasing to him whose we are?
To worship the Lord is to follow after him, to seek his face, to believe his doctrine, and to think his thoughts.
It is to walk in his paths, to be baptized as Christ was, to preach that gospel of the kingdom which fell from his lips, and to heal the sick and raise the dead as he did.
To worship the Lord is to put first in our lives the things of his kingdom, to live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God, to center our whole hearts upon Christ and that salvation which comes because of him.
It is to walk in the light as he is in the light, to do the things that he wants done, to do what he would do under similar circumstances, to be as he is.
To worship the Lord is to walk in the Spirit, to rise above carnal things, to bridle our passions, and to overcome the world.
It is to pay our tithes and offerings, to act as wise stewards in caring for those things which have been entrusted to our care, and to use our talents and means for the spreading of truth and the building up of his kingdom.
To worship the Lord is to be married in the temple, to have children, to teach them the gospel, and to bring them up in light and truth.
It is to perfect the family unit, to honor our father and our mother; it is for a man to love his wife with all his heart and to cleave unto her and none else.
To worship the Lord is to visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction and to keep ourselves unspotted from the world.
It is to work on a welfare project, to administer to the sick, to go on a mission, to go home teaching, and to hold family home evening.
To worship the Lord is to study the gospel, to treasure up light and truth, to ponder in our hearts the things of his kingdom, and to make them part of our lives.
It is to pray with all the energy of our souls, to preach by the power of the Spirit, to sing songs of praise and thanksgiving.
To worship is to work, to be actively engaged in a good cause, to be about our Father's business, to love and serve our fellowmen.
It is to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to comfort those that mourn, and to hold up the hands that hang down and to strengthen the feeble knees.
To worship the Lord is to stand valiantly in the cause of truth and righteousness, to let our influence for good be felt in civic, cultural, educational, and governmental fields, and to support those laws and principles which further the Lord's interests on earth.
To worship the Lord is to be of good cheer, to be courageous, to be valiant, to have the courage of our God-given convictions, and to keep the faith.
It is ten thousand times ten thousand things. It is keeping the commandments of God. It is living the whole law of the whole gospel.
To worship the Lord is to be like Christ until we receive from him the blessed assurance: "Ye shall be even as I am."
These are sound principles. As we ponder them in our hearts, I am sure we shall know increasingly of their verity.
True and perfect worship is in fact the supreme labor and purpose of man. God grant that we may write in our souls with a pen of fire the command of the Lord Jesus: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve"; and may we in fact and with living reality worship the Father in spirit and in truth, thereby gaining peace in this life and eternal life in the world to come.
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
Yesterday each person assembled in this historic Tabernacle was given the privilege to raise his right hand to sustain, in the positions to which they have been called, the leadership of the Church. The upraised hand is an outward expression of an inner feeling. As one raises his hand, he pledges his heart.
The Master frequently spoke of hand and heart. In a revelation given through the Prophet Joseph Smith at Hiram, Ohio, in March 1832, he counseled: " be faithful; stand in the office which I have appointed unto you; succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees.
"And if thou art faithful unto the end thou shalt have a crown of immortality, and eternal life in the mansions which I have prepared in the house of my Father."
As I ponder his words, I can almost hear the shuffle of sandaled feet, the murmurs of astonishment from listeners as they echo from Capernaum's peaceful scene. Here multitudes crowded around Jesus, bringing the sick to be healed. A palsied man picked up his bed and walked, and a Roman centurion's faith restored his servant's health.
Not only by precept did Jesus teach, but also by example. He was faithful to his divine mission. He stretched forth his hand that others might be lifted toward God.
At Galilee there came to him a leper who pleaded: "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed." The hand of Jesus was not polluted by touching the leper's body, but the leper's body was cleansed by the touch of that holy hand.
In Capernaum, at the house of Peter, yet another example was provided. The mother of Peter's wife lay sick of a fever. The sacred record reveals that Jesus came "and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her. "
So it was with the daughter of Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue. Each parent can appreciate the feelings of Jairus as he sought the Lord, and, upon finding him, fell at his feet and pleaded, "My little daughter lieth at the point of death; I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live."
"While he yet spake, there cometh one from the house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master.
"But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole." Parents wept. Others mourned. Jesus declared: "Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth.
" took her by the hand, and called, saying: Maid, arise.
"And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway. "
Once again, the Lord had stretched forth his hand to take the hand of another.
The beloved apostles noted well his example. He lived not so to be ministered unto, but to minister; not to receive, but to give; not to save his life, but to pour it out for others.
If they would see the star that should at once direct their feet and influence their destiny, they must look for it, not in the changing skies or outward circumstance, but each in the depth of his own heart and after the pattern provided by the Master.
Reflect for a moment on the experience of Peter at the gate Beautiful of the temple. One sympathizes with the plight of the man lame from birth who each day was carried to the temple gate that he might ask alms of all who entered. That he asked alms of Peter and John as these two brethren approached indicates that he regarded them no differently from scores of others who must have passed by him that day. Then Peter's majestic yet gentle command: "Look on us." The record states that the lame man gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something from them.
The stirring words Peter then spoke have lifted the hearts of honest believers down through the stream of time, even to this day: "Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk." Frequently we conclude the citation at this point and fail to note the next verses: "And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: he stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple. "
A helping hand had been extended. A broken body had been healed. A precious soul had been lifted toward God.
Time passes. Circumstances change. Conditions vary. Unaltered is the divine command to succor the weak and lift up the hands which hang down and strengthen the feeble knees. Each of us has the charge to be not a doubter, but a doer; not a leaner, but a lifter. But our complacency tree has many branches, and each spring more buds come into bloom. Often we live side by side but do not communicate heart to heart. There are those within the sphere of our own influence who, with outstretched hands, cry out: "Is there no balm in Gilead ?" Each of us must answer.
Edwin Markham observed:
-"A Creed"
One who lived much of his life ignoring his fellowmen and living for self alone was Dickens' immortal character, Ebenezer Scrooge. But there came that wintry night when the ghost of Jacob Marley appeared to Scrooge and lamented:
"Not to know that any Christian spirit working kindly in its little sphere, whatever it may be, will find its mortal life too short for its vast means of usefulness. Not to know that no space of regret can make amends for one life's opportunities misused! Yet such was I! Oh! Such was I!
"Why did I walk through crowds of fellow-beings with my eyes turned down, and never raise them to that blessed Star which led the Wise Men to a poor abode! Were there no poor homes to which its light would conduct me!"
In an effort to comfort Marley, Scrooge proffered, "But you were always a good man of business, Jacob."
Lamented Marley, "Business! Mankind was my business!"
The change that then occurred in the life of Scrooge was miraculous indeed. He became overnight the most generous, the most lovable, the most kindhearted Christian soul. In his own words he described his condition: "I am not the man I was." So it ever is when one inclines his heart to the example of the Christ.
" he that loveth not his brother abideth in death," wrote the apostle John 1900 years ago.
Some point the accusing finger at the sinner or the unfortunate and in derision say, "He has brought his condition upon himself." Others exclaim, "Oh, he will never change. He has always been a bad one." A few see beyond the outward appearance and recognize the true worth of a human soul. When they do, miracles occur. The downtrodden, the discouraged, the helpless become "no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God." True love can alter human lives and change human nature.
This truth was stated so beautifully on the stage in My Fair Lady. Eliza Doolittle, the flower girl, spoke to one for whom she cared and who later was to lift her from such mediocre status: "You see, really and truly, apart from the things anyone can pick up, the difference between a lady and a flower girl is not how she behaves, but how she's treated. I shall always be a flower girl to Professor Higgins, because he always treats me as a flower girl, and always will; but I know I can be a lady to you, because you always treat me as a lady, and always will."
Eliza Doolittle was but expressing the profound truth: When we treat people merely as they are, they will remain as they are. When we treat them as if they were what they should be, they will become what they should be.
In reality, it was the Redeemer who best taught this principle. Jesus changed men. He changed their habits and opinions and ambitions. He changed their tempers, dispositions, and natures. He changed their hearts. He lifted! He loved! He forgave! He redeemed! Do we have the will to follow?
Prison warden Kenyon J. Scudder has related this experience: A friend of his happened to be sitting in a railroad coach next to a young man who was obviously depressed. Finally the man revealed that he was a paroled convict returning from a distant prison. His imprisonment had brought shame to his family, and they had neither visited him nor written often. He hoped, however, that this was only because they were too poor to travel and too uneducated to write. He hoped, despite the evidence, that they had forgiven him.
To make it easy for them, however, he had written them to put up a signal for him when the train passed their little farm on the outskirts of town. If his family had forgiven him, they were to put a white ribbon in the big apple tree which stood near the tracks. If they didn't want him to return, they were to do nothing, and he would remain on the train as it traveled west.
As the train neared his home town, the suspense became so great he couldn't bear to look out of his window. He exclaimed, "In just five minutes the engineer will sound the whistle, indicating our approach to the long bend which opens into the valley I know as home. Will you watch for the apple tree at the side of the track?" His companion changed places with him and said he would. The minutes seemed like hours, but then there came the shrill sound of the train whistle. The young man asked, "Can you see the tree? Is there a white ribbon?"
Came the reply: "I see the tree. I see not one white ribbon, but many. There must be a white ribbon on every branch. Son, someone surely does love you."
In that instant he stood cleansed by Christ.
His friend said, "I felt as if I had witnessed a miracle."
Indeed, he had witnessed a miracle appropriately described by the third verse of a favorite Christmas carol, "O Little Town of Bethlehem":
-Hymns, no. 165
We, too, can experience this same miracle when we, with hand and heart, as did the Savior, lift and love our neighbor to a newness of life.
May we succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees, thereby inheriting that eternal life promised by the Redeemer, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Hugh B. Brown
Of the Council of the Twelve
One of the compensations for going away from home is coming home again, where we receive such a warm welcome. We left here on the 22nd of September for a quick trip to the Holy Land, and with respect to that I would like to speak for just a moment. I shall not inflict upon you a travelogue but will refer to some of the places we visited and the effect upon us of such visits.
I was accompanied by Dr. Truman Grant Madsen of Brigham Young University, who has taken many trips over there with various groups and knows the country well and knows the story of the Christ remarkably well. The question arose as to the wisdom of my going on account of my weakened condition, but Dr. J. Louis Schricker of this city said he would personally accompany me and see that I was getting good care. So with these two fine men, I left via New York and Paris and went to Tel Aviv. From there we took an automobile down to Jerusalem and were booked in the Intercontinental Hotel on top of the Mount of Olives, which gave us a beautiful view of Jerusalem. The Mount of Olives was made famous and sacred by the frequent visits of the Christ; and when he comes again, this mount will be cleft in twain as he descends.
We went out from there to Bethlehem, and as we stood in that beautiful, quiet little city, we could almost hear the voices of the angels and the hosts of heaven singing glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
We thought of the declaration of war which was made by Beelzebub when this child was born. He seemed to have some knowledge of what it portended, and he declared war on this babe and all of his followers.
We went on from there to the tomb of Abraham near the Brook Cedron, and the next day went on to Jericho. You will remember that Jericho is that city where a military band must have played rather better than our bands do today, for we understand that because of the clarity of their horns the walls of Jericho tumbled to the ground.
On the way to Jericho we passed through the place made famous by the words of the Master in answering the question, "Who is my neighbour?" He told the story of the Good Samaritan, where a man had the courage to step over race barriers and assist one whom it was not lawful for him to help. On the way to Jericho we passed by this place, and there is a little inn there called the Good Samaritan.
From Jericho we went down through the Jordan River Valley to the Dead Sea, and from there up to the tombs, the caves where the scrolls were found. It was a glorious trip, and upon returning to Jerusalem we took it upon ourselves to go again into the Garden of Gethsemane. Here it was that Jesus suffered his greatest anguish. Here it was that he sweat drops of blood; and as he knelt there in the garden alone, his disciples having remained outside, he said, "O my father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." I thought as I stood there and remembered those words, how wonderful it would be for all of us if we had the courage and the insight and the fortitude, whatever might happen to us, to say, "Not my will, but thine be done." That attitude makes any burden lighter. It makes any task less difficult.
We went up through the Via Dolorosa Road, where he carried his cross up to Golgotha. We are told of that struggle. While there is a great deal of disputation and disagreement as to just where this event happened, something seems to be quite sure, and that is, that he was crucified on this Hill of Skulls, as it is called.
From there we went down into the garden and into the tomb. As we stood by the door of that tomb, I remembered the women who came there with their spices. These women who were the last at the cross and the first at the tomb could not believe but that they would be permitted to anoint his body; but when they saw that he had gone and the stone had been rolled away, the attendants in the tomb said, "Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen." They could not comprehend the meaning of what they heard. And then Mary, turning, had a glimpse of the feet and ankles of someone standing near. She thought it was the gardener, and she said, "I have come to find the Master. Tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away."
Jesus reached forth his hand and said to her, in that voice which only he could use, "Mary." She looked up and saw the face of Jesus the Christ and was about to embrace him. It was a remarkable feeling we had as we stood and remembered these things; and we, the three of us, had prayer each day, praying God to guide us on our journey and help us to emulate the example of him who made that whole country so famous and so sacred.
After visiting other places in Jerusalem, we went north, starting at the Sea of Galilee. On the way up we visited Mount Tabor, believed to be the Mount of the Transfiguration, where Moses and Elijah met with Jesus and Peter, James, and John; and He was transfigured before them. While on this mount, Christ instructed them, and Peter, feeling that it was a good place to be, said, "Let us build a tabernacle, one for Moses, one for Elijah and one for thee." That was not thought wise at the time, however.
From Mount Tabor we went on over the hill past Nazareth and came upon the Sea of Galilee. All of us gasped as we came over the hill and saw this beautiful little valley, green all around, and the quiet Sea of Galilee. And as we came down to it, we found accommodations in a small Jewish guest house near the hotel. We were impressed by the thought that here it was that Jesus walked on the water. Here it was that he stilled the tempest. Here it was that he performed many miracles.
In looking across one part of the sea, we saw the Mount of the Beatitudes, where it is alleged the Sermon on the Mount was preached. It was immensely impressive, and we went home that night with thanksgiving in our hearts to belong to the Church of Jesus Christ, he who led his people in that forbidding country and was led by them to the cross.
Upon returning to the Jordan Valley, we saw the cities on the hillside on both sides of the road. We were impressed as we came into Nazareth; it is also a city on a hill. Jesus lived there for a time, and because of that fact, he was known as a Nazarene. We went back into Jerusalem, and there day after day we visited points of interest in that great city.
I tell you these things to indicate the object of our visit, which was to get closer to him, to come home with increased devotion, increased commitment to his work, increased assurance that he is the Son of God, as Brother Anderson has told us this afternoon. Peter said what a lot of us would like to say when Jesus asked him, " whom sayest ye that I am?" He said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus said, "Flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven."
I want to tell you, my brethren and sisters, as is my calling as a witness of Christ, that I too know, and I know it from the same source that Peter knew it, for flesh and blood have not revealed that knowledge unto me, but our Father which is in heaven. And from the bottom of my heart I say to him and to you, as I think back over that trip through the Holy Land, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God," and I know it as I know that I live.
God bless you, my brethren and sisters, and all of us, as we devote ourselves to his work, to one another, that we may follow the example of those who have spoken in this great conference. Some of the sessions of the conference I viewed on television, and I remember the words of President Joseph Fielding Smith at the opening session when he gave the keynote address advising the Saints to follow in the footsteps of the Lord.
Let us, then, at this closing session, renew that plea and rededicate ourselves to the unfinished task of bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of men. I bear this witness to you, and bring you this report on my activities, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
My dear brothers and sisters. As we come now to the closing moments of another great general conference of the Church, my heart is full of gratitude for the generous outpouring of the Spirit of the Lord which we have enjoyed.
We have been fed the bread of life, and our desires to serve the Lord and keep his commandments have increased. It has been good for us to be together under these very favorable circumstances.
May I express before you the profound appreciation I have for the faith, devotion, and service of the two great men who stand beside me in the First Presidency of the Church.
President Harold B. Lee is a spiritual giant with faith like that of Enoch. He has the spirit of revelation and magnifies his calling as a prophet, seer, and revelator.
President N. Eldon Tanner is also one of the noble and great ones who was prepared from eternity to render the important service he is now performing in this, the Lord's church. He is a man of surpassing ability and integrity.
The First Presidency of the Church is united as one, and it is my prayer that we may ever be one, even as Jesus said that he and the Father and the Holy Ghost are one. And this same oneness should prevail in every stake presidency, every bishopric, and every priesthood quorum presidency.
I am also grateful for the labors and ministry of President Spencer W. Kimball and his associates in the Council of the Twelve, as well as those of all the General Authorities, and I want you to know that I love my brethren.
I feel in my heart to bless the faithful members of the Church. Just as surely as they continue to walk in paths of truth and virtue, they shall have the desires of their hearts in righteousness and shall go on to eternal reward in our Father's kingdom in due course of time.
I have sought all my days to keep the commandments and do those things which will please the Lord, and I desire to bear testimony of his goodness to me and likewise his goodness to all his children who have made covenant to keep his commandments.
As I stand now, in what I might call the twilight of life, with the realization that in a not-far-distant day I shall be called upon to give an account of my mortal stewardship, I bear testimony again of the truth and divinity of this great work.
I know that God lives and that he sent his beloved Son into the world to atone for our sins.
I know that the Father and the Son appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith to usher in this final gospel dispensation.
I know that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet; moreover, that this is the Lord's church, and that the gospel cause shall roll forward until the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea.
I am sure that we all love the Lord. I know that he lives, and I look forward to that day when I shall see his face, and I hope to hear his voice say unto me: "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."
And I pray that this may be the happy lot of all of us, in our own due time, and I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
My dear brethren and sisters: We bid you welcome once again to a general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
These conference sessions are solemn and sacred occasions on which we come together to wait upon the Lord, to seek his Spirit, and to be renewed in our desires to serve him and keep his commandments.
It is our prayer that all those who are present, and all those who hear the broadcasts, and all those who read the conference messages will have their hearts open to the great truths which will be presented and the words of wise counsel which will fall from the lips of those who shall speak to us.
All of our Church conferences are occasions to teach one another the doctrines of the gospel; to testify of the truth and divinity of those things which have come to us by the opening of the heavens; and to counsel together, and with the Lord, as to the things we should all do to fill the full measure of our creation.
We are the servants of the Lord. We have received light and truth and revelation from him. He has commanded us to proclaim his truths and live his laws. And so now, in harmony with his mind and will, and as guided by his Holy Spirit, we give counsel and direction to the Saints and to the world.
To the world I say: These are the last days. They are days of trouble and sorrow and desolation. They are days when Satan dwells in the hearts of ungodly men, when iniquity abounds, and when the signs of the times are being shown forth.
And there is no cure for the ills of the world except the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our hope for peace, for temporal and spiritual prosperity, and for an eventual inheritance in the kingdom of God is found only in and through the restored gospel. There is no work that any of us can engage in that is as important as preaching the gospel and building up the Church and kingdom of God on earth.
And so we invite all our Father's children, everywhere, to believe in Christ, to receive him as he is revealed by living prophets, and to join The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We call upon the world to repent, to worship that God who made them, and to believe the words of those whom he hath sent in this day to proclaim his gospel.
To the honest in heart in all nations we say: The Lord loves you. He wants you to receive the full blessings of the gospel. He is now inviting you to believe the Book of Mormon, to accept Joseph Smith as a prophet, and to come into his earthly kingdom and thereby become heirs of eternal life in his heavenly kingdom.
To those who have received the gospel we say: Keep the commandments. Walk in the light. Endure to the end. Be true to every covenant and obligation, and the Lord will bless you beyond your fondest dreams. As it was said by one of old: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."
To all the families in Israel we say: The family is the most important organization in time or in eternity. Our purpose in life is to create for ourselves eternal family units. There is nothing that will ever come into your family life that is as important as the sealing blessings of the temple and then keeping the covenants made in connection with this order of celestial marriage.
To parents in the Church we say: Love each other with all your hearts. Keep the moral law and live the gospel. Bring up your children in light and truth; teach them the saving truths of the gospel; and make your home a heaven on earth, a place where the Spirit of the Lord may dwell and where righteousness may be enthroned in the heart of each member.
It is the will of the Lord to strengthen and preserve the family unit. We plead with fathers to take their rightful place as the head of the house. We ask mothers to sustain and support their husbands and to be lights to their children.
President Joseph F. Smith said: "Motherhood lies at the foundation of happiness in the home, and of prosperity in the nation. God has laid upon men and women very sacred obligations with respect to motherhood, and they are obligations that cannot be disregarded without invoking divine displeasure." Also, "To be a successful father or a successful mother is greater than to be a successful general or a successful statesman."
To the youth of Zion we say: The Lord bless you and keep you, which most assuredly will be so as you learn his laws and live in harmony with them. Be true to every trust. Honor thy father and thy mother. Dwell together in love and conformity. Be modest in your dress. Overcome the world, and do not be led astray by the fashions and practices of those whose interests are centered upon the things of this world.
Marry in the temple, and live joyous and righteous lives. Remember the words of Alma: "Wickedness never was happiness." Remember also that our hope for the future and the destiny of the Church and the cause of righteousness rest in your hands.
To those who are called to positions of trust and responsibility in the Church we say: Preach the gospel in plainness and simplicity as it is found in the standard works of the Church. Testify of the truth of the work and the doctrines revealed anew in our day.
Remember the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, who said, "I am among you as he that serveth", and choose to serve with an eye single to the glory of God. Visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction, and keep yourself unspotted from the sins of the world.
Now there is much more that the Lord would have us hear and know and do, and I shall rely upon President Lee and President Tanner, upon the members of the Council of the Twelve and the other General Authorities to counsel further with you by the power of the Spirit about these things.
May I conclude by bearing personal testimony of the truth and divinity of the Lord's work on earth and of the eternal verity of those doctrines he has revealed through Joseph Smith and his associates.
I know by the revelations of the Holy Ghost to my soul that God our Heavenly Father lives; that he sent his Only Begotten Son into the world to work out the infinite and eternal atonement; and that he has restored in these last days the fullness of his everlasting gospel.
I know and testify that the Lord's purposes on earth shall prevail. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is here to stay. The Lord's work shall triumph. No power on earth can prevent the spread of truth and the preaching of the gospel in every nation.
I feel to thank the Lord for his goodness and grace, for all the blessings he has showered upon us so abundantly; and I pray that we may all be worthy to receive the eternal fullness which he offers his saints through the gospel of his Son, and I do this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
It was most fitting, my brethren and sisters, that we sing the glorious hymn that we have just sung, because we have just listened to the voice of the prophet of God.
He has spoken as the divinely appointed mouthpiece of the Lord here on earth.
Latter-day Saints revere him. They accept his word as coming by inspiration and revelation for their guidance in these troubled times.
People who are not members of this church may not sense the great significance attached to his ministry. Even some Latter-day Saints have not yet discovered it. But the president of the Church is in fact a prophet raised up in these last days to give inspired guidance, not only to Latter-day Saints, but to all mankind everywhere.
The Almighty has said of him and the other prophets of this church:
" they shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost.
"And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
President Smith is a prophet in the same sense as were Moses and Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Paul and Peter, and others who ministered anciently.
Every faithful person will agree that there were prophets in Israel during Old Testament times. Prophets also were a part of the church as established by the Savior in his day. They too were like Moses and Isaiah, but they were even more-they were Christian prophets, chosen by the Lord for the Christian ministry to properly teach the saints and to protect them from false doctrines that could lead them astray.
Few modern people, whether Jewish or Christian, realize that there are living prophets on earth today, men who hold the same gifts and powers that characterized the prophets of old. But they are here, alive and alert. They are modern men, well educated and fully oriented to present-day conditions. They give the word of God as it is received now, just as Moses and Isaiah, Peter and Paul ministered in their day.
Try to realize it if you will. God does speak to us now. He manifests himself through prophets whom he has raised up for this day-for 1972-for present-day people-to help them to successfully combat the seductions of a decadent and blinded world.
Every one of you may have the full benefit of his heavenly guidance if you will but accept it. You can know God's will pertaining to your own self, given now-not two thousand years ago, but here and now.
Did not Moses minister to the particular needs of his people? Did not Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Ezekiel do likewise? Did not Peter and Paul give answers to the immediate problems of their day, tailored to fit the conditions that faced their own neighbors and friends?
Similar blessings are available now to all who will hear. They may be obtained through today's prophet with today's revelation to solve today's problems.
In this time of great wickedness, the Almighty is making a dramatic effort to save mankind before destruction comes upon the world, and he is doing so by giving a great new revelation of himself. He has appeared to modern mortal men who have seen his face and heard his voice.
No more is he an absentee God. No longer is he isolated from us. In the time in which we ourselves live he has shown himself to be a divine reality, physical as well as spiritual.
By showing himself literally to modern men, he has removed all doubt as to his existence. He lives, as does his divine Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
Both have made themselves known by a great new revelation in our day!
Is that hard to believe? Do you doubt it? Does it seem incredible to you that God would appear to modern men?
He certainly revealed himself anciently. If he is unchangeable, as the scriptures say, should he not do as much for modern people as he did for the ancients?
Throughout Bible times he made himself known. Especially when his people began to drift astray did he manifest himself in power to bring them back to the fold.
This he did through new prophets whom he raised up from time to time, and to whom he gave new revelations, which revitalized and gave added meaning to the divine word previously given.
After long centuries of laboring through his prophets, he then sent his own Beloved Son, not to condemn the world but to save it.
To accomplish his purposes, the Lord founded his church and taught his gospel, and for a time many followed it. But since then mankind again has drifted from his precepts and neglected his commandments; hence the condition of the world today.
But because he loves modern people as he did those of ancient times, the Lord is now making a final effort to save us. This he does by precisely the same means that he used anciently; that is, by giving new revelation and raising up new prophets through whom he speaks to mankind.
You may say that you have been taught that the Almighty no longer reveals himself, that no more revelation is needed, and that the Bible is sufficient.
It is admitted that for centuries revelation did stop. There were no more apostles and prophets on the earth. This is only too true and is most regrettable.
But the flow of revelation stopped only for the same reason that it ceased occasionally in Old Testament times. Isaiah explained it in this way:
" the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
"But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you. "
However, in spite of wickedness, the scripture says that in the latter days there would come this new revelation of which we speak. Angels also were to visit the earth once more, giving divine direction to wandering mankind.
Is that hard to believe? Not if you accept the Bible.
We Latter-day Saints announce that this new light has come. God has given a great new revelation. He has raised up new apostles and prophets to labor among the nations, even as did Peter and Paul. We are those apostles and prophets. We are his divinely called representatives for today.
But many will say that this cannot be.
It has come to pass nevertheless. It is an accomplished fact. And it is in direct fulfillment of Bible prophecy!
Some may say that God would never appear to a small sect hidden away in the Rocky Mountains. Others might say that the Latter-day Saints have peculiar religious ideas that need not be taken seriously.
But we are not a small group isolated in the Rocky Mountains. We are now worldwide, larger than many well-known denominations of Christendom, and steadily growing.
Neither are we religious extremists with peculiar ideas. We are realists. Do you suppose for one moment that religious malcontents could do what the Latter-day Saints have done in the world?
Our people are substantial citizens, law-abiding, intelligent, and progressive, as all who really know us will agree.
We rate high in education, believing as we do that the glory of both God and man is intelligence. We have produced great scientists and inventors, for example. Do you know that the television set through which you are now receiving this program came as a result of the inventive genius of a Mormon scientist, Dr. Philo Farnsworth?
You enjoy music on your stereo. Do you know that stereophonic sound came to you through the research of another Mormon scientist, Dr. Harvey Fletcher?
Some of the leaders in the United States space program have been members of this church. One of the astronauts now training is a Latter-day Saint. One of the men who reached the moon on one of America's most recent expeditions was a graduate of a Salt Lake City school.
Latter-day Saint men have achieved cabinet ranks in the United States government. Some have held high positions in other lands as well.
Latter-day Saint men have presided over some of the largest worldwide organizations of civic clubs, one of them being Lions International. A Mormon apostle was world president of Rotary International and was highly respected by its members everywhere.
Latter-day Saint culture is well known. Our music, as provided by various groups, is heard in many nations. Our Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir sings to millions every week, at home and abroad.
Some of our men have presided over important financial and business organizations, such as the American Bankers Association and the National Association of Manufacturers. A number from various states have served in the U.S. Congress and still continue to do so.
Some of our men hold high-ranking commissions in the military services. Recently I sat at dinner with three of them, two brigadier generals and one major general, all faithful Latter-day Saints.
The Air National Guard recently conferred upon the president of our church the title of honorary brigadier general.
And speaking of the liberation of women, be it known that Mormon women were among the first of all women everywhere and anywhere to receive the franchise to vote. This was conferred on them in the days of Brigham Young, one hundred and two years ago.
One organization of our women numbers nearly a half million. It is devoted to improving the status of women and children and operates in sixty-three nations of the world. Its president, Mrs. Belle S. Spafford, recently served as president of the National Council of Women of the United States. She also represented America as a delegate to the World Council of Women, in which council she also occupies a prominent position.
We have still another organization for younger women and teenage girls, which has a membership of some 400,000 devoted to the betterment of girls of that age. Its president, Mrs. Florence S. Jacobsen, has served also as a United States delegate to meetings of the World Council of Women.
Our men and women have taken active part in the White House conference for the betterment of children and are still engaged in that work.
Latter-day Saints are among the leaders of the Boy Scout movement internationally. It was a Mormon Eagle Scout who represented the six million Scouts of the United States a few weeks ago in presenting to President Nixon the membership card showing him to be honorary president of the Boy Scouts of America for 1972.
Could religious extremism produce a series of results like these? In no sense are our men and women carried away with emotionalism. They are practical, down-to-earth, well-balanced people of sound judgment.
It is out of the depth of this great integrity that we solemnly declare that God has given a new revelation of himself in modern times and that we are the custodians of that message.
The original gospel of Christ has been restored to the earth in its pristine purity. It is here now. Divine authority to administer it has likewise been restored from heaven in our day. This restored gospel can stop crime and delinquency among both parents and children.
It can put an end to immorality, debauchery, and drunkenness.
It can stop divorce and the collapse of the home.
It can cure all of the ills which now afflict us, if we will but live according to its teachings.
Every part of the gospel is practical. It produces positive results.
It is past time to become realistic about our condition and to recognize that only through a return to God and his recently restored gospel can we ever achieve world happiness and peace.
We testify that God lives, that we are his servants duly appointed by divine power, and that we are commissioned of heaven to preach his revealed word to all mankind by the power of modern prophecy.
We appeal to you: Do not let prejudice blind you to the truth; open your hearts to this new revelation from God; study it and learn to live by its principles. We testify to you that it is indeed the way of life and salvation brought back to earth by God himself and by repeated angelic ministrations. And we bear you this testimony in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My brothers and sisters, I am very grateful to be a part of this conference, and I pray that the Spirit of the Lord might bear me up and inspire me to say those things that will be of some contribution to this conference.
It has been our privilege this morning to once again sustain the general officers of the Church.
This is part of the revealed procedure in the gospel of Jesus Christ, which takes place from the general to the ward or branch level and which allows every member the opportunity of sustaining a person who has been called to office.
Sustaining, however, should not be confused with voting into office.
Joseph Smith made it clear how a person is called to a position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In the fifth Article of Faith he says: "We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof."
When we sustain officers, we are given the opportunity of sustaining those whom the Lord has already called by revelation. The dictionary tells us that the word sustain means "to bear up, to support, to furnish sustenance for, to aid effectually, to hold valid, to confirm or corroborate."
The Lord, then, gives us the opportunity to sustain the action of a divine calling and in effect express ourselves if for any reason we may feel otherwise.
To sustain is to make the action binding on ourselves and to commit ourselves to support those people whom we have sustained. When a person goes through the sacred act of raising his arm to the square, he should remember, with soberness, that which he has done and commence to act in harmony with his sustaining vote both in public and in private.
If for any reason we have a difficult time sustaining those in office, then we are to go to our local priesthood leaders and discuss the issue with them and seek their help.
Brigham Young, when speaking of Joseph Smith, made the following statement:
"Who called Joseph Smith to be a prophet? Did the people or God? God, and not the people called him. Had the people gathered together and appointed one of their number to be a prophet, he would have been accountable to the people; but inasmuch as he was called by God, and not the people, he is accountable to God only and the angel who committed the gospel to him, and not to any man on earth. The Twelve are accountable to the prophet, and not the Church, for the course they pursue."
And then, of course, it was added that all members are accountable to the principles and teachings of the gospel.
If we are to take that same principle and apply it at the ward level, we can see that the bishop, who is considered the father of his ward and who leads his ward with judiciousness and love and patience and kindness, is nonetheless not answerable to the members of his ward, but instead is answerable to the Lord and to those priesthood leaders who preside over him. The bishop is answerable for the members of his ward but not necessarily answerable to the members of his ward.
The church of Jesus Christ, then, is organized from the top down.
In contrast, the usual man-made organizations are organized from the bottom up.
In this church the Lord raised up a prophet first, and then through the holy priesthood and through the power of revelation he revealed the organization and structure of his church from the highest to the least.
While the Lord gives us the opportunity of sustaining that which he has revealed, this does not constitute voting someone into office; instead, it is properly referred to as the law of common consent.
A man-made organization will establish its own laws by the vote of its membership, and by virtue of that act it becomes an organization that is governed by man.
As we said previously, the church and kingdom of God is organized from the top down by the power of revelation so that Jesus Christ himself can stand at the head and lead his own church through his apostles and prophets.
There are many in the Church who may not be as attentive to their duties as they might be, not because they haven't been called of God by revelation but because they did not fully realize that fact when they were called. Again, let me refer to the fifth Article of Faith: "We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof."
A calling in the Church is both a personal and a sacred matter, and everyone is entitled to know he or she has been called to act in the name of God in that particular position. Every person in this church has the right to know that he has been called of God. If he does not have that assurance, then I would suggest he give his calling serious, prayerful consideration so that he can receive what he has a right to receive.
Also, if a priesthood leader realizes that there are those under him who may not have this clear understanding, there is something he can do. He cannot call them again, but he can bring them in and reassure them of the divine nature of their callings.
I am most grateful for the great leaders of the Church who have helped me to feel and understand the divine nature of the callings to which I have been called over the years.
I can't ever remember coming away from a personal audience with a priesthood leader who was delivering a call to me but what I felt in my heart the realization and assurance that I had been called of God and that that priesthood leader was a servant of the Lord and acting in his own office and calling.
It was four years ago at April conference that I was first sustained as a General Authority. The sustaining was preceded by a divine calling from a prophet.
I can remember when I left President McKay's office that morning, as inadequate as I felt, I knew that I had been called of God by revelation; and I had confirmed again to me something that I already knew, and that was, that President McKay was a prophet of God and that this the Lord's church is led by apostles and prophets who are divinely guided.
What a marvelous thing it would be if, throughout the Church, after the inspiration was received and worthiness determined, priesthood leaders would take the time to create the right atmosphere for a holy and divine calling, to be extended in keeping with the fifth Article of Faith.
Such a calling, I suspect, would concentrate on the fact that the priesthood leader was delivering the Lord's call, so that if, in the future, we are asked, "Who called you?" our immediate response would be to say with conviction, "The Lord Jesus Christ," and secondly to say, "The call was delivered through Bishop Jones, or Stake President Green."
Perhaps in too many cases that gets reversed, and when we answer the question "Who called you?" the name of Bishop Jones comes first.
In closing, I would like to quote these few words from the Prophet Joseph Smith: "All the ordinances, systems, and administrations on the earth are of no use to the children of men, unless they are ordained and authorized of God; for nothing will save a man but a legal administrator; for none others will be acknowledged either by God or angels." Let me repeat that last phrase: "for nothing will save a man but a legal administrator; for none others will be acknowledged either by God or angels."
It is my testimony that at this conference this day we have raised our hands to sustain not only a prophet, seer, and revelator but a legal administrator in the rites and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ; and because we have a prophet standing at the head, that which is done under his direction throughout the Church is binding not only on earth but in heaven.
The fact that we have apostles and prophets and that we have the opportunity to sustain apostles and prophets allows us to do those things which will reach into eternity and will guarantee us our eternal salvation, and will guarantee to any man who will listen and who will humble himself before the Lord the opportunity to receive those ordinances and blessings which will allow him entrance into the kingdom of God.
My brothers and sisters, I bear to you my witness as to the reality of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know God lives and that Jesus the Christ is our Savior and is the leader of his own church. I testify that the apostles and prophets whom we have sustained receive revelation from God for the ongoing work of the kingdom in this day. I bear my witness that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and that he saw what he said he saw, and that he is a true prophet, and that we are led by a prophet of God today, even Joseph Fielding Smith, for in the last few years I have had the opportunity to see him stand and speak in the name of Christ the Lord.
May the Lord so bless us now that we may sustain those whom he has called and do that which is expected of us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Vaughn J. Featherstone
Of the Presiding Bishopric
My beloved brothers and sisters of the great Church of Jesus Christ, I would like you to know how humble I am at this great opportunity. I kind of like Ed Gardner's story. His wife is hard of hearing and she wore a hearing aid; as they sat one evening in the living room, and she was knitting and looking down, he looked out over his newspaper and, speaking about his wife, he said, "You know, I am just kind of proud of you." And she looked up and said, "You know, I am getting tired of you, too."
When President Lee and President Tanner under the direction of President Joseph Fielding Smith talked to me on the phone, I wasn't exactly sure I heard what I thought I heard.
For over twenty years now, I have been coming to the priesthood sessions of conference at about four o'clock. I watch the afternoon sessions at home on TV until about twenty to four and then drive down here and wait outside with my sons or with friends. We come inside to priesthood meeting when they open the doors and sit for two or three hours before the meeting starts.
During that time I have had one single purpose in mind. Along with hearing the words of the apostles and prophets and great General Authorities I have looked into their faces and studied them. And I am sure each time that I have found purity of heart. I have found integrity. I have found great love and understanding. I have found self-discipline. I have found all the fine qualities that a holder of the priesthood would like to have. And then I have gone back renewed and decided that I want to put the things I have seen in their faces into mine.
After this call came the other day, I went out into the backyard, and in my mind's eye I could see hosts of Aaronic Priesthood bearers-young men who are fine and good and true, who are dedicated to the Lord with all their heart and soul, who want to put that same look into their face which we see in the faces of the brethren here before us today. And they were doing it and they were obedient and following their leaders.
And in my mind's eye, with great sadness, I saw another great group of Aaronic Priesthood bearers who were not able to put this into their faces because they were disobedient; they were being persuaded by friends and peers.
Then I saw a third group that troubled me even more, because these were they who would have been faithful had they had the leadership. If someone had reached out a hand and lifted them and picked them up and cared for them, they could have put integrity and love and purity of heart-all of these fine qualities-into their lives.
I am more grateful to my wife than I could ever express to you. She has to be the sweetest, kindest human being that I have ever known, and she has this look in her face that I have seen in the apostles and prophets and the General Authorities. And I have five sons. Two of them are on missions, one in the Gulf States and one in North Carolina-Virginia. Both of these boys are Eagle Scouts, and they both, at least from the words we get from them, are striving with all their might to serve the Lord in their mission calls.
I have two other boys at home-Joe and Scott-who are also Eagle Scouts, and we are very proud of them, and they are following and being obedient as they should be. Then I have a young son, eleven, Lawrence, who I believe has the stature of Mormon. He is a large and mighty young man, and I am very proud of him. Then we have one daughter, after the five boys, Jill, and I am sure she was sent as a special angel into our home.
I am grateful for the confidence of Bishop Brown. As I have considered this past week-and it's the longest week I have ever lived in my life-as I have considered the great souls that I know across the Church and the powerful influence and the great direction they have and the great willingness to follow the Lord, I am humble that he would call one such as I, or that the Lord would call me through him.
May I bear testimony to you. I should first mention that sweet mother of mine, and my in-laws. These are wonderful people. My sweet mother has pretty well raised our family alone. She has given the guidance and mental and physical ambition; she has bred this into us and wanted us to make something of ourselves, and I am so proud of her.
In closing let me just quote to you the words of the prophet in the book of Alma, when Aaron had spoken all the day long to the king of all the Lamanites, and finally the king believed; and these are the words:
"And it came to pass that after Aaron had expounded these things unto him, the king said: What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up all that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy.
"But Aaron said unto him; If thou desirest this thing, if thou wilt bow down before God, yea, if thou wilt repent of all thy sins, and will bow down before God. believing that ye shall receive, then shalt thou receive the hope which thou desirest.
"And it came to pass that when Aaron had said these words, the king did bow down before the Lord, upon his knees; yea, even he did prostrate himself upon the earth, and cried mightily, saying:
"O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee. "
There is a great host of Aaronic Priesthood bearers who would give away all their sins, they would give away all that the world would offer, and they would give away their riches, if they but knew that he was there. Our solemn responsibility today is to help these Aaronic Priesthood bearers understand and know the great callings, know that God does live, which I testify he does, and that we have living prophets upon the earth.
During those twenty years I have watched our beloved prophet and the Council of the Twelve come in, I know these are inspired men, these are holy men; they are prophets. I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop H. Burke Peterson
Of the Presiding Bishopric
Last Thursday evening I had just come home from the office. There was a long distance phone call awaiting me. The voice on the other end of the line introduced herself as "This is the secretary to President Lee. He and President Tanner would like to speak with you, but they aren't available right now. I am wondering where you will be this evening that they might call you back."
All of a sudden everything I was going to do that evening became insignificant, and I said, "I will be here." And then for the next thirty longest minutes of my life, I did many unimportant things, trying to keep busy.
The call came, and President Lee and President Tanner told me of this assignment from the Lord. I must apologize to them for not doing my part in carrying on the conversation that continued. All I was able to say for a while was "Thank you." It seems that my voice box and tear ducts did not know whose turn it was.
Finally President Lee said to me, "Brother Peterson, we want you to know that we have had a confirmation from the Lord that this is what he would have you do." It seemed when he said this that I too received that feeling. It seemed then that even though I didn't know how, and I still don't know how, I knew that everything would work out as the Lord would have it work out.
I am thankful to him for having called a prophet in this day. I am thankful to him for having called noble men to stand at the prophet's side. I appreciate their confidence.
I appreciate the confidence of Bishop Brown. I am thankful that the Lord directed him in the selection of his counselors. I will do everything I can to make this an enjoyable and profitable experience for him as he works with me.
After the phone call, I called in my wife, and I told her what had happened. We sat and visited for a while about how this would affect our lives, our five daughters, our business, our home that we just bought. And then it seemed that almost automatically we knelt together and thanked our Father in heaven for his confidence, for his love, and for the things that he has done for us. We thanked him for our children and for their love for their Father in heaven. And I thanked him for her, this eternal sweetheart of mine. I thanked him for allowing her to remain on the earth for another season. I thanked him for her faithfulness in all the calls that have come into our home.
Since the call last Thursday evening, I have had many things go through my mind-just why, just how this ever happened. I have thought and remembered back on my boyhood days, and I thanked him for parents who, by very simple means and very common undertakings, instilled in their sons a love for them and a love for their Father in heaven.
I remember many times, it seemed like almost every week, that four little towheaded boys would stand with their faces against the windowpane or against the screen door and wave goodbye to their mother and dad as they would get in the car and go to the temple in Mesa.
We didn't know much about the temple, and we didn't know much about what went on in the temple, but we had been taught without any reservation that Mother and Dad loved us and that they would do anything for us. So, as we stood there and watched them go, we knew that something important must go on in that temple, to have these two people who loved us more than anything leave us as often as they did to go there. We gained an understanding in those tender years of the importance of the temple.
While we were growing up, our father was a ward clerk for fifteen years, and I remember that every Sunday evening he would come home after meeting and go into the dining room. He would pull down the blind and on the oak table he would put the money that he had gathered that day for the bishop-the tithes and offerings.
He would count it and account for it and put the ones and the fives and the tens in a pile; and then he would get the ironing board and an iron and a wet rag, and then our dad would take each of these paper bills and iron it smooth.
Now you would wonder what four little boys would recognize about this. The one thing they got from it was that whatever you do for the Lord, you do the very best that you know how. There is nothing that is too good for the Lord.
This humble man and his wife, who didn't have much of the world's goods, by some very simple experiences implanted in their sons a love for the Lord. And it is because of these experiences, and others like them, that I can stand here this morning and tell you that I know that God lives; that I know that Jesus is the Christ, and that I know that this is his church and that he organized it for the salvation of his children.
I know these things are true, and I testify of them in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
Acting President of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, it is always a frightening but joyous experience to stand before you and proclaim the everlasting gospel and bear witness to the divinity of the Church, of the Lord's mission, of the prophet, and of his leaders.
We miss terribly Brother Richard Evans, who has passed away since our last conference. We have a great stalwart as the twelfth member in the Council now, Brother Ashton. We welcome with all our hearts Brother Peterson and Brother Featherstone into the group of General Authorities. It will be a joy to work with them and with Bishop Vandenberg and his counselors in their new capacities.
This is Easter week-a time when we solemnly remind each other of the unprecedented occurrence which took place in a small inner garden, in a rough-hewn tomb, in a caliche hill, outside the walls of Jerusalem. It happened there in an early morning and startled every soul who heard of it.
Since it had never happened before on this earth, it must have been difficult for the people to believe, but how could they any longer doubt, when the resurrected Lord himself came to them and showed himself, and they felt the wounds in his hands and feet? Hundreds of his intimate believing friends bore witness.
This was Jesus of Nazareth, born in a manger, reared in a small village, baptized in the Jordan River, crucified on Golgotha, buried in a stone-cold roomlet in the cliff, and his resurrection attested to in a small, pleasant garden near the tomb.
His suffering before and on the cross and his great sacrifice can mean little or nothing to us unless we live his commandments. For he says:
" why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?"
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Certainly if we fail to live his teachings, we lose communication with him.
In South America we saw once an example of broken communication lines.
We were riding far out in the northwest of Argentina. It was cattle country. The road was straight and narrow for numerous miles, and on either side was a four-wire barbed fence. Parallel to the fence line was a series of poles on which were strung the wires for telephone communication to the world. Upon each telephone pole was a crossbar, and strung from crossbar to crossbar were the communication lines.
As we traveled along where the grass had been heavy but now was burned, we found where some of the telephone poles, being in the wake of the fire, were burned off near the ground. Someone had carelessly thrown a lighted cigarette from a car window. It had ignited the grass, the telephone communications were ended or limited, and communication was down.
Nearly all the poles for a distance were scorched or burned. Some had been burned off the first few feet from the ground and were hanging by the top part in the air from the wires they were intended to support. Dangling in the air, these sagging wires had let the poles touch the ground as they were swinging in the wind, each time creating static on the line.
The poles had been set to hold up the lines, but here they were sagging.
Many a time during the three years that I was in charge of the work in South America, I tried to get long-distance calls through to these distant places. When the connection was made, almost invariably there would be static, and the words were cut in two and grating sounds were heard. In my mind's eye I could see the telephone line on the Salta Road swaying in the breeze, hitting the ground and occasionally breaking connection.
I thought that telephone lines and telephone poles are a little like people. They are built for one purpose and sometimes serve another. They are designed to be firm and stout and to give support; but in many cases they are leaning and swaying and sagging until communications are greatly impaired, if not actually cut off.
In my experience I find that in a large number of marital cases, the problem is lack of communication; the wires are down, the poles are burned, husbands and wives are jangling, and there is static where there should be peace. There is growing disgust and hate where there should be love and harmony.
This typical young couple, only a few hectic years into their eternal marriage-only two children away from the eternal vows they had made in the holy temple of God-were each going a separate way. Their ideas of life were different as to spiritual matters -one wishing to move along almost to what the other thought was fanaticism and the other moving along in a path that the other spouse thought to be almost apostasy; and both were wrong.
They talked about it and lost their tempers and drew farther and farther away from their common goal. Both were good people basically, but they needed unburned telephone poles and untangled wires of communication that were now sagging. Their inability to communicate in reasonableness led to anger, hard words, misunderstandings.
In time, each found another person and set up different communication lines for sympathy and understanding and comfort; and this disloyalty led to physical adventures that resulted in adulteries and two broken homes and disillusioned spouses and crushed hopes and injured children.
And all this because two basically good people let their communication lines get down and permitted the security poles to drag the ground. This is not one couple, it is tens of thousands of couples who started out in a blaze of glory, sweet felicity, and an interresponsibility and with the highest of hopes.
At a distant stake conference one Sunday I was approached after the meeting by a young man whose face was familiar. He identified himself as a returned missionary whom I had met out in the world a few years ago. He said he had not attended the conference but had come at its conclusion, wanting to say hello. Our greetings were pleasant and revived some choice memories. I asked him about himself. He was in college, still single, and fairly miserable.
I asked him about his service in the Church, and the light in his eyes went out and a dull, disappointed face fashioned itself as he said, "I am not very active in the Church now. I don't feel the same as I used to feel in the mission field. What I used to think was a testimony has become something of a disillusionment. If there is a God, I am not sure any more. I must have been mistaken in my zeal and joy."
I looked him through and through and asked him some questions: "What do you do in your leisure? What do you read? How much do you pray? What activity do you have? What are your associations?"
The answers were what I expected. He had turned loose his hold on the iron rod. He associated largely with unbelievers. He read, in addition to his college texts, works by atheists, apostates, and Bible critics. He had ceased to pray to his Heavenly Father. His communication poles were burned, and his lines were sagging terribly.
I asked him now, "How many times since your mission have you read the New Testament?"
"Not any time," was the answer.
"How many times have you read the Book of Mormon through?"
The answer was, "None."
"How many chapters of scripture have you read? How many verses?"
Not one single time had he opened the sacred books. He had been reading negative and critical and faith-destroying things and wondered why he could not smile.
He never prayed any more, yet wondered why he felt so abandoned and so alone in a tough world. For a long time he had not partaken of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and he wondered why his spirit was dead.
Not a penny of tithing had he paid, and he wondered why the windows of heaven seemed closed and locked and barred to him. He was not receiving all the things he could have had. And as he was thinking of his woes and his worn-down faith, his loneliness, and his failures, I was thinking of a burned-out pasture in northern Argentina and burned-off telephone posts and sagging wires and dragging posts.
Deeply disturbing are the numerous signs of dwindling faith in our world. Matches are dropped. The grass is burned.
The sagging in spiritual conviction is frightening. Morale is often low even among employees in their jobs-selfish "gimme" tactics. "How much can I get?" "How about a raise?" More holidays. Fewer hours. Poor morale among the employers.
We are too affluent. We have too much money and other things. We have so many things. Even many poorer people have many things, and "things" become our life, and our vocabulary has been invaded with, "Let me do my thing."
Yet the Lord has said, " seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Too often, though, we want the "things" first.
We have a great generation of youth, but as I talk to many, I am amazed and surprised at the laxity of prayers among them, especially those who are in sin. Many have nearly ceased to pray. Their communication wires are down. Also numerous young people in their early married days cease to pray with regularity; their lines are sagging.
My first question to people in trouble is, "What about your prayers? How often? How deeply involved are you when you pray? And when you pray, are you humbly thanking or are you asking?"
Israel was in deep trouble-a sustained drought.
Israel's King Ahab demanded of the prophet Elijah:
"Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
"And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim."
The spectacular drama portrayed on Mt. Carmel between Elijah the prophet and the ineffectual false priests of Baal is the story of sagging lines of communication. Great wickedness-and the Lord had sealed the heavens from rain. Elijah had said: " if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. "
The contest brought about by Elijah was to prove to Israel that the gods of stone and wood and metal were powerless. When the 450 priests of Baal could not influence their gods to burn the offering, and the Lord, through Elijah, brought down fire from heaven and consumed the bullock, then with a revival of faith on the part of Israel, the clouds came and a torrential rain fell. Weak Israel had now set up new poles; they had restrung their wires, and communication was reestablished.
Two young couples from the Northwest came, bowed in sorrow. The husband of one and the wife of the other had lost themselves in frustration arising out of disloyally finding comfort where no association should have been tolerated. Their problems reached the maximum, and sorrow resulted.
It is generally the same. The two young people, unfaithful to their spouses, had conversed and confided too much; then secret meetings followed, then disloyal disclosures concerning the spouse of each. And finally, that which surely could not have been dreamed of-the transgression.
Both couples had reduced their activity, become casual in their church-going. They had joined a social group who were also turning to spiritual casualness like themselves. Their new way of living was beyond their means, and debts crowded out tithing.
Too busy they were for home evenings and too rushed for family prayer, and when the great temptations came, they were not prepared. Their grass had been consumed, and with it the poles had been burned off and the dangling charred stubs were hanging to the sagging wires.
Sin comes when communication lines are down-it always does, sooner or later.
We are living in a sagging world. There has been sin since Cain yielded to Satan, but perhaps never before has the world accepted sin so completely as a way of life. We shall continue to cry repentance from this and thousands of other pulpits. We shall continue to warn the people all too ready to accept the world as it pushes in upon them.
May we always repair our sagging lines and fulfill our total obligations and thus keep close to our Lord and Savior, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Robert L. Simpson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father for the spirit of this day and especially that I have been preceded by these lovely Primary sisters. The Primary has meant so much to me in my responsibilities of the past few years, and their singing has given me the peace and feeling that I need at this moment.
How thrilling it has been to sit here today and look down at our ever-expanding section of overseas leaders; and I am sure that the Lord's word is being fulfilled, as found in the 33rd section of the Doctrine and Covenants, when he said:
"And even so will I gather mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, even as many as will believe in me, and hearken unto my voice."
And how thrilling it is to see these leaders who have listened and who have hearkened and who have become faithful and true and are found worthy to be counted as leaders in their areas.
As we listened to the prophet this morning and as we listened to the other brethren who have responded, I was also struck by the great scripture that we hear so often: "What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." Indeed, it is the same, and as a prophet of God talks to us, we are hearing the will of the Lord without question.
May I just take a brief second to pay personal tribute to two of the greatest men I have known in my life, Bishop Vandenberg and Bishop Brown. These two great companions have meant so much and have given so much to me in my life, as they have given to you as they have traveled throughout the Church.
I have never known a man of greater courage and integrity than Bishop John H. Vandenberg. I have never been with a person so qualified in administrative and organizational ability as Bishop Victor L. Brown. These men are great assets to the work of the Lord, and I am so grateful for the blessing that came in my association with them.
In traveling around the Church for the past ten and one-half years, what a joy it has been to meet so many of our bishops, stake presidents, men who have been designated as common judges in Israel, men who are guardians over the flock, men who have been given a charge and a responsibility that is second to none. May I take a few moments at this session of our conference to discuss what I believe is perhaps the most misunderstood meeting of all the meetings that convene in the Church. I refer to the bishop's court. I would like to begin by relating a story.
The brief episode I am about to relate is true, and the facts are accurate because those who were present will never forget them.
The hour was very late; the room was quiet except for the audible sobs of a young man who had just received the verdict of a Church court. Justice had taken its true course. There was apparently no alternative. The unanimous decision, following serious deliberation, fasting, and prayer, was excommunication.
After several minutes, a weary face looked up, and the young man's voice broke the silence as he said, "I have just lost the most precious thing in my life, and nothing will stand in my way until I have regained it."
The process leading up to the court was not an easy one. Certainly, courage is a most important factor for every person who has seriously slipped but wants to get back on the Lord's side.
After the meeting was finished, the communications that followed the young man's dramatic statement of hope for the future were so reassuring. From some there were firm promises of help during the ensuing months of continuing repentance; from others a pat on the back and a handshake, with an eye-to-eye assurance that conveyed a feeling of confidence and the hand of fellowship. There was complete knowledge among all present at that meeting that all could be regained in the life of this young man if it were done in the Lord's way.
This young man had just taken his first giant step back. As an excommunicated member of the Church and with his heart determined to make things right, he was far better off than just a few days before with his membership record intact but carrying deceit in his heart that seemed to shout the word hypocrite with every move he made toward doing something in the Church.
This episode took place a few years ago. The young man's pledge has been fulfilled, and in my opinion, no member of the Church stands on ground more firm than the man who has had the courage to unburden himself to his priesthood authority and to set things in order with his Master. What a relief to have once again the peace of mind that "passeth all understanding."
Priesthood courts of the Church are not courts of retribution. They are courts of love. Oh, that members of the Church could understand this fact.
The adversary places a fear in the heart of the transgressor that makes it so difficult for him to do what needs to be done; and in the words of James E. Talmage, "As the time of repentance is procrastinated, the ability to repent grows weaker; neglect of opportunity in holy things develops inability." This simply means that doing what needs to be done will never be easier than right now. As in all other paths and guideposts that have been provided for us to achieve our eternal destiny of exaltation, there are no shortcuts.
Heavenly Father is not antiprogress: he is the author of eternal progression. In his own words, "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Our achievement of eternal life adds glory to his name and is the only ultimate objective acceptable to a true Latter-day Saint.
Reduced to its simplest terms, our mission here in mortality is to overcome weaknesses of the flesh and all irregularities in our lives, to the point that our control of personal desires is sufficient to bring about a daily living and thinking pattern that will be compatible with his holy presence.
Be not disillusioned by doctrine of the adversary that there will likely be a magic point in eternity when all of a sudden selfish and improper actions are automatically eliminated from our being. Holy writ has confirmed time and time again that such is not the case, and prophets through the ages have assured us that now is the time to repent, right here in this mortal sphere. It will never be easier than now; and returning to Brother Talmage's thought, he who procrastinates the day or hopes for an alternate method that might require less courage waits in vain, and in the meantime, the possibilities grow dimmer. He is playing the game as Satan would have him play it, and exaltation in the presence of God grows more remote with each passing day.
Now bishops, be available to your people. Let them know about the kindness and compassion that dominates your soul. Don't become so caught up in the business affairs of your ward administration that you fail to convey to your people all of those wonderful attributes referred to in the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants. I am talking about the attributes of kindly persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, and love unfeigned.
Bishops, learn the great principle of delegation so that your heart and your mind can be free to counsel with the Saints. You are their common judge. There is no one else in the entire ward so designated by the Lord. It is you they must turn to. You must be available to listen, and, equally important, you must live in such a way that the voice of heaven will find utterance through you for the blessing and edification of your people.
I am certain that a basic cornerstone of true justice is compassion. Perhaps even more important than the transgression itself is the sensitivity of a person's soul and his desire to repent and to follow the Master.
It would be so much easier to talk about serious transgression to someone you had never seen before and would likely never see again; or better still, to talk in total seclusion to an unseen ear and receive your forgiveness then and there from unseen lips. But in such a process, who would then be at your side in the struggling months ahead, as you attempt with great effort to make your repentance complete, as you strive to prevent a tragic recurrence?
Few, if any, men have the strength to walk that hill alone, and please be assured, it is uphill all the way. There needs to be help-someone who really loves you, someone who has been divinely commissioned to assist you confidentially, quietly, assuredly-and may I reemphasize the word confidentially, for here again, Satan has spread the false rumor that confidences are rarely kept.
May I assure you that bishops and stake presidents are not in the habit of betraying these sacred confidences. Before being ordained and set apart, their very lives have been reviewed in that upper room in the temple by those divinely called as prophets, seers, and revelators. Without question, they are among the noble and great ones of this world and should be regarded as such by the Saints.
What a glorious plan this is! How reassuring to know that we all have hope for a total blessing, in spite of all the mistakes we have made; that there might be complete fulfillment; that we might enter his holy presence with our family units.
Even excommunication from this church is not the end of the world; and if this process is necessary in carrying out true justice, I bear you my personal and solemn witness that even this extreme penalty of excommunication can be the first giant step back, provided there follows a sincere submission to the Spirit and faith in the authenticity of God's plan.
These processes can only be carried out in this church through properly designated priesthood authority, for his house is a house of order. All of this is made very clear in the Doctrine and Covenants. May I quote:
"And again, verily I say unto you, that which is governed by law is also preserved by law and perfected and sanctified by the same.
"That which breaketh a law, and abideth not by law, but seeketh to become a law unto itself, and willeth to abide in sin, and altogether abideth in sin, cannot be sanctified by law, neither by mercy, justice, nor judgment. Therefore, they must remain filthy still.
"All kingdoms have a law given;
"And there are many kingdoms; for there is no space in the which there is no kingdom; and there is no kingdom in which there is no space, either a greater or a lesser kingdom.
"And unto every kingdom is given a law; and unto every law there are certain bounds also and conditions.
"All beings who abide not in those conditions are not justified."
In other words, brothers and sisters, all beings who abide not in those conditions, all who fail to correct infractions of the eternal law by proper priesthood procedures that have been established for such corrections, are not acceptable to the Lord and will likely never be eligible for his presence.
God bless us to accept eternal law and understand that there can be no other way is my humble prayer, and I ask it for each and every one in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Milton R. Hunter
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My dear brethren and sisters, I humbly ask that the Spirit of God attend me in what I may say today.
In my opinion, one of the great miracles in our generation is the miracle of missionary work of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
At the present time, the Church has ninety-eight missions, which cover most of the world. There are over 15,400 missionaries devoting their full time to proselyting activities. In addition to these, there are several thousand mature men and women from all professions serving on a part-time basis in the stake missions. These missionaries are either paying their own expenses or they are receiving financial support from their friends, relatives, or Melchizedek Priesthood quorums.
The vast majority of the full-time missionaries are young men nineteen to twenty-one years of age, a time of life in which young people, as a general rule, would not devote themselves to full-time church service.
It should be pointed out that these young men interrupt their education, put off marriage, and adjust their missions to their military obligations, so they can do missionary work for their church and their Savior.
Thus the miracle of missionary service is repeated over and over with every missionary who gives of his time and in the sacrifices made by those who supply the financial help.
Why this modern miracle of missionary work?
First, this extensive missionary work is carried forward because those people who serve as missionaries and those who give them their financial support have strong testimonies in their hearts that they belong to Christ's true church, which he restored on earth in 1830. They are positive that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only church in the world which possesses God's holy priesthood, his true doctrines and ordinances, and the power to bring people into celestial glory to dwell with their Creator. And so they go on missions in order that other people may receive the gospel and share the same joy and blessings that they have.
Second, the modern miracle of extensive missionary work occurs because in several revelations Jesus Christ commanded that it be done. For example, he commanded Church members as follows:
"Go ye into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature, acting in the authority which I have given you, baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
"And he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned."
As I have toured missions, many missionaries, as well as converts, have reported to me unusual missionary experiences or miracles. A stake president in California told me the following missionary experience.
A young man in his stake from a well-to-do family had been taught the gospel by missionaries. His interest in the Church was very displeasing to his parents. They endeavored to persuade him not to join, but he still declared that he had a strong testimony that this was the true church of Jesus Christ and that he must join. Then, in desperation, the parents took the drastic step of telling him that if he became a member of the Mormon Church, he would be disinherited. In spite of this warning, the young man joined the Church and his parents literally turned him out of his home.
He was invited to live with a Mormon family. While he was there, the bishop and stake president asked him to go on a mission. He accepted the call. Before he left, however, his parents heard through a mutual friend that their son was going on a mission. They sent word to him that if he did, they would never write him a word, nor send him money, and that he was not to contact them.
About a year later, when the young man was in the mission field, the stake president was called on the telephone about one o'clock in the morning. The gentle voice of a woman on the other end of the line asked if he would please give her that missionary's address because she wanted to send him some money. Thus, it appears that the love of a mother had risen above her religious prejudice.
While touring a mission, I ran across a missionary who had been an all-American basketball star in college. Upon graduation from the university, he had turned down a high-paying contract to play professional ball so he could go on a mission.
Another missionary told me that when he graduated from high school he was offered $30,000 a year to play professional baseball. He refused the offer so he could go on a mission.
When a young man is faced with the choice of a mission or of playing professional ball at a high salary, it takes great faith and devotion to choose the mission; but many young Latter-day Saint men have made this choice.
Recently in South America, a lady missionary, who impressed me greatly, told me the story of her conversion to the LDS Church and her missionary call. Before coming on her mission she was a nurse. Her roommate was a Mormon girl. The nurse liked the girl's habits, was very pleased with her character and personality, and so she decided to study the LDS religion. The Mormon girl got two missionaries to teach the nurse the gospel.
When the nurse's parents heard that she was favorably inclined toward the Mormon religion, they thoroughly opposed her actions. They forbade her to join the Church, telling her that if she did she would be disinherited.
The Holy Ghost had borne witness to her so strongly that the Church of Jesus Christ was the true church that she asked the missionaries to baptize her even against the wishes of her parents, whom she loved dearly. It grieved her when her father and mother told her not to return home.
After joining the Church, she had a very strong desire to go on a mission and so she decided to work and save the money. It took her three or four years' time to save approximately $3,000. She was called to labor in South America, where she is doing an outstanding job in taking the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of that land. When she returns home, she hopes to regain the love and favor of her parents.
Several years ago, after returning from touring a mission, I said to one of my friends, "Did you make any converts when you were on your mission in a certain town?" And I told him the name of the town.
He replied, "No, I didn't make a single convert there. My companion and I had very poor missionary success in that town."
I informed him that recently I had held a meeting in that town. Following the meeting, a woman approached the mission president and me and said, "When I was a girl two Mormon missionaries came to our home a number of times and talked with my mother. Each time the missionaries came to our home, I ran into the kitchen and peeked through the door and listened while they conversed with mother, who wasn't very interested. As soon as they had left, I would run into the living room, pick up the literature that they had left on the table, and go to my room and study it. I was very thrilled with what I was learning.
"Finally I obtained a copy of the Book of Mormon and read it. I became thoroughly converted to the Church of Jesus Christ, having a firm conviction that it was the true church. When I grew to maturity, two more Mormon missionaries came to town and I asked them to baptize me. After I had become a Church member, I taught the gospel to my friends and relatives. There are over fifty members in this branch who belong to the Church as a result of my conversion and baptism."
I then said to my friend, "You see, you and your missionary companion indirectly have over fifty converts in that town in which you thought you got none."
A missionary related an experience that illustrates one method that God has used to bring the searchers after truth into his true church. He stated that he and his companion had knocked on a door. A woman opened the door immediately, enthusiastically invited them in, and said to them, "You young men have come to my home today in answer to my prayers.
"For a long time I have been dissatisfied with the church to which I belong, feeling that it does not contain many of the doctrines that Christ taught while here upon the earth. I felt that it was not the true church that was founded originally by our Savior. I prayed earnestly and asked our Father in heaven to send somebody to me who would bring me the true gospel plan of salvation and make it possible for me to find the true church.
"After doing so, I had a dream that two young men knocked on my door and when I let them in they said to me, 'We have come to bring you the true gospel of Jesus Christ.' I recognize that you two young men are the same two young men I saw in my dream, and as in my dream, you announced yourselves by saying, 'We have come to bring you the gospel of Jesus Christ.' I know that you are the servants of our Master and that you will teach me his gospel."
The two missionaries were surprised at the reception but happy to have the privilege of teaching this good woman the gospel. She eagerly received it and soon thereafter was a baptized member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Thus, another modern miracle in missionary work had occurred.
The faith and devotion of mission presidents and their wives and families present marvelous stories of sacrifice and service to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and build up his kingdom.
When the First Presidency, serving as God's holy prophets, call a man and his wife to preside over a mission, regardless of their business situation or economic conditions, the answer is yes. All personal interests are pushed aside and they faithfully accept the call from the Lord through the First Presidency to preside over a mission for three years' time.
Each mission president's individual call, his experiences and faithfulness in accepting that call, adjusting his economic affairs, and completely readjusting the social life for himself and family, is a modern missionary miracle.
For example, in a casual conversation I had recently with the president of one of the full-time missions of the Church, he told me that when he received his mission call from the First Presidency, he asked his employers for a leave of absence. Within three years his financial interest in the company in which he was employed would be large enough to support him and his family for the remainder of their lives.
His employers, being non-church members and unfavorable toward his going on a mission, refused to give him a leave of absence. Also, they informed him that he would lose all of his financial benefits in the company if he accepted the mission call. In spite of this terrific financial sacrifice and the loss of his job, he accepted the mission call and is now faithfully serving his church and his God.
I asked the mission president, "Why didn't you tell the First Presidency of the financial loss you would suffer if you went on a mission at that time and ask them to postpone your call for three years?"
He replied, "The Lord didn't call me on a mission for three years from now. He called me to serve now. My wife and I decided to obey the call of the Lord and trust that our financial affairs would be taken care of later."
Such a sacrifice to render Christian service is certainly astounding. It is a modern missionary miracle.
In closing, I bear my testimony that the true church of Jesus Christ has been restored to earth by the Savior and other heavenly beings to the Prophet Joseph Smith. Membership in this church and living in accordance with the revealed teachings therein is the only way back to God. This church marks out the pathway that mankind must follow to attain eternal life in the presence of the Father and the Son.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Alvin R. Dyer
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I am both humbled and grateful, my brothers and sisters, for the confidence of the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve for the new assignment given me in the Historical Department of the Church. It is truly gratifying to be associated with men of the caliber of Leonard Arrington, the Church Historian; Earl Olson, the Church Archivist; and Donald Smith, Church Librarian; and the other brethren who have been called to assist.
These are men of great spiritual devotion who have great capability in their respective fields. We shall seek the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord, and the counsel and direction of the Brethren, in the important task that lies ahead of us.
Association with the First Presidency and other leaders, and with you, my brothers and sisters, at conference time, is always a joy and a great spiritual influence.
The plan for a useful and successful life is contained in the gospel of Jesus Christ, given to us by the Redeemer of mankind, whose atoning sacrifice augments the plan and makes it possible for us to return to the presence of God our Heavenly Father.
When mortality, or the second estate of man, is completed, each individual will be prepared to continue his eternal journey into that place which the judgment of this life will place upon him. In this righteous, but penetrating, judgment, each of us shall go into the next estate of eternal existence for which we are best suited.
The principles of progression, or of retardation, judged by our behavior in the probation of mortality, are realities of concept, based upon revelation from God, both ancient and modern.
In working out the plan of life and salvation down through the stream of time, men have developed among themselves periods of obedience to God's holy laws and, on the other hand, periods of rebellion against these same laws.
The declarations of the prophets of God contained in sacred historical writings tell of the changing conditions that have taken place among men. Clear reference is made to times of apostasy, when the rejection of truth has been so widespread that the holy priesthood of God, the channel through which God works in dealing with mankind, has been withdrawn from among men.
Oscillating from these periods of spiritual darkness have been periods of enlightenment when the will of God has been revealed unto man and has to some extent been adhered to. These periods of enlightenment are known as dispensations of the gospel of Jesus Christ, times when God dispenses the wisdom of the eternities unto mankind for their benefit and blessing.
Pure knowledge, meaning revelation from God, is greater than the limited reasoning of men. The method that God has chosen to convey this knowledge unto mankind is through his chosen prophets, unto whom he sends his messengers with divine instructions and upon occasion by the majesty of his own appearance.
Thus, on the whole, as the pages of history are observed, noting the depressions and then again the periods of enlightenment that have held sway over mankind as they move through mortality, we come to know, broadly, that times of apostasy and times of restoration are two opposite poles of human existence. They are conditions between which mankind has oscillated, as internal and external conditions bear sway.
In the light of this concept, the gospel that Jesus Christ proclaimed during his earthlife was not new. It was actually a restoration of the same truths that had been declared in former dispensations. He himself declared these truths unto ancient prophets who had been chosen as his instruments. He was known unto them as Jehovah, and by that name he gave commandments to the children of Israel. He has directed the plan of salvation from the very beginning of mankind upon the earth, thereby establishing the dispensations of Adam, of Enoch, of Noah, of Moses and others, all bearing witness to a restoration by the divine dispensing of truths, making known unto mankind the redeeming principles of the gospel.
The willingness of God to dispense these truths unto mankind has ever been present, but there have been times when mankind, because of wickedness and rebellion, would not receive them.
In the depths of rebellion and apostasy, the masses of people are never responsive to gospel truths.
The reflected lack of the principles of freedom in governments and institutions stands as a stumbling block to the furtherance of God's work among men. When the darkness and evil of apostasy have dominated the minds of men, apostasy has been fostered by the subjection of individual rights of freedom, and unrighteous dominion has been brought to bear by the institutions of men that know not God.
In these periods of darkness the forces of evil, under the direction of the evil one, the archenemy of Christ, implement doctrines of force, destroying the rights of the individual, making it almost impossible for those held in subjection to have the opportunity of repentance and regeneration. Without the spirit of freedom and the power of agency, there can be no functioning of the principles that would lead us to the gospel. It is difficult, if at all possible, to come to a state of regeneration so vital to progression and the fulfillment of the gospel plan.
The gospel of Jesus Christ will not flower or expand its influence under conditions where the will of the individual is suppressed. Those who have gained a conviction of the truth and have then been thrust into a condition of individual bondage may survive the ordeal on the strength of the truths that they have previously found and individually accepted, as did the early Christian martyrs or the martyrs in any age who have stood up in death rather than denounce the truths that they have taken unto themselves by the power of agency. But under godless systems, where the individual never comes to know the truth, he is held by darkness.
From the dark ages, that period of time following the death of the apostles of the Lord in the meridian dispensation-which continued for about eleven hundred years, during which time there was no intelligent glorification of the individual-hardly a painted picture emerged that portrayed this important concept. Everything was lost in relentless subjection of the masses to the evil power of unrighteous dominion.
Then came that period known as the Renaissance, which gave to men an inward longing for liberation of thought with the courage to face the evil forces that held them in subjection. Man again began to seek for freedom and truth. The Master of men had said many years before, " ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." But this and other scripture, for many years, they had not even been privileged to read.
But God began to work with men, and their hearts turned toward him; and whenever the spark of freedom was found, it was influenced and fed by the natural forces of agency. Soon the desire for freedom, matched with the courage to fight and die for it, spread among men.
The question might well be asked, Why does freedom need to be restored as a forerunner to a new dispensation of the gospel of Jesus Christ? The answer is a simple one, for well the Lord knows that without the spirit of freedom in the souls of men, there could be no willing response to the gospel plan. For it is in the culture of freedom and the use of agency in that freedom that men come to know the difference between good and evil. This progress leads to yearnings in the hearts of good men, and eventually to gospel dispensations. This is the pattern to be noted down through the era of the historical writings.
The continued longing for freedom led directly to the period known as the Reformation, which led to the foundation of America and the framing of the Constitution, concerning which the Lord has said:
"According to the laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles."
All of this in its proper order leads directly to the greatest period in the experience of man upon the earth, a new dispensation of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This period was foreseen and referred to by the apostle Peter as the times of restitution or restoration of all things involving a new gospel dispensation. Here are his words as he speaks also of the coming of the Lord at this particular time:
"And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
"Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
The significant feature of the present dispensation was the inauguration of the same by the personal visitation of God the Father and his Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, referred to in the sacred historical writings of this church as the Sacred Grove appearance, which occurred in the spring of 1820 near Palmyra, New York, 152 years ago.
Upon this occasion Joseph Smith became the first of the prophets of this new dispensation of the gospel; and by virtue of divine instruction given then and subsequent appearances of the Son of God and certain ancient prophets who hold keys of understanding pertaining to the gospel plan, he has caused to be established the kingdom of God upon the earth, that any of mankind may come unto it.
The characteristics of this dispensation, as compared with other dispensations, are unique in that it is the last of all dispensations, concerning which the Prophet Joseph Smith received this divine information as contained in a revelation:
"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."
The apostle Paul, writing unto the Ephesian saints, speaks also of this important final dispensation in connection with the inheritances that will come to the faithful. I quote what he said and must have seen in vision:
"That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him."
A dispensation of the gospel of Jesus Christ is now established with prophets, seers, and revelators. The church and kingdom of God has been established, and the inhabitants of the earth "may receive it, and be prepared for the days to come, in the which the Son of Man shall come down in heaven, clothed in the brightness of his glory, to meet the kingdom of God which is set up on the earth."
Of these things I bear my personal witness as conveyed to me by the power of the Spirit, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
First of all, my brothers and sisters, let me assure you that as far as ElRay L. Christiansen is concerned, God lives, and he is a compassionate, understanding Father; and his Son, Jesus Christ, came to earth, as the Bible tells us, and offered himself and actually gave his life that we might be redeemed from the grave and might have eternal life, salvation, which to us means exaltation in the celestial world.
I testify that Joseph Smith was selected by God and Jesus Christ to restore the gospel in this day and that Joseph Fielding Smith, whom we appreciate, is one of a succession of modern-day prophets, seers, and revelators.
Now, this is a world in difficulty and trouble, but we shouldn't merely bemoan the fact. We should, as far as our powers can help us, be anxiously engaged in rectifying it. Just before we sang, I wrote this down: If you and I are to help restore this sick world to its spiritual health, we must begin at the proper place-that is, with ourselves and with our families. This we can do!
One of the most rewarding of all human undertakings is that of making a success of marriage and of rearing children in a manner acceptable to the Lord. It calls for the best in all of us.
While many, both in and out of the Church, are eminently successful in rearing their families, it is clearly evident that there are fathers and mothers who are divesting themselves of their sacred obligation to counsel their children and to give them the parental warmth and interest that they deserve. Some parents are quite willing to let others tend, and teach, and train their most precious possessions-their children.
Did you hear the timely admonition of our president and prophet this morning, pleading for fathers to take their rightful places at the head of their households in righteousness?
An authenticated study shows that two million children in America live in homes where serious trouble exists between parents. Six and a half million children live with only one parent, and another million have been "farmed out" to relatives or friends or institutions.
Some worthy institutions have been developed to help improve the home and family life. But helpful as these agencies may be, I am convinced, and I believe you will agree, that there is not and never will be a better institution for improving the home than the home itself.
Parents cannot, without regrettable consequences, shirk the responsibility of teaching and showing their children through their example the attributes of character that lead them unhesitatingly to appreciate and accept the good, the decent, the beautiful, and help them to develop the desire and the courage to turn from that which is coarse or crude or wrong.
To help us develop desirable qualities in our children, we are provided with divinely given programs such as the family home evenings, and for the life of me I cannot understand why every single family in the Church doesn't grasp the opportunities provided through family home evening-it costs nothing; it isn't necessary to leave home; and yet it is one of the most effective ways of cementing the unity of our families that has ever come to us, and when consistently used, it has proven to be a marvelous means of making family life secure and meaningful.
Parenthood is a sacred trust. It is an approach to the divine-a God-given privilege that, with its never-ending responsibilities, brings rich and lasting rewards.
President Joseph F. Smith made this significant statement: "The man, and the woman who are the agents, in the providence of God, to bring living souls into the world, are made before God and the heavens, as responsible for these acts as is God himself responsible for the works of his own hands. "
A home approved of God is not merely a place where children are born, but where their coming is received with joy and gladness by parents who strive with all their abilities to help their children develop such attributes as-
1. Faith in God, along with a desire to be obedient to his commandments,
2. Respect for and obedience to the laws of the land,
3. A determination to be truthful and honest, regardless of the circumstances,
4. Unselfishness by teaching, along with courtesy, respect, refinement, and good manners, for surely they are part of our religion.
After all,
-Hal Chadwick
Success in family life calls for parents who take time to enjoy their children; who read with them; who play with them; who let them participate in planning special occasions, seeking to make wholesome family traditions a proud part of family life.
The case of a young man, the father of four children, whom we called upon to speak in a stake conference in eastern Utah, emphasizes the desirability of family traditions, special occasions, and warm family relationships.
On each anniversary of their marriage, this couple planned something special to do. Now they had looked forward as a family to observing their tenth anniversary. The father arranged his vacation to cover that period of time. But suddenly it became necessary for his wife to enter the hospital for surgery. He and the children felt sorry for her because she was in the hospital. At the same time she was sad, thinking that her husband and the children would be disappointed. But when she read the little note that came with a bouquet of flowers, she felt better, for it read: "Sweetheart, ten years with you have seemed like ten days, but ten days without you have seemed like ten years." Signed, "Bill."
Another essential in successful parenthood is for fathers and mothers to avoid disputations. Such situations may seem harmless to the parents, but in the eyes of their children, the two most important people in the world are in conflict, and from their limited perspective, the whole world is in trouble. Situations thus created are an indication of immaturity and weakness on the part of those involved. Someone has said that one of the most important things a father can do for his children is to love and respect their mother.
I plead with parents to rise above pettiness and to spare their children the inglorious and painful insecurity of having to endure petty disputations and offensive situations.
It is important also to keep the avenues of communication open. It is wonderful when a father or a mother will sit down with a son or a daughter and discuss a personal problem. There are pressures, and enticements, and even unjust accusations against which our sons and daughters need to be fortified. It is even more wonderful when, because of the love and closeness that exists, children feel no hesitancy in taking their problems to their parents.
In such heart-to-heart talks, parents will help to set objectives for their children, such as:
1. A desire and determination to live clean, virtuous lives
2. A desire to associate with those who have their same high standards and ideals
3. A determination to live so they may receive the priesthood in worthiness
4. To prepare for and be worthy of being called on missions, perhaps establishing a savings account early in life for this purpose
5. A determination to gain an education, to learn a trade or a profession, or to master a skill
6. To prepare to be worthy and desirous of marriage in the temple, thus doing things the Lord's way
7. To prepare to become, in their own right, successful homemakers
We talk a good deal these days about security. My brothers and sisters, there is no security that we can give our children that is more essential than the security they gain in homes where families operate as families should, according to the gospel of Jesus Christ; where families kneel and offer prayers of thanksgiving and gratitude at the beginning and at the close of each day; where keeping the commandments of God is a part of daily life. In this way, they become fortified and enabled to meet the future without frustration and without fear.
Historians almost without exception point out that one of the greatest contributing factors in the downfall of nations is the disintegration of the home and family life.
A complete rebirth of satisfactory family life is needed. It is needed even in the so-called better homes. It must begin with proper love and respect between the husband and the wife and then, by their example, transferred to their children.
No nation can long endure unless the great majority of its families and its homes are made secure through faith in God-an active, living faith.
In The Scouter's Minute I found these lines:
To this I testify in the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I have been greatly impressed, my brethren and sisters, at the strength of the testimonies that have been borne this afternoon and this morning in these conference sessions. I thought the testimony of President Smith was so firm, so strong, so certain. How can anyone doubt! And then to have it followed by Brother Petersen in his masterful way, and so sincere. The testimonies of the other brethren, Bishop Featherstone and Bishop Peterson, so humble and so certain, a testimony in their lives, and the testimony of others that have been given. Brother Kimball, always so sweet and so sincere. These are the things that are important to us in our lives.
A testimony of the gospel is one of the most valued possessions of a member of the Church. The strength and unity of the Church depend upon each member so living that he comes to know for himself that the gospel is true.
The spiritual condition of the membership of the Church is determined by the degree to which the members live the gospel and are worthy of the companionship of the Holy Spirit in giving witness of the truth of this great work. It would follow that the prosperity of the Church is also measured to a great extent by the strength of testimonies of its members as demonstrated by their worthiness and righteous living.
One of the great testimonies of the scriptures is that given by Peter as he was brought before the judges after having healed the lame man at the temple gate.
"Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,
"If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole;
"Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
"This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."
A second great testimony was given by Peter of Christ.
"When Jesus came into the coasts of Cæsarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
"And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
"He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
"And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
"And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my father which is in heaven.
"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
"And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
In a day when churches are generally losing members and declining in popularity, many wonder what the secret is in the growth and stability of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
President McKay answered it: "The secret lies in the testimony, possessed by each individual who is faithful in the Church, that the Gospel consists of correct principles.
"This testimony has been revealed to every sincere man and woman who has conformed to the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who has obeyed the ordinances, and has become entitled to and has received the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, to guide him."
In an editorial in the Impact magazine, Brother William E. Barrett expressed well the great influence of the Holy Spirit in guiding and uniting the Church today:
"The great miracle of our day is that Spirit which unites the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with those multitudinous authorities appointed to lead them. For those appointed thus to lead speak a diversity of tongues, belong to a variety of races and cultures, and live in many different lands. Yet there is a unity which manifests itself in the obedience to Church calls, in the acceptance of basic doctrines, and in the belief that we are led by a living prophet of God.
"This unity is baffling to the world generally and is not understood by many whose names grace the Church rolls. The unifying influence is none other than the Holy Ghost, bestowed upon men by the authority of God, through his holy priesthood. Through the work of the Holy Ghost, men may come to know the truth, as it springs forth from the printed pages of scripture or from the lips of our living prophets. In the words of Brigham Young, 'the eloquence of angels never can convince any person that God lives, and makes truth the habitation of his throne, independent of that eloquence being clothed with the power of the Holy Ghost; in the absence of this, it would be a combination of useless sounds. What is it that convinces man? It is the influence of the Almighty, enlightening his mind, giving instruction to the understanding.'"
Every member of the Church is entitled to the companionship of the Holy Ghost. At the time of baptism, hands were placed upon our heads and it was said, "Receive the Holy Ghost." Based upon our worthiness, this gives us the right to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost in which we can receive its revelations.
The blessings to those who have lived worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost were revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon:
"For thus saith the Lord-I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end.
"Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory.
"And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come, will I make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom.
"Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come will I show them, even the things of many generations.
"And their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to heaven; and before them the wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the understanding of the prudent shall come to naught.
"For by my Spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I make known unto them the secrets of my will-yea, even those things which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the heart of man."
And again the Lord told the Prophet:
"And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit."
The Twelve Apostles are special witnesses of the Savior. I don't know how many of them have actually seen a personage. They don't talk about it. But they don't have to, to receive their special witness that can come by the Holy Ghost.
President Harold B. Lee said to a group of young people, "Not many have seen the Savior face to face here in mortality, but there is no one of you who has been blessed to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost after baptism but that may have a perfect assurance of his existence as though you had seen."
The impact of the witness of the Spirit in our lives has been made clear by President Joseph Fielding Smith when he said:
" the Lord has taught that there is a stronger witness than seeing a personage, even of the Son of God, in a vision. The Savior said:
"'Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
"'And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him. neither in the world to come.'
"Therefore the seeing, even the Savior, does not leave as deep an impression in the mind as does the testimony of the Holy Ghost to the spirit. Both Peter and Paul understood this. Here are the words of Paul:
"'For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
"'And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come.
"'If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.' "
President Smith concludes: " the impressions on the soul that come from the Holy Ghost are far more significant than a vision. It is where Spirit speaks to spirit, and the imprint upon the soul is far more difficult to erase. Every member of the Church should have the impressions on his soul made by the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Son of God indelibly pictured so that they cannot be forgotten."
In our search for truth and in our pursuit of eternal life, the Lord has not left us without guidance. He said:
"Oliver Cowdery, verily, verily, I say unto you, that assuredly as the Lord liveth, who is your God and your Redeemer, even so surely shall you receive a knowledge of whatsoever things you shall ask in faith, with an honest heart, believing that you shall receive.
"Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.
"Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation."
We need the companionship of the Spirit in our lives to continually confirm to us the divinity of the gospel plan. Two things are vital to the assurance of the companionship of the Spirit:
1. Our lives must be in conformity to the gospel standards. " the Spirit of the Lord doth not dwell in unholy temples."
2. We must be engaged in the work. As the Pharisees listened to the bold teachings of the Savior, they said: "How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?" He answered them: "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
The Lord plainly told the Prophet Joseph Smith how one might obtain a witness of him:
"Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am;
"And that I am the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world."
Too often we ask the Lord for the direction of his Spirit before we've done all we can. The Lord gave Oliver Cowdery the key here when he attempted to translate and failed. He said: "But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right."
After we have done all we can, having studied it out and determined how best to solve our problems, then we take our decisions to the Lord; and if they are right, our bosoms will burn within us and we will have spiritual confirmation as to what to do.
The prophet Alma spoke regarding his testimony of certain gospel teachings. He said:
"And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety?
"Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me."
Yes, "the Spirit enlighteneth every man that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit."
I bear testimony that by the witness of the Spirit one can come to know of the divinity of this great work, that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph Smith was divinely called, that President Joseph Fielding Smith is a prophet of God, and that this gospel is the great plan of life and salvation as instituted of the Lord. This is my personal testimony to you, my brethren and sisters, and I leave it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, seen and unseen-and we are all brothers and sisters, children of the same Father in the spirit-humbly and gratefully I stand before you on this anniversary date of the organization of the restored church of Jesus Christ, 142 years ago. I love a general conference of the Church, except this particular part, and yet I rejoice in the opportunity to bear testimony to this, the greatest work in all the world.
Last fall I was invited by Baron von Blomberg, president of the United Religions Organization, to represent the Church as a guest of the king of Persia at the twenty-five hundredth anniversary of the founding of the Persian Empire by Cyrus the Great. Advised by the First Presidency to accept the invitation, I left immediately following the October conference to join with representatives of twenty-seven world religions, some fifty monarchs, and other notables at this historic celebration in Iran.
King Cyrus lived more than five hundred years before Christ and figured in prophecies of the Old Testament mentioned in 2 Chronicles and the book of Ezra, and by the prophets Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Daniel. The Bible states how "the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, King of Persia." Cyrus restored certain political and social rights to the captive Hebrews, gave them permission to return to Jerusalem, and directed that Jehovah's temple should be rebuilt.
Parley P. Pratt, in describing the Prophet Joseph Smith, said that he had "the boldness, courage, temperance, perseverance and generosity of a Cyrus."
President Wilford Woodruff said:
"Now I have thought many times that some of those ancient kings that were raised up, had in some respects more regard for the carrying out of some of these principles and laws, than even the Latter-day Saints have in our day. I will take as an ensample Cyrus. To trace the life of Cyrus from his birth to his death, whether he knew it or not, it looked as though he lived by inspiration in all his movements. He began with that temperance and virtue which would sustain any Christian country or any Christian king. Many of these principles followed him, and I have thought many of them were worthy, in many respects, the attention of men who have the Gospel of Jesus Christ."
God, the Father of us all, uses the men of the earth, especially good men, to accomplish his purposes. It has been true in the past, it is true today, it will be true in the future.
"Perhaps the Lord needs such men on the outside of His Church to help it along," said the late Elder Orson F. Whitney of the Quorum of the Twelve. "They are among its auxiliaries, and can do more good for the cause where the Lord has placed them, than anywhere else. Hence, some are drawn into the fold and receive a testimony of the truth; while others remain unconverted the beauties and glories of the gospel being veiled temporarily from their view, for a wise purpose. The Lord will open their eyes in His own due time. God is using more than one people for the accomplishment of His great and marvelous work. The Latter-day Saints cannot do it all. It is too vast, too arduous for any one people. We have no quarrel with the Gentiles. They are our partners in a certain sense."
This would certainly have been true of Colonel Thomas L. Kane, a true friend of the Saints in their dire need. It was true of General Doniphan, who, when ordered by his superior to shoot Joseph Smith, said: "It is cold blooded murder. I will not obey your order. and if you execute these men, I will hold you responsible before an earthly tribunal, so help me God."
We honor these partners because their devotion to correct principles overshadowed their devotion to popularity, party, or personalities.
We honor our founding fathers of this republic for the same reason. God raised up these patriotic partners to perform their mission, and he called them "wise men." The First Presidency acknowledged that wisdom when they gave us the guideline a few years ago of supporting political candidates "who are truly dedicated to the Constitution in the tradition of our Founding Fathers." That tradition has been summarized in the book The American Tradition by Clarence Carson.
The Lord said that "the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light." Our wise founders seemed to understand, better than most of us, our own scripture, which states that "it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion."
To help prevent this, the founders knew that our elected leaders should be bound by certain fixed principles. Said Thomas Jefferson: "In questions of power then, let no more be heard of confidence in man but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution."
These wise founders, our patriotic partners, seemed to appreciate more than most of us the blessings of the boundaries that the Lord set within the Constitution, for he said, "And as pertaining to law of man, whatsoever is more or less than this, cometh of evil."
In God the founders trusted, and in his Constitution-not in the arm of flesh. "O Lord," said Nephi, "I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm."
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., put it well when he said:
"God provided that in this land of liberty, our political allegiance shall run not to individuals, that is, to government officials, no matter how great or how small they may be. Under His plan our allegiance and the only allegiance we owe as citizens or denizens of the United States, runs to our inspired Constitution which God himself set up. So runs the oath of office of those who participate in government. A certain loyalty we do owe to the office which a man holds, but even here we owe just by reason of our citizenship, no loyalty to the man himself. In other countries it is to the individual that allegiance runs. This principle of allegiance to the Constitution is basic to our freedom. It is one of the great principles that distinguishes this 'land of liberty' from other countries."
"Patriotism," said Theodore Roosevelt, "means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country.
"Every man," said President Roosevelt, "who parrots the cry of 'stand by the President' without adding the proviso 'so far as he serves the Republic' takes an attitude as essentially unmanly as that of any Stuart royalist who championed the doctrine that the King could do no wrong. No self-respecting and intelligent free man could take such an attitude." And yet as Latter-day Saints we should pray for our civic leaders and encourage them in righteousness.
" to vote for wicked men, it would be sin," said Hyrum Smith.
And the Prophet Joseph Smith said, " let the people of the whole Union, like the inflexible Romans, whenever they find a promise made by a candidate that is not practiced as an officer, hurl the miserable sycophant from his exaltation. "
Joseph and Hyrum's trust did not run to the arm of flesh, but to God and correct eternal principles. "I am the greatest advocate of the Constitution of the United States there is on the earth," said the Prophet Joseph Smith.
The warning of President Joseph Fielding Smith is most timely: "Now I tell you it is time the people of the United States were waking up with the understanding that if they don't save the Constitution from the dangers that threaten it, we will have a change of government."
Another guideline given by the First Presidency was "to support good and conscientious candidates, of either party, who are aware of the great dangers" facing the free world.
Fortunately we have materials to help us face these threatening dangers in the writings of President David O. McKay and other church leaders. Some other fine sources by LDS authors attempting to awaken and inform us of our duty are: Prophets, Principles, and National Survival, Many Are Called But Few Are Chosen, and The Elders of Israel and the Constitution.
But the greatest handbook for freedom in this fight against evil is the Book of Mormon.
This leads me to the second great civic standard for the Saints. For in addition to our inspired Constitution, we have the scriptures.
Joseph Smith said that the Book of Mormon was the "keystone of our religion" and the "most correct" book on earth. This most correct book on earth states that the downfall of two great American civilizations came as a result of secret conspiracies whose desire was to overthrow the freedom of the people. "And they have caused the destruction of this people of whom I am now speaking," says Moroni, "and also the destruction of the people of Nephi."
Now undoubtedly Moroni could have pointed out many factors that led to the destruction of the people, but notice how he singled out the secret combinations, just as the Church today could point out many threats to peace, prosperity, and the spread of God's work, but it has singled out the greatest threat as the godless conspiracy. There is no conspiracy theory in the Book of Mormon -it is a conspiracy fact.
Then Moroni speaks to us in this day and says, "Wherefore, the Lord commandeth you, when ye shall see these things come among you that ye shall awake to a sense of your awful situation, because of this secret combination which shall be among you"
The Book of Mormon further warns that "whatsoever nation shall uphold such secret combinations, to get power and gain, until they shall spread over the nation, behold they shall be destroyed. "
This scripture should alert us to what is ahead unless we repent, because there is no question but that as people of the free world, we are increasingly upholding many of the evils of the adversary today. By court edict godless conspirators can run for government office, teach in our schools, hold office in labor unions, work in our defense plants, serve in our merchant marines, etc. As a nation, we are helping to underwrite many evil revolutionaries in our country.
Now we are assured that the Church will remain on the earth until the Lord comes again-but at what price? The Saints in the early days were assured that Zion would be established in Jackson County, but look at what their unfaithfulness cost them in bloodshed and delay.
President Clark warned us that "we stand in danger of losing our liberties, and that once lost, only blood will bring them back; and once lost, we of this church will, in order to keep the Church going forward, have more sacrifices to make and more persecutions to endure than we have yet known. " And he stated that if the conspiracy "comes here it will probably come in its full vigor and there will be a lot of vacant places among those who guide and direct, not only this government, but also this Church of ours."
Now the third great civic standard for the Saints is the inspired word of the prophets-particularly the living president, God's mouthpiece on the earth today. Keep your eye on the captain and judge the words of all lesser authority by his inspired counsel.
The story is told how Brigham Young, driving through a community, saw a man building a house and simply told him to double the thickness of his walls. Accepting President Young as a prophet, the man changed his plans and doubled the walls. Shortly afterward a flood came through that town, resulting in much destruction, but this man's walls stood. While putting the roof on his house, he was heard singing, "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet!"
Joseph Smith taught "that a prophet was a prophet only when he was acting as such."
Suppose a leader of the Church were to tell you that you were supporting the wrong side of a particular issue. Some might immediately resist this leader and his counsel or ignore it, but I would suggest that you first apply the fourth great civic standard for the faithful Saints. That standard is to live for, to get, and then to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
Said Brigham Young: "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. Let every man and woman know, by the whisperings of the Spirit of God to themselves, whether their leaders are walking in the path the Lord dictates, or not."
A number of years ago, because of a statement that appeared to represent the policy of the Church, a faithful member feared he was supporting the wrong candidate for public office. Humbly he took the matter up with the Lord. Through the Spirit of the Lord he gained the conviction of the course he should follow, and he dropped his support of this particular candidate.
This good brother, by fervent prayer, got the answer that in time proved to be the right course.
We urge all men to read the Book of Mormon and then ask God if it is true. And the promise is sure that they may know of its truthfulness through the Holy Ghost, "and by the power of the Holy Ghost may know the truth of all things."
We need the constant guidance of that Spirit. We live in an age of deceit. "O my people," said Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, "they who lead thee cause thee to err and destroy the way of thy paths." Even within the Church we have been warned that "the ravening wolves are amongst us, from our own membership, and they, more than any others, are clothed in sheep's clothing, because they wear the habiliments of the priesthood."
The Lord holds us accountable if we are not wise and are deceived. "For they that are wise," he said, "and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived-verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day."
And so four great civic standards for the faithful Saints are, first, the Constitution ordained by God through wise men; second, the scriptures, particularly the Book of Mormon; third, the inspired counsel of the prophets, especially the living president, and fourth, the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
God bless us all that we may use these standards and by so doing bless ourselves, our families, our community, our nation, and the world, I humbly pray, as I bear my witness to the truth of this great latter-day work, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
The other day, as I overhead one neighbor criticizing another, I was reminded of these lines:
Then I thought of the words of one of our hymns:
-Hymns, no. 91
It seems common practice for people to talk about their friends and neighbors and to criticize their seeming peculiarities and weaknesses. In fact, it is so general that one would think that gossiping about and judging others was the thing to do. How often have we heard of young men who were criticized, judged, and ridiculed because of their peculiarities and yet who eventually became leaders in their different fields of endeavor.
Let me give you one or two examples of unjust criticism and judging without the facts.
There is a little story about Sister McKay, the wife of President David O. McKay, when she began teaching school. As the principal introduced her to the class, he pointed to a certain boy and said he was a troublemaker. She sensed the boy's embarrassment and feared he would live up to his reputation, so she wrote a note and slipped it to him as she passed his desk. It said, "Earl, I think the principal was mistaken about your being a bad boy. I trust you, and know that you are going to help me make this room the best in the school." Earl not only became a paragon of scholastic virtue but also one of the town's most important people.
I should like to give you another example. One of our most respected community-minded citizens began to act as though his feelings had been hurt and to stay away from socials where, in the past, he had gone and taken a most active part. People started accusing him of being a sorehead, a poor sport, antisocial, etc., and even evaded him whenever possible. Later, a medical diagnosis showed he was suffering from a brain tumor, which had been the cause of his lack of interest in activities that he had previously attended and even sponsored.
Let me give you another example or two of what I would call unrighteous judgment. First, a bishop who needs additional officers sees a member of his ward who, though not active, seems to have ability, but he says to himself, "Oh, he wouldn't be interested. He wouldn't want to accept a position." So he does not approach him, and the man remains inactive for years.
A new bishop is called to the ward, asks the man if he would be willing to accept a position, and finds that he is really ready and anxious to work.
Don't prejudge, but give the person an opportunity. Let him decide for himself to accept or decline.
On the other hand, we hear a man say to his family and to others, "I don't see why the bishop does this or that. You would think he would know better." Here he is judging the bishop without the facts, which, if known to him, would be full justification for the action taken. The man's judgment was not only unrighteous, but it had probably prejudiced his children and caused them to lose respect for the bishop and had weakened their faith.
These examples show how important it is that we do not judge, but encourage rather than denounce. Jesus Christ, some 2,000 years ago, realizing man's tendency to make unrighteous judgment, said:
"Judge not, that ye be not judged.
"For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
"And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
"Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
"Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."
It seems he is saying that unless we are without fault, we are not qualified to judge. By referring to Samuel's experience while choosing a king, we may get a better understanding of the fact that man is not qualified to judge. The Lord had rejected Saul as king of Israel and instructed the prophet Samuel to choose a new king. He told him to go to the house of Jesse, who had eight sons, and that while there the anointed one would pass before him and Samuel would know who was to be chosen. When the first son, Eliab, came before him, Samuel thought he was the chosen one, but the Lord refused him and then gave the prophet Samuel the key as to how to judge:
"Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."
Each of the seven sons then passed before Samuel and was rejected. Then David, the youngest, was sent for and was approved by the Lord.
The reason, therefore, that we cannot judge is obvious. We cannot see what is in the heart. We do not know motives, although we impute motives to every action we see. They may be pure while we think they are improper.
It is not possible to judge another fairly unless you know his desires, his faith, and his goals. Because of a different environment, unequal opportunity, and many other things, people are not in the same position. One may start at the top and the other at the bottom, and they may meet as they are going in opposite directions. Someone has said that it is not where you are but the direction in which you are going that counts; not how close you are to failure or success but which way you are headed. How can we, with all our weaknesses and frailties, dare to arrogate to ourselves the position of a judge? At best, man can judge only what he sees; he cannot judge the heart or the intention, or begin to judge the potential of his neighbor.
When we try to judge people, which we should not do, we have a great tendency to look for and take pride in finding weaknesses and faults, such as vanity, dishonesty, immorality, and intrigue. As a result, we see only the worst side of those being judged.
Our news media today also seem to be interested mainly in controversial subjects or someone who is being attacked; and regardless of the ninety-nine good things one may do, it is the one weakness or error that alone is emphasized and heralded to the world.
We are too prone to listen to, accept, and repeat such adverse criticism, such maliciously spoken or printed words, without stopping to realize the harm we may be doing to some noble person; and, as is done so often, we excuse and justify ourselves by saying, "Well, where there is so much smoke, there must be some fire," whereas in reality we are adding to the smoke, when the fire referred to may be only the fire of malice started by some envious person.
Sometimes even when our friends are accused of wrongdoing or gossip is started about them, we disloyally accept and repeat what we hear without knowing all the facts. It is sad indeed that sometimes friendships are destroyed and enmity created on the basis of misinformation.
If there be one place in life where the attitude of the agnostic is acceptable, it is in this matter of judging. It is the courage to say, "I don't know. I am waiting for further evidence. I must hear both sides of the question."
Only by suspending judgment do we exhibit real charity. It is hard to understand why we are ready to condemn our neighbors and our friends on circumstantial evidence while we are all so determined to see that every criminal has a fair and open trial. Surely we can try to eliminate pride, passion, personal feeling, prejudice, and pettiness from our minds, and show charity to those around us.
Let us look for the good rather than try to discover any hidden evil. We can easily find fault in others if that is what we are looking for. Even in families, divorce has resulted and families have been broken up because the husband or wife was looking for and emphasizing the faults rather than loving and extolling the virtues of the other.
Let us remember too that the further out of line or out of tune we ourselves are, the more we are inclined to look for error or weaknesses in others and to try to rationalize and justify our own faults rather than to try to improve ourselves. Almost invariably, we find that the greatest criticism of Church leaders and doctrine comes from those who are not doing their full duty, following the leaders, or living according to the teachings of the gospel.
An outstanding example of this can be found in the story of Cain and Abel. Cain neglected his own stewardship and became so bitter over Abel's righteousness and favor in the eyes of the Lord that his insane jealousy caused him to murder his brother. How much better would his situation have been had he congratulated and honored his brother and set about to improve himself and correct his own failings.
Let us examine our own lives and actions, bring ourselves in tune with righteous principles, and never attack or spread misinformation about others.
Gossip is the worst form of judging. The tongue is the most dangerous, destructive, and deadly weapon available to man. A vicious tongue can ruin the reputation and even the future of the one attacked. Insidious attacks against one's reputation, loathsome innuendoes, half-lies about an individual are as deadly as those insect parasites that kill the heart and life of a mighty oak. They are so stealthy and cowardly that one cannot guard against them. As someone has said, "It is easier to dodge an elephant than a microbe."
What a different world it would be if we would put into practice what we have all heard so many times: " whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets." Instead, we are all so inclined to judge others by a standard different from the one by which we would wish or be willing to be judged.
When the woman accused of adultery was brought before Christ, he was indignant because of the accusers' injustice. They were wanting the woman to be judged on the basis of standards different from those by which they were willing to be judged and on a matter of which some were guilty.
He said: "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." Then, after stooping and writing in the sand, he looked up and said, " where are those thine accusers?"
If Jesus were to stand by and be asked to judge those whom we accuse and should say to us, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her," and then should stoop and write in the sand, how many of us would feel to steal away ashamed, convicted in our own conscience? How sound is his counsel!
If we could accept and practice the second great commandment, "Thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself", and really learn to love our neighbors, there would be no vicious gossip or bearing false witness. In the Lord's prayer, we have these words: "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors," and then he says: "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."
Christ is our greatest example of forgiveness. To the woman brought before him accused of adultery, he said, "Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more."
Then on the cross he prayed: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."
Regardless of our ego, our pride, or our feeling of insecurity, our lives would be happier, we would be contributing more to social welfare and the happiness of others, if we would love one another, forgive one another, repent of our wrongdoings, and judge not.
It is true that we must have appointed judges to deal with the laws of the land and judges in the Church to deal with its members; and they are given the heavy duty and responsibility of judging, which they must not neglect, but they must give righteous judgment according to the law of the land and of the Church.
This being election year, there will be much campaigning; we will hear and argue the pros and cons of many questions; we will have strong opposing views. Each must try to understand the questions and then stand firm by his convictions. But let us determine now that in the heat of the campaign we will not indulge in the vituperative talk of personalities that we so often hear. We must not rail against our brother and accuse him of lying and cheating or being dishonest or immoral.
Let us stand on principle-high principle. Also, it is most important that all of us, including our politicians, strive to live so that our actions will be above reproach and criticism.
We never gain anything or improve our own character by trying to tear down another. We have seen close friendships destroyed through words spoken and accusations made in the heat of a campaign. Tirades against men in office or against one's opponent tend to cause our youth and others to lose faith in the individual and others in government and often even our form of government itself.
As parents, we have the responsibility in our homes to guard against any of these things. Also, we must realize that every word and every act influences the thinking and attitude of the child. It is in the family that the child picks up the elementary lessons in getting along with people and the virtues of love, compassion, and concern. These lessons will have been well taught if parents can bring up their children without prejudicing them by precept or example against any other children on the grounds of color, race, religion, social status, or intellectual capacity, and if they teach them to love the Lord. I am so thankful that my parents, through their tolerance, were able to accomplish this with their children.
May I humbly say in all sincerity that I love the Lord with all my heart and that I love my fellowmen. I hold no hard feelings of any kind toward any man, and I sincerely pray for forgiveness wherein I have offended anyone. I realize, as the Savior said, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
To all the world, and especially to those who do not understand but who ridicule the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I wish to bear my witness and issue a challenge that you judge not until you know and understand those teachings which are contained in the restored gospel. We believe, with you, that God lives and that Jesus Christ is his Only, but truly, Begotten Son in the flesh, who came and gave his life and was resurrected so that all mankind might enjoy immortality.
He said, " this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man", and he gave us the gospel plan by which we can prepare ourselves to go back into his presence and enjoy eternal life.
Yes, the gospel in its fullness is restored and is here upon the earth today. I bear witness that the Bible is the word of God, given to us through his prophets, and also that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and is a translated and true record of God's dealings with the ancient American people, containing the gospel in its fullness. It was written by way of commandment and also by the spirit of prophecy and by revelation, to the convincing of the Jew and the gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations.
I also wish to bear testimony that I know that Joseph Fielding Smith, the President of the Church, is a prophet of God through whom the Lord speaks, and I express my sincere and deep appreciation for the opportunity I have of working so closely with him.
These things I know, and I humbly bear my testimony that they are true; and I invite and encourage each and every one of you to investigate and to read the Book of Mormon, to test and enjoy the promise contained therein, which is:
"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
This promise, and my testimony, I leave with you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Of the Council of the Twelve
A few weeks ago while in England, I had the opportunity to do some traveling by train. Weather and time schedules indicated this to be the most satisfactory method of transportation.
One day as the train rolled from Manchester to Leicester, after about an hour and a half of reading, I put down my books, looked out the window, and wondered if we were getting close to the station. A few minutes later the door to the compartment opened and the conductor entered. He greeted me with, "What is your destination?"
Inasmuch as I had been giving some thought to arrivals, departures, and stops, I answered, "I have an appointment in Leicester."
To this he responded with, "We shall be at your destination in ten minutes." He punched my ticket and made his way to check others.
After he left, I pondered his comments, "What is your destination?" and "We shall be at your destination in ten minutes." He seemed convinced that every time the train stopped and dozens or hundreds of people got off, they had arrived at their destinations. Apparently he has been announcing this to his passengers for years.
However, I knew, despite his comments, that I needed to be in Leicester for two days for quarterly stake conference sessions but that it was not my destination. Stops in other English cities were not my destinations either. They were all assignments along the way. I had not arrived when I reached any of them.
As a result of this experience on the train, and having given this thought some consideration over the years, I am concerned that many of us are confused in our life's travels with destinations, arrivals, stops, calls, stations, and assignments. It appears to me that some of us may be lost today because we think we have arrived.
I would like to share with you some observations and raise some questions within the framework of this question, What is your destination?
Have you arrived when you go to the temple? Is temple marriage your destination? Over the years, I have heard hundreds of my young associates say, "I want to make the temple. A temple marriage is my goal."
To qualify one's self to go to the temple is a lofty ambition, a worthy achievement. We need to remind ourselves of its eternal purposes. However, we have not arrived when we share the blessings of the temple. Oftentimes there are real dangers in our lives when we allow lofty ideals and goals, such as temple marriage, to become an end instead of a means. All of our priorities must be properly placed within the framework of eternity if we are to avoid the stagnations of arriving.
I think it was Louis J. Halle who said, "To snatch the passing moment and examine it for signs of eternity is the noblest of occupations." To gain exaltation after celestial marriage, continued devotion and righteousness are required. It is a continuing process, not a state of arrival.
Have you arrived when you receive your call to serve in the mission field? Have you reached your destination when you have completed an honorable mission? May we emphatically state that a worthily completed mission is a signal accomplishment along life's journey. It should be fortification for greater personal service and strength. It should more firmly entrench the feet of the missionary in the paths that continue onward and upward to eternal happiness. It should prepare him for the enjoyment of pure religion.
"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."
I am reminded of a missionary friend who had difficulty remaining busily engaged the last six months of his mission. He had been assigned to labor in a district as a senior companion after having been an assistant to the mission president. In his own words, "I reached my goal when I held that high position of assistant to the president." He had lost his effectiveness temporarily because he had allowed himself to think he had arrived.
What an important day it is in the life of a missionary when he realizes that an honorable release is a commencement. To our fellow missionaries, past and present, we humbly pray that you will never allow yourselves the dangerous luxury of self-declaring, "I have given my two years to the Church." If a returned missionary will set his sights high for life, he will generally take the proper steps to get there. A mission can be the happiest two years in a missionary's life if he not only serves his God and fellowmen selflessly but if he is also walking in truth and preparing himself for eternal progress, which I declare is underway today.
"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth."
May we emphasize that the joy is in the walking and in the traveling in truth, and not in anticipated arrival.
Have you reached your destination when you receive a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ by revelation from the Holy Ghost? We are sorry to observe that some, having received a testimony, feel and respond as if they had arrived. What a sad day in the life of any individual when he fails to use this knowledge and conviction of a testimony for dedicated and continued service. A testimony grows as it is shared. With the possession of a testimony comes the obligation to bear witness to the world of this, the Lord's work. A testimony is not a destination; it is a possession for performance.
Have you reached your destination when you are baptized, become an elder, a bishop, a stake president, a Relief Society officer, a seventy, or an apostle? In these days of needed performance and service it is hoped all of us will emphatically respond to this question with a resounding NO!
Satan and his forces were never more strongly arrayed than today. He is cunning. He is successful. One of the most subtle and effective tools he is using among us today is the convincing of some that they have arrived, they have reached their destination, they have earned a rest, they aren't needed anymore, they are out of danger, they are beyond temptation, and they can take pride in their accomplishments.
"And thus he flattereth them, and leadeth them along until he draggeth their souls down to hell; and thus he causeth them to catch themselves in their own snare.
"And thus he goeth up and down, to and fro in the earth, seeking to destroy the souls of men."
Since my recent call to serve as a member of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, a number of friends associated with my father, who passed away some years ago, have commented: "Your father must be smiling with a great deal of pleasure at your appointment." To this, I have often thought, "If I know my father, and I think I do, he would take more time to suggest, 'Son, you have not arrived. You have not reached your destination. Your great test lies ahead of you. Strive to live worthy of the great trust placed in you.'"
May I this day thank you, my fellow associates in this The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for your confidence and sustaining support. I assure you I have but one desire, and that is to walk worthily in his paths.
Let me tell you about a friend of mine who presently is traveling the true road with purpose and courage. I was visiting in the mission field when Elder Dennis Dean reached the Arizona Mission. His arrival in one of our first meetings created an electrifying influence on all present when he guided himself in his wheelchair down the aisle of the chapel. An expression of humble confidence covered his face.
His associates soon learned why he had been found worthy and able to serve a full-time mission. I recall his testimony that day when he let us all know that this was part of his life's hopes and ambitions. He said, "I will do my best to make myself worthy of your trust and confidence. Don't feel sorry for me. Just help me to do what I know I can do with the Lord's help."
His message carried. Later on in the day, his newly assigned companion warmly approached me and asked, "What do you do to be a good companion to a wheelchair-restricted elder?" My response after having spent part of the day with Elder Dean was, "You will do well to keep up with him. The real test in the weeks ahead is for you-not him."
Elder Dean, with the love and companionship of an excellent mission president and fellow missionaries, served as a district leader during his two years, bringing the gospel message to hundreds and leading forty-eight to the waters of baptism. Today Dennis enthusiastically carries on his studies and learning at Brigham Young University. He presently serves in the BYU 38th Ward as a home teacher and a Sunday School teacher. He has recently been to my office, where we had a good visit, and I was again impressed with this unusual example of a good man on the move.
As we continue our thinking along the lines of plans, destinations, goals, arrivals, and commitments, we can learn from two more of my friends. Some of my friends are unusual. They come from unusual places. Last Tuesday evening, as I was clearing my desk prior to leaving for home, the telephone rang: "Brother Ashton, I have permission from the prison authorities to come and visit with you. Will you wait until I get there?"
Frank came. We talked. In response to the questions, "Now that you are going to be released from the prison in one week, what are your plans? What are you going to do? What are your goals?" he answered, "I have an apartment. I have a full-time job. I have a wonderful sweetheart. I am going to continue my education. I have a church assignment. I have a lot of things I need to do. I am thirty-two years old and I am only a teacher in the priesthood. I want to be an elder before too long."
He ended his friendly visit with a request: "Brother Ashton, if I keep myself squared away, will you go to the temple with me in a few months and perform my marriage?"
Contrast this, if you will, with another conversation with a member of the same institution. I spoke to him during a visit some months ago. As I think back, I selected him to talk to because no one else was speaking to him.
"What are you going to do when you get out of this place?" I said. "All I want is out," he snarled back. "I'm in here on a phony rap, and I want out." No plans, no goals, no aims, no preparation. All he wants is out, and I am afraid from his attitude he doesn't care how he accomplishes it.
I humbly bear witness to you today that an honorably completed mission, a celestial marriage, a valued testimony, a position of major responsibility in the Church are not destinations in the lives of true Latter-day Saints. They can be important aids in eternal progression. They will not save you and me in the kingdom of God. Only living the life of a faithful Latter-day Saint will make that possible.
"If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God; for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation."
As we pursue our journeys, let us ever bear in mind that in train travel and in life, there are stations, there are departures, calls, schedules, and opportunities for being side-tracked and diverted. Wise is the individual who follows in his, the Savior's, paths. Safety and joy belong to those who will come and follow him. I bear witness to you today that God is eternal. We are eternal, and God never intended for us to travel alone.
What is your destination? I humbly pray our Heavenly Father to help each one of us realize it is eternal life, exaltation in our Father's kingdom. I bear you my witness that the gift of salvation is possible through this, the gospel of Jesus Christ, as we continue faithful, and I say it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Good morning, my brothers and sisters and friends. I deem it a privilege and a great honor to greet you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. We meet in his name. It is because of him that we are here, and everything we do in this life, if it is really worthwhile, comes through him.
We are Christians. We want the whole world to know that we are. Sometimes we are accused of not being Christians, but such is not the case. In the words of the great prophet Nephi, " we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." We look to Christ as the Author and Finisher of our faith. He is our Redeemer.
In the meridian of time, his church was established upon a foundation of apostles and prophets, holy men whom he knew in the flesh while he walked upon the earth. They received his teachings. He ordained them and gave them authority to act for him in all things with respect to the salvation of mankind. He knew he was not going to remain upon the earth for very long, for he so stated: " the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."
Therefore, he needed men to remain here upon this earth who could receive communication from him from heaven, where he would be. This kind of communication is known as revelation, and those who receive it are designated prophets by God. In the beginning of his ministry, he chose twelve special witnesses, who were with him in mortality. But after his crucifixion, he chose others by revelation, who may not have known him in mortality. Certainly Paul was one of these.
For a time, these men presided over the church and handled problems, set the affairs of the church in order. But over a time the church became corrupt. The members refused to follow the inspired counsel of the apostles. Paul wrote many letters trying to bring them back to the fold. Persecution became intense, and the apostles, who were prophets, were killed or otherwise taken from the earth. And when they were gone, the light of revelation went out. Even secular history records this period as the dark ages.
But as had been prophesied by the apostles and the prophets of old, a new day dawned and God once again spoke from heaven and called a new prophet in this day and time. He was but a lad in his fifteenth year. His name was Joseph Smith, Jr. God called upon him in a great vision in the year 1820. He spoke unto him from heaven and gave him commandments, and also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the whole world, and all this that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets: "The weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh-
"But that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;
"That faith also might increase in the earth;
"That mine everlasting covenant might be established;
"That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers."
And so we have a new witness for God in modern America.
We are not Protestants, because we are not protesting against any person or group or organization. We have no quarrel with other churches. We do not write tracts nor propaganda against other churches, and we never will, because we are not in the business of tearing down men's faith and belief, but rather of building it up.
To our Protestant friends, and we have many, who believe that salvation is by grace through faith alone, we say, "We understand your emphasis on faith. We believe it too. Without faith it is impossible to please God, but there is more to it than just faith. There are certain ordinances you must receive, and certain authority that you must possess, and there are certain works that you must perform, so come, let us reason together. Let us share with you the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ."
This was in accordance with the teachings of the Master. To the Jews who were sure he had come to condemn and tear down their religion, he said: "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." And again, he found no fault whatsoever with their righteous acts, for he said: " these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone." And so we say to our Protestant friends.
To our Catholic friends who believe in salvation by grace through the sacraments of the church, we say, "We understand your emphasis on the sacraments or the ordinances of the church. We believe it too. Did not the Master say, 'Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God'? Baptism by one who holds authority to act is essential to salvation.
"But there is more to salvation than just the ordinances of the gospel. There are certain acts of faith that you must manifest. There are certain works you must perform, and certain authority that you must possess that gives you the right to act in the name of the Lord, which can come only through a living prophet. So come-let us share with you the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We won't take anything from you that you have that's true; we will just add to what you have, and we will do it in love, with no compulsion, no force; only love and sacrifice can bring people to a knowledge of the truth."
And now it would seem that we have sorted through the many different religions of the world and taken from them the very best parts of each of the churches. It would seem this way, but such is not the Case. We can show that each principle that we teach is taught in the Holy Bible, which is a record of God's dealings with his people, particularly the Hebrews and the Jews, generally speaking. But if all the Bibles on earth had been destroyed in the year 1830, it would still be organized exactly as it is organized today.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is distinguished from the church that the Master organized in the meridian of time by the phrase "Latter-day Saints." These principles did not come from the Bible, but they came through revelation from God through a modern prophet, Joseph Smith.
We have a message for all good men everywhere. To those who are honest in their hearts, the Lord has commanded us to declare glad tidings. " yea," he has said, "publish it upon the mountains, and upon every high place, among every people that thou shalt be permitted to see."
Further, the Lord has commanded that "thou shalt do it with all humility, trusting in me, reviling not against revilers.
"And of tenets thou shalt not talk, but thou shalt declare repentance and faith on the Savior, and remission of sins by baptism, and by fire, yea, even the Holy Ghost."
And so we go forth in love, for God, for our fellowmen, pleading with them to listen, and offer in sacrifice the message of the restoration. There are in the mission fields of the Church today throughout the world over 15,000 full-time missionaries from this church who are giving of their time and talents and substance freely, paying their own way, to carry this message to their fellowmen.
"And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them."
And again he said, " the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated." It is a message of hope, for we declare that God our Heavenly Father lives, that he hears and answers prayers, that Jesus is the Christ, and that he lives.
He has reestablished his church upon the earth in our own day and time, and it is for all men, for all who will. And he has called special witnesses, ordained them, and sent them forth to preach the gospel of truth, to gather out the elect, those who would hear this message.
We have the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He is so generous and kind to us in this day and time when we so desperately need it. He has given us a living prophet of God, who still makes the important decisions in the church and kingdom of God, under the direction of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, whose church it really is.
And we bear this witness to you in all soberness, leaving you our love and our blessings, and our most fond affection. We love you, we want you, and we do it in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who is our Redeemer. Amen.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, this has indeed been a wonderful conference-another inspiring spiritual experience. I have been deeply impressed and strengthened by the prayers, the music, and the spoken word.
We have prayed that the Spirit of the Lord would be with us, and our prayers have been answered. Prayer plays a vital part in our worship, our religious thinking, and our daily lives.
In the time allotted to me today I would like to further consider with you the importance of prayer.
Implanted in the heart of every person, regardless of his or her race or color, is the desire to worship, in some manner, a divine being. The Prophet Joseph Smith observed that "it is the first principle of the gospel to know for a certainty the character of God, and to know that we may converse with Him as one man converses with another. "
With the knowledge that we can converse with God as one man converses with another, we also understand that we not only have a divine spark within us, but that we are actually spirit children of our Father in heaven.
Prayer, being the primary method of communication between God and man, plays an important part in practically every religion, whether Christian or otherwise. This is particularly true in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Prayer opened the heavens to the Prophet Joseph Smith and thus opened the dispensation of the fulness of times. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is truly a monument to prayer.
I am most grateful to the Prophet Joseph Smith for his simple belief in prayer. The answer to his prayer restored light and truth to mankind regarding the Godhead and many other great truths.
I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, and that through him the power to act in the name of God has been restored to the earth.
I likewise bear witness that President Joseph Fielding Smith is a prophet of God and directs The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the earth today.
I have, throughout my life, had my prayers answered very directly many times. Prayer has been a great blessing to me and to my family.
The Lord has repeatedly told us to pray always and that he will pour out his Spirit upon us and bless us greatly. I have frequently contemplated what "pray always" really means and how this injunction can be effectively applied in our lives.
Brigham Young, in his realistic manner, stated: "You know that it is one peculiarity of our faith and religion never to ask the Lord to do a thing without being willing to help him all that we are able; and then the Lord will do the rest."
"Please, Lord, help me to help myself." I am convinced that this prayer for increased personal powers-spiritual strength, greater inspiration, and greater confidence-is one that God always answers. We can learn to solve our problems with God's help, making him our partner.
This being the case, what can we do to supplement prayer, or what is our part? Let me suggest a few examples:
As we pray for wisdom and knowledge, our part can be to study and apply ourselves.
As we ask for health and strength of body and of mind, we can supplement prayer by living the Word of Wisdom.
As we ask for protection, our part could well be to use good judgment, such as driving carefully, if we are traveling by car.
When we pray for inspiration, we should live close to the Lord by keeping his commandments. The Savior said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
When we pray for direction, remember the counsel of the Lord given to Oliver Cowdery in the ninth section of the Doctrine and Covenants: Study your problems out in your own mind. Make a decision and then ask the Lord if your decision is right; if so, you will receive a burning of your bosom or a good feeling; if not, you will receive a stupor of thought or a questionable feeling. Then whatever the feeling you receive, have the courage to follow it. This is doing your part.
The question is frequently asked, What should one pray for? Well, prayer being the soul's sincere desire, uttered or unexpressed, pray for your righteous desires. But never forget that whatever our prayers are, we can supplement our heavenly request with some positive action on our part.
We members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who make prayer a part of our lives, sometimes fail to recognize that many honest souls throughout the world are wondering how to pray, when to pray, and where to pray.
Let's consider for a moment how to pray. The Savior told us how when he said:
"After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
"Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
"Give us this day our daily bread.
"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."
This sample prayer envisions appreciation, simplicity, and the avoidance of vain repetitions. Our prayers should simply be our soul's sincere desire. In our church worship there are only three set prayers: the baptismal and two sacramental prayers. We are also directed to close all of our prayers to our Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ.
Now, when to pray: Generally, I think we might say that we should pray in secret, with our families, and in worship meetings and public assemblies.
Secret prayer should have a place in every person's life. Again the Savior gave us the pattern when he said: " when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
The Prophet Joseph Smith, speaking on this subject, stated: "We would say to the brethren, seek to know God in your closets, call upon him in the fields. Follow the directions of the Book of Mormon, and pray over, and for your families, your cattle, your flocks, your herds, your corn, and all things that you possess; ask the blessing of God upon all your labors, and everything that you engage in."
The Prophet Joseph Smith here amplifies the admonition to pray always. Now with reference to family prayer: This should be a part of our daily worship. It should express our appreciation to our Father in heaven for our many blessings as well as our love for him. Here we should ask for our daily needs, as the Savior did in the Lord's Prayer.
The holding of family prayer is a powerful influence for good in every home where it is a regular practice. Morning and evening prayers, as well as the blessing on our food, bring us a sense of unity in our family as well as a closeness to our Father in heaven. Family prayer is indeed a stabilizing influence in our lives.
President John Taylor asked the Saints, "Do you have prayers in your family? And when you do, do you go through the operation like the guiding of a piece of machinery, or do you bow in meekness and with a sincere desire to seek the blessing of God upon you and your household? That is the way that we ought to do, and cultivate a spirit of devotion and trust in God, dedicating ourselves to him, and seeking his blessings."
Now regarding public prayers: Public prayers are a part of our worship services and many other public gatherings. These prayers again put us in a frame of mind to be inspired, strengthened, and motivated.
Our sacramental and baptismal prayers, of course, are certainly a very important part of our worship services.
The Lord has also charged parents "to teach their children to pray, and walk uprightly before the Lord."
President Heber J. Grant, in referring to this matter, said, "I have little or no fear for the boy or the girl, the young man or the young woman, who honestly and conscientiously supplicate God twice a day for the guidance of His Spirit. I am sure that when temptation comes they will have the strength to overcome it by the inspiration that shall be given to them."
As parents, it is clearly our duty and privilege to teach our children to pray, and regular family prayers set the pattern.
The Lord has promised to show mercy and to give comfort and strength to all who love him and keep his commandments. However, it is most important to remember that our attitude and approach in prayer should be similar to that of the Savior, in one of his last prayers in which he said, "Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." Three times he prayed in this manner. And then "there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him."
As we approach our Father in heaven with the spirit, "thy will be done," and as we personally do all we can to have our prayers answered, the Lord will do the rest, as President Brigham Young so aptly stated.
It is important to recognize that the laws governing prayer are as immutable as those governing science. Response is predicated upon our having the proper attitude and so living that we are entitled to the whisperings of the Spirit. We must keep ourselves in tune with the Holy Ghost.
Yes, as we do our part or magnify our callings, the Lord will make us equal to the task by blessing us with strength of body and of mind far beyond our normal capacities.
May we this day commit ourselves to so live that we may go before the Lord with a clear conscience and ask for his divine guidance and assistance. As we do this, we will truly appreciate the words of the beautiful hymn: "O how praying rests the weary! Prayer will change the night to day."
May the choice blessings of our Father in heaven attend you, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
On sunlit days during the noon hour, the streets of Salt Lake City abound with men and women who for a moment leave the confines of the tall office buildings and engage in that universal delight called window shopping. On occasion I, too, am a participant.
One Wednesday I paused before the elegant show window of a prestigious furniture store. That which caught and held my attention was not the beautifully designed sofa nor the comfortable-appearing chair that stood at its side. Neither was it the beautiful chandelier positioned overhead. Rather, my eyes rested upon a small sign that had been placed at the bottom right-hand corner of the window. Its message was brief: "Finishers Wanted."
The store had need of those persons who possessed the talent and the skill to make ready for final sale the expensive furniture that the firm manufactured and sold. "Finishers Wanted." The words remained with me as I returned to the pressing activities of the day.
In life, as in business, there has always been a need for those persons who could be called finishers. Their ranks are few, their opportunities many, their contributions great.
From the very beginning to the present time, a fundamental question remains to be answered by each who runs the race of life. Shall I falter or shall I finish? On the answer await the blessings of joy and happiness here in mortality and eternal life in the world to come.
We are not left without guidance to make this momentous decision. The Holy Bible contains those accounts, even those lessons, which, if carefully learned, will serve us well and be as a beacon light to guide our thoughts and influence our actions. As we read, we sympathize with those who falter. We honor those who finish.
The apostle Paul likened life to a great race when he declared: "Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain."
And before the words of Paul fell upon the ears of his listeners, the counsel of the preacher, even the son of David, king in Jerusalem, cautioned: " the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong. "
Could the son of David have been referring to his own father? Judged by any standards, the greatest king Israel ever had was David. Anointed by Samuel, he was honored by the Lord.
In the first flush of his incredible triumphs, David rode the crest of popularity. As he achieved fresh victories, the women greeted him with a new song: " Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands." In adoration the people exclaimed: "Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh."
Power he won. Peace he lost.
It happened one evening when David was walking upon the roof of the king's house that he saw from the roof a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful.
"And David sent and inquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?" So "David sent messengers, and took her. "
The gross sin of adultery was followed by yet another: " Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die." Lust and power had triumphed.
David's rebuke came from the Lord God of Israel: " thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house. "
David commenced well the race, then faltered and failed to finish his course.
Lest we lull ourselves into thinking that only the gross sins of life cause us to falter, consider the experience of the rich young man who came running to the Savior and asked the question: "Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?"
Jesus answered him: "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
"He saith unto him, Which?"
To Jesus' enumeration of the commandments, "The young man saith All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
"Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and come and follow me.
"But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions."
He preferred the comforts of earth to the treasures of heaven. He would not purchase the things of eternity by abandoning those of time. He faltered. He failed to finish.
So it was with Judas Iscariot. He commenced his ministry as an apostle of the Lord. He ended it a traitor. For thirty paltry pieces of silver, he sold his soul. At last, realizing the enormity of his sin, Judas, to his patrons and tempters of his crime, shrieked: "I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood."
Remorse had led to despair, despair to madness, and madness to suicide. He had succeeded in betraying the Christ. He had failed to finish the apostolic ministry to which he had been divinely called.
Lust for power, greed of gold, and disdain for honor have ever appeared as faces of failure in the panorama of life. Captivated by their artificial attraction, many noble souls have stumbled and fallen, thus losing the crown of victory reserved for the finisher of life's great race.
Concerning those who fall short, John Greenleaf Whittier's words seem particularly fitting:
-"Maude Muller"
May we turn from the lives of those who faltered and consider for a moment some who finished and won the prize.
There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was perfect and upright and one that feared God and eschewed evil. Pious in his conduct, prosperous in his fortune, Job was to face a test that would tempt any man.
Shorn of his possessions, scorned by his friends, afflicted by his suffering, even tempted by his wife, Job was to declare from the depths of his noble soul: " behold, my witness is in heaven, and my record is on high." " I know that my redeemer liveth. "
Job did not falter. Job became a finisher.
Following the earthly ministry of the Lord, there were many who, rather than deny testimony of him, would forfeit their lives. Such was Paul the apostle. The impulse of his father to send him to Jerusalem opened the door to Paul's destiny. He would pass through it and help to shape a new world. Gifted in his capacity to stir, move, and manage groups of men, Paul was a peerless example of one who nobly made the transition from sinner to saint. Though disappointment, heartache, and trial were to beset him, yet Paul, at the conclusion of his ministry, could say: "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith." Like Job, Paul was a finisher.
He admonished us to "lay aside sin" and to "run with patience the race. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. "
Though Jesus was tempted by the evil one, yet he resisted. Though he was hated, yet he loved. Though he was betrayed, yet he triumphed. Not in a cloud of glory or chariot of fire was Jesus to depart mortality, but with arms outstretched in agony upon a cruel cross. The magnitude of his mission is depicted in the simplicity of his words.
To his Father he prayed, " the hour is come. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do." " into thy hands I commend my spirit. "
Mortality ended. Immortality began.
Times change, circumstances vary, but the true marks of a finisher remain. Note them well, for they are vital to our success.
1. The Mark of Vision. It has been said that the doorways of history turn on small hinges, and so do people's lives. We are constantly making small decisions. The outcome determines the success or failure of our lives. That is why it is worthwhile to look ahead, set a course, and at least be partly ready when the moment of decision comes. True finishers have the capacity to visualize their objective.
2. The Mark of Effort. Vision without effort is daydreaming, effort without vision is drudgery; but vision, coupled with effort, will obtain the prize.
Needed is the capacity to make the second effort when life's challenges lay us low.
-Author Unknown
3. The Mark of Faith. Long years ago the psalmist wrote: "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man: It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes." Recognize that faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other.
4. The Mark of Virtue. " let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly. " This counsel from the Lord will provide staying power in the race we run.
5. The Mark of Courage. Courage becomes a living and attractive virtue when it is regarded not as a willingness to die manfully, but the determination to live decently. Have the courage-
-and you will thus become a finisher.
6. The Mark of Prayer. When the burdens of life become heavy, when trials test one's faith, when pain, sorrow, and despair cause the light of hope to flicker and burn low, communication with our Heavenly Father provides peace.
These, the marks of a true finisher, will be as a lamp to our feet in the journey through life. Ever beckoning us onward and lifting us upward is he who pleaded, " come, follow me."
Frequently his help comes silently-on occasion with dramatic impact. Such was my experience of some years ago when, as a mission president, I was afforded the privilege of guiding the activities of precious young men and women, even missionaries whom he had called.
Some had problems, others required motivation; but one came to me in utter despair. He had made his decision to leave the mission field when but at the halfway mark. His bags were packed, his return ticket purchased. He came by to bid me farewell. We talked; we listened; we prayed. There remained hidden the actual reason for his decision to quit.
As we arose from our knees in the quiet of my office, the missionary began to weep. Flexing the muscle in his strong right arm, he blurted out, "This is my problem. All through school my muscle power qualified me for honors in football and track, but my mental power was neglected. President Monson, I'm ashamed of my school record. It reveals that 'with effort' I have the capacity to read at but the level of the fourth grade. I can't even read the Book of Mormon. How then can I understand its contents and teach others its truths?"
The silence of the room was broken by my young nine-year-old son, who, without knocking, opened the door and, with surprise, apologetically said, "Excuse me. I just wanted to put this book back on the shelf."
He handed me the book. Its title: A Child's Story of the Book of Mormon, by Dr. Deta P. Neeley. I turned to the foreword and read these words: "This book has been written with a scientifically controlled vocabulary to the level of the fourth grade." A sincere prayer from an honest heart had been dramatically answered.
My missionary accepted the challenge to read the book. Half laughing, half crying, he declared, "It will be good to read something I can understand." Clouds of despair were dispelled by the sunshine of hope. He completed an honorable mission. He became a finisher.
Today I think I shall once more walk by that furniture store in our city and again gaze at the small sign in the large show window, that I may indelibly impress upon my mind the true meaning of its words: "Finishers Wanted."
I pray humbly that each one of us may be a finisher in the race of life and thus qualify for that precious prize: eternal life with our Heavenly Father in the celestial kingdom. I testify that God lives, that this is his work, and ask that each may follow the example of his Son, a true finisher, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Joe Darion, "The Impossible Dream," Sam Fox, Publisher, New York, 1965.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
In the hope that some may be listening, I wish to direct my remarks to two groups of men who have lost contact with the Church: those who are nominally members, but who are out of touch; and then men everywhere-doubting, hard-headed, thoughtful men who ask searching questions and want pragmatic answers.
I do so under the question, "What will the Church do for you, a man?" My answer:
First, it will bring you into the greatest fraternity in the world.
Every man hungers for brotherhood. That desire finds a degree of fulfillment in many service clubs, trade associations, social groups, and similar organizations. And while all of these may be beneficial, there is none quite like the brotherhood of the priesthood of God.
Here will be found hundreds of thousands of men, from all honorable walks of life, endowed with authority to act in the name of God and obligated under the very nature of the sacred gift each has received to strengthen and assist one another. The words of the Lord to Peter are pertinent to their situation. Declared he: "Simon. Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren."
This is one of the great purposes of quorum organization in the priesthood of the Church-to bring an awareness of the needs of others and an opportunity and a vehicle to strengthen one another.
A local Church officer called me one day. He was a lawyer and said that one of his neighbors had come seeking his help in getting a divorce. He said that his marriage was in serious trouble. He and his wife had been living far beyond their means, they were hopelessly in debt, money problems had led to constant bickering, and the marriage had deteriorated to a point where they could not go on together.
We discussed the case, and the end result was that three of the man's priesthood quorum members were assigned to work with this brother and his wife toward a solution of their problems. One was a lawyer, one was a banker, and one was an accountant. The couple agreed to place their affairs in the hands of these, their neighbors and brethren.
With the expertise that came of their professional and business experience, the committee went to work. They called on the man's creditors, who, with confidence in the ability of this committee, agreed to give them time to work out his problems. These problems had been entirely beyond his ability to manage, but they were only one more challenge for his experienced brethren.
Order was brought out of chaos. Peace was restored in the home. A new sense of security came into his life. His wife developed for him a respect she had never previously shown. Over a period of two or three years his creditors all received what was due them. And the man and his wife learned principles that qualified them to manage a home as it should be managed.
Said Paul to the Romans: "We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak," and then he added, "and not to please ourselves." This is the spirit of this great brotherhood of men-to bear the infirmities of one another, not necessarily to please themselves, but in fulfillment of a divine obligation.
Second, active membership in the Church will motivate a man to clean up his life, if that is necessary.
There are in the aggregate experiences of this church thousands upon thousands of cases of men who, under the uplifting impulses of the gospel of Jesus Christ and under the inspiration of association with good men, have received the strength to lay aside habits that held them in bondage for many years.
I stood one day some years ago with a Japanese businessman in Hiroshima, beside the monument that marks the events of that tragic August 6, 1945, when in a matter of minutes some 85,000 people were killed. He told me that he had been a member of the Japanese Imperial Army, that out of that experience had come a hatred for all Americans.
One day two of our missionaries knocked on his door. He was too intoxicated to talk with them. All purpose had gone from his life, and his only refuge was drink. Not recognizing them for what they were, he invited them back, and there followed some weeks later his baptism.
With his conversion came purpose into his life, the will to forsake old habits, the strength to turn completely around. He spoke of appreciation for the young men who had taught him and the motivation they had cultivated within him.
At the time of our conversation he was serving as a member of the branch presidency and as an active member of an elders quorum. His case, in essence, can be multiplied thousands of times. There is no other power like the reforming power of the gospel of Jesus Christ to give men the desire and the will to change their lives.
Third, activity in the Church will afford you growth through responsibility.
It is an axiom as true as life itself that we grow as we serve. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is, among other things, a great school for the development of leadership. I have told groups of our missionaries, as I have met with them in various parts of the world, "You're not much to look at, but you're all the Lord has." And the miracle is that as they serve the Lord, they become giants in capacity and in achievement.
And so it is with each of us. If the work of the Lord is to go forward, it must be done by such as you and me. There is a constant need for men in this church to fill positions of responsibility. They must be taken as they are. And the marvelous thing is that as they serve, taking advantage of the great training programs and magnified by the Spirit of God, they become effective and powerful.
I recall speaking with a young man who first came to this community while in military service. One Sunday he wandered through Temple Square. Conversations begun here eventually led to his baptism.
Four or five years later I was interviewing him to become an elders quorum president. He told me of his childhood as an orphan, pushed from one place to another, of the loneliness and desolation of his life, of all opportunities for education and growth foreclosed against him. Then he came into the Church and received first one assignment and then another, each just a little beyond his capacity at the time; but as he served, his capacity increased.
And now he was prepared for a major responsibility. His entire life had changed. Today he is an officer in the Church, a valued employee in a position of responsibility, a good husband, an exemplary father, an excellent neighbor.
Robert Browning said, "A man's reach should exceed his grasp." Growth comes as we constantly seek to achieve that which is just beyond our immediate capacity. One of the noteworthy aspects of the Church program is that it constantly motivates men to stretch themselves, to reach a little higher.
Fourth, membership in the Church and active participation therein will give a new dimension to your life, a spiritual dimension that will become as a rock of faith, with an endowment of authority to speak in the name of God.
In the opening of this work, in this dispensation of time, the Lord declared one of the purposes of the restoration of the gospel to be "that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world."
Blessed is the man who prays with the assurance that prayers are heard and answered. Blessed is the man whose companion is the Holy Spirit. Blessed is the man who possesses the authority to speak in the name of God.
When King Belshazzar gathered about him his friends in a night of feasting and revelry, the fingers of a man's hand appeared and wrote upon the wall. The astrologers and the soothsayers were called to interpret the writing, and they could not, and the king was greatly troubled.
And the queen said, "There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him. "
Daniel was brought before the king, and by virtue of the power in him he interpreted the writing on the wall.
I should like to suggest that every man who holds and magnifies the priesthood may have within him "light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods."
What will active membership in the Church do for you, a man? It will verily add a spiritual dimension to your life with which to bless your family, your associates, and yourself.
Fifth, it will assist you in the governance of your home.
How much stronger the nation would be-any nation-if there were presiding in each home a man who looked upon his wife as an eternal companion, engaged with him in a partnership with God in bringing to pass divine, eternal purposes, and who looked upon his children as children of our Heavenly Father, who has given to earthly parents a stewardship for those children.
Action is born of attitude, and in such a home, where true gospel principles become the guidelines of governance, there will be mutual appreciation, respect, deference, courtesy, and honor, for the father will look upon those for whom he is responsible as blessings divinely given, to be cherished, nurtured, protected, and loved.
A convert to the Church once said, "As a father I believed in caning my children. The slightest infraction of a rule was answered with prompt physical punishment. Then the gospel came into our home. I saw my children in a new light. They were my children, yes, but they were also children of our Eternal Father. How could I abuse a child of God? I began to develop an entirely new point of view toward my children, and they reciprocated with a new attitude toward me.
"Do we have discipline in our home? Yes, but of an entirely different kind. We are no longer adversaries. There are still some penalties for wrongdoing, but such penalties are of a different nature and are accepted as properly deserved, and not resented with bitterness as they once were. Now there is respect for one another, and more than that, love. What a difference the gospel makes," he concluded.
"Yes," I added, "what a difference the gospel makes when it is accepted and lived."
Finally, the Church makes it possible for you, a man, to bind to you for eternity those you love most.
No other relationship in life is so sacred, so satisfying, so important in its consequences as the family relationship. Then how tragic are the implications of those words so often spoken on the day of marriage-"Till death do ye part."
As certainly as there has been a joining together in marriage with such a ceremony, there also has been decreed a separation and cancellation of family relationships in death. To think of eternal life without eternal love is to construct a paradox, a contradiction.
A loving Eternal Father, with concern for his children, has made possible a continuation of those sacred relationships. Declared the Lord to his chosen Twelve, "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. "
That same power, to bind in heaven what is bound on earth, is in this church today. It is exercised in holy temples, and there, under the authority of the priesthood of God, father and mother and children are sealed together under a covenant and in a relationship that time cannot break and death cannot destroy.
I spoke not long ago at the funeral of a prominent man in this community. It was a time for mourning, yes. But it was also a time for reassurance. And shining through the tears of the wonderful little woman and her children who that day were bereaved was a smile of peace that came of an overriding conviction that their husband and father had merely gone hence to prepare for reunions that will follow.
Following that service I received a letter from a business leader in the community, a man not of our faith, who wrote: "You people have a positive approach that is truly impressive. You come to comfort and not to mourn-to praise life rather than curse death. The depth of your faith surely must tide you over many of the vicissitudes of life, not the least of which is death."
What will the Church do for you, a man? It will give you the assurance, as certain as life itself, that death is but a graduation, and that those most precious to you may be yours through all eternity.
To our brethren everywhere, to those who have become careless and who have drifted away, and to those who have not yet made inquiry, I extend an invitation to come and see. God in his wisdom has set up his organization to enrich your lives, to bring peace into your hearts and joy and love into your homes-and the assurance that those you love now may be yours forever.
My brethren, the door is open. You will be warmly welcomed, and you will find many good men anxious to help you. Furthermore, as a servant of the Lord, I do not hesitate to promise that you will come to know a joy that you have never previously experienced.
I bear witness of these things in soberness and with appreciation, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
After Adam had been created by the Lord in his image and after his own likeness, the Lord pointed out that it was not good for man to be alone. So Eve was created and given to Adam to be his wife, his companion and helpmeet.
Adam and Eve received many instructions from the Lord. Among them was the mandate to multiply and replenish the earth, or in other words, to bring children into the world. Without hesitation they followed that injunction, and in due time a son was born to them. How proud, how thrilled and delighted they must have been with their new child. Undoubtedly, they had wonderful dreams and high hopes for him. They gave him the name of Cain. Later they were blessed with another son, who was called Abel.
The boys differed noticeably in temperament and disposition. As they matured and reached manhood, Cain became a tiller of the soil and Abel chose to become a keeper of sheep. The scriptures reveal that Abel loved the Lord. He was obedient and hearkened unto his voice. Cain was rebellious and loved Satan more than God. Out of selfishness and in a fit of jealousy, Cain rose up and slew his brother, Abel.
When the Lord inquired of Cain, "Where is Abel, thy brother?" Cain arrogantly replied with the question, "Am I my brother's keeper?"
Over the years that question has been asked numerous times. To that question, many today would respond with firm conviction, "Yes, Cain, you are your brother's keeper, and not only you, but each one of us is our brother's keeper."
Those who labor so diligently and unselfishly with aching backs and blistered hands on welfare projects are doing so because they love their brothers and sisters and do not want them to suffer from cold nor hunger.
The home teachers and visiting teachers who faithfully visit their assigned families regularly to determine if all is well and in order surely believe, Cain, that they are their brother's keeper.
When one visits the houses of the Lord, the temples, he is impressed by the dedicated members of the Church who have sought out their deceased loved ones through research. They attend the temples often to perform vicarious ordinances for them that will make exaltation and eternal life possible. Truly they believe that they are their brother's keeper.
As we observe the sincere and enthusiastic labors of the thousands of missionaries throughout the world declaring the restored truth, not for their individual benefit, but to teach the glorious principles of the gospel to the peoples of the earth for their blessing, we are again impressed, Cain, that they have a conviction that they are their brother's keeper.
There are over 5,000 American Indian children, coming from fifty tribal backgrounds, living with Latter-day Saint families during the school year. They receive the same love and attention given to their foster brothers and sisters-a true act of love and brotherhood on the part of these families, with no reward other than the knowledge that they are helping a choice son or daughter of our Heavenly Father take his or her rightful place in the world. They too are their brother's keeper.
In teaching his followers, Jesus often used the scriptural terminology of neighbor in designating his brother.
At one time a certain lawyer asked the Savior what he must do to inherit eternal life. The Master asked him what he read in the law. The lawyer pondered a moment and then replied: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself."
He was assured his answer was correct. In order to justify himself, he then posed the question: "And who is my neighbour?"
Jesus, the Master Teacher, then told of a certain man who was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho. Thieves fell upon him, stripping him of his clothing, beating him brutally, and leaving him half dead. By chance a priest came along and, observing the wounded man, turned his head, crossed the road, and passed by on the other side. Soon a Levite came along, and when he saw the injured person, he also passed by on the opposite side of the road.
But a Samaritan riding along was filled with compassion when he viewed the unfortunate man. Stopping his animal, he bound up the victim's wounds and poured oil and wine into the afflicted parts. Placing the suffering man upon his beast, he took him to a nearby inn, where he further ministered unto him.
On the morrow when he departed, he took some money from his purse and handed it to the innkeeper, requesting him to care for the injured man and promising that he would compensate him for any additional expense incurred when he returned from his journey.
The Savior then posed the question: "Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?" To this the lawyer readily answered: "He that shewed mercy on him." The Savior said unto him: "Go, and do thou likewise."
One of the most beautiful and tender accounts of brotherly love, concern, and devotion took place in Carthage Jail on the afternoon of the martyrdom. "The afternoon was sultry and hot. The four brethren sat listlessly about the room with their coats off; and the windows of the prison were open to receive such air as might be stirring. Late in the afternoon Mr. Stigall, the jailor, came in and suggested that they would be safer in the cells. Joseph told him that they would go in after supper. Turning to Elder Richards the Prophet said: 'If we go into the cell will you go with us?'"
Elder Richards answered, "Brother Joseph, you did not ask me to cross the river with you -you did not ask me to come to Carthage-you did not ask me to come to jail with you-and do you think I would forsake you now? But I will tell you what I will do; if you are condemned to be hung for 'treason,' I will be hung in your stead, and you shall go free."
With considerable emotion and feeling Joseph replied, "But you cannot," to which Brother Richards firmly replied, "I will."
In these words Brother Richards displayed his concern for Joseph, who was his beloved brother and neighbor. The Savior taught: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
As Latter-day Saints, we firmly believe that we are brothers and sisters, spiritual offspring of heavenly parents, members of a royal family who once dwelt and associated together. There is a beautiful song that our children sing called "I Am a Child of God," which teaches that our Heavenly Father has sent us here and has given us a home on earth with kind and dear parents. The song contains the prayer that our Father in heaven will direct us, inspire us, and teach us what we must do to again live with him some day.
With the dawning of each new day, there will be opportunities for all of us to help our neighbors, who are our brothers, in their hour of need.
How will we respond? Will we be like the priest and like the Levite described by the Savior, and turn our heads, walk across the road, and proceed in an unconcerned and selfish way?
Or will we follow the example of the Good Samaritan and thoughtfully and sympathetically assist our neighbors and brothers in their time of trial, and thus receive approbation and the blessings of our Heavenly Father?
The choice is ours to make. May the Lord bless us that our decisions will be correct and righteous ones, for which I humbly pray, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
In my mind's eye I see Russell Nelson, Jr., newly arrived from his home in heaven and staring up into the eyes of his father as though to say to him, "You prayed me here; now what do you want of me?"
I do not know that his father, who is the general superintendent of the Sunday School and the father of nine daughters, wants him to become a famous surgeon. I believe he will lead his son wisely as to what his earthly vocation will be, but I am sure he will want this boy to go on a mission, that hope of great adventure which comes into the early life of all Latter-day Saint boys. If this is the father's desire, he will start early to prepare his son.
The first prayers the baby will hear will be that he will grow up to go on a mission and to be married in the temple. Both of the words "mission" and "temple" he will not understand; but later, when comprehension comes, they will be so ingrained in his memory that they will be a part of his being. Later, as he lisps his own prayer, he will find the words "make me worthy to go on a mission" easy to say. Neither will he stumble over the words "marry" or "temple."
If his father is wise, his boy's early years will be filled with stories of the experiences of the missionaries of the past. He should begin by telling of his own ancestors, to give the boy knowledge that mission adventures are not the exclusive property of the leaders but that the followers had equally miraculous adventures. But, of course, he will want to learn of the heroic journey of Samuel H. Smith and his companion from Far West on an eastern missionary journey. He will want to learn of the missionary journey of Heber C. Kimball and Brigham Young when they, ill from fever, arose from their beds and started out, how Brother Kimball was poisoned and was saved by the loyal work of his companion, and how they miraculously found money in the purse, just enough for each day's journey. But he will need to know, too, that today with our affluence he may not find money; he will find something far richer-the great joy that comes from seeing people's lives miraculously changed as they accept the gospel.
He will need to know that he must develop physical stamina, not for athletics but for his mission. He will play basketball to develop wind and limb to serve the Lord.
As he grows, he will need to talk man-to-man, or rather boy-to-man, why all this should be. His father will say, "For your mission, son, you will need to learn by heart many things. And so we shall now start."
Then his father will teach him the simple truths that are important. They will memorize the prophecy in the book of Nephi about the descendant of Joseph who, bearing the name of his ancestor, would do great things. And then his father will tell him the story of the modern Joseph, the fulfillment of that prophecy-what he did to be a great boy. He will learn that boys do not need to wait until they are men to be great.
He will thrill with the ancient prophecy of the angel who would fly through the heavens having the everlasting gospel to preach to all the world and how this prophecy was actually fulfilled through angelic visits to the young boy prophet.
In the same manner they will comb the scriptures, doctrine by doctrine, and learn those vital to missionary work. They will read together the great boy-literature of the world. The chivalry at the court of King Arthur will be mirrored in his treatment of girls and, later, young women. And he will learn the place of animals in his life when he runs the Trail of the Sand Hill Stag with Seton and will learn the immense power of nature as he survives a ride down a snow avalanche with Enos A. Mills.
He will also learn of the winter journey to rescue the handcart company, victim of the Wyoming blizzards. His father will see to it that he gets the feel of a real blizzard and the helplessness of the brave people who had only the Lord to depend on for deliverance. He will be taught these lessons at the home evening, at the dinner table, at bedtime, in camp, on hikes and journeys. And driven home at all these stages will be the theme that the greatest adventure a boy can have is to go on a mission and learn to depend on the Lord when faced with a bitter, cold, or hostile world, and that the greatest joy he can experience is to give of his all in the service of the Master in bringing souls unto him.
Having seen and heard his father pray, he will want to pray too and will soon learn about the whisperings of the Spirit, which comes into his "feeling," as Nephi pointed out to his rebellious brothers.
He will need to learn also of the important principle of obedience. Teach him that the Lord Jesus Christ was completely obedient to his father and that if your son would be a successful missionary, he must be completely obedient to those in authority over him. Faithfully learning this lesson before he goes into the mission field will equip him for his work there.
Give him responsibility, and teach him to forget himself in service to others. These, coupled with obedience, will help him to find true humility-all of which are vital factors for his reception of the Holy Ghost.
And so, through his growing years he will apply the truth of all things. Lay the foundation well, Brother Nelson; it begins at birth and its effects cease not until the mission of life is complete.
Meanwhile, his mother will have a hand in his growth also. Faith-building begins in the cradle and ends not at the grave. In the formative years your boy will need to learn how to give and take, how to get along, how to put up with inconveniences, how to be patient and tolerant, how to resolve differences with playmates and, later, with missionary companions.
He will need long training in neatness and in the handling of his clothing. He will need to know the "rubbing board" techniques of washing his clothes and how to keep them white and clean. Ironing and pressing should be second nature. He will need to learn that bodily cleanliness goes with spiritual cleanness and that the body is the expression of the spirit.
He will need to know how to cook-how to make the food he prepares taste good and at the same time meet his many nutritional needs. Nothing will buoy up a missionary like a tasty meal. Why shouldn't this boy learn to cook well? And while he is about it, he should learn that the dusty, ill-kept room with its unmade bed is the devil's best means of discouragement.
Just as surely as he walks, his manner, his attitude, his clothing, his complete self will be concrete evidence of what he is in his soul. He cannot conceal himself. Teach him, then, that these things reveal his spirit and show what he really is and that the success of his mission will be found in how his spirit speaks to the spirits of those he meets.
In the process of his growing, make sure that he will learn how the Church came to be and where it has gone from there. And let him learn to know that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will give men reason for their repentance from sin, which is the great doctrine that brings hope; that baptism by immersion is both a covenant and a sign of acceptance; and that the gift of the Holy Ghost is what makes him, and his father and his mother, different from the world; and that it will make those he converts different also.
He will not consider the Book of Mormon dull reading if you will make it live for him while he is growing. And if he learns that reading scripture by the Spirit with an open heart and a searching mind is indeed hearing the voice of the Lord, as the Lord told the Twelve it is, you will have him on his way to becoming a missionary.
He began to prepare for his work here before he came to earth, when he repudiated Satan and all of his subtle sophistries. Now he is to prove that he can live in a body and control its earthly tendencies and temptations as he did as a spirit before his arrival here in mortality.
As with Russell Nelson, Jr., so it is with all boys-and girls too. Let us not leave out the girls-they also may go on missions. These young folks may become great of themselves, but with the faith and teaching of their fathers and mothers they will become greater. The Eternal Father taught his Only Begotten Son. He depends on us to teach our children truth that they may. better serve the Father of their spirits and live.
To those who may not have had these training opportunities in their childhood, through humility and diligent effort in their teen years, they can still achieve the same thing.
Two years on a mission will give the experience and practice in the great virtues of which I speak. It will confirm that the Lord truly speaks in this day, for he will constantly whisper the truth of this great latter-day work into the soul of the valiant missionary.
Later he will know this whispering in the affairs of his adult years and, following it, will find the true entrance to the things which will give him eternal life in the kingdom of our Lord.
The Lord has said that to bring one soul to him brings joy and that to bring many souls gives proportionately greater joy. The prepared youth will find that joy on his mission. It will sustain him through his life.
The greatest gift any of us can have is the knowledge, borne of the Spirit, that God our Father sent his Son Jesus Christ to atone for the sins of all of us in the world from the beginning to the end, that they both live, corporeal, glorified, and anxious that all of us may desire to come into their presence. I have that knowledge. Joseph Smith was the modern prophet through whom the Lord restored his work in these last days. Joseph Fielding Smith is the worthy recipient and holder of the same keys of authority to speak to the people on behalf of the Lord.
I bear this witness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
As I listened to the radio a few days ago, I heard a minister tell his listeners: "Confess Christ and you shall be saved. Admit Christ into your heart and he will save you."
Then he quoted Ephesians 2:8 for his clinching argument: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God."
Then he gave his final advice: "Is this too much to ask of you? Thousands and hundreds of thousands have found lasting peace and happiness by accepting Christ as their Savior. Join with us in Christian faith and you shall be saved."
I wonder how many people have been lulled into a false sense of security by such teaching. As a missionary knocking at the doors of people, I had literally hundreds of people tell me that they were not interested in learning more about Jesus Christ, for they were already saved. The shocking thing about this is that they were right. What that minister said was true, but the difficulty is that it was not the whole truth.
I am personally concerned about this problem because I realize how much damage partial truth can do. Limited knowledge is a dangerous thing. What we need is more truth-unlimited truth-until finally we know all things.
What does it mean when people say, "I am saved"? Generally it means they are saved from death. This type of general salvation comes to all people by the grace of God alone. General salvation comes regardless of obedience to gospel principles or laws and results solely in resurrection from the dead. In this respect, salvation is synonymous with immortality, in that the resurrected person will live forever. Resurrection comes to every person born into this world through the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ, whether one confesses Christ or not. Whether a person is wicked or righteous, each person will receive the gift of immortality through Jesus Christ.
As Paul explained to the Corinthian Greeks:
"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
"For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."
All mankind will thus receive general salvation, excepting the sons of perdition. Following their resurrection, "they shall return again to their own place, to enjoy that which they are willing to receive, because they were not willing to enjoy that which they might have received."
These sons of perdition will be resurrected but will not be redeemed from the power of Satan because they are still filthy; as the prophet Alma said of them: " they shall be as though there had been no redemption made; for they cannot be redeemed according to God's justice; and they cannot die, seeing there is no more corruption."
I suppose that having a body and not being able to do anything with it will be a true hell. All other persons will be saved by the grace of God from death, hell, the devil, and endless torment.
The true value of the sacrifice of Christ means much more than this general salvation which comes to all mankind. There is an additional salvation that God has planned for his children. This additional salvation is an individual salvation and is conditioned not only upon grace, but also upon obedience to gospel law. One of the prophets in the Book of Mormon explained why he and his associates were so concerned about teaching more about Jesus Christ, as he wrote:
"For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do."
That full reconciliation to God is extremely important to me. It is the idea of a personal atonement or reconciliation that can bring me back into the presence of God as one of his covenant sons that appeals to me. That kind of conditional salvation I call exaltation.
Exaltation comes as a gift from God, dependent upon my obedience to God's law. No works I do solely of my own power can bring this to pass. Only by the grace of God has this course been opened to me, but only through obedience to the laws of God can I claim my inheritance in the celestial kingdom of my Heavenly Father as a son within his family. I cannot be exalted in my sins, but must work until I overcome them.
Amulek the prophet explained this most clearly as he said of God:
"And I say unto you again that he cannot save them in their sins; for I cannot deny his word, and he hath said that no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of heaven; therefore, how can ye be saved, except ye inherit the kingdom of heaven? Therefore, ye cannot be saved in your sins."
Then Amulek spoke of the reason for the coming of Christ:
"And he shall come into the world to redeem his people; and he shall take upon him the transgressions of those who believe on his name; and these are they that shall have eternal life, and salvation cometh to none else.
"Therefore the wicked remain as though there had been no redemption made, except it be the loosing of the bands of death; for behold, the day cometh that all shall rise from the dead and stand before God, and be judged according to their works."
Those works, which follow the true exercise of faith, include repentance, baptism, receipt of the Holy Ghost, and continued righteousness to the end of our lives.
I have a cousin, Rodney Moyle, who lives near Boise, Idaho. When he comes to Salt Lake City he usually drops into my office to say hello. I love to visit with him, for he always leaves me with a new gem of thought. On his last visit he asked me, "If you had your heart's desire and could take it with you out of this world, what would you take?"
The answer for me was obvious: "My family and loved ones!" I can take them with me through obedience to God's laws. Only through obedience to gospel law is that higher degree of salvation possible which will include both me and my family.
That possibility of an eternal family relationship is what is meant by exaltation and eternal life. This eternal preservation of my family relationship can be my inheritance in God's kingdom if I will pay the price to achieve it. Even those in the celestial kingdom who have not paid the full price of obedience to attain such further exaltation will have immortality only and not eternal life within God's family organization.
Thus, full salvation in its true and full meaning is synonymous with exaltation and eternal life. This inheritance within the actual family of God the Eternal Father, through Jesus Christ, is the burden of the scriptures and should be the goal of every man, woman, and child born upon this earth. This full salvation is obtained only in and through the family unit preserved throughout eternity.
When the angel Moroni came to give Joseph Smith his first instruction in restoring the gospel in this dispensation, he quoted the prophet Malachi with a little variation from the way it is written in the Bible:
"For behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall burn as stubble; for they that come shall burn them, saith the Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch."
In order to understand this passage of scripture, for root read "progenitors" or "ancestors" and for branch read "posterity" or "children." Unless, then, through obedience to the laws of God you can qualify yourself to go to the temple and have your family sealed to you, you will live forever separately and singly in an unmarried state. It seems to me that would be a very lonesome type of existence-to live without the warming influence of family life among those you love, who in turn love you.
God said of those who were not willing to pay the full price of exaltation through full obedience to his whole law: "Therefore, when they are out of the world they neither marry nor are given in marriage; but are appointed angels in heaven, which angels are ministering servants, to minister for those who are worthy of a far more, and an exceeding, and an eternal weight of glory.
"For these angels did not abide in my law; therefore, they cannot be enlarged, but remain separately and singly, without exaltation, in their saved condition, to all eternity; and from henceforth are not gods, but are angels of God forever and ever."
It is for this reason that the Lord promised that he would reveal unto us the priesthood by the hand of Elijah the prophet before the second coming of the Lord, to plant in our hearts the promises that were made to our fathers so that our hearts could be turned to our fathers and to our children. If we cannot achieve this goal of eternal family exaltation, our lives on this earth will be utterly wasted when Christ shall come the second time.
It is well, then, for you to think of your families and how you can have your inheritance in the Lord sealed upon you and those you love. In Rodney's words, let me ask you, "If you had your heart's desire and could take it with you out of this world, what would you take?"
May God bless you to choose well, for I testify to you that God lives and that his priesthood power is on this earth, by means of which you can obtain your exaltation in his kingdom as his covenant sons and daughters through full obedience to his law. This I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
It has been truly said that the greatest asset of a man or a nation is faith, that the men who built this country and made it prosper during its darkest days were men with unshakable faith, men of courage, men of vision, men who always looked forward and never backward.
The same can be said in truth of those who established this church under the inspiration and revelation of the Lord and of those who have built upon the foundation they laid. They too were and are men of unfailing testimony and unwavering faith.
I think perhaps there has never been greater need for faith than is the need today, particularly faith in divine leadership. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as a general rule, have faith in divine leadership, but the world needs faith in God, that he rules the world; and the people of this nation and the world need that faith, faith in the God of this land and faith in the God of the world, who is Jesus Christ.
Many of us have had the experience of being on a ship traveling on the ocean. As we look in the various directions, we can see nothing but water. As far as the mortal eye can see, the sky comes down and meets the water. The sun comes up on the horizon, and in the evening the sun sets on the horizon. The same is true when we are on the ground; the limit of our vision is the horizon. Is it not true also that the limit of our spiritual perception is the horizon we see?
What about our spiritual horizon? Is it limited to our present struggle for the things of this world? Is it limited to an acquisition of things of the flesh? Is our horizon limited to our competition with a money-mad world, to the obtaining of the worldly things of life, or does it reach out to an eternity with God and our loved ones in the life to come?
Our horizon should extend to an unlimited future beyond death-out beyond those things of a temporal nature. Our horizon of the future should not be confused with the close-up horizon of present conditions.
Our philosophy of life contemplates an eternity of life-life without beginning before we came here, life without end hereafter. Our happiness here and hereafter depends upon our actions here. We should therefore seek the finer things of life. The road leading to eternal life must be paved with obedience to the commandments of the Lord.
We once dwelt in the presence of our Father, in the spirit, and we rejoiced at the opportunity to come to earth and take upon ourselves mortality and pass through the experiences we here encounter, that we might prove ourselves worthy of greater experiences and greater blessings.
While here we are not to enjoy the presence of our Father, but we can communicate with him, and we can hear his voice if that becomes necessary. The Holy Ghost is given to us as our guide and companion and monitor, if we live worthy of that blessing.
It seems difficult for some to have faith in an eternal being and that he can communicate with man, that he hears and answers our prayers, that he is the Father of our spirits, for we are dual beings, spiritual and physical; that he loves us; that he has given us commandments which, if we accept and live them, will result in mortal as well as eternal blessings to us.
There was a time when men would have laughed to scorn anyone who would have said that in time to come we would be able to sit in our homes and watch and see and hear by means of television and radio things that are transpiring today in our own country, in Europe or Asia, South America or Africa; that these conference proceedings would be telecast to the listening world by means of remarkable electronic devices.
In our time we have seen men walk on the moon and heard the messages they have sent over the great expanse of space between us and the moon and witnessed pictures they were transmitting.
These things have been accomplished by faith, by work, and by intelligence.
Can we talk with God?
Can our prayers, even in thought as well as word, ascend to the Father of us all, and does he have the power to make answer thereto?
We lived by sight in the spirit state before we came here; we are walking by faith in this mortal existence. The Spirit of God bears witness to the spirit of man that we are God's children; that he loves us; and that there is a purpose to earth life, a great and mighty purpose, a glorious purpose; that by keeping the commandments that he has given us we may gain knowledge and understanding; that we may gain experience by overcoming the opposition with which we must contend; that we shall resurrect from the grave in the due time of the Lord and eventually return into his presence if we live worthily. This is the long-distance horizon we should keep in view.
Alma, a Book of Mormon prophet, relates an experience in his time about a people who were cast out of the synagogues because of the coarseness of their apparel, a people who were poor as to the things of this world and were also poor in heart. They came unto Alma, explaining their situation, and asked what they should do. Alma answered by explaining to them the principle of faith and teaching them the word of God.
Concerning faith he states that "faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true."
Alma then goes on to compare his words, which are truly the word of God and the gospel of salvation, to a seed that a man plants in the soil. He suggests that if we will give place that a seed may be planted in our hearts, and not cast it out or resist the Spirit of the Lord, if it is a true seed it will swell within the breast; and when one feels this swelling motion he cannot do otherwise than admit that the seed is a good seed, for it enlargeth the soul and beginneth to enlighten one's understanding, and it becomes delicious to the individual. Further, when the seed, or the word, or the gospel, swells and sprouts and begins to grow in your soul, you know it is a good seed, and therefore your knowledge is perfect; it is no longer faith but knowledge.
People sometimes say that one cannot know that the gospel is true. As indicated by Alma, if, when you hear the word of God, you do not cast it out by unbelief or resist the Spirit of the Lord, the swellings within your breast, its enlargement of your soul and its enlightening of your understanding are of such a nature that they cause you to know that it is the truth.
However, this is only a beginning. You must nourish the seed; in other words, you must nourish the testimony that you have that it is true, by living the teachings of the gospel.
If you will do this, this ancient prophet tells us, the seed will grow into a tree and bring forth fruit. But if the tree is neglected, it will not take root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, it will wither and die. This is not because the seed or the word of God was not true nor because the fruit thereof would not be desirable, but it is because the ground was barren and the plant or the tree was not nourished, in which event one cannot have the fruit thereof that he otherwise would obtain.
If, however, you have faith and patience to nourish the word, or the tree, as time goes on you may pluck the fruit thereof, which is most precious and delicious to the taste.
I testify to you that if you do these things-truly try this experiment regarding the word of God as contained in the gospel of Jesus Christ and live in accordance with the commandments therein set forth, nourishing the truths of the gospel-you shall have the privilege of feasting upon this fruit; your faith will be fully rewarded and will develop into a sure knowledge of the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We testify that when occasion requires, the voice of God can be heard by the Lord's latter-day prophets; that they can tune in through the instrument of faith; and that even you and I can see beyond the veil, if it is in accordance with the Lord's will and if we are in tune with the Infinite.
The Latter-day Saints believe and teach that without the experience of mortal life, its problems and accomplishments, and without a resurrected body, the spirit of man cannot have a fullness of joy. Our philosophy of life contemplates an eternity of existence-life without beginning in the preexistent world and life hereafter throughout the eternities.
Our happiness in this life and in the life to come depends upon our actions here. If we are to attain the goal of eternal salvation and exaltation in the kingdom of our Heavenly Father, we must hold fast to the iron rod, which is the word of God, and render obedience to the commandments of the Lord.
It is reported that on one occasion when Sir Isaac Newton was thinking seriously concerning the nature of light, he cut a hole in a window blind and a ray of light entered his room. He held a triangular piece of glass in the range of the light, and there were reflected in great beauty all the colors of the rainbow. And for the first time man learned that all of the glorious colors of the universe are locked up in a ray of white light.
It is important that we live all the principles of the gospel and obey all the commandments that the Lord has given us if we are to grow more nearly like our Father and his Beloved Son. We cannot say, "Oh, I believe in missionary work-it is important; I am thoroughly converted to the welfare plan or the wonderful social program of the Church for its young people; but I don't believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet or that our present prophets are guided by revelation from the Lord."
Some may say, "I believe the Book of Mormon, but I can't believe that it was received from an angel as Joseph said it was."
With a wavering faith of that kind, how can such a person expect to have the true light of Christ, the true understanding and light of the gospel? How can he expect to receive the blessings that the Lord has promised to the faithful? If he leaves out any one of these principles, he does not get pure white light. If he fails to have faith in all the principles of the gospel and does not have faith to live in accordance therewith, he cannot expect to get the pure light of the gospel in his heart.
If you truly have faith in God sufficient to impel you to keep his commandments, you will draw nearer to him and he will come nearer to you, and your faith will become knowledge, and the limit of your horizon will extend into the eternal world.
May we grow in faith through the love and blessing of our Lord and Savior. May we keep the commandments that he has given us, that we may ultimately find salvation and exaltation in his celestial kingdom, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder William H. Bennett
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
It was two years ago, my brothers and sisters, when I was called to be an Assistant to the Council of the Twelve. These years have brought new challenges and many choice and wonderful experiences. Today I should like to begin my message by expressing gratitude to my Father in heaven, to the leaders of the Church, and to my loved ones, for their confidence in me and for their support and sustaining hand.
Now I have received a new assignment from the First Presidency, to preside over the Florida South Mission. Along with my call, a call was issued to Sister Bennett to serve at my side as my companion and to be the supervisor of the activities of the women and children in the mission. We are deeply grateful for this call and accept it without reservations. It is our desire to direct the affairs of the mission in accordance with the instructions of the First Presidency. We ask for an interest in your faith and prayers.
As I thought about what I might say today, I reminded myself of the mission of the Church and the purpose of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Specifically, my mind went back to some statements made by the Savior. In the Pearl of Great Price we read, "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Then in his Sermon on the Mount, the Savior said, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." In these words I find an expression of hope and confidence as well as a challenge from our Savior.
I then thought about how the Church and the gospel can help men and women in reaching these great objectives. The words of President David O. McKay came to mind: "The purpose of the gospel is to make bad men good and good men better-to change men's lives."
I also contemplated the day-to-day operations of the Church and the performance of Church members in the stakes, wards, and missions as revealed in stake activity reports, genealogy reports, mission reports, etc.; and I realized that, while the Church and its members have moved forward and upward in many ways, there is much more that needs to be done.
It has been my privilege to tour a number of the full-time missions. I have also witnessed firsthand the work of many stake missions. As I have done so, I have become keenly aware of two great needs that should receive attention if we are to raise performance in missionary work both at home and abroad.
First, members of the Church everywhere should remind themselves that the gospel is to be preached and taught by example and not just by word of mouth. The lives of all Church members should be shining examples of the gospel of Jesus Christ in action.
Second, as members of the Church, it is our responsibility to assist the missionaries in finding investigators to whom the message of the gospel can be taught. The missionary program needs the help of all of us-young and old-and it needs our help now.
-Hymns, no. 58
There are opportunities all around us if we are but alert to them. To illustrate this, I should like to share with you several personal experiences I have had over the years that bear this out and that have strengthened my own testimony, enriched my life, and enabled me to explain the gospel to others.
The question, "What is the main obstacle to success in stake missionary work?" was asked by President S. Dilworth Young of a group of stake missionaries in the East Cache Stake some years ago. A lady missionary's prompt reply was, "The failure of too many Latter-day Saints to live the gospel as Latter-day Saints should."
As I have attended stake conferences, I have observed that this also applies to other stakes in the Church. We can and ought to do something to change this situation. We can change it by letting our lives be shining examples of the gospel of Jesus Christ in action.
During World War II, while serving with the 31st Infantry Division in the Dutch East Indies, I was placed in command of a patrol charged with the responsibility of searching out and destroying enemy supply bases.
As we proceeded on one particular patrol behind enemy lines, a native dog fell in with our group; and try as we would, we couldn't get that dog to leave. I became concerned about this. Later on, however, its alertness caused us to be suspicious to the point where we took extra precautions as we proceeded on to lower ground after coming to a fork in the trail. Therefore, when the enemy opened fire shortly thereafter, we were not caught completely by surprise. Four men were wounded in the initial burst of fire, but not a single man lost his life. We were able to evacuate the wounded and withdraw to the rear under heavy machine gun and rifle fire without losing a single man.
Sergeant Leslie E. Milam of Natchitoches, Louisiana, the only other Mormon in my company, was with me on this patrol. After we returned to the rear, he was contacted by Sergeant Dabbs, our platoon guide, who said that he was aware that Sergeant Milam and I had been meeting on Sundays, whenever conditions would permit, for short religious discussions. He indicated that he knew that our lives had been miraculously saved in this patrol, and he requested permission to meet with us in our next religious discussion. He did meet with us, and he was just as sincere as we were in expressing gratitude to our Father in heaven for his protection and watchful care.
Shortly after this ambush, Private Collins, who went through the ambush with us, sought me out one night after dark and said, "Lieutenant Bennett, I think we had some help from on high out there the other day."
I replied, "Well, I don't know just how you feel about it, Collins, or how the other boys feel; but as far as I'm concerned, I know we did."
He then said, "And I know we did, Lieutenant Bennett, and there is something else I want to say. I've been a rough character in the past. I've done most of the things I shouldn't have done, but it's going to be different in the future. I'm a changed man."
I have thought about this choice experience many times, for it provided me with a great opportunity to explain the gospel message to Private Collins under conditions where his heart and his mind were open.
Just prior to going overseas during World War II, while we were on maneuvers in the Louisiana-Texas area, my platoon sergeant, Sergeant Tiffin, came to me during a ten-minute break and said, "Lieutenant Bennett, you know and I know that we will be going overseas in the near future, and that when we go overseas it will not be long until we find ourselves in combat. When we get into combat, sooner or later some of us will be required to take the life of one or more of the enemy. I have been taught that if this should happen, I will be held responsible for the blood which I shed, even though I am a victim of circumstance. This is bothering me. Lieutenant, I know that you are a Mormon. What does your church teach regarding this matter?"
What an excellent opportunity for me to share with Sergeant Tiffin the statement of the First Presidency to all LDS servicemen throughout the world, which statement was part of the servicemen's kit given to each LDS soldier who entered military service. Similar instructions are found in the servicemen's kits that are made available to our servicemen today.
For the balance of that day, whenever we had a ten-minute break, Sergeant Tiffin and I continued the discussion. Each time we met, he brought others with him; and when we went into the bivouac area at night, the discussions continued into the wee hours. What a tremendous opportunity to share the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ!
One evening on board ship, while sailing from Yokohama, Japan, to Seattle, Washington, after the end of World War II, I began talking to the officer in the bunk next to me about the Book of Mormon. He was not a member of the Church, but he lived in the Worland, Wyoming, area, and so he knew quite a bit about the Mormons. We had a lengthy but interesting discussion.
The next morning the officer in the bunk above me, who had listened the night before but hadn't joined in the discussion, came to me and said, "Where can I get a copy of that Book of Mormon you were talking about last night?"
I said, "Give me your address, and I'll send you a copy just as soon as I return to Salt Lake City."
I sent it along with a few tracts and had his name referred to the missionaries, that he might be contacted.
While I was touring the South Africa Mission a little over a year ago, President Harlan Clark and I boarded the plane at Johannesburg to fly to Port Elizabeth, there to meet with the missionaries. President Clark took a seat next to a businessman, and I took one next to a nurse. We both received referrals, which were passed on to the missionaries for appropriate follow-up.
A few years ago I was assigned to the Tampa Stake conference in Florida. I had to change planes in Chicago. As I boarded the plane after making the change, I found that I had been assigned a seat next to a young lady who was very busily engaged in reading the newspaper. When I sat down, I did not disturb her. But all at once she said, "This is disgusting."
I replied, "What is disgusting?"
She said, "The point of view that so many people have today that they should look to the government to satisfy every want and need."
I responded, "You must be a Mormon."
"No, I'm not a Mormon," she replied, "but I have heard about the welfare program of the Mormon Church, and I think it is just wonderful."
This too provided an opportunity to explain the gospel. Before I reached my destination, she had given me her name and address and permission to send her a copy of the Book of Mormon, some Church welfare pamphlets, and other Church literature.
These examples of true experiences in my life indicate that the door is wide open and that many opportunities are available for doing missionary work -if we are just alert and will put forth a little effort. The joys associated with going the extra mile to open the door and reach the hearts of people with respect to the gospel message can be illustrated by quoting a few sentences from a letter I received from a friend of mine just a few months ago:
"I love the gospel very much. My testimony is my most prized possession, and I couldn't live without it. My greatest happiness has been through participating in Church activities and in missionary work. I have served for seven years as a stake missionary, and I have supported a total of eight full-time missionaries in the field. I have a special love for missionary work."
May we all feel more dedicated to this great, unselfish service of love that we refer to as missionary work, and may we be willing in our hearts to make a greater contribution to its forward progress.
I bear you my testimony that this work is true. God lives, and his Son Jesus Christ is indeed our Savior, the Redeemer of mankind. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church, and I bear you this testimony in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Hugh B. Brown
Of the Council of the Twelve
May I express my appreciation to the First Presidency for permitting me to say a word here this afternoon, and it will be just a word.
Many things have been said about missionaries and missionary work. That has been the first love of my life, and I have been reminded of several things that happened sixty-eight years ago when I went to England. One I should like to relate.
I had gone to a certain house several times and had been rejected and warned not to come back again, but I was prompted to go again and again. And then as I was attempting to walk past that house, I was prompted to go in and try again to make contact. I used the big brass knocker on the English door without any response. I could see a lady in the front room knitting, and I made considerable noise with that knocker. She did not come out, and I went around to the back door. There was no knocker on that door so I used my walking stick, and I knocked with considerable vigor; in fact, it echoed through all the house.
Very soon the lady came out, and her coming out reminded me of my early days on the farm when I teased a setting hen off the nest. You know that a setting hen when she is teased off the nest comes off with her feathers going in the wrong direction, with her beak in perpetual motion, and this woman reminded me of that.
I apologized and said, "I am sorry to have interrupted you and have insisted upon an interview, but, my dear sister, I have come over six thousand miles to bring you a message which the Lord wants you to have. He sent me here to give you that message. I am going back to Canada in a few days, and I must tell you what the Lord wants you to know."
She said, "You mean the Lord sent a message to me!"
I said, "That is right; he did."
I told her of the restoration of the gospel, the organization of the Church, and the message of the restoration. She was quite impressed by what I told her. And I said when I left, "I am sorry to have disturbed you, but I could not refuse to carry out the message and the mission that was given to me when I came here. When we meet again, and we will meet again, you are going to say, 'Thank you for coming to my back door. Thank you for loving me enough to carry the message of the Lord to me. When you left I could hardly contain myself. I was worried, disturbed, and wondered what it was all about. I finally went to the mission home, got some literature, studied, and became a member of the Church with my family.'"
Ten years later I was in England again, this time as a soldier, and at the end of the meeting a lady came up with two grown daughters. She said, "I do thank God and thank you that you came to my door with that message many years ago. I and my daughters joined the Church and we are going to Utah in a short time, and we thank God that you had the courage, the fortitude, and the faith to come to me with that divine message and to leave it with me in the name of the Lord."
My brethren and sisters, I want to bear witness to you as to the divinity of this work. From the center of my heart to the ends of my fingers and toes, I know that this is the work of God. I know that the gospel has been restored. I know that the men who are leading the Church are inspired and directed by him who appointed them. I know the gospel will roll forth until it fills the whole earth, and I am looking forward to the time when all of us will be united on the other side and carry on the great work that we have so falteringly tried to do here on earth.
I leave this testimony with you, and my blessing. I pray God to bless all who are here, and all who are listening; in fact, all men everywhere. O Father, bless these people that they may catch the spirit of this work and devote themselves assiduously to spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ to all the world.
I leave this testimony and this message and this prayer with you, humbly, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
My dear brethren of the priesthood: I greet you in love and in fellowship and in thanksgiving for the many blessings which the Lord has showered upon us.
May I say that it is a source of particular satisfaction to me that the Lord, through me, has called some of our brethren to new positions of service among the General Authorities. As you know, he called Bishop John H. Vandenberg and Bishop Robert L. Simpson to serve as Assistants to the Twelve. Each of them has been assigned important responsibilities in connection with his new calling. And as you also know, the Lord has called Victor L. Brown to be the Presiding Bishop of his church, with H. Burke Peterson to serve as the first counselor and Vaughn J. Featherstone as the second counselor in the Presiding Bishopric.
All five of these brethren are able and faithful, and their special talents are now needed in the building up of the kingdom in the fields of their assignments. They may all rest assured that the Lord will bless and prosper them in their new callings of trust and of responsibility and of service.
Now I shall say a few words to you about the priesthood and those keys which the Lord has conferred upon us in this final gospel dispensation.
We hold the holy Melchizedek Priesthood, which is the power and authority of God delegated to man on earth to act in all things for the salvation of men.
We also hold the keys of the kingdom of God on earth, which kingdom is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
These keys are the right of presidency; they are the power and authority to govern and direct all of the Lord's affairs on earth. Those who hold them have power to govern and control the manner in which all others may serve in the priesthood. All of us may hold the priesthood, but we can only use it as authorized and directed so to do by those who hold the keys.
This priesthood and these keys were conferred upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery by Peter, James, and John, and by Moses and Elijah and others of the ancient prophets. They have been given to each man who has been set apart as a member of the Council of the Twelve. But since they are the right of presidency, they can only be exercised in full by the senior apostle of God on earth, who is the president of the Church.
May I now say-very plainly and very emphatically-that we have the holy priesthood and that the keys of the kingdom of God are here. They are found only in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
By revelation to Joseph Smith, the Lord said that these keys "belong always unto the Presidency of the High Priesthood", and also, "Whosoever receiveth my word receiveth me, and whosoever receiveth me, receiveth those, the First Presidency, whom I have sent".
In this same connection the Prophet Joseph Smith said: "You must make yourselves acquainted with those men who like Daniel pray three times a day toward the House of the Lord. Look to the Presidency and receive instruction."
Now, brethren, I think there is one thing which we should have exceedingly clear in our minds. Neither the President of the Church, nor the First Presidency, nor the united voice of the First Presidency and the Twelve will ever lead the Saints astray or send forth counsel to the world that is contrary to the mind and will of the Lord.
An individual may fall by the wayside, or have views, or give counsel which falls short of what the Lord intends. But the voice of the First Presidency and the united voice of those others who hold with them the keys of the kingdom shall always guide the Saints and the world in those paths where the Lord wants them to be.
The Lord said very plainly to Joseph Smith "that it shall not be given to any one to go forth to preach my gospel, or to build up my church, except he be ordained by some one who has authority, and it is known to the church that he has authority and has been regularly ordained by the heads of the church."
And also: "The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth."
Now, brethren, these things are true. The Lord is with his people. The cause of righteousness shall prevail. Our cause is just, and the Lord will guide and direct us and bring us off triumphant in the end.
I testify that if we shall look to the First Presidency and follow their counsel and direction, no power on earth can stay or change our course as a church, and as individuals we shall gain peace in this life and be inheritors of eternal glory in the world to come. And I say this to you, my good brethren, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
My dear brethren, my spirit is subdued and my heart is full tonight as I stand before this great body of priesthood and realize that there are thousands upon thousands in other gatherings throughout the Church, and as I contemplate the responsibilities that have been placed on my shoulders.
After receiving my call the other day, I was asked by President Lee if I was shocked. I had difficulty replying. Being shocked was an understatement. I might say that the aftershocks have been much more severe than the original. Notwithstanding this, I have faith and look forward with great anticipation and enthusiasm to the future.
I do this because I know that God lives. I know that his Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior of mankind, is the head of this church and that he is actively directing the affairs of this, his church today, through his prophet, President Joseph Fielding Smith, who has just borne witness in such a powerful way of his calling and also of mine.
I also know I have been called by the Lord through his prophets, as President Smith announced, and that if I will repent of my sins, He will bless me and strengthen me for the tasks ahead. If I did not know these things to be true, I would not have the courage nor the temerity to accept such a call. Even knowing this, it is frightening to contemplate assuming such a sacred trust.
The last ten and one-half years under the direction of a great leader, Bishop John H. Vandenberg, have been wonderful indeed. I have been associated with him as a member of my stake presidency when I served as bishop of the Denver Fourth Ward, as a fellow counselor in the Denver Stake presidency, and now for more than ten years as one of his counselors in the Presiding Bishopric. I want him and you to know that I love and appreciate him. He is a man of great ability. I am deeply grateful for having had the privilege of being his counselor.
Bishop Simpson, as first counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, has made a great contribution to the Church, as evidenced by the love the people everywhere have for him. He is a man without guile.
And now I am deeply grateful to two wonderful high priests for their dedication and total commitment to the Lord, which caused them to respond to the call to complete the Presiding Bishopric as my counselors.
In approaching the task of selecting counselors, I sought the inspiration of the Lord in prayer. I reviewed hundreds of names of worthy brethren, any of whom could have been called. The two who were called were the ones the Lord wanted. You witnessed confirmation of this truth as you listened to their testimonies in the first session of this conference.
We recognize our dependence on our Heavenly Father in assuming the responsibility as your Presiding Bishopric. We have but one desire and that is, to accomplish the work of the Lord in his own way and in his own time, for we recognize that this is his church. We are his servants called to assist him in accomplishing his purpose, which is "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
The Presiding Bishopric functions under the supervision and direction of the First Presidency, who constitute the presidency of all the priesthood throughout the world. Under their direction and through their delegation, the Presiding Bishopric presides as the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood throughout the world.
The Aaronic Priesthood is the lesser priesthood. It is a preparatory priesthood preparing its holders for the greater or Melchizedek Priesthood. Therefore, the Presiding Bishopric's responsibility is to support and sustain the presidency of the Melchizedek Priesthood by assisting in the preparation and qualifying of young men to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood.
In this regard we sustain the inspired prospective elders program that has just been introduced. There are tens of thousands of wonderful adult male members of the Church who hold the Aaronic Priesthood or who have not been ordained whose spiritual welfare has now been assigned to the elders quorum presidencies of the Church. This program is, and will become even more so, a great blessing to these brethren.
As I now reflect on the responsibility that has come to me as the president of the Aaronic Priesthood, I recall some of my feelings as a boy. I am humbled by the many blessings the Lord has granted me through the Aaronic Priesthood.
I remember with some clarity the thrill of passing the sacrament as a deacon in the Cardston Second Ward, Alberta Stake, in Canada. That same thrill returns each time I am invited to pass the sacrament to the General Authorities in our monthly meeting in the Salt Lake Temple.
I remember how I considered it an honor to participate in such a sacred service. I remember so well how my parents taught me that my hands and heart should be clean and pure so that I would be worthy to participate in this ordinance.
The greatest of all lessons was the example my father and mother set for me. Next was the example of my deacons quorum adviser, who was also my Scoutmaster. Brother Ben Wood was the epitome of what leaders of boys should be. Every boy under his leadership felt his great love. His influence was not limited to Sunday morning or Tuesday evening; it was felt all through the week. I shall ever be grateful to my deacons adviser for the lessons of life he taught me as a twelve-year-old deacon, lessons that have helped me from that day until now.
Many young men throughout the world are having experiences today similar to those I had as a twelve-year-old boy. All of you, whether you are twelve years of age or older, have the opportunity to experience these wonderful things.
The foundation on which each boy begins is recognition that he is in very deed a son of God, with something of the divine in his soul. All men are children of God, but you have something more. You have the authority to act in his name. This sets you apart from the rest of the world. It does not automatically make you better than others, but it gives you the responsibility to live a better life than others.
Because you know you are a child of God and hold his priesthood, more is expected of you than of those who do not have this great blessing.
I have been thrilled as I have met young men of the Aaronic Priesthood throughout the Church who have a comprehension of the great blessing and honor that is theirs by virtue of this priesthood and who have consequently begun to build their lives on a sure foundation.
I was in the Pago Pago Stake in American Samoa. President Peters, the stake president, invited me to accompany him to one of the ward sacrament meetings. We arrived unannounced, so there were no special arrangements made.
It was a hot, humid day. As we approached the humble, one-room chapel with no air-conditioning, I suggested it might be appropriate to leave our jackets off. President Peters was quick to tell me that they wore jackets in sacrament meeting in their stake-no matter what the temperature-as a means of showing the Lord that they not only worshiped him but they also honored and respected him by being dressed in their very best.
As I took my place on the stand, there sat the priests and deacons at the sacrament table. Each had on a shirt, tie, and jacket. It was so hot and humid.
The normal dress of the islands is very casual, as you know, but in the eyes of these wonderful Samoan leaders and their Aaronic Priesthood boys, participating in the sacred sacrament service was not a casual experience. It was a sacred duty. They felt that their appearance helped show the respect and reverence they had for the Lord. I shall never forget their influence of reverence in that meeting. Surely their understanding of their relationship with Heavenly Father is an important step in magnifying their priesthood.
One day several years ago, I attended the finals of an Aaronic Priesthood scripture contest in Sao Paulo, Brazil. These were the finals in a mission-wide contest held under the direction of President Wayne Beck. Sitting on the stand, acting as judges, were the district counselors. Gathered in small groups through the chapel were the contestants. As they were called up before the judges, they were challenged to repeat from memory scriptures selected at random by the judges and then to explain the meaning of each scripture.
I witnessed as much enthusiasm and excitement among these teams of young men of the Aaronic Priesthood as one normally sees at a basketball or soccer game. Because of the location, it was not as vocal, but it was just as intense. It was fun for them to make the scriptures become a part of themselves.
After a meeting with some of our servicemen in Da Nang, South Vietnam, one man in battle dress came up to me and asked if I would write a letter to his parents, who were nonmembers, explaining to them the great honor that had come to him that day. He said they knew nothing about the Church and asked, "Bishop Brown, would you mind telling them what a great honor it was for me to be ordained a priest in the Aaronic Priesthood today?"
Some time ago in New York City a fine-looking young man said to me, "It isn't easy to be a Jew and a Mormon." When this young man was baptized, his parents were so displeased they held a formal funeral. As far as they are concerned, their son is dead.
How important it is that all young men of the Aaronic Priesthood recognize their responsibility as priesthood holders and, as President McKay used to say, act accordingly.
And now a word to fathers, bishops, and other Aaronic Priesthood leaders, with emphasis for the fathers. With a feeling of brotherhood and love, we the Presiding Bishopric lock arms with you in the great causes of youth. Never has there been a finer generation of young people.
I have a conviction that the spirits of this generation were held back by the Lord to come forth at this time because they are special spirits. And yet the world into which they have come is filled with evil and temptation. Satan is at work with his legions. We who have been called-in the home and in the Church-to lead the youth have a sacred responsibility to them.
Regarding the home, the Lord has said in the Doctrine and Covenants:
"And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.
"And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
The first responsibility rests with the parents. The position of the Church is to aid the parents and the family, not to replace them.
Bishops, you are the presidents of the priests quorums, and with your counselors you are the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood in your wards. These young men need your leadership. They need your attention, for you have a special calling with a special blessing. You have the power of discernment. You are common judges in Israel.
If you will take the time to become involved with these young people and see that they become involved with you, you can become saviors on Mount Zion to many. You are the ones, along with the other leaders in the wards and branches, who make the difference.
We want you to know of our love and support for you. We are grateful to the Lord for each of you and pray our Heavenly Father's blessings upon us all that, through our united and devoted leadership, we may help every young man in this church honor his priesthood so that not one of these precious children of God will be lost. I pray this humbly in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder J. Thomas Fyans
Director of Internal Communications
In the 64th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, verse 34, we are told, "Behold, the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind. " There are many such people, both on a church-service basis and some giving their full time, who are responding to the challenge of getting the materials to you on time.
Under the direction of the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve, a Department of Internal Communications has been organized. Three members of the Council of the Twelve are advisers to this organization. They are Elder Gordon B. Hinckley, Elder Thomas S. Monson, and Elder Boyd K. Packer. We are grateful to them for their continuous inspiration.
The Department of Internal Communications has assignments in four major areas: instructional materials, magazines, administrative services, and distribution and translation.
The director of instructional materials, Daniel H. Ludlow, and all who work at his side have the responsibility to coordinate curriculum planning, to supervise the writing of curriculum materials, and to direct the correlation of these materials. Meetings are held with representatives of all of the priesthood committees and the executives of the auxiliary organizations that influence the lives of the members of the Church. These are top-level planning meetings, and there are beyond these meetings, innumerable hours, days, weeks, months spent in the actual creation and correlation of these materials that are produced under the direction of these committees and organizations.
The director of magazines, Doyle L. Green, and those who assist him have the responsibility to supervise the publication of the Ensign, the New Era, the Friend, and the non-English magazines.
Let us look within the covers of the April Ensign and accompany President Harold B. Lee as he "walked today where Jesus walked." He begins by saying, "For three glorious days we walked on sacred ground and felt the influence of the greatest person who ever lived upon this earth, Jesus the Christ, the very Son of the living God."
May we visit with President Lee the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and hear him tell us, "There seemed to be in this place a kind of spiritual assurance that this was indeed a hallowed spot."
May we just pick up his final paragraph: "I came away from some of these experiences never to feel the same again about the mission of our Lord and Savior. I had impressed upon me, as I have never had it impressed before, what it means to be a special witness. I say, with all the conviction of my soul, I know that Jesus lives. I know that he was the very Son of God. And I know that in this church and in the gospel of Jesus Christ is to be found the way to salvation."
This we find within the covers of the April issue of the Ensign. What a tool for the use of the home teachers or to be shared in family home evening!
The magazines will become more and more vital because they will be interwoven into the curriculum of the Church. There will be a discernible move of the magazines into a role of aiding the family in family home evenings.
The director of administrative services, James M. Paramore, and his associates supervise the budgeting within our organization. Their responsibility is to assure that we utilize these sacred funds with the deference they are due. They are charged with production coordination as well and will keep us informed of any item that is falling behind the predetermined schedule so that corrective action can be taken immediately.
The first publication of this dispensation was the Book of Mormon, the result of a translation of ancient records given to Joseph Smith by Moroni, who had hid them for the coming forth in our day. The first distribution-namely, the Book of Mormon-was when the Prophet Joseph Smith's brother Samuel went forth to declare that the Lord had spoken again and that the book he had was the evidence of the fulfillment of prophecy. This was prior to the organization of the Church just 142 years ago this past Thursday.
The translation and distribution in our day are directed by John E. Carr. He and his able assistants have charge of warehousing and distributing all of the English materials as well as having the responsibility of translating, printing, warehousing, and distributing the non-English materials of the Church throughout the world. To accomplish this task of bringing these hundreds of items to those who require them, members of the Church are working in twenty-eight languages that reach sixty countries.
By tonight catalogs of the 1972–73 materials together with pre-printed order forms have been mailed to you who are in the United States and Canada. A similar procedure is being followed by the distribution centers in all parts of the world.
May we give you a report of the present status of the materials for use beginning in September. We have in the warehouse as of tonight 55 percent of the materials that will be used by you beginning September 1. Additional materials are arriving daily. Dozens of printers are working vigorously to complete the balance by early May.
It is our intent to begin shipping to Canada and the eastern part of the United States on Monday, May 15; to the Midwest beginning June 1; to the West Coast the last two weeks in June; to the intermountain states July 1; and the last two weeks of July to the Wasatch Front. This schedule will place these materials in the hands of the units of the Church by the first part of August, so that you will have approximately thirty days for local orientation with the materials prior to the beginning of the curriculum year on September 1.
We have a goal, and hopefully it includes you, and it is: "to provide for the members and organizations of the Church approved material and literature of high quality and sufficient quantity on time and at the most reasonable cost." Our major emphasis this year will be on time.
You can be instrumental in achieving this goal by returning your preprinted purchase orders, properly filled out, by the date suggested in the letter of transmittal that is on the way to you bishops, stake presidents, mission presidents, and branch presidents tonight.
The distribution department processes hundreds of orders each day. Their goal is to process these orders within twenty-four hours. We want to maintain this kind of service with the normal flow of orders along with this major general shipment, the dates of which I have just announced.
Let me indicate to you the magnitude of handling just one item. The Family Home Evening Manual requires thirteen carloads of paper. If we placed the pages of the Family Home Evening Manual end to end in a roll and attached the end of the roll at the Salt Lake Airport to a jet as it takes off to the east, the jet could fly to Denver, Colorado, and still have paper left in the roll at the Salt Lake Airport. The jet could continue on to Chicago, and then to New York and to London, then to the Holy Land, across India to Bangkok, to Saigon, to Hong Kong, to Tokyo, to San Francisco, and back to Salt Lake City. We could then cut the paper and attach the two ends together to form a ribbon around the entire circumference of the world. The hundreds of miles of paper that would be left over in the roll might be used to tie a bow.
This is just one item, brethren, of the hundreds of items in the catalog. For weeks we will be shipping many truckloads of material every day.
Within moments of the public announcement of this organization on January 3 of this year, President Harold B. Lee was giving me counsel. His first words penetrated to the very core. You judge their motivational impact. These words were, "Tom, are you prepared to be shot at sunrise?"
We have learned that this execution date is at daybreak Friday, September 1, 1972. As we have distributed this message to our organization throughout the world, one small three-letter word has been added. "Are you prepared NOT to be shot at sunrise?" This is our international slogan.
From the status report, you recognize that many people have been and are "anxiously engaged in a good cause." We hope that each of you on that September morning at daybreak can rest peacefully knowing that you have the materials and that on Sunday, September 3, the beginning of the correlated year in the Northern Hemisphere, these materials will be utilized.
In the 90th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, verse 11, we read: "For it shall come to pass in that day, that every man shall hear the fulness of the gospel in his own tongue, and in his own language."
The inspiration of the First Presidency in bringing together in one organization the responsibilities of internal communications has made possible the progress reported tonight and an important move toward the fulfillment of this scripture.
I sustain the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve with all my heart-and bear witness that they are in very deed prophets, seers, and revelators, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Paul H. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My brethren, this is an awesome occasion for me, and I need your support and the Spirit of my Heavenly Father. As Brother Fyans was describing the length of the materials going around the world, I thought back to an English literature text I had in high school that was about that long and deep.
I am so honored to be here on this wonderful occasion, to sit at the feet of a prophet of the Lord, to hear his counsel and direction, and to feel his spirit. I was particularly impressed with a number of the younger priesthood bearers in the audience who were taking notes, listening to a prophet. I would hope that you young priesthood bearers tonight have the sensitivity to go home and record what has happened in your life on this wonderful occasion. Think how many people in the world would be so honored, to sit in a special meeting with prophets, seers, and revelators.
I salute you fathers who have brought your sons to this meeting, and to others in buildings throughout the country. You young priesthood bearers might as well learn early that your dads and moms will never let you go. This was brought very vividly to my attention several conferences ago when one of the sessions in which I was a speaker was televised to California. My mother resides there.
When I got back to the office after the session was over, there was a note to "call your mother." And so I did, and I thought, "Well, she is calling to congratulate her son." When I reached her on the phone I asked, "Mom, how are you?"
She said, "Paul, I just saw you on TV. Young man, you are not getting enough sleep. You look terrible." Thank God for parents who care and who never let go!
I am grateful for you priesthood leaders, you wonderful bishops and counselors, stake presidencies, others who have precious priesthood assignments. I think of many bishops and other leaders in my life as I look out over this great audience.
Not long ago I had an opportunity to speak in Portland, Oregon. Lo and behold, in the audience was my former bishop, Raymond Kirkham. He was my bishop when I was an Aaronic Priesthood boy. I had the courage to call on him-and you know that can be risky, to call on a bishop who remembers you when you were a boy. I reminded him as he took the pulpit, "Remember, I am the last speaker."
He got bold and told those young people of some interesting experiences involving my youth. He said, "I knew this young man was destined for a position of leadership. He is the only deacon I ever had who, after passing the sacrament, could crawl under a bench and get out the back door before I recognized he was gone." He said, "I knew he was going all the way, because he took the whole quorum with him."
Now you young priesthood bearers, I have repented; and I am grateful for bishops who stood at the back door and redirected my paths.
I have been impressed here tonight with a number of things. I have reflected upon the great talks of this conference, wonderful sermons, good counsel and advice. Tonight I would like to summarize my feelings, directed to you, the Aaronic Priesthood, for what value it might have in your lives.
I think if I could give a whole sermon in just six words it would be these: Socrates said many years ago, "Know thyself," Cicero said, "Control thyself," and the Savior said, "Give thyself." Now will you write that down, young brethren; contemplate the meaning while I just share a thought concerning each one.
To know thyself is to come to know that you and I as priesthood bearers are literally the offspring of Deity; and that means, young men, that you and I were born to succeed; that in the preexistence you and I earned a right by our faithfulness and by our commitment to worthy principles to come into mortality in order that we might learn through the priesthood how to become like our Father.
That means, if I understand the gospel correctly, that there isn't one single failure among us. The word can't is false doctrine in the Mormon Church. When a young man says to me, "I can't do it," I become concerned because in a sense he is saying, "I don't understand the gospel." He may not be motivated; he may have discouragements; there may be barriers in his life; but you can succeed.
I promise you young priesthood bearers that if you really come to know who you are through the scriptures and through the revealed doctrine of this church, you can accomplish anything you want in this life.
I don't mean to suggest by this that you won't stumble a time or two. That is a part of the growing process. The lives of many great men will testify to you that ofttimes they have many failures, and there is no disgrace in falling down; the disgrace is lying there. To get up one more time than you fall is to be a winner. To stay down is to be a loser.
I think of that great immortal athlete, Babe Ruth, when I talk about the principle of success and particularly failure. Let me just share a little experience from his life.
It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon in the summer of 1927, and 35,000 wildly excited baseball fans packed Shibe Park. They were giving Babe Ruth the "razzberry"-and good! Lefty Grove, one of the greatest left-handed pitchers of all time, had just struck out Babe Ruth on three consecutive pitched balls for the second successive time. Two runners were stranded on the bases.
As the great slugger returned to the bench, amidst wild and abusive jeering, he looked up into the stands with an unruffled smile, just as he did the first time, gave his cap a polite little tip from his perspiring brow, stepped down into the dugout, and calmly took a drink of water.
In the eighth inning, when he came up for his third time at bat, the situation was critical. The Athletics were leading the Yankees, 3–1. The bases were full and two were out. As Babe selected his favorite bat and started toward the plate, the crowd rose in a body, as if by signal. The excitement was tremendous!
"Strike 'im out again!" pleaded the fans to Grove. Strutting around the pitcher's box, it was easy to see that the big southpaw believed he was just going to do that.
As the mighty batter took his position, the crowd became hysterical. There was a pause. Mickey Cochrane, the A's great catcher, crouched to give the signal. Grove threw one with lightning speed. Ruth swung; it was a foul tip. "Str-ike one!" roared the umpire. Again the signal, and the pitch was too fast to follow. Again, Babe took that magnificent swing-and missed. "Stri-i-i-ke two!" was the call.
Ruth staggered and went down. He had literally swung himself off his feet. There was a cloud of dust as the big fellow sprawled on the ground. The crowd was going mad. Finally, regaining his feet, the "Bambino" brushed the dust off his trousers, dried his hands, and got set for the next pitch. Grove delivered the ball so fast not a single fan could see it. Babe swung-but this time he connected! It was only a split second before everybody seemed to realize what had happened. That ball was never coming back.
It disappeared over the scoreboard and cleared the houses across the street -one of the longest hits ever recorded.
As Babe Ruth trotted around the bases and across the plate behind the other runners-with what proved to be the winning run-he received a wild ovation from the crowd.
Ruth doffed his cap with that little smile, and the expression on his face was exactly like the one he wore on his first two trips, when he had gone down swinging.
Later in the season, after the Yanks clinched the American League pennant, Grantland Rice, interviewing the Babe, asked, "What do you do when you get in a batting slump?"
Babe replied: "I just keep goin' up there and keep swingin'. I know the old law of averages will hold good for me the same as it does for anybody else, if I keep havin' my healthy swings. If I strike out two or three times in a game, or fail to get a hit for a week, why should I worry? Let the pitchers worry; they're the guys who're gonna have to pay for it later on."
This unshakable faith in making the law of averages work for him enabled Babe Ruth to accept his bad breaks and failures with a smile. This simple philosophy had much to do with making him baseball's greatest slugger. His attitude of taking both good and bad in stride made him one of the game's greatest heroes.
Why is it, when we read about great athletes or men in other professions, we are seldom told about their failures? For example, we now read of the amazing record of the immortal Babe Ruth, with his total of 714 home runs; but another unapproached world's record of his is carefully buried, and that is that he struck out more times than any other player in history-1,330 times!
One thousand three hundred and thirty times he suffered the humiliation of walking back to the bench amidst jeers and ridicule. But he never allowed fear or discouragement or failure to keep him down.
Someone has said that success consists not in never falling, but in rising every time you fall. Get up one more time than you go down, young people, and you will win. Stay down, and you lose.
My father used to say, "Paul, there are dozens of rules for success, but none of them work unless you do."
Cicero said, "Control thyself." I had the opportunity in World War II to bat against the immortal Bob Feller in a servicemen's game. If you ever want a lesson in humility, bat against Feller. Bob Feller had a unique distinction as a sixteen-year-old boy. He could take a 9 1/2-inch, 5-ounce baseball and throw it from 60 feet 6 inches, 105 miles an hour.
Now that may not impress you, but you go to bat and you're very impressed. To those of you who may not understand that velocity, a 9-inch baseball is the size of an aspirin tablet at 60 feet 6 inches, at 100 miles per hour. I submit to you, it makes a difference which side of the plate he throws it.
Bob Feller at age sixteen had a problem. He lacked control. He was a great athlete. He had tremendous capacity. He was born to succeed. He knew himself, but he hadn't disciplined his great talent of speed, so that it was questionable as to whether he would stick in the majors.
But Bob Feller became the great athlete he was because he listened to wise counsel. He had great coaches, and one of them took him aside one day and said, "Bob, it really doesn't matter whether you throw 105 miles an hour or 95. If you will take a little speed off your pitch and put the ball where it belongs, you will succeed!"
We call that control in baseball, and you little leaguers know how important control is to a pitcher. Bob listened and became the strike-out artist of his era.
You don't know Jim Rusick, I think, unless you are related to him. I played ball with Jim. Jim Rusick was a sixteen-year-old boy on the Hollywood High School baseball team. He could throw a 9 1/2-inch baseball 105 miles an hour, but he wouldn't listen to counsel. He didn't learn to control the talent that he had, and Jim has never been heard of since.
It's one thing to be born with ability to succeed; it's another thing to harness it and to control it.
My young brethren, this is the purpose of the gospel of Jesus Christ, to control that which we have been born with. That is the purpose of the Church and its programs. We need to learn how to control that which God has given us.
Finally, the Savior said, Take all that I have given you, harness it, discipline it, and then give it to the world. Give thyself.
Let me just conclude with a little experience I had recently in New England.
I think one of the greatest thrills that a mission president experiences is to receive a new missionary. I received notice from the First Presidency that eight young men were to be assigned to New England. Shortly they arrived. This was a great treat for Jeanne and me, as we greeted these new missionaries in the mission home. One by one, as they came in, we tried to set them at ease.
The first one was a brilliant-looking boy. I won't describe him, but I thought, "Thank heaven he is here." The second was just like him, and the third and the fourth. Now this, I thought, will put our mission on top.
Then I got down to number seven, and I don't mind telling you some of the concerns of my heart. I thought, This will be a challenge. I couldn't believe it; and unlike the counsel that President Tanner gave us not to judge our neighbors, here I was judging him. I thought, This kid just doesn't have the image.
My wife gave me a glance, and her look said, "Good luck for the next two years."
Let me just describe him to you. He was wearing a shirt that was size 17; his neck was an 11. I could have pulled out his collar and put another elder in it. He had on a coat that he inherited from his dad, and you couldn't see his hands. He had a trench coat that he got from an uncle from World War I, and he had a haircut that was an Idaho original.
The New England Mission contains six of the United States and four provinces of Canada, including Labrador. As my wife and I lay in bed that night, she said, "What are you going to do with him?"
I said, "It's time to open up Labrador." I thought I had to protect the Church's image from this interesting-looking elder.
Well, that morning before I made my assignments, I knelt in prayer-thank the Lord for prayer-and I asked the Lord what I should do now; and the Spirit whispered, "Keep him in Cambridge."
And I said, "Spirit, I won't." I said, "I am the president of this mission."
And the Spirit seemed to respond with the counsel, "Yes, but you will keep him in Cambridge."
Cambridge is a very sophisticated area, with all of those universities and art centers. Well, I kept him. When I went down to breakfast, my two assistants were sitting there; and they said, "What are you going to do with him?"
I said, "We are going to keep him in Cambridge."
And they said, "President, you are kidding."
I said, "I have been seeking guidance all night, and we will keep him in Cambridge."
Two days later I got a call from a distinguished professor. I haven't time to give you the details. He said, "Paul, Friday night may I be baptized?"
I questioned him a bit. He had been through several score of missionaries the past nine years. I said, "What happened?"
He said, "This little fellow you sent me." And then he described the experience.
He said, "No sooner had he and his companion entered the office and shook my hand when he asked, 'Would you mind if we had a word of prayer?'" The professor said, "Not if it will do you any good." Then he remarked, "Before I could get back to my desk, this little fellow fell on his knees and started to talk to the Lord." And he said, "Paul, I looked up three times to see if the Lord was standing there." He said, "I don't know what happened to me; you describe it, but I had the most wonderful feeling come over me, and I now know what the Spirit is. I want to be baptized."
We baptized him, and he is doing a fine work for the Church and is a great asset on campus. It was all accomplished because this young elder from Idaho, whom I had misjudged, guided by the Spirit, gave himself to the Lord.
And I learned as President Tanner has taught us. Don't judge! "Within the oyster shell uncouth, the purest pearl may hide, but oft you'll find a heart of truth within a rough outside."
The Lord bless us, young brethren, to remember who we are, to control ourselves, and to give it to the Lord, to which I testify, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion G. Romney
Of the Council of the Twelve
Brethren, this is a great occasion. Tens of thousands of bearers of the holy priesthood are gathered together to hear instructions from the presidency of the Church.
I was greatly impressed by the President's remarks. I am glad he said what he did. Listening to him, I was taken back in my thoughts a quarter of a century to an experience I had with President Heber J. Grant. We were discussing some criticism that had been directed against an action taken by him in his official capacity. Putting his arm across my back and resting his hand on my left shoulder, he said, "My boy, you always keep your eye on the President of the Church, and if he tells you to do something wrong, and you do it, the Lord will bless you for it."
And then he added, "You don't need to worry, however; the Lord will never let his mouthpiece lead his people astray."
I haven't forgotten his counsel. I think I have been faithful to that charge ever since.
We brethren in this meeting hold the priesthood. We are a covenant people. The Lord, entering into a covenant with Abraham, promised him a great posterity, saying:
" in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal."
Ever since the days of Abraham, his descendants have been known, by those who have understood the gospel, as children of the covenant. One of the covenants that we have entered into with the Lord is the covenant "which belongeth to the priesthood." The 84th section of the Doctrine and Covenants talks about the priesthood. It says that "the sons of Moses and also the sons of Aaron shall offer an acceptable offering and sacrifice in the house of the Lord in this generation
"And the sons of Moses and of Aaron shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, upon Mount Zion in the Lord's house, whose sons are ye;
"For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies."
I believe that is true. I think that men and boys who magnify their callings in the priesthood have a change wrought in their bodies. This morning while President Lee was talking in the welfare meeting, he told about someone, some stranger, who saw President McKay and said to him, "Are you a prophet of God?" President McKay's answer was, "You look into my face and get the answer."
I heard a story once about President Joseph F. Smith, the father of our present beloved leader, who was down in Arizona attending some function with the governor and other prominent men. Some of them wanted to have their pictures taken with the President of the Church. President Joseph F. Smith graciously consented and stood with them while their pictures were taken. When they stepped back into the crowd, the governor was heard to say, "You know, when I stood out there by that man, I felt like a thief." He could feel the power in a great man who was magnifying his calling in the priesthood.
" whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
"They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God."
The Prophet Joseph Smith used to repeatedly urge the brethren of the priesthood to make their calling and election sure. If we want to do that, we will have to magnify our callings in the priesthood. The revelation continues:
"And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord."
President Smith frequently says in prayer and in counsel that he prays for and hopes that we will be true and faithful to every covenant and responsibility that rests upon us. That the obligations of "the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood" rest upon each of us there is no doubt, because the Lord says that "all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved."
So, we have entered into a covenant with the Lord in which he has promised us eternal life, if we keep our part of the covenant, which is, to magnify our callings in the priesthood.
The revelation says that the Lord cannot break his part of the oath and covenant. But we can break our part of it, and many priesthood bearers do so. Of them the revelation says:
"But whoso breaketh this covenant after he hath received it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness of sins in this world nor in the world to come." (D&C 84:41.
Now, I do not think this means that all who fail to magnify their callings in the priesthood will have committed the unpardonable sin, but I do think that priesthood bearers who have entered into the covenants that we enter into-in the waters of baptism, in connection with the law of tithing, the Word of Wisdom, and the many other covenants we make-and then refuse to live up to these covenants will stand in jeopardy of losing the promise of eternal life.
I have a witness to the truth of what President Smith said tonight about the leadership of this church, and their representing the Savior of the world here on earth. I know that there is power in the priesthood and that we can draw from heaven the power to do our work, if we do the work as best we can ourselves. God help us to understand this, and the great honor he has placed upon us by giving us the priesthood, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
As I try to envision the large body of priesthood present in this building and other different buildings throughout the Church, it makes me appreciate more fully the song "Behold! A Royal Army." We are the only people in all the world that hold the priesthood of God, the power to speak and act in his name. What a tremendous force and influence for good, as we discipline ourselves and fully magnify our priesthood. What a privilege and what a responsibility!
As fathers and sons and holders of the priesthood we must always be humble, proud, and never ashamed of the priesthood we hold. We are different, a peculiar people, and must remain different in the cause of truth and righteousness. Never adopt a "holier than thou" attitude, but always live up to the standards of the Church and never waver.
Some seem to fear they will lose prestige, or fear ridicule. Surely we don't need to try to be like the world and try to please or cater to the sinful ways of the world. Be in the world but not of it. My experience has shown me beyond any question of doubt that one never needs to be ashamed of the priesthood that he holds or of living according to its teachings and magnifying that priesthood.
I was talking to a very successful businessman just yesterday, who is a devout member of this church, who magnifies his priesthood. I said, "Have you ever found it at any time in your life to be a detriment to you?"
He said, "President Tanner, it has always been a plus."
Some seem to think that with the looseness and trends in the world today affecting the thinking of some of our youth and even some of our bishops and stake presidents, we are altogether too strict in the teaching of morals when we see what is going on all around us. In fact, we are accused of being prigs, which to me means narrow-minded persons who assume superior virtue and wisdom. Judged by the ways of the world, probably we are prigs.
Are we going to lose faith, deny modern revelation, modernize our way of life to be like the world? Or are we going to be a peculiar people and honor and magnify our priesthood and do our duty?
We are different from the world. We have the revealed gospel and the priesthood. We must be exemplary wherever we are.
Or are we as Esaias said: "Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:
"For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."
I would like to say to the young men who are listening in tonight, we never need to be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we should always be humbly proud of the priesthood that we hold.
I was talking to a young man who is going to be baptized next month, the only member of his family to be baptized, and I said, "What caused you to be interested in the Church?"
And he replied, "The young man I was associating with in school was a member of your church, and the way he lived interested me. He was different from the rest of the boys. He was happy, and he invited me to his home; and when I saw the love in that home and how that family lived, I was more interested. He took me to church, and then I joined the ball team, and I found in that church a different feeling than I had found any other place. Then that ball team, those fine fellows all keeping the Word of Wisdom and living good clean lives, impressed me, and I determined that I would join the Church."
He went on to say: "I came with that friend out to Brigham Young University to attend one semester. I wanted to get acquainted with the people out here. I found most of those young people down there living the way they should, but if I hadn't determined to be a member of this church before I met some of the others, I don't know what effect it would have had on me."
I think, young men, wherever you are, you must keep this in mind. Your actions may be keeping people out of the Church, and I am sure you wouldn't be happy about that.
Just the other day I was talking to the father of another young man who was leaving this city of ours to go to New York to accept a position as a lawyer. The president of this organization, which is one of the large organizations in the country, knew one of our Church members in the East who was vice-president of a large company; and the president of this company asked him, knowing who he was, if there were any young man whom he could recommend. He said, "We want someone who will live as your young men live, somebody we know will not carouse, who will be on the job, whom we can depend on."
Now that is no reflection on others, but it is a recommendation to our young men who will live as they should. It will be a plus in their lives all the time.
And this man who was the vice-president of the company said, "I know a young man in Salt Lake City." They invited the young man to come to New York and paid his way back there, interviewed him, offered him a job, paid his way back, and offered to pay his wife's fare to go there also to find a place to live.
I can't overemphasize to you young men the importance of living the way you should, for your good, for your own success, for your own happiness, and for the influence you will have on those boys with whom you associate. They expect you to do what you are professing to do; to be what you profess to be; and, if you don't you let them down, other boys who don't have the priesthood have the opportunity for that influence on their lives.
I was impressed the other day when the national president of the Junior Chamber of Commerce of America came with his wife and two other couples into my office, brought in for a courtesy call by a local Jaycee who was a member of the Church. After we had talked about things in the world and about the responsibility of this young man, who was president of the Junior Chamber, I said, "Maybe you would like to know something about the Church."
He said, "Yes, I would."
Then I turned to the young man who had brought them in and said, "Will you tell them something about it?"
He said, "Well, President Tanner, I thought you would."
I said, "No, you tell them about the Church."
He looked this other young man in the eye and said, "I want to tell you a little bit about the Book of Mormon, in which we believe, and which we know is the word of God." He told them what it was, how it was obtained by the Prophet, and how it was translated; and, as he gave them this information he said, "And I want to tell you that I know it is true, and I bear my testimony to you people here today that that book is true, that it is the word of God, and I would like to refer you to the promise in that book"-which promise you all know.
Then he said, "Would you like to have a copy of the book?"
And the Jaycee president said, "I surely would. I am interested."
That young man who gave that testimony was Richard Moyle.
Young men, wherever we are, with whomever we are, let us remember that we are sons of God. We hold the priesthood of God, and we have a responsibility to live according to its teachings.
I would like to bear my testimony to you this night that I know the gospel is true. I know it's true as well as I know anything else in the world. I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, his Son, and that they appeared to Joseph Smith; that the gospel has been restored and the Church reestablished here upon the earth. I should like to say to you young men who feel that you might not have a testimony of the gospel, accept the convincing testimonies that you have heard this night and that you hear from our leaders, while at the same time, through prayer and study and keeping the commandments, you will gain a testimony for yourselves, the greatest blessing one can enjoy.
" this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
May we honor our priesthood and enjoy the blessings that it affords and do our part to help in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
First Counselor in the First Presidency
I feel impressed by something that has been said to repeat an experience. There are a number who are listening in tonight, and one particularly who will remember this very vividly-an incident that took place a number of years ago in Japan. I want you to pay particular attention to a part of this, to show how a mistake in your early life can blight the possibilities of your future opportunities for service in the kingdom of God.
It was just after the war; things were tense. We were at one of the upper camps where the planes could take off, and within half an hour they could be over on the Russian side. We were holding a noon meeting with our servicemen. They called on a young man to speak first. He announced his text from the prayer of the Master when he prayed for his disciples: "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil." Then this lad delivered one of the finest talks on chastity that I have ever heard. He closed by saying, "Rather than lose my virtue, I would die and have my body sent home in a pine box and my dog tags follow after."
There was a hush over that audience of servicemen, and then he bore his testimony; and as he started to leave the pulpit, he stumbled and fell, draped over the pulpit. We lifted him off the pulpit and worked with him until he was revived, and then took him down in the audience.
As they carried him down, the mission president said to me, "I wonder if he has a bad heart." And I said, "You know, I have had a feeling that there is something quarreling inside of him against what he has been saying to us."
When it came my time to speak, I said to him, "Now, my boy, you have made a profound impression upon all of us. You have said you would rather die than lose your virtue. But remember, the devil heard you, as we heard you, and if I don't miss my guess, he is going to make you prove that you would give your life before you would lose your virtue. You had better be on guard."
The group leader took me aside when the meeting was over, and he said, "You were hitting close to the mark, because up at the Chitose Airbase there has grown up one of the most filthy, rotten cities filled with prostitutes to try to entrap our men, and we have tried to keep them out of their clutches. But this boy had made a date with one of these hussies, as they called them, patriotic hussies; and we found out before he kept the date and said, 'Now look, we are not going to let you keep that date. Think of your mother; think of your sweetheart; think of your sisters. Now we will go down with you and help you break that date honorably.'"
This they did, and kept him under their surveillance for two weeks. They assigned him to do ward teaching, or home teaching, as they call it now; that meant, visit all the inactive boys in the camp. And two weeks later they assigned him to talk on the subject of chastity.
So the years passed. We were with President McKay at the dedication of the Los Angeles Temple. Between sessions I walked out to get some fresh air. As I walked up the west side of the building, I saw on the upper elevation a young man who seemed familiar to me, and I got closer to this young man that I had seen in Hokkaido, Japan. As he recognized me, he came running down the steps and threw his arms around my neck, and said, "Guess what! They have called me to be a worker in the Los Angeles Temple."
There was a lump in my throat because I was there at the crossroads when he almost made a fatal step that probably would have forfeited him the right to be a worker in the Los Angeles Temple.
More years passed, and then I was out at a conference where he lived; and I saw a young couple walking down the aisle, the man holding in his arms a beautiful child, and a beautiful girl holding on to his arm, whom he introduced as his wife. As they uncovered the face of their new baby, I thought there was pride in the face of that young man because he knew as a young father that in the blood of his own child there was clean, pure blood. That is the reward that comes to one who passes the test.
One of the things we must do in teaching our young people is to condition them on how to meet a temptation that comes in an unguarded moment. When we teach our young boys going out into military service, we bring in those who have had experience to talk about some actual experiences they have gone through and say, "Now if you were faced with this or that temptation, what would you do? How would you react?" And there is a discussion as to just how he would react. How important that is in this day of wickedness!
The one who has the chief responsibility is the father of the boy. This doesn't mean that the father should wake up some morning and call his boy to his bedside and in fifteen minutes tell him all the facts of life. That isn't what the boy needs. He needs a father to answer when he wants to ask questions of a delicate nature. He is hungering to know; he is curious about things.
If his father will be frank and honest, and tell him up to the limit of his intelligence as he grows up, that father will be the one to whom the son will return for counsel in the years that follow. That father will be an anchor to that boy's soul, as the father takes from his book of experience lessons that he can give to his son to help condition him against the possibility of falling into that fatal trap in an unguarded moment.
I want to talk about another thing. As we study the various activities like family home evening and the activities pertaining to temple marriage, home teaching, and what not, we have discovered that we never make any headway by mere exhortation and trying to pressure people into holding home evenings or home teaching. We are discovering that the only way to get home teaching over, or to get family home evening going, or attendance at sacrament meeting, or to have more temple marriages or temple attendance, is to make sure that the holder of the priesthood in the home magnifies his priesthood; and until he can realize the importance of the priesthood of God, which gives him the power of Almighty God to act through him, that home is not going to be secure.
We must impress upon every father that he will be held responsible for the eternal welfare of his family: that means coming into the Church with his family; that means going to sacrament meeting with his family; that means holding family home evenings to keep his family intact; it means preparing himself to take them to the temple, so that there can be prepared thereby the steps that will make for an eternal family home.
It is a high responsibility to impress upon priesthood holders how they magnify their priesthood by living and doing as the Lord has commanded.
We talk about Suicides Anonymous. I am convinced that there are many in the Church who are committing spiritual suicide, and they are calling for help, just like those who are going to commit suicide physically. They tell us that there is a cry of distress that if recognized in time could save a life.
There are many among us today who are giving the signal, the cry of distress, because they are in danger of spiritual suicide. And if we can only recognize the cry of distress in time, we will be the means of saving souls.
One thing more I should like to state. We are having come into the Church now many people of various nationalities. We in the Church must remember that we have a history of persecution, discrimination against our civil rights, and our constitutional privileges being withheld from us. These who are members of the Church, regardless of their color, their national origin, are members of the church and kingdom of God. Some of them have told us that they are being shunned. There are snide remarks. We are withdrawing ourselves from them in some cases.
Now we must extend the hand of fellowship to men everywhere, and to all who are truly converted and who wish to join the Church and partake of the many rewarding opportunities to be found therein. To those who may not now have the priesthood, we pray that the blessings of Jesus Christ may be given to them to the full extent that it is possible for us to give them. Meanwhile, we ask the Church members to strive to emulate the example of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, who gave us the new commandment that we should love one another. I wish we could remember that.
Now finally, just one more thought. President Smith's talk tonight has impressed something else. I heard someone say something that I have learned is an absolute fact. When I sat in as a younger member of the Council of the Twelve, the first Church reorganization I was permitted to participate in was when President Grant passed away. As we met in the temple for a long discussion, as is the usual custom before the votes are taken and the decisions reached as to the selecting of the president of the Church, I was thinking there had been some rumors as to who might be the counselors and who might not be the counselors, as is always the gossip that attends such reorganizations. But as the president named his counselors and they took their places at the head of the room, down inside me I had a witness that these were the men that the Lord wanted to be the presidency of the Church. It came to me with a conviction that was as though that truth was being trumpeted in my ears.
Now I want to impress this upon you. Someone has said it this way, and I believe it to be absolutely true: "That person is not truly converted until he sees the power of God resting upon the leaders of this church, and until it goes down into his heart like fire." Until the members of this church have that conviction that they are being led in the right way, and they have a conviction that these men of God are men who are inspired and have been properly appointed by the hand of God, they are not truly converted.
So I bear you my witness that I know with all my soul, as I knew on that occasion, that those whom the Lord chooses are the ones he needs for a particular time. I heard Elder Orson F. Whitney, a member of the Twelve, say from this pulpit that he didn't believe that these men are necessarily the best living men in the Church, but that there may be many others who live just as righteous lives, or maybe more so, but one thing he did know: that when there is a vacancy and the Lord has need for a person, he looks around and finds the person who is best qualified to fill the position at a given time.
I have lived long enough now in these thirty-one years as a member of the General Authorities to know that is true; and I bear witness that the Lord is guiding this church, and we see daily and constantly in the councils of this church that there is divine guidance. I bear that humble witness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
First Counselor in the First Presidency
This year is again a most important year of decision for our day. Some have even said that this is the most critical period in the history of this nation and of the world.
I believe it is an illusion to say that this is the most critical, decisive time. Write it upon the hearts of all of us that every dispensation has been just as decisive, and likewise that every year has been the most decisive year and time for ourselves, for this nation, and for the world. This is our day and time when honorable men must be brought forward to meet the tremendous challenges before us.
This is the beginning of an intense political activity, when men of every persuasion in the political arena will be clamoring for attention and acceptance by the electorate. There will be controversy, debate, conflict, and contention, which seem to be the order of a political campaign.
In its loftiest sense, controversy may mean disputations because of honest differences of opinion. In its most degrading sense it may mean quarreling, strife, and name-calling. An example of that which degrades is the bitter personal abuse that so frequently is heaped upon an opposing candidate. Name-calling is continued throughout the whole season until listeners are left with doubt and mistrust that honor and integrity are to be found in any of those who may eventually be elected. The obvious hazard is that when these elected leaders have been maligned and down-graded, the seeds of disrespect to authority and law and order are sown in the minds of youth, particularly, instead of respectful obedience to counsel and to the laws enacted by those whose integrity and honesty have been thus impugned.
The story, presumably authentic, is told that during the Civil War when the fortunes of the Union armies, under the command of General Grant, were going badly, some concerned ministers called on President Abraham Lincoln at the White House and forcefully urged the dismissal of Grant.
To these men he is alleged to have said: "Gentlemen, General Grant has under his command all that we hold dear in this nation. Instead of criticism, you too should get down on your knees and pray God that he would see this nation through to victory."
We related this story to a president of the United States some years ago and assured him that no matter what his name or his political party, we too were frequently on our knees, praying God that he and the leaders of this nation and of the world would bring us through the crises of the present.
We were heartened by the president's reply when he said, "I think that every president of this country during his term of office has been frequently on his knees praying to Almighty God."
During these years of extreme tension, you may constantly have in mind the admonition of the Lord himself: "Wherefore, be subject to the powers that be, until he reigns whose right it is to reign, and subdues all enemies under his feet," and likewise he reminds us that "he that keepeth the laws of God hath no need to break the laws of the land."
We have recorded the angelic refrain at the time of the Savior's birth as recorded by Luke: " on earth peace, good will toward men."
In seeming contradiction to that message are the recorded words of the Master: "Think not that I am come to send peace on the earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household."
How can these seemingly contradictory quotations be reconciled?
The earliest revelations of this dispensation speak of two so-called conflicting dominions on the earth today. One is spoken of as the dominion of the devil, "when peace shall be taken from the earth."
In the book of Revelation, as well as in other scriptures, we read that before the earth was peopled "there was war in heaven."
One of the ambitious sons of God's spiritual creations in the premortal world promised salvation for all mankind without effort on their part, provided he would be given almighty power, even to the dethroning of God himself, whose divine right it is to reign over the earth. Intense bitterness ensued between that son, who became Satan, and those who followed after him, and the beloved Son of God and those who followed after him, whose plan of salvation, by contrast, would give to every soul the right of choice, and the glory be to the Father. He even offered himself as "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world", that by the redemption of his atoning sacrifice, "all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel".
Satan and his hosts were cast out because he set about to destroy the agency of man, and he became the author of falsehood to deceive and to blind men and to lead captive all who would not hearken to the words and teachings of God's eternal plan.
The other dominion in the earth today of which the scriptures speak is the Lord's dominion, when he "shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst."
Today we are constantly hearing from the unenlightened and misguided, who demand what they call free agency, by which they apparently mean, as evidenced by their conduct, that they have their agency to do as they please or to exercise their own self-will to determine what is law and order, what is right and wrong, or what is honor and virtue.
These are frightening expressions when you reflect upon what I have just quoted from the revealed word of God. A moment's reflection will help you to see that when one sets himself up to make his own rules and presumes to know no law but his own, he is but echoing the plan of Satan, who sought to ascend to God's throne, as it were, in being the judge of all that rules mankind and the world. There has ever been, and ever will be, a conflict between the forces of truth and error; between the forces of righteousness and the forces of evil; between the dominion of Satan and the dominion under the banner of our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.
The true meaning of free agency is clearly set forth by a father who explained to his son:
"Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great mediation of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil. "
" the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other."
What would it be like if we were to live in a vacuum, with everything coming our way without any effort or struggle on our part to overcome these obstacles?
One of my esteemed colleagues told me of his efforts to aid a young college student who was feeling sorry for himself, who was lacking motivation and had no sense of responsibility. My friend made an attractive proposal to this young man. In a conversation that went something like this, he said, "Son, I'm going to take over full responsibility of your affairs from now on and relieve you of your worries. I'll pay your tuition at college, buy your clothes, furnish you an automobile and a credit card for gasoline. When you get ready to marry, don't worry about it; I'll look for a wife for you, and I will supply you with a house that is furnished. I'll support you and your family thereafter without any effort on your part. What do you think of my offer?"
After a moment of sobered thinking the young man replied, "Well, if you did that, what would there be for me to live for?"
Then my friend replied, "That is what I'm trying to make you see, my boy. That is the purpose of life-there is no joy without struggle and the exercise of one's own natural abilities."
Now in the exercise of the God-given right of free agency, or freedom of choice, how may one distinguish between what is truth and what is error?
A noted columnist wrote: "Truth is the logic of the universe. It is the reasoning of destiny; it is the mind of God. And nothing that man can devise can take its place."
Another man of wisdom added: "There is no progress in fundamental truth. We may grow in knowledge of its meaning and in the modes of its application, but its great principles will forever be the same."
At the time of Christ's arraignment before Pilate, the Master declared that his whole mission was to bear witness of the truth. Pilate then asked: "What is truth?"
Whether or not the Savior answered that question on that occasion, we have no record; but in our day the Lord himself has answered, as he might have answered Pilate at that time, and I quote his words: "And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come; And whatsoever is more or less than this is the spirit of that wicked one who was a liar from the beginning."
Now, may I for a few moments speak of certainties upon which one may depend in his search for truth.
The first of which I would speak is that which is referred to in the scriptures as the Light of Christ, the Spirit of Truth, or Spirit of God, variously spoken of, which in essence means the influence of Deity that proceeds forth from the presence of God, that which quickens the understanding of man. The apostle John spoke of it as "the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world."
A president of the Church makes this further explanation: "There is not a man born into the world, but has a portion of the Spirit of God, and it is that Spirit of God which gives to his spirit understanding, each in accordance with his capacity to receive the light... will never cease to strive with man, until man is brought to the possession of the higher intelligence."
To those not acquainted with the language of the scriptures, it might be explained that the Light of Christ could be described as one's conscience, or the voice of the divine within one's own soul.
As a public official in my young manhood, I was given some wise counsel by a Church leader. He said: "The only thing we will ever ask you to do is to vote for that which in your heart you feel is right. We would rather many times over that you would make a mistake doing that which you felt was right, than to vote for policy sake."
I pass these wise words of counsel to others in public office for what they are worth and strongly urge that those of you having heavy responsibilities in public office or elsewhere should meditate prayerfully and give the Lord a chance to aid you in solving the problems of life.
"Expedients are for an hour," someone has said, "but principles are for the ages."
Now another certainty of which I would speak:
The Constitution of the United States has been mentioned several times by speakers in this conference as the basis of wise decisions in fundamental principles as applied to all matters pertaining to law and order, because it was framed by men whom God raised up for this very purpose. But in addition to that inspired document, we must always keep in mind that the greatest weapons that can be forged against any false philosophy are the positive teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We constantly impress upon all who go out as true ambassadors of the kingdom of God to follow the wise counsel of the apostle Paul, one of the ablest defenders of the faith of all time. In his declaration to the Corinthians he has given us his counsel if we would be as powerful as he in our ministry. This was his secret in combating evil:
"And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
"For I am determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
"That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God."
It has been well said that one does not teach honesty by telling a man how to burglarize a safe, nor do we teach chastity by telling a youth all about sexual activities.
So, likewise, it is inspired wisdom that our efforts must be spent in teaching truth by the power of Almighty God, and thus we can forge the most powerful of all weapons against the vicious doctrines of Satan.
The Prophet Joseph Smith was asked how he governed the Church members in his day. His answer in one sentence was, "Teach them correct principles and they will govern themselves."
If we overemphasize the philosophies of the enemies of righteousness instead of teaching forcefully the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, such overemphasis can only serve to stir up controversy and strife and thus defeat the very purpose of our missionary work in all the nations of the world.
Now a third certainty:
Those who have served as public officials soon learn that there is always the imperative necessity of deciding whether or not demands on a controversial issue are being made by a well-organized loud minority or by a greater majority of those who might be less vocal but whose cause is just and in accordance with righteous principles. Always we would do well to reflect upon the counsel of a wise king of ancient times: "Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore... do your business by the voice of the people."
Let this counsel of that wise ancient king be our counsel to our Church members and the honorable of the earth everywhere. Be alert and active in your business and political interests. The great danger in any society is apathy and a failure to be alert to the issues of the day, when applied to principles or to the election of public officials.
The fourth certainty to keep in mind in our civic responsibilities is to choose those to govern us as "civil officers and magistrates enforce the laws and administer the law in equity and justice", as we are admonished by inspired men of God.
In a word, we must seek for statesmenlike men who will ask, "Is it right and is it good for the country or the community?" instead of those who may merely ask, "Is it politically expedient?"
Remember always our declaration of political faith: "We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law."
Wherever you are, wherever you live, pray for the leaders of your country, for remember that they too hold in their hands all that you hold dear. Again I repeat the Lord's injunction: " be subject to the powers that be, until he reigns whose right it is to reign, and subdues all enemies under his feet."
And now, finally, the supreme of all certainties is God's eternal plan as given in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here we have given us the never-failing principles that will keep our feet firmly planted on the path of safety. By these eternal principles we can readily detect truth from error. In the earliest revelations of our dispensation we were told that the gospel teachings were given that "inasmuch as they have erred it might be made known; And inasmuch as they sought wisdom they might be instructed."
By the light of gospel truths we can be shown that "every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ... ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God."
But also we may know that "whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil", whether it be labeled religion, philosophy, science, or political dogma.
What a wonderful feeling of security can come in a crisis to one who has learned to pray and has cultivated listening ears so that he can "call, and the Lord shall answer"; when he can cry and the Lord shall say, "Here I am."
The supreme commander of the Allied forces during World War II, General Eisenhower, when faced with some of the most momentous military decisions that were to change the course of the world, made his humble acknowledgment: "This is what I found out about religion: It gives you courage to make the decisions you must make in a crisis and then the confidence to leave the result to a Higher Power. Only by trust in God can a man carrying responsibilities find repose."
There you have it, all you who are leaders in high places, in business, in government, or in the Church, or for that matter in any walk of life: the constant reminder that God is in his heaven and all can be right with the world, if we seek for him and find him, "though he be not far from every one of us: for in him we live, and move, and have our being;... For we are also his offspring."
Now, may I in all humility bear my own witness to the power of these guidelines in my life. I have learned by my own experience that the heavier the responsibilities, the greater is my dependence on the Lord.
In some measure I begin to understand the import of the declaration of Moses, who, after his great spiritual experience, said: "Now... I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed."
But through the lights and shadows of my life, I also have the assurance that aided by God's holy power, doubts can be resolved into certainties, burdens can be lightened, and a literal rebirth can be realized as the nearness to my Lord and Master becomes more certain-to all of which I bear humble witness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I am honored to be able to express my convictions and offer my testimony this morning.
I would like to talk about happiness.
On my desk at this moment is the cover of a leading news journal with this headline: "Good Times-But People Are Unhappy."
The story within reported the results of a survey made to determine why people are unhappy in good times. The reasons given are substantially the same as those produced by any responsible inquiry: lack of meaning or purpose in life, anxiety, fear, poor self-image, doubting one's capacity to love or worthiness to be loved, not accomplishing anything, bad conscience, inability to form lasting relationships, unsatisfactory home life, loneliness, no sense of belonging, little giving of self, and the summation of them all: lack of life-directing relationships with God and Christ.
In considering this, I remembered the day some time ago when I stood before a bulletin board in the Student Union Building on an Arizona university campus, where I had been invited to speak to a convocation during their "Religion in Life Week." On my way into the auditorium, thinking of the implications of their theme, which was "Something Missing," my attention was drawn to a short advertising notice, posted and signed by a student in the lobby. Line by line it read:
For Sale 1929 Ford Two-Door Sedan Nice Body and Fenders New Paint Job No Engine $20.00 See Bob
There was in truth "something missing" in this automobile, and that something happened to be the one indispensable element that gave the rest meaning, without which it was but an empty shell, having the appearance of wholeness but lacking the capacity to accomplish the purposes of its creation.
Men without God and the living Christ in their lives lack center, and thus lack joy they could have.
Hundreds of years before Christ, God confronted the willful ignorance of Israel in these words: "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God. "
The knowledge for lack of which they suffered is plainly explained by Hosea:
" the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
"For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings."
In a poem of pessimism which he wrote soon after World War I, Yeats described the widening circle-the gyre-in which the falcon flew away from the falconer. He wrote:
-"The Second Coming"
When the falconer is not heard, the falcon is lost. So are men when they cannot or will not hear the voice of the Master. Things fall apart in human life, the center cannot hold, trouble is born, and the "worst," who are "full of passionate intensity," do their own thing, follow their own base appetites and wayward wills, and impose upon those who are less intense and involved-and particularly upon the young-false constructions and interpretations of the meaning of life.
It is well to consider where we are with respect to our Creator. If we are out of touch, if we have moved away from him, then we are not as happy as we could be. Something is missing. Epictetus said: "God hath made all men to be happy." And a prophet wrote: " men are, that they might have joy."
Wherein have we erred if we are not happy? Why are we less happy than we could be? How can we have more joy?
May I offer six observations.
1. When I was a boy growing up in a home with a widowed mother, I heard a story that touched me and that has had a lot more meaning since I have had the blessing of having a son of my own.
A youngster was assigned by his father to see to the moving of a large rock. He tugged and pushed, and he lifted and struggled without avail. Some friends were enlisted, but together they could not move it. Reluctantly he reported to his father that he could not budge the rock.
"Have you done all you could?" asked the father.
"Yes," said the little boy.
"Have you tried everything?" persisted the father.
"Yes," said the boy. "I've tried everything."
"No, son, you haven't," said his dad. "You haven't asked me."
Why do so many of us, "heirs of God, joint heirs with Christ," fail to go to him, to keep in touch with our Father? He is anxious to help. But he wants us to learn our need for him, to open the door to him.
"And therefore," said the prophet, "will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you. "
2. For some of us, a reason for unhappiness is that "the world is too much with us; late and soon, /Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers," as the poet said.
Material objectives consume too much of our attention. The struggle for what we need or for more than we need exhausts our time and energy. We pursue pleasure or entertainment, or become overinvolved in associations or civic matters. Of course, people need recreation, need to be achieving, need to contribute; but if these come at the cost of friendship with Christ, the price is much too high.
"For my people have committed two evils," said the Lord to Israel; "they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water."
The substitutions we fashion to take the place of God in our lives truly hold no water. To the measure we thus refuse the "living water," we miss the joy we could have.
Luke records Christ's well-known story to the Pharisees:
"A certain man made a great supper, and bade many:
"And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.
"And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.
"And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.
"And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come."
Other guests were invited to take their places at the supper.
3. Some of us may be less happy than we should be or could be because of arrogance or pride. We think we are sufficient unto ourselves. We think we do not need God or his Christ. We may be, as President Joseph F. Smith once wrote, lazy, or "among the proud and self-vaunting, who read by the lamp of their own conceit, interpret by rules of their own contriving become a law unto themselves, and so pose as the sole judges of their own doings. "
To recreant Israel God said, " this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits."
From the prophet Jacob in the Book of Mormon comes this sobering warning, well known to students in the Church:
"O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish.
"But to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God."
This morning President Lee quoted Paul to the Corinthians-Paul, the brilliant author who wrote the letters which constitute the major part of the New Testament. Paul wrote to the Corinthians that he had been sent not to satisfy those who required a sign or were seeking after worldly wisdom. He determined, we have been reminded, to preach nothing but Jesus Christ and him crucified, and he did, so he said:
" in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
" in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
"That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God."
It is not enough, is it, to know the scriptures about prayer or the motions of prayer or the words of prayer. The man who will not humble himself-really humble himself-before the Lord "receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God," wrote Paul, "for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
The truths of eternal life, a prophet has written, "are only to be seen and understood by the power of the Holy Spirit, which God bestows on those who love him, and purify themselves before him; To whom he grants this privilege of seeing and knowing for themselves."
4. There are those who have lost faith because of personal tragedies or troubles. Faced with problems akin to Job's, they have in effect accepted the invitation to curse God and die rather than to love God and gain the strength to endure their trials. There is, of course, in the promises of God no warrant that we will avoid the very experiences which we came here to undergo and through which we can learn reliance on the Lord. Jesus said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." He had tribulation, and he overcame. And so may we, with his help.
Some years ago I became acquainted with the story of a young family whose little son was tragically ill with cancer. Every night the father sat with his boy, holding him in his arms. The pain seemed less when daddy held him close. The father slept on a mattress on the floor beside his son so that he could reach him whenever the boy cried out. The parents bore their sorrow with courage. They prayed, they loved, they served. Faith gave them strength to meet the test.
5. Sometimes we turn from the Lord because other people have made or are making mistakes. I don't want to forget the story of the farmer who felt he had been wronged in the distribution of irrigation water and that the watermaster was at fault.
Having angered himself into distraction over the seeming unfairness, he sought out the watermaster, grasped him by the shirt bitterly, and said, "Tom, as long as you are watermaster, I won't take another drop out of that ditch."
What happened to that farmer? Well, he was a stubborn man. He kept his foolish vow. And he and his property dried up and blew away.
That we have not found perfection in men or organization, or that we hear reports of imperfection-these are no reasons to cease seeking or serving or worshiping.
The frailties or failings of others can never be appropriate reasons for our loss of the blessings we might have if we ourselves are doing our duty.
6. And finally, perhaps the saddest of all reasons for failing ourselves and the Lord is that we choose to disqualify ourselves because of our own mistakes. We know that sin and failure of obedience tend to keep us from God and prayer. We refuse to receive the soul-saving gift of forgiveness, because we have sinned.
But this is the larger failure. To reject the Lord and his love and his redeeming sacrifice is to deny the efficacy of God's love and his graciousness. All men are capable of mistakes, and have made some, but all of us too can have the cleansing forgiveness that comes with repentance and devotion.
We are all like Paul-sometimes tortured by an inability to do consistently and faithfully that which we know we should do. You remember, " to will is present with me," he said; "but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do."
But Paul knew Jesus. He knew him as the Lord, and he accepted his pardon, gave him his life, and died for him.
Perhaps the most personal and encouraging expression of all, to me, comes from Nephi, sincere servant of God, who, bearing his witness of gratitude and delight in the Lord, is honest enough to say: "Nevertheless, notwithstanding the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.
"I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me.
"And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins. "
And then he cried out to the Lord for help:
" Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?
"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. "
And Nephi gave his life to the Lord.
Our strength and our peace and our happiness are in the Lord. In this world of trial and affliction, we have need of the comforting and qualifying assurances that come with faith in God and repentance and service to his cause. If we will acknowledge him, be thankful, serve him, love his children, and accept the responsibilities of being truly Christian, we will be happy, notwithstanding problems or troubles.
Said the apostle John, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them."
There is no lasting joy in possessions. There is no peace here or hereafter in pride. There is comfort and understanding in the loving arms of him whose every act of courage, of mercy, and of love was performed in the shadow of a cross he knew was ahead for him, and in a world shot through with moral flaws.
We cannot permit the mistakes of others to mislead us from our own joy, nor can we disqualify ourselves because of our own mistakes. Jesus died for our personal sins. He is the Savior and Redeemer to whom we belong.
Faith in God and Christ make for righteousness in the world and for happiness. One who knows has said: "God exists in the world. He exists wherever men let him in. Perhaps it is only humble men, men in search of him, men with a great need for him, who really let him in. And God comes to such men not only because of their great need for him, but also because of his great need for them as his allies in the divine task of creating a better world, a better human society, a real kingdom of God."
Martin Buber helps us: "You know always in your heart that you need God more than anything else. But do you not know too that God needs you in the fullness of His eternity He needs you?"
Said the Lord to ancient Israel: " if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me for all the earth is mine."
-Joseph Auslander
I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I pray for all of us that we may have the joy that comes in that knowledge, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder David B. Haight
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I humbly ask an interest in your faith and prayers as I occupy this historic pulpit.
A few days ago a heartbroken young man came into my office. It was evident from his appearance and troubled look that he was seeking help. He had been a student at the Brigham Young University, married for two years, and now his wife was requesting a divorce. They had a young son.
Filled with remorse, he told me how he had been unsuccessful in holding numerous jobs, had tampered with drugs, had taken a so-called treatment at a commune-type ranch, and had not assumed his responsibility of providing for his wife and infant son.
As I visited with him, I found he had never worked at a paying job or assumed any responsibility prior to his college and marriage. His parents had separated. This young man was the product of a home where the parents ignored the teachings of the Church.
I know of another young man who recently returned from Vietnam. He told of the close bond of love in his family. He said, "My buddies tried to persuade me to go into Saigon and live it up. This went on day after day, but I kept thinking of my family and their influence and the memories of our family home evenings and of my patriarchal blessing. It seemed to give me the courage I needed to resist them."
He then said, "I got out my blessing and read it and reread it. It promised me a temple marriage if I was worthy. After a while, my buddies were impressed with my conviction. They started to respect me and then wanted to know more."
The Savior warned mankind of what could happen to our homes if we failed to heed his counsel. He said:
"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
"And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
Couldn't you imagine that if a family purposely built their house on sand, their neighbors would come running to their aid, would probably warn them and try to persuade them not to make such a critical error? But we are actually witnessing this tragic mistake taking place. Some houses are being built on sand.
We all know of families that seem to be unified with love for one another, respect for the parents, active in church assignments; but as the children grow older, the roof seems to start leaking, the family grows apart, their beliefs now seem to differ. The rains of other influences are beating and beating hard on their homes.
"And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked," said King Benjamin; "neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God and serve the devil. But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another."
Remember, this scripture says to teach our children. How can we teach them if we don't get together as a family?
All over the world Monday evening has been set aside by the First Presidency as family night. A night of participation, involvement, and wholesome fun. The importance of the family unit cannot be overemphasized. Every home in the Church has been instructed to build a solid foundation for sound citizenship and active church participation.
Some of my warmest memories are of my childhood home. My parents were concerned with the activities of each child. They planned fun evenings at home. We would watch the honey candy boil, then pour it out so it could cool, and then we would all stand around and pull it into strings so we could cut it and enjoy it. This was great fun!
I remember our family around the piano singing and trying to learn harmony. It was at these home nights that I had my first experiences with the children's stories of the Bible.
The activities and teaching at family home evening can be the vehicle for the building of strong faith and character.
You are aware, as I am, of the comments of juvenile court judges, law enforcement officers, social workers, and educators who seem to unanimously indicate that there is only one sure solution to our present moral challenge. They all point to the home, not more laws. They say, "If only the father would take command! If only father and mother unitedly would guide their children with love and affection!"
The evidence is overwhelming and the need so critical for a strong bond of respect and admiration in our homes. The trend is growing more acute daily. Latter-day Saint parents must analyze the foundation on which their homes are being built, for the rains of evil are descending. Parents must prayerfully prepare for their particular family needs.
Banks hold in trust valuable worldly assets of individuals. They are entrusted with things of value that belong to someone else. How well equipped are we as parents to be the trust officers of the most precious of God's possessions-innocent young spirits? They are in your charge during eighteen or twenty of these critical years. This is your opportunity and responsibility to help them gain a testimony and prepare for celestial life.
But chances are it will not happen accidentally. Dad and Mom are the trust officers, the planning officers, and the careful organizers of a family master plan. They establish family goals and determine the best methods of achieving these family objectives.
To hold regular and effective family home evenings takes desire and some hard decision-making on the part of parents. Our homes are all different, with different challenges, different personalities; but parents must have the determination and the will to make some personal sacrifices so as to really make it work.
Henry Ward Beecher wrote: "We are not born as the partridge in the wood, or the ostrich of the desert, to be scattered everywhere; but we are grouped together, and brooded by love and reared day by day in that first of churches, the family."
We are all aware that our youth are being pressured from all sides with bizarre sensationalism that attempts to present a new morality-even a non-family concept-that is in complete opposition to the true teachings of the gospel. The words to some of the rock music, some of the films, and the pictures in some of the magazines indicate with a resounding ring that the rains are pouring, not just on your neighbor's family, but also upon yours.
Now, if some of you are finding resistance in getting your families together each week and are tempted to give up, please find strength in these words of Elder Marion G. Romney: "It is not enough to do our best. Unless we do all we can, we do less than we ought. We must succeed in doing what is necessary. Unless we get the job done, it is not enough."
A few days ago we witnessed a little family, with the grandmothers and grandfathers and some of the uncles all united to participate, as a loving father conferred the Aaronic Priesthood on his oldest son. This was a special and sacred occasion and an opportunity to teach and strengthen this little family's foundation.
Elder James E. Talmage wrote: "We regard children literally as gifts from God, committed to our parental care, for whose support, protection, and training in righteousness we shall be held to a strict accounting."
With our own God-given desire and intelligence, we will find solutions to today's pressing issues, but we must be willing to draw from the wisdom and the strength of our Church leaders, who continually seek and receive divine guidance.
Years ago President Joseph F. Smith gave us an answer and a promise when he said, "If you will gather your children around you once a week and instruct them in the gospel, they will not go astray."
The prophet Nephi's counsel applies today as it did in days of old. He admonished:
" remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, when all of his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall."
May this be so with your family, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Bruce R. McConkie
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I asked the Lord what he would have me say on this occasion and received the distinct and affirmative impression that I should bear testimony that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that he was crucified for the sins of the world.
I have what is known as "the testimony of Jesus," which means that I know by personal revelation from the Holy Spirit to my soul that Jesus is the Lord; that he brought life and immortality to light through the gospel; and that he has restored in this day the fullness of his everlasting truth, so that we with the ancients can become inheritors of his presence in eternity.
Now a testimony comes from the Spirit of God. There is no other source. And when a testimony is borne, it has to be borne by the power of the Spirit. And so I desire and pray fervently that I may be guided by that power on this occasion, so that what I say will be the mind and will and voice of the Lord.
I desire to bear testimony to myself, to you as members of the Church, and to all the world. As I speak by the power of the Spirit, if my testimony is to sink into your hearts and be in you a well springing up unto eternal life-if your hearts are to burn within you, so that you will know of the truth and divinity of the words spoken-you must be guided by the power of the same Spirit, and so I pray that your hearts may be opened and that your souls will burn within you and you will know of the verity of what is said.
I shall take the liberty, both by way of testimony and to set the tone for what is involved, to read these words of my own composition:
Now, salvation originates with God our Heavenly Father. Indeed, salvation is to be like him, to inherit, possess, and receive what he enjoys. If we are to know God, we must believe as he believes, think as he thinks, and experience what he experiences.
The great plan of salvation was created by our Heavenly Father, to enable us to advance and progress and become like him. But salvation is centered in Christ. The plan called for the creation and peopling of this earth, so that we might come here and gain experiences that were not available in any other way.
We dwelt with our Father in the eternities that preceded this life. We were present when the great cry went forth from him through the midst of eternity: "Whom shall I send to be my son, to work out the infinite and eternal atoning sacrifice, to put in full force and operation the terms and conditions of my eternal plan?" We were there, and in the poetic language of Elder Orson F. Whitney, we beheld:
-Joseph Fielding Smith, Way to Perfection, p. 52.
Now salvation is centered in the Lord Jesus Christ. In the language of the angel who came to King Benjamin: " salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent."
Joseph Smith was asked, "What are the fundamental principles of your religion?" He answered: "The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it."
That is to say, the atoning sacrifice of the Lord is the center of all things, as far as we are concerned. God our Heavenly Father created us, without which we would have no existence. And Christ the Son has redeemed us, without which there would be neither immortality nor eternal life.
Now the glorious thing that has happened in this day is that the heavens have been opened; that God has spoken again; that he has called living oracles, men who are apostles and prophets, to be his mouthpiece, to declare his mind and his purpose and his will to the world; and his message is the restored gospel of Jesus Christ; and it is administered in the Church which bears his name.
Now, my voice is the voice of testimony. I bear record of the truth and divinity of this work. But my voice is not alone. It is not one voice crying in a wilderness.
The testimony that I bear is just an echo of the testimonies that have been borne by faithful people from the spring of 1820, when the Father and the Son appeared to usher in this last great dispensation of eternal truth. And the testimony that I bear is but a harbinger of that testimony which yet will be borne by ten thousand times ten thousand people, redeemed out of every nation and kindred and tongue and people, redeemed by obedience to the message that God restored through the instrumentality of Joseph Smith in this day.
And if there is one wondrous thing about this work, it is that it is true; that there is saving efficacy and virtue and force in the gospel of Jesus Christ; and that the power of God unto salvation is found here in the tops of these everlasting hills; and this glorious truth is spreading out to all the nations of the earth as rapidly as people in them accept the testimony and witness that is borne and believe the truths that our fellow representatives proclaim. This is a day of which God has said that all of gathered Israel shall be witnesses of his name. " ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, that I am God."
This is a day when he has said that every elder in his kingdom, everyone who holds the holy priesthood, has power to speak in his name, to have the Holy Ghost bear record and enlighten his mind, and to proclaim the truths of salvation.
I proclaim these truths and desire in my heart to have men believe and obey. I think I can say with Nephi that the fullness of mine intent is to persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob and be saved-because the work is true, because salvation is in Christ. And God being our witness, it is true. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
Surely all of us have been conscious of the fact that there has been a very powerful spirit with us in this session this morning. Few times, I suppose, have I desired so much the sustaining power of the Spirit as I discuss a very delicate and difficult subject.
There are many young people in our audience today. It is to them, particularly to the teenagers, that I speak. The subject should be of great interest to you: Why stay morally clean.
I approach the subject with deepest reverence. This may surprise some, for this subject is the most talked about, sung about, and joked about of any subject. Almost always it is talked about immodestly.
I intend to sustain modesty, not to offend it, as I venture to speak on this delicate subject.
Young people, my message is of very deep importance to you. It concerns your future happiness. Some things that I say may be new to you who have not read the scriptures.
In the beginning, prior to your mortal birth, you lived with our Heavenly Father. He is real. He actually lives. There are those living upon the earth who bear witness of his existence. We have heard his servants do so in this session. He lives, and I bear testimony of it.
He knew you there. Because he loved you, he was anxious for your happiness and for your eternal growth. He wanted you to be able to choose freely and to grow through the power of correct choice, so that you may become much as he is. To achieve this, it was necessary for us to leave his presence. Something like going away to school. A plan was presented, and each agreed to leave the presence of our Heavenly Father to experience life in mortality.
Two great things were in store for us as we came into this world. One, we would receive a mortal body, created in the image of God. Through it, by proper control, we might achieve eternal life and happiness. Two, we would be tried and tested in such a way that we could grow in strength and in spiritual power.
Now this first purpose is wonderfully important, for this body given us will be resurrected and will serve us through the eternities.
Under the accepted plan, Adam and Eve were sent to the earth as our first parents. They could prepare physical bodies for the first spirits to be introduced into this life.
There was provided in our bodies-and this is sacred-a power of creation, a light, so to speak, that has the power to kindle other lights. This gift was to be used only within the sacred bonds of marriage. Through the exercise of this power of creation, a mortal body may be conceived, a spirit enter into it, and a new soul born into this life.
This power is good. It can create and sustain family life, and it is in family life that we find the fountains of happiness. It is given to virtually every individual who is born into mortality. It is a sacred and significant power, and I repeat, my young friends, that this power is good.
You who are teenagers, like every other son and daughter of Adam and Eve, have this power within you.
The power of creation-or may we say procreation-is not just an incidental part of the plan: it is essential to it. Without it the plan could not proceed. The misuse of it may disrupt the plan.
Much of the happiness that may come to you in this life will depend on how you use this sacred power of creation. The fact that you young men can become fathers and that you young women can become mothers is of utmost importance to you.
As this power develops within you, it will prompt you in the search for a companion and empower you to love and to hold him.
I repeat, this power to act in the creation of life is sacred. You can some day have a family of your own. Through the exercise of this power you can invite children to live with you-little boys and little girls who will be your very own-created, in a way, in your own image. You can establish a home, a dominion of power and influence and opportunity. This carries with it great responsibility.
This creative power carries with it strong desires and urges. You have felt them already in the changing of your attitudes and your interests.
As you move into your teens, almost of a sudden a boy or a girl becomes something new and intensely interesting. You will notice the changing of form and feature in your own body and in others. You will experience the early whispering of physical desire.
It was necessary that this power of creation have at least two dimensions: one, it must be strong; and two, it must be more or less constant.
This power must be strong, for most men by nature seek adventure. Except for the compelling persuasion of these feelings, men would be reluctant to accept the responsibility of sustaining a home and a family. This power must be constant, too, for it becomes a binding tie in family life.
You are old enough, I think, to look around you in the animal kingdom. You soon realize that where this power of creation is a fleeting thing, where it expresses itself only in season, there is no family life.
It is through this power that life continues. A world full of trials and fears and disappointments can be changed into a kingdom of hope and joy and happiness. Each time a child is born, the world somehow is renewed in innocence.
Again I want to tell you young people that this power within you is good. It is a gift from God our Father. In the righteous exercise of it as in nothing else, we may come close to him.
We can have, in a small way, much that our Father in heaven has as he governs us, his children. No greater school or testing place can be imagined.
Is it any wonder, then, that in the Church marriage is so sacred and so important? Can you understand why your marriage, which releases these powers of creation for your use, should be the most carefully planned, the most solemnly considered step in your life? Ought we to consider it unusual that the Lord directed that temples be constructed for the purpose of performing marriage ceremonies?
Now there are other things that I will tell you as a warning. In the beginning there was one among us who rebelled at the plan of our Heavenly Father. He vowed to destroy and to disrupt the plan.
He was prevented from having a mortal body and was cast out-limited forever from establishing a kingdom of his own. He became satanically jealous. He knows that this power of creation is not just an incident to the plan, but a key to it.
He knows that if he can entice you to use this power prematurely, to use it too soon, or to misuse it in any way, you may well lose your opportunities for eternal progression.
He is an actual being from the unseen world. He has great power. He will use it to persuade you to transgress those laws set up to protect the sacred powers of creation.
In former times he was too cunning to confront one with an open invitation to be immoral. But rather, sneakingly and quietly he would tempt young and old alike to think loosely of these sacred powers of creation. To bring down to a vulgar or to a common level that which is sacred and beautiful.
His tactics have changed now. He describes it as only an appetite to be satisfied. He teaches that there are no attendant responsibilities to the use of this power. Pleasure, he will tell you, is its sole purpose.
His devilish invitations appear on billboards. They are coined into jokes and written into the lyrics of songs. They are acted out on television and at theaters. They will stare at you now from most magazines. There are magazines-you know the word, pornography-open, wicked persuasions to pervert and misuse this sacred power.
You grow up in a society where before you is the constant invitation to tamper with these sacred powers.
I want to counsel you and I want you to remember these words.
Do not let anyone at all touch or handle your body, not anyone! Those who tell you otherwise proselyte you to share their guilt. We teach you to maintain your innocence.
Turn away from any who would persuade you to experiment with these life-giving powers.
That such indulgence is widely accepted in society today is not enough! For both parties to willingly consent to such indulgence is not enough!
To imagine that it is a normal expression of affection is not enough to make it right.
The only righteous use of this sacred power is within the covenant of marriage.
Never misuse these sacred powers.
And now, my young friends, I must tell you soberly and seriously that God has declared in unmistakable language that misery and sorrow will follow the violation of the laws of chastity. " wickedness never was happiness."
These laws were set up to guide all of his children in the use of this gift.
He does not have to be spiteful or vengeful in order that punishment will come from the breaking of the moral code. The laws are established of themselves.
Crowning glory awaits you if you live worthily. The loss of the crown may well be punishment enough. Often, very often, we are punished as much by our sins as we are for them.
I am sure that within the sound of my voice there is more than one young person who already has fallen into transgression. Some of you young people, I am sure, almost innocent of any intent, but persuaded by the enticements and the temptations, already have misused this power.
Know then, my young friends, that there is a great cleansing power. And know that you can be clean.
If you are outside the Church, the covenant of baptism itself represents, among other things, a washing and a cleansing.
For those of you inside the Church there is a way, not entirely painless, but certainly possible. You can stand clean and spotless before Him. Guilt will be gone, and you can be at peace. Go to your bishop. He holds the key to this cleansing power.
Then one day you can know the full and righteous expression of these powers and the attendant happiness and joy in righteous family life. In due time, within the bonds of the marriage covenant, you can yield yourselves to those sacred expressions of love which have as their fulfillment the generation of life itself.
Someday you will hold a little boy or a little girl in your arms and know that two of you have acted in partnership with our Heavenly Father in the creation of life. Because the youngster belongs to you, you may then come to love someone more than you love yourself.
This experience can come, insofar as I know, only through having children of your own or perhaps through fostering children born of another and yet drawn close into family covenants.
Some of you may not experience the blessings of marriage. Protect nonetheless these sacred powers of creation, for there is a great power of compensation that may well apply to you.
Through this loving one more than you love yourself, you become truly Christian. Then you know, as few others know, what the word Father means when it is spoken of in the scriptures. You may then feel something of the love and concern that he has for us.
It should have great meaning that of all the titles of respect and honor and admiration that could be given him, God himself, he who is the highest of all, chose to be addressed simply as Father.
Protect and guard your gift. Your actual happiness is at stake. Eternal family life, now only in your anticipations and dreams, can be achieved because our Heavenly Father has bestowed this choicest gift of all upon you-this power of creation. It is the very key to happiness. Hold this gift as sacred and pure. Use it only as the Lord has directed.
My young friends, there is much happiness and joy to be found in this life. I can testify of that.
I picture you with a companion whom you love and who loves you. I picture you at the marriage altar, entering into covenants that are sacred. I picture you in a home where love has its fulfillment. I picture you with little children about you and see your love growing with them.
I cannot frame this picture. I would not if I could, for it has no bounds. Your happiness will have no ends if you obey his laws.
I pray God's blessings upon you, our youth. May our Heavenly Father watch over you and sustain you, that in the expression of this sacred gift you may draw close to him. He lives. He is our Father. Of this I bear witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
I feel it a great honor, brothers and sisters, to share with you a few moments in this the last session of this inspired conference. I am sure, as we have listened to the messages of our brethren during these various sessions, we can't help but feel a deep appreciation in our hearts that the Lord saw fit to institute in his restored church the practice of holding conferences.
Just think of the inspiring counsel and advice we have had here to help us put our own lives in order, the lives of our loved ones, of our families, and of the young people. It has taught us how to treat our neighbors and friends, and in all that has been said here today, we have learned of the responsibilities that are ours in the political affairs in which we should participate in our own communities.
We have just listened to this lovely song, so beautifully rendered by our choir, "Oh, How Lovely Was the Morning." Just think, that is the most important message to go out to all the world today. In President Smith's opening address he said, "The Lord's work shall triumph. No power on earth can prevent the spread of truth and the preaching of the gospel in every nation."
In the general priesthood meeting last night he added, "The gospel shall roll forth until it shall fill the whole earth." If the gospel is going to roll forth and fill the whole earth, what a responsibility we Latter-day Saints have, with our families, in helping it to roll forth into all the earth. There is no message in this world today that could be told that would be as valuable to our neighbors and our friends who are not members of this church as to bear witness of this great event, about which the choir has just sung.
I think of the words of the apostle Peter of old. He said to the saints of his day:
" ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light."
We have been admonished in this conference to let our light so shine, as Jesus said, that others seeing our good works may be led to glorify our Father which is in heaven.
Paul tells us: " faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
" and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? "
Therefore, there rests upon this people the great responsibility of bearing witness to the entire world of what the Lord has done in restoring his truth to the earth in this dispensation.
When Jesus was asked by his disciples for the sign of his second coming, you will recall he told them about the wars and rumors of wars, and pestilence, and earthquakes, and famine, and that nation should rise against nation. And then he added:
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come."
Where would one look today to find that gospel of the kingdom that Jesus referred to? Not according to man's interpretation of the scriptures, but where the divine power rests, such as Jesus gave to his Twelve when he said:
"Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you. "
" and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. "
Anybody could organize a church and take from the scriptures certain passages and base their church upon that, but how can they take a living branch from a dead tree? How can they put in it the power and the authority to act in the name of the Lord?
They couldn't do that any more than they could act for the mayor of the city, the governor of the state, or the president of the United States, without being duly commissioned so to do. Neither can any work effectively in the kingdom of our Father in heaven unless they have divine authority given to them by those who have the right to so convey it.
And so we stand here as witnesses of the restoration of the gospel and bear our witness to all the world that we do know that Christ lives, that our Father lives, that they have visited this earth. As was sung in that song about the Prophet Joseph, he announced that in answer to his inquiry as to which of all the churches he should join, he was told he should join none of them, for they taught for doctrines the commandments or precepts of men.
I think if people were just open-minded, it wouldn't be so hard for them to know where to find the truth. Of course, we take the Bible as our guide to help us in our search for the truth. I have always been greatly impressed by the experience that Elder Orson F. Whitney had. He was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, and he related this in one of our conferences. I would like to read it to you. He said:
"Many years ago a learned man, a member of the Roman Catholic Church, came to Utah and spoke from the stand of the Salt Lake Tabernacle. I became well-acquainted with him, and we conversed freely and frankly. A great scholar, with perhaps a dozen languages at his tongue's end, he seemed to know all about theology, law, literature, science and philosophy. One day he said to me: 'You Mormons are all ignoramuses. You don't even know the strength of your own position. It is so strong that there is only one other tenable in the whole Christian world, and that is the position of the Catholic Church. The issue is between Catholicism and Mormonism. If we are right, you are wrong; if you are right, we are wrong; and that's all there is to it. The Protestants haven't a leg to stand on. For, if we are wrong, they are wrong with us, since they were a part of us and went out from us; while if we are right, they are apostates whom we cut off long ago. If we have the apostolic succession from St. Peter, as we claim, there is no need of Joseph Smith and Mormonism; but if we have not that succession, then such a man as Joseph Smith was necessary, and Mormonism's attitude is the only consistent one. It is either the perpetuation of the gospel from ancient times, or the restoration of the gospel in latter days.'"
It seems to me that if people would just think, they must come to the conclusion that this is a correct statement, if they want to find the gospel that Jesus said is the everlasting gospel that should be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations before he would come again to the earth.
One can't study the holy scriptures without knowing that the prophets have declared an apostasy from the original church. When John the Revelator was banished on the Isle of Patmos, the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him: "Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter."
Then he showed him all things from the war in heaven to the final winding-up scene, and he showed him the power that would be given to Satan to make war with the saints; and he said that power was given him over all kindreds and tongues and nations. Why should that be in the holy scriptures if the gospel was to remain upon the earth from the days of St. Peter down to the present time?
Paul was constantly warning the people in his day that they should not look for the coming of Jesus until there should be a falling away, and the man of sin would be revealed. And others of the prophets have likewise testified of the day when there should be a famine in the land. The prophet Amos said:
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord:
"And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."
Why? Because it was not upon the earth to be found.
If the gospel were to remain upon the earth, then when the angel of the Lord showed John that Satan would make war with the saints and overcome all kindreds and tongues and nations, he would have had to make an exception for those who still possessed the everlasting gospel. That is a witness that the truth should not be upon the earth at that time.
The scriptures are replete with promises of a restoration in the latter days. I like the statement by Peter following the day of Pentecost, when he said to those who had put to death the Christ:
"Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
"And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
"Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
If Peter was a prophet of God, we can't look forward to the second coming of Christ, and neither can the world, without a restitution-and not a reformation. There is a great difference between remodeling an old house and building a new one. As far as I know, in all the missionary work that I have done, there is no other church in this world that claims a restitution of all things, as was spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began.
This event we heard sung by the choir-of the coming of the Father and the Son-was followed by Moroni, a prophet who lived upon this earth 400 years after the time of Christ, and he brought the plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated.
John the Baptist, who was beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, returned as a resurrected being and conferred upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery the Aaronic Priesthood, with power to baptize by immersion for the remission of sins. He told them that later the Melchizedek Priesthood would be restored, which would be the power to administer the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Peter, James, and John, the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, who were with him on the Mount of Transfiguration, returned and brought back that Melchizedek Priesthood. Could all the money in the world buy things that would mean as much to the children of our Father in heaven as these events that transpired? And what could come to us individually, and to our families and to our friends and our loved ones, like the coming of these holy messengers?
And that isn't all. Then there came Elijah the Prophet, of whom Malachi spoke, that were it not for his coming before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at his coming. He said:
"And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."
That opened the door for an understanding of the words of the apostle Paul, when he said that the Lord had revealed the mystery of his will unto him:
"That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth. "
We live in the dispensation of the fulness of times, and the coming of Elijah has brought the keys of his mission, and that is why we build these holy temples. That is why we have this great genealogical program, the like of which can't be found anywhere in all this world. And so the prophets have foreseen the coming of these holy prophets.
John, while he was on the Isle of Patmos, didn't only see the power that Satan would have to make war with the saints and to reign over them all, but he "saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people."
This would not have been necessary if there had been a continuation of the gospel. And then he said: "Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come. " And we live in the day of his judgment.
Then he adds: " and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."
At the time that Joseph Smith had his marvelous vision, there wasn't a church in the world worshiping the God who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and the fountains of waters, and created man in his own image. They worshiped an essence everywhere present. They described him as being without body, parts, or passions, who sits on the top of a topless throne, and that is about the best explanation of nothing as a person could write. If he doesn't have a body, how could he speak? How could he hear? How could he understand and talk?
Moses made mention of this when he was leading the children of Israel into the promised land. He told them that they would not remain there long, but that they would be scattered among the nations, and then he said: "And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell."
That is the kind of god this world was worshiping at the time Joseph Smith had his marvelous vision.
But Moses saw something more. He saw that in the latter days, if his people would search for him, they should surely find him. And Joseph Smith, answering that admonition in James, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him", went and sought after him, as Moses advised, and he found the true and the living God. We have a testimony to bear to all of the world to this event.
I think of the words of the apostle Paul when he said that he determined to know nothing but Jesus and him crucified. That doesn't mean that he didn't know the old prophets or appreciate them, but a new day had come.
The Son of God had come, of whom the prophets had spoken, and then he said: " for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!"
In that same sense, we know nothing but the restoration of the gospel, that it was brought by the Son of Man himself, so that there is no separation from the prophets of this dispensation, and woe be unto us if we share not these marvelous truths with the world!
Brothers and sisters, I know that this is the work of God the Eternal Father. It is the greatest movement in all the world today. There isn't an honest man or an honest woman in this world, who really loves the Lord, who wouldn't join this church if they would take time to find out what it is and would ask God the Eternal Father, who will not mislead them.
That is my witness and testimony to you, and I leave it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch of the Church
In that upper room in Jerusalem where the Last Supper was held, Jesus gave his disciples considerable instructions. Among many things he taught them, he said: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
Again he said: "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."
Peace is a much-used word nowadays. We hear it on every side, in every newspaper, in every magazine. Men are truly running to and fro all over the earth looking for peace. We think of it as a modern form of salutation, but it is as old as mankind.
The people of biblical lands have always greeted each other with "Peace be unto you" or "Peace be with you." Yet that little section of the earth has always been torn by wars and by captivity and bondage for the people, under a succession of rulers. At the time of Christ, they were under the rule of the Roman Empire.
Naturally, the Jews expected a "Redeemer," a "Savior," and thought he was to release them from bondage. Isaiah wrote:
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Peace was not brought to this land called the Holy Land. Even today the hulks of old tanks and other war machines lie rusting on the sides of the roads. Ever-present soldiers keep vigilant watch along the borders. Nor has peace come to the rest of the world. Yet, in the Sermon on the Mount, Christ taught peace. He said, "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
Speaking to his disciples, Jesus said: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
What kind of peace did Christ mean? I think his own acts explain what he meant.
After the Last Supper, when Christ had finished his instructions to the apostles, John wrote:
"When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron, where was a garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples.
"And Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the place: for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither with his disciples.
"Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons.
"Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye?
"They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them.
"As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.
"Then asked he them again, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth.
"Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he: if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way."
Can you match that display of calmness? of peace? Here they are coming to take a man they want to kill, and he as much as says, "Here I am, take me, but let my friends go."
Then when he stood before Pilate, under the pressure of rigid questioning, Pilate could not raise his ire. In perfect peace, he answered his questions. Pilate found no wrong in him.
After he was crucified and then resurrected, his first message to his disciples was, "Peace be unto you."
How is it that we have not discovered the secret of peace when we have been looking for it all through the ages? I'll tell you. We are looking for someone to create it for us-to bring it to us. Edna St. Vincent Millay said: "There is no peace on earth today, save the peace in the heart at home with God. No man can be at peace with his neighbor who is not at peace with himself. "
Have you experienced that peace within you because you helped your neighbor rake his lawn or mow his lawn? Have you felt that peace within because you helped your neighbor pick his fruit or harvest his crops? Have you witnessed that peace within because you shoveled the snow off your neighbor's walks? Have you felt that peace which came because you helped someone solve a problem and get a new lease on life? Have you "cheered up the sad, and made someone feel glad"?
Did you ever have a guilty conscience? Do you know the turmoil and tumult it can bring to your very soul? It can cause mental and even physical illness. Do you know the blessed relief of rectifying whatever caused this feeling? It may have been an unkind word, a thoughtless act, or it may have gone deeper than that. Until you have adjusted whatever causes a guilty conscience, you cannot hope for peace of mind.
Do you, at this time, have unkind feelings or less than love in your heart for a friend, a neighbor, or any of God's children? Try doing something extra nice for that person, and keep it up until all the bitterness has gone from your heart.
Have you taught a Sunday School class and felt when you finished that you had really taught someone some principle of the gospel that had really helped him or given him a brighter look on life? Remember the feeling of peace and joy that followed? Have you ever taught someone the gospel and received that feeling of joy because he had accepted what you had been teaching? The thrill of missionary work!
Have you sensed the thrill, the peace within your soul, that comes from a knowledge of the gospel and from accepting and living in accordance with the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Have you felt the peace from doing temple work, vicarious work for the dead?
A key to peace, then, is service. Christ said: "But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant."
Have you ever been aware that all the use of priesthood is service to someone else? Haven't you always had a good feeling of peace within when you have been fulfilling your priesthood duty?
Peace, then, comes from service.
The Lord has said: "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Is this not the ultimate of service? To become as God is, then, we must eliminate enmity, greed, and selfishness, and all our efforts must be in service to others. The Lord said: " he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come."
Joseph Smith was an example of utmost peace in the face of tribulation. Though he had been arrested and acquitted thirty-seven times, he knew this time he would not return. On the way from Nauvoo to Carthage, Joseph Smith said:
"I am going like a lamb to the slaughter; but I am calm as a summer's morning; I have a conscience void of offense toward God and towards all men. I shall die innocent, and it shall yet be said of me-he was murdered in cold blood."
Then at Carthage, Joseph wrote to his wife, Emma, the following: "I am very much resigned to my lot, knowing I am justified, and have done the best that could be done. Give my love to the children and all who inquire after me. May God bless you all."
Isaiah says: "And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever" -the assurance of knowing you are living in accordance with God's will.
Our guide on a recent tour in the Holy Land, who is a Jordanian Arab and a Greek Orthodox Catholic by the name of Sari Rabadi, taught us a little Arabian song: "Havano, shalo, malechem," which translated means: "We bring you peace."
Yes, Sari, we say to you and to all the world, we bring you peace. We bring you the peace of the gospel, that peace which Christ meant when he said, " my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. "
If each person would have peace within his soul, then there would be peace in the family. If there is peace in each family, then there is peace in the nation. If there is peace in the nations, there is peace in the world.
Let us not just sing, "Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me," but let us mean it. Make it my goal-your goal.
When the Savior comes again-and he will come-he will bring peace only as we will accept and follow his teachings of service to others and eliminate enmity and unrighteousness.
That angel which John saw "fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth" has already come. The gospel of Jesus Christ has been established on the earth, never again to be taken from the earth.
His kingdom is already here on earth and is growing rapidly to prepare for his coming. Yes, he shall surely come and bring peace to the earth, but only as we are willing to follow his teachings. This is his work, and his kingdom, which is the only way to world peace and eternal peace. I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
A major recurring theme of this conference, including the seminar of the Regional Representatives of the Twelve, mentioned either directly or indirectly by nearly every speaker, has been the importance and necessity of the priesthood. I want to address my remarks to this subject. The vitality and power of the priesthood on the earth today are greater than at any other period in the world's history.
On March 28, 1835, in Kirtland, Ohio, in a meeting with the Council of the Twelve, the Prophet Joseph received a singularly important revelation on priesthood:
"There are, in the church, two priesthoods, namely, the Melchizedek and Aaronic.
"Why the first is called the Melchizedek Priesthood is because Melchizedek was such a great high priest.
"Before his day it was called the Holy Priesthood, after the Order of the Son of God.
"All other authorities or offices in the church are appendages to this priesthood."
It is vital that we understand this foregoing thought. President Joseph F. Smith said:
"There is no office growing out of this Priesthood that is or can be greater than the Priesthood itself. It is from the Priesthood that the office derives its authority and power. No office gives authority to the Priesthood. No office adds to the power of the Priesthood. But, all offices in the Church derive their power, their virtue, their authority, from the Priesthood. If our brethren would get this principle thoroughly established in their minds, there would be less misunderstanding in relation to the functions of government in the Church than there is."
There are three presiding quorums in the Church chosen from the body of the priesthood:
"Of necessity there are presidents, or presiding officers growing out of those who are ordained to the several offices in these two priesthoods.
"Of the Melchizedek Priesthood, three Presiding High Priests, chosen by the body, appointed and ordained to that office, and upheld by the confidence, faith, and prayer of the church, form a quorum of the Presidency of the Church.
"The twelve traveling councilors are called to be the Twelve Apostles, or special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world-
"And they form a quorum, equal in authority and power to the three presidents previously mentioned.
"The Seventy are to act in the name of the Lord, under the direction of the Twelve in building up the church and regulating all the affairs of the same in all nations. "
What is the priesthood? President John Taylor said:
" it is the government of God, whether on earth or in the heavens, for it is by that power, agency, or principle that all things are governed on earth or in the heavens, and by that power that all things are upheld and sustained. It governs all things-it directs all things-it sustains all things-and has to do with all things that God and truth are associated with. It is the power of God delegated to intelligences in the heavens and to men on the earth. "
In order to gain exaltation a man must obtain, then magnify, the holy priesthood.
"For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
"They become the elect of God.
"And therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
"And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood."
But we must remember that it is on condition of magnifying the priesthood we obtain. There is great energy being expended and much emphasis given to the operation and administration of this priesthood in the Church today.
"Therefore, let every man stand in his own office, and labor in his own calling; that the system may be kept perfect."
Standing in their responsibility, the high priests in the Church today have the overall priesthood responsibility to do genealogical research and perform temple ordinances. Through the priesthood they are to see to it that everyone in the Church, in proper time and order, saves his kindred dead. This means that all members are to-
1. have their personal book of remembrance.
2. complete research on at least their four generations.
3. live worthy to obtain a temple recommend.
4. attend to temple ordinances for the dead.
The seventy are to stand in their own office and labor in their own calling, which is priesthood missionary work. The seventy, as missionaries, are specialists in teaching. As members, our strength is in finding and fellowshiping. United we form a productive team to carry the message of the restoration to all of our Father's children.
Elders standing in their office and calling have a place in welfare work. However, they share a major responsibility for the perfecting of the Saints through priesthood home teaching. The president of the elders quorum has the unique calling to administer the gospel to more people in the ward than anyone else except the bishop. Priesthood home teachers are to-
" visit the house of each member, and exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties.
" watch over the church always, and be with and strengthen them;
" see that there is no iniquity in the church, neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking;
"And see that the church meet together often, and also see that all the members do their duty."
Each one of these specific duties is designed by the Lord to strengthen the home. You will notice that the word teach is mentioned only indirectly in this scriptural instruction. Perhaps if we as home teachers could catch the whole vision of what our duty is, then the teaching would eventually be done by the ones the Lord ordained to give instruction in the home.
Though priesthood home teaching has not yet come into the dignity of its calling, we may yet come to understand that it is one of the loftiest concepts of service in the Church. One thing is certain: it is service that saves.
The priesthood in the Church is a mighty bulwark against the advance of evil. There is no power on earth that can withstand the thrust of the adversary except a body of righteous men who honor their priesthood in their homes.
The young men of the Aaronic Priesthood have not been neglected. The Lord in his wisdom has seen fit to call you young men early in your lives to service in the kingdom. Sometimes, because you do not understand the program of the Church, you think that the Church is neglecting the vital issues. In the vernacular, you "want a piece of the action."
In this church there is a call to youth and there is plenty to do, if you will but follow the counsel of your leaders. It is not intended that you just "take the bit in your mouth" and run. A wise saying aptly applies: "The hand that holds the reins is not the power that pulls the load." The vigor and energy of youth united with the wisdom of mature men make a great team. That is the way the Lord has designed the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods to work together.
Why do we call upon you to live in purity? So that you will be fit servants to make your contribution to the kingdom of God.
Sixty-six years ago President Joseph F. Smith said:
"We expect to see the day, if we live long enough, when every council of the Priesthood in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will understand its duty; will assume its own responsibility, will magnify its calling, and fill its place in the Church, to the uttermost, according to the intelligence and ability possessed by it. When that day shall come, there will not be so much necessity for work which is now being done by the auxiliary organizations, because it will be done by the regular quorums of the Priesthood. The Lord designed and comprehended it from the beginning, and He made provision in the Church whereby every need may be met and satisfied through the regular organizations of the Priesthood."
We are just beginning to see the day when the strongest men in each office of the priesthood are to be called to priesthood leadership.
We call upon those of you who are now prospective elders to rise to your potential. Become the spiritual leaders in your home. Take upon yourselves the mantle of this responsibility. Perform the service that will save and exalt you and your loved ones in the kingdom of God. This is no ordinary call to serve, nor is this a frantic appeal. It is a solemn warning to get your personal life in order; to regulate the affairs of your family; to reach out to serve your fellowmen and bless the lives of others through this divine power.
This church with its inspired leadership is already battling the adversary. The struggle in which we are engaged is not some distant day in the future. It is now! If we do not see this clearly, it is because we do not understand the signals that come from the Brethren today.
After listening to conference for three days, the message of this conference is clear. It is to arise, assume your priesthood responsibility, and carry off the work of the Lord. This has not been a common conference. Nor is it just "the best conference ever." We have heard a clarion call to repent, to begin now to magnify this great power which is vouchsafed in this church.
Oh, my brethren, I plead with you to rise up. Shake off the shackles of indolence and sloth and go forward.
In the encouraging words of the Prophet Joseph: "Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory! "
I want to testify that Jesus is the Christ.
I testify that he is the great High Priest forever. I testify that God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ did appear to the Prophet Joseph Smith and instituted anew in this day the church of Jesus Christ, empowering him with God's power. I testify that these men hold the keys of the holy priesthood, that there is power and inspiration in what these Brethren say. There is no other group of men in all the world like these men. They have not come to position through a political party, nor have they won a popularity contest. They have been called by prophecy and by the laying on of hands. Things will be well with us and ours to the extent that we listen to and follow their inspired counsel. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, we have been fed the bread of life at this conference, the bread that feeds the spirit and brings out the divine nature in the human soul. The bread of life is built around Jesus Christ and his gospel of love and salvation.
A few years ago on our television set we had a set of rabbit ears for an antenna, and the pictures and messages were not clear. They were foggy and there was what they call "snow" on the set. Often we were unable to understand the message.
You cannot pick up the celestial message, the bread of life, the word of God, with rabbit ears on your human mind, your human body; the message will not be clear. You need your antenna high, well placed, and turned toward the divine message. You need to keep the mind clear and focused on the heavenly message. It takes time to plan and install in the human heart and mind an antenna to pick up spiritual revelation and inspiration from God. You must be in tune. If you're out of tune, you're out of harmony, and static and wrong impressions come from satanic and worldly sources.
Jesus Christ said, " this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
We can receive eternal life and salvation from knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom he has sent. Many believe that there is a God, many say that they know there is a God, but many do not act like they know God. There is a great difference in believing or knowing that there is a God and in knowing God. When we claim that we know God, it bears great responsibility, and an apostle has given us information to check our knowledge of God.
The apostle John said:
"And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
"He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
"But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
"He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked."
The apostle James said, "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
Jesus was recognized by a man possessed of the devil, and the devil spoke out and said, " I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God." The devils know God but do not respect his doctrine or keep his commandments.
Knowing God is related to keeping his commandments. Knowing God must come by direct revelation from God. You cannot know by the power of flesh and blood. This great lesson is taught by Jesus Christ in this message: The disciples were asked by Jesus Christ, "Whom say ye that I am?
"And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
"And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
The Lord has indicated that the gates of hell cannot prevail against revelation from him to any one of his children who desires to know the living God and to know the living Jesus Christ. This is available by divine commitment and by divine will, that for anyone desiring to know God the Eternal Father and to know his Son Jesus Christ, God is under commitment and the gates of hell cannot prevail against that commitment; and it will be revealed through the power and principle of revelation direct from God to the one desiring to receive that information.
All through the life of Jesus Christ he showed his knowledge of the living God and his loyalty and allegiance to God. Jesus Christ loved his Heavenly Father. He even went so far as to say, "My Father and I are one. I came down from heaven to do the will of my Father."
Knowing God does not solve life's problems, but gives purpose and strength to master them. Jesus, with his knowledge of his Heavenly Father, still had his problems to meet and to work out.
The answers to knowing God the Eternal Father are found in and through Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
In order to know God the Eternal Father, we must receive that knowledge through the program and through Jesus Christ, who is the mediator between God and man.
Jesus also gave this information, which is often repeated and known well by many; he said, "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."
The light of life is divine light that permeates and radiates in the human soul and brings out the godlike qualities and attributes of godliness. The light of life is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of love. The light of life has within it the glorious promises from God of eternal life in his heavenly kingdom. The light of life will bring divine truth and happiness and peace into a troubled heart. The light of life brings divine light into the problems and troubles of this life and helps to turn life's problems into steppingstones to eternal progression and to developing a godlike character.
Jesus also said: " light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
"For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
"But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God."
To know God, you must walk in the light of life. To know God as a living child of God, we should know our relationship to him, our divine potential, and we should know that in knowing God there is great responsibility to respect and love and follow his counsel and his doctrines and his commandments and to grow as a child to become more godlike.
Jesus Christ gave this commandment and important counsel by revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith. He said: " ye are commanded in all things to ask of God, who giveth liberally; and that which the Spirit testifies unto you even so I would that ye should do in all holiness of heart, walking uprightly before me, considering the end of your salvation, doing all things with prayer and thanksgiving, that ye may not be seduced by evil spirits, or doctrines of devils, or the commandments of men; for some are of men, and others of devils.
"Wherefore, beware lest ye are deceived; and that ye may not be deceived seek ye earnestly the best gifts, always remembering for what they are given;
"For verily I say unto you, they are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep all my commandments. "
We must always keep in mind that God's greatest gift is eternal life. Eternal life comes from knowing God and from knowing Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God; for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation."
The central and basic principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ is love. He laid the basis of human brotherhood in love. It begins in God's infinite love for his children, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
As is mentioned by the Savior, to know God means to keep his commandments. The Lord also gave this in the first and great commandment relative to the importance of keeping his commandments, when we say that we love God. Here is the great commandment on love: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment."
Jesus also said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
If we love God, we should keep his commandments. We should love his plan of life. We should love his Only Begotten Son, whom he sent to help us meet life and its problems and to redeem us from death, to make the resurrection and eternal life possible, and to give us the light of life that we may walk in his ways and in the divine light that will lead us to godlike blessings.
Jesus said, "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you."
We must keep in mind that divine programs and divine ways have been given unto us through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; and the way to know God and the way to perfect the human body and bring out its godlike qualities so that we can be in harmony and be a child of God, living so that we can know God, are provided in the great principles of faith and repentance.
I would like to mention briefly repentance. Jesus said, "Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The light is turned on in the human soul through the great principle of repentance. Jesus has asked us to repent of past sins, regrets, weaknesses, and failures, and to prepare and look ahead into the future of eternal life and salvation in the kingdom of heaven.
Repentance by all who are accountable is required for preparation and progression, for entrance into the kingdom of heaven. Repentance is God's purifying program and law for cleansing the human mind and body from weakness, imperfection, and sin. Repentance through Jesus Christ makes it possible for us to progress toward God's greatest gift, the gift of salvation and eternal life.
Repentance is a refining influence, a principle provided through the atonement and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to help us purify our mortal minds and bodies and to bring out our divine nature and godlike qualities and character so that we can live in the presence of God in his celestial kingdom.
The home and family is the place where knowledge of God and to know God should be taught, and the place where a loving God should be exemplified and taught to the children.
Parents, children should be taught in the home to know and to love God and to choose his doctrines and his commandments, and not to be misled or deceived by the doctrines of men or the doctrines of devils. They should be taught in the home their relationship to God and how to pray to him. Children should know that they are in the image and likeness of God, that they have godlike attributes and divine potential, that they are literally and truly children of God, with godlike capacities.
They should be taught in the home that Jesus Christ is the proper way, the truth and the great example to follow in this life.
They should be taught that the scriptures contain God's way of life, his plan of salvation, and each child should have his own set of scriptures, if capable of reading and understanding, so that he can have them by his bedside and have access to them whenever he feels he would like to know more of his Heavenly Father's plan of life and way of life.
It is not possible to choose God's way of life and to know God unless we know his program. If we only know the ways of men and the ways of the devil, then we will choose those ways. Jesus Christ commanded that we search the scriptures, that we know the truth, and that the truth would make us free. We find the Lord's truths in the holy scriptures, and there is no knowledge on the face of this earth greater than knowledge that has been given to us by our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Parents, is there love and respect for God in your home? The poet said: "There is beauty all around/When there's love at home."
Parents, do you know God the Eternal Father in your home? Do you pray to a living God? Do you pray to a God that you know, and do you know your relationship to him?
Parents, be careful that you do not permit the devil to come into your home. When the devil enters, he brings disrespect for God, hatred, quarreling, criticism, contention, divorce, and evil. When you know God and have respect for his plan, then there is peace and happiness in your home.
Are there virtue and purity in your family life? Is the Lord's hallowed Sabbath day kept sacred in your home and among your family?
Now, just a word about what is happening in the world and going on among our children. They are being deceived, and that which is entirely wrong looks to be right because so many fine people indulge in use of these two destroyers of the divine nature within man and their respect for God.
Parents, do you drink alcohol? The Lord has warned that alcohol is not good for man. Alcohol is a drug that can destroy godlike character. Alcohol is not good for children and not good for adults.
Parents, are you showing and teaching by example in your home how to use tobacco? Tobacco is a drug. Doctors say cigarettes are the nation's greatest single health peril. A doctor speaking in Salt Lake City recently said that cigarettes kill five times more people than do traffic accidents. Jesus Christ said that "tobacco is not good for man." Tobacco is not good for children and is not good for adults.
A person who knows God would want to be like God, because God is perfect. God has all knowledge. God has power to create mankind from the dust of the earth. Anyone knowing God would have great respect for God. Anyone knowing the living God and indulging in the number one killer and destroyer of health of mankind shows a lack of love and knowledge and respect for God.
Parents, is your example the example you want your children to follow? Do you teach self-control in your home? Do you teach divine principles so that the godlike qualities of your children can be manifest in their lives?
The home is the place to teach love for God and knowledge of God, and for people to know God and to pray to a God that they know.
President Harold B. Lee has said, "The most important work you will do for the Church will be within the walls of your own home." I repeat, "The most important work you will do for the Church will be within the walls of your own home."
May we recall again these words of the Prophet David O. McKay: "No other success can compensate for failure in the home." And may I add: No other success can compensate for failure to know the living God and the living Jesus Christ in your home and with your family.
Parents, your children are from God. There is no other answer from God. They have divine potential, and it is your responsibility to help them to know and love God, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, their Savior.
I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Over the door of the library in the ancient city of Thebes, an Egyptian king once carved an inscription that said: "Medicine for the Soul."
Like all thoughtful people, this wise ruler understood that if the mental, spiritual, and emotional health of his people was to be properly cared for, it must be constantly nourished. And because ideas, ideals, and ambitions can be most effectively supplied through books, this great king had provided an ample literary storehouse as a place where his people could get the necessary help for thinking good ideas, building up proper attitudes, vitalizing their faith, motivating their ambitions, and increasing their righteousness, that they might help themselves to save their souls.
This idea of a mental and spiritual storehouse still provides one of our most constructive opportunities. It is reported that there is a physician in Birmingham, Alabama, who goes around writing prescriptions for people, to be filled not at drugstores but at bookstores. He knows what all of us know, that our most serious sicknesses are our soul sicknesses.
One of the tragedies of our times is the increase, to epidemic proportions, of the psychosomatic diseases brought on by our sins and emotional disturbances. As someone has pointed out, we never get stomach ulcers because of what we eat; we get stomach ulcers because of what is eating us. And as we are presently being eaten up by our ignorance, our sins, and our weaknesses, we are suffering some staggering moral death-and-disability losses.
One of the most effective cures for all of our present-day problems is found in the literary remedy that comes from thinking uplifting thoughts and living the great principles of the gospel. The science of writing has probably made books our greatest invention. Writing is preserved speech; it is potential ambition. By effective study we can acquire knowledge, build faith, and develop an enthusiasm that will lead us to any desired accomplishment.
It was the Savior of the world who said: "Man shall not live by bread alone. " And because of the wonders of our day, every family may have its own library of great books, including the word of God himself. But before anyone can be benefited by any of our great literature, he must effectively believe in it.
Abraham Lincoln once said, "What I want to know is in books." The two most powerful books in Lincoln's life were, first, the Holy Bible, which even in his youth he hungrily devoured before the open fire, and second, The Life and Memorable Actions of George Washington by Mason L. Weems.
Washington was able to serve as Lincoln's ideal, and out of his heart Lincoln said, "Washington is the mightiest name on earth, long since mightiest in the cause of civil liberty, still mightiest in moral reformation. On that name a eulogy is expected that cannot be. To add brightness to the sun or glory to the name of Washington is alike impossible. Let none attempt it. In solemn awe pronounce the name, and in its naked, deathless splendor leave it shining on."
Someone has pointed out that books are among life's most precious possessions. They are the most remarkable creation of man. Nothing else that man builds ever lasts. Monuments fall, civilizations perish, but books continue. The perusal of a great book is as it were an interview with the noblest men of past ages who have written it.
Charles Kingsley once said, "There is nothing more wonderful than a book. It may be a message to us from the dead, from human souls we never saw who lived perhaps thousands of miles away, and yet these little sheets of paper speak to us, arouse us, teach us, open our hearts and in turn open their hearts to us like brothers. Without books, God is silent, justice dormant, philosophy lame."
John Milton once said, "Books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a progeny of life in them to be as active as that soul was whose progeny they are; nay they do preserve as in a vial the purest efficacy and extraction of that living intellect that bred them."
The great wonder of writing and reading is indicated by the experience of an early-day explorer in the dark continent of Africa. He desired to send a message to a friend many miles away, and it was arranged for a trusted native to be his messenger. The native watched as with his pen the explorer made some marks on a piece of paper, which had no significance to him. Then the explorer gave the native the letter for delivery.
After traversing the many miles of wilderness, the native put the message in the hands of the one for whom it was intended. The native discovered that as soon as the recipient had studied the paper, he immediately knew exactly where the explorer was and what his problems were. He knew all about his health and as much about the needs that prompted him to send the letter as though the explorer had come in person.
The miracle involved in this mysterious communication so impressed the native that he fell down on his face and worshiped the paper.
But what should be our enthusiasm when we can clearly read and understand those important papers recording the words of God as they came out of the fires of Sinai? Or what about those papers containing the vitalizing thoughts expressed in that greatest of all discourses, the Sermon on the Mount?
Just before the resurrected Christ ascended to his Father, he gave a thrice-repeated instruction to his chief apostle, saying, "Feed my sheep." That important responsibility for feeding the flock is also in force among us. But our personal salvation is a joint enterprise, and the responsibility for feeding our souls is one of the primary do-it-yourself projects that God himself has put into our hands. This great Egyptian king had provided the library, but the people were required to take the medicine themselves.
Our present state of malnutrition is not because of any famine for bread nor a thirst for water, but it is for the hearing and the obeying of the word of the Lord. That is, our many soul-deaths do not occur because a remedy is not available; it is only because we are failing to take that medicine which has already been provided and has already proven its effectiveness.
Emerson pointed out one phase of our problem when he said, "On the brink of an ocean of life and truth, we are miserably dying. Sometimes we are furtherest away when we are closest by." So frequently that is true.
Think how near they were who lived contemporaneously with Jesus. He walked among them. They heard him speak. And yet they were so far away that they said, "His blood be on us, and on our children." And so it has been and so it may be with us. We are so near and yet we may be so far away. We live on the edge of an ocean of knowledge, but each must take his own steps that will bring him there.
On one occasion Lowell Thomas, the great radio commentator and broadcaster, was telling about the large amount of money that people spend each year to send their messages out across the major radio networks. And someone said to Mr. Thomas, "What is the greatest message that you have ever had a part in broadcasting? Or," they asked, "what is the greatest message that you could conceive as being broadcast to the people of the world?" And Mr. Thomas said, "The greatest message that I can conceive would be that God had again spoken to his people upon the earth."
We conduct a lot of Gallup polls among us. We like to know what the Democrats and the Republicans think. We are interested in what the labor unions and the economists think. But above all other interests, we ought to know what God thinks. God is the Creator of the universe. He is the Father of our spirits and the designer of our destinies. Above everyone else he knows the purpose of our lives and which approach will bring us to the most satisfying success.
One of the greatest good fortunes of our day is that God has not only spoken to the people upon the earth, but he came in person in the greatest manifestation of his being ever known in the world. And not only did he come in person, but he caused that his message should be written down in three great volumes of new scripture outlining in every detail the simple principles of the gospel of Christ. So again, as of old, we hear that life-giving, authoritative pronouncement: "Thus saith the Lord."
If we would all hear and follow, the Savior of men would be able to realize his greatest prayer made nineteen hundred years ago when he looked out beyond his own day and said to his Father: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."
Our present most urgent needs are that we should read more and understand more and think more and do more and be more and live more. Jesus emphasized his own mission by saying, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." We must not allow the holy scriptures to sit on our shelves unopened while we continue to starve to death spiritually because we fail to practice those great success laws on which the eternal exaltation of our souls depends.
May God help us to be more grateful for those thrilling, lifesaving truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and may he help us to wholeheartedly eat the bread and more freely drink the waters of life that in his abundance our souls might live.
For this I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder John H. Vandenberg
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
This morning as I walked into the Tabernacle, one of the attendant brethren said to me, "Bishop, I am looking forward to hearing your speech this afternoon." And then he added, "You are the last one."
I suppose he had in mind that this great conference has brought so many things, so many good things-the testimonies of the prophets, seers, and revelators, exciting changes, and testimonies of the brethren that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ-to the extent that our cups truly run over.
What a blessing it is to set a course and work diligently at it. This past decade I have had the privilege of working with two wonderful men. You have seen the good works and heard the good words of Elder Robert L. Simpson and Bishop Victor L. Brown. This isn't a parting or a farewell, but I will always cherish the experience I have had in working with these two wonderful men of God. God bless them, and God bless the Church for their service.
I know that we are led by revelation. It comes to us through the prophet of God, Joseph Fielding Smith. I have thought a good deal about this, because I know that he is a prophet and that his counselors serve God as they serve with President Smith.
In thinking what I might say at this conference, I wasn't aware that this change in my assignment was coming. I was down in Hawaii recently, and a young Hawaiian girl approached us and greeted us with both arms uplifted, holding up two fingers of each hand. I asked her what the sign meant, and with a broad smile she immediately replied, "Peace."
In traveling the highways, we often observe passing automobiles in which young occupants display the same sign at windows. We see the word peace painted on walls, fences, sidewalks, and, at times, in psychedelic colors on vehicles.
We wonder at the apparent interest in peace by the current generation. Is it any different from that of generations past? What do we mean by this expression of peace? Is it a passing fad, or is there deep determination for its accomplishment?
Peace was placed in two categories by the Master. You will recall his words to his disciples during the days before his crucifixion. He had admonished them to keep his commandments and had promised to send them another Comforter, the Spirit of truth, which is the Holy Ghost, who would teach them all things and bring all things to their remembrance that he had said unto them. Then he said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
What did the Savior mean when he said "not as the world giveth"? What kind of peace has the world to give?
Certainly it is true that many are searching for peace in the world, and yet some follow paths in their search that could only lead in the opposite direction-paths of avarice, ambition, envy, anger, and pride. Surely the greatest enemy of peace is selfishness and with it the desire to pile up treasures on earth. This brings to mind the parable by the Good Teacher as found in the Gospel of Luke:
"And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me.
"And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?
"And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
"And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
"And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
"And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater, and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
"And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
"But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
"So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."
How can we be rich toward God? Does this refer to the laying up of treasures in heaven by living his commandments-love of God and of our fellowmen? Wouldn't living each day with these objectives in mind bring into our lives that peace spoken of by the Savior? Aren't we all too much inclined to be encumbered about by many things and forget those things that are most needful?
Henry David Thoreau thought so, for we read in his book Walden: "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. Most of the luxuries, and many of the so called comforts of life, are not only not indispensable, but positive hindrances to the elevation of mankind."
And Joshua Liebman wrote similarly in his little book Peace of Mind: "A man may have a home, possessions, a charming family, and yet find all these things ashy to his taste because he has been outstripped in the marathon race by some other runners to the golden tape line. It is not that he does not possess enough for his wants, but that others possess more. It is the more that haunts him, makes him depreciate himself and minimize his real achievements.
"The time has come when a man must say to himself: 'I am no longer going to be interested in how much power or wealth another man possesses so long as I can attain enough for the dignity and security of my family and myself. I am going to break through this vicious circle which always asks the question of life in a comparative degree: Who is bigger? Who is richer? Who has more? I am going to set my goals for myself rather than borrow them from others. "
I believe that this is one thing we can learn from our youth today. They have, in many cases, set simpler values and seen through the transitory worth of material things. They recognize that ambition that leads men to seek power and domination over others brings not peace, but frustration. Certainly history is replete with examples of the rise and fall of ambitious men, and during temporary relief from hostilities between nations the cry always rises, "Now we will have peace." How many wars have been termed "a war to end all wars"?
Yet an encyclopedia shows that during the period from 1496 B.C. to A.D. 1861 there were 227 years of peace compared with 3,130 years of war. Ambition, either privately or collectively, gives little hope for the achievement of peace.
Today we have a universal search for peace-a generation of peace; yet most of those who discard the grasping, selfish race for power know not where to turn to find a way of life to take its place.
But peace cannot be achieved by making a sign or by writing words on fences. It must come first and most completely to the individual through his own efforts in keeping the commandments of our Lord and Savior, for God made all men to enjoy such peace.
Just as running madly after worldly things does not bring peace, neither does sitting idly. Because our modern conveniences often leave us much time beyond that which is necessary to sustain ourselves and our families, it becomes important not to spend this time idly; for there is much to be done if we are to partake of the Lord's peace.
Probably there is no quicker way to enjoy inner peace than by serving one another. There is recorded in history a marvelous period of time when this peace did indeed banish avarice, ambition, envy, anger, and pride from men's hearts. It was shortly after the Savior's visit to the American continent after his death and resurrection. We read:
" the people were all converted unto the Lord and there were no contentions and disputations among them, and every man did deal justly one with another.
"And they had all things common among them; therefore there were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the heavenly gift.
"And there were great and marvelous works wrought by the disciples of Jesus, insomuch that they did heal the sick, and raise the dead, and cause the lame to walk, and the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear.
"And the Lord did prosper them exceedingly in the land.
"And now, behold, it came to pass that the people of Nephi did wax strong, and did multiply exceedingly fast, and became an exceedingly fair and delightsome people.
"And they were married, and given in marriage, and were blessed according to the multitude of the promises which the Lord had made unto them.
"And they did not walk any more after the performances and ordinances of the law of Moses; but they did walk after the commandments which they had received from their Lord and their God, continuing in fasting and prayer, and in meeting together oft both to pray and to hear the word of the Lord.
"And it came to pass that there was no contention among all the people, in all the land; but there were mighty miracles wrought among the disciples of Jesus.
"And it came to pass that there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people.
"And there were no envyings, nor strifes, nor tumults, nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of lasciviousness; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God.
"There were no robbers, nor murderers, neither were there Lamanites, nor any manner of -ites; but they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God.
"And how blessed were they! For the Lord did bless them in all their doings; yea, even they were blessed and prospered until an hundred and ten years had passed away; and the first generation from Christ had passed away, and there was no contention in all the land.
" Nephi, he that kept this last record, kept it eighty and four years, and there was still peace in the land, save it were a small part of the people.
"And it came to pass that two hundred years had passed away. "
This was indeed a fortunate people whose history is contained in the Book of Mormon, a book which covers nearly three thousand years and which reveals that only during those periods of time when the people were keeping God's commandments did they enjoy peace, love, happiness, and prosperity.
Today man's greatest desire and hope is to find a life of peace and joy, progress, and freedom, which can only be found in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Yet, paradoxically, we live in a world where war, destruction, contention, law-breaking, and immorality surround us, and many become lost. One of these, a young woman, tells her story in the current issue of the New Era magazine for youth. How fortunate she was in finding the true gospel of Christ to show her the way out of the confusion in which she had wandered; and what gratitude she expresses to those caring young people who showed her the way!
As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we accept as positive knowledge from God the fact that each human being lived in a preexistent spiritual world as a child of God and came to this mortal life for a great and necessary part of eternal life. This mortality provides the opportunity to choose the right and to obtain knowledge by faith in the revealed plan of God, which will bring peace and freedom for mortal as well as eternal life.
We accept as a fact that God has revealed through his chosen prophets the way of life which leads to peace, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Human passions for mortal gratification, including selfishness, envy, anger, and pride, must be replaced by spiritual ideals, and sin must become abhorrent to us, for we know that all we do here will affect our lives in eternity.
We believe that only through this knowledge and way of life can an individual or a nation achieve that peace which is so desired and sought after.
And so we say to this generation, which is so verbally calling for peace, that this thought toward peace today is indeed significant, for it is true that peace is in our hands-our own personal peace as well as in great measure the peace of our world. Believe in it, work for it, live for it; for in it, as you follow through and work for the establishment of peace first in your own souls, you will then have true peace.
Now as we go from this great conference, brothers and sisters, let us go recognizing that our cup is filled to overflowing. We have been charged with the great messages of God's prophet. We have been charged with the testimonies of the brethren. We have been charged with the Spirit of God, which has been in our presence and is now in our presence.
Let us go forth with our personal testimonies, to which I wish to add mine, that I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, and that we live and serve, if we but will, under the direction of God's prophet, Joseph Fielding Smith, supported by two other prophets, Harold B. Lee and Nathan Eldon Tanner, and supported by thirteen other prophets, the Quorum of the Twelve and the patriarch.
God be with you and bless you as we go forth to carry out our assignments, whatever they are, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
My dear brethren and sisters: I feel that the Lord has been with us in all the sessions of this conference; that we have been fed the bread of life; and that we are better prepared now to be the kind of people the Lord would have us be.
I am grateful to all of the Brethren for their wise counsel and for the messages they delivered as they were guided by the power of the Spirit.
I think we should conclude on a tone of thanksgiving, of blessing, and of testimony.
I have no language to convey the feelings of thanksgiving which are in my heart for the infinite and eternal blessings the Lord has given to me, to my family, to the Church, and, in fact, to the whole world.
I am grateful for the atoning sacrifice of the Son of God-that because of his suffering and death all men shall be raised in immortality, while those who believe and obey his laws shall have eternal life in his kingdom.
I am thankful for the restoration of eternal truth in this final gospel dispensation; for the mission and ministry of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, and my grandfather, Hyrum Smith, the Patriarch; and for the fact that the keys of the kingdom of God have been committed again to man on the earth.
I am pleased with the growth and development of the Church, with the increased missionary work, with the many temples we now have, and with the lives of all those who are seeking to serve the Lord.
I pray that the Lord will bless all the members of the Church; and by virtue of the keys and power which I hold, I bless the Saints-those who dwell in the household of faith, those who love and seek the Lord.
What a glorious thing it is to have the saving truths of the everlasting gospel, to be members of "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth", to be on the path leading to eternal life in our Father's kingdom!
O God our Heavenly and Eternal Father, look down in love and in mercy upon this thy church and upon the members of the church who keep thy commandments. Let thy Spirit dwell in our hearts forever; and when the trials and woes of this life are over, may we return to thy presence, with our loved ones, and dwell in thy house forever, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
Today, at the greatest moment of my life, I find myself without words to express my deep and innermost feelings. What I may say, therefore, must be actuated by the Spirit of the Lord, that you, my beloved Saints of the Most High God, may feel the depths of my soul-searching on this momentous and historic occasion.
As I have participated with you in this moving experience of a solemn assembly, there has been brought more forcibly than ever to my mind the significance of the great revelation of the Lord given to the Church in 1835. In this revelation the Lord gave specific instructions setting forth the order of the priesthood in the government of the church and kingdom of God.
In this revelation the Lord specified four requisites in the establishment of the First Presidency, or the presidency of the Melchizedek, or High, Priesthood of the Church, as the Lord speaks of it.
First, it was requisite that there be three presiding high priests.
Second, they were to be chosen by the body.
Third, they must be appointed and ordained by the same body-the Quorum of the Twelve.
Fourth, they must be upheld by the confidence, faith, and prayers of the Church.
All of these steps were taken in order that the quorum of the First Presidency could be formed to preside over the Church.
Those first steps were taken by action of the Twelve and they were attended to in a sacred meeting convened in the temple on July 7, 1972, where the First Presidency were named.
Today, as never before, have I more fully realized the importance of that last requirement: that this presidency, in the Lord's language, must be upheld by the confidence, the faith, and the prayers of the Church-which means, of course, the entire membership of the Church.
We witnessed a short while ago the outpouring of love and fellowship that was in evidence in the great regional conference of our wonderful Lamanite Saints from Central America and Mexico, assembled in Mexico City in August. Over 16,000 Saints were gathered together in a great auditorium, where they sustained their General Authorities.
Again, in the mighty demonstration of this solemn assembly, I am moved with emotions beyond expression as I have felt the true love and bonds of brotherhood. There has been here an overwhelming spiritual endowment, attesting, no doubt, that in all likelihood we are in the presence of personages, seen and unseen, who are in attendance. Who knows but that even our Lord and Master would be near us on such an occasion as this, for we, and the world, must never forget that this is his church, and under his almighty direction we are to serve! Indeed, I would remind you what he declared in a similar conference of Saints in Fayette, New York, and undoubtedly would remind us again today. The Lord said: "Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you that mine eyes are upon you. I am in your midst and ye cannot see me."
On the sacred occasion three months ago when I began to sense the magnitude of the overwhelming responsibility which I must now assume, I went to the holy temple. There, in prayerful meditation, I looked upon the paintings of those men of God-true, pure men, God's noblemen-who had preceded me in a similar calling.
A few days ago in the early morning hours, in my private study at home and all alone with my thoughts, I read the tributes paid to each of the Presidents by those who had been most closely associated with each of them.
Joseph Smith was the one whom the Lord raised up from boyhood and endowed with divine authority and taught the things necessary for him to know and to obtain the priesthood and to lay the foundation for God's kingdom in these latter days.
There was President Brigham Young, who was foreordained before this world was, for his divine calling to lead the persecuted Saints in fleeing from the wrath that threatened the Saints in those early gathering places in Missouri and Illinois and to pioneer the building of an inland commonwealth in the tops of these majestic mountains, to fulfill God's purposes.
To look upon the features of President John Taylor was to gain a realization that here was one, as President Joseph F. Smith spoke of him, "One of the purest men I ever knew. "
As I saw the sainted face of President Wilford Woodruff, I was aware that here was a man like Nathanael of old, in whom there was no guile, and susceptible to the impressions of the Spirit of the Lord, by whose light he seemed to almost always walk "not knowing beforehand the thing he was to do."
While President Lorenzo Snow had but a brief administration, he had a special mission to establish his people on a more solid temporal foundation by the determined application of the law of sacrifice, to relieve the great burdens placed upon the Church because of mistakes and errors which had unwittingly crept in.
When I want to seek for a more clear definition of doctrinal subjects, I have usually turned to the writings and sermons of President Joseph F. Smith. As I looked upon his noble stature. I thought of the nine-year-old boy helping his widowed mother across the plains and the 15-year-old missionary on the slopes of Haleakala on the isle of Maui being strengthened by a heavenly vision with his uncle, Joseph Smith. It was he who presided during the stormy days when an antagonistic press maligned the Church, but his was the steady arm by the Lord's appointment to carry off the Church triumphantly.
I suppose I never drew closer to the meaning of a divine calling than when President Heber J. Grant placed his hands upon my shoulders and, with a deep feeling akin to mine, announced my calling to be an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. As his picture looked down upon me, there came again to my mind the prophetic words of his inspired blessing when I was ordained in the holy temple trader his hands.
President George Albert Smith was a disciple of friendship and love. He was indeed a friend to everyone. My gaze at his likeness seemed to give me a warmth of that radiance which made every man his friend.
Tall and impressive was President David O. McKay, as he now looked at me with those piercing eyes, which always seemed to search my very soul. Never was I privileged to be in his presence but that I felt for a brief moment, as I had done on so many occasions, that I was a better man for having been in his company.
To him who sought no earthly honors, but whose whole soul delighted in the things of the spirit, President Joseph Fielding Smith was there with his smiling face, my beloved prophet-leader who made no compromise with truth. As "the finger of God touched him and he slept," he seemed in that brief moment to be passing to me, as it were, a sceptre of righteousness as though to say to me, "Go thou and do likewise."
Now I stood alone with my thoughts. Somehow the impressions that came to me were, simply, that the only true record that will ever be made of my service in my new calling will be the record that I may have written in the hearts and lives of those whom I have served and labored, within and without the Church.
The day after this appointment, following the passing of our beloved President Smith, my attention was called to a paragraph from a sermon delivered in 1853 in a general conference by Elder Orson Hyde, then a member of the Twelve. This provoked some soul-searching in me also.
The subject of his address was "The Man to Lead God's People," and I quote briefly from his sermon: " it is invariably the case," he said, "that when an individual is ordained and appointed to lead the people, he has passed through tribulations and trials, and has proven himself before God, and before His people, that he is worthy of the situation which he holds. that when a person has not been tried, that has not proved himself before God, and before His people, and before the councils of the Most High, to be worthy, he is not going to step in and lead the Church and people of God. It has never been so, but from the beginning some one that understands the Spirit and counsel of the Almighty, that knows the Church, and is known of her, is the character that will lead the Church."
As I have known of the lives of those who have preceded me, I have been made aware that each seemed to have had his special mission for his day and time.
Then, with searching introspection, I thought of myself and my experiences of which Orson Hyde's appraisal had made reference. Then I recalled the words of the Prophet Joseph's characterization of himself, which seemed somewhat analogous to myself. He said:
"I am like a huge rough stone rolling down from a high mountain; and the only polishing I get is when some corner gets rubbed off by coming in contact with something else, striking with accelerated force against religious bigotry, priestcraft, lawyer-craft, doctor-craft, lying editors, suborned judges and jurors, and the authority of perjured executives, backed by mobs, blasphemers, licentious and corrupt men and women-all hell knocking off a corner here and a corner there. Thus will I become a smooth and polished shaft in the quiver of the Almighty. "
These thoughts now running through my mind begin to give greater meaning to some of the experiences in my life, things that have happened which have been difficult for me to understand. At times it seemed as though I too was like a rough stone rolling down from a high mountainside, being buffeted and polished. I suppose, by experiences, that I too might overcome and become a polished shaft in the quiver of the Almighty.
Maybe it was necessary that I too must learn obedience by the things that I might have suffered-to give me experiences that were for my good, to see if I could pass some of the various tests of mortality.
In the selection of my noble counselors, President N. Eldon Tanner and President Marion G. Romney, I learned that I was not alone with a rich measure of the gift of prophecy. They too had passed the tests, and before the Lord they had not been found wanting. How grateful I am for these noble men of the First Presidency and the Twelve and the other General Authorities.
The morning after my call came, as I knelt with my dear companion in prayer, my heart and soul seemed to reach out to the total membership of the Church with a special kind of fellowship and love which was like the opening of the windows of heaven, to give me a brief feeling of belonging to the more than three million members of the Church in all parts of the world.
I repeat what I have said on other occasions, that I most fervently seek to be upheld by the confidence, faith, and prayers of all the faithful Saints everywhere, and I pledge to you that as you pray for me, I will earnestly try to so live that the Lord can answer your prayers through me.
In these last months, there seem to have been awakened in me new wellsprings of spiritual understanding also. I know full well the truth of what the Prophet Joseph told the early missionaries to Great Britain: "The nearer a person approaches the Lord, a greater power will be manifested by the adversary to prevent the accomplishment of His purposes."
There is no shadow of doubt in my mind that these things are as certain today as in that day, but also I am certain that, as the Lord said, "No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; And if any man lift his voice against you he stall be confounded in mine own due time."
How grateful I am for your loyalty and your sustaining vote! I bear you solemn witness as to the divine mission of the Savior and the certainty as to his guiding hand in the affairs of his church today, as in all dispensations of time.
I know, with a testimony more powerful than sight, that as the Lord declared, "The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth.
"Wherefore, may the kingdom of God go forth, that the kingdom of heaven may come. "
I bear that testimony with all the conviction of my soul and leave my blessing upon the membership of the Church and the pure in heart everywhere, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bruce R. McConkie
Of the Council of the Twelve
I am grateful beyond any measure of expression, beyond any utterance in my power, for the blessings the Lord has so abundantly showered upon me, upon my family, and upon the faithful Saints in all the world. I now seek, most sincerely and devoutly, to be guided by the power of the Holy Ghost in bearing testimony of the truth and divinity of this glorious work in which we are all engaged. I pray also that the spirit of light and truth and edification so far present in this meeting may continue to rest in your hearts, so that you, being edified, will know of yourselves that those things about which I shall testify are true.
As members of the church and kingdom of God on earth, we enjoy the gifts of the Spirit-those wonders and glories and miracles that a gracious and benevolent God always has bestowed upon his faithful saints. The first of these gifts listed in our modern revelation on spiritual gifts is the gift of testimony, the gift of revelation, the gift of knowing of the truth and divinity of the work. This gift is elsewhere described as the testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophecy. This is my gift. I know this work is true.
I have a perfect knowledge that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that he was crucified for the sins of the world. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God through whose instrumentality the fullness of the everlasting gospel has been restored again in our day. And I know that this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kingdom of God on earth, and that as now constituted, with President Harold B. Lee at its head, it has the approval and approbation of the Lord, is in the line of its duty, and is preparing a people for the second coming of the Son of Man.
And I know further that the Lord pours out upon his people today the same glorious and wondrous gifts enjoyed by the ancient saints. To us in this day he gives the spirit of prophecy and of revelation, even as he did to them of old. "I will tell you" the glories and wonders of the everlasting gospel, he says; "I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart. Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation."
I know there is revelation in the Church because I have received revelation. I know God speaks in this day because he has spoken to me. I rejoice in the privilege and opportunity to serve as a witness of his name, to teach the truths of salvation which he has revealed, and then to testify that these doctrines are true.
This course of teaching sound doctrine and of testifying of the truth is the Lord's system. Religion comes from God. There is no other source. That which is true, that which brings joy and peace into the hearts of men in this world and prepares them for eternal glory in the world to come-all this originates with the Lord. Man can no more create saving religion than he can resurrect himself.
God has given us the truths of salvation in this day on the same basis he has revealed them in every dispensation of the past. His system is now and always has been to reveal to apostles and prophets and righteous men the doctrines and truths of salvation and to command them to teach those truths and to bear witness of their verity to the world. They are to bear testimony that they know their teachings come from the Lord. His representatives and servants are always witnesses of the truth. I rejoice in the privilege of standing as a witness of the truth in this day.
I am grateful that I was privileged to raise my hand to the square and covenant in my mind and in my soul this day, as the Spirit of the Lord was poured out upon this great congregation, that I would sustain and uphold and take the counsel of these great men whom God has called to preside over his kingdom, the First Presidency of the Church-President Harold B. Lee, a seer, a man filled with the spirit of revelation and of wisdom who is on intimate terms with that Lord whose we are; President N. Eldon Tanner, the embodiment of integrity and the basic Christian virtues, who loves the Lord and keeps his commandments; President Marion G. Romney, a spiritual giant, a preacher of righteousness, who knows the Lord and teaches his doctrine. President Romney and I are members of the same family. After I had been told of my call, he said to me, "I think Granddad Redd will be glad to receive us." I said, "I am going to live so I will be worthy to go where he is." He said, "So am I."
With reference to these brethren who hold the keys of the kingdom of God at this hour, the voice of the Lord to his people is: "These are they whom I have chosen as the First Presidency of my Church. Follow them." And also, " on them have I laid the burden of all the churches, and whosoever receiveth me, receiveth those, the First Presidency, whom I have sent. "
I desire with all my heart to sustain and to uphold the Presidency of the Church, to walk in the light of the revelation and truth that comes from their lips, as they give the mind and will of the Lord, both to his people and to the honest truth seekers among all the nations of the earth. I know that the work is true.
I think I speak for each one of you, I know I do for myself and my family, when I say that in this solemn assembly-with the outpouring of the Spirit of the Lord that has been present as we have sustained the authorities of the Church and as we have listened to President Lee as he spoke by the power of the Spirit-I think all of us desire to rededicate our lives to the principles of truth and righteousness for which these noble leaders, the Presidents of the Church named by President Lee, have lived and labored and died.
Let this then be our covenant-whatever the past has been-let this then be our covenant, that we will walk in all the ordinances of the Lord blameless. Let this be our covenant, that we will keep the commandments of God and be living witnesses of the truth and divinity of this glorious work, which is destined to sweep the earth as with a flood and which shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.
O God, grant that I and my family and all the faithful members of the house of Israel may walk in truth and light, and having enjoyed the fellowship and kinship and association that is found nowhere else on earth outside the Church, let us enjoy that same spirit, that same fellowship in its eternal fullness, in the mansions and realms which are ahead.
All of this I say humbly and gratefully, in the spirit of testimony and of thanksgiving, and in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder John H. Vandenberg
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
The dignity of the proceedings of this solemn assembly causes me to have the comforting assurance that the Lord, in his goodness, continues to provide inspired leadership and divine guidance to his church, the purpose of which is to build his kingdom upon the earth and serve his children. His church extends the invitation to all who so desire to partake of the power of the gospel, which will lift an individual out of oblivion and, in so doing, will give a feeling of satisfaction and happiness not to be found elsewhere. It provides the sources of control for self-improvement, a stable character, and a truly successful life.
Who is there who has reached that point in life where he can afford to allow himself to stop growing or to stop improving? Although I never had the privilege of meeting her, I am told that my wife's mother often repeated the adage to her children: "If you consider yourself a nobody and do nothing to improve yourself to become a somebody, you truly will end up being a nobody." She, no doubt, understood the power and capacity of every soul for self-improvement.
It is highly doubtful that there is even one soul upon the earth, regardless of station or age, who does not have ample room for personal growth and improvement. Quoting the words of one of the Lord's prophets: "If we are no better tomorrow than we are today, we are not very useful."
The sad part of humanity seems to be the utter lack of desire, in the lives of many, to really do something about enlarging the vistas of their existence. A distinguished doctor made the observation that "for the great majority of people, the good life is identical with trivial entertainment, cheap music, superficial writing, and an unending stream of visual trash. Their life is divorced from an enthusiastic faith in the future. It is focused on immediate pleasures sustained by a simplification of the grave problems pressing upon them."
Rather than accepting the challenge to change and grow, this type of person seemingly refuses to recognize the need to constructively reorganize portions of his life. One wonders, will the time ever come that will cause a reflection back on their lives? If so, their reaction could very well be as is expressed in a newspaper cartoon, under the heading "Ziggy," which said: "It's kind of a disappointment, after reflecting on your life, to finally come face-to-face with yourself in a mud puddle."
Listening to a commentator recently, I was impressed by a related idea. His comments included the following:
"Lin Yutang, the famous Chinese philosopher, has written: 'We do not know a nation until we know its pleasures of life, just as we do not know a man until we know how he spends his leisure. It is when a man ceases to do the things he has to do, and does the things he likes to do, that the character is revealed. It is when the repressions of society and business are gone and when the goads of money and fame and ambition are lifted, and a man's spirit wanders where it listeth, that we see the inner man, his real self.'"
Then he continued: "Have you ever thought much about that? Your leisure gives you away. I used to know a man who was head of a very large commercial empire. Beginning with nothing but ambition, he became a multimillionaire and, finally, retired as head of his far-flung company. He bought a large and magnificent yacht with which to cruise the world. And do you know what he did with his free time? He read salacious paperbacks and got falling-down drunk and had to be carried to bed, unconscious, every night. He's dead now. His leisure gave him away. There was nothing there just nothing at all. He was a one idea man. Once he was away from that idea, he was a lost child in the wilderness. He didn't enjoy his yacht travel meant nothing to him. He was a pitiful, unhappy cypher. Not because he was rich there are thousands, millions just like him in every walk of life. It was just that his millions, which gave him access to the whole world, were worthless to him and accentuated his nothingness."
Then the commentator asked the question: "What do you do with your leisure time? It's a good idea to examine carefully this important segment of your life. It exposes the real person-but not the finished person. We can change. "
Change is what it will take to bring any individual out of the dilemma of living with principles of error. I believe the greatest force in the world to cause such a change is the gospel of Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul experienced one of the greatest such changes that took place in any man, and he concluded: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. "
The fourth Article of Faith reads: "We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost." As we briefly consider each of these principles, we will be aware of the power embodied in each of them.
Faith is a principle of power. It is the cause of action. A prime example was taught by the Savior as we read in the seventeenth chapter of Matthew:
"And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying,
"Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.
"And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.
"And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.
"Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
"And Jesus said unto them, because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
"Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting."
The evidence of the power of faith is clearly defined by the Savior. Faith in God will cause the miracle of change and set the course of action on the true purpose of life.
Repentance follows faith as naturally as the day follows dawn. The poet writes: "The morning breaks, the shadows flee." Repentance is the very essence of change; it embodies the powerful principle of obedience to God's law and discipline of self. When applied to our lives, it provides a cleansing joy which surges through us.
It has been said: "Disgrace clings to no man after repenting, any more than feet defiled with mud of the world, come yet soiled and polluted from the cleansing bath." King Benjamin gives further emphasis to this thought:
"And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them.
"And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in knowledge of the glory of him that created you. "
Baptism requires obedience to the law of God. The divine fiat has been to call all men to repent and be baptized. Baptism is a companion to repentance. It is a principle and an ordinance of the gospel, and when complied with, it is the power of entering into the kingdom of God on earth. Jesus complied with this ordinance to fulfill all righteousness. The prophet Nephi said:
"And now, if the Lamb of God, he being holy, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized, yea, even by water!"
The efficacy of the ordinance of baptism is unquestionable as it cleanses the reborn person.
Baptism prepares the individual to receive the rebirth of the spirit, the laying on of hands, for the gift of the Holy Ghost. Joseph Fielding Smith brings to mind these words from the Prophet Joseph Smith:
"There is a difference between the Holy Ghost and the gift of the Holy Ghost. Cornelius received the Holy Ghost before he was baptized, which was the convincing power of God unto him of the truth of the Gospel, but he could not receive the gift of the Holy Ghost until after he was baptized. Had he not taken this sign or ordinance upon him, the Holy Ghost which convinced him of the truth of God, would have left him. Until he obeyed these ordinances and received the gift of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of hands, according to the order of God, he could not have healed the sick or commanded an evil spirit to come out of a man, and it obey him. " President Smith says further: "It mattereth not whether we live long or short on the earth after we come to a knowledge of these principles and obey them unto the end."
In these principles we find the unfailing power to change. As to the effective use of our leisure time, we have, in the gospel, unnumbered opportunities. As one acquires knowledge of the gospel principles and pursues his course, he can successfully apply those principles to his individual circumstances, whether his position be one of great or meager possessions; whether it be early in life, during his economic production period, or in retirement. The gospel is meant to temper life and to bring it into true balance and fruition.
The Lord has decreed that "the Church hath need of every member." This implies development of its members by participation in the programmed activities of children and youth, filling the numerous teaching opportunities, administration assignments, fulfillment of member duties, the fulfillment of priesthood duties, not forgetting to visit the homes of members, searching out the records of ancestors, and temple participation, all of which are only part of the never-ending list of activities with which to fill our leisure hours.
The individual power is attested to in this scripture: "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
As we consider the aspects of growth and achievement, the word success obviously comes to the fore-success as it applies in terms of the world. Success or failure can carry most of us either to the peaks of happiness or to the depths of despair. People will do almost anything to keep from being branded a failure.
If a man achieves worldly success and does not blend into his life a program of self-improvement to bring about a sensible balance, he no doubt will end up as a failure. He may win the honor of men, but what about his salvation-his eternal future? Think back on the example of the man with the yacht. Was he successful? Worldly-wise, yes! But when it comes to the things that count, wasn't he more like the man who "spent all his life letting down empty buckets into empty wells; and he is frittering away his age in trying to draw them up again"? Such people seek fulfillment and meaning in their lives but are unable to find it, because they themselves have misplaced their values.
Recently at a stake priesthood meeting I was greeted by two good convert brethren from the Netherlands, one of whom I like to think I had some participation in his conversion. I turned to him and asked: "Have you ever been sorry for having joined the Church?" His eyes brightened, and he responded with happy enthusiasm, saying, "No, never!"
Here, in my opinion, was a successful man. No doubt he had many vicissitudes in his life. His worldly possessions were probably minimal, but his good works-treasures in heaven-are innumerable. Here is evidence of just one of the thousands-millions-who have had similar experiences of becoming a "somebody."
And I ask you, brethren, sisters, where would we be, where would you be, where would I be, if it were not for the power of the gospel of Christ? I bear witness to its power and I do so in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
President of the Council of the Twelve
Beloved brethren and sisters and friends: Long will this solemn assembly remain in our memories. Long will we tingle from the impressive address of President Lee, following the voting. I think almost if one had a heart of stone, it would melt with the demonstration of this morning to see all the various groups raise their hands in unison to support the leaders of the Church, and it touched my heart deeply.
Another act in the greatest drama is being played. No theatrical stage has ever produced such acts of such engrossing interest and importance as have been the scenes of the history of the Church in these last days. The stage has changed from New York to Ohio to Missouri to Illinois to Utah. The conditions have altered and the people who have taken the parts are different people. Today another great leader is sustained. What a privilege for us who are here to be a part of such an important event! In this change in leadership of the Church, it is important that the quorums of the priesthood and the assembly of the Saints have an opportunity to express their gratitude, pledge their support and confidence, and reaffirm their covenants.
The calling of President Harold B. Lee follows the same pattern as that of the other Presidents back for many, many years. He holds all the same keys, has the same authority, represents the same church except that it has grown much larger.
When the Church was organized in 1830 it was composed of six people. So the Prophet Joseph Smith presided at first over a very small group, but it grew to many thousands by the time of his martyrdom.
When Brigham Young became President, there were approximately 40,000 members. In 1877 the new President, John Taylor, presided over about 145,000. Wilford Woodruff in 1887 had about 192,000 under him. When Lorenzo Snow became President in 1898, there were about 253,000 members, and then Joseph F. Smith had over a quarter of a million. President Heber J. Grant had nearly half a million; George Albert Smith one million, and when David O. McKay became President in 1951, there were over 1,100,000 members.
When Joseph Fielding Smith took over the reins, there were 2,800,000, and as President Harold B. Lee becomes the President, there are about 3,200,000 and growing very rapidly.
It is reassuring to know that President Lee was not elected through committees and conventions with all their conflicts, criticisms, and by the vote of men, but was called of God and then sustained by the people.
The Church has had three different Presidents in three years. A Deseret News editorial writer wrote this:
"In many organizations such rapid turnover at the top could readily bring on confusing shifts of direction and with them a feeling of hesitancy and uncertainty.
"By contrast, the feeling within the church during this historic period has been one of stability and clear purpose, of constancy amidst change."
The pattern divine allows for no errors, no conflicts, no ambitions, no ulterior motives. The Lord has reserved for himself the calling of his leaders over his church. It is a study of great interest and importance.
President Harold B. Lee became the President of the Church on July 7, 1972, but was ordained an apostle April 10, 1941, and was undoubtedly foreordained to these responsibilities in the far, far-away past as were his predecessors. The Prophet Joseph Smith made this statement over a century ago:
"Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven before this world was."
One of the early apostles spoke of Joseph Smith:
"That authority was not conferred upon him when he first saw angels and had some of the gifts it required the laying on of the hands of someone who had the authority of the Holy Priesthood."
In due time he received that authority under the hands of those who last held the keys upon the earth. He continues:
"When Jesus 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 in modern times and unitedly laid their hands upon the heads of Joseph and Oliver and ordained them to the authority that they themselves held, that of the Apostleship."
Significant to us is the fact that there has never been one minute since April 6, 1830, 142 years ago, that the Church has been without divine leadership. No deceased President has ever taken the keys and authorities into the spirit world away from the Church on the earth.
The second that the spirit left the body of President Joseph Fielding Smith on July 2, President Harold B. Lee in that same second as president of the twelve apostles rightfully assumed command and was the true and recognized leader, having been foreordained as said by Joseph Smith.
President George Q. Cannon speaks of the foreordination:
"It is a remarkable fact that Joseph Smith had gifts before he was ordained. He was a Seer, for he translated before he was ordained; he was a Prophet, for he predicted a great many things before he was ordained ; he was a Revelator, for God gave unto him revelations before the Church was organized. He, therefore, was a Prophet, Seer and Revelator before he was ordained in the flesh."
The Quorum of the Twelve on July 7, 1972, held all these gifts. And President Harold B. Lee has held them and the keys and the fullness of the priesthood since April 10, 1941, reaffirmed by the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on July 7 of this year.
Full provision has been made by our Lord for changes. Today there are fourteen apostles holding the keys in suspension, the twelve and the two counselors to the President, to be brought into use if and when circumstances allow, all ordained to leadership in their turn as they move forward in seniority.
There have been some eighty apostles so endowed since Joseph Smith, though only eleven have occupied the place of the President of the Church, death having intervened; and since the death of his servants is in the power and control of the Lord, he permits to come to the first place only the one who is destined to take that leadership. Death and life become the controlling factors. Each new apostle in turn is chosen by the Lord and revealed to the then living prophet who ordains him.
The matter of seniority is basic in the first quorums of the Church. All the apostles understand this perfectly, and all well-trained members of the Church are conversant with this perfect succession program.
Joseph Smith 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 and anointing, and administered unto them the sealing ordinances.
Today we have the opportunity as did the children of Israel to covenant again and to sustain a new prophet. The Lord said to Joshua, and it applies likewise to President Lee: "There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses," the Lord says, "so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee."
"And the people said we will serve the Lord.
"The Lord God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
"So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day."
Let this then be our covenant today. An early leader said: "I look at our President-I always did watch the captain of the ship with peculiar interest, when on the ocean surrounded by icebergs or when in the midst of great storms. I watched his eye and his demeanor, and I fancied that I could form a good idea of our peril by watching him. I have been in storms when everybody on board excepting the Elders expected to go down. "
Now it is our privilege to sustain President Lee.
An important rule was given to us by the Prophet Joseph with which you are probably familiar: "I will give you one of the Keys of the mysteries of the Kingdom. It is an eternal principle, that has existed with God from all eternity. That man who rises up to condemn others, finding fault with the Church, saying that they are out of the way, while he himself is righteous, then know assuredly, that that man is on the high road to apostasy; and if he does not repent, will apostatize, as God lives."
President Cannon warned again: "If any of you have indulged in the spirit of murmuring and fault-finding and have allowed your tongues to give utterance to thoughts and words that were wrong and not in accordance with the spirit of the Gospel, you ought to repent of it with all your hearts and get down into the depths of humility and implore Him for the forgiveness of that sin-for it is a most deadly sin.
"The men who hold the Priesthood are but mortal men: they are fallible men. No human being that ever trod this earth was free from sin, excepting the Son of God. "
This is true concerning all of the brethren, I am sure.
"Nevertheless, God has chosen these men. He has singled them out, but He has selected them, and He has placed upon them the authority of the Holy Priesthood, and they have become His representatives in the earth. He places them as shepherds over the flock of Christ, and as watchmen upon the walls of Zion. And He holds them to a strict accountability for the authority which He has given to them, and in the day of the Lord Jesus they will have to stand and be judged for the manner in which they have exercised this authority. If they have exercised it wrongfully and against the interests of His work and the salvation of His people, woe unto them in the day of the Lord Jesus! He will judge them. "
This same early apostle tells us that the Lord gives the authority to judge and condemn only to the regularly constituted councils of the Church and not to man generally; "and those who lift their voices against the authority of the Holy Priesthood will go down to hell, unless they repent."
It was President Wilford Woodruff who, in his closing years, made this statement: "I ask my Heavenly Father to pour out his spirit upon me, as his servant, that in my advanced age, and during the few days I have to spend here in the flesh, I may be led by his inspiration. I say to Israel, the Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as president of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the program. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that the Lord would remove me out of my place, and so he will any other man who attempts to lead the children of men astray from his oracles of God and from their duty. "
This should give us deep assurance.
One other leader wrote: "Men do not obtain place in this Church because they seek for it. If it were known that a man was ambitious to hold a certain office in the Church, that fact itself would lead to his defeat because his desire would not be granted unto him. This is the case with the officers of this Church. are responsible to God. God chose and nominated, and it is for him to straighten out if do wrong."
May the Lord bless our new President and his counselors and fully sustain them. May we the people uphold his hands and totally sustain President Harold B. Lee, whom I know to be the Lord's prophet on this earth. I bear testimony that God, whose voice was heard on the Jordan River, among the Nephites, in the grove in New York, is our Heavenly Father; and the one to whom he alluded when he said, "This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," is our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the Church. I bear testimony too that President Lee is a prophet of God, and if we will follow him, we will make great headway in the kingdom. I bear this testimony to you in all fervor and sincerity and in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Of the Council of the Twelve
This day I greet you wherever you are as friends.
Someone has said, "A friend is a person who is willing to take me the way I am." Accepting this as one definition of the word, may I quickly suggest that we are something less than a real friend if we leave a person the same way we find him.
There seems to be a misunderstanding on the part of some men today as to what it means to be a friend. Acts of a friend should result in self-improvement, better attitudes, self-reliance, comfort, consolation, self-respect, and better welfare. Certainly the word friend is misused if it is identified with a person who contributes to our delinquency, misery, and heartaches. When we make a man feel he is wanted, his whole attitude changes. Our friendship will be recognizable if our actions and attitudes result in improvement and independence.
It takes courage to be a real friend. Some of us endanger the valued classification of friend because of our unwillingness to be one under all circumstances. Fear can deprive us of friendship. Some of us identify our closest friends as those with the courage to remain and share themselves with us under all circumstances. A friend is a person who will suggest and render the best for us regardless of the immediate consequences. Sir Winston Churchill became Great Britain's greatest friend in his country's darkest hour because he was courageous enough to call for "blood, toil, tears, and sweat" when some would have accepted him more readily as a friend had he advocated peaceful surrender.
President Abraham Lincoln was once criticized for his attitude toward his enemies. "Why do you try to make friends of them?" asked an associate. "You should try to destroy them."
"Am I not destroying my enemies," Lincoln gently replied, "when I make them my friends?"
Are we not within our rights as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to regard our prophet, seer, and revelator, President Harold B. Lee, as a close personal friend as he leaves us improved daily by his willingness to reprove, admonish, love, encourage, and guide according to our needs? President Lee is our friend; I bear witness he is, in the fullest and most noble sense of the word, and he will lead us by inspiration and by his courageous character.
I invite you to be his friend. What a pleasure it was for me this morning to raise my arm to the square and sustain my friend, President Harold B. Lee! His friendship with me down through the years has met the test. He has always been willing to take me the way I am and leave me improved. What a joy it is to join him and my friends among the General Authorities, and all of you, in building the kingdom of our Heavenly Father here upon this earth!
I love President Tanner and I love President Romney because they are my friends. I am happy to have Elder Bruce R. McConkie seated at my side because he too is a friend.
As we more fully strive to comprehend the significance of friendship, the more our appreciation should increase for the truths found in the following quotation:
"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."
It is well for us to be reminded that we are friends to ourselves when we keep our lives unspotted from the sins of the world and leave ourselves better tomorrow than we are today. It is a worthy daily goal to be a true friend to one's self. Our responsibility to the widow and the fatherless is to accept them as we find them, but to not leave them without improvement. Ours is to lift the heavy heart, say the encouraging word, and assist in supplying the daily needs.
Aren't we something less than a friend if we have the gospel of Jesus Christ and are unwilling to share it by word and example with a family, a member, neighbor, or the stranger? Aren't we something less than a friend if we have a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and are unwilling to share it?
A friend is a possession we earn, not a gift. "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you." The Lord has declared that those who serve him and keep his commandments are called his servants. After they have been tested and tried and are found faithful and true in all things, they are called no longer servants, but friends. His friends are the ones he will take into his kingdom and with whom he will associate in an eternal inheritance.
Let me share with you quickly a few of the many "friend" references in the Doctrine and Covenants referred to by our Savior:
"And again, verily I say unto you, my friends -
"Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
"Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you."
" my friends Sidney and Joseph. "
" my friends, behold, I will give unto you a revelation and commandment. "
" my friends, fear not. "
" I will call you friends, for you are my friends, and ye shall have an inheritance with me."
May I add that this last friendly greeting was given when the Lord was rebuking Joseph Smith for the conduct of his family at that particular time.
And finally:
"And as I said unto mine apostles, even so I say unto you, for you are mine apostles, even God's high priests; ye are they whom my father hath given me; ye are my friends."
I bear you my witness that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is our friend. In his loving processes of command, rebuke, greeting, revelation, encouragement, and long-suffering, he daily proves this. Certainly he is willing to take us the way we are, but he wants to leave us improved in his word and his paths.
For a few moments enjoy with me some very simple yet powerful recent conversations I've had in seeking the true significance of friendship. I asked an eight-year-old girl, "Who is your best friend?" "My mommie," she replied. "Why?" "Because she is nice to me."
A priest-age young man was asked the same question. "My bishop." "Why?" "Because he listens to us guys."
A 19-year-old girl: "My Gleaner teacher." "Why?" "She is always available to me, even after class."
A 13-year-old boy: "My Scoutmaster." "Why?" "He does everything with us."
A prisoner: "The chaplain." "Why?" "He believes me. He even believed me sometimes when he shouldn't have."
A husband: "My wife." "Why?" "Because she is the best part of me."
From these cannot we conclude that friendship is earned?
It was Emerson who said, "The only way to have a friend is to be one." No one can be a friend until he is known. A friend is a person who will really take the time not only to know us, but to be with us. One of the finest presents you can give anyone is your best self.
Joseph Smith gave us a glimpse of his measure of friends when he said, "If my life is of no value to my friends, it is of no value to me."
The Savior said, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
When Robert Louis Stevenson was asked the secret of his radiant, useful life, he responded simply, "I had a friend."
In Exodus 33:11 we read, " The Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend."
A friend in the true sense is not a person who passively nods approval. A friend is a person who cares.
Please share this recent experience I had while visiting in South America. I was traveling with a mission president 200 miles from his office. Word reached him one of his elders was in the hospital with a ruptured appendix. His condition was grave because of the six-to seven-hour delay in getting medical attention. The mission president gave immediate instructions by telephone, getting the best physician possible, leading sixty missionaries assembled in zone conference in united prayer. He and his wife were at the elder's bedside the following morning. Prayers continued, medical attention increased, companions took turns sitting at his bedside around the clock. Parents in Idaho were notified. "The best is being done for your son. We feel he will make it. Please have your family join us in our prayers."
Here was friendship in action. Here was a friend at work. Here was an example of leaving the ninety and nine for the immediate attention of the one.
No greater reward can come to any of us as we serve than a sincere "Thank you for being my friend." When those who need assistance find their way back through and with us, it is friendship in action. When the weak are made strong and the strong stronger through our lives, friendship is real. If a man can be judged by his friends, he can also be measured by their heights.
How can we help a friend? An Arabian proverb helps us answer: "A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents of one's heart, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away."
Yes, a friend is a person who is willing to take me the way I am but who is willing and able to leave me better than he found me.
All of us should be eternally grateful for the classic experience shared by Peter and John when they approached the Gate Beautiful. There was a man, lame from birth, lying there. A beggar all through his life, he had never walked on his feet. As they moved in his direction he held out his hands, beckoning, expecting alms. Peter said to him, as we will all recall:
"Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
"And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up. "
Peter was a friend. He told the beggar, "Rise and walk; I'm going to help you." We too must take the friend by the hand until he sees and finds that he has enough strength to go on his own. Is it not appropriate to conclude that Peter was willing to take the friend the way he was but left him improved? Our Savior pointed the way to reap friendship with our associates and with him when he declared:
"For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
" Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
I pray God to help us to be friends. We need God's friendship. He pleads for ours. God lives. He is near. He is available. I leave you my testimony today that Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and Savior, that this is his church, and that he too is our friend. I bear this witness humbly, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters: One of the great experiences of life is to be among the Saints. We all have the responsibility of preparing ourselves and others for entrance back into the kingdom of God.
The atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ made it possible for all mankind to be resurrected and to be raised to immortality. Resurrection and immortality are universal gifts from God.
The apostle Paul taught: "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."
But to be resurrected and immortal is not all that is required for entrance into eternal life in the kingdom of God. Eternal life in the kingdom of God is far beyond his universal gift of immortality and is God's greatest gift to all mankind; it can only be brought about through obedience to the doctrines and commandments taught by Jesus Christ.
Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." He said, " no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." This is the Lord's way, and coming unto the Father is a divine and sacred gift that must be merited.
Again, Jesus Christ said, " Trifle not with sacred things. If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all of the gifts of God, for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation." God's greatest gift and blessing to his children is eternal life with him in his heavenly kingdom.
Today there is much controversy and contention among the doctrines and philosophies of men relative to the requirements for entrance into the kingdom of God. Many have been deceived by the teachings of men that works and obedience to God's commandments are not essential, and some base their contention on scriptures. For example, Paul said, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."
The resurrection and immortality are gifts from God, through Jesus Christ, and not from the works and efforts of mortal men.
Many try to justify their claims with the statement of Jesus to the thief on the cross, when the thief said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom," and Jesus said unto him, "Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise." Jesus and the thief went to paradise. There are those who teach that paradise and heaven are one and the same place, but this is not according to the teachings of the holy scriptures.
After mortal death the spirit goes to paradise and remains there until the appointed time for its resurrection into immortality and eternal life.
Heaven, which is the kingdom of God, is where those who have been obedient to God's plan of life and salvation go after judgment and the resurrection.
The spirit of Jesus, after his death, went to paradise and not to the kingdom of heaven. It was not until after his resurrection that he mentioned returning to the kingdom of heaven. You will recall his words to Mary as she stood by the sepulcher weeping: "Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." His spirit had been to paradise, but he had not yet ascended to his Father in heaven.
Jesus warned that not very many would find their way and prepare themselves to live in the kingdom of heaven. He said, "Enter ye in at the strait gate: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
Many, according to Jesus, will be misled and deceived by false teachers and false prophets, and some will desire to follow the ways of the world and will destroy their divine opportunity to enter into the kingdom of heaven. He said, " wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat."
Contrary to what many think, just believing in God and being virtuous and pure are not sufficient to qualify a person for entrance into the kingdom of heaven. The Savior's parable about the ten virgins and their desire to enter the kingdom of heaven makes this point very clear. Jesus said:
"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
"And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
"They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
"But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
"While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
"And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
"Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
"And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
"But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
"And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
"Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
"But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not."
Take note that the Lord was not talking about five thieves and sinners and five good people; he was talking about ten virgins, ten pure people who believed in God and had a desire to enter into the kingdom of heaven. The five foolish virgins had failed to prepare. Their lights were out; they were in darkness. Their urgent pleas and hasty preparation were not sufficient, and they heard these words from the lips of their God: "I know you not."
What a shame to be clean and yet unprepared! What a tragedy to fail in service to God and in helping to build his kingdom on earth as it is in heaven! What a shame to be in darkness when the light of Christ has been made possible for everyone!
Jesus, speaking of good people who failed to qualify for entrance into the kingdom of heaven, said, "These are they who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown over the kingdom of our God."
It is a divine warning from the teachings of Jesus Christ that one must be prepared to enter into the kingdom of heaven and must have the light of life that is made possible through following Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."
The light of life can come only through following Jesus Christ. The light of life is divine light and is required in the immortal soul before entrance back into the kingdom of God. You cannot obtain the divine light of life from men. It does not come from just being good. It can only come through repentance and by living the gospel plan of life and salvation as given by Jesus Christ.
When Jesus lived on the earth, he found a very religious group of people known as the Pharisees. They believed in God; they accepted the teaching of the prophets in the Old Testament. They accepted the Ten Commandments and would not even pick up a stone on the Sabbath day in their compliance with the commandment relative to keeping the Sabbath day holy. Yet Jesus said of the devout, praying Pharisees:
"This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
"But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men."
They had changed the Lord's commandments into commandments of men.
In his Sermon on the Mount Jesus Christ also mentioned to these people their qualification for entering into the kingdom of heaven through the Pharisee religion, with its man-made doctrines and commandments. He said, "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."
The Pharisees, in all of their dedication and their love for God and the ancient prophets and their obedience to man-made righteousness, which appeared to be taken from the scriptures, did not qualify for entrance into the kingdom of heaven. The Pharisees were worshiping a mystical god of spirit, and they were unable to know the living God when he appeared before them. He tried with all of his godly power to convince them, but they would rather defend their man-made church and their man-made doctrines than accept the church and teachings of Jesus Christ.
All men should know what acts will keep them from entering the kingdom of heaven. According to the apostle Paul, the following works of the flesh will keep a person out of the kingdom of God: " Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."
Indulgence in works of the flesh will destroy man's divine nature and potential godliness.
Repentance makes it possible to cleanse the mind and body of these sins, except murder, and all other weaknesses, and to turn to the Lord's way of life. He said, "Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Repentance is God's way, with the help of his doctrines and commandments, to purify and cleanse the mind and body of its weaknesses and imperfections. Repentance prepares the mind and the body to receive the gospel and to take on the divine light of life.
Repentance frees the conscience and cleanses the mind. Jesus said, "Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more. By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins-behold, he will confess them and forsake them."
Repentance prepares the mind and body to know the living God and the living Jesus Christ and to receive the gospel and take on the divine light of life.
It is important to know that all of the requirements for entrance into the kingdom of God were personally given by Jesus Christ and are recorded in his holy scriptures. There will be many good people turned away from entrance into the kingdom of heaven because they failed to know and follow the Lord's plan of life. They were more interested in following doctrines of men and commandments of men than they were in following the doctrines of the Lord, as recorded in his scriptures. They were more interested in defending their sect or denomination than in knowing the truth.
Here are some of the keys that Jesus Christ gave to help one qualify for entrance back into the kingdom of God.
Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God"; "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God".
In John 17, verse 3, another key is recorded by Jesus Christ: " this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
Wouldn't you think it is important to know God the Eternal Father and Jesus Christ if you expect to live with them in the kingdom of heaven? Many feel that they know God and know Jesus Christ, but they fail to keep their commandments.
Hear the words of the apostle John to all who claim to know God. He said, "And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him."
Knowing God is shown by keeping his commandments. People who accept and live doctrines of men do not know the living God. When you know the living God and the living Jesus Christ, you will also know your divine relationship to God.
Jesus asked us to pray to our Father in heaven and to "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness."
I pray that we may do so, and close with this divine commandment: " let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God. "
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
In the year 1820 a young man 14 years of age was very greatly disturbed in his mind as to which of all the various religious denominations was acknowledged by God as his church. He had been engaged sincerely in searching for the true church, and he had read the statement of James as contained in the New Testament: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."
In his confusion, having a sincere and earnest desire, and with unwavering faith, the boy called upon the Lord in prayer. Joseph said he had scarcely started to pray when he was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame him and which had the astonishing effect of binding his tongue so that he could not speak. Thick darkness gathered around him, and he thought he would be destroyed.
Exerting all his power to call upon the Lord to deliver him from the power which had seized him, and when he was ready to sink into despair, he saw a pillar of light exactly over his head, above the brightness of the sun, in which light he saw two Personages, and they spoke to him.
Think of the great contrast: overpowering darkness as compared with the brightness of the sun-the power of the adversary as opposed to the glory of God. Certainly darkness would be dissipated by the appearance and in the presence of those two divine Personages, the Father and the Son, whose brightness and glory defy all description.
In answer to the boy's question as to which of all the sects was right and which he should join, the Father, pointing to his Son, asked Joseph to hear him. The Son, the Savior of the world, Jesus the Christ, the resurrected Lord, answered Joseph by saying that he should join none of the existing churches and denominations, that they were all wrong.
The day was dawning when the gospel in its fullness was to be restored to mankind, when the light of heaven was to fill the entire earth, a time to come in which nothing would be withheld, when everything which had been kept from the understanding of man from the beginning of time would be made known; a time about which the prophets of old have spoken; a time when in very deed a great and a marvelous work and wonder would come forth among the children of men.
According to our understanding of holy writ, God the Eternal Father has manifested himself to his earthly prophets on very few occasions since the time of Adam. The following instances may be recalled.
When Jesus was baptized in the River Jordan, as he came up out of the water a voice from heaven was heard saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
At the time of the transfiguration, the voice of the Father was again heard: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him."
When the resurrected Christ was introduced by the Father to the Nephites on the Western Hemisphere, the following language was used: "Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name-hear ye him."
Since the Savior's appearance to the Nephites, there is no scriptural account of the voice of the Father being heard again among men until the Father and the Son appeared unto the boy Joseph in the spring of 1820, at which time, according to Joseph Smith, the Father again bore testimony in the following language: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
As Joseph was calling upon the Lord in prayer more than three years later, a messenger from the Lord appeared in his room surrounded by light, which light continued to increase until the room was lighter than at noonday. On this occasion and subsequent appearances, the angel made reference to a book written upon plates of gold that was deposited in the Hill Cumorah in the state of New York, which plates, when translated, became the Book of Mormon, a new scripture, a new and important witness for Christ. On the occasion of the angel's first appearance he quoted to Joseph various verses and prophecies from the Bible, among which was the second chapter of Joel, from the 28th verse to the last, part of which reads as follows:
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
"And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit."
The priesthood of God, which had been taken from the earth because of apostasy, was restored to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in 1829, also by heavenly messengers, namely, by John the Baptist and by Peter, James, and John, the presiding authority in the earth after the death of the Savior.
Before the Church was organized April 6, 1830, the Lord gave a revelation through this young man, the prophet of the Lord, to his father, Joseph Smith, Sr., in which the Lord said:
"Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men.
"Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day."
Similar advice and counsel was given to others at about the same time through revelation from the Lord.
To Joseph Smith was given the commission and the authorization from heaven to restore to earth the doctrine, organization, and authority of Christ's church to a people who had lost the fundamentals of true religion. Joseph Smith's successors have built and are building upon the foundation that Joseph laid through revelation from God in proclaiming its truth to all the world and in preparing a people to meet the Savior when he shall come to reign upon the earth a thousand years in peace and righteousness. Elder Harold B. Lee, whom we have sustained in this conference as a prophet, seer, and revelator and President of this church, is God's representative, the mouthpiece of the Lord to his people today, a man whom we love, a man whom we can sustain and support with all our hearts.
The revealed word of God to Joseph, and particularly the words of the Prophet Joel, have been and are being fulfilled relative to the pouring out of the Spirit of the Lord upon all flesh. I quote from our late President Joseph Fielding Smith:
"The Lord said he would pour out his Spirit upon all flesh. That does not mean that upon all flesh the Holy Ghost should be sent, and that they should be participants in the blessings which those are privileged to receive who have been baptized and endowed and become members of the Church; but the Lord would pour out his blessings and his Spirit upon all people and use them to accomplish his purposes."
Marvelous scientific developments have come since the heavens were opened to that 14-year-old boy, when this dispensation, the dispensation of the fulness of times, was ushered in.
Since the true knowledge of God was revealed in that mighty vision, the Lord has in very deed, in many respects, poured out his Spirit upon all flesh.
Human beings very much like ourselves have lived upon this earth since the days of Adam. Their physical strength no doubt has been equal to our own. Abraham of old had superior wisdom and knowledge, and others like unto him. There have been among the inhabitants of this world men and women of significant intelligence, those who built the pyramids, those to whom the Lord gave understanding regarding the heavenly bodies, men of faith, good men, religious men, great thinkers.
Yet down through the generations of time mankind have not had the comforts and conveniences, they have not had the opportunities that we enjoy. Men, women, and children obtained an existence by toiling with crude instruments long hours under most trying circumstances. In spite of their fertile lands, nations and kingdoms suffered greatly from famines, and dread diseases and pestilences have decimated peoples.
Since the opening of the heavens, as indicated, man has conquered the darkness of night through the development of the electric light, the incandescent light, the neon light, etc.
Gas lamps were a laboratory novelty in the early life of Joseph Smith and his followers, and the electric light as invented by Edison was not given to man until 1879 and 1880.
Great strides have been made in conquering pain and disease. The life of man has been prolonged, and pain alleviated through the use of anesthetics, medical and surgical discovery and development, refrigeration, sanitation.
Think of the great advances in transportation, railroads, steamships, automobiles, airplanes, jet planes, and so on.
We have the marvelous means of communication, such as the telegraph, the telephone, radio, television, Telstar broadcasting, and now space exploration and space satellite technology.
Surely, we can say with Morse when he sent the first message by telegraph in 1844, over a forty-mile line, "What Hath God Wrought!"
The glory of God is intelligence; in other words, light and truth. All intelligence comes from God, and anyone whose mind is opened to the development of inventions for the benefit and blessing of mankind receives that light and truth through study, through research, through inspiration and guidance from the Spirit of the Lord, whether that individual be a Morse, an Edison, an Alexander Graham Bell, an Orville or Wilbur Wright, or whoever he may be.
How important it is that we have the light of truth which comes from the Lord himself! In fact, he has said:
"And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness.
"That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day."
The greatest need of the world today is an understanding of the true and living God, to know that he lives, that he rules in the heavens, that he is our Heavenly Father, the Father of our spirits, and that Jesus Christ is his Beloved Son, the Savior and Redeemer of the world; that he is the creator of the universe.
There is confusion in the minds of many people as to just what is the nature of the God we should worship and serve. This is life eternal, to know the only true God and Jesus Christ, those great personages whom Joseph saw in that heavenly vision. This knowledge brings joy and satisfaction to the soul. It is intended for all mankind. We are told that ultimately every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ.
God the Father and his beloved Son have manifested themselves in this dispensation. Heavenly messengers have personally restored the priesthood of God, the power to act in his name. The Spirit of God is operating upon the minds of men and women everywhere. Light and knowledge are being poured out upon the inhabitants of the earth. Marvelous scientific developments are being used to make possible and speed up the preaching of the restored gospel to mankind.
Temples are being built and ordinances performed therein in accordance with the plan of life and salvation which pertains to all mankind, both the living and the dead. Yes, a great and a marvelous work has come forth among the children of men, and God is pouring out his Spirit upon all flesh.
I testify to these truths in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
If what I say should need a title, it would be "We Have Made Covenants with the Lord-Let Us Keep Them."
In that inspiring session this morning, each of us had the privilege of making a covenant with the Lord that we would sustain, uphold, aid, and even defend these great men who have been chosen to lead this church at this time.
Making covenants with his people and with individuals has always been one of the principal ways in which the Lord deals with them.
The scriptures tell us that he made covenants with Adam, with Noah, with Enoch, Melchizedek, Abraham, and others, and that he also made covenants with Israel of old, with the Jaredites, and with the Nephites.
Surely the Latter-day Saints are a blessed people, because in a similar way the Lord has made covenants with us individually and collectively.
A covenant is a binding and solemn agreement entered into by at least two individuals. It requires that all parties involved abide the conditions of the compact in order to make it effective and binding. Most people do not realize that sacred covenants made with earlier prophets and peoples have been restored to earth by a new covenant.
The Lord made clear the reason for establishing a new covenant:
"For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant;
"They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.
"Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments"-and so forth.
As a result of this revelation, the Prophet Joseph became the instrument in the hands of the Lord in restoring the new and everlasting covenant, which is actually the fullness of the gospel and embraces within its powers, its terms, and its conditions every other covenant and commandment that our Father has ever given to men on earth.
It provides the way to eternal life and even exaltation to all who accept the gospel and who endure to the end in living its principles and ordinances, for he has said:
"And even so I have sent mine everlasting covenant into the world, to be a light to the world, and to be a standard for my people, and for the Gentiles to seek to it, and to be a messenger before my face to prepare the way before me."
It is here, then, in its fullness with all its powers as a guide, a standard for us and for all men who will heed it.
Since the love of God is extended to all mankind, he has said: " O inhabitants of the earth: I the Lord am willing to make these things known unto all flesh; For I am no respector of persons. "
And because of this we send missionaries by the thousands into all the world where it is permissible to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to baptize those who believe.
Some may wonder why the Lord gives commandments and requires us to enter into covenants with him. Or, as one person asked: "If the Lord loves us, why does he give us commandments? If he loves us, why does he say 'Thou shalt' or 'Thou shalt not'?"
A simple answer to these questions is, he commands us because he loves us. He knows perfectly well what will bring us peace and success in our individual lives and in the world and what will bring the opposite.
Just as any father would direct his children if it would be a blessing to the children, so our Father in heaven gives us commandments, laws, and covenants, not for the sole purpose of restricting us or burdening us, but rather that we may, through obedience to correct principles, find peace and success.
Actually, we do not have to do what the Lord commands us, but we cannot obtain the rewards and blessings he has promised unless we do.
"For all who will have a blessing at my hands shall abide the law which was appointed for that blessing, and the conditions thereof, as were instituted from before the foundation of the world."
Every member of the Church has made covenants with the Lord. These commandments and covenants are not grievous; they are not burdensome. On the contrary, they are enlightening, uplifting, assuring, and helpful. They are instruments of voluntary action on our part that help us to concentrate our efforts to accomplish the purpose of life and to reach our ultimate goal.
Our first covenant is entered into when we are baptized and confirmed members of the Church. Both the conditions under which one becomes a candidate for baptism and the obligations of membership after baptism should be understood and impressed upon all, both young and old. The Lord makes these requirements and expectations rather definite and clear in these enlightening words:
" All those who humble themselves before God, and desire to be baptized, and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness before the church that they have truly repented of all their sins, and are willing to take upon them the name of Jesus Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end, and truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall be received by baptism into his church."
So, as one prepares himself for baptism, he must recognize that there are specific obligations and covenants associated with the receiving of this sacred ordinance.
When we partake of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, we enter into a solemn covenant of obedience to keep his commandments and witness unto the Lord that we will take upon us his name and always remember him and keep the commandments which he has given us. Partaking of the sacrament should be done in sober solemnity.
Again, when we agree to have the priesthood conferred upon us, we thereby covenant with the Lord that we will honor it through righteous, decent living, and by magnifying the office given in service to others, always extending to all men kindness, consideration, courtesy, and love.
Now, if we keep the covenant of baptism and honor the priesthood and its covenants and in other ways live in conformity with the principles of the gospel, we may then have the great privilege of entering a holy temple where we receive the higher ordinances of the priesthood and, in due time, enter into that order of the priesthood known as the "new and everlasting covenant of marriage," with the promise given that if we remain faithful to the covenants made, we shall come forth with the just in the morning of the first resurrection and, with our companions, our children, our posterity, be permitted to live in a state of never-ending happiness, provided, of course, that they too keep the covenants that it will be necessary for them to make.
What hope, what comfort, what assurance and joy this promise should bring to the hearts of all who love their families! Surely it is true that "eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."
And, of course, he has said that they who love him keep his commandments and covenants.
President Joseph F. Smith reminded us that "we cannot neglect, slight, or depart from the spirit, meaning, intent and purpose, of these covenants that we have entered into with our Father in heaven without shearing ourselves of our glory, strength, right and title to his blessings, and to the gifts and manifestations of his Spirit."
For God surely will not be mocked!
Let me repeat, each one of us has made covenants with the Lord and has agreed before God in sacred places that we will observe his laws, which, after all, are the principles by which we must learn to live in order to qualify ourselves for the greatest of all the gifts of God, which he says is eternal life, our life in the "family kingdom."
I testify to you, brethren and sisters, that I know that God lives and that he has, because of his love for us, condescended to make covenants with us, in order that we may be spared from failure, from sorrow, from regret, and that we may rise to the full heights of glory that are promised to those who are faithful and endure to the end.
My brothers and sisters, we are a covenant-making people. Let us also be a covenant-keeping people, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Brothers and sisters: I desire this afternoon to bear my witness to you of the divine calling that has come to these brethren who lead us. For almost forty years I have watched as the Lord has honed and polished and prepared President Lee as our teacher, as our stake president, whom we so much loved, as an apostle, and now as President of the Church. I am grateful and pledge my support to him and his counselors.
President Tanner is our home teacher, who watches over us and cares for us in our home. We are grateful for him and pledge our loyalty to him. We are grateful for President Romney, who fourteen years ago came to Germany and helped me to become a better missionary. I have loved and respected him ever since. And these my brethren who sit before you today are men of God, and I am grateful for the teachings they have given me.
Now may I share a thought with you this afternoon.
I received a letter recently in which I was asked why, as president of the Genealogical Society, I didn't speak about genealogy. The writer also asked why my brethren did not preach about genealogy, when it was one of the fundamental priesthood programs of the Church. This quite startled me, for I have heard some excellent sermons on that subject given by my brethren and have given many sermons on genealogy myself.
Perhaps we have all been too subtle. Perhaps our understanding of priesthood genealogy is so broad that we expect all Church members to think of priesthood genealogy as we do. In our understanding it includes the whole plan of salvation, in which, through righteous living and revealed sacred ordinances, families are bound together eternally, worthy to live in the celestial kingdom in the very presence of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost in an exalted, resurrected state. Perhaps we have been too subtle.
Stated, then, in simple words, I say to every member of the Church that you have a personal, individual responsibility to become engaged in priesthood genealogical activity. The real impact of the priesthood genealogy program is one of individual responsibility. The actual work must be performed by individuals, not by organizations. What is everybody's business is nobody's business, so I must say that this work is your individual responsibility and each of you, as an individual, must become converted to this work as a personal responsibility. It is not my responsibility alone, nor that of your stake president, nor that of your bishop alone. It is not confined to the high priests. Neither is genealogy and temple work reserved for older people. It should not be put off until you retire or become too old and infirm to do anything else.
Priesthood genealogy is an exciting, living, vital program involving the whole family. Elijah came to turn the hearts of children to their parents and parents to their children, so priesthood genealogy and temple work is a family affair, a total family program involving children, youth, and parents. We ought to change our attitudes toward priesthood genealogy and realize that the real impact of this program converges on each individual member of the Church.
Some persons have asked me, "Just what is my personal responsibility in this work?" I answer that your individual responsibility is to be, or to become, worthy to enter the temple of God to participate in ordinances of salvation for yourself and for others. Youth are to be baptized in behalf of the dead. Young adults are to receive an endowment of power and to be married in the Lord's appointed way. Wives are to be sealed to husbands and have their children sealed to them for all eternity. Thus, just as you can be saviors for the living through active missionary work, so you are to qualify yourselves to become saviors for those who are dead who rely on you for help and assistance.
As revealed by the scriptures, one of the characteristics of these last days is the appearance of saviors on the earth. This was prophesied in Old Testament times:
"And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord's."
It was prophesied by Paul in New Testament times, referring to people who had lived on the earth in times of old:
"And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
"God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect."
It has also been prophesied of us who live today:
"Therefore, blessed are ye if ye continue in my goodness, a light unto the Gentiles, and through this priesthood, a savior unto my people Israel. The Lord hath said it. Amen."
So the Lord himself has placed his seal of approval upon this work.
A logical question then follows: For whom am I to be a savior? In section 127 of the Doctrine and Covenants, verse 6, the Prophet Joseph Smith used these words: "for your dead." In the next section, in verse 15, he continued speaking of our ancestors:
"For their salvation is necessary and essential to our salvation, as Paul says concerning the fathers -that they without us cannot be made perfect-neither can we without our dead be made perfect."
Joseph Smith explained the coming of Elijah as follows:
" It is sufficient to know, in this case, that the earth will be smitten with a curse unless there is a welding link of some kind or other between the fathers and the children. "
Our dead, then, are clearly our own progenitors or direct ancestors, as Joseph Smith explained:
"But how are they to become saviors on Mount Zion? By building their temples, erecting their baptismal fonts, and going forth and receiving all the ordinances, baptisms, confirmations, washings, anointings, ordinations, and sealing powers upon their heads, in behalf of all their progenitors who are dead, and redeem them that they may come forth in the first resurrection and be exalted to thrones of glory with them; and herein is the chain that binds the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, which fulfills the mission of Elijah."
Do you remember that God said that unless this was done, the earth would be smitten with a curse? What curse? Why, earth life itself becomes a curse to those who fail in their mission in mortality. Their earthly existence becomes a stumbling block for them instead of a glorious steppingstone to the ladder of exaltation and glorification. When God speaks to man, his words can become either a curse or a blessing, as Moses explained to the children of Israel:
"Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;
"A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day:
"And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known."
So this command of God, given through his prophets today, is as binding upon us as were the commands of God binding upon the children of Israel.
But I would like to turn again to this personal responsibility which God has given us to become saviors on Mount Zion. Note that we are to become saviors for our own direct ancestors or progenitors and not for collateral relatives who are direct-line ancestors of somebody else. Note that it is our line of ancestry that is to be preserved, for the promises of Abraham come to us through these lines of lineage.
God gave the following promise to Abraham, referring to us who are Abraham's descendants:
"And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall arise up and bless thee, as their father;
"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee and in thy seed, for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal."
Brigham Young taught that our genealogical responsibility is to our own family first. He said:
"We have a work to do just as important in its sphere as the Savior's work was in its sphere. Our fathers cannot be made perfect without us; we cannot be made perfect without them. They have done their work and now sleep. We are now called upon to do ours; which is to be the greatest work man ever performed on the earth.
"There must be this chain in the holy Priesthood; it must be welded together from the latest generation that lives on the earth back to Father Adam, to bring back all that can be saved and placed where they can receive salvation and glory in some kingdom. This Priesthood has to do it; this Priesthood is for this purpose.
"The ordinance of sealing must be performed here man to man, and woman to man, and children to parents, etc., until the chain of generation is made perfect in the sealing ordinances back to Father Adam.
"Now, all you children, are you looking to the salvation of your fathers? Are you seeking diligently to redeem those that have died without the Gospel, inasmuch as they sought the Lord Almighty to obtain promises for you? For our fathers did obtain promises that their seed should not be forgotten. O ye children of the fathers, look at these things. You are to enter into the temples of the Lord and officiate for your forefathers."
President Woodruff received a revelation on this subject and presented it in a general conference on April 8, 1894:
"We want the Latter-day Saints from this time to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents and run this chain through as far as you can get it. This is the will of the Lord to his people, and I think when you come to reflect upon it, you will find it to be true."
The responsibility to officiate for our direct-line ancestors has continued to this day. Our recently deceased President Joseph Fielding Smith, whom we loved and respected, contrasted our personal responsibility with the responsibility of the Church:
"The Lord has given to the Church the responsibility of preaching the gospel to the nations of the earth. This is the greatest responsibility of the Church. Men are to be taught the gospel and called to repentance and warned. When they refuse to heed the warning, they must be left without excuse.
"The Lord has also placed upon the individual members of the Church a responsibility. It is our duty as individuals to seek after our immediate dead-those of our own line. This is the greatest individual responsibility that we have, and we should carry it through in behalf of our fathers who have gone before."
So, without putting any one priesthood program before any other, for each one is important, I say in behalf of all my brethren, and say to you personally, that we fully appreciate the need for genealogical work that will bring people to the temples righteously and worthily to unite their families into the eternal family of God the Eternal Father.
I bear my witness of the divinity of this priesthood goal, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church
It was a pleasure for me to sustain Brother Harold B. Lee as the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and to sustain all of the other General Authorities this morning.
I wish to express appreciation for that sustaining vote in my behalf and pledge to all my leaders here my full support. I am willing to do all that is required of me to help build up the kingdom of the Lord upon the earth.
A question that is often asked by many and comes to the minds of many who are not members of our faith is: "Why do Latter-day Saints build temples?"
Our third Article of Faith is: "We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel."
The fourth Article of Faith follows: "We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost."
With God, all laws and ordinances must be complied with and obeyed. Christ said to Nicodemus, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
"Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
Christ had already confirmed the fullness and exactness of this law in his own compliance thereto, as recorded in Matthew: "Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
"But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?
"And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him."
Baptism, then, is for all mankind, even Christ, the very Son of God, who was perfect and without sin. Then it is all the more necessary for all of us.
If required for all mankind, then would a just God condemn for all eternity those who came to the earth at such time when, and such places where, such opportunities were not available-hence, impossible for them to comply with the law?
Then if God is just, and we know he is, he must provide a way whereby all mankind may receive his ordinances, and they must be so performed as shall be accepted by him.
Peter tells us in his First Epistle that between the time of Christ's crucifixion and his resurrection, he was actively engaged in preaching to the spirits of those who had died:
"By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
"Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water."
This opened the way for all who did not have the opportunity to accept his gospel in this life to accept it after death. This does not provide the ordinance of baptism, which is a must for entrance into the kingdom of God.
Paul, preaching to the Corinthians, trying to convert them to the reality of a resurrection, asked them, "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?"
Obviously, they were then practicing a vicarious ordinance of baptism for their kindred dead.
Christ suffered vicariously for us; now he is giving us the opportunity to perform a vicarious act for our fellowmen.
There are yet other requirements needed. How can this vicarious work be done if the names of those who have died are not known?
The necessity, then, is very apparent that records must be kept, researched, and obtained to do this work for each individual, separately.
In April 1836, at the completion of the temple in Kirtland, Ohio, several heavenly messengers appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. Note-not to Joseph Smith alone, but to Joseph and Oliver. Two witnessed these visitations. Among them was Elijah the prophet, who ascended into heaven without tasting death.
Thirteen years earlier, Joseph Smith had been promised by a heavenly messenger by the name of Moroni that Elijah would be sent to him. The Prophet Joseph Smith described the keys Elijah bestowed upon them in these words:
"The spirit, power, and calling of Elijah is, that ye have power to hold the keys of the revelation, ordinances, oracles, powers, and endowments of the fullness of the Melchizedek Priesthood and of the kingdom of God on the earth: and to receive, obtain, and perform all the ordinances belonging to the kingdom of God, even unto the turning of the hearts of the fathers unto the children, and the hearts of the children unto their fathers, even those who are in heaven."
Our forefathers who did not have this opportunity were promised that this day would come.
Since the coming of Elijah the prophet to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple, this work of gathering the names has taken on great proportions by people of all walks of life and in many nations. This is a miraculous undertaking. Think of the way the Lord has inspired the scientific minds of our day to provide machines of all kinds to speed up and make possible this great undertaking.
Five years after Elijah's coming, in a revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1841, the Lord directed his people to "build a house to my name, for the Most High to dwell therein.
"For there is not a place found on earth that he may come to and restore again that which was lost unto you, or which he hath taken away, even the fulness of the priesthood.
"For a baptismal font there is not upon the earth, that they, my saints, may be baptized for those who are dead-
"For this ordinance belongeth to my house, and cannot be acceptable to me, only in the days of your poverty, wherein ye are not able to build a house unto me."
Then he tells of other sacred ordinances that are to be performed in his house, or a temple.
Thus it is necessary to build temples, houses of the Lord, sacred edifices in which may be performed the ordinance of baptism and other sacred ordinances vicariously for our dead ancestors.
Elijah brought the keys to perform all the sacred ordinances belonging to the kingdom of God. All these most sacred ordinances necessary for man's exaltation in the life to come, even eternal life, are accepted by God only when they are performed in his sacred house, a temple of God.
For this reason, the children of Israel constructed an "ark of the covenant," which was portable, so they might have the blessings of the kingdom of God.
To receive the fullness of the blessings of exaltation, even eternal life, man must receive all the law and the ordinances of God's kingdom.
Another requirement to fulfill all the law is people. We, as members of the Church, must so live as to be worthy to go into the house of the Lord to perform these most sacred ordinances, first for ourselves, then for our dead ancestors.
The living come first. It is necessary for us to receive these ordinances first; then we may be privileged to do this work for our ancestors, to whom the promise was made that we would come to earth in this the dispensation of the fulness of times to do this work for them.
The time must come when temples will be found all over the earth, in many nations. This is most necessary for the salvation, exaltation, and eternal life of man. Then we should all be very diligent in gathering the family records and so live to be worthy of taking part in this work.
I pray the Lord to bless us to do this work, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
Of the Council of the Twelve
This morning we sustained unanimously Harold B. Lee to what I believe is the highest office in the world, the earthly President of the church of Jesus Christ. I have known this great man longer possibly than any other one of the General Authorities. I honor him; I have admired him since we were boys together over fifty years ago. With all my heart I love and sustain him as a prophet of God, as an inspired leader, ideally qualified to lead the church of Christ in our difficult day. May God inspire us as members of the Church with wisdom to follow his noble leadership.
I seek an interest in your faith and prayers, that my brief message, which is directed primarily to those who are not yet members, might bring help and conviction to their souls.
While Saul was on the road to Damascus, he was stopped by a heavenly vision and the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ. And Saul responded with these momentous words: " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? " To this the Lord responded by sending Saul to see one of his authorized servants to receive direction and a blessing.
A man can ask no more important question in his life than that which Paul asked: " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" A man can take no greater action than to pursue a course that will bring to him the answer to that question and then to carry out that answer. What would the Lord Jesus Christ have us do? He has answered that question by saying, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect", and, "Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am".
Christ, then, has set us the example of what we should be like and what we should do. While many men have admirable qualities, there is only one man who ever walked the earth who was without sin, whose father of his physical body was God the Father, and who had the power to resurrect his own body. This Jesus is our exemplar and has commanded us to follow in his steps.
God the Father has given Jesus Christ a name above all others, so that eventually every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ. He is the way, the truth, and the light, and no one can come back into the presence of our Father in heaven except through him. Christ is God the Son and possesses every virtue in its perfection. Therefore, the only measure of true greatness is how close a man can become like Jesus. That man is greatest who is most like Christ, and those who love him most will be most like him.
How, then, does a man imitate God, follow his steps, and walk as he walked, which we are commanded to do? We must study the life of Christ, learn his commandments, and do them. God has promised that to follow this course will lead a man to an abundant life and a fullness of joy and the peace and rest which those who are heavy-burdened long for. To learn of Christ necessitates the study of the scriptures and the testimonies of those who know him. We come to know him through prayer and the inspiration and revelation that God has promised to those who keep his commandments.
And how do you learn the commandments? You learn the commandments through the words of the Lord in the scriptures, through the revelations received by his authorized servants, the Light of Christ, like a conscience that comes to every man, and through personal revelation.
It is significant that when Paul asked the question, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Christ directed Paul to one of the Lord's authorized servants. So it was with Cornelius, who after prayer was instructed to send men to contact Peter. It has always been so-that whenever God has had his prophets upon the earth, men could go to them to learn of Christ and his commandments.
The inspired words of these prophets, when written down, became scripture, and whenever God has his representatives on the earth, there is always new revelation and new scripture. Only when men became so corrupt that the prophets were taken out of their midst did scriptures cease. And God stated that only through his authorized representatives could men receive the ordinances essential for salvation and the commandments necessary for the perfecting of his children.
Speaking to his prophets, the Lord said: "He that receiveth you receiveth me. " Always the words of the living prophet took precedence, for it was God's message to the people at that particular time. Had any man accepted the ancient scripture in the days of Noah but refused to follow the revelation that Noah received and failed to board the ark, he would have been drowned. Always the words of the living prophets are of the most vital concern to the people; and always, if a man would know of Christ and learn his commandments so that he can obey them, he must seek to find his authorized representatives.
For centuries, because of the wickedness of men, prophets of God no longer walked the earth, so scripture ended with the last words in the New Testament. Confusion and contention reigned in so-called Christendom, for all they had was the ancient scripture, but they were without the prophets of God to explain it to them and to receive new revelation, new scripture, and to be authorized to direct the work of the ministry.
But in 1820, the greatest single event since the resurrection of the Christ occurred. God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, personally visited a young boy by the name of Joseph Smith, who had been praying to know which church to join. God, our Father, spoke to the lad and said, " This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" God the Son told Joseph Smith not to join any of the churches. Joseph was to learn that the Lord's true church was not on the earth; that living prophets of God, who were the foundation of the church, had not walked the earth for centuries; and that with their deaths, the rock of revelation on which the church was built ceased; and so there was no new scripture.
Eventually, to Joseph Smith appeared the men who were the last authorized servants to direct the church of Jesus Christ-Peter, James, and John. These glorified beings ordained Joseph Smith with the same authority they had received from Jesus, so that once again there was a prophet of God on the earth who could say, " thus saith the Lord." Joseph Smith ordained others with the authority that he had received, and so the church of Jesus Christ was restored in these latter days-The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon Church.
In due time, another heavenly messenger came to Joseph Smith to tell him that God was about to give to the earth a scriptural account of the early inhabitants of America, as the Bible is a scriptural account that covers the other side of the world. This American scripture that was translated by Joseph Smith, through the inspiration of heaven, is called the Book of Mormon. It tells, among other things, of Christ's personal appearance to God's children here in America after his resurrection in Jerusalem and of his instructions to them. The mission of the Book of Mormon is to be a companion volume with the Bible, to serve as a second witness that Jesus is the Christ, to show that God loves one nation as another, and to reduce contention by making clear many of the doctrines that have confused Christendom.
Joseph Smith received many revelations from Jesus Christ, as have the prophets who have succeeded him, which means that new scripture has been given. The Lord's mouthpiece and his prophet on the face of the earth today is President Harold B. Lee, who received his authority through a line of prophets going back to Joseph Smith, who was ordained by Peter, James, and John, who were ordained by Christ, who was and is the head of the Church, the Creator of this earth, and the God before whom all men must stand accountable.
Now this marvelous message-that God has spoken to prophets in our day and reestablished his church-is for all the world. When Nathanael questioned Philip, telling him that he had found Jesus, Philip responded by saying, "Come and see."
So do we respond, "Come and see." Men can deceive you, but God will not. If you sincerely desire to know of the truthfulness of this message, then make it a matter of fervent prayer, study it out, test it out, and God will let you know.
Would you like to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and if the Book of Mormon is scripture sent from God? Then put it to the test. Read the Book of Mormon, and near its close you will find a promise that is given to everyone who reads that volume; and this is the promise: that if you will ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, if this book is true, and if you will ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, then our Heavenly Father will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost.
This is the challenge and the test. I testify to you that I have read the Book of Mormon and that I have put it to the test; that God has revealed unto me the truthfulness of this added volume of scripture and revealed unto me that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God; and that Harold B. Lee is his prophet and representative and stands today as the earthly President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the one man on the earth who holds the keys of God's kingdom, as Peter did anciently.
Let me ask, do we need a true prophet of the Lord on the earth today? Did the people in Noah's day need a prophet to warn them spiritually and temporally? Had a man refused to follow Noah, would he have been saved from the flood? Yet the Bible tells us that in the last days in which we live, the wickedness of the people will become comparable to the wickedness of the people in Noah's day when God cleansed the earth by flood. Do you think we need a prophet today to warn us and prepare us for the cleansing that God promised will come, this time by fire?
Men's hearts are failing them, spiritually and temporally. Is it of interest for you to know that God has revealed many things for your blessing? He has revealed to a modern prophet a law of health, which, if obeyed, promises a man that he can run and not be weary, and walk and not faint.
Do you think men would despair so much or commit suicide if they knew through latter-day revelation about their preexistent state, where they came from, why they are here, where they are going, and the great possibilities that lie in store for them?
With the satanic attempts to break apart the family and create disunion and strife in the home, would you be impressed with a program inaugurated by a modern prophet of the Lord some fifty years ago called the home evening program? This one-night-a-week program brings together all the members of the family for some spiritual and character guidance, a discussion of family goals and plans, a display of family talent, and games and refreshments.
The Church distributes to its members a yearly manual with suggestions for this home evening program. Those members who diligently hold these home evenings are given a promised blessing by a prophet of God of what will result. Listen to this promised blessing:
"Love at home and obedience to parents will increase, faith will be developed in the hearts of the youth of Israel, and they will gain power to combat the evil influences and temptations which beset them."
Would you like that blessing for your home?
Would you be interested to know that by latter-day revelation the Lord has said that marriage is ordained of God, and that a couple married in one of our temples by those who hold the authority to bind on earth and it will be bound in heaven can be married, not till death do you part, but for time and all eternity? Would you like the assurance that comes to that couple that if they and their children are faithful, they shall continue together as a family unit in the next life?
Are you concerned about the increasing subversion in this blessed country, and other countries of the free world, and the spread of wickedness by a giant conspiracy? Would you be interested in reading the Book of Mormon, which records the downfall of two great ancient American civilizations as a result of internal secret conspiracies and contains a warning to us today that when we see these conditions in our midst, the Lord commands us to awake to our awful situation? With the increasing amount of aid and trade that we are providing the enemy of freedom, you might be interested to know what the Book of Mormon says will happen to a nation that upholds this conspiracy. Would you like to know of the warnings of the prophets about our increasing descent down the soul-destroying road of socialism and what they have told us to do about it?
Jesus knew of the calamities that would befall the world, which is one of the reasons why he gave revelations to Joseph Smith and other prophets. Would you like to know of a program that we have had for many years of instructing our members to have on hand at least a year's supply of food, clothing, and where possible, fuel, and of getting out of financial bondage? And did you know that God is giving his church direction to make it independent of the world?
These and many, many more revelations of great blessings and help for today, with programs of preparation for tomorrow and eternity, are available now through The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
What manner of men are we to be? Verily, even as Jesus Christ. To be like him we must study his life, learn his commandments, and do them. That is the pathway to joy and abundant and eternal life.
Prophets of God have known him-they have told us of him and of his commandments. They have been sent of God and through revelation have instructed us in the way we should go. There is no more crucial question that a man should be constantly asking than that which Paul asked: "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" There is no more essential answer than that which he received-of going to those who are authorized by the Lord to give directions.
-Hymns, no. 46
May I invite you to further investigate The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-to read the Book of Mormon. There are representatives of the Church in your general area who, without any obligation on your part, will be happy to come and tell you about the Church. You are welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like some free literature or additional information, feel free to write us at our headquarters by simply addressing us in Salt Lake City.
And now, may I leave you my witness that I know that God lives-he is not dead; that God loves his children; that we are all brothers and sisters, children of the same Father in the spirit; that he blesses us and wants to further bless us, and to that end he has established his church and sent his prophets. Today that church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and his prophet and mouthpiece is President Harold B. Lee. I know this as I know that I live, and I bear this testimony humbly and gratefully in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends who may be listening in over the radio or television:
I seek for the inspiration of this great conference during these few moments.
On the day the Church was organized, and shortly thereafter, the word of the Lord came to the prophet-leader of this dispensation. After the announcement of the establishment of the church of Christ in these latter days, the Lord gave to the President of the Church commandments and "gave him power from on high," first, to bring forth "a record of a fallen people, and the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ"; then, to be a light to the world and a standard for Church members and for those who are not members to seek for it; third, to prepare a people ready to receive the coming of the Lord; and finally, to teach the fullness of the gospel with power unto all nations.
In our day, when grave problems are before the nation and the world, men everywhere are seeking panaceas for the ills that afflict mankind and the answers to world problems that remain unanswered.
The ancient prophets seemed to have foreseen our day of complete frustration, when men would be looking for answers in the wrong places and the solutions to their problems in the wrong way. The prophets foresaw the day when there would be "a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord." Furthermore, said the prophet, " they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."
It seems that in these days of frustration, from every side we are being asked such questions as:
What does the Church think about the Vietnam war?
What is the stand of the Church on overpopulation and birth control?
What is the position of the Church relative to abortion?
How should we combat the threat of Communism throughout the world?
What are the views of the Church relative to the crime wave and the increase of juvenile delinquency?
What can be done to strengthen family ties and reduce the wave of immorality, to teach self-reliance and responsibility and moral and physical discipline?
Are there no solutions to these problems?
To set the theme for my few remarks, may I repeat something of vital importance that was said from this pulpit almost ten years ago by a former President of the Church, President David O. McKay:
"In these days of uncertainty and unrest, liberty-loving peoples' greatest responsibility and paramount duty is to preserve and proclaim the freedom of the individual, his relationship to Deity, and the necessity of obedience to the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Only, thus will mankind find peace and happiness."
Then comes the question, what shall we do about all this?
When Paul the apostle was a prisoner in Rome, he sent a letter to Timothy, saying:
"Preach the word: be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
"And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."
Quoting again from President McKay's remarks:
"It is just as important today as when Paul wrote that farewell message to Timothy that members everywhere 'preach the word; be instant in season, out of season.'
"Today, in the midst of the world's perplexity, there should be no question in the mind of any true Latter-day Saint as to what we shall preach. The answer is as clear as the noonday sun in a cloudless sky.
"In simple words, then, this is the word that we should preach-the gospel plan of salvation.
"The founders of this great republic had faith in the economic and political welfare of this country because they had faith in God. Today it is not uncommon to note an apologetic attitude on the part of men when they refer to the need of God's governing in the affairs of men.
"But I say to you, preach in season and out of season belief in God the Eternal Father, in his Son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
"Proclaim that fundamental in the gospel plan is the sacredness of the individual; that God's work and glory is 'to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.'
"Proclaim that God lives, and that his Beloved Son is the Redeemer and Savior of mankind; that he stands at the head of his Church that bears his name; that he guides and inspires those who are authorized to represent him here on earth.
"Preach that the responsibility of declaring this plan of life, this way of life, this plan of salvation, rests upon the entire membership of the Church, but most particularly upon those who have been ordained to the priesthood and who have been called as leaders and servants of the people."
These eternal verities are as applicable in the year 1972 as they were when Jesus first promulgated them, and they will remain fundamental and essential in man's progress and happiness as long as life and being last.
Then reference was made to a quotation from an eminent educator, who said:
"If there is to be social and political regeneration in our Republic and in the rest of the world, it must be by tremendous regeneration of moral ideals."
The scoffer will immediately and invariably brand such a statement as naive and coming from one who has lost step with the realities of our times, as was demonstrated by some of our social science students recently who apparently haven't learned that their little learning is not a dangerous thing, if they were only to realize that what they know is only a little learning.
Time will permit but a few observations with reference to some of these startling challenges to our present generation.
In the midst of the early persecutions of this church, the Saints sought earnestly from the Lord as to how they were to meet the threats of their enemies.
The answer came: "Therefore, renounce war and proclaim peace, and seek diligently to turn the hearts of the children to their fathers, and the hearts of the fathers to the children."
And then came this significant promise:
"And again I say unto you, if ye observe to do whatsoever I command you, I, the Lord, will turn away all wrath and indignation from you, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against you."
Early in the history of the Church came the enlightening word of the Lord:
"Let no man break the laws of the land, for he that keepeth the laws of God hath no need to break the laws of the land.
"Wherefore, be subject to the powers that be, until he reigns whose right it is to reign, and subdues all enemies under his feet."
The inspired prophet-leader of this dispensation declared the faith of this people in what we call the Articles of Faith:
"We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law." Obedient to that declaration, even in times of national emergency, we yield obedience to civil authority.
In plain language, then, the Saints were told that to avoid war with their enemies they must renounce war and proclaim peace and to see that this was to begin within the home where fathers and children would be at peace with each other.
The Lord gave a further promise, saying that when and if all wrath and indignation would be conquered within themselves, the evils of Satan's powers could not successfully assail them.
He didn't leave us with any question as to the prime place in his church and in the world where this preparation and the battle against evil-unless curbed in the beginning-would break out into armed conflict.
After giving his law to parents to teach and train their children to walk uprightly before the Lord, he indicated his displeasure relative to those among us who, in his language, "are idlers and children are also growing up in wickedness; they also seek not earnestly the riches of eternity, but their eyes are full of greediness."
If these words are clearly understood, we have been told where the roots of all evil are to be found. Our children have not been properly taught by parents in the home. Our communities have adopted policies which encourage idleness instead of work for those who want to work for what they need, and have failed to adopt measures to see that idleness and unemployment are reduced to the absolute minimum.
In our own day a pioneer leader, President Brigham Young, spoke as a pioneer statesman about the importance of work. Said he:
"My experience has taught me, and it has become a principle with me, that it is never any benefit to give, out and out, to man or woman, money, food, clothing, or anything else, if they are able-bodied, and can work and earn what they need, where there is anything on the earth, for them to do. This is my principle, and I try to act upon it. To pursue a contrary course would ruin any community in the world and make them idlers."
Now I want to digress for just a moment and repeat something that was said in a previous meeting this morning where the leaders just a few years ago, when the welfare program was instituted, said this:
"This is the essence of the Church security program, not merely that men should be fed and clothed, we know that this is important, but that the eternal man should be built up by self-reliance, by creative activity, by honorable labor, by service; a generation raised in idleness cannot maintain its integrity."
"From the beginning the long-range objective of the Welfare Plan was to build character in the members of the Church, both givers and receivers alike, thus rescuing all that is finest down deep inside of them and bringing to flower and fruitage the ladened richness of the spirit, which after all is the mission and purpose and reason for the being of this Church."
You in the Church must realize now that in order to put these divinely inspired admonitions into practice as they have come from heaven-inspired leaders, the members of the Church have been given the family home evening plan for family instruction and involvement. Linked with that, he has given us the plan of temporal salvation in the churchwide welfare program, where everyone is to give in labor, money, or service to the full extent of his ability and then receive from out of the bounties, of which each one who needs has been a producer, and then without embarrassment or reticence, he receives according to his need.
Beyond this the Lord has directed the establishment of children and youth activities and of instruction to mothers and fathers in the auxiliaries and priesthood quorum organizations of the Church, where every means is provided to give to all, as an outside observer said, speaking of the youth activities provided by the Church, "the opportunity to participate in so many good things that they have little or no time for the evil activities."
Any thinking person can see that if these fundamentals of sound social principles are not employed in every community to deal with crime, unemployment, and juvenile delinquency, then the seeds of unrest and bitterness would lead to the ultimate, of which the Lord warned. When these principles of right living and the application of his doctrines of salvation are not heeded, then we must expect that the power of evil will lead to conflict in the family, in the nation, and throughout the world.
Here are the Lord's own prophetic words that, instead of peace, there would be a sword; a son would be "at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household."
Are you aware that this is what is happening in many families throughout the world? Do I need to say more to bring us back to the complete application of the Lord's plan to save mankind and the world? If this people will heed this counsel from your leaders, you have the promise that, as the Lord said:
" the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory."
We would be so bold also to invite the honorable of the earth everywhere to follow a similar course to the blessing of all mankind.
But now the members of this church throughout the world must brace themselves for the never-ending contest between the forces of righteousness and the forces of evil. The Prophet Joseph Smith made this declaration to the Twelve, borne out of his experience, and to which many of us since that time can testify. He said:
"You will have all kinds of trials to pass through. And it is quite as necessary that you be tried as it was for Abraham and other men of God, and God will feel after you, and he will take hold of you and wrench your very heart strings, and if you cannot stand it you will not be fit for an inheritance in the Celestial Kingdom of God."
Now, again, where there is abject poverty in some heavily populated countries, we declare it is a grievous sin before God to adopt restrictive measures in disobedience to God's divine command from the beginning of time to "multiply and replenish the earth." Surely those who project such measures to prevent life or to destroy life before or after birth will reap the whirlwind of God's retribution, for God will not be mocked.
What is sorely needed is a worldwide movement, with every means possible, to overcome the ignorance to be found among these unfortunate peoples, where the fundamental principles of right living and self-control and sound economic principles, patterned after the Lord's plan of salvation, must be adopted.
This church must be in the forefront in showing the way. If we will do this, we will begin to see the beginning of the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy when, as the prophets said, the "mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem."
With regard to the political turmoil among the nations, we would earnestly pray that if this and other nations would be constrained to live by and adopt governmental systems where civil and political liberties are secure, we could then hopefully look for the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy of the prophets Isaiah and Micah, to which I have already made reference, "that out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." When that day comes, the blessings and freedoms of the free world will then be realized.
Now a final word about one of the great dangers of some of the widely disseminated doctrines of the enemies of freedom, which in essence have been characterized by our beloved prophet-statesman, President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., as but "a clumsy attempt of Satan to counterfeit the Lord's plan of the United Order, as defined in the Holy Scriptures." Our present welfare plan could well be the "setting-up" exercises to see how prepared this church is to live this plan, so that, as was the joyous realization of a people on this continent, as recorded in an ancient scripture we call the Book of Mormon, after they were all converted to the Lord, "there were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all partakers of the heavenly gift" and "surely there could not be a happier people" on the face of the earth, by living fully the law of sacrifice and consecration.
There are some well-intentioned persons within the Church who seem to have taken upon themselves to substitute for the great principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God what some have characterized as "cults"-the results of which, no matter how sincere, have caused confusion by using other organized bodies than those of the priesthood of God to combat these dangers. In doing so they have set brothers against brothers in the Church and thus weakened the unity of the greatest weapon the Lord has already provided against these evils, through the priesthood organizations of the Church and kingdom of God. Some such groups, by adopting counterfeit measures and procedures, have been led away and have apostatized and been excommunicated from the Church.
If we follow the leadership of the priesthood, the Lord will fulfill his promise contained in the preface to his revelations, when Satan would have power over his own dominion. This was his promise: " the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon the world."
I earnestly urge all our people to unite under the true banner of the Master, to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ so powerfully that no truly converted person could ever be aligned with these controversial concepts and procedures contrary to the Lord's plan of salvation.
The Lord does reign in the midst of his Saints through his priesthood, which he delegates to man, rather than through other man-made organizations, the like of those to which I have made reference.
Now, in conclusion, may I offer a humble prayer in behalf of the Church and the nation and the world. I realize that there is much more that might be said, but in this prayer may I indulge and ask that you might unite your faith with mine for a few moments:
"Our heavenly and eternal Father, hear our prayer this day, and sanctify to our good all that is being done by righteous men and women in the Church and throughout the world to bring to naught the evils that are rolling over the world like an avalanche. Increase within us the zeal to bring thy great plan of redemption to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, looking to that glorious day when thy prophecy will be realized when truth will cover the earth as waters cover the mighty deep.
"We appeal to the protection of thy almighty power to that end which accords with thy purpose concerning us and thy work. We put ourselves under the surveillance of thy watchful eye and pray that thou will never leave us alone, and continue to give the guidance necessary to the accomplishment of thy purposes."
I add to that humble prayer my witness to the members of this church and to the world that through the atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ, "all mankind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel."
This is indeed the Lord's work in which we are engaged. He lives and is ever ready to draw near to us when we prepare ourselves to be worthy to draw close to him.
From my own personal experience, I know this which I declare in all soberness to be true, and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
One of the most striking prophecies of the Old Testament, which certainly characterizes our day, is this one spoken by Amos:
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord:
"And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."
Famine was one of the common scourges of Old Testament times, and people understood the devastating consequences of crop failure and starving people. Amos brought this understanding into sharp focus by his prediction of a spiritual famine. He said: " not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord."
Long before this time Moses had written: " man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live."
Present-day reports of confusion and frustration of individuals and religious institutions, as they attempt to resolve their religious doubts and conflicts, remind us of these words of Amos: " they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."
They seek to find the solution without building on the rock of revelation, as the Lord said must be done, if the gates of hell are not to prevail against it. This problem has engaged the minds of good and sincere men before and since the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in this dispensation.
In the year 1838, 134 years ago and only eight years after the organization of the Church, Ralph Waldo Emerson delivered an address before the senior class of the Divinity School at Cambridge University. In it he asked questions that were then unanswered and are unanswered for many individuals of our time. He said this:
"And it is my duty to say to you that the need was never greater of new revelation than now. In how many churches, by how many prophets, tell me, is man made sensible that he is an infinite Soul? It is the office of a true teacher to show us that God is, not was; that He speaketh, not spake. Men have come to speak of revelation as somewhat long ago given and done, as if God were dead."
That is an interesting statement to have been made nearly a century and a half ago. It has the sound of an echo from some of today's modern pulpits.
Over a hundred years later, the educator Dr. Robert Gordon Sproul described this condition in modern Christian churches in these words: "We have the peculiar spectacle of a nation, which to a limited extent practices Christianity without actively believing in Christianity. We are asked to turn to the church for enlightenment but when we do we find that the voice of the church is not inspired. The voice of the church today is the echo of our own voices. The way out is the sound of a voice, not our voice. It is the task of the pastors to hear this voice, cause us to hear it and tell us what it says. Without it we are no more capable of saving the earth than we were capable of creating it in the first place."
Louis Cassels, a senior editor of United Press International, recently remarked that public interest in religion has declined because people "are sick and tired of being told what they can't believe. They want to know what, if anything, they can believe," he said, "and many churches haven't been doing a very good job of answering that question." He ended with the warning that "if you persist in handing out stones when people ask for bread, they'll finally quit coming to the bakery."
The Gallup poll revealed in early 1967 that the majority of Americans-fifty-seven percent-say religion is losing its influence on American life. Ten years previously the proportion holding this view was 14 percent, only one-fourth as large. "This represents," said polltaker George Gallup, "one of the most dramatic shifts in surveys on American life." Surely we would agree that in the five years since that survey was made, there has been further deterioration.
In the year 1820, just prior to the time Ralph Waldo Emerson made his statement to the Cambridge Divinity School that "the need was never greater for new revelation than now," the Prophet Joseph Smith went into a grove of trees near his home and inquired of God which church he should join. The same confusion existed in his mind that exists in the minds of countless millions today, but the answer given him by the Lord takes away the uncertainty, for he said that "all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; 'they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.'"
For the world generally, this condition has not changed.
After the long period of apostasy from the true church established by Christ during his personal ministry, a sure foundation for the kingdom of God was laid through the restoration of the priesthood and the gospel by the principles of divine revelation in this dispensation of time. The priesthood, authority to act in the name of God, was restored through visits of John the Baptist and of Peter, James, and John, who held its keys during the Savior's sojourn on earth. Other messengers, mighty prophets and leaders, including Elias, Elijah, and Moses, appeared and restored the essential keys of the kingdom. The Book of Mormon, a new witness for Jesus Christ, was revealed through the angel Moroni.
Revelation followed revelation, as recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants. The foundation was laid for the organization that would govern the kingdom of God, even until it should cover the whole earth.
In a little over 140 years, a miracle has been achieved as the priesthood has administered the restored gospel. Temples have been erected on this continent and in other places in the world. Houses of worship dot many lands of the globe. A desert has been made to bloom as a rose. Over 16,000 full-time missionaries are proclaiming the gospel in many lands. Elementary schools, high schools, seminaries, institutes of religion, and colleges in many countries give instruction to more than a quarter of a million young people daily, not only in the elements of secular learning, but in the eternal truths of the gospel.
Most important is the fact that down through its history, including this very day, the Church has had a prophet, seer, and revelator. At the head of the Church is Jesus Christ, who directs his prophet, presently Harold B. Lee. His counselors, the members of the Council of the Twelve, and the Patriarch to the Church are also prophets, seers, and revelators. The more than three million members of the Church do not have to listen to an uncertain trumpet. They can believe the voice of their leaders, knowing they are guided by the Lord.
The church of Jesus Christ provides maximum opportunity for involvement of its members. From early youth to the last years of life, satisfying and meaningful activity and responsibility are available to all who are worthy and willing. This promotes the deep satisfaction and emotional well-being which the gospel of Jesus Christ should bring into every human life.
Youth is trained from the earliest age to take part in Primary and Sunday School. At twelve years worthy young men receive the Aaronic Priesthood and, in a sense, begin an apprenticeship that prepares them for the many roles of leadership they will assume throughout their lifetime.
There is no more powerful principle of life to promote love, forbearance, and devotion in the home than that of eternal marriage. Good adjustment and performance in adult life depend largely on the quality of home life. The principle of eternal marriage is a most powerful stabilizing influence in promoting the kind of home needed to rear children who are happy and well adjusted. No church lays greater emphasis on producing a close, cohesive family life.
What a contrast to the declarations that God is dead-there is no believable voice-the future is blank, as expressed by religious leaders, educators, and columnists. The confusion and frustrations from which the world is suffering are not common to faithful members of the Church. The proof is provided by the loyalty and dedication of its members for nearly a century and a half.
That loyalty and dedication is not diminishing-it is increasing. Hundreds are going daily from the darkness and uncertainty of unbelief and disbelief into the eternal life of the gospel by having faith, complying with the law of repentance, and accepting of baptism. Their lives are made bright and luminous by the gift of the Holy Ghost, and their souls are lifted up by their service to God and man.
There is hope-God does live-and there is a believable voice to those who have faith and the will to believe. Certainly we live in a day of famine, as described by Amos, when "they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it." Nevertheless, in what appears to be a spiritual famine, there are many who have found a spiritual abundance.
It is my witness that God lives and Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world. These few words I have spoken are a portrayal of my humble testimony that the gospel in its fullness has been restored in these latter days and that there is a prophet on the earth today who speaks the mind and will of the Lord to those who will hear and have the faith to follow. That we may do so, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
"And builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac's servants digged a well."
Altar, tent, and well. Isaac did not become an Abraham or a Jacob. He did not reach the heights of Abraham, called the "father of the faithful." Nor was he as impressive as his son Israel, father of the twelve tribes. Yet Isaac is loved and revered. He worshiped God, cared for his home, and pursued his work. He is remembered simply as a man of peace. The eloquent simplicity of his life and his unique ability to lend importance to the commonplace made him great.
Altar, tent, and well: his worship, his home, his work. These basic things of life signified his relationship to God, his family, and his fellowmen. Every person on earth is touched by these three.
Isaac worshiped at an altar of stone. He sought there answers to life's questions: Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?
These questions every man asks. These questions continue with us.
Biblical scriptures alone cannot answer these questions. Revealed religion, however, gives clear and solid answers. The fullness of the restored gospel declares: We lived with our Heavenly Father in a celestial home before this world began. We learned, progressed, and grew. We yearned to come to this life where we could receive a physical body. After resurrection, we shall return to our Father's presence, united in an eternal family. All this, through obedience to the principles and ordinances of the restored gospel.
We know by revelation that our Father lives. Jesus is his Firstborn in the spirit world: the Only Begotten in the flesh. He is the Christ, our Savior and Redeemer. His work and his glory is "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
We know he lives, for he has appeared to men in our day to establish this latter-day work. There are living prophets and apostles on the earth today, called by God and ordained to carry out his divine purposes. His only true and living church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His chosen prophet is President Harold B. Lee. Thank the Lord for modern revelation that gives solid answers to life's important questions-in which we find peace.
To know the word and works of God, Isaac knelt in his day at his altar. His tent, a home for himself and family, was sacred to him, as our homes are to us.
To Latter-day Saints, the home is a holy place, patterned after the celestial home whence we came. The priesthood-led home is the loftiest spiritual unit we know.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a family church. In its missionary work we seek to bring families into the Church. We teach the principles and perform ordinances that unite the family for eternity. Indeed, we may say that a prime purpose of this church is to perfect and exalt the family.
There is widespread misunderstanding today concerning the role of father and mother and children. The Prophet Joseph Smith explained that the destiny of the family is to live together as a family unit in the celestial glory. To understand their proper roles, one must understand the eternal nature of man's life-his premortal existence, life's purpose now, and his future destiny. Our religion comprehends this and more.
The man is the head of the home. He is to preside and administer its affairs "by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; by kindness and pure knowledge."
The woman is the heart of the home. "And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him."
"And they twain shall be one flesh. "
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., one of the Lord's noble servants, defined woman's role in eternal perspective. Speaking of Eve, he speaks of all women:
"So came Eve, an helpmeet to the priesthood mission of Adam-Eve, the last created being in the world. Adam took her in her purity, radiant and divinely fair, into the Garden he had dressed and kept for her, into the bridal home he had built, into the Garden that from then till now has been the symbol of heaven on earth, there to begin together their earthly life, that was finally to bring opportunity to the untold myriads of spirits then waiting for the mortal tabernacles these two were to make it possible for them to possess.
" So Eve came to be a creator of bodies that God's design and the great plan might meet fruition.
"This was her calling.
"From that day, the greatest glory of true womanhood has been motherhood.
"What a miracle is motherhood; how nearly infinite is mother. She fashions in her womb the most complex structure known to man.
"This is wife's and mother's task and opportunity; and did she fail then the great plan would fail and God's purposes would come to naught. This must never change.
"But the full glory of motherhood is not yet reached when her child comes forth into this world of trial. She feeds not only, but clothes it. She cares for it by day and watches over it by night. She gently leads its faltering steps, till it walks alone.
"Thus to the full stature of manhood and womanhood, mother guides, instructs, directs the soul for which she built the earthly home, in its march onward to exaltation. God gives the soul its destiny, but mother leads it along the way.
"When the souls shall return to the presence of the Father of all, the worthy mothers will be there to welcome their worthy children. "
Wives and mothers do what men cannot do. Men will bow in reverence and in love before mothers who perform this great, this marvelous service.
Contrast this view of woman with the current prattle that demeans motherhood and her exalted role; that even condones abortion and its attendant evils; that sets aside the role God gave to her. It would be hard to imagine a more exalted role of woman and her place in the eternal plan than is held and taught in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We invite you to consider this carefully, for it comes from God.
Parental responsibility cannot go unheeded, nor can it be shifted to day-care centers, nor to the schoolroom, nor even to the Church. Family responsibility comes by divine decree. Parents may violate this decree only at the peril of their eternal salvation.
Only out of this purposeful, divine relationship of parent and child grows eternal joy and fulfillment. President Harold B. Lee has said, "The most important work you will ever do for the church will be within the walls of your own home."
To the child, God said at the great day of law-giving at Sinai: "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."
Kneeling at his altar, mindful of his family in his tent, Isaac found most of his working hours consumed in watching over wells he had caused to be digged. His flocks were nourished by them. His simple dependence upon the water and the soil and the forage that grew is little different in our day, for man must work.
The revelations say that "every man who is obliged to provide for his own family, let him provide. "
In the beginning the Lord decreed, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread. "
Ever since the restoration in 1830, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has encouraged thrift and fostered work as the ruling principle among its members.
Few evils has the Lord denounced in our day with more vehemence than idleness:
"Thou shalt not be idle, for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer. "
" the idler shall be had in remembrance before the Lord. "
" And the idler shall not have place in the church, except he repent and mend his ways."
Let a man choose an occupation in balance with the other two elements of the triumvirate of which I have spoken. Learn to give an honest day's work for an honest day's pay. In the farm or shop or office, let that man know that work is not an end in itself, but a means to a noble end.
How little things have changed since Isaac's day-the things that really matter. There is the same God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the same family roles to fill, the same need to work.
Altar, tent, and well: these things are essential. Placed in proper perspective by God's revealed word, they provide at once our greatest challenge and achievement.
Our Heavenly Father, wilt thou help us thy children to see eternity in these things and act accordingly. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Presiding Bishop
The apostle James said: "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."
The apostle Paul said: " by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
He further said: "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
"And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
"And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity."
With these scriptures as background, I should like to share with you some experiences of some wonderful groups of unheralded workers who have made these teachings live in their lives. May I introduce the first group to you. They are known as health missionaries, doctors and nurses who have responded to the same missionary call as have the thousands of proselyting missionaries, not only receiving not one cent of compensation, but paying their own expenses. In each case, they labor under the direction of the mission president.
From Guatemala a lady health missionary reports: "The Primary children were given a lesson on the basic-three food groups. After the flipchart lesson, we played a game with them. They were asked to place foods in the groups where they belonged. Then we gave them a plate and asked them to prepare us a meal, either breakfast, lunch, or dinner, using foods from the basic three. This same health lesson has been given to investigator families as well as member families."
You will be interested to know that approximately 50 percent of the children in these Indian villages die before reaching the age of five. Malnutrition, complicated by respiratory infection and diarrhea, is the underlying cause.
Speaking of midwife lessons, this health missionary says: "We will give classes on this subject in Relief Society, so our ladies can benefit from it. Through working with the Relief Society, we can develop the health program more. The ladies can depend on each other for help. We give them health concepts; then they can teach their families, sisters in the Church, and their neighbors. We know the health program will work through these organizations as planned. Too, we hope to work with families through the family home evening program."
From Apia, Western Samoa, comes a report from a medical doctor, another health missionary: "At our conferences this round, we are again stressing the importance of food and cleanliness, but in addition, we are encouraging each family to maintain a continually growing food supply. We have indicated to them that each family should keep a certain quantity of various foods growing, and as these are used, they should be replaced. We are also encouraging them to try growing their own vegetables, and as a demonstration, we plant a small garden plot at each conference with tomatoes, cabbage, etc., and leave it for the branch to keep up. Extra plants are given to members who are interested in raising their own."
From the Philippines comes a report on the problems of the recent catastrophic flood and the help the health missionaries provided.
On and on it goes, from Peru, Tonga, Guatemala, Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Honduras, Mexico, Brazil, and in the future from Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and many other countries of the world.
Now let us see what is happening in the lives of people because of a second group of workers, those involved with the social services phase of the work.
This is the case of a 17-year-old unwed mother. This young lady came from a good, active Mormon family. The lines of communication had broken down between parents and daughter. She was in serious trouble from a pregnancy and was on the verge of compounding the problem in such a way as to further jeopardize any possibility of a happy, successful life when one of the dedicated staff workers became involved. Through extra effort and wise counseling, he was instrumental in saving her from falling off the precipice. He helped open the channel of communication between mother and daughter, and now, a few years later, this same young woman, through repentance and forgiveness and wise counsel, is happily married to a fine husband and is doing her part to help her neighbors. Instead of failure, she is now experiencing joy and peace of mind through living a worthwhile, fulfilling life.
Under the direction of social services, men and women in prison are visited by home teachers. They hold a regular home evening attended by the home teacher's family, the prisoner's family, and the inmate. The example of love shown by the home teaching family, along with the evidence of sincere interest, has performed miracles in the lives of many of these men.
Home teaching couples are spending hundreds of hours visiting not only in prison but also in drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers. They have gone into lonely, one-room apartments to help an alcoholic sober up and have done much more in helping in his rehabilitation.
Another important area of this service has to do with foster homes. Over 4,000 families have opened their homes to Indian students. Because these families give freely, this service carries with it that most important ingredient of a home-love.
Now let us examine what happens in the lives of people when the third group becomes involved. They are largely concerned with the temporal or the financial welfare. This is a large group of dedicated men and women. You might say this group is composed of all the members of the Church who participate in any way in the welfare services program.
From one of our associates who is deeply involved in helping people we learn of what happens when the Church steps in to help.
About twelve years ago Roger walked through the side door at Welfare Square. It took him at least fifteen minutes to tell the supervisors who he was and where he came from. Although he was a young man of eighteen years, he had great difficulty expressing himself. Part of his young life had been spent in an institution in a neighboring state. Now at the age of eighteen he was on his own.
This young man lived for some time alone in the mountains. Finally, he got a ride into Salt Lake City. He could neither read nor write, and speech was nearly impossible.
The brethren at Welfare Square found Roger a place to stay. Soon he had a bishop, and he gradually became active in the Church. Fellow workers at Welfare Square helped him to learn to speak so that he could communicate. He still has great difficulty, but his friends and associates can, with a little patience, converse with him reasonably well. He worked in several different jobs at the storehouse, and today he is an active elder in the Church. Roger now has a job in a large commercial enterprise and at the present time is totally self-sufficient.
Roger met Janey at Welfare Square. Let me tell you about Janey.
She had been born with cerebral palsy. She was badly crippled, but she had been able to attend school and had recently graduated from high school. This was a tremendous accomplishment; but now, after several months of searching, her family had found it impossible to obtain employment for her. Her bishop asked if there was something Janey could do. She needed to keep busy. In answer to this challenge, the storehousekeeper suggested that Janey be brought to the storehouse the next morning.
After Janey had been at work seven hours, her mother came to take her home. Janey was smiling with pride. She had labeled a dozen cans. There was a pile of spoiled labels on the floor, but they weren't important. The important thing was her smile. It was there because she felt useful and had pride in her accomplishment. She was willing and anxious to return the next day and continue trying.
Within a month's time, Janey was doing a good job of labeling cans. She hardly wasted any labels. As her skill in using her hands increased, she was given greater challenges. At the end of three years she was assigned the delicate job of packing eggs after they had been candled.
Janey and her family are truly happy because she has learned through the welfare program to be a contributing member of society.
Roger and Janey fell in love with each other and were married in the Salt Lake Temple for time and all eternity.
Last year work opportunities amounting to 1,480,000 hours were made available to the Rogers and the Janeys. The wonderful sisters of the Relief Society donated in excess of two million hours in aiding the ill and the aged. They gave compassionate service to 15,000 families at the time of losing a loved one in death. Members of the Church contributed almost two million hours to welfare projects, bishops storehouses, etc., and the Church dispersed over 17 million dollars in cash and commodities, to take care of those in need.
All of this was done through the welfare services program of the Church. This was accomplished through the regularly constituted ecclesiastical organization of the Church. There is no separate organization to manage welfare. It is an integral part of the Church and has been from the beginning. To re-emphasize its purpose and objective, I shall read a statement of the First Presidency given in 1936:
"Our primary purpose was to set up, in so far as it might be possible, a system under which the curse of idleness would be done away with, the evils of a dole abolished, and independence, industry, thrift, and self respect be once more established amongst our people. The aim of the Church is to help the people to help themselves. Work is to be re-enthroned as the ruling principle of the lives of our Church membership."
"This is the essence of the Church Security Program-not merely that men shall be fed and clothed, though that is important-but that eternal man shall be built up by self-reliance, by creative activity, by honorable labor, by service. A generation raised in idleness cannot maintain its integrity."
" from the beginning the real long term objective of the Welfare Plan is the building of character in the members of the Church, givers and receivers, rescuing all that is finest deep down in the inside of them, and bringing to flower and fruitage the latent richness of the spirit, which after all is the mission and purpose and reason for being of this Church."
These lofty goals still remain as the motivating force of all who are involved in this great work. And now, with the approval of the First Presidency, the temporal or financial, health, and social services functions are brought together in the welfare services organization of the Church concerned with the well-being of the whole man.
I bear my humble witness that this is the gospel of Jesus Christ, that he reigns at the head of this church and speaks through a living prophet, Harold B. Lee. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
Brothers and sisters and friends, wherever you are:
As you have been advised, this service is a part of the 142nd Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Since there were at the time it was organized, as there are today, many other so-called Christian churches, the question "What was the need of another church?" is often asked. To this question I shall respond.
To begin with, it is obvious from the inquiry itself that the existence of so many churches was perplexing. The honest in heart were disturbed and confused as to which, if any, of them was the true church of Christ.
Among the disturbed was one Joseph Smith, Jr., a 14-year-old youth. In the spring of 1820, stirred by a religious revival in the vicinity of Palmyra, New York, where he lived; perplexed by the conflicting claims of the churches; motivated by the admonition and promise of James, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, and it shall be given him", Joseph, in childlike faith, inquired of the Lord "which of all the sects was right," that he "might know which to join."
" I kneeled down and began to offer up the desire of my heart to God. I had scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame me,
"But, exerting all my powers to call upon God to deliver me and at the very moment when I was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction- I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.
"It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!".
This vision was the opening scene in an awesome drama that some ten years later culminated in the organization of the Church.
By the Son, with whom he conversed in the heavenly vision, Joseph was told to join none of the existing churches because they "were all wrong." They lacked both necessary components of the church of Jesus Christ, namely, his gospel and his name.
Indispensable elements of the gospel, which they lacked, included:
The truth concerning the personality of God and man's relationship to him,
A knowledge of its saving principles and ordinances,
The priesthood of God, and
Continuing revelation.
As to the first element, the personality of God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, Joseph learned the truth in the vision above referred to. Later he said of them, "The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also. "
As to man's relationship to God, Joseph learned from a subsequent revelation that the inhabitants of "the worlds" "are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
These fundamental truths concerning God and man's relationship to him were not being taught by the churches of Joseph Smith's day, for the obvious reason that they were neither known nor believed. It is true that they were known and taught and believed by members of the church of Christ in the days of Jesus and his apostles. But in 1830 an understanding of them had long since been lost. It was ignorance of a true knowledge of God and man's relationship to him that spawned the many churches.
During the 1820s a knowledge of the fundamental principles and ordinances of the gospel was revealed anew from heaven to the boy prophet, Joseph Smith. Many of these principles and ordinances he learned from the Book of Mormon, which came to him in the following manner.
In September 1827, Moroni, an ancient American historian and prophet, at that time resurrected, delivered to Joseph a record inscribed on thin sheets of gold, which, by the gift and power of God, Joseph translated. This record contained an explanation of the principles and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as it was taught and implemented among the ancient people of America.
In 1829 Joseph published his translation under the title The Book of Mormon. This book contains a record of the personal ministry of Jesus Christ among the inhabitants of America immediately following his post-resurrection ministry in the land of Jerusalem. To them he taught his gospel, even as he had taught it in Palestine. Among them he organized his church. Upon their leaders he conferred the holy priesthood. He instructed them concerning, and showed them how to administer, the saving ordinances of his gospel.
By the time he published the Book of Mormon Joseph had also received the third indispensable element of the gospel, namely, the holy priesthood, which empowered him to act for and in the name of God.
The Aaronic Priesthood he received in May of 1829. While translating the Savior's teachings concerning baptism as they are recorded in the Book of Mormon, he and his scribe, Oliver Cowdery, besought the Lord for further light upon the subject. As they knelt in prayer they were visited by a heavenly messenger who said that his name was "John, the same that is called John the Baptist in the New Testament." This messenger laid his hands upon their heads and said:
"Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of Messiah, I confer the Priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins. "
A few weeks later Peter, James, and John conferred upon Joseph and Oliver the Melchizedek Priesthood and ordained them apostles.
The fourth indispensable element of the gospel, continuing revelation, came with the restoration of the priesthood. It is obvious, from the manner in which Joseph Smith received a knowledge of God and of the principles and ordinances of the gospel, that he himself was receiving direct revelation from heaven. But this is not all that was necessary.
Every member of Christ's church in the meridian of time received the gift of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is a revelator. To receive him is to be spiritually reborn. Remember, Jesus said to Nicodemus: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
To receive the gift of the Holy Ghost is to be born of the Spirit. The Lord instructed the priesthood officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints "to confirm those who are baptized into the church, by the laying on of hands for the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost, according to the scriptures."
The priesthood and the power of the Holy Ghost is what gives life to the Church and its members:
" the special office of the Holy Ghost is to enlighten and ennoble the mind, to purify and sanctify the soul, to incite to good works, and to reveal the things of God."
Without this gift, the Church would be as dead and impotent as an electric powerhouse without electricity.
Having thus received a new dispensation of the gospel, Joseph Smith was qualified to reestablish the church of Christ upon the earth, as he was directed by the Lord to do. Such direction came in various revelations, in which the manner and the date of organization were specified.
Obedient to these commandments, Joseph Smith, Jr., did, on April 6, 1830, organize the Church of Jesus Christ at Fayette, Seneca County, New York, strictly in harmony with the commandments of God and the laws of the land.
Thus the answer to the question-Why was the Church organized when there were already so many churches?-is obviously because the Lord Jesus Christ himself directed Joseph Smith to organize it.
Now, the Lord not only directed Joseph to organize his church: he told him what to name it.
It is a fact worth noting that of all the churches then claiming to represent Christ, not one of them bore his name. Joseph learned from the teachings of Jesus to the Nephites that no church could be Christ's church unless it did bear his name. When the Nephites raised the question about what to name his church, Jesus, as he ministered among them, said:
" how be it my church save it be called in my name? For if a church be called in Moses' name then it be Moses' church; or if it be called in the name of a man then it be the church of a man; but if it be called in my name then it is my church, if it so be that they are built upon my gospel."
This statement gives us the twofold test: Christ's church must bear his name, and must be built upon his gospel.
That there should be no uncertainty about the name in this last dispensation, the Lord said to Joseph Smith: " thus shall my church be called in the last days, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
The phrase "Mormon Church" is a nickname.
The restored church thus meets the Savior's twofold test: it bears his name and it is built upon his gospel. About this there can be no doubt, because both the name and the gospel were by the Lord Jesus Christ himself revealed to Joseph Smith.
And now in conclusion, I would like to say a few words about, and bear my testimony concerning, the restored gospel and church of Jesus Christ.
There have been no occurrences on this earth since the ministry of Jesus in the meridian of time of such importance to you and to me as the events we have just reviewed. They occurred for the benefit of Joseph Smith and his associates not only, but for the sake of the whole world.
Introducing the revelations given to the Prophet, the Lord said:
" Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together.
"For verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated.
"And again, verily I say unto you, O inhabitants of the earth: I the Lord am willing to make these things known unto all flesh;
"For I am no respecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion.
"And also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon the world."
Today, more than 140 years since the foregoing words were spoken, peace has been taken from the earth. The devil now has power over his dominion, and the Lord has power over his saints. The day approaches when he will "come down in judgment upon the world" and reign in the midst of his people.
Between now and then, however, if men and nations continue on their present course, great tribulation will come upon us. There shall be more "wars and rumors of wars, there shall be earthquakes also in divers places, and many desolations. the whole earth shall be in commotion. " Those are the words of the Lord himself.
The Lord foresaw the coming of these calamities and gave warning of them. He restored his gospel and reestablished his church as a means of escape therefrom.
About a year and a half after the Church was organized, he thus explained the cause of our present predicament:
" they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant;
"They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.
"Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
"And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world. "
The commandments to be proclaimed to the world are the principles and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ. By restoring his gospel and reestablishing his church in the earth, the Lord has provided the means for our temporal as well as for our spiritual salvation.
The restoration fulfills the prediction of Daniel that in the days of the disunited kingdoms "the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which never be destroyed. "
It fulfills Micah's prophecy that "in the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it."
It is the fulfillment of John's vision in which he saw an "angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
"Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come. "
Yes, verily, it is the "restitution of all things" which Peter said would come in preparation for the second advent of the Lord.
And now, as a special witness of Jesus Christ, I add my personal testimony that all these things are true. And I bear further witness to all of you who hear or read what I am saying that if you will inform yourselves of the historical facts and revealed truths of the restoration and then humbly and sincerely call upon the Father in the name of Jesus Christ, he will give you like assurance by the power of the Holy Ghost. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, I come before you with a humble heart and rejoice with you in the marvelous spirit of this conference.
I am grateful for the blessings of this day. I am thankful for my knowledge and testimony that God lives and that through the atoning sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we may enjoy eternal life as we are obedient to the laws and ordinances of the gospel. We are blessed to be living in this dispensation when the gospel, the Church, and the priesthood, which is the power to act in the name of God, have been restored through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith, one of the great leaders of all time.
And today, in a world where there are millions of God's children who are frustrated and discouraged and are looking for an explanation of life, we are blessed to be led and guided by another prophet, our beloved President Harold B. Lee. May the Lord bless and sustain him.
In considering the purpose of life, the Prophet Joseph Smith said: "Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God."
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, in his life, set the pattern for us to follow in our quest for this eternal joy and happiness. He admonished his disciples to be perfect, "even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."
There is tremendous power in focusing upon an ideal. People are inclined to become like those whom they admire. As we increase our knowledge and love of the Savior and indicate our willingness to do his will, we necessarily become more perfect and like him.
Some of the Savior's greatest attributes and most profound teachings are to be found in the incidents immediately preceding his crucifixion.
After the Last Supper, Jesus and the eleven apostles left the house in which they had eaten and walked to the olive grove known as Gethsemane, on the slope of Mount Olivet. Jesus apparently frequented this grove or garden when he desired privacy for prayer and meditation.
He left eight of the apostles near the entrance, with the suggestion, "Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder."
Peter, James, and John accompanied the Savior further and "then, saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
"And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."
The life of the Savior is replete with instances where he applied the principle of "Thy will be done, not mine." Christ's ability to apply this great principle in his life made it possible for him to become perfect.
As we apply "Thy will be done, not mine" in our lives, we will likewise move toward perfection and true happiness.
But how can we know God's will in order to make our life conform? The Savior said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Live so that the Holy Ghost will guide and direct you.
Seek to grow in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding by continuous study and contemplation of the words of Christ and those whom God has appointed to teach and instruct us.
And pray always, remembering the promise given to us: "Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you. "
As we live in this type of environment, we will know God's will and have the desire and courage to conform. This doctrine or philosophy requires one to deeply love the Lord and have great faith in his judgment.
Let me illustrate:
In the prayer offered by the Prophet Joseph Smith at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple, which prayer was given to him by revelation, he said, " Help thy servants to say, with thy grace assisting them: Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours."
In the fall of 1834 the Prophet was busily engaged in preparing for the school of the elders and wrote in his diary, "No month ever found me more busily engaged than November; but as my life consisted of activity and unyielding exertions, I made this my rule: When the Lord commands, do it."
Here again is evidenced the spirit of "Thy will be done." Joseph Smith's life exemplifies this great principle.
President Brigham Young's feeling about this divine principle is recorded in a letter to Orson Spencer in January of 1848 when he said, "As the Lord's will is my will all the time, as he dictates so I will perform."
Some of you are converts to the Church. Did you find it difficult to accept baptism when you felt it would mean being estranged from your family or friends, losing the security of your social position, maybe even losing your job or employment?
But in your heart you knew it was the will of God that you should accept him and become a member of his church, because the Holy Ghost had borne this witness to you.
When you had the will to say "Not my will, but thy will be done," placing your trust in God, and by your acceptance of baptism, showing your faith and humility, didn't you find that you had just opened the way for God to give you greater blessings than you had ever known before?
This is the testimony of two wonderful young people I met recently in Mexico, Brother and Sister Alvarez. They told me that since they were baptized eight months ago, rather than the estrangement from family and friends they had feared, they were finding a new love and respect being given to them, besides all the wonderful new friends that they had found among their brothers and sisters in the Church. They had prospered materially, and above all they had found a peace and nearness to their Heavenly Father that they had never known before.
May I refer to two experiences:
As a young man I was offered an appointment to the United States Naval Academy. This was an honor and a real temptation. However, in my early life I had definitely decided that I would like to go on a mission, and I could now see that if I accepted the Naval Academy appointment I probably would not be able to serve as a missionary.
After prayerful consideration I declined the appointment, as I felt it was the will of the Lord that I go on a mission. Soon thereafter I received a call to serve in the Eastern States Mission.
I will be eternally grateful for the call I received, because it was in the mission field that I learned to love the gospel, learned the power of faith, and felt the happiness and peace that come when one is responsive to the whisperings of the Holy Spirit. The pattern I set in the mission field has been a guide to me throughout my life.
My mission president, Brigham H. Roberts, in his letter of release to me, promised me that I would "find new beginnings from time to time even more missions." As I left the mission field I prayed fervently and at length that this promise might be fulfilled. Twenty-four years later it was partially fulfilled when I was called to be the stake mission president of the East Mill Creek Stake. At that time Elder Gordon B. Hinckley was president of that stake, and also at that time President Harold B. Lee gave me a beautiful blessing as he set me apart.
Four years later it was further realized when I was called to preside over the Northwestern States Mission. And one of the choicest and most inspiring experiences of our lives was when Sister Richards and I spent approximately ten days with President and Sister Lee in touring our mission.
As we have listened to missionaries bear their testimonies, many have told us how they put aside dreams and plans for school and careers and accepted mission calls. Others who have been called to important church assignments have set aside, to a large extent, their personal affairs, to give the needed attention to the work of the Lord; and all have borne witness of the happiness and blessings they and their families have received.
In my opinion, the strength and vitality of the Church is due, to a large extent, to the willingness of its members to live the principle, "Thy will be done, not mine."
In 1959 when I received my call to preside over the Northwestern States Mission, it came at a most inconvenient time. But both Sister Richards and I felt that if the Lord wanted us to go, then we should go.
Many of our friends, Church members and nonmembers, indicated that they felt we were making a real sacrifice. We felt otherwise, and as President McKay set me apart, he promised me that it would be the happiest time of our lives. And it was, because our entire time was spent in serving our fellowmen. And we remembered the words of King Benjamin, " when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."
Why should we consider it a sacrifice to enjoy such happiness, growth, and development?
Again I was grateful that my parents had taught me to live by the rule, "Thy will be done, not mine."
Applying this rule in our lives can mean never to turn down an opportunity to serve in building the kingdom when asked by one in authority. Our callings to serve in the Church, coming from an authorized agent of our Heavenly Father, can properly be construed to be the will of the Lord.
In many other ways, to accept the will of the Lord is ofttimes most difficult, as is the case of the death of a loved one.
Death is an important part of eternal life, yet we are never quite ready for the change. Not knowing when it will come, we properly fight to retain life for ourselves and for our loved ones. We pray for the sick and administer to the afflicted. We implore the Lord to heal and extend life. But all are not healed, even though great faith is manifested.
However, God has given us a promise that though a loved one may die, yet he or she shall live again, through the atonement and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The loss of loved ones is a difficult experience that builds great faith, courage, and humility, and we must all expect such experiences.
To obtain the desired happiness on this earth and in the world to come, we must steadfastly face trials and tribulations regardless of the form they take, with the spirit, "Thy will be done, not mine."
The Savior again set the pattern in this respect. No martyr ever approached death with greater courage and dignity than did Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
Undoubtedly the greatest evidence of righteousness in a person is to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Redeemer without any qualifications, and an evidence of this is to live the doctrine, "Thy will be done, not mine."
In conclusion, let me again repeat the words of the Prophet Joseph Smith: "Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God."
By loving the Lord, keeping his commandments, and serving our fellow beings, we are doing his will, and this will bring us great happiness and eternal life.
I bear you this witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder David B. Haight
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
The Savior's powerful promise, " I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you", became a reality to me as I sat in the National Auditorium in Mexico City a few weeks ago and looked out upon the vast throng of 16,000 faithful Saints.
Some had borrowed money, mortgaged possessions, traveled for days, and made many sacrifices unknown to us that they might attend this great area conference. Our members had come to see a living prophet-to see him face to face, to hear his voice, to hear his words of assurance and admonition, and to personally witness the presidency of the kingdom of God on the earth. They came in great numbers. They saw the prophet and they felt of the comforting Spirit of the Lord. The Saints gathered there heard the truth and believed.
I thought of the great significance of the full-time missionary service of your sons and daughters, who join in heart and voice in humble meetings throughout the world, as they sing:
-Hymns, no. 344
We have been a missionary church from the beginning. I thank the Lord that we will always be a missionary church. The first conversions in this dispensation came through the humble testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. His efforts were directed first to those he loved most. He converted his father, his mother, and his brothers and sisters. He converted his wife, his neighbors, then Martin Harris, and the schoolteacher, Oliver Cowdery, as well as the Whitmer family. They all felt of the truth and power of his simple testimony.
"On Sunday, April 11th, 1830, Oliver Cowdery preached the first public discourse that was delivered by any of our number," wrote the Prophet Joseph Smith. Then it was recorded that six were baptized following the service.
Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, under divine instruction, began to preach, teach, expound, exhort, baptize, and set the pattern for our modern missionary service. Now, over 140 years later, we see the fruits of missionary efforts in our own families, in our wards, in our branches, and, of course, in this tabernacle today.
This gospel is the hope and everlasting salvation for all mankind. The missionary system must be perpetuated by us. Our young men and women should be reared under the loving guidance and influence of a good home, a home where the blessing of a mission is part of each one's life's goal; a home where plans for his future mission become part of his life, such as a simple piggy bank on the shelf in the kitchen marked "For Johnny's Mission," a reminder of his dream.
Hollywood would never be able to produce the thrilling stories, the real-life dramas, the diaries, the letters home, the testimonies locked in hearts that have resulted from following the Savior's instruction: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
The Savior explained what might happen to some of our efforts. He said:
"A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down.
"And some fell upon a rock: and it withered away.
"And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. "
Imagine the quantity of seed planted over the years by the tens of thousands of missionaries. Some seeds lie dormant for years; others spring forth immediately. Some years ago such a precious seed was planted in fertile soil in Germany.
Robert Frederick Lippolt, his wife, and daughters lived in a small city in Central Germany. Robert, a house painter, provided a moderate living for his family. One Sunday, while on her way to the Protestant church, Robert's wife was approached by Mormon missionaries, who invited her to attend sacrament meeting. She attended and was impressed.
After subsequent visits by the missionaries, she was baptized and became active in the Church. From the moment of his wife's baptism, her husband grew in animosity and bitterness toward the Church. Their daughters were also baptized, resulting in more bitterness.
Robert could bear the Mormons no longer; he moved his family from Germany to Vera Cruz, Mexico, and then on to Porto Alegre, Brazil. As soon as they were settled, Robert's wife continued to spread the news of the gospel. She was causing excitement in Brazil, for the doctrine that she preached was completely new.
Bitterness filled Robert. He hated the Mormons. He prevented his children from going to public school, for fear they would learn to read and would thus be further indoctrinated with Mormon literature.
Finally, in desperation, he took his family away from civilization to the interior of Brazil. They settled in the remote, peaceful valley of Ipomeia, in the state of Santa Catarina.
Filled with a burning testimony and a desire to share the "good news," Robert's faithful wife wrote to the mission president in Germany, who in turn referred her to the Argentine Mission president. She asked that he visit Brazil. President Reinhold Stoof visited Brazil in 1927 and reported that much success could be realized among the German-speaking people of Brazil.
From the tiny seeds sown by missionaries in Germany and carried across the Atlantic, the First Presidency established a mission in Brazil in February 1935. The work now flourishes. Hundreds, then thousands heard the good news. Now there are four missions in Brazil and four stakes of Zion.
Even Robert Frederick, the once bitter husband and father, was eventually touched by the seed of truth, for at the age of 83 he was carried in his wooden rocking chair to the nearby River Rio de Peixe and baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. How could one ever describe the deep abiding love of Robert's faithful wife for the gospel and for her family?
Mothers and fathers need to plant the seeds of the gospel firmly in the hearts of their children, to create in them a desire to serve and also to know how to serve-seeds of hard work, seeds of courtesy, seeds of thrift.
Then, deep in their hearts, your sons and daughters need to have planted the more valuable seeds of spirituality-the seeds of cleanliness, the seeds of love, the seeds of virtue, the seeds of courage, such as the courage of Paul, when he stood in bonds before Agrippa and stretched forth his hands and told of his conversion and said: "I am not mad, but speak forth the words of truth and soberness."
The seed of obedience is the first law of the gospel and was exemplified by the Savior, who was obedient in all things.
Your sons will go out, as did the Savior, "preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people."
Your sons will assist in healing those with sicknesses of the mind and discouragement, which afflict modern society, by changing their outlook on life, by lifting the broken hearts from the darkness of despair, by bringing them to Christ.
Through missionary service, new converts receive great blessings, but the missionary also has his life changed.
I met one of our Scottish missionaries a few weeks ago at a stake conference in the East. He told me of his marriage and Church activity since returning home. He said: "Do you remember what you told me when I was released from my mission?"
I recalled that this elder was from a rural, cowboy town in Idaho, and I had asked him what he was going to do when he returned home. He said. "Just go back home. I can't afford to go to college." Then he told me he had some fear that the old gang would be waiting for him, and he might drift back into some old habits.
He had become one of our leaders, the kind of missionary you could trust with any assignment. I advised him to go back home and to invite his old friends to attend sacrament meeting, where he was to make his report, to hear of the change that had come into his life. I then counseled: "Spend some time with your parents, and then take the first bus out of town. A way will be opened up for you to get into college and develop the newly found talents you discovered in the mission field."
And as I stood and looked upon this young man at the stake conference, I saw the rough stone was now polished and would continue to change lives for good.
I thank the Lord for our missionary service. It is a divine program. I thank the Lord for our young men and women who represent him before the world in helping build Zion, and in so doing develop their own spiritual knowledge. May our parents always instill in their sons a desire to go on a mission.
God bless our missionary homes. May he also bless our missionaries, as promised by President John Taylor, who said of missionaries, " he is commissioned of the great Jehovah to bear a message and God has promised to sustain him. He has always sustained His faithful Elders, and He always will."
May your sons respond to the great call that shall be theirs, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder O. Leslie Stone
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters: I don't know why I should be shaking as I am. I am among friends. I know that no one loves me more than these brethren who are sitting before you, and I love them. Nearly all of them have visited our home and stayed with us and left their blessings.
When President Lee called me to be a stake president about sixteen years ago, I remember on the way home he said, "President Stone, I want you to prepare now for the day when you will be released." And I assured him that I was ready any time the Brethren wanted to release me. But you know this time when he called me the other day, he didn't say a word about that. Later he told me the appointment was for life.
I feel humble, grateful, and assure you and the Brethren of my willingness to serve, to devote my time, energy, and means for the upbuilding of the kingdom.
The Savior on one occasion, realizing the many temptations that we are faced with in this life, made this statement: " seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." We have tried to live by that rule in our family. My sons, who have both been mission presidents, used to quote that to me when I was talking to them about their future.
Now, I want you all to remember the program of prospective elders, and I am going to tell you why. I was a prospective elder when I met my wife in Blackfoot, Idaho; and after I had courted her for some time and decided that she was the girl of my dreams, she let me know in no uncertain terms that I had to "shape up." A temple marriage was the only marriage she was interested in.
After shaping up, I was ordained an elder and secured a temple recommend. We were sealed for time and eternity in the Salt Lake Temple April 23, 1924. I am very grateful for my eternal companion and for my family, including fourteen grandchildren. It was my wife's birthday yesterday, the day that I was sustained as a General Authority.
I would like to testify to you that the greatest happiness that has come into our lives has been when we have been living the gospel and serving the Master, and I have to tell you just a little story.
A few years ago, roughly twenty-five, I was starting a new business. I was having difficulty in getting it into black figures. I don't like to operate in the red, and I went to my Heavenly Father on bended knees and made a covenant with him that if he would bless me with inspiration and guidance to make that business successful, I would serve him and I would be liberal with my time and means for the up-building of the kingdom.
The Lord did bless us abundantly, and I now pledge to President Lee, President Tanner, President Romney, and all these Brethren that I shall put forth my best efforts to fulfill this new assignment. I love the Lord, and I want to serve him.
On the day I was put in as stake president, President Lee quoted this scripture. It has always stuck in my mind, and I would like to quote it to you because it is one of my favorites:
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
"In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."
I pray I may always do this, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Elder James E. Faust
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends: It has been a sublime and moving experience to participate in sustaining President Lee and his counselors yesterday morning as the new First Presidency of the Church, and I humbly entreat the same spirit to sustain me for these very few moments while I respond.
Since President Lee notified me of my call in the most moving and touching experience of my life last Thursday morning, there have come to me the most solemn broodings that can come to a human soul. I have asked myself a hundred times, Why me?-because it is beyond my understanding that I should be asked to join these great brethren of the General Authorities, all of whom I hold in such great esteem.
I pray that God will have mercy upon me because of my weakness and shortcomings. As long as I remember I have had a personal witness of the divinity of Jesus Christ and of his church, and it has always been easy for me to believe and to testify. I have concluded that if there is one amongst all the General Authorities who is the weakest and the least qualified, then I can fill that position. Also, because I served in Brazil on a mission, I am the only one who speaks Portuguese.
With all my heart I want to thank Ruth Wright Faust for letting me share her life and giving me the hope that we can share eternity together. She is more than a wife and a sweetheart because she has become part of my very being. With all my heart I want my children to know that I cannot succeed in this calling unless I also succeed as their father, and that they will always be paramount in my life.
No man ever had a better father than did I, and I hope that I will always honor his good name. My widowed mother is among you in the television audience, and I am sure that she weeps. Many times in my childhood I have happened upon her on her knees, praying for her five sons, and I wish to tell her that this son continues to need her faith and prayers.
I realize that life for me and mine can never and should never be the same. For twenty-two years and until last Thursday morning I have been a lawyer, and since then I have been trying to repent. Now I shall try to become one of the fishers and help these brethren cast forth and draw in the nets of eternal life. And I should like to say that if anyone has ever been offended by anything I have ever done in my church, professional, or political life, I humbly ask their forgiveness. I mentioned to a friend of mine who knew of this call that those who know me will say, "Surely James Faust was called of the Lord because no one else would have called him."
I wish President Lee to know that I sustain him, and He whom President Lee represents, with all of my devotion and all of my heart and all of my being. Under his hands I was ordained a bishop, and by him called to the stake presidency, and he has been for me all my adult life a great and beloved teacher and exemplar for all that is noble and good. President Tanner has been like a father to me, ever available, always helpful, kind, considerate, and he knows how much love and respect I have for him.
President Romney, as you know, has special qualities of inspiration and wisdom and has been a special friend and confidant, and my respect and honor for him know no bounds. I would also like to mention the profound influence that President Henry D. Moyle and President Hugh B. Brown have had also on my life. These are and have been truly great men of the earth.
I express appreciation to all the host of people who have blessed my life, those from whom I have learned, my missionary companions, those with whom I served in bishoprics, on high councils, stake presidencies, and my beloved friends, the Regional Representatives of the Twelve.
Now as a humble follower of the divine Master, I bear witness to the divinity of him as the Savior of the world, and of his church as established in these days, now headed by President Harold B. Lee, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
One of the biggest businesses in the world is this business of holding conventions. This week and every other week, in this country and every other country, men and women will be getting together to discuss their problems, exchange ideas, and try to develop more effective techniques for accomplishment. If one doctor discovers better methods for improving health, relieving pain, or saving lives, that information is immediately passed on to others. As a consequence, the skill of all doctors is increased, and every one of us is made the beneficiary of every medical discovery.
If you had lived in Jerusalem 1900 years ago, your life expectancy at birth would have been approximately 19 years. If you had lived in George Washington's day in America, your life expectancy would have been 35 years. When I was born it was 48 years. But those babies who were born in an American hospital this morning have an average life expectation of 70 years.
Great men everywhere are studying and working day and night to uplift and enrich our lives. And if it is so important for doctors, lawyers, farmers, teachers, businessmen, and scientists to counsel together in order to increase their effectiveness, how much more important it is for us who work in this greatest of all enterprises that Jesus referred to as "my Father's business." That is the world's biggest and most important undertaking. It has the responsibility for building integrity, character, righteousness, and eternal life into the lives of his children.
Thomas Carlyle once said that a man's religion is the most important thing about him. That is what he believes in and thinks about and works at and fights for and lives by. Our eternal exaltation will not be awarded according to whether or not we make a good living, but according to whether or not we live a good life. Jesus announced the purpose of his own mission by saying, " I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." And to produce the most abundant lives is our primary responsibility.
The Lord himself has said: " this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
When we are called to assist in this all-important undertaking, it then becomes our work and our glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. And twice each year, in obedience to the direct instruction of deity, this great general conference of the Church is held. And as we contemplate our own individual part in it, I would like to pose some questions for your consideration.
Just suppose that you were asked, "What is the greatest idea that you are capable of thinking?" "What is the most worthwhile good to be done?" or "What activity would make our lives most profitable and happy?"
Daniel Webster gave one answer when he said: "The greatest thought that has ever entered my mind is the consciousness of my individual responsibility to God."
We recently had another inspiring and official answer, which I would like to use as the theme for my remarks. On July 7, 1972, Harold B. Lee became the eleventh president of the church of Jesus Christ in this dispensation of our world's history. And in a conference with some seventy-five members of the press and representatives of other news media, he was asked what was the most important counsel that he had to give to the people of the world. In a three-word answer, President Lee said, "Keep the commandments."
President S. Dilworth Young recently said that in his opinion, Harold B. Lee is as strong a man as his great-granduncle, Brigham Young. And I would like to submit that these three words spoken by President Lee represent the most profitable direction that could possibly be given by anyone in any dispensation.
The religion of Christ is not just an idea; it is an activity. It is not just something for us to think about; it is something for us to do. These words also constitute the world's most powerful success formula. The best way to be a good doctor or a good lawyer or a good teacher is to be a good man. These three words serve as the shortest, the most pleasant, the most direct, and the only road to the celestial kingdom.
From the very beginning, the gospel has been taught to all of the prophets. On one occasion Moses was given a revelation concerning the earliest times. He said:
"And called upon our father Adam by his own voice, saying: I am God; I made the world, and men before they were in the flesh.
"And he also said unto him: If thou wilt turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth, which is Jesus Christ, the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men, ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, asking all things in his name, and whatsoever ye shall ask, it shall be given you."
The other day I had occasion to reread the genealogy of the ten patriarchs in their succession from Adam to Noah. Excluding Enoch, who was translated at age 430, the other nine of the ten patriarchs lived to an average age of 912 years. In one sense they served as the founding fathers of our world civilization. And each was a great man in his own right. Adam will always stand at the head; and under the direction of that magnificent Being, the Savior of the world, he will forever preside over his posterity. Adam was a mighty spirit before this earth was formed, and he was faithful throughout his long mortality. Three years before his death he called together Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, Jared, Enoch, and Methuselah, who were all high priests, and all of the residue of his posterity who were righteous unto the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman, and there he bestowed upon them his last blessing. The record says:
"And the Lord appeared unto them, and they rose up and blessed Adam, and called him Michael, the prince, the archangel.
"And the Lord administered comfort unto Adam, and said unto him: I have set thee to be at the head; a multitude of nations shall come of thee, and thou art a prince over them forever.
"And Adam stood up in the midst of the congregation; and, notwithstanding he was bowed down with age, being full of the Holy Ghost, predicted whatsoever should befall his posterity unto the latest generation."
And the primary message of that great general conference was also centered in that fundamental human requirement to "Keep the commandments." Many of those who attended this conference in the year of the world 927 had made inspiring records in righteousness. The Bible says that Seth, the son of Adam, was a perfect man. At age 65 Enoch was called on a special mission to preach the gospel, which lasted for the next 365 years. The record says of him:
"And he saw the Lord, and he walked with him, and was before his face continually; and Enoch walked with God three hundred and sixty-five years, making him four hundred and thirty years old when he was translated."
Certainly Enoch was one of the best educated men who ever lived in the world. The record says that he was taught in all of the ways of God. He was not only a perfect man, but he wrote a great book of scripture and built up the famous city of Enoch, which was also called the city of holiness. This city of Zion and all of its people were translated and taken up to God in the year of the world 1052.
All of these founding patriarchs lived in the days of great wickedness, and yet the scripture says that Noah was also perfect in his generation. It says, "and Noah walked with God." And most of his life was spent saying to the antediluvians, "Keep the commandments."
We have many interests in common with the founding fathers of our world. They lived on one end of our civilization, and we live on the other. They stood in the forefront of our history, and we carry the responsibility for this equally important last-day period. Both periods have great intensities of good and bad. The Lord himself looked forward to our day and made a rather uncomplimentary comparison when he said: " as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."
This first period was brought to its end by the flood. The last will be brought to its close by the glorious second coming of the Son of God.
Enoch said, "Keep the commandments," and those who did were translated and taken up to heaven. Noah said, "Keep the commandments," and those who did not were drowned, and their spirits were sent to the eternal prison house. The prophet Jonah said to the people of Nineveh, "Keep the commandments," and when they obeyed, their city was saved.
In concluding his book of Ecclesiastes, the wise man Solomon said: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."
When one came to Jesus and said, " what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?" Jesus said unto him, ", keep the commandments."
Then on the night preceding his crucifixion he said to the apostles, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
When the people chose apostasy rather than obedience, the dark ages came upon the world.
John the Revelator avoided the kind of violent death meted out to the other apostles of Jesus by his banishment to that lonely little isle of Patmos located in the Aegean Sea. Then, with prophetic vision, he looked down to our day and said:
"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
"Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."
The church of Jesus Christ, founded upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, has again been restored. And in 1972 a great modern prophet, standing shoulder to shoulder with those of other times, is again saying to all the world and to each of us individually, "Keep the commandments."
May God help us to hear and to obey, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My brothers and sisters, I pray for the inspiration and strength and Spirit of the Lord during the few minutes that I am before you this afternoon.
In a recent area general conference held in Mexico, President Harold B. Lee made this statement:
"The strength of the Church is not to be measured by the amount of money paid as tithing by faithful members, nor by the number of the total membership of the Church, or the number of Church chapels and temple buildings.
"The real strength of the Church is to be measured by the individual testimonies to be found in the total membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
No matter what position a person holds in this church, there is one thing to which he is entitled, and that is a testimony of its truthfulness.
Not only is it the right of every member to know for himself, but every soul, whether member or nonmember, can if he desires receive a realization that God the Father actually lives; that Jesus Christ is his Son, and gave up his life on the cross that we might live, and was resurrected to ascend on high to take his place on the right hand of God; that Joseph Smith was a true prophet and that in reality he saw God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, and that he became the legal administrator to restore the kingdom of God to the earth; that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that kingdom of God on the earth, and anyone who makes himself worthy for baptism, by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and repentance, can gain entrance to that kingdom; that the Book of Mormon is true and "a person can get closer to the Lord by following its precepts than by any other book"; and that we have today a living oracle, a prophet of God who stands at the head of this the Lord's church upon the earth.
It is not enough to enter into a scholarly discourse on the merits of this declaration or to accept or reject these claims with a wave of the hand. True strength, true peace of mind, true purpose in life comes when the individual, aside from what others may know, puts himself in a position so that the Lord can reveal to him the absolute truth of these things. It is an experience that defies description, at least to one who has not yet paid the price to receive it. It is the awakening of the mind and spirit to absolute truth. It is a revelation from God. It goes beyond what we can know and understand with our mortal senses. It is a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Around the world literally hundreds of people are gaining this testimony daily. I heard one such person speak just a few days ago. He was a new convert to the Church. He was a young man and he had a young family. He told how his life had literally changed-how the life of his whole family had changed. For the first time he knew what his relationship to God was and what the Lord expected of him. Because of this, he said, he was a better husband and father. He knew where he was going and could lead his family in a better way. But mostly he was happy-happy with the quiet joy that fills the life of every truly converted person.
People who look at us from the outside can't understand what makes this church so alive and its people so faithful and devoted. President Lee truly answered that question in Mexico when he said, as I mentioned, "The real strength of the Church is to be measured by the individual testimonies to be found in the total membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
The way in which a person can gain such a testimony is clearly defined by the Lord. First let me read from the frontispiece of the Book of Mormon wherein the Lord gives the reasons for bringing forth this book to the world.
In the second paragraph we find this quote: "And also to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations."
So the purpose of the book is to convince the world, both Jew and gentile, that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself to all nations.
Next we read in section 20 of the Doctrine and Covenants where the Lord, speaking of Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, says: "And gave him power from on high, by the means which were before prepared, to translate the Book of Mormon;
"Which contains a record of a fallen people, and the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles and to the Jews also;
"Proving to the world that the holy scriptures are true, and that God does inspire men and call them to his holy work in this age and generation, as well as in generations of old."
The Book of Mormon, then, has been brought forth to convince mankind that Jesus is the Christ and that the holy scriptures are true and that God is again speaking through prophets as he did in ancient times. The contents of the Book of Mormon then become the means whereby a person can put himself in harmony with the Spirit of the Lord so he can prove to himself and be convinced these things are true.
How this should be accomplished is outlined by one of the last prophets to write in this ancient book of scripture. Some 421 years after the birth of Christ, the prophet Moroni, speaking to the people of this generation, gave the following guidelines:
"Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.
"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
The three steps, then, in seeking a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel from the Lord himself are to read, ponder, and pray with real intent and sincerity of heart. If a person will prayerfully read the pages of this inspired book and carefully turn over in his mind what he has read and constantly ask the question, "Could any man have written this book?" the promise of the Lord is that he "will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost."
If the world would accept this invitation, then they would know for themselves the source of strength of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-for like all of us, they would have gone to the source and received their own testimony.
And now to those who by heritage find themselves members of the Church but perhaps are not sure of their own testimony-to you I would suggest that it is no sin to admit to yourself that you do not know if, in fact, you don't know. The error might be, however, in coming to the realization that you don't know and then doing nothing about it. Any person, either member or nonmember, who wants to know can know. If at present you live by the faith and testimony of your parents and those around you, that is certainly all right. But seek to reach out and gain your own testimony so you can stand on the strength of your own personal relationship with the Lord. It will help you in solving many of your problems and bring peace to your heart.
I would hope that as Latter-day Saints we can strengthen each other in the way which the Lord provided, by bearing our testimonies often-at church meetings, at the end of gospel classes, even at fast and testimony meetings. We should renew our efforts to actually express our testimonies and give something more than a passing reference to the truthfulness of the gospel. With the bearing of testimony comes the spirit of testimony, and all are edified.
And finally, may Latter-day Saint parents bear their testimonies to their children in the home-actually express to your children exactly what it is about the Church you know to be true. If we think our children know these things just because they live in the same house with us, we are mistaken. We need to say the words so our families can feel the same spirit of testimony that we have felt. Family home evening is an ideal time for this to take place.
And may I add that the family setting is an ideal place to read the Book of Mormon. We as a family recently finished reading the Book of Mormon. Although two of our children are not old enough to read yet, we find that they understand more than we thought they would, for the spirit and truth of this great book enlighten all ages.
What greater inheritance can parents give their children than the spiritual heritage which the children have a right to receive! To all men, both member and nonmember, comes the invitation from the God of this earth to learn for themselves the truth. May all who have not received the knowledge accept the invitation of the Savior is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Paul H. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I am grateful for this opportunity, brothers and sisters, to add my witness to those that have been borne so beautifully here.
The other night I was somewhat amused as I looked through an evening copy of the Deseret News. I noticed a picture depicting a problem that one of the Baptist churches in the South was having. It seems that their parking lot was being used by an adjoining establishment for commercial use, and the enterprising minister put this sign up at the entrance to the parking lot: "Warning-Violators will be baptized."
I couldn't help but think of that as I have listened to the real warning of the Lord and the counsel from his servants during these two great days.
When the Lord appeared to the Nephites he said, "And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God." That was his real warning.
Just twenty-three years ago this fall, I entered Chapman College in Southern California as a student. I came under the wonderful influence of Dr. Guy M. Davis, philosopher, educator, and teacher. Twenty-three years later, just three weeks ago last Friday evening, I saw this magnificent man, with so brilliant a mind, become as a little child, as he entered the waters of baptism and became a member of the Church.
I thought of another scripture as I witnessed that baptism experience of my friend. The Lord, admonishing his chief apostle Peter, as Luke records it, gave this simple counsel and direction: " when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." I pray the good bishop, the home teacher, the congregation of the ward to which Guy and his family have now been assigned will strengthen my brother.
Permit a personal experience for just a moment. Strengthening one's brother, I think, comes closer to home when we think of fellowshiping and friendshiping our family. Some time ago when my youngest daughter was faced with the reality of attending a different school, she looked forward to the new experience with great anticipation and excitement but with the usual anxieties and concerns. Her mom and dad tried to make her experience meaningful, and one that would be positive, and we spent several hours attempting to prepare her mind for the new experience. We even planned a time when we could shop for new clothes and other special school supplies.
Finally, the long-awaited day arrived. A special evening was planned to help give spiritual comfort and guidance. Later she put her clothes out in anticipation of the next day. As she retired to her bed, seemingly all was well, but about an hour later she appeared at my study door where I was making some preparations.
"Dad," she said, rubbing her tummy, "I don't feel very well."
You know the sign; and I thought I understood it, so I invited her in and sat her on my lap. We put on a little music that we liked to listen to together. I rubbed her tummy, and she soon fell asleep. I took her back upstairs, placed her in her bed, tiptoed toward the door; and she broke the silence with the announcement, "I am not asleep yet."
I went back and lay down on the bed with her, stroked her head, gave what fatherly counsel one could under the circumstances, and reassured her. Finally she fell asleep. The next morning she appeared at breakfast in her petticoat. She said, "Dad, I don't think I had better go to school today."
I said, "Why not?"
She said, "I think I am going to get sick."
You know what she was trying to tell us, don't you? I don't know how to handle a new situation, Dad. Will I make friends? Will my teacher like me? Will I fit into the social group? Will I be accepted? These are the concerns that all of us experience, as we find ourselves in new and different social situations.
She knew what my answer would be and agreed to have me drive her to school. As we got in front of the school building, the warning bell sounded. The tears started to come to her eyes. I got out of the car and assisted her. We walked about ten feet, and she grabbed hold of my leg. It was as though she were a tackle on some football team. And then, as only a child can do to a father, she looked up at me and said philosophically, "Dad, if you really love me-if you really love me-don't send me in there."
I said, "Honey, this may be beyond your comprehension, but it's because I do love you that I am taking you in there." And I did. When we got inside the door, she grabbed hold of the other leg and held on. Numerous students came and went, and finally the little miracle happened that changed everything.
From I don't know where came a delightful, wonderful friendshiper, a fellowshiper who knew how to lose herself in serving others; one who would now take the admonishment of the Savior to strengthen her friends. With the exuberance of youth this little girl said, "Kellie, how are you?"
"Fine."
"What is your home room?" And she told her. "Tremendous. I had that home room last year. Come on, and I will take you to it."
And before Kellie knew it, she had let go of my leg and got about ten paces away, then realized what she had done. I will never forget her expression and the sermon she taught as she looked back. "Oh," she said, "Dad, you can go now; I don't need you anymore."
Thank God for the little people as well as the big people who know how to friendship and fellowship.
Thousands of people are coming into this church every month. I pray that we have the genius to follow the counsel of the Lord to strengthen our brethren. I pray that a great bishop and a wonderful home teacher and other members are taking care of my friend, Guy Davis.
I testify to the divinity of this church. It is true. I sustain President Lee as a prophet, seer, and revelator. I know he is called and ordained of God. I know God lives and that Jesus is the Christ, to which I add my testimony, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
After yesterday morning and this morning with President Lee, I think you can imagine the experience that is ours when we, as the Brethren, go to the temple, there to take sweet counsel together with him.
It was in such a meeting a short time ago that there came to me the inspiration for the subject that I speak upon today. We sang as the opening hymn in that meeting "How Gentle God's Commands." Later, in a prayer, President Lee included this phrase from the hymn: "Beneath his watchful eye, His saints securely dwell." He then reverently gave thanks to the Almighty for the security and protection of his saints, and in that prayer he invited a continuation of that watch-care over them.
I was deeply touched with gratitude that in a world characterized by unrest, even by violence, there is a people who care for one another.
Paul told the saints at Ephesus: "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God."
To be a fellow citizen with the saints has great meaning. All can receive that citizenship through the ordinance of baptism, if they will-if they will repent and prepare themselves. Then, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they never need be alone.
The individual is regarded as a son or daughter of God. Family members are taught to sustain one another. In such families there is some fulfillment of the statement: The saints securely dwell. Then the family structure is marvelously fitted into the setting of church organization.
When young men and women are living away from the parental circle, they are not left alone, for the watchcare is kept over them. As they marry, the cycle begins again.
Some do not marry, but they are never left alone.
As children leave home to begin families of their own, father and mother-now called grandfather and grandmother-face life together as they did when they were newlyweds. This is the normal, the expected, and the desirable pattern, for the course of the Lord is one eternal round. They are never left alone.
Children are taught to revere their parents, but sometimes they live at great distances. In any case, the Church reaches out with a watch-care over them.
Then, when one of them is gone, the aged widow is not left alone; for again the organization of the Church reaches out in watch-care over her to look after her needs-spiritually, and temporally also, if that becomes necessary-that she might securely dwell.
The process is simple. Two holders of the priesthood are called by their quorum president and assigned by the bishop to visit the house of each member regularly, under the title of priesthood home teachers. They are guardians of the individual and of the family.
When I choose to talk of priesthood home teaching, I full well realize there are some activities in the Church that are more exciting and some more interesting. Perhaps even most have more appeal.
Some time ago I was in a home after a sacrament meeting. A mother asked her teenage son how the day had gone for him. The young man, bold in truth and unhesitant as youth usually is, said, "Fine, except for sacrament meeting."
The mother inquired about sacrament meeting, and he said, "Well, if we could ever survive high councilors talking about priesthood home teaching and welfare, that would be the day!"
The humiliated mother said, "Why, David, Elder Packer here has charge of one of those programs for the whole Church."
"I know," he said. "Why doesn't he do something about it?"
My boy, I am, at this very moment, doing all that I know how to do about it. Let me explain something to you. Perhaps you'll find that these two programs-which are very closely related-can be most interesting. But interesting or not, they are vital to your security.
Incidentally, young man, you can list me with that high councilor who talks of basic priesthood programs. And list with us your coach who talks about drill and exercise, and your music teacher who insists on hours of practice for but a few minutes of performance. List with us your parents, who insist that you learn to work and to pay attention to fundamental things of life.
I repeat, some activities may have much more appeal, but there is none that is more important.
It is interesting that things so basic are taken so for granted. For example, there is within us a coursing supply of blood delivering nourishment to sustain the body, carrying away waste materials, and armed with a protection against disease and infection. The blood supply is kept in motion by the incessant and dependable pumping of the heart. It is vital to life.
Ordinarily, however, a sliver in the finger gets more attention and is of more concern. No one pays much thought to the beating of the heart until there is the threat that it may be interrupted or stopped. It is then that we pay attention.
Home teaching, strangely enough, is so taken for granted that most members pay little attention to it, participating routinely, sometimes almost with annoyance. Through it, nevertheless, there come to members of the Church a protection and a watch-care not known elsewhere.
Picture a man calling for his companion, generally a younger man in his teens, to spend an evening calling on the homes of five or six families. They come to bring them encouragement, to search out their spiritual needs, and to be concerned with their welfare so that everybody knows that there is somebody to call upon in time of need.
If illness strikes, help can be forthcoming. The children can be cared for; visits can be arranged. Here we join the priesthood home teachers with the visiting teachers from the Relief Society. Often the problem is not illness. It is a teenager with problems or a little one not coming along the way he should.
There can pour through this channel of priesthood home teaching a sustaining power to the limits of the resources of the Church on this earth. This is not all. There can flow through this channel a redeeming spiritual power to the limits of heaven itself.
Through home teaching, tragedies have been averted. Sinking souls have been lifted. Material need has been provided. Grief has been assuaged. The infirm have been healed through administration. While the work goes on without being heralded, it is inspired of Almighty God and is basic to the spiritual nourishment of this people.
The leaders of the Church expend great effort to see that priesthood home teaching works. Though it is much taken for granted, it is always provided for and always will be. The principles of it have never changed, not with changing society or the various additions to programming in the Church. Without it the Church could very quickly cease to be the Church. And I say again, though some activities may be more inviting, none is more important.
I am grateful for the many activity programs we have. They are a spice, a flavoring, or a dessert. They make life interesting, particularly for our young people. I am much in favor of them and would not see them neglected, nor could you persuade me to dispense with them.
I can see that a church with home teaching only might, to a young person, be quite as dull as a meal without flavoring or dessert. However, I have some concern when our local leaders concentrate entirely on activity programs and neglect priesthood home teaching.
I say to our bishops, you might as well try to raise up an athlete on a diet of chocolate bars and soda pop as to attempt to sustain your youth with activity programs only. They may be drawn to them, but they will not be much nourished by them. No effort to redeem your youth can be more productive than the time and attention given to priesthood home teaching. For the object of priesthood home teaching is to strengthen the home, and as the teenager would say, and he usually knows, "That is where it is all at." Can't you see that when you keep this lifeline to the home open, not only do you strengthen the home, but you have much better, more flavorful activities?
There are many ways to lift our young people. We are very inventive and seem to be able to devise many exciting ways. Sooner or later we will be drawn to do it the Lord's way.
I am reminded of a fur trapper who had earned a modest fortune trapping foxes. He decided to go south for the winter and left his trap lines in the care of a carefully trained young assistant. He taught him just how to set the traps and where to put the bait.
When he returned in the spring, to his disappointment there were very few fox furs.
"Did you do it just as I taught you?" asked the older man.
"Oh, no," was the reply. "I found a better way."
You who are bishops and quorum leaders, I urge you to give adequate attention to priesthood home teaching. Do not release the home teachers by attempting to accomplish what they should do in other ways. You may invent a thousand of them in an effort to strengthen your youth, but sooner or later you must come back to doing it His way.
I am reminded of the scriptural declaration:
"Who am I, saith the Lord, that have promised and not fulfilled?
"I command and men obey not; I revoke and they receive not the blessing.
"Then they say in their hearts: This is not the work of the Lord, for his promises are not fulfilled. But wo unto such, for their reward lurketh beneath, and not from above."
To you who are home teachers-you who perform the routine visit, not infrequently considered a drudgery-do not take the assignment lightly or pass it off as being routine. Every hour you spend in it and every step you take in it and every door you knock upon, every home you greet, every encouragement you give, is twice a blessing.
It is an interesting truth that the home teachers are often taught in the course of their visits to the family. In fact, it is often a question, even in a moment of sacrifice and service by a priesthood home teacher, who benefits the most-the family he serves or the home teacher.
In my experience I recall a very significant lesson. I learned it as a home teacher.
Shortly before I was married I was assigned with an older companion to serve as home teacher to an aged little lady who was a shut-in. She was a semi-invalid, and often when we knocked on the door she would call us to come in. We would find her unable to be about and would leave our message at her bedside.
We somehow learned that she was very partial to lemon ice cream. Frequently we would stop at the ice cream store before making our visit. Because we knew her favorite flavor, there were two reasons we were welcome to that home.
On one occasion the senior companion was not able to go, for reasons that I do not remember. I went alone and followed the ritual of getting a half-pint of lemon ice cream before making the call.
I found her in bed. She expressed great worry over a grandchild who was to undergo a very serious operation the following day. She asked if I would kneel at the side of her bed and offer a prayer for the well-being of the youngster.
After the prayer, thinking of my coming marriage, I suppose, she said, "Tonight I will teach you." She said she wanted to tell me something and that I was always to remember it. Then began the lesson I have never forgotten. She recounted something of her life.
A few years after her marriage to a fine young man in the temple, when they were concentrating on the activities of young married life and raising a family, one day a letter came from "Box B."
To their surprise they were called as a family to go to one of the far continents of the world to help open the land for missionary work. They served faithfully and well, and after several years they returned to their home, to set about again the responsibilities of raising their family.
Then this little woman focused in on a Monday morning. It could perhaps be called a blue washday Monday. There had been some irritation and a disagreement. Then some biting words between husband and wife. Interestingly enough, she couldn't remember how it all started or what it was over. "But," she said, "nothing would do but that I follow him to the gate, and as he walked up the street on his way to work I just had to call that last biting, spiteful remark after him."
Then, as the tears began to flow, she told me of an accident that took place that day, and he never returned. "For fifty years," she sobbed, "I've lived in hell knowing that the last words he heard from my lips were that biting, spiteful remark."
This was the message to her young home teacher. She pressed it upon me with the responsibility never to forget it. I have profited greatly from it. I have come to know since that time that a couple can live together without one cross word ever passing between them.
I have often wondered about those visits to that home, about the time I spent and the few cents we spent on ice cream. That little sister is long since gone beyond the veil. This is true also of my senior companion. But the powerful experience of that home teaching, the home teacher being taught, is with me yet, and I have found occasion to leave her message with young couples at the marriage altar and in counseling people across the world.
There is a spiritual genius in priesthood home teaching. Every priesthood holder who goes forth under this assignment can come away repaid a thousandfold.
I have heard men say in response to a question about their Church assignment, "I am only a home teacher."
Only a home teacher. Only the guardian of a flock. Only the one appointed where the ministry matters most. Only a servant of the Lord!
It is because of you, the priesthood home teacher, that a verse of the hymn stands true:
I bear witness that Jesus is the Christ. This is his church and kingdom. We hold the priesthood and authority delegated of him. There presides over us a prophet, who as a man cannot extend himself to the far reaches of the earth, to every branch, to every mission, or to every stake. Yet by delegation of the authority and the keys held by him, he can reach, not just to the stakes and the wards and the branches, but he can reach into the homes, to the individuals, and bless and sustain them, that the saints might securely dwell. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
Wilford Woodruff records that in 1833 all of the priesthood of the Church met with the Prophet Joseph in a room only fourteen feet square, about the size of your bedroom.
Tonight, gathered in this and in some 750 other halls are more than 180,000 upon whom has been conferred that same priesthood. I would assume that among them there must be twenty-five or thirty thousand young men and boys. If the Spirit will give me utterance, I should like to speak to them.
At the outset, I should like to say that I am convinced that we have never had a more dedicated or more capable generation of young men in the history of the Church. Some of you older brethren may dispute that, which brings to mind the story of the boy who came down to breakfast one morning and said, "Dad, I dreamed about you last night."
"About me? What did you dream?"
"I dreamed I was climbing a ladder to heaven and on the way up I had to write one of my sins on each step of the ladder."
"And where did I come into your dream?" the father asked.
Said the boy, "When I was going up, I met you coming down for more chalk."
In various times, the Lord has chosen boys and trained them for the accomplishment of his marvelous purposes-such boys as Samuel, David, Joseph who was sold into Egypt, Nephi, Mormon, and Joseph Smith.
I believe that God has likewise chosen each of you for something of consequence in his grand design, perhaps not in the category of those I have named. But he loves you and he has a work for each of you to do.
How great, then, is your responsibility so to live that the Spirit of the Lord may dwell in you and that the Holy Ghost may speak through you.
I would that I had the capacity, the gift of the Spirit, to speak with such power that your hearts would burn with a resolution so to live as to grow in favor with both God and man.
The wonderful thing is that this is not beyond your capacity. The course of our lives is not determined by great, awesome decisions. Our direction is set by the little day-to-day choices which chart the track on which we run.
Many years ago I worked in the head office of one of our railroads. One day I received a telephone call from my counterpart in Newark, New Jersey, who said that a passenger train had arrived without its baggage car. The patrons were angry.
We discovered that the train had been properly made up in Oakland, California, and properly delivered to St. Louis, from which station it was to be carried to its destination on the east coast. But in the St. Louis yards, a thoughtless switchman had moved a piece of steel just three inches.
That piece of steel was a switch point, and the car that should have been in Newark, New Jersey, was in New Orleans, Louisiana, thirteen hundred miles away.
So it is with our lives-a cigarette smoked, a can of beer drunk at a party, a shot of Speed taken on a dare, a careless giving in to an impulse on a date. Each has thrown a switch in the life of a boy that put him on a track that carried him far away from what might have been a great and foreordained calling. And as Nephi said, " thus the devil cheateth their souls and leadeth them away carefully down to hell."
I hold in my hand a small package that I bought in Switzerland. Do you remember the movie Sound of Music, with its final, beautiful song, "The Edelweiss Song"? It speaks of the flower of the Alps-"small and white, clean and bright, bless my homeland forever."
This is a package of Edelweiss seed. The seeds are tiny, like small dry flecks of pepper. But on the face of the package is pictured what they might become-the mature plant, the flower that grows high in the Swiss and Austrian Alps, that weathers the storms that rage through those mountains, that blooms beneath the snow, that gives beauty to Alpine slopes and meadows. These tiny seeds have within them the potential for vigorous and beautiful life. They have become the symbol of a sturdy people-"small and white, clean and bright," blessing a great land forever.
So it is with boys. There lies within you an incalculable potential for good. The small day-to-day decisions will determine the course of your lives.
Therefore, be smart. The Lord has blessed each of you with greater capacity than you realize. Your I.Q. may not be the highest in the world. So what? Our jails are filled with clever men who were anything but smart. I have concluded that the work of the world is not done by intellectual geniuses. It is done by men of ordinary capacity who use their abilities in an extraordinary manner. As a member of this church you have the obligation to seek learning and to improve your skills.
It matters not whether you choose to be merchant, teacher, carpenter, plumber, mechanic, doctor, or to follow any other honorable vocation. The important thing is that you qualify to be useful workers in society. It is so easy and so tragic to become a drifter, a drop-out. It is so challenging and so satisfying to be a producer. In so doing, you will bless not only your own lives and the lives of those you serve, but you will also bring honor to and respect for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For your identity as a Mormon will be recognized and the image of the Church will be improved by reason of the opinion which others have of you as you serve them. You cannot afford ever to do cheap or shoddy work. You bear the priesthood of God.
Be clean. "Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord." Be ye clean that handle and administer the sacrament of the Lord's Supper.
With President Lee we recently stood in the Garden of Gethsemane in Jerusalem where in agony the Lord foresaw the terrible suffering he must endure, suffering so intense that it caused even the Son of God to bleed at every pore. There he was mocked and betrayed and delivered into the hands of wicked men.
My dear young friends, do we not mock him anew if we come to the sacrament table with unclean hands and impure hearts as we administer the emblems of his sacrifice?
As deacons, teachers, and priests, you cannot afford to sit around telling and laughing at dirty stories, reading pornographic literature, watching pornographic movies, abusing yourselves sexually, or stooping to immoral behavior of any kind.
Be clean for your own peace of mind. I spoke the other day with a young man who wished to go on a mission. In previous months he had been immoral. He and the girl with whom he had been associated thought they had done a clever thing. But he had come to realize that he had taken from her something precious that could never be restored, and that he had lost something of his own for which there was no compensation. With tears running down his cheeks he made his own judgment that he was unworthy to go into the world to teach to others a standard of behavior he had been unable to live himself. He had neither peace nor gladness.
Be clean, for the sake of your posterity. Someday each of you will meet the girl of your dreams. If you truly love her, you would rather cut off your right arm than hurt her. Never lose sight of the fact that you are the line through which will pass the qualities of your forebears to the posterity who will come after you. Pause and think. Will those qualities be diminished or enhanced because of your behavior? Be clean, and your strength will be as the strength of ten because your heart is pure.
Be obedient, my dear young friends. Be obedient to the calls of the priesthood. We recently met with missionaries in England and Europe, more than a thousand of them. They are a miracle to me, a constantly renewing miracle. Their tremendous capacity, their courage in meeting obstacles, their quiet and effective powers of persuasion-how impressive they are! How do they do it? someone asked me. That capacity has come slowly, through obedience to the calls of the Church.
There is no small or unimportant duty in the kingdom of God. And out of the fulfillment of each responsibility comes the strength to undertake something new and more demanding. The men who sit tonight on the stand in this Tabernacle and the priesthood leaders across the world are for the most part the lengthened shadow of boys who tried earnestly to do what they were asked to do.
"So nigh is grandeur to our dust, so near is God to man, when Duty whispers low, Thou must, the youth replies, I can."
Finally, be prayerful. The Lord has promised, "Be thou humble, and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers."
President Wilford Woodruff once declared: "It does not make any difference whether a man is a priest or an apostle if he magnifies his calling. A priest holds the keys of the ministering of angels. Never in my life, as an apostle, as a seventy, or as an elder, have I had more of the protection of the Lord than while holding the office of a priest." Is it not a marvelous thing to contemplate that the priesthood of Aaron, which you young men hold, carries with it the right to the ministering of angels!
I hope I may be pardoned for repeating a story I heard the other day in Lausanne, Switzerland. That was a sacred occasion, and I view this as a sacred occasion.
More than sixty years ago, a small boy on an Idaho farm went with his father to the field. While the father worked through the day, the boy amused himself with one thing and another. Over the fence were some old farm buildings derelict and tumbled down. The boy with imagination saw in them castles to be entered. He climbed through the fence and approached the buildings to begin his exploration. As he drew near, a voice was heard to say, "Harold, don't go over there." He looked to see if his father was around. He was not. But the boy heeded the warning. He turned and ran. He never knew what danger might have been lurking there, nor did he question. Having listened and heard, he obeyed.
That boy today presides over The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Through the years he has listened, and the Lord has magnified and protected and guided him by the whisperings of his Holy Spirit.
For a period of three weeks last month, we walked together, I as his junior companion, in the ministry of the Lord. I give you my witness of the workings of the Spirit in this the prophet of our day, the Spirit nurtured and cultivated and listened to through years reaching back to boyhood.
Be prayerful, my friends, and listen. You may never hear a voice. You likely will not. But in a manner that you cannot explain, you will be prompted and blessed. For the Lord has promised, "I will tell you in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you. "
Be prayerful, and you will know that God hears and answers. Not always as we might wish him to answer, but with the passing of the years, there will come a realization as certain as the sunrise that he heard and responded.
And so, watch the switches in your life, the small but important day-to-day decisions. Be smart, my dear young friends. Be clean. Be obedient. Be prayerful. To do so will require a measure of discipline, the exercise of which will bring strength and capacity for great and demanding tasks that lie ahead of you in building the kingdom of God and in filling places of useful service in the work of the world. Your lives will be satisfying and your joy will be eternal. I so promise you as a servant of the Lord, and invoke upon you that sweet peace which comes from him alone, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Vaughn J. Featherstone
Of the Presiding Bishopric
My beloved brethren of the priesthood: I would like you to know tonight that I am humbled in your presence. I have thought of questions that might enter the mind of a young Aaronic Priesthood bearer. One such question would be, Where can I go to get a commitment to the Church like the brethren, the bishops in the wards, the stake presidents? What is it that causes a man to go early in the morning and work late at night, and give his heart and soul to the kingdom of God? Where can I go to find a commitment to the Savior like you have? And then another question, Where can I get a testimony?
I would like to brush away the fluff if we could and maybe go to that source where I gained my special testimony. It happened to be in the scriptures.
Let's go back first to the young man Enoch. As Enoch journeyed in the land, the voice of the Lord came unto him and told him to prophesy and call the people to repentance. And Enoch answering said unto the Lord:
"Why is it that I have found favor in thy sight, and am but a lad, and all the people hate me; for I am slow of speech; wherefore am I thy servant?
"And the Lord said unto Enoch: Go forth and do as I have commanded thee, and no man shall pierce thee.
" and the mountains shall flee before you, and the rivers shall turn from their course; and thou shalt abide in me, and I in you."
These powers would be given to Enoch if he would but follow this great lead and accept the call. Enoch accepted the call. And then you will recall the tremendous thing that happened-and I think this is absolutely beautiful, the way it is described in the scriptures, how the people described Enoch after he received the call. They said: " and there is a strange thing in the land; a wild man hath come among us." I think that is a tremendous description of one who serves totally and fully in the Lord's service.
Enoch, of course, had some great associations. He happened one time to be conversing with the Lord, and he said, "How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity?
"And were it possible that man could number the particles of the earth, yea, millions of earths like this, it would not be a beginning to the number of thy creations; and thy curtains are stretched out still; and also thou art just; thou art merciful and kind forever."
I want you to know that when I read those sacred words, I felt and had the feelings, I believe, that Enoch might have had in some small degree. And each of you can have those same feelings.
And then, I believe, later on Enoch had the privilege of seeing all the generations of man and beholding them in their wickedness, and then Enoch wept and stretched out his arms; and the scripture says, "And his heart swelled wide as eternity. " I think that is a beautiful description.
I heard our modern prophet say something similar. He wept and then he said, "As I thought about my responsibility, my heart and soul went out to the entire membership of the Church." Doesn't that have a familiar ring of the prophets?
Then what about Jeremiah? The Lord called Jeremiah and said, I knew thee before thou wast born, "and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." And then the scripture records: "Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child." And yet the Lord took this young man and made of him the great prophet Jeremiah.
And then again, let's take a look at Amos. The Lord called Amos to go down to Israel and prophesy; Amos did this, and Amaziah, the king's priest, was wroth and angry. He came to Amos and said, "O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court"-go to Judah and prophesy there and eat bread and leave us alone. And then Amos said, I think with all the courage and all the dignity of a prophet, "I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit. And the Lord said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel. Now therefore hear thou the word of the Lord." And with all the righteous integrity of one who had this calling, he did exactly that.
Then I want to tell you the type of experience I had when I read the Book of Mormon, and this great soul Enos, a young man, the son of a prophet in this case, said:
"Behold, it came to pass that I, Enos, knowing my father that he was a just man-for he taught me in his language, and also in the nurture and admonition of the Lord-and blessed be the name of my God for it-
"And I will tell you of the wrestle which I had before God, before I received a remission of my sins.
"Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart.
"And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens.
"And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.
"And I, Enos, knew that God could not lie; wherefore, my guilt was swept away.
"And I said: Lord, how is it done?
"And he said unto me: Because of thy faith in Christ. "
Young men, did you hear those words? Because of thy faith in Christ!
And then a wayward son of another prophet, Alma the Younger, told his son Helaman in testimony:
"For I went about with the sons of Mosiah, seeking to destroy the church of God; but behold, God sent his holy angel to stop us by the way.
"And behold, he spake unto us, as it were the voice of thunder, and the whole earth did tremble beneath our feet; and we all fell to the earth, for the fear of the Lord came upon us.
"But behold, the voice said unto me: Arise. And I arose and stood up, and beheld the angel.
"And he said unto me: If thou wilt of thyself be destroyed, seek no more to destroy the church of God.
"And it came to pass that I fell to the earth; and it was for the space of three days and three nights that I could not open my mouth, neither had I the use of my limbs.
"But I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins.
"Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God, and had murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction; yea, and in fine so great had been my iniquities, that the very thought of coming into the presence of my God did rack my soul with inexpressible horror.
"Oh, thought I, that I could be banished and become extinct both soul and body, that I might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God, to be judged of my deeds.
"And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
"Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart, O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
"And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.
"And my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!
" there could be nothing so bitter as were my pains. Yea, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy.
"Yea, methought I saw, even as our Father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and praising their God, and my soul did long to be there."
Now, contrast those two experiences of Alma: one, that he would be banished and extinct, both soul and body; and the other, that he longed to be in the presence of God.
I believe that the scriptures have every dimension of life that we can cleave unto and find a pattern for living, if we will just go back to the scriptures and study them and learn of them.
Let me tell you the greatest experience I believe I have had in all my readings of the scriptures-and I am sharing something that is very tender with me. I remember the night that I read 3 Nephi the 17th chapter. That is when I discovered the Lord Jesus Christ, my Redeemer, the Lord of lords, the King of kings, my Savior, my personal Savior; and I believe that is where I finally found the description of the Savior as I thought him to be.
He had been with the Nephite people all the day long, you will recall, and finally said:
"I perceive that ye are weak, that ye cannot understand all my words which I am commanded of the Father to speak unto you at this time.
"Therefore, go ye unto your homes, and ponder upon the things which I have said, and I come unto you again.
"But now I go unto the Father, and also to show myself unto the lost tribes of Israel, for they are not lost unto the Father, for he knoweth whither he hath taken them."
And here I believe is where I found him.
"And when Jesus had thus spoken, he cast his eyes round about again on the multitude, and behold they were in tears, and did look steadfastly upon him as if they would ask him to tarry a little longer with them.
"And he said unto them: Behold, my bowels are filled with compassion towards you.
"Have ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither. Have ye any that are lame, or blind, or maimed, or leprous, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them hither and I will heal them, for I have compassion upon you; my bowels are filled with mercy.
"For I perceive that ye desire that I should show unto you what I have done unto your brethren at Jerusalem, for I see that your faith is sufficient that I should heal you."
And then you will recall that he had all those who were sick or halt or blind or lame come forth, and the scripture says, "And they did all, both they who had been healed and they who were whole, bow down at his feet, and did worship him; and as many as could come for the multitude did kiss his feet, insomuch that they did bathe his feet with their tears."
And when he had blessed all those who were sick and halt and blind and leprous, then he called the little children round about him; and then he commanded that the multitude should kneel down, and they knelt down, and he knelt in their midst and prayed; and the scripture says:
"The eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvelous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father.
" neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father."
And then you will recall, after he had finished praying, he arose, but so great was the joy of the multitude that they were overcome, and he commanded that they should arise, and he said, "And now behold, my joy is full."
And then Jesus wept. He blessed the little children, one by one, and when he had done this, he wept again, and then he said unto the multitude, "Behold your little ones.
"And as they looked to behold they cast their eyes towards heaven, and they saw the heavens open, and they saw angels descending out of heaven as it were in the midst of fire; and they came down and encircled those little ones about, and the angels did minister unto them.
"And the multitude did see and hear and bear record and they were in number about two thousand and five hundred souls" who were in that beautiful experience with the Savior.
I want you to know I was there. I wouldn't know any more surely if I had been there than I would know having read this book. And I promise you that vicariously every single young man in the Church can read the scriptures and have that same experience with all of the prophets. And you can gain your own testimony, and it need not be pinned on someone else's coat sleeve. You can actually know. You can know that we have a modern prophet. Read his words. Listen to him.
I want you to know that I have had burned into my soul like nothing else in my life the knowledge that President Harold B. Lee is a prophet. I so testify and admonish you to read the scriptures, to go back to the sure word of God. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brethren of the priesthood:
In these remarks, I have in mind tonight calling attention to and emphasizing the obligation we have as priesthood bearers to care for the "poor and the needy" among us. We haven't been giving as much attention to this particular phase of the gospel recently as we once did.
Jesus, however, in his teachings, seemed to give it top priority. You will recall that he said-as recorded in the 25th chapter of Matthew-that when he comes in his glory, he will divide his people "as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats" , placing the sheep on his right hand and the goats on the left.
To those on his right hand he will say, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world"; to those on his left he will say, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."
In the same statement, the Master declared that the test on which the division would be made on that great day would be the care given to the poor and the needy.
The Lord further emphasized this matter when he said to the rich young man, " go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me."
He stressed it again when he spake the Good Samaritan parable.
The obligation to care for the poor is as impressively taught in the Book of Mormon as it is in the Bible.
Alma, "having been commanded of God," directed his people to impart "to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants." He told them that they should do so "of their own free will and good desires towards God."
Similar teachings and performances are repeatedly recorded throughout the Book of Mormon.
King Benjamin taught that caring for the poor is essential to the retention of remission of one's sins:
"And now, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants."
Amulek explained that the efficacy of one's prayers depended upon his caring for the needy. After explaining how, by reason of Christ's atonement, mercy satisfies justice for all those who exercise "faith unto repentance," he gave this eloquent exhortation:
"Therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye may begin to exercise your faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you;
" cry unto him for mercy; for he is mighty to save.
"Cry unto him when ye are in your fields, yea, over all your flocks.
"Cry unto him in your houses, over all your household, both morning, mid-day, and evening.
" cry unto him against the devil, who is an enemy to all righteousness.
"But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.
"Yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those who are around you."
You would think if one followed that practice, he would be a pretty, good man, wouldn't you; but Amulek didn't think that would be enough.
"And now behold, my beloved brethren, do not suppose that this is all; for after ye have done all these things, if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need-I say unto you, if ye do not any of these things, behold, your prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites who do deny the faith."
These ancient scriptures are impressive and edifying, but it is the modern scripture by which we are bound and will be judged. It is therefore imperative that we know what these modern scriptures teach.
Introducing this subject in January 1831, less than a year after the Church was organized, the Lord said:
" let every man esteem his brother as himself, and practise virtue and holiness before me.
"And again I say unto you, let every man esteem his brother as himself.
"For what man among you having twelve sons, and is no respecter of them, and they serve him obediently, and he saith unto the one: Be thou clothed in robes and sit thou here; and to the other: Be thou clothed in rags and sit thou there-and looketh upon his sons and saith I am just?
"Behold, this I have given unto you as a parable, and it is even as I am. I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine."
To make it plain that he was speaking of temporal needs, the Lord continued, in the same revelation:
"And now, I give unto the church in these parts a commandment, that certain men among them shall be appointed,
"And they shall look to the poor and the needy, and administer to their relief that they shall not suffer. "
A few weeks later, the Lord, in that great revelation recorded in the 42nd section of the Doctrine and Covenants, which he himself refers to as the law of the Church, said:
"If thou lovest me thou wilt remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support.
"And inasmuch as ye impart of your substance unto the poor, ye will do it unto me. "
The importance of caring for the poor and the needy is dramatically emphasized in the revelation received by the Prophet in Kirtland, June 7, 1831, in which the Lord paired off the brethren he was sending to Missouri. These brethren, all but destitute, were to make their way as best they could across four states. The Prophet himself walked almost the whole distance from St. Louis to Independence, a distance of about 300 miles. Nevertheless, and not withstanding the fact that they were facing these hardships, the Lord thus concluded his instructions to them:
"And remember in all things the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted, for he that doeth not these things, the same is not my disciple."
Since these brethren, in their extremity, could not qualify as his disciples without remembering "the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted," what will be our plight, brethren, if in our affluence we fail to remember them?
In this modern world plagued with counterfeits for the Lord's plan, we must not be misled into supposing that we can discharge our obligations to the poor and the needy by shifting the responsibility to some governmental or other public agency. Only by voluntarily giving out of an abundant love for our neighbors can we develop that charity characterized by Mormon as "the pure love of Christ." This we must develop if we would obtain eternal life.
To implement his instructions to care for the poor and the needy, the Lord has in all dispensations given specific programs. To ancient Israel, he gave this very simple procedure:
" when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest.
"And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger. "
Simple as was this program, it was nevertheless founded upon the two basic principles of action operative in all inspired welfare programs, namely: those who have are to give, and those who receive are to work.
Ruth was gathering in the fields of Boaz pursuant to this welfare program. Of course she had a little advantage because of Boaz's feeling toward her, but that was the program that was in force in those days.
The obligation of the receiver to labor, to the extent of his ability, to sustain himself and dependents, is just as great, in God's economy, as is the obligation to contribute to the care of the needy. When the Lord expelled Adam from Eden, he said: "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground. "
This divine command is still in force. In the revealed "law of the church," the Lord said in this dispensation: "Thou shalt not be idle; for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer." Later he added: " the idler shall not have place in the church, except he repent and mend his ways."
As positive, however, as is this commandment against idleness, a disregard of it by the receiver does not justify Church members in failing to impart of their substance "according to the law of gospel, unto the poor and the needy."
On this point, King Benjamin said:
"Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just-
"But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God."
The operation of these two principles, philanthropy by the giver and industry by the receiver, was so perfected in the days of Enoch that "the Lord called his people ZION, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them." As part of the restoration of the gospel in this last dispensation, the Lord originally initiated the United Order observed by the people of Enoch. When its practice was terminated because the people of the Church couldn't discipline themselves to obey it, the law of tithing was given. With tithing, fast offerings, Relief Society contributions, and, for a while, contributions to the emigration fund, the Church provided for its poor and needy for a hundred years.
In the middle of the 1930s, to meet the needs of our times, the Lord revealed through the leaders of his church our present Church welfare program.
Through this program, there are made available for the poor and the needy, in addition to tithing and fast offering funds, vast quantities of many varieties of food, clothing, fuel, and other necessities of life. The program also supplies employment opportunities for all who can and will work.
Thus, through the welfare program, the Lord has given us specific instructions as to how we must provide for the poor in this our day, and he has left no doubt about the dire consequences if we fail to do so. This is what he said in one of the revelations:
"I, the Lord," said he, "stretched out the heavens, and built the earth, my very handiwork; and all things therein are mine.
"And it is my purpose to provide for my saints, for all things are mine.
"But it must needs be done in mine own way; and behold this is the way that I, the Lord, have decreed to provide for my saints, that the poor shall be exalted, in that the rich are made low.
"For the earth is full, and there is enough and to spare; yea, I prepared all things, and have given unto the children of men to be agents unto themselves."
This puts the responsibility strictly upon us. The Lord has provided all we have. He has told us how to contribute to the care of his people, and he has given us our agency. We can do with it as we please, but he warns:
"Therefore, if any man shall take of the abundance which I have made, and impart not his portion, according to the law of my gospel, unto the poor and the needy, he shall, with the wicked, lift up his eyes in hell, being in torment."
As I understand it, "the law of gospel" by which we may today determine the portion of our "abundance" which we should impart "unto the poor and the needy" requires us to, first, pay an honest tithing; second, donate liberally to the fast offering funds; and third, make welfare contributions in labor and money.
Personally, I sincerely want to understand this law and comply with it, because I do not want to "with the wicked, lift up eyes in hell, being in torment."
In the light of these scriptural teachings, it seems to me, brethren, that we should be thankful for our knowledge of the law and that we should faithfully obey it. God help us to do so, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
I have always been impressed with the song "Do What Is Right," which was sung by the men's chorus of the Tabernacle Choir. Particularly do I find special meaning in the words:
-Hymns, no. 27
It is always a privilege and blessing for me to stand before and address the priesthood. The priesthood is the power of God delegated to us to act in his name, in the office which we hold. And when he gives us that priesthood, we make a covenant with him, and he makes a covenant with us that I should like to read this evening:
"For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
"They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.
"And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;
"For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
"And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
"And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom: therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
"And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
"Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.
"But whoso breaketh this covenant after he hath received it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness of sins. "
It is up to us whether that covenant is kept. We make that covenant. The Lord cannot break it, and we have the responsibility of keeping it.
This evening I should like to say a few words about the order of the priesthood, or some of the things that are placed under the priesthood. I thought this might be of interest to the Aaronic Priesthood as well as others. First, I wish to explain how, following the death of the President of the Church, a new president is chosen, ordained, and set apart and the presidency is reorganized, following which they are sustained in a solemn assembly by the quorums of the priesthood and by those members of the Church present at general conference, as they were yesterday, and then by members throughout the Church in their stake conferences. Also, I shall refer to some of the authority, duties, and responsibilities of the President.
As you all know, three months ago our beloved President Joseph Fielding Smith was called home to his great reward and to other duties. He was certainly a true servant of the Lord and a prophet of God, who from his childhood lived to the best of his ability the teachings of the gospel and kept his covenants. He was a man without guile, and his passing was as near a translation as possible.
The Thursday before his death he gave a powerful address to the seminar of the Regional Representatives and Mission Representatives assembled in Salt Lake City. Sunday, July 2, the day of his death, he attended his Sunday meetings in his ward and participated as usual. He returned home, and after his evening meal he sat in his favorite chair talking to his daughter and quietly passed from mortal life.
On the death of the President of the Church the First Presidency is disorganized, and the counselors take their places in the Quorum of the Twelve, which, according to revelation, assumes the responsibility of the presidency of the Church, because they hold the Holy Melchizedek Priesthood and are the next quorum in authority according to the Doctrine and Covenants. The Church, therefore, is never left without a presidency. The President of the Quorum naturally is the chief or executive officer, and the Twelve continue as the presidency of the Church until such time as the First Presidency is reorganized.
While Joseph the Prophet was President of the Church, the Lord through him bestowed all of the keys of the priesthood upon the Quorum of the Twelve with equal authority with the First Presidency. Therefore, with that authority, following the death of Joseph the Prophet, the Twelve, with Brigham Young as President of the Quorum, presided over the Church for a number of years. Finally they were moved upon by the Holy Spirit to reorganize the First Presidency of the Church with Brigham Young as President and with Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards as his counselors. In reality this organization might have been effected within twenty-four hours after the death of the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Upon the death of President Young, President John Taylor followed in similar measure the example of his predecessor, and it was some time before the presidency of the Church was reorganized with John Taylor as President, George Q. Cannon and Joseph F. Smith as counselors.
After the death of President Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, President of the Twelve, hesitated and allowed a little time to pass before the presidency was reorganized. When at last he became convinced it was his duty and was necessary in order to carry out the purposes of the Lord, he, with the Twelve, reorganized the presidency of the Church.
At that time he gave a solemn injunction to his fellow servants in relation to this. He desired it understood that in all future times if the President of the Church should die and thereby the First Presidency become disorganized, it would be the duty of the proper authorities of the Church to proceed at once, without any unnecessary delay, to reorganize the First Presidency, which procedure has since been followed.
Therefore, on July 7, 1972, shortly after the passing of President Joseph Fielding Smith, President Lee as President of the Twelve called a meeting of all the Twelve to reorganize the First Presidency of the Church. At this meeting we called upon the Lord in solemn prayer. Then each member of the Twelve, starting with the junior member, was called by the President of the Quorum to express his feelings regarding the matter at hand.
When it became President Kimball's turn to speak, he, at the conclusion of his remarks, nominated President Harold B. Lee as President of the Church, which motion was duly seconded and put to the Twelve, and carried unanimously. President Lee responded to the nomination and the action of the Twelve, accepting the high and holy calling. He then nominated, for the consideration of the Twelve, N. Eldon Tanner as first counselor and Marion G. Romney as second counselor. This was unanimously approved.
President Spencer W. Kimball as senior member of the Twelve, was nominated and approved as President of the Quorum of the Twelve. Following this, President Kimball joined with other members of the Twelve as they placed their hands upon the head of President Lee and ordained him and set him apart as President of the Church and as Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, and Trustee-in-Trust for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. President Lee then set apart President Tanner and President Romney as his counselors and President Kimball as President of the Twelve.
This being an election year in the United States, these activities point up quite clearly the contrast of choosing the president of the United States and other officials in government, and the way the Lord has directed his church leaders to be chosen and placed in office. I am most thankful unto the Lord for the signal privilege I have had of associating so closely with and laboring under and sustaining three of the prophets of God and to see how the Lord works through them. I humbly pray continually that I may serve in an acceptable manner unto the Lord and to them.
Here I wish to express my deep appreciation and love for President Marion G. Romney. I have learned to love him and President Lee as I have never loved men before. And while I am speaking of love, I should like to express my love for the members of the Council of the Twelve and the other General Authorities, and for all members of the Church. In fact, I have a feeling of love for mankind, and I just hope and pray always that the Lord will make it possible for me to show that love.
President Lee, I am sure, was chosen and foreordained to be a prophet of God and President of the Church. The Lord has certainly prepared him for this high and holy calling by giving him responsibilities in stakes, as director of the welfare program, and for more than thirty years as a member of the Council of the Twelve. President Lee has proven his faithfulness, dedication, and ability, as referred to by Brother Hinckley here tonight and by many of the speakers during our conference thus far. He has been chosen to preside over the Church in one of the most critical periods of time in the history of the world. He is a prophet of God and speaks the will of the Lord. President Joseph Fielding Smith made this astute observation at the solemn assembly where he was sustained as President of the Church:
"I desire to say that no man of himself can lead this church. It is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ; he is at the head. The Church bears his name, has his priesthood, administers his gospel, preaches his doctrine, and does his work.
"He chooses men and calls them to be instruments in his hands to accomplish his purposes, and he guides and directs them in their labors. But men are only instruments in the Lord's hands, and the honor and glory for all that his servants accomplish is and should be ascribed unto him forever.
"If this were the work of man, it would fail, but it is the work of the Lord, and he does not fail. And we have the assurance that if we keep the commandments and are valiant in the testimony of Jesus and are true to every trust, the Lord will guide and direct us and his church in the paths of righteousness, for the accomplishment of all his purposes."
He then said of his first counselor, who is now the President of the Church: "President Harold B. Lee is a pillar of truth and righteousness, a true seer who has great spiritual strength and insight and wisdom, and whose knowledge and understanding of the Church and its needs is not surpassed."
As the Lord said to Frederick G. Williams, second counselor to the Prophet Joseph Smith: " Listen to the voice of him who speaketh, to the word of the Lord your God,
"Unto whom I have given the keys of the kingdom, which belong always unto the Presidency of the High Priesthood:
"Therefore, verily I acknowledge him and will bless him, and also thee, inasmuch as thou art faithful in counsel, in the office which I have appointed unto you, in prayer always, vocally and in thy heart, in public and in private, also in thy ministry in proclaiming the gospel in the land of the living, and among thy brethren."
This applies to every holder of the priesthood.
The words of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph in his call to preside over the Church apply equally to our beloved President Harold B. Lee: " thou shalt be called a seer, a translator, a prophet, an apostle of Jesus Christ.
"Wherefore, meaning the church, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
"For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
"For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory.
"For thus saith the Lord God: Him have I inspired to move the cause of Zion in mighty power for good, and his diligence I know, and his prayers I have heard.
" behold, I will bless all those who labor in my vineyard with a mighty blessing, and they shall believe on his words, which are given him through me by the Comforter, which manifesteth that Jesus was crucified by sinful men for the sins of the world, yea, for the remission of sins unto the contrite heart."
You deacons, you teachers, you priests, you elders and seventies and high priests, what a tremendous privilege it is to hold the priesthood of God and have a prophet of God directing us today!
As Joseph F. Smith clearly stated regarding the President of the Church: "Every officer in the Church is under his direction, and he is directed of God."
Let us always remember this. The President of the Church holds the keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood, and there is no business or office in the Church that the President of the Church may not fill. In fact, every office in the Church belongs to the President.
The Lord, in speaking to the Prophet Joseph Smith, said: "And again, the duty of the President of the office of the High Priesthood is to preside over the whole church, and to be like unto Moses-
"Behold, here is wisdom; yea, to be a seer, a revelator, a translator, and a prophet, having all the gifts of God which he bestows upon the head of the church."
It is most important that we, as members of the Church, accept without reservation President Lee as a prophet of God and as our leader. I am glad I can say that from the bottom of my heart with every bit of feeling I have. Let us listen to the prophet's voice and follow him, not blindly but by faith. As we do this, we will never go astray. No holder of the priesthood can take it lightly. It is important that every member magnify his priesthood and realize that it is a great privilege and blessing to be able to hold the priesthood of God.
We must be true to the faith and dependable in every way. We must be an example to the world. I want to say to you young men, remember that the priesthood which you hold is the power of God delegated to you to act in his name in the office which you hold. The Lord expects each and every one of us to live worthy of this priesthood and be an example to the world. As President Lee said when he was first interviewed after being appointed President of this Church, and which has been referred to today, his message to the world, and surely to every one of us, is "Keep the commandments." As we do this, we will be blessed.
We never know what position or blessing the Lord has in store for us. It is our responsibility to prepare for any call that may come to us. Joseph who was sold into Egypt had no idea that he was the one chosen to save his people. Through his faithfulness and by overcoming temptation he was blessed and strengthened by the Lord and recognized for his faithfulness.
Moses in his youth did not know he was to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt, and Mormon did not know in advance of the great and important work he and his son Moroni would perform in preparing and preserving the sacred records concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In each case it was because they proved their faithfulness from boyhood, and in every position they held they proved themselves worthy and were accepted by the Lord.
I was thrilled as that group sang this afternoon: "Shall the youth of Zion falter," and then clearly sang, "No!" There is a difference in singing "No" and meaning "no," and in living it, and I should like to urge every young man under the sound of my voice this night to prove to the Lord that the youth of Zion have not and will not falter, but they will be an example to the world, an influence for good. And remember, if you want to be great men, you have to be great boys and youth. Prepare yourselves as our President did while he was in his youth.
Joseph Smith at age 14 had no idea that he would be President of the Church and a prophet of God. All he wanted was to know which church was true. He was foreordained, as each and every one of us is for some purpose, and because he proved faithful and lived worthy he was called to this high position. Let us live so as to be worthy and accomplish those things for which we have been foreordained.
President Lee as a young man had no idea that he would ever be President of the Church, but his faithful performance in every office he held proved him worthy. It is just as important that the president of the deacons quorum or teachers quorum perform his duties and walk uprightly before the Lord as it is for the president of the elders, seventies, or high priests if he wants to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord. The Lord expects every man to do his duty and to be true to the covenants he makes. As is recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord said: "Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence.
"He that is slothful shall not be counted worthy to stand, and he that learns not his duty and shows himself not approved shall not be counted worthy to stand. Even so. Amen."
"Why should we think to earn a great reward, If we now shun the fight?" It is important that every holder of the priesthood, old and young, discipline himself, overcome evil, keep himself morally clean, keep the Word of Wisdom, keep the Sabbath day holy, be honest in his dealings, true to the trust of others, and live so as to be loved and respected by all who know him, that others seeing his good works may be led to glorify our Father in heaven.
We must see that the work of the Lord goes forward and help his church and kingdom here upon the earth to grow and expand until it fills the whole earth. This is our responsibility as holders of the priesthood.
Man is that he might have joy. Have a good time. Enjoy life by doing those things which are right. There is no joy or satisfaction in sin, but there are great blessings promised to the faithful. No young man under the sound of my voice knows for what he was foreordained or what is in store for him, but the Lord has promised that "all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;
"And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;
"And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.
"And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them."
May we all express our appreciation every night and every morning to the Lord for the privilege we have of being members of his church and of holding his priesthood, and pray for courage and strength to live as we should and thereby prepare ourselves and help others to prepare themselves for eternal life, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
I have some thoughts-notes that I thought I might be prompted to use tonight. So, if the Lord is willing, I should like to talk to you now for a few minutes in this great conference.
I had a lesson years ago as to the greatness of priesthood. It had to do with the call of the First Presidency for me to come to their office on a day that I shall never forget-April 20, 1935. I was city commissioner in Salt Lake City. I was a stake president.
We had been wrestling with this question of welfare. There were few government work programs; the finances of the Church were low; we were told that there wasn't much that could be done so far as the finances of the Church were concerned. And here we were with 4,800 of our 7,300 people who were wholly or partially dependent. We had only one place to go, and that was to apply the Lord's program as set forth in the revelations.
It was from our humble efforts that the First Presidency, knowing that we had had some experience, called me one morning asking if I would come to their office. It was Saturday morning; there were no calls on their calendar, and for hours in that forenoon they talked with me and told me that they wanted me to resign from the city commission, and they would release me from being stake president; that they wished me now to head up the welfare movement to turn the tide from government relief, direct relief, and help to put the Church in a position where it could take care of its own needy.
After that morning I rode in my car up to the head of City Creek Canyon into what was then called Rotary Park; and there, all by myself, I offered one of the most humble prayers of my life.
There I was, just a young man in my thirties. My experience had been limited. I was born in a little country town in Idaho. I had hardly been outside the boundaries of the states of Utah and Idaho. And now to put me in a position where I was to reach out to the entire membership of the Church, worldwide, was one of the most staggering contemplations that I could imagine. How could I do it with my limited understanding?
As I kneeled down, my petition was, "What kind of an organization should be set up in order to accomplish what the Presidency has assigned?" And there came to me on that glorious morning one of the most heavenly realizations of the power of the priesthood of God. It was as though something were saying to me, "There is no new organization necessary to take care of the needs of this people. All that is necessary is to put the priesthood of God to work. There is nothing else that you need as a substitute."
With that understanding, then, and with the simple application of the power of the priesthood, the welfare program has gone forward now by leaps and bounds, overcoming obstacles that seemed impossible, until now it stands as a monument to the power of the priesthood, the like of which I could only glimpse in those days to which I have made reference.
Now, with that understanding of priesthood power, let me speak of a few other matters that have come to my mind tonight.
There are two scriptures I would have you think of as applicable today as they were in the period following the advent of the Savior in the meridian of time in the post-apostolic period. In the Acts of the Apostles, the apostle Paul gave these charges to the elders of Israel. He said:
"Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God.
"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
"Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them."
And then the apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians:
"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
"Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
"But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
"As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
"For I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
"For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Today those warnings are just as applicable as they were in that day in which they were given.
There are some as wolves among us. By that, I mean some who profess membership in this church who are not sparing the flock. And among our own membership, men are arising speaking perverse things. Now perverse means diverting from the right or correct, and being obstinate in the wrong, willfully, in order to draw the weak and unwary members of the Church away after them.
And as the apostle Paul said, it is likewise a marvel to us today, as it was in that day, that some members are so soon removed from those who taught them the gospel and are removed from the true teachings of the gospel of Christ to be led astray into something that corrupts the true doctrines of the gospel of Christ into vicious and wicked practices and performances.
These, as have been evidenced by shocking events among some of these splinter groups, have been accursed, as the prophets warned; and they are obviously in the power of that evil one who feeds the gullible with all the sophistries which Satan has employed since the beginning of time.
I should like now to make reference to some of these. The first is the spread of rumor and gossip which, when once started, gains momentum as each telling becomes more fanciful, until unwittingly those who wish to dwell on the sensational repeat them in firesides, in classes, in Relief Society gatherings and priesthood quorum classes without first verifying the source before becoming a party to causing speculation and discussions that steal time away from the things that would be profitable and beneficial and enlightening to their souls.
Just an example: I understand that there is a widely circulated story that I was alleged to have had a patriarchal blessing that had to do with the coming of the Savior and the ten tribes of Israel.
In the first place, a patriarchal blessing is a sacred document to the person who has received it and is never given for publication and, as all patriarchal blessings, should be kept as a private possession to the one who has received it.
And second, with reference to that which I was alleged to have had, suffice it to say that such a quotation is incorrect and without foundation in fact.
There is one thing that shocks me: I have learned, in some instances, that those who have heard of these rumors are disappointed when I tell them they are not so. They seem to have enjoyed believing a rumor without substance of fact. I would earnestly urge that no such idle gossip be spread abroad without making certain as to whether or not it is true.
The First Presidency in August 1913 issued a warning to the members of the Church which could bear repeating today. Let me read you a few things that were said then:
"To the officers and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
"From the days of Hiram Page , at different periods there have been manifestations from delusive spirits to members of the Church. Sometimes these have come to men and women who because of transgression became easy prey to the Arch-Deceiver. At other times people who pride themselves on their strict observance of the rules and ordinances and ceremonies of the Church are led astray by false spirits, who exercise an influence so imitative of that which proceeds from at Divine source that even these persons, who think they are 'the very elect,' find it difficult to discern the essential difference. Satan himself has transformed himself to be apparently 'an angel of light.'
"When visions, dreams, tongues, prophecy, impressions or an extraordinary gift or inspiration convey something out of harmony with the accepted revelations of the Church or contrary to the decisions of its constituted authorities, Latter-day Saints may know that it is not of God, no matter how plausible it may appear. Also, they should understand that directions for the guidance of the Church will come, by revelation, through the head. All faithful members are entitled to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for themselves, their families, and for those over whom they are appointed and ordained to preside. But anything at discord with that which comes from God through the head of the Church is not to be received as authoritative or reliable. In secular as well as spiritual affairs, Saints may receive Divine guidance and revelation affecting themselves, but this does not convey authority to direct others, and is not to be accepted when contrary to Church covenants, doctrine or discipline, or to known facts, demonstrated truths, or good common sense. No person has the right to induce his fellow members of the Church to engage in speculations or take stock in ventures of any kind on the specious claim of Divine revelation or vision or dream, especially when it is in opposition to the voice of recognized authority, local or general. The Lord's Church 'is a house of order.' It is not governed by individual gifts or manifestations, but by the order and power of the Holy Priesthood as sustained by the voice and vote of the Church in its appointed conferences.
"The history of the Church records many pretended revelations claimed by impostors or zealots who believed in the manifestations they sought to lead other persons to accept, and in every instance, disappointment, sorrow and disaster have resulted therefrom. Financial loss and sometimes utter ruin have followed."
This is something that is recurring time and time again, and we call upon you holders of the priesthood to stamp out any such and to set to flight all such things as are creeping in, people rising up here and there who have had some "marvelous" kind of a manifestation, as they claim, and who try to lead the people in a course that has not been dictated from the heads of the Church.
As I say, it never ceases to amaze me how gullible some of our Church members are in broadcasting these sensational stories, or dreams, or visions, some alleged to have been given to Church leaders, past or present, supposedly from some person's private diary, without first verifying the report with proper Church authorities.
If our people want to be safely guided during these troublous times of deceit and false rumors, they must follow their leaders and seek for the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord in order to avoid falling prey to clever manipulators who, with cunning sophistry, seek to draw attention and gain a following to serve their own notions and sometimes sinister motives.
The Lord has very plainly set forth a test by which anyone may challenge any and all who may come claiming, clandestinely, to have received some kind of priesthood authority. Now this is what the Lord said in the 42nd section of the Doctrine and Covenants, verse 11:
"Again, I say unto you, that it shall not be given to any one to go forth to preach my gospel, or to build up my church, except he be ordained by someone who has authority, and it is known to the church that he has authority and has been regularly ordained by the heads of the church."
Now, if one comes claiming that he has authority, ask him, "Where do you get your authority? Have you been ordained by someone who has authority, who is known to the Church, that you have authority and have been regularly ordained by the heads of the Church?" If the answer is no, you may know that he is an imposter. This is the test that our people should always apply when some imposter comes trying to lead them astray.
Now there is another danger that confronts us. There seem to be those among us who are as wolves among the flock, trying to lead some who are weak and unwary among Church members, according to reports that have reached us, who are taking the law into their own hands by refusing to pay their income tax because they have some political disagreement with constituted authorities.
Others have tried to marshal civilians, without police authority, and to arm themselves to battle against possible dangers, little realizing that in so doing they themselves become the ones who, by obstructing the constituted authority, would become subject to arrest and imprisonment.
We have even heard of someone claiming Church membership in protest against pornographic pictures being displayed in theaters, having planted bombs, and therefore becoming subject to punishment by the law and subsequently standing judgment before the disciplinary bodies of the Church.
While we must stand solidly behind those who are trying to stamp out the filthy and provocative display of so-called pornographic materials, we have but one answer to all those who thus take such radical measures, and this is the word of the Lord:
"Let no man think he is ruler; but let God rule him that judgeth, according to the counsel of his own will, or, in other words, him that counseleth or sitteth upon the judgment seat.
"Let no man break the laws of the land until he reigns whose right it is to reign, and subdues all enemies under his feet."
I want to warn this great body of priesthood against that great sin of Sodom and Gomorrah, which has been labeled as a sin second only in seriousness to the sin of murder. I speak of the sin of adultery, which, as you know, was the name used by the Master as he referred to unlicensed sexual sins of fornication as well as adultery; and besides this, the equally grievous sin of homosexuality, which seems to be gaining momentum with social acceptance in the Babylon of the world, of which Church members must not be a part.
While we are in the world, we must not be of the world. Any attempts being made by the schools or places of entertainment to flaunt sexual perversions, which can do nothing but excite to experimentation, must find among the priesthood in this church a vigorous and unrelenting defense through every lawful means that can be employed.
The common judges of Israel, our bishops and stake presidents, must not stand by and fail to apply disciplinary measures within their jurisdiction, as set forth plainly in the laws of the Lord and procedures as set forth in plain and simple instructions that cannot be misunderstood. Never must we allow supposed mercy to the unrepentant sinner to rob the justice upon which true repentance from sinful practices is predicated.
One more matter: There are among us many loose writings predicting the calamities which are about to overtake us. Some of these have been publicized as though they were necessary to wake up the world to the horrors about to overtake us. Many of these are from sources upon which there cannot be unquestioned reliance.
Are you priesthood bearers aware of the fact that we need no such publications to be forewarned, if we were only conversant with what the scriptures have already spoken to us in plainness?
Let me give you the sure word of prophecy on which you should rely for your guide instead of these strange sources which may have great political implications.
Read the 24th chapter of Matthew-particularly that inspired version as contained in the Pearl of Great Price.
Then read the 45th section of the Doctrine and Covenants where the Lord, not man, has documented the signs of the times.
Now turn to section 101 and section 133 of the Doctrine and Covenants and hear the step-by-step recounting of events leading up to the coming of the Savior.
Finally, turn to the promises the Lord makes to those who keep the commandments when these judgments descend upon the wicked, as set forth in the Doctrine and Covenants, section 38.
Brethren, these are some of the writings with which you should concern yourselves, rather than commentaries that may come from those whose information may not be the most reliable and whose motives may be subject to question. And may I say, parenthetically, most of such writers are not handicapped by having any authentic information on their writings.
As the Lord has admonished priesthood bearers from the beginning: "Wherefore, gird up your loins and be prepared. Behold, the kingdom is yours, and the enemy shall not overcome.
"Verily I say unto you, ye are clean, but not all; and there is none else with whom I am well pleased;
"For all flesh is corrupted before me; and the powers of darkness prevail upon the earth, among the children of men, in the presence of all the hosts of heaven-
"Which causeth silence to reign, and all eternity is pained. "
Now brethren, I have spoken plainly to you in this priesthood session. Let what has been said by all the brethren tonight, and in this conference, not fall on deaf ears. Let these admonitions be received as the Lord directed they should be received, in an early revelation, to which President Tanner has already made reference, "as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith."
Only by so doing can we be truly one as a body of priesthood, by following the leadership that the Lord has established in our day in order that we may be one. And he warns us if we are not one, we are not his, as he has declared in the Doctrine and Covenants.
There are one or two things I should like to say about myself and this present responsibility. Never had I thought of myself as one day becoming the President of the Church. As a boy in my rural community, I used to hear the brethren talk about a "pillar" in the Church. I wondered what in the world it meant. It must be something great to be a pillar in the Church. Well, now, maybe I am beginning to realize something about what that means, but I know this: those who try to guess ahead of time as to who is going to be the next President of the Church are just gambling as they might be on a horse race, because only the Lord has the time table.
I remember one time Elder Charles A. Callis in a Council of the Twelve meeting. There was a rather spirited discussion on some questions. One of the Brethren said, "You had better listen to Brother George Albert Smith, the President of the Twelve, because he may be the next President of the Church."
Brother Callis smiled and said, "Oh, I wouldn't be too sure. Three times in my life I have chosen the next President of the Church, and all three of them died before they came to the presidency." The Lord only knows, and for us to speculate or to presume is not pleasing in the sight of the Lord.
I have one other thought I should like to express. Brigham Young was a great defender of the Prophet Joseph Smith. There were Judases in the ranks in that day, just as there were in the Savior's day, and just as we have today, some who are members of the Church who are undercutting us, who are betraying their trusts. We are shocked when we see the places from which some of these things come.
Brigham Young was invited by some of these men who were trying to depose the Prophet Joseph from his position as President of the Church; but they made a mistake by inviting President Brigham Young into their circle. And after he had listened to what their motives were, he said something to this effect: "I want to say something to you men. You cannot destroy the appointment of a prophet of God, but you can cut the thread that binds you to the prophet of God, and sink yourselves to hell."
There was a pugilist there by the name of Jacob Bump, so the story goes, who doubled up his fists and started toward President Young, who replied to this man's threats: "I would like to lay hands on a man like you in defense of the Prophet Joseph Smith."
Remember that, brethren. You cannot destroy the appointments of the prophets of God. The Lord knows whom he wants to preside in his church, and sometimes it takes a lot of practicing, guiding, testing, before he may know whether or not one of us is prepared for the present assignment.
Now I think it is folly for one to compare one President of the Church with another. No one takes the place of another President of the Church. Each President has his own place. I had a lesson taught me some years ago when, in company with one of the brethren, I had reorganized the presidency of the Ensign Stake. We had named the bishop of one of the wards as stake president. It was near the end of the year, and he elected to remain as bishop, along with his first counselor, who was a bishop, until they had closed the books at the end of the year.
Six weeks after they were sustained, the stake president suddenly passed away.
Then I began to receive a barrage of letters. Where in the world was the inspiration for you to call a man whom the Lord was going to let die in six weeks? They invited me to talk at his services, and some seemed to be expecting me to try to explain why I had appointed a man that the Lord was going to take home in six weeks.
President Joseph Fielding Smith sat on the stand and heard my attempt to satisfy these people, and he said to me, "Don't you let that bother you. If you have called a man to a position in this church and he dies the next day, that position would have a bearing on what he will be called to do when he leaves this earth."
I believe that. I believe that every President of this church, every apostle of this church, every bishop, every stake president, every presiding position will have a bearing on what one is called to do when he leaves this earth.
And so, when you think of one President taking the place of another, he doesn't. That President maintains his own place. We shouldn't try to compare one as being greater than this one or greater than the other, because each one is, in the eyes of the Lord, in his own time the one most needed for that particular time. You may be sure of that.
Now, just one final thought. I sat in a class in Sunday School in my own ward one day, and the teacher was the son of a patriarch. He said he used to take down the blessings of his father, and he noticed that his father gave what he called "iffy" blessings. He would give a blessing, but it was predicated on "if you will not do this" or "if you will cease doing that." And he said, "I watched these men to whom my father gave the 'iffy' blessings, and I saw that many of them did not heed the warning that my father as a patriarch had given, and the blessings were never received because they did not comply."
You know, this started me thinking. I went back into the Doctrine and Covenants and began to read the "iffy" revelations that have been given to the various brethren in the Church. If you want to have an exercise in something that will startle you, read some of the warnings that were given through the Prophet Joseph Smith to Thomas B. Marsh, Martin Harris, some of the Whitmer brothers, William E. McLellin-warnings which, had they heeded, some would not have fallen by the wayside. But because they did not heed, and they didn't clear up their lives, they fell by the wayside, and some had to be dropped from membership in the Church.
Now, there is one thing that I think we should all be mindful of. I was with a group of missionaries in the temple one day. A question was asked by one of the sisters about the Word of Wisdom, concerning the promise made that if one would keep the Word of Wisdom he should run and not be weary and should walk and not faint. And she said, "How could that promise be realized if a person were crippled? How could he receive the blessing that he could run and not be weary, and walk and not faint, if he were crippled?"
I answered her, "Did you ever doubt the Lord? The Lord said that."
The trouble with us today, there are too many of us who put question marks instead of periods after what the Lord says. I want you to think about that. We shouldn't be concerned about why he said something, or whether or not it can be made so. Just trust the Lord. We don't try to find the answers or explanations. We shouldn't try to spend time explaining what the Lord didn't see fit to explain. We spend useless time.
If you would teach our people to put periods and not question marks after what the Lord has declared, we would say, "It is enough for me to know that is what the Lord said."
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley told a story after going into Vietnam that to me was a great lesson. There was a young man, as I remember it, who was in the military service in Vietnam and who joined the Church and was now about to go back to his home country in Southeast Asia.
Brother Hinckley said to him, "What is it going to do to you when you get back home now that you have joined the Church?"
"Oh," said the youth, "I will be cast out. My family will disown me. I will have difficulty in school. I will have no military rank."
Elder Hinckley then asked, "Isn't that a pretty big price to pay?"
And this young man looked at Elder Hinckley and said, "Well, the gospel is true, isn't it?"
That was a soul-searching question for Brother Hinckley, who replied: "Yes, my boy, with all my soul, the gospel is true."
And then this young man said, "Well, what else matters then?"
Brethren of the priesthood, if the gospel of Jesus Christ is true-and it is true-what else matters? The Lord may bless us with that rock-bottom testimony that will guide us through all the perils of life if we will just continue to say to ourselves, "Because I know that the gospel is true, nothing else matters."
I bear you my solemn witness that it is true, that the Lord is in his heavens; he is closer to us than you have any idea. You ask when the Lord gave the last revelation to this church. The Lord is giving revelations day by day, and you will witness and look back on this period and see some of the mighty revelations the Lord has given in your day and time. To that I bear you my witness, and leave with you my testimony this night, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
It is good to be here, brethren and sisters, in this wonderful conference, and I am sure that we have all been inspired by that beautiful testimony we have just heard from President Tanner.
There are three million Latter-day Saints scattered all over this world who have burning in their hearts a similar testimony of the truth of the story told by the Prophet Joseph Smith of the visit of the Father and the Son, followed by other heavenly messengers. Not only that, but hundreds of thousands who have already gone to their rest, such as my father and his father. My grandfather spent ten of the first fourteen years of his married life bearing witness of this message here and in the lands of Europe.
We have in the world today nearly 17,000 full-time missionaries who are paying their own way, or their families are, that they might tell that story to the entire world. My testimony and witness to you here today is that there is not an honest man or an honest woman in this world who really loves the Lord, and would like to serve him as he would like to be served, who would not join this church if they would just take time to find out the marvelous things the Lord has done in restoring his work to the earth in this day and time.
Some years ago one of our nationally known radio commentators was asked the question, "What message could be broadcast to the world that would be considered of greater importance than any other message?" And he said, after giving the matter careful thought and deliberation, "To be able to say that a man who had lived here upon this earth had returned again with a message from God would be the greatest message that could be broadcast to the world."
And that being true, the Latter-day Saints have the greatest message, not only that prophets like Moroni and John the Baptist and Peter, James, and John have visited this earth, but God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, as President Tanner just testified. Wouldn't it be wonderful if the world could understand that?
When the astronauts landed on the moon, the newspapers all over the world gave a front-page report of it, but that would not be anything to consider like the Creator of the heaven and the earth returning to this earth, for we are told that Jesus created the heavens and the earth and all things that in them are. Then naturally they would want to know, if the Father and the Son considered it important enough to visit this earth, what kind of a message they would want to leave or why they would come.
You have been told that in answer to Joseph's question, the Savior said that he should join none of the churches, for they taught for doctrine the precepts of men: and then the Savior added, "And their creeds are an abomination in my sight."
We would not want any of our nonmembers to be offended at this statement, but if Jesus did visit the Prophet Joseph Smith, and we know that he did, then his statement ought to be more authoritative than the statement of any other person in all the world, and yet right along with that come similar testimonies of leaders in other churches in the nation.
For instance, I give you a statement from Harry Emerson Fosdick in which he said, "If Jesus should come back to earth now, hear the mythologies built up around him, see the credalisms, the denominationalism, sacramentalism, carried on in his name, he would certainly say, 'If this is Christianity, I am not a Christian.'"
In Smith's Bible Dictionary, written by seventy-three noted divines and Bible students, this statement is made that "one must not expect to find the gospel of Holy Writ upon the earth today. It is not to be found thus perfect in the total fragments of Christianity, and much less in any one fragment."
Roger Williams, pastor of the oldest Baptist Church in America, gave up his ministry with the statement that: "There is no regularly constituted church of Christ on earth, nor any person qualified to administer any church ordinances; nor can there be until new apostles are sent by the Great Head of the Church for whose coming I am seeking."
Now that is our message to the world, that true apostles have been sent. We have listened during the sessions of this conference to about thirty of these great men-great men in their own right, regardless of their religious convictions-who have burning in their hearts a testimony that the Father and the Son have visited this earth.
I would like to say a few words this morning about the statement the Savior made that "their creeds are an abomination in my sight." When Satan was cast out of heaven, the cry went out: "Woe to the inhabiters of the earth for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time." "And thus he goeth seeking to destroy the souls of men." And how does he try to destroy people? By taking a little truth and mixing it with a lot of error to deceive the hearts of the people.
That is what Isaiah meant when he said: "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! For thou has said in thine heart, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God I will be like the most High." For he is the man who made the earth to tremble, who did shake kingdoms, and thus deceived the nations. That is what Jesus came to tell us, that "their creeds were an abomination in his sight" because Satan has deceived the nations.
In the few minutes that I have left I would like to mention one or two examples of Satan's deceptions. We hear constantly that all we have to do is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and we will be saved. The advocates of this doctrine take for their justification the statement of Jesus to the malefactor on the cross when he said, "To day shalt thou be with me in paradise." They think that they can all be saved just by acknowledging Jesus as the Christ. If they only understood the scriptures!
Paul was caught up into the third heaven and he was caught up into paradise and heard unspeakable words, "which it is not lawful for a man to utter."
Let us consider then the statement made by Jesus to the malefactor: "To day shalt thou be with me in paradise". The apostle Paul tells us that there are three heavens above the world of spirits, and Jesus said: "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you that where I am, there ye may be also."
The prophet Alma, as recorded in the Book of Mormon, discusses the condition of the soul between death and the resurrection, and he states this: "Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them; thus they remain in this state, as well as the righteous in paradise, until the time of their resurrection."
The world does not understand this, but if you will trust the scriptures, Jesus did not take the malefactor to heaven. He took him to the world of spirits, and there are three heavens above that, according to the Holy Scriptures. Why did he take him to paradise? It was a great gift and recognition at his hand because of what the malefactor had said on the cross.
Then the apostle Peter tells us where he went that day when he was crucified: " he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, Which sometime were disobedient, in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water."
So instead of the malefactor having to wait for years and years like those who were wicked in the days of Noah, the Savior took him with him that very day to the place where he could hear the gospel preached. Peter tells us that "for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit." And that is where the malefactor went with the Savior that day, but there are three heavens above that to which Jesus did not take him.
You remember when the women came to the sepulcher looking for the body of Jesus and there were two angels, one at the head and one at the foot, and they said, "Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen."
Then when the Savior spoke to Mary, she said, "Rabboni, which is to say, Master." Then he said, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God."
You see how much easier it is to understand when you read the scriptures correctly. No wonder Jesus said to the Sadducees, "Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures." So that man went with Jesus that day where he could be taught the gospel, but Jesus had not yet ascended to his Father in heaven.
At the present time, people are preaching all over the world that all you need to do is to confess that Jesus is the Christ, but that is not what Jesus said. He said, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
He said, "Many shall say to me at that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
"And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
Paul tells us, "Though he were a Son yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him."
Then John "saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." John also wrote: "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him. "
You see that does not come just by confession that you believe in Jesus Christ. You have got to do the works and be judged according to your works. All we need to do is to read the parable of the talents to know how the one who received the five talents won other five, and the one who received two won other two, and received the plaudit, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord."
But the one who had received the one talent said, "Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine."
And what did the Master say? "Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
That sounds like we would have to do something besides just confess if we want to reach the presence of our Father in heaven. That is hurriedly said, but there is a lot more to be said about it.
I would like to mention one other thing that I think is a creed that is "an abomination in the sight of God," and I shall mention it but briefly. At the time that Joseph Smith had that marvelous vision and saw that glorified Christ, he saw the same Jesus that came out of the tomb. He was the same one who appeared unto his apostles and had them feel the prints in his hands and the wound in his side. He was the same one who ascended into heaven in the presence of five hundred of the brethren at that time. This same Jesus appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith when the whole Christian world was worshiping an essence.
There is not time to go into a lot of detail, but their catechism says that their god has "no body; he has no parts; he has no passions." That means that he has no eyes; he cannot see. He has no ears; he cannot hear your prayers. He has no voice; he cannot speak a word to the prophets. Some of them even say "he sits on the top of a topless throne." How absurd! To me it seems that their description of the god that they believe in is about the best description of nothing that can be written.
Moses knew that this condition would prevail, because when he went to lead the children of Israel into the promised land, he told them that they would not remain there long but that they would be scattered among the nations and "there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell."
That is exactly the kind of a god the whole Christian world was worshiping when Joseph Smith had that glorious vision which revealed the true and living God. But Moses did not leave it at that. He said that in the latter days if they should seek after him, they would surely find him.
During this conference you have heard the testimonies of all my associates here bearing witness that the Prophet Joseph did seek after him and he did find him. And I want to bear my witness as one of his representatives, an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, that I know that he has visited this earth and we have his revealed truth. We have that of which Peter spoke when he said, following the day of Pentecost, that the heavens must receive the Christ "until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began." We are the only church in the world that claims such a restitution, and there is a great difference between a restitution and a reformation. We are not Catholics. We are not Protestants. We believe in a recommitment to this earth of God's eternal truth.
I would like to say just one more thing. I witnessed one of the religious crusades on the television here just recently. The man in charge said it would cost them a million and a quarter dollars to present it. I think of the words in the scripture that they should make merchandise out of the souls of men. And then after it was all over, he invited people to come up and confess Jesus.
Then I thought of the Day of Pentecost when Peter preached to all of those people there, and they heard the gospel preached in their own language and in their own tongue and they were pricked in their hearts and they cried out, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" He did not tell them to come up and confess. He said: "Repent, and be baptized and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call."
And they cannot be baptized unless there is one having authority that is recognized in the heavens, like Jesus said to his Twelve: "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you. " " and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, shall be loosed in heaven."
Brothers and sisters and friends who might be listening in, we are doing all we know how to do to share with you these wonderful truths.
Since all of you Latter-day Saints have been asked to be missionaries, and the Lord said, " it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor", you need to bear that witness too wherever opportunity presents itself. It is the greatest message in all this world today; and that is my testimony to you, and I bear it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
It is a privilege indeed, but a heavy responsibility, to address this vast audience in this historic Tabernacle and those who are listening in; and I humbly pray that the spirit and blessings of the Lord will attend us this lovely Sabbath morning.
Conditions in the world today have caused me to ponder over an editorial which I read recently. It states:
"A German astronomer believes that 'the earth's young civilization is now approaching its first great crisis because of its newly found powers of self-destruction,' and 'man's best hope of avoiding disaster is to listen hard for radioed advice coming from far out in starry space.'
"Out there, somewhere, this scientist believes, is a wise old civilization that has survived many crises and is trying to warn the callow earth against the mistakes of its own youth.
"What an astute observation! Yet, for thousands of years the Master Creator from his world has been trying to get his earth people to listen hard for advice and wisdom. Either they haven't tuned in or they have been dull of sight and hearing. There have been many messages from other worlds."
Since the very beginning of time we have a record of God's messages to man, either by personal appearance, by angels, by direct revelation, by visions, by dreams, or by inspiration. The first instance is where the Lord God appeared to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; and after they were driven out of the garden, they called upon the name of the Lord, and though they did not see him, they heard his voice. He gave them commandments that they should worship the Lord their God and offer sacrifices unto him.
" And Adam was obedient unto the commandments of the Lord.
"And after many days an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me.
"And then the angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth.
"Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son forevermore.
"And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam, which beareth record of the Father and the Son, saying: I am the Only Begotten of the Father from the beginning, henceforth and forever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed, and all mankind, even as many as will."
It is evident therefore that Adam, through revelation, knew that Christ would atone and suffer for the sins of men and that there would be a resurrection. This is an evidence that, as Amos said, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
It is hard to understand why so many people are prepared to accept facts as recorded by historians in secular history and yet refuse to accept ecclesiastical history as recorded in the scriptures by men whose characters are beyond reproach, and even refuse to believe, as having come from the Lord, prophecies that have been fulfilled and verified by secular history. Especially have men through the ages refused to accept prophets of their own time, and many of them have been persecuted, ridiculed, and slain.
The scriptures are replete with incidents lamenting the fact that the majority of people have always refused to accept the prophets who have cried repentance unto them and reminded them of their iniquities. You will remember what the Savior said to the multitude when denouncing the Scribes and the Pharisees:
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
"Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
"For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."
We must listen to and support the prophets if we are to gain favor with the Lord. An early New World prophet, Nephi, complained to his people:
"Behold, my brethren, have ye not read that God gave power unto one man, even Moses, to smite upon the waters of the Red Sea, and they parted hither and thither, insomuch that the Israelites, who were our fathers, came through upon dry ground, and the waters closed upon the armies of the Egyptians and swallowed them up?
"And now behold, if God gave unto this man such power, then why should ye dispute among yourselves, and say that he hath given unto me no power whereby I may know concerning the judgments that shall come upon you except ye repent?
"But, behold, ye not only deny my words, but ye also deny all the words which have been spoken by our fathers, and also the words which were spoken by this man, Moses, who had such great power given unto him, yea, the words which he hath spoken concerning the coming of the Messiah.
"And now behold, Moses did not only testify of these things, but also all the holy prophets, from his days even to the days of Abraham.
"And now I would that ye should know, that even since the days of Abraham there have been many prophets that have testified these things; yea, behold, the prophet Zenos did testify boldly; for the which he was slain.
" and now we know that Jerusalem was destroyed according to the words of Jeremiah. O then why not the Son of God come, according to his prophecy?
"And now will you dispute that Jerusalem was destroyed?
"Our father Lehi was driven out of Jerusalem because he testified of these things.
"And now, seeing ye know these things and cannot deny them except ye shall lie, therefore in this ye have sinned, for ye have rejected all these things; notwithstanding so many evidences which ye have received;
"But behold, ye have rejected the truth, and rebelled against your holy God; and even at this time, instead of laying up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where nothing doth corrupt, and where nothing can come which is unclean, ye are heaping up for yourselves wrath against the day of judgment.
"Yea, even at this time ye are ripening, because of your murders and your fornication and wickedness, for everlasting destruction; yea, and except ye repent it will come unto you soon."
Are we today prepared to repent and accept the word of God, or, as these ancient people, go on heaping up for ourselves wrath against the day of judgment and everlasting destruction? Throughout the ages these messages have come to the inhabitants of the earth from a loving Father whose spirit children we are. They are for our benefit and blessing. He is interested in us and wants us to succeed and be happy in this life and throughout eternity. He created the world and sent us here and knows what is best for us, and through his prophets and his Son Jesus Christ he has given us the plan of life which will lead us to salvation and exaltation. God's love for his children and his desire to direct them are evident in so many ways.
Let us refer to the experience of Joseph who was sold into Egypt. You will recall that Pharaoh was troubled by a dream he had, and learned that Joseph might be able to interpret it, so he sent for him, saying, "I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it."
Joseph replied, "It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace."
Then Pharaoh told him of his dream about the seven fat and seven lean cattle and the full and thin ears of corn. Then Joseph said God had shown Pharaoh what he was about to do and was warning him that there would be seven very fruitful years, after which there would be a famine for seven years.
We all know that Pharaoh accepted this interpretation and appointed Joseph governor and directed him to see that all surplus foods were preserved for the lean years to come. Because of Joseph's faithfulness and his responsiveness to inspiration and revelation, he found himself in a position where he was able to save his family when his father, Jacob, sent his other sons to buy corn from their brother whom they had sold into Egypt.
Joseph testified later: " God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance."
We have record of many other revelations that were received by the prophets in early days as well as in modern times. Prophecies concerning the birth, mission, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus Christ are foretold many times by different prophets, both in the Bible and in the Book of Mormon, some of them hundreds of years before his birth. We have the words of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Lehi, Alma, and many others prophesying of this great event.
Nephi records in some detail his visions of these happenings, as shown to him by an angel of the Lord. He beheld Mary, the mother of Jesus, bearing a child in her arms, even the Lamb of God, the Redeemer of the world. He saw the prophet who baptized him, the Holy Ghost descending upon him, his work with the Twelve, his healing the sick, the casting out of devils and unclean spirits.
Nephi also foretells the last events in the Savior's life in these words:
"But, behold, they shall have wars, and rumors of wars; and when the day cometh that the Only Begotten of the Father, yea, even the Father of heaven and of earth, shall manifest himself unto them in the flesh, behold, they will reject him, because of their iniquities, and the hardness of their hearts, and the stiffness of their necks.
"Behold, they will crucify him; and after he is laid in a sepulchre for the space of three days he shall rise from the dead, with healing in his wings; and all those who shall believe on his name shall be saved in the kingdom of God. Wherefore, my soul delighteth to prophesy concerning him, for I have seen his day, and my heart doth magnify his holy name."
This prophecy was made nearly six hundred years before the birth of Christ, yet every event foretold transpired just as predicted. The New Testament writers give irrefutable testimony to validate these prophetic utterances. The New Testament also validates other prophecies recorded in the Old Testament and the Book of Mormon to which we have referred.
The account in Luke tells us that "a messenger from the Father crossed space to announce, 'For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.' And from out in space suddenly there came 'a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.' "
God's purpose for having prophets upon the earth is to relay his messages for the benefit and blessing of mankind by whatever means of space communication he elects to use. In his overruling providence he has prepared a way for us to gain immortality and eternal life, which Jesus said was his work and his glory. Before and since Christ's great sacrifice for us the message has been revealed through the prophets that we must be obedient to the laws and ordinances of the gospel, and by repenting of the sins of the world, we can gain exaltation.
How important it is that we listen to the prophets! The scriptures contain numerous warnings to us in these latter days of the calamities that will come upon us, and they have been and are coming to pass. Only as the world repents and accepts and lives the teachings of the gospel as revealed by God through his Son Jesus Christ and the prophets will we save ourselves from destruction.
"Messages from the beyond have come in great numbers through the ages, faithfully interpreted by the Jeremiahs, the Ezekiels, and the Daniels; by the Nephis, and the Moronis; by the Peters, and the Pauls, and in modern times by the Joseph Smiths. Better than radioed or television communications have come personal messages without space capsule, plane, or rocket ship. Man has a long way to go before he comes into the realm of inhabited planets. Yet there is such a thing as space communication. Man has spoken to God and received answers from him. Such messages have been coming for the benefit and blessing of the inhabitants of the earth for upward of 6,000 years."
There is a prophet upon the earth today through whom the Lord makes known his mind and will. We as members of the Church believe "all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God."
The greatest event and blessing ever to come to mankind was the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the plan of life and salvation that he gave. Next in importance to mankind was the restoration of the gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith. God called to him and he listened, and through revelation he brought forth a sacred record containing the gospel in its fullness, which with the Bible and modern revelation gives the world the same plan of life and salvation as given by Jesus when he was upon the earth.
Joseph, when 14 years of age, was greatly confused as a result of the proselyting activities of the different churches in his community, and he wanted to know which church he should join. While reading the Bible, he came upon the following words in James:
"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
"But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed."
Joseph said that if anybody needed wisdom, he did, so he went to a grove where he could be alone and knelt in prayer.
He records: " I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.
" When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air." One of them said: " This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
Joseph, through this vision, knew as he knew he lived that God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, were two living Personages: that they knew him by name and heard and answered his prayer and gave him instructions. As he told his experience to his friends and to his minister, he found it excited a great deal of prejudice against him, and he was persecuted and ridiculed, and yet he wrote:
" I was led to say in my heart: Why persecute me for telling the truth? I have actually seen a vision; and who am I that I can withstand God, or why does the world think to make me deny what I have actually seen? For I had seen a vision; I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it, neither dared I do it; at least I knew that by so doing I would offend God, and come under condemnation."
As Joseph called upon God for further direction, the angel Moroni appeared to him and told him about the gold plates and showed them to him in vision. At the end of four years he was given the plates, which contained a record of God's dealings with the ancient people on the American continent and contained the gospel in its fullness. He translated the engravings on these plates by the gift and power of God and by revelation, and to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations.
We have this promise given by Moroni regarding the Book of Mormon:
"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true: and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
I humbly bear testimony that the truthfulness of these things has been revealed to me and that the gospel has been restored in these the latter days through his prophet, Joseph Smith, to whom God the Father and his Son appeared; that God lives; that Jesus is the Christ, who came and gave his life for you and me that we might enjoy immortality and eternal life.
The channels are open between us and the Lord today whereby we can go in secret prayer, in family prayer, and in our public gatherings, knowing that he is there, that he is a loving father, and that he stands ready to answer our prayers and direct us if we will but let him do so, in our own affairs and in the office or calling which we hold.
I also wish to bear testimony that our present leader, Harold B. Lee, is a prophet of God who has been prepared and chosen by him and has been ordained and set apart by those having authority. He is entitled to and does receive guidance from the Lord for the Church and for the benefit of mankind.
The Lord has said to the members of his church regarding his prophet:
" thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
"For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
"For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you.
"For thus saith the Lord God: Him have I inspired to move the cause of Zion in mighty power for good, and his diligence I know, and his prayers I have heard."
May we give heed to the Prophet and follow him, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Robert L. Simpson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Oh, that the three billion people in this world could have heard what we just heard from the lips of a wonderful man, Elder LeGrand Richards; and oh, that three billion people could have heard what the priesthood heard last night from the lips of a living prophet, President Harold B. Lee. Through the mind of the Lord, President Lee was able to identify many of the problems confronting mankind today. I would like to discuss for just a moment, if I may, one of the very important problems that seems to be filtering into our homes and into our communities.
Before drawing the breath of life on this earth, we were all spiritual beings living in the realm of God, the Eternal Father. Scripture reveals that even before our spiritual birth, each of us had individual identification as an intelligence. Before all else could take place, there had to be that beginning spark of light, that spark of intelligence or, if you please, the marvelous mechanism that controls our every thought, that controls our every act. We might think of this spark of intelligence as perhaps the nucleus of a human mind.
No wonder it has been said: "As a man thinketh, so is he." The master control center within each individual must be regarded as the key. Signals flashing out to the various parts of the body bring instant reaction; in sum and substance, this center dictates the character, the conscience, the strength, and yes, even the weaknesses of every man.
From the beginning of time, there has been a never-ending struggle to influence and control the human mind. Too often, the false promises and enticements of conspiring men have been successful. How much more effective to capture the control center than a mere outpost.
The mind of man must first depend upon quality input before it can be counted upon to render good decisions. Like the most sophisticated computer, only with its properly designed control panel in proper place and in working order can the system be depended upon to produce the desired results.
It was Paul who made the observation that the whole must be fitly framed before the properly functioning church can be recognized and identified. It must naturally follow then that the pollution of a single church member's mind will indeed affect the whole. If pollution touches even a segment of the church, then the entire church is weakened. The church can be no stronger than its members. By the same token, the degradation of a family member weakens the entire family unit. Applied to a nation, when a segment of its citizenry becomes contaminated by frequenting the cesspools of its society, that nation indeed is weakened.
Thousands have said: "Printed filth will never become an obsession with me. I am a mature adult, and I have the right to see what is going on in the world without becoming trapped." But hardly a day passes that we don't listen to alcoholics and drug abusers who are now looking back with regret on their beginning days of social drinking and mild drug experimentation just to satisfy a so-called mature curiosity.
Evidence is conclusive that mind-polluting pornography is just as addicting and just as devastating as Satan's other tools of destruction and degradation. As expressed in the last line of Alexander Pope's poem: "We first endure, then pity, then embrace."
The gradual infiltration of this mind-polluting material has quietly engulfed us on a wide front. Today's so-called acceptable motion picture would have been banned from public viewing just a few short years ago. Many of the recommended reading lists of our public schools would have been classified as unacceptable less than a generation ago. All of us, by the flip of a switch, allow much highly questionable and some downright objectionable filth to occupy the center stage of our family circle. Public attitude against smut has very gradually been lulled into a state of mild resistance-so mild, in fact, that the adversary has already won a major victory whether we are ready to admit it or not.
Now the question follows: Is there really anything that can be done? Why, of course there is, and if every God-fearing citizen would band together on a few fundamental steps, this entire trend could be turned around.
How about taking a few minutes, for example, to voice objection to the local supermarket manager about easy availability and prominent display of unacceptable material on his periodical display rack.
How about taking just five minutes each week to review the TV log and then establishing a few rules that all the family agrees to concerning viewing time and on which channel.
Why not make some effort to find out something about the next movie that will engage your family's undivided attention for two and a half or three hours and will probably cost you far more than you contributed to the poor and the needy that month. It goes without saying that all X- and R-rated movies are automatically eliminated.
Perhaps we should all become a lot more interested in what the school is recommending and making available to our children. How many school meetings or visits did you make during the past year?
Do the men you vote for feel as you do on these vital matters? Is there some legislation that needs to be encouraged, some petitions that need to be circulated, some telephone calls that need to be made? God gave us a democratic process for a good reason. Do we use this process to help his cause? Not enough! The opposition is certainly misusing it, all in the name of free speech. You and I must keep the record straight on what God intended by freedom of speech and some of the obligations connected with it.
Satan is the master of deceit. He perverts man's God-given attributes from their noble and divine purpose onto a downward track. All seem to agree that one of man's most demanding and ever-present drives is centered in his desire for companionship and sexual fulfillment. To have this highly sensitive and divine human mechanism falsely aroused by unnatural processes creates a serious conflict in that vital control center, the mind. Rationalization quickly rallies to the side of the victim of off-color literature, because rationalization helps him to live with his conscience. He tells himself that his drives are God-given and, therefore, not that bad. He also tells himself, "Nearly everybody does it. I am not so different," and while he may not be so very different, he is just exactly 100 percent wrong in the eyes of God.
Now a mind that has been deceived into receiving trashy input cannot but send false signals to the feet, the hands, and the tongue. Future decisions will all be colored by the impurity allowed to enter that control center of his entire being.
As you invite unclean thoughts to become a part of your total being, be assured some of your faculties will become considerably sharpened. Your temper will be sharpened. Your tongue will be sharpened. Your desire for more trash will be sharpened. Your ability to shade the truth will be sharpened. Yes, just about every negative part of your character will be enhanced.
There will also be a noticeable diminishing effect in your life. Your personality will be diminished. Your family relationships will be impaired. Your ability to pray will be lessened. Your spirit will be affected adversely, and your testimony of the truth will start to slip away, probably so gradually at first that you won't even realize it is happening until it is too late. The Lord has said: " Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord."
Every prophet from the beginning of this earth has had foreknowledge of our day with its pitfalls and hazards. The scriptures alone give us the formula for avoiding disaster. I like what the Lord says in the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants: " let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven."
We have been admonished to read good books and to avoid idleness, and as President David O. McKay used to say so eloquently: "The true measure of a man is how he spends his time when he doesn't have to do anything." This, of course, brings us around to self-discipline, which is the major key in the total avoidance of illicit literature.
Are there any books or literature in your possession that would have no place in the personal library of President Harold B. Lee? Someone has said: "Which way to go, the leader will know." Don't you think we should follow his example? Do you allow material to enter your mind that would be incompatible with entrance into the celestial kingdom of God?
Church membership contemplates only one thing-to qualify for his holy presence. Why jeopardize that possibility? The oft-quoted wisdom of President Heber J. Grant bears repetition here: "That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself has changed, but the power to do is increased."
It works in both directions: the power to accept pornography, as our senses become numbed, or the power to reject as we declare with Joshua of old: " choose you this day whom ye will serve; as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
To whom shall we turn for our direction in these vital matters? A prophet of God has spoken within the past few days. Here are the exact words of the First Presidency on this vital subject: "Pornographic filth continues to flood this country as well as other nations of the world.
"There is abundant evidence of the damaging effect of obscenity on the solidarity of the family, on the moral fiber of the individual.
"We, with many leaders outside the Church, are deeply concerned about this growing obscenity in print, on record and tape, on television, and in motion pictures.
"We therefore urge Latter-day Saint parents to teach their children to avoid smut in any of its many insidious forms. 'Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly.'
"The Lord has also said: 'Set in order your houses; keep slothfulness and uncleanness far from you.'
"We also encourage Latter-day Saints as citizens to exert every effort to fight the inroads of pornography in their communities. History is replete with examples of nations which have fallen in a large measure through licentiousness."
May we accept this timely counsel. Your personal welfare and the eternal future of your entire family unit may depend upon it, and I say it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop H. Burke Peterson
Of the Presiding Bishopric
In countless writings the prophets of the Lord have been trying to teach us that throughout time and all eternity the most important organization is the family. A loving Father in heaven organized his church here on the earth as a means of teaching families how to be eternally happy. We know that none of us can receive the fulfillment of true happiness except as a member of an eternal family unit.
We also know, or we should know, that the success we experience in our homes as families is going to have a most significant effect on the eternal happiness of each of us. Happiness in the life hereafter is geared to our learning and living celestial laws while we are here on the earth. This being so, then our great need is to establish in our homes an atmosphere that will encourage the learning and living of the teachings of the Savior.
Satan knows that he can cause unhappiness in our homes if he can bring about disunity, discontent, disharmony, and a host of other spiritual illnesses. By this insidious process he has gained no small measure of success in his plan to lead astray the children of our Father in heaven. For instance, he knows that if he can cause parents to quarrel with each other, their children may well follow the example.
He knows that if parents show little respect for each other, so will their children. He knows that children mirror the actions of their parents.
He also knows that his greatest effort to block the work of the Lord must be in the home. Unfortunately, it is here where he enjoys his greatest success, first by destroying family relationships and then by destroying the family unit. He is using many devious means to accomplish his purpose. Many are the homes that do not recognize his ofttimes silent enroachment into their happiness and security.
One of Satan's most effective tools is at work among us today-it is a destroyer of happiness, peace, contentment, family solidarity. Families are stumbling and falling because of its hobbling and crippling effect. This tool of Satan is called contention. The dictionary describes contention as follows: "To argue, to bring discord or strife, to dispute, to quarrel."
Now, some will say, "This is our way of life-everybody's doing it." Lest we think these acts are not serious and are just our way of life, to be accepted and lived with, let us hear the word of the Lord as expressed by an ancient prophet.
We read in 3 Nephi: " And there shall be no disputations among you, as there have hitherto been; neither shall there be disputations among you concerning the points of my doctrine, as there have hitherto been.
"For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
"Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away."
Over 2,000 years ago the great King Benjamin gave warning and wise counsel to the people of his day-and to us also. We read in Mosiah:
"And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked: neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with another, and serve the devil, who is the master of sin, or who is the evil spirit which hath been spoken of by our fathers, he being an enemy to all righteousness.
"But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness: ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another."
From the scripture we see that King Benjamin points out in a very positive way how we can help our children, for he said we shall teach them truth, teach them soberness, teach them to love one another, and teach them to serve one another. Fathers and mothers, may I remind you that we are always teaching.
The home should be the great workshop of the Lord. Here is where children must be taught to walk in ways of truth and soberness, of love and service to each other.
The most effective examples a child will ever have-for bad or for good-are his own parents. Few of us realize how very pliable and teachable children are in their primary years of life. How quick they are to pick up parental habits and traits and teachings!
May I suggest that as parents we must require more of ourselves. May I suggest that we give more of ourselves, that we give more good experiences to our children, experiences that are love-producing and family-solidifying. Whether the times we give are measured in minutes or hours is not as important as what we do in them. It may be five minutes at a child's bedside each night or a fifteen-minute walk in the evening. It may be a day in the hills or a three-minute phone call from the office at midday. It may be a clever love note to a little girl or a night out to a ball game with a boy. It can even be the experience of a family home evening. It can even be the experience of a family learning to pray together and reading the scriptures together and fasting together.
We must expand our thinking on ways to develop happy children. As the Lord has said, the power is within us to do so. The ways of the Lord are simple ways. Simple experiences with children develop unbreakable ties that will endure forever. It might be something as simple as smiling more in your home.
What would you think of speaking more cheerfully? Trying more often to say please and thank you?
What would you think of finding an opportunity for one sincere compliment for each child each day, and then watching them respond?
What if you decided to be cheerful tonight at the dinner table, and in spite of what others might do or say, hold to your course. See how long you can uplift your whole family. Take one day at a time. As a TV commercial says, "Try it-you'll like it."
These are contagious actions. Children will learn to be happy and more pleasant. Homes will be cheery. The gospel of Jesus Christ is more easily taught and longer remembered in a happy home.
Parents, we are the catalyst. We must be sure to give adequate time to our own courtship. A happy marriage nowadays is a perishable item. Take time alone together to feed it and nurture it and keep it alive. A happy marriage requires constant attention.
Now, in all our doing, let us be sure we have the divine approval of the Lord. His is the course to follow. Let us be sure we lead our families in his way. Contention in a home starts and stops with the parents.
I have often wondered what would happen if the method of introducing a father to his newborn child were different. Instead of a doctor coming out and saying, "It's another girl" or "It's another boy," how would we react if each time a child was born our Father in heaven made this kind of introduction to the parents:
"Thank you for preparing this little body for the spirit I have created. Now, I present her to you for a season to care for. Please teach her of me and of my Son. I so much want her back with me some day. It all depends on you. Remember this: She is loving. She will respond to teaching. She wants to learn. Please treat her with respect. The road will not be easy. Some of the time it will be most difficult. I want to help you raise her. Please call on me often for advice and counsel. Together we can help her fulfill her purpose in the earth."
I wonder how we might treat these little ones if they had this kind of introduction. Would it be different?
Remember again the scripture, "But ye will teach them to walk in ways of truth and soberness: ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another." And may I add-ye will teach them by your example.
Fathers and mothers and children, wherever you are, I want you to know that I know we have a Father in heaven, and I want you to know that his Son Jesus is the Christ; and I want you to know that I know he established his kingdom on the earth for our blessing and for our benefit. I testify that there is a prophet on the earth, and I testify that we will be happy if we follow his teachings, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
An event of great importance to the entire Christian world has taken place during this conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
A new prophet of God has been raised up for this present day!
He is one in a line of inspired men divinely called to minister now and to bring a new revelation from heaven to every man, woman, and child who will hear.
The appointment of this new prophet is of momentous import to every person who believes in God, and particularly to every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is in deep humility, but with great sincerity, that we make this solemn announcement to the world.
Always when the Lord has had a people on the earth whom he has recognized as his own, he has led them by living prophets to whom he has given guidance from heaven.
While the people remained faithful anciently, one prophet after another was raised up by the Almighty in a long series of divine appointments. Thus we had many men of God mentioned in both Old and New Testaments.
A similar line of inspired men now has been established in modern times. This was accomplished as a result of the restoration of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ through his latter-day seer, Joseph Smith.
When the prophet Amos was on earth he made the significant statement that the Lord will deal with his people only through prophets. Said he: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
This is of particular interest because it presupposes frequent communication between God and man.
Contrary to the general belief, the Lord is a God of communication, a God of revelation. He is a God of light and intelligence, of knowledge and information. He does not deal in darkness, neither does he save anyone in ignorance. His entire plan of salvation rests upon communication with an enlightened people.
Who can worship intelligently if kept in ignorance?
Who can have a meaningful faith without a knowledge of God?
And whence shall this knowledge come if not from the Deity himself?
But when it does come from the Deity, it is both communication and revelation.
Although he is a God of communication, he follows a particular method of transmitting knowledge to man. It is an unchanging pattern, which is, that he always speaks to the people through living prophets.
The scriptures indicate that over the centuries the Lord has been free and willing to give inspired direction to mankind. Nevertheless, there have been periods when such revelation has ceased. This occurred even in Bible times, and Isaiah explained the reason why. Said he:
"Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
"But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you. "
Human beings are slow to learn the ways of the Lord, and particularly are they dilatory in accepting the fact that although he is willing to communicate with them, his method of doing so is through inspired living men whom he designates as prophets.
It is a pattern with him. It is his method of procedure, and he has not changed it. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and so are his methods.
Lack of communication between human beings is responsible for much of the distress in the world. But when communication breaks down between God and man, even worse situations arise.
Anciently the Lord showed his willingness to speak to the people by raising up a long series of inspired men who served as his spokesmen, from the days of Adam to John the Baptist. We are familiar with their names, such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, Moses, and Zachariah, to mention just a few. Their writings make up the Old Testament, one of the grandest collections of literature and revelation known to man.
But what about the New Testament period? Did God follow this same method then? Did he place prophets in the Christian church, thus preserving the historic pattern revealed in the Old Testament?
This he did!
Paul told the Ephesians that the church of Jesus Christ was built upon a foundation of apostles and prophets, with the Savior himself as the chief cornerstone.
Who were the prophets of that day?
The Twelve were included, of course. But were there others?
The New Testament tells us that there were. Silas and Barnabas were two of them, and both were great missionaries of that time. Others were Simeon and Lucius; also a man named Judas-he was not Iscariot. Likewise mentioned are Manaen and Agabus, who predicted the arrest of Paul.
The epistle to the Ephesians explains why there were Christian prophets, saying that they were placed in the Lord's church for the "perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ."
Since the Savior commanded his people to become perfect as their Father in heaven, he set up his church to provide the means by which this could be accomplished. Hence, he gave them apostles and prophets.
These inspired men were in the church also to preserve unity among the saints and to heal divisions in the flock "that we henceforth be no more tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine. "
So God followed the same pattern of communicating with his people in New Testament times that had been customary with him down through the ages as recorded in the Old Testament.
Now what of our day?
Since communication between God and his prophets was an integral part of the early Christian church, what is the situation with present-day Christianity? Where are the Christian prophets of today?
Unfortunately they were lost over the centuries. There is no record of any Christian prophet having lived after A.D. 110 when it is believed by the world that John the Revelator was last heard of.
Then has Christianity drifted all these years without communication from heaven?
The denominations agree that there are no prophets among them, and they teach that neither prophets nor revelation are any longer needed. Rather, they say that the Bible-written in ages past-contains all that is necessary.
Then does this constitute a departure from the age-old pattern of the Lord-that of presently guiding his people through living prophets?
In Isaiah's day it was the people who turned away from God. The Lord did not turn from the people.
It was the same in the Savior's day. Do you recall that he said to those about him: " how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!"
God does not abandon his people. It is the people who abandon God.
-Hymns, no. 66
So we sing in one of our favorite hymns.
The scriptures indicate that in the latter days, shortly before the second coming of the Savior, the signs of the times would be given.
Some of them would be devastating, with seas heaving themselves beyond their bounds and with earthquakes, disease, and war taking heavy tolls.
But one of the most significant of all the signs of the times was to be a restoration of the original gospel and church of Jesus Christ, this to be done "in the hour of God's judgment."
This restoration was to be so extensive, says the scripture, that it would include all that God had ever spoken through his servants from the beginning of the world.
Then would that include a restoration of prophecy and revelation?
Would a new line of prophets be raised up to guide the people in these troublous times?
Since the scripture says that new revelation is to come in the latter days, and since God always gives his revelations through his servants, the prophets, and since for centuries there were none, then new prophets would have to be raised up to transmit the revelations intended for our day.
This is precisely what happened.
Joseph Smith was the first of them. Through him the Lord restored the gospel in its purity, the Church being reestablished on the earth in 1830.
Then came a succession of modern prophets to carry on the work, which will continue to expand until the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
After Joseph Smith, Brigham Young was called; then John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow, Joseph F. Smith, Heber J. Grant, George Albert Smith, David O. McKay, Joseph Fielding Smith, and now President Harold B. Lee. Each was God's prophet for his time; each a seer and a revelator.
In this conference, with our hearts and our hands, we have formally sustained President Lee as our inspired leader for this day.
The mantle of the prophets now rests upon him. He holds the authority in the holy priesthood that they held.
All the keys and powers given by the angels to the Prophet Joseph Smith have been conferred upon President Lee. He is today's authorized and divinely chosen successor in this long line of prophets.
The work now will go on, eventually leading into the millennium. A believing people is being prepared to receive the Savior. Christ will come again! His church has been restored in preparation for his coming.
Once more we have prophets on the earth like Moses and Isaiah, Peter, James, and John. Silas and Barnabas and Paul.
Once again true salvation is offered to all mankind.
And once again, through his modern servants, the Savior says:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
With this new line of prophets to guide us, we bring salvation again to all mankind. We testify that God indeed has spoken in these last days, and that we are his ministers.
Anciently the scripture said: "How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!"
Have you ever asked yourselves who these people are, who preach the gospel of peace and whose feet are so beautiful upon the mountains?
Abinadi, in the Book of Mormon, gives us the explanation.
These people are the prophets of God-they who preach the gospel of the Prince of Peace, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Says Abinadi: "I mean the holy prophets ever since the world began.
" these are they who have published peace, who have brought good tidings of good, who have published salvation and said unto Zion: Thy God reigneth!
"And O how beautiful upon the mountains were their feet!
"And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that are still publishing peace!
"And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those who shall hereafter publish peace, yea, from this time henceforth and forever!
"And behold," Abinadi continues, "this is not all. For O how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that is the founder of peace, yea, even the Lord, who has redeemed his people; yea, him who has granted salvation unto his people."
So spoke Abinadi.
The prophets, then, are the servants of Jesus Christ and have been from the beginning of time. And because they are his servants and preach his gospel of peace, behold, how beautiful upon the mountains are their feet.
We honor them. We shall follow them, and through them we shall work out our salvation here on earth in the Lord's own way.
And so we say:
We solemnly testify that communication between heaven and earth has been reestablished in our day. We declare that God is not isolated from the world.
He is not dead. He lives.
He is not blind. He sees.
He is not deaf. He hears.
He is not dumb. He speaks, eloquently, to his living prophets and through them to the world at large.
In this manner God is speaking to you today. Listen to him. Acknowledge him. Pray to him. Obey him. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
When Jesus of Nazareth taught and ministered among men, he spoke not as did the scribes and scholars of the day but rather in language understood by all. Jesus taught through parables. His teachings moved men and motivated them to a newness of life. The shepherd on the hillside, the sower in the field, the fisherman at his net all became subjects whereby the Master taught eternal truths.
The divinely created human body, with its truly marvelous powers and intricate parts, acquired new meaning when the Lord spoke of eyes that were not blinded but did really see, ears that were not stopped but did truly hear, and hearts that were not hardened but did know and feel. In his teachings he referred to the foot, the nose, the face, the side, the back. Significant are those occasions when he spoke of yet another part-even the human hand. Considered by artists and sculptors the most difficult member of the human body to capture on canvas or form in clay, the hand is a wonder to behold. Neither color, size, shape, nor age distorts this miracle of creation.
First, let us consider the hand of a child. Who among us has not praised God and marveled at his powers when an infant is held in one's arms. That tiny hand, so small yet so perfect, instantly becomes the topic of conversation. No one can resist placing his little finger in the clutching hand of an infant. A smile comes to the lips, a certain glow to the eyes, and one appreciates the tender feelings which prompted the poet to pen the lines: "A sweet new blossom of humanity, fresh fallen from God's own home, to flower on earth."
As the child grows, the tightly clutched hand opens in an expression of perfect trust. "Take me by the hand, Mother; then I won't be afraid" bespeaks this confidence. The delightful song the little children sing so beautifully at once becomes a plea for patience, an invitation to teach-even an opportunity to serve:
-The Children Sing, no. 97
The sentiments such love and faith arouse should ever draw forth from each parent a pledge of fidelity-even a determination to do that which is right.
Should added emphasis be required, we need but refer to that account where the disciples came unto Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
"And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
"And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
"And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.
"But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea." Significant is the hand of a child.
Second, may we turn our attention to the hand of youth. This is the training period when busy hands learn to labor-and labor to learn. Honest effort and loving service become identifying features of the abundant life. Each was effectively taught the girls in the Mutual class when cookies were baked and taken by them to elderly women residing in a neighborhood rest home. The aged hand of a lonely grandmother clasped that of the thoughtful teenager. No word was spoken. Heart spoke to heart. The hand that baked the cookies was raised to wipe a tear. Such hands are clean hands. Such hearts are pure hearts.
Then comes that day when the hand of a boy takes the hand of a girl, and parents suddenly realize their children have grown. Never is the hand of a girl so delicately displayed as when there glistens on her finger a ring denoting a sacred pledge. Her step becomes quicker, her countenance brighter, and all is well with the world. Courtship has come. Marriage follows. And once again two hands are clasped, this time in a holy temple. Cares of the world are for a brief moment forgotten. Thoughts turn to eternal values. The clasped hands speak of promised hearts. Heaven is here.
Time passes. The hand of a bride becomes the hand of a mother. Ever so gently she cares for her precious child. Bathing, dressing, feeding, comforting-there is no hand like mother's. Nor does its tender care diminish through the years. Ever shall I remember the hand of one mother-the mother of a missionary. Some years ago at a worldwide seminar for mission presidents, the parents of missionaries were invited to meet and visit briefly with each mission president. Forgotten are the names of each who extended a greeting and exchanged a friendly handshake. Remembered are the feelings which welled up within me as I took in my hand the calloused hand of one mother from Star Valley, Wyoming. "Please excuse the roughness of my hand," she apologized. "Since my husband has been ill, the work of the farm has been mine to do, that our boy may, as a missionary, serve the Lord."
Tears could not be restrained, nor should they have been. Such tears produce a certain cleansing of the soul. A mother's labor sanctified a son's service. Loved are the hands of a mother.
Not to be overlooked is the hand of a father. Whether he be a skilled surgeon, a master craftsman, or a talented teacher, his hands support his family. There is a definite dignity in honest labor and tireless toil.
During the period of the great depression I was a small boy. Fortunate were those men who had work. Jobs were few, hours long, pay scant. On our street was a father who, though old in years, supported with the labor of his hands his rather large family of girls. His firm was known as the Spring Canyon Coal Company. It consisted of one old truck, a pile of coal, one shovel, one man, and his own two hands. From early morning to late evening he struggled to survive. Yet during the monthly fast and testimony meeting, I specifically remember him expressing his thanks to the Lord for his family, for his work, and for his testimony. The fingers of those rough, red, chapped hands turned white as they gripped the back of the bench on which I sat as Brother James Farrell bore witness of a boy, even Joseph Smith, who, in a grove of trees near Palmyra, New York, knelt in prayer and beheld the heavenly vision of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. The memory of those hands of a father serve to remind me of his abiding faith, his honest conviction, and his testimony of truth. Honored are the hands of a father.
On Friday morning in this historic tabernacle, and in the homes of Church members viewing or listening to the conference session, hands were raised to sustain a prophet, a seer, and a revelator-even the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Our upraised hands were an outward expression of our inward feelings. As we raised our hands, we pledged our hearts. Could I for a moment mention the hands of that prophet, even President Harold B. Lee? I do so humbly and with his permission.
Some years ago, President Lee, directed by inspiration and revelation, called Dewitt J. Paul to serve as patriarch in one of the eastern stakes of the Church. The call humbled beyond words both Brother and Sister Paul. They wondered. They worried. They prayed for assurance and heavenly confirmation. Such did not come suddenly.
The vote of the people demonstrated their supporting approval. Then came the time for ordination. In a basement room situated two floors beneath the meeting hall in which the conference was held, Dewitt Paul nervously sat on a chair and, with a silent prayer in his heart, awaited his ordination. President Harold B. Lee then placed his hands upon the head of the newly called patriarch and began to speak. Peace replaced turmoil. Faith overcame doubt. Seated next to Sister Paul was a lifelong friend to whom Sister Paul had confided her concern. During the pronouncement of the blessing and ordination, she opened her eyes. As she did so she saw a ray of light shining upon President Lee as he placed his hands upon the head of Brother Paul. At the conclusion of the blessing, she hastened to tell Brother Lee of this confirmation of a call. She recounted how she saw the sunshine form the ray of light and how it brought a bright glow to the hands of President Lee. "Indeed, this is to you a confirmation of a sacred call," said President Lee, "for as you look about this basement room, there is no window through which the sun might beam its rays." Precious are the hands of a prophet.
Finally, may we speak of yet another hand-even the hand of the Lord. This was the hand which guided Moses, which strengthened Joshua-the hand promised to Jacob when the Lord declared: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God; I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
This was the determined hand which drove from the temple the money changers. This was the loving hand that blessed little children. This was the strong hand that opened deaf ears and restored vision to sightless eyes. By this hand was the leper cleansed, the lame man healed-even the dead Lazarus raised to life. With the finger of this hand there was written in the sand that message which the winds did erase but which honest hearts did retain. The hand of the carpenter. The hand of the teacher. The hand of the Christ. One called Pontius Pilate washed his hands of this man called King of the Jews. Oh foolish, spineless Pilate! Did you really believe that water could cleanse such guilt?
-Hymns, no. 80
Pitied is the hand that sins. Envied is the hand that paints. Honored is the hand that builds. Appreciated is the hand that helps. Respected is the hand that serves. Adored is the hand that saves-even the hand of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Redeemer of all mankind. With that hand he knocks upon the door of our understanding.
"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him. "
Shall we listen for his voice? Shall we open the doorway of our lives to his exalted presence? Each must answer for himself.
In this journey called mortality, clouds of gloom may appear on the horizon of our personal destiny. The way ahead may be uncertain, foreboding. In desperation we may be prompted to ask, as did another:
Of this solemn truth I testify. I declare that our Lord and Savior does live and that he even today directs his church with his all powerful hand, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
M. Louise Haskins, "The Gate of the Year."
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
While we realize that we shall have close association with Elder Bruce R. McConkie in our future work with the missions of the Church and shall partake of his wisdom and spirituality, we also know that we shall miss him more than any of us care to admit. We assure him of our love, our loyalty, and our support.
We also welcome Elder Rex D. Pinegar to our council and feel certain that his ability will add strength to us as we go forward.
I shall speak about genealogy.
William Lee came from the old sod in 1745. He must have had an unexplained urge, because he would not know really why he came. He might think it was to better his condition.
He fought in the American Revolution and was wounded. Many of us have ancestors who are reported to have fought in the Revolution, but few of them were wounded. This man was left for dead in the battle of Guilford County Courthouse in the Carolinas in March 1781. Thanks to good nursing he recovered and, as in all good endings, married his nurse. Four sons came to him, one of whom was Samuel, who was the youngest.
Samuel's sons, Francis, Alfred, and Eli, and their families joined the Church in 1832, about the time that my great-grandfather joined. They suffered through all the vicissitudes and the troubles and persecutions and mobbings of Jackson County, Far West, and Nauvoo, and finally came west. At Winter Quarters their father joined them. He had not joined the Church until this time but joined shortly afterward. Francis married a young woman by the name of Jane Vail Johnson. I shall speak of her later.
They all came to Utah and settled in Tooele County. They were just getting settled and making things go when they were called by President Brigham Young to St. George, and they went, like all good Latter-day Saints did in those days. But they had not been in St. George very long when they were called to settle in Meadow Valley. That is a place you folks probably have not heard about. It is now known as Panaca, in what they thought was southwestern Utah, but which actually later came to be Nevada. These people, obeying the call, again without question, were the first family to move to Meadow Valley, and they made a dugout house. Sister Young said that you may not know what a dugout house is. I replied that most of the folks would know: One digs a cubical hole in a hillside and covers it with a roof of wooden poles topped with clay.
Troubles of the few settlers with the Indians caused the authorities in St. George to give them permission to abandon the project, but Sister Jane Johnson Lee refused to leave. She said she was there to stay, and stay they did. Later two Indians came into her dugout home, and one of them, seeing a rifle in one corner of the room, demanded it. Sister Lee refused to give it to him. He started for the gun, but she struck him so hard with a piece of stove wood, it knocked him down. He staggered to his feet and drew his bow, aiming the arrow at her. She let him have another piece of wood, which smashed the bow and arrow. Both Indians departed.
Two sons of this brave couple married sisters. Samuel Marion Lee married Margaret McMurrin, and Francis Lee, Jr., married Mary McMurrin. The McMurrins were converts from Scotland who had crossed the plains with the handcart companies. Brother McMurrin, a cooper, which is a man who makes barrels and bends wood, repaired many a handcart wheel en route, which helped get the carts to the valley but delayed him and his family. They also settled in Tooele. Each of the Lee brothers took his bride to Meadow Valley.
Mary McMurrin Lee took the child and let him nurse along with her own child, but after a time the strain was too great, so they took the baby to Salt Lake City to Grandmother McMurrin.
"I'll give him one last nursing," she said, and then laying him in his crib, she went back to Meadow Valley.
Under his grandmother's care the baby Samuel grew into a stalwart boy, and when sixteen went to Clifton, Idaho, in Cache Valley, where he worked on a farm and there later met Louisa Bingham.
The Bingham family, stalwart in the faith, were pioneers. They endured the hardships of the plains and the difficulties of conquering the new land. They were among the early settlers of Clifton.
And so, in good time, and in his turn, there came into the family circle on a windy day in late March 1899 a son. They named him Harold Bingham Lee.
It is fitting this day that we speak briefly of this heritage. The Lord prepared the lineage through which President Lee came that he might inherit their bravery, their loyalty, their integrity, and their devotion to the truth.
Twenty-five hundred and seventy-two years ago, give or take a year, a prophet accepted of the Lord began to write his history: "I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents. " And then he went on to say, "I make a record of my proceedings in my days."
And so the first prophet of our times might have said the same words: "I, Joseph Smith, having been born of goodly parents make my record."
And now, so it is today. Beginning his work as the prophet of the Lord, this modern seer and revelator may thus also begin his history: "I, Harold Bingham Lee, having been born of goodly parents, begin my work." Prophets are born of goodly parents. Before the earth was formed the heavenly hosts gave shouts of joy, both because they could come to the earth and that their leaders were chosen and recognized.
Those of us who are parents have children who may become prophets or sons of prophets. Let us raise them in truth and in virtue.
Said the Lord: "Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born." And the Lord designated the others who have been chosen. I do not presume; rather, I am sure, President Lee, thou wast chosen before thou wast born.
I pray that the whisperings of the Spirit, the visions of eternity, the mighty words of Christ our Lord will come to and be with you, even as they were with Nephi and with Joseph Smith. And I pray too that the disloyal and the disobedient will lose their power to hurt or make afraid.
I know that President Lee is a prophet and a seer and a revelator. I have seen with my own eyes the mantle fall upon him and have had a witness borne into my soul that the Lord has chosen him and sustains him.
God our Father, through his Son, Jesus Christ, directs the work of this the true and living church established by the Lord Jesus Christ on the earth. I know it, and bear witness of it, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
What I have prepared to say today, my brethren and sisters, is directed primarily to the home teachers of the Church and those directing their work.
Much has been given during these conference sessions about the family and the home and the importance of them by those who have spoken. It has been indicated, "The very essence of divine government is fatherhood and the recognition of the family relationship. The Church itself exists to exalt the family."
President Joseph F. Smith told us, "The very foundation of the kingdom of God, of righteousness, of progress, of development, of eternal life, and eternal increase in the kingdom of God is laid in the divinely ordained home."
President Harold B. Lee said recently, "The most important of the Lord's work will be that which we do within our own homes."
We are told that each family in the Church is really a kingdom or government within itself. The father, by virtue of the priesthood of God that has been bestowed upon him, is the head of that government. This is what constitutes patriarchal office in the family. Originally it was the only government on the earth and was passed down from Adam to his descendants. Eventually, as society became more complex, the manner of governing the people of the earth had to change, but as far as the Church is concerned, the same order exists within the families as God set it up originally with Father Adam. And this same order will extend into the eternities.
The importance of the family was emphasized to the Prophet Joseph Smith even before the Church was organized. The Lord revealed to him a plan by which the priesthood was to watch over the Church. The Saints were instructed "to visit the house of each member, and exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties." He told the teachers to "watch over the church always, and be with and strengthen them;
"And see that there is no iniquity in the church, neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking;
"And see that the church meet together often, and also see that all the members do their duty."
From that time forward, to a degree, all homes in the Church have been visited monthly. This was known as ward teaching.
In September 1963 home teaching was introduced to the Church. This differs from ward teaching in that greater emphasis is placed on watching over the family, rather than just making a monthly visit. Instructions have been given that the duty of the home teacher is to keep in touch with the families, to watch over them, to contact them in whatever manner necessary, in order to watch over them. We are told that home teaching is not just the one visit a month, but that home teaching is never done. We are to have concern for these families every day as long as they are assigned to us. The one visit a month to a family is important, but it is only one means of contact as we watch over our families.
On the occasion of the official introduction of the home teaching program, President Marion G. Romney suggested some of the challenges and opportunities of home teaching, in these words: "Through the program of priesthood correlation, we bearers of the priesthood must increase our efforts to encourage, teach, and inspire the Saints to become 'partakers of the divine nature,' through obedience to the sanctifying principles of the gospel.
"We are performing far below our potential in this matter. Now, priesthood correlation, as we are using the term here, contemplates all that is now being done in ward teaching and much more. It unites under one undertaking many activities. It requires that attention be given to every member of every family, particularly to those who need special encouragement to live the gospel. It means much more than a perfunctory visit once a month. It includes:
"1. Periodic visits to every family by two priesthood bearers:
"2. Laboring with Melchizedek Priesthood bearers to build spiritual and temporal 'strength';
"3. Laboring with inactive and overage members of the Aaronic Priesthood under 21;
"4. Activating and bringing into full church participation senior members of the Aaronic Priesthood and their families:
"5. Fellowshipping and bringing into full activity recent converts, new arrivals, and all inactive church members;
"6. Encouraging all parents and other family heads to maintain genuine Latter-day Saint homes in which are practiced and taught the sanctifying principles of the gospel.
"It will be their responsibility," President Romney continues, "to make sure that infants are blessed; that children are baptized at eight years of age; and that boys are worthy and qualified to be ordained to the priesthood at 12 years of age and that they are so ordained; that they move through the grades of the priesthood in proper order; that candidates for marriage are properly taught the importance and sanctity of temple marriage and the church standards which will qualify them for it, to the end that they will be married in the temple.
"It will be the responsibility of the two visiting brethren to know the available church activities for each family member and encourage him to avail himself of them-such activities, for example, as Sacrament meetings, stake conferences, and other activities; activities provided by priesthood quorums, auxiliary organizations, genealogical and temple work, and so forth."
This is really watching over the Church. After nine years of home teaching, however, I am afraid we are really still doing mostly ward teaching. We are still prodding the priesthood home teachers to "hurry and get your home teaching done-the month is nearly over." Even now the home teacher is heard to say, "If I really had a message to take to my families, I could do my teaching."
These things indicate we really don't have the vision of "watching over the Church." We might have a great record of percentage of homes visited each month, but the real test is: Are we affecting the lives of the individual members of the family for good through our contacts? Are we respecting the sacred nature of the family unit by working with and through the father? Do we sit down with the father as often as needed? Do we listen to him? Do we encourage and praise and otherwise uplift him?
Our calling and opportunity as home teachers is to watch over and strengthen fathers of families; the Lord expects fathers and mothers first to teach the gospel to their families in regular family home evenings and daily as teaching opportunities arise. Home teachers may be asked to assist on special occasions.
We have been counseled that the family, presided over by the priesthood holder, is the basic church unit. We know, as home teachers, that the order of the priesthood requires us to work with a family through the presiding authority in the family, the father. The father should be recognized in his position. The Lord holds him responsible for the righteous functions of his family in relation to other church units and for the conducting of his family into eternal life. The home teacher working with and through the father strengthens his role and responsibility.
Our thought as home teachers should always be: How can I help the fathers under my care magnify their priesthood by fully accepting their responsibilities as patriarchs of their families?
We might put much effort into working with individuals in a family and eventually reach a child, but our real challenge is to work with the father in strengthening him that he might lead the entire family to celestial glory.
President Joseph F. Smith said, regarding the right of the father: "There is no higher authority in matters relating to the family organization, and especially when that organization is presided over by one holding the higher Priesthood, than that of the father. The patriarchal order is of divine origin and will continue throughout time and eternity. There is then a particular reason why men, women, and children should understand this order and this authority in the household of the people of God, and seek to make it what God intended it to be, a qualification and preparation for the highest exaltation of His children. In the home the presiding authority is always vested in the father, and in all home affairs and family matters there is no other authority paramount."
There is great need for a fresh new look at ourselves as home teachers. How can we more nearly accomplish that which was intended by the Lord in the revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith?
I think President Lee sounded the note to the Regional Representatives of the Twelve last April when he said:
"Maybe the home teacher should be charged more clearly to describe his mission to watch over and to strengthen to see that members do their duty. They think themselves as teachers of the Gospel message only. Maybe we ought to be calling them home guardians or sentinels and to report their stewardship to the fathers of the ward. We must do something to change the emphasis from teaching to guardians, 'watching over the church kind of concept.' Until we get that into our minds, we are not going to do the kind of home teaching that is going to get results."
We need, at once, to catch the spirit of what President Lee has said and become priesthood guardians, priesthood watchmen, rather than teachers of the gospel only. We need to make sure home teachers are not guilty, after having made the one visit a month to each family, of relaxing, feeling good about it, and declaring our home teaching done for the month. Remember, home teaching is never done.
Brother Rex Reeve, one of the Regional Representatives of the Twelve, gave us some wonderful direction when he said: "Priesthood home teachers must think in terms of needs of the family, not just taking a message. When the priesthood home teacher can see souls-not just another home to visit-and when he can feel the needs of individuals and, in his heart, when he can love them and has a yearning to help, he can give courage to struggling souls as they try to climb homeward in these perilous times.
"Priesthood home teaching is not just another program of the Church, something to get done so you can send the report in. It is a principle of action the vehicle by which all of the programs of the Church are taken to the family and the individual, and, in addition, it has the power to bless and guide and strengthen souls."
When stake presidents, bishops, and priesthood leaders generally get the real concept and feeling of home teaching and let it be the vehicle by which all Church programs are taken to the family and the individuals, when families and individuals come to properly recognize and work with the home teachers, we will be able to give a much better account of ourselves in watching over the Church.
The First Presidency many years ago stated, "The home the basis of a righteous life and no other instrumentality can take its place or fulfill its essential functions."
May we better fulfill our assignment as home teachers by becoming guardians and watchmen over the families of the Church and thus strengthen them, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
For some time I have thought whimsically, as this occasion approached, of a counselor in a stake presidency some years ago who began his remarks by recalling a day after World War II when he had been surrounded by an unfriendly mob in a foreign place. He said, as he escaped with his life, and that barely, that he had been ill with fright. He said, "My voice quavered, my heart palpitated, my mouth was dry; I was really frightened. Knowing that you love me," he said, "I can't quite imagine why I feel that same way as I speak to you."
I have always felt it to be a great honor to be permitted to express the convictions of my heart here, and I feel so today.
Yesterday President Romney referred to the 27th chapter of 3 Nephi in recalling the Lord's admonition to name his church in his name. Subsequently in that same marvelous chapter, Christ defined his gospel in some beautiful and to me eternally significant words: "Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you-that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me."
It is my earnest conviction that we came here for the same reason. Christ expresses his understanding of the will of his Father and his own commission in the words which follow:
"And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil-
"And for this cause have I been lifted up. "
And then the Master taught what we know to be the first principles and ordinances of the gospel, concluding as he had begun: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel." Then he added: "Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am."
Christ's commission was clear, and it seems to me that through him our commission becomes clear, that we are so to live that through him and his love we may be lifted up by the Father to enjoy the consequences of our convictions and our decisions.
We are here to love God and to keep his commandments, to live with an integrity that will merit our own self-respect and the respect of our loved ones and make us worthy for the companionship of the Spirit. We are here to love and serve our fellowmen, to reflect in our own lives daily our true convictions as to the priceless value of the individual child of God, to live with joy in a way worthy of the sons of God, to become the manner of men that he is.
He taught us very clearly the worth of souls and that they are very great in the sight of God. The lost sheep should have an anxious shepherd seeking him. The lost coin must be searched for. The prodigal who comes to himself and turns homeward will find his Father running to meet him. Thus taught the Lord.
Perhaps we don't all of us understand and apply this principle effectively, but there are those who do.
Recently a stake president told of his visit, with others, to a Junior Sunday School class. When the visitors entered they were made welcome, and the teacher, seeking to impress the significance of the experience for the youngsters, said to a little child on the front row, "How many important people are here today?" The child rose and began counting out loud, reaching a total of seventeen, including every person in the room. There were seventeen very important persons there that day, children and visitors!
That is how Christ feels, and so should we.
We are all aware that many valuable souls are in jeopardy these days. Many sheep are wandering, many coins are being dropped, many young prodigals have left home and are wasting their inheritance. As we have been reminded this morning, in substantially every community across the earth there are those who are cynically trading in filth, mining gold from dirt. They press pornography and drugs and destructive behavior. They seek to beguile unstable souls, as the scriptures teach.
"For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption. "
Some other adults are not wise or sensitive to the needs of the young, or are guilty of cowardice masquerading as enlightenment and liberalism, or are indifferent.
Unfortunately, too many young people surrender to the enticements and arguments, often, perhaps, because they never get a chance to see or experience the happier, purposeful, more excellent way. Some have no experience with a loving home, or concerned, loving parents, or a unified, happy family. Not knowing, or choosing immaturely against knowledge, they make bad decisions and commit themselves to courses that are destructive.
The marvel to me is how many choice young people see through the mists and choose a wiser way. Some of them do this even though they have not had the benefit of a good home and family and parents who care and try. Somehow they are wise enough to take a stand against the crowd or the current, even when the source of the pressure seems respectable and when those who should care seem not to care.
There are so many great young people. One who comes to mind was a well-dressed, good-looking young man, sharp, well-spoken, and contemporary in every constructive way, but he was obviously deeply distressed as he rose to offer a greeting in behalf of the university student body of which he was president. His audience was made up of regents and trustees of institutions of higher education meeting in conference at his school. The group had listened to a series of speeches from educators, noting with approval the abandonment on college and university campuses of the doctrine of in loco parentis, a term that means, as you may know, "standing in the place of a parent." The schools, the speakers said, no longer accept the responsibility of standing in the place of a parent to the students who attend them. Knowledge, intellect, reason-these are the goods with which these institutions deal; the private life of the individual is not their proper concern.
The young student president said what many of us were thinking:
"I've listened to your announcement of the abandonment of the principle of in loco parentis," he said, "and feel there is something you should know. If in fact the school is no longer interested in or willing to fill that role-if it doesn't care about us as persons, as good parents would care-then that leaves a great many of us with no parents at all anyplace."
No further explanation was made, and none was needed.
As pressures in our communities have intensified for the young, so life on many college campuses has undergone a great transformation in the last decade, not so much in the classroom or curriculum as in the nature of student life out of class. While a few activists have had the chief attention, every student in the affected schools has been influenced by the breakdown of the rules that once governed the lives of undergraduates.
Only a few years ago most colleges made a vigorous effort to enforce regulations governing dormitory standards and hours, student dress, sexual behavior, drinking, and chaperonage. Now in many institutions all of this has changed. Revolutionary and rebellious behavior seems to have toned down, but many rules formerly enforced have all but disappeared.
What is likely to happen to inexperienced young persons dropped into such a situation in the school or community?
There is a story that may offer significant insight. Outside Chattanooga, Tennessee, is a place known as Missionary Ridge. During the Civil War a numerically superior Southern force was dug in on the Ridge, protecting it against Northern attack. The defenders were well fortified and strongly entrenched, holding strategic positions that would seem to make them invulnerable. Yet the hill was lost. Why? The soldiers on Missionary Ridge were so isolated from each other that they had lost touch with each other. They could not hear their leaders through the din. Plainly visible to them were the large numbers of the enemy coming up the hill to attack them. Feeling alone and frightened, a few individual defenders panicked and surrendered and were soon joined by large numbers of their fellows. The battle was lost. They were not cowards; they thought they were alone.
How very parallel are some of the scenes of conflict we see going on around us! God's choice young sons and daughters are being subjected to the new social arrangements and pressures currently in vogue. Many are cut off from any supportive roots. They feel alone, abandoned, unloved. Some panic and surrender to the advancing enemy. They sin, and then let their sins become habits. What if they have no place to turn to for refuge, for strength, encouragement, instruction? What if they have no parents to whom they feel they can go for reassurance, forgiveness, unconditional love?
O! the implications are so clear for those of us who have been granted stewardship among the children of God-for parents, teachers, leaders, neighbors, concerned adults, advisers, home teachers!
Of late I have found myself thanking God more fervently than ever before for the gospel and the Church. I thank him for people and for programs that reach out to support parents and to bless young men and women like my choice young friend who felt that he had no parents anyplace.
No young person who is truly involved in the warmth of the kingdom need ever feel that he has no place to go and no one who is genuinely concerned about him. No one of them should ever fall for the false proposition that a human being can have his mind unbraided from his heart, sinews, and spirit-the rest of him conveniently stored away while the mind is disciplined and filled like a silo with grains of knowledge-and then the whole braided together again, with the expectation that the individual will now function in the moral, ethical, spiritually strong way we would like in our teacher or doctor or carpenter or lawyer or banker or son-in-law.
None should be surrendered ever, unsupported, to circumstances that will certainly make much more difficult for them the enjoyment of those blessings that make life worthwhile-and I speak of good conscience, wholesome marriage and family and other human relationships, and the confidence we are entitled to have in the presence of God. "Character is higher than intellect," wrote Emerson. "Men must be fit to live as well as to think."
Of course, every young person must make his own decisions and give his own answer. He must try to see the long view, and it is our responsibility to help him see the moral hazards in the course that starts out to be fun and turns out to be artfully camouflaged trouble. "The way in is easy, the way out is hard," someone has said. The world is full of booby traps and pitfalls, with signs pointing to them that read-
"This way to the fun house."
To meet the tests of the times, the young person must think, put down roots, establish wise loyalties, learn and actively appreciate his heritage, and know that he is ultimately responsible for his decisions.
My spirit today is one of gratitude but not one of self-congratulation. How well are we doing with what we have, with what we know? I am only hours away from a sobering interview with another beautiful young person who has apparently experienced failure of relationship at every level-with family, friends, leaders, teachers, even with God, she felt. She seemed so alone in the presence of great pressures that she surrendered to the enemy for a time. Now she has some help. She has learned that Christ the Lord has the answer; she will be liberated because she is looking to him who is strengthening her in this and all things.
How tragic it would be if such a beautiful spirit were lost because one of us, one of God's stewards, fails in an assignment or relationship.
Recently I recalled for a wonderful group of great young Latter-day Saints the thrilling story of Gideon of old, humble in the face of a seemingly insuperable challenge but called of God, who, through his resourcefulness and the strength of the Almighty, won a battle. His rallying cry is remembered: "The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon."
One other line from that marvelous story is so important that I call it to your attention: "they stood every man in his own place round about the camp. " The battle was won.
Asa, king of Judah, commissioned of God to the conflict, facing an enemy army of more than a million soldiers, gave us the key. He said, " we rest on thee, and in thy name we go. "
I thank God for the multitude of marvelous young people I know. I pray for them and invoke God's Spirit to be with them, and as plainly as I know how, and as earnestly, invoke God's Spirit to be upon us, the stewards. Let me repeat for the second time today that beautiful line from the hymn Brother Petersen used this morning:
-Hymns, no. 66
God bless us, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
If I might, I would like to say a few words to the youth of Zion, following the lead of Brother Hanks. I love them and they know it.
The story of Joseph, the son of Jacob who was called Israel, is a vivid representation of the great truth that "all things work together for good to who" love God. Joseph always seemed to do the right thing; but still, more importantly, he did it for the right reason. And how very, very significant that is! Joseph was sold by his own brothers as a slave and was purchased by Potiphar, a captain of the guard of Pharaoh. But even as an indentured servant, Joseph turned every experience and all circumstances, no matter how trying, into something good.
This ability to turn everything into something good appears to be a godly characteristic. Our Heavenly Father always seems able to do this. Everything, no matter how dire, becomes a victory to the Lord. Joseph, although a slave and wholly undeserving of this fate, nevertheless remained faithful to the Lord and continued to live the commandments and made something very good of his degrading circumstances. People like this cannot be defeated, because they will not give up. They have the correct, positive attitude, and Dale Carnegie's expression seems to apply: If you feel you have a lemon, you can either complain about how sour it is, or you can make a lemonade. It is all up to you.
"Failure ceases to exist in the face of persistence." So, the Lord prospered Joseph, and his master saw that the Lord was with him and made Joseph overseer over all his house; and all that he had, he put in Joseph's hands. So implicit was his trust in this remarkable young man that Potiphar did not bother to keep any accounting of his own possessions.
Naturally, such a remarkable person would be enticing to the opposite sex, and so it was with Joseph. Potiphar's wife, who, to say the most for her, was of very doubtful character, attempted to seduce Joseph; but Joseph was untouchable because of his trust and reliance on the Lord. He tried to reason with her, saying:
" my master hath committed all that he hath to my hand;
"There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife "
Then, it would seem that he would have followed this declaration with a profession of loyalty to his master because of his appreciation of the trust that Potiphar had placed in him. But he did not; instead, his statement of why he could not submit to her demands revealed the real strength of this choice young man. He said: " how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" With this statement Joseph showed that he was determined to do the right thing, but do it for the right reason. That reason: because he loved the Lord.
Oh, yes, it is good to be loyal to your employer, or your friends, or your family. Loyalty is akin to honesty; and if you are not honest, you are really not much good. You are no good to yourself because you lie to yourself. This is called rationalization, but it is really just lying. You are no good to your friends because they cannot trust you. You are no good to the Lord because he cannot use you-unless, of course, it would be as a bad example. If you make a mistake, all is not lost. You can always be used as a bad example.
Joseph vividly demonstrated why he was favored of the Lord, or, as the scriptures said, why "the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man. " His reliance was upon the Lord. His trust was in the Lord, and his allegiance ran to the Lord.
I believe this is the greatest lesson that can be learned by the youth of Zion-to do the right thing because you love the Lord. It is so vitally important that, I feel, if you do anything in righteousness for any other reason than you love the Lord, you are wrong-at least you are on very shaky ground. And, somewhere your reasons for acting in righteousness will not be strong enough to see you through. You will give way to expediency, or peer group pressure, or honor, or fame, or applause, or the thrill of the moment, or some other worldly reason. Unless your motives are built upon the firm foundation of love of the Lord, you will not be able to stand.
It seems that, at this day and time, everything is in a state of change. There appears to be nothing in this life that is not subject to erosion, or decay, or just change for the sake of change-like the new automobile models each year. There is only one place where we can go and find consistency, and that is where Joseph went: to the Lord, for "he is the same, yesterday, today, and forever." And the most important fact is that there is no place you can go where he is not. In the words of the psalmist,
"Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
"If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
"If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
"Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
"If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.
"Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee."
Whether walking on the moon, or probing the immensity and vastness of space, or in the depths of the sea, or in darkest Africa, or in Salt Lake City, he is there.
Oh, if we could only learn this lesson and look to his living prophet on earth! In this day and time, following the living prophet is the only way that we can follow the Lord God and do his will. You can't do it by quoting the dead prophets or ignoring or throwing rocks at the living prophets. Following the prophet today, President Harold B. Lee, is the only real safety we can know in this time of decay.
Let us continue with Joseph's story, and perhaps we can learn how to handle difficult situations by following Joseph's example. The scripture records that Joseph stoutly resisted the advances of Potiphar's wife, but one day as he went into the house "to do his business," it so happened that "there was none of the men of the house there within."
Now, this is always a dangerous situation and should be avoided if at all possible. Potiphar's wife became particularly insistent, even to taking hold of his coat and attempting to draw him to her. But Joseph did the very best thing he could do under the circumstances. The scripture records, " he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out." Or, in today's language-he ran.
Maybe that doesn't sound like a very sophisticated thing to do, but sometimes running is the only thing to do. This was such a time. I am sure that Joseph did not know he was going to be alone with her, or he would not have gone into the house. I have great faith in Joseph.
It is more important that we beware of compromising situations than anything else we can do. We must avoid them. If we don't, we will run the great risk of being overcome.
In my experience, I have found that it is very, very dangerous to fly just high enough to miss the treetops. I spent twenty-six years flying the navy's airplanes. It was very exciting to see how close I could fly to the trees. This is called "flat hatting" in the navy, and it is extremely dangerous. When you are flying just high enough to miss the trees and your engine coughs once, you are in the trees.
Now let's pretend that the navy had a commandment-"Thou shalt not fly thy airplane in the trees." As a matter of fact, they did have such a commandment. In order to really be free of the commandment, it becomes necessary for me to add a commandment of my own to the navy's commandment, such as, "Thou shalt not fly thy airplane closer than 5,000 feet to the trees." When you do this, you make the navy's commandment of not flying in the trees easy to live, and the safety factor is tremendously increased.
Admittedly, the latter commandment is your own addition, and care should be exercised that you do not get it mixed up with the law and expound it as the law. Rather, it is your own commandment, invented by you for your own self-preservation; and, if you are going to preach it, it should be expounded as such.
We should studiously avoid placing ourselves in positions where we could be overcome by temptation. Paul's admonition that we avoid even the appearance of evil certainly represents an addition to the Lord's commandment, which is, to "forsake all evil" and "entangle not yourselves in sin." But if we follow Paul's admonition, we will find the Lord's commandment much easier to live.
It is so important that young people who are unmarried erect barriers against temptation to help them avoid the compromising situations. May I suggest a few barriers.
1. Never go into a house alone with one of the opposite sex.
2. Never, never enter a bedroom alone with one of the opposite sex.
3. Do not neck or pet. Now, admittedly there is no place in the scriptures where the Lord has said, "Thou shalt not neck or pet." I know that, but he has said, "Thou shalt not commit adultery, or fornication, or anything like unto it."
4. Never park on a lonely road with just the two of you alone.
5. Do not read pornographic literature.
6. Do not attend R- or X-rated movies, and avoid drive-ins.
7. Do not spend time in drinking or gambling establishments.
Admittedly, these are just a few personal commandments that you might adopt. You should make up your own special and specific list of commandments, such as, "I'll never accept another date with Herman." Such commandments would depend on your own past experience and your own particular weaknesses.
Of course, there is no guarantee that your personal barriers will always stand; some may fail; you may slip and break your own commandment. If and when you do, remember Joseph and follow his example. You can always run and "get yourself out." Get out before the Lord's commandment is broken.
Yes, Joseph ran, and because he did, he was temporarily placed in prison, where he was shut out from society, but if he had not run, he would have been an eternal prisoner, being shut out from God perhaps forever, because he would not have been in condition to receive the necessary communications that made him the great prophet that he was.
The Lord has such great and tremendous blessing in store for the youth of Zion today if they will but walk uprightly before him and keep his commandments and thus qualify for his blessings. As it is written, "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." Such blessings come only through obedience to his commandments.
"There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated-
"And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated."
Again, he has said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
I pray that we may walk in righteousness because we love the Lord, for surely this is the right reason. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Rex D. Pinegar
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I am reminded as I approach you today of a scripture that was written to me in a letter by one of the missionaries in the North Carolina-Virginia Mission. It expresses the feelings in my heart and is taken from Alma, the 29th chapter, verses 9 and 10, where we find:
"I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy.
"And behold, when I see many of my brethren truly penitent, and coming to the Lord their God, then is my soul filled with joy; then do I remember what the Lord has done for me, yea, even that he hath heard my prayer; yea, then do I remember his merciful arm which he extended towards me."
That we may all remember that arm is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
I wanted you to feel the spirit of these splendid new men, whom the Lord has brought to his service by the gift of prophecy. To that I bear humble witness. My brethren, I am sure, understand that, and they know the way by which these brethren have been called.
We now come to the closing moments of a momentous conference, history making and in many ways a conference that has great significance because of the time in which we live. Perhaps never have we turned a page of the history of the Church with greater challenge, with greater problems, or with greater promise for the future.
I have listened with great satisfaction to the testimonies of my brethren. I believe you have felt the unity in your First Presidency, these noble men, President Tanner and President Romney, and the feeling of oneness that has been expressed by the Twelve and all of these brethren of the General Authorities. There is a bond that is to be found among those called to these positions that is stronger than the ties of blood relationship, so deep, so wonderful, so strengthening, except for which we probably couldn't walk the path that we are asked to walk at these times.
In the midst of similar circumstances the Prophet Joseph Smith was in the Liberty jail trying to think of something he could do to strengthen his people. He wrote some significant words. He said:
"Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven-
"These should then be attended to with great earnestness.
"You know, brethren," he wrote, "that a very large ship is benefited very much by a very small helm in the time of a storm, by being kept workways with the wind and the waves.
"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."
I was at Manti, Utah, some years ago. As we came out of the Saturday night leadership meeting, there was a heavy snowstorm. As we drove to the home of the stake president, he stopped his car and turned back to the temple hill. There the lighted temple was standing majestically. We sat there in silence for a few moments, inspired by the sight of that beautiful, sacred place. He said, "You know, Brother Lee, that temple is never more beautiful than in times of a dense fog or in times of a heavy, severe storm."
Just so, never is the gospel of Jesus Christ more beautiful than in times of intense need, or in times of a severe storm within us as individuals, or in times of confusion and turmoil.
I come now to the closing moments of this session when I have time for some sobered reflections. Somehow I have had the feeling that during the expressions here, whenever my name has been mentioned, they were talking of somebody other than myself. And I really think that is so, because one cannot go through the experience that I have gone through these last three days and be the same as before. I am different than I was before Friday morning.
I cannot go back to where I was because of the love and faith and confidence that you, the people of the Lord, have reposed in me. So you have been talking of somebody else. You have been talking of somebody that you want me to become, which I hopefully pray God I may, with his help, become.
We have announced time and again the great coverage of this conference. Millions have been listening. You know we are being judged by what emanates from this tabernacle. I held a meeting with some new missionaries recently. Their attention was called to something that I may have the temerity to mention to you today. The Lord said here in a great revelation, "Therefore, cease from all your light speeches, from all laughter, from all your lustful desires, from all your pride and light-mindedness, and from all your wicked doings."
I wonder sometimes if we forget that all we say in this sensitive building is going out over the air from a sacred assembly. It doesn't mean that we should be long-faced, should not show our joy, but we ought to couch our expressions of joy not with the audible expression that swells up to a great crescendo that might be mistaken by those who are listening on the outside. I think it would be well for us to remember that, with a sense of our responsibility to the most high God. We should be an example of what the Lord in this revelation has counseled us to be when we are in his service.
Some great compensations have come to me in these last few days. Never has my family, the intimate family of mine, been drawn more closely together. One by one these precious children, grandchildren of mine, and my own dear companion have drawn closer, and I have reason to believe that those beyond sight have been very near to us, their families and mine. There has been a unity and a pledge to me that they feel that this is their call. I have said to them, "My sermons will be no better than the lives of the members of my family." I am pleading with them to set an example before the Church.
And so I come to you in these closing moments; and as one who is as a patriarch to the Church holding this position, I have a right to extend a blessing to you. I am not concerned about how much you remember in words of what has been said here. I am concerned about how it has made you feel. What are you going to take back with you when you go? What are you going to give to your families? What are you going to give to your members and to your wards and stakes and missions?
If you can catch the spirit of what has gone on here during this conference and can feel that great unity now, then take to them my love and blessing. Assure them that the presidency of the Church and the General Authorities really love the members of the Church everywhere, the lowly, the mighty, the educated, the uneducated, wherever they are. Will you please assure them of our love and our concern about them and their welfare.
There has come to me in these last few days a deepening and reassuring faith. I can't leave this conference without saying to you that I have a conviction that the Master hasn't been absent from us on these occasions. This is his church. Where else would he rather be than right here at the headquarters of his church? He isn't an absentee master; he is concerned about us. He wants us to follow where he leads. I know that he is a living reality, as is our Heavenly Father. I know it. I only hope that I can qualify for the high place to which he has called me and in which you have sustained me.
I know with all my soul that these sayings are true, and as a special witness I want you to know from the bottom of my heart that there is no shadow of doubt as to the genuineness of the work of the Lord in which we are engaged, the only name under heaven by which mankind can be saved.
My love goes out to my own family, to my associates, to all within the sound of my voice, even the sinners; I would wish that we would reach out to them, and those who are inactive, and bring them into the fold before it is too late.
God be with you. I have the same feeling as perhaps the Master had when he bid goodbye to the Nephites. He said he perceived that they were weak, but if they would go to their homes and ponder what he said, he would come again and instruct them on other occasions. So likewise, you cannot absorb all that you have heard and that we have talked about, but go to your homes now and remember what you can and get the spirit of what has been done and said, and when you come again, or we come to you, we will try to help you further with your problems.
I bear you my witness to these things and leave you my blessing in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder L. Tom Perry
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Elder Loren Dunn, as I left for lunch, whispered in my ear and said, "They grade General Authorities on how little time they take in their first address." I am trying for a straight A today.
I would just like to make three pledges: First of all, to my dear wife, whom I love, sustain, and support. If she continues to support me the way she has in the last twenty-five years, I know I cannot fail any assignment.
Second, to my three lovely children, Barbara, Lee, and Gay. I will try to live worthy of the inspiration of the Lord to be a priesthood leader in the home.
And finally, to President Lee, his great counselors, the Council of the Twelve, I sustain and support you. Let me help you carry the great burden which is yours.
This is the church of Jesus Christ as it has been established in the latter days. I am grateful for that testimony, for the strength it gives me. I say this humbly, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
It is a great delight to meet here today, and to those who may be listening from far and near, we assure you that we welcome you likewise.
This is the annual conference of the Church. April 6, 1973, is a particularly significant date because it commemorates not only the anniversary of the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in this dispensation, but also the anniversary of the birth of the Savior, our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith wrote this, preceding a revelation given at that same date:
"The rise of the Church of Christ in these last days, being one thousand eight hundred and thirty years since the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the flesh, it being regularly organized and established agreeable to the laws of our country, by the will and commandments of God, in the fourth month, and on the sixth day of the month which is called April."
Traditionally since that time, the spring conferences of the Church are held on the days of each year which include April 6.
Two years later another revelation followed, which had great significance then, and today has even greater meaning as viewed in the light of the demands of the increasing membership in the Church. This is a quotation which may be something of a text for my next few remarks today:
"For Zion must increase in beauty, and in holiness; her borders must be enlarged; her stakes must be strengthened; yea, verily I say unto you, Zion must arise and put on her beautiful garments."
Zion, as used here, undoubtedly had reference to the Church. At that time there was but a small body of Church members just beginning to emerge as an organization, after having experienced harsh treatment from enemies outside the Church, who had then been directed to gather together in Jackson County, Missouri, which the Lord had designated as the "land of Zion."
As though to impress upon these early struggling members their destiny in the world, the Lord in another revelation told them this:
"Therefore, verily, thus saith the Lord, let Zion rejoice, for this is Zion-THE PURE IN HEART; therefore, let Zion rejoice, while all the wicked shall mourn."
To be worthy of such a sacred designation as Zion, the Church must think of itself as a bride adorned for her husband, as John the Revelator recorded when he saw in vision the Holy City where the righteous dwelled, adorned as a bride for the Lamb of God as her husband. Here is portrayed the relationship the Lord desires in his people in order to be acceptable to our Lord and Master even as a wife would adorn herself in beautiful garments for her husband.
The rule by which the people of God must live in order to be worthy of acceptance in the sight of God is indicated by the text to which I have made reference. This people must increase in beauty before the world; have an inward loveliness which may be observed by mankind as a reflection in holiness and in those inherent qualities of sanctity. The borders of Zion, where the righteous and pure in heart may dwell, must now begin to be enlarged. The stakes of Zion must be strengthened. All this so that Zion may arise and shine by becoming increasingly diligent in carrying out the plan of salvation throughout the world.
While the Church was in its infancy, the Lord pointed to a time when those earlier gathering places would not have room for all who would be gathered for reasons for which he declared that his church should be united. Here are his words:
"For thus shall my church be called in the last days, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." And then this command: "Arise and shine forth, that thy light may be a standard for the nations."
Here is clearly inferred that the coming forth of his church in these days was the beginning of the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy when "the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths. "
In these revelations the Lord speaks of organized units of the Church which are designated as stakes, each of which those not of our faith may think of as a diocese. These units so organized are gathered together for these fundamental purposes: first, for a defense against the enemies of the Lord's work, both the seen and the unseen.
The apostle Paul said with reference to these enemies about which we should be concerned:
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
These organizations were to be as stated in the revelation noted earlier, as a "refuge from the storm, and from wrath when it shall be poured out without mixture upon the whole earth."
In the preface to all the Lord's revelations that he gave from the beginning of this dispensation, he issued this fateful warning, which must never be absent from our minds. This prophetic warning of 1831 was given, as the Lord declared, so that "all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion."
Now 142 years later we are witnessing the fury of this time, when Satan has power over his own dominion, with such might that even the Master in his day referred to him as the "prince of this world," the "enemy of all righteousness."
Despite these dire predictions and the evidences of their fulfillment truly before us today, there is promised in this same revelation even a greater power to thwart Satan's plans to destroy the work of the Lord. Here the Lord makes this promise to the Saints of the Most High God, to the righteous in heart to whom he has referred as "the people of Zion." This is what he said:
"And also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon Idumea, or the world."
This has reference to the world in the same sense as when the Master spoke of the worldliness from which he warned his disciples, that while they would be engulfed in the world, they must keep themselves from the sins to be found therein.
I believe there has never been a time since the creation that the Lord has left the dominion of the devil to destroy his work without his power being manifest in the midst of the righteous to save the works of righteousness from being completely overthrown.
Today we are witnessing the promise of the Lord that "if your eye be single to my glory," which he declared to the prophet Moses was "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man", "your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things."
We have also been promised by the Lord: "Behold, and lo, I will take care of your flocks, and will raise up elders and send unto them. Behold, I will hasten my work in its time."
Today we are witnessing the demonstration of the Lord's hand even in the midst of his saints, the members of the Church. Never in this dispensation, and perhaps never before in any single period, has there been such a feeling of urgency among the members of this church as today. Her boundaries are being enlarged, her stakes are being strengthened. In the early years of the Church specific places to which the Saints were to be gathered together were given, and the Lord directed that these gathering places should not be changed, but then he gave one qualification: "Until the day cometh when there is found no more room for them; and then I have other places which I will appoint unto them, and they shall be called stakes, for the curtains or the strength of Zion."
At the Mexico City Area Conference last August, Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Council of the Twelve, in a thought-provoking address, made some comments pertinent to this subject, and I quote a few sentences from his address:
"Of this glorious day of restoration and gathering, another Nephite prophet said: 'The Lord has covenanted with all the house of Israel,' that 'the time comes that they shall be restored to the true church and fold of God'; and that 'they shall be gathered home to the lands of their inheritance, and shall be established in all their lands of promise.'
"Now I call your attention to the facts, set forth in these scriptures, that the gathering of Israel consists of joining the true church; of coming to a knowledge of the true God and of his saving truths; and of worshiping him in the congregations of the Saints in all nations and among all peoples. Please note that these revealed words speak of the folds of the Lord; of Israel being gathered to the lands of their inheritance; of Israel being established in all their lands of promise; and of there being congregations of the covenant people of the Lord in every nation, speaking every tongue, and among every people when the Lord comes again."
Elder McConkie then concluded with this statement, which certainly emphasizes the great need for the teaching and training of local leadership in order to build up the church within their own native countries:
"The place of gathering for the Mexican Saints is in Mexico; the place of gathering for the Guatemalan Saints is in Guatemala; the place of gathering for the Brazilian Saints is in Brazil; and so it goes throughout the length and breadth of the whole earth. Japan is for the Japanese; Korea is for the Koreans; Australia is for the Australians; every nation is the gathering place for its own people."
The most frequently asked question from inquirers is, "How do you account for the phenomenal growth of this church when so many others are on the decline?"
Among the primary and many factors which account for the continued growth of the Church, I will mention only a few, for those who would ask this question to ponder.
No longer might this church be thought of as the "Utah church," or as an "American church," but the membership of the Church is now distributed over the earth in 78 countries, teaching the gospel in 17 different languages at the present time.
This greatly expanded church population is today our most challenging problem, and while we have cause for much rejoicing in such a widespread expansion, it does pose some great challenges to the leadership of the Church to keep pace with the many problems.
Two basic principles have always guided the leaders of the Church in their planning to meet these circumstances. The first that might be called to the attention of those who would be interested is the basic principle of the plan of salvation from before the foundation of the world, for the redemption of mankind and which has been revealed to the prophets of this dispensation and has not been changed, for as the apostle Paul declared in his day, so do we declare today:
"But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
"But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
"For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."
If we were to answer those who ask us why the steady growth, we would answer that the first fundamental reason would be that we have held our course in teaching the fundamental doctrines of the Church. We declare in one of our Articles of Faith:
"We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God."
In one of the latest of the Lord's revelations in this dispensation, he gave the reason for the confusion among the many churches then in existence: because they have, as he said, "strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant; They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world. "
Therefore a new restoration was necessary, as he plainly declared:
"Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
"And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets.
"But that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;
"That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers.
" after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding."
There are those who speak of an ecumenical movement, where theoretically, it is supposed, all churches would be brought together into a universal organization. In essence it probably would contemplate that they would give up their basic principles and be united in a nebulous organization which would not necessarily be founded on the principles as have traditionally been the doctrines of the church of Jesus Christ from the beginning.
When the revelations of the Lord are clearly understood, there is set forth the only basis of a united and universal church. It could not be accomplished as set forth by a man-made formula; it could only be accomplished when the fullness of the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ are taught and practiced, as declared by the apostle Paul to the Ephesians, who said that the church is "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone."
The mission of the Church has also been defined:
"And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days.
"Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear."
Obedient to that instruction, and from the beginning of the Church, there have been missionaries sent to all parts of the world. Today we have increasing numbers of missionaries, mostly younger men, who have been schooled from their childhood to prepare themselves for a call to serve as missionaries.
From a handful of missionaries in the early days of the Church, this number has been increased to over 17,000 serving today, each at his own expense, or at the expense of his immediate family, for a period of two or more years, each with a conviction in his heart that one so called has the divinity of his calling in his mind as he may go forth into any part of the world to which he may be called.
Another reason that might be given for the increase in the Lord's work: perhaps as never before have there been so many people of the world searching for answers to the many perplexing problems.
While the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ have not changed, the methods in meeting these challenges of the needs of today's world must respond to the demands of our time. Fortunately the Lord has given, in the revelations to this church, the guidelines by which we should respond to the demands of the times. The plan of salvation has defined the way by which he would have us deal with the temporal needs of the people. The welfare plan of the Church seeks out those in distress. Where the newly found members are located, the plan of temporal salvation is, primarily, to teach the individuals how to take care of themselves. The Lord has provided a hedge against the terrifying impact upon the sanctity of the home and marriage, by strengthening the home and by providing guidelines to parents to teach their children the basic principles of honesty, virtue, integrity, thrift, and industry.
There is a concern of the Church for the individual members, from childhood to youth, and from among the youth into adulthood, to respond to the needs of members of the Church of every age.
In answer to the questions as to whether or not there may have been any dropouts or members who have fallen away, our answer has always been to recall the Master's parable of the sower, where the sower went out to sow. Some of the seeds fell on fertile ground, but among the seeds which fell on fertile ground, some produced thirtyfold, some sixtyfold, and some ninetyfold. So today, in about that same ratio, we have some who are partially active, some are more so, and some who are thoroughly active in the Church, but we are always reaching out to the ones who have strayed away, and we are constantly trying to bring them back into full activity.
But perhaps the most important reason of all for the growth of the Church is the individual testimonies of the divinity of this work, as would be multiplied in the hearts of the individual members of the Church. For the strength of the Church is not in the numbers, nor in the amount of tithes and offerings paid by faithful members, nor in the magnitude of chapels and temple buildings, but because in the hearts of faithful members of the Church is the conviction that this is indeed the church and kingdom of God on the earth. Without that conviction, as one of my eminent business associates remarked, "The welfare plan of the Church would be but a shambles"; also missionary work would not flourish; and members would not be faithful in making generous contributions to the Church to finance its many operations. The secret of the strength of this church may be found in the statement of a president of a student body at one of our state-operated universities, whose identity, of course, is confidential. This is a quotation from his personal letter addressed to me:
"With the rule of the radical ideas which are sweeping the country, there has come a breakdown of family ties which is despised in many intellectual circles. The country is seemingly plied with sex education, abortion, planned parenthood, pornography, women's liberation, communal living, premarital sex, and postmarital permissiveness. "
And then this young college student leader concludes with this heartwarming declaration, which I know came from the depths of his soul. This is what he wrote:
"President Lee, I want you to know that the Latter-day Saint students on campus who keep the commandments are 100 percent behind you. Thank God we have leaders who stand firm against the subtle battle of the adversary who is striking at the home, the most vital unit of the world. Thank you for being the kind of a person that we, as young people growing up in this mixed-up world, can understand and can follow."
By that same token, and in the language of that brilliant college student, I am convinced that the greatest of all the underlying reasons for the strength of this church is that those who keep the commandments of God are 100 percent behind the leadership of this church. Without that united support it would be readily understood that this church could not go forward to meet the challenges of the day. Our call is for the total membership of the Church to keep the commandments of God, for therein lies the safety of the world. As one keeps the commandments of God, he is not only persuaded as to the righteousness of the course that is being followed under the leadership of the Church, but also will have the Spirit of the Lord to guide him in his individual activities, for each baptized member has been given a sacred endowment when he was baptized and which has been committed to every baptized member of the Church by the authority of the priesthood: the gift of the Holy Ghost, which, as the Master declared, would teach all things, would bring all things to their remembrance, and even show them things to come.
It will be clearly understood, then, that the great responsibility that the leaders and teachers in the Church have is to persuade, to teach, to direct aright, that the commandments of Almighty God will be so lived as to prevent the individual from falling into the trap of the evil one who would persuade him not to believe in God and not to follow the leadership of the Church.
I want to bear my sacred witness that because I know of the divinity of this work, I know that it will prevail; and that though there may be enemies within and without the Church who would seek to undermine and would seek to find fault and try to undermine the influence of the Church in the world, this church will be borne off triumphantly and will stand through the test of time when all the man-made efforts and weapons forged against the Lord's word will fall by the wayside. I know that our Lord and Master Jesus Christ is the head of this church; that he has daily communion through agencies known to him, not only to the leaders of the Church in high positions, but also to individual members as they keep the commandments of God. To that I bear my sacred witness and leave my blessing upon all the faithful of the Church, and indeed in the world everywhere, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Dale Kilbourn
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
The Lord closed section 1 in the Doctrine and Covenants, with these words: "What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."
We have just heard the voice of his servant, and it is the same! President Lee has done what all prophets in all ages have done. He has testified that God, our Father, lives; that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer, the head of this church. He has testified that Joseph Smith was the prophet of the restoration. Like all the prophets before him, he has declared that the way to peace is found only in the gospel of Jesus Christ; that only by keeping God's commandments, as revealed through the living prophets, can we find eternal life.
What is a living prophet? His age? He may be young or old. He need not wear a tunic nor carry a shepherd's staff. His physical features are not important. A prophet need not have advanced educational degrees nor come from any special social class. He may be rich or poor. He needs no credentials from men.
What is it, then, that qualifies a man to be a prophet?
Foremost, God must choose him as his prophet! This is entirely different than for man to choose God. The Savior, speaking to his apostles, said, "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit. "
"We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof."
A prophet, then, is the authorized representative of the Lord. While the world may not recognize him, the important requirement is that God speaks through him. A prophet is a teacher. He receives revelations from the Lord. These may be new truths or explanations of truths already received.
It is an easy thing to believe in the dead prophets. Many people do. For some mysterious reason there is an aura of credibility about them. It is not so with the prophet who lives among us, who must meet life's everyday challenges. But it is a great thing to believe in the living prophets. Our salvation is contingent upon our belief in a living prophet and adherence to his word. He alone has the right to revelation for the whole Church. His words, above those of any other man, ought to be esteemed and considered by the Church as well as by the world. One day this truth will be understood.
Someone has said, "That person is not truly converted until he sees the power of God resting upon the leaders of this church, and until it goes down into his heart like fire."
Some may wonder at such power and authority being vested in one man. "Could he not lead us astray?" they ask. President Wilford Woodruff once said, "I say to Israel, the Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as president of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the program. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that the Lord would remove me out of my place, and so he will any other man who attempts to lead the children of men astray from the oracles of God and from their duty."
President Henry D. Moyle has said, "The older I get and the closer contact I have with the President of the Church, the more I realize that the greatest of all scripture which we have in the world today is current scripture. What the mouthpiece of God says to his children is scripture. It is his word and his will and his law made manifest through scripture, and I love it more than all other."
The Lord has given this promise to his servants: "And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
President John Taylor said, "We require a living tree-a living fountain-living intelligence, proceeding from the living priesthood in heaven, through the living priesthood on earth. And from the time that Adam first received a communication from God, to the time that John, on the Isle of Patmos, received his communication, or Joseph Smith had the heavens opened to him, it always required new revelations, adapted to the peculiar circumstances in which the churches or individuals were placed. Adam's revelation did not instruct Noah to build his ark; nor did Noah's revelation tell Lot to forsake Sodom; nor did either of these speak of the departure of the children of Israel from Egypt. These all had revelations for themselves, and so had Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Jesus, Peter, Paul, John, and Joseph. And so must we, or we shall make a shipwreck."
Orson Pratt has said, "The very moment that we set aside the living oracles we set aside the revelations of God. Why? Because the revelations of God command us plainly that we shall harken to the living oracles. Hence, if we undertake to follow the written word, and at the same time do not give heed to the living oracles of God, the written word will condemn us. "
It is the right and responsibility of the prophets to counsel the Saints.
President Wilford Woodruff said, "We, as a people, should not treat lightly this counsel, for I will tell you in the name of the Lord-and I have watched it from the time I became a member of this Church-there is no man who undertakes to run counter to the counsel of the legally authorized leader of this people that ever prospers. you will find that all persons who take a stand against this counsel will never prosper.
" We have been governed by counsel instead of commandment in many things, which has been a blessing to the saints. "
President Stephen L Richards comments on counsel: " a moment's reflection will convince you of the rather serious regard in which we hold counsel. While it is true that we characterize infraction of the law as sin, and we do not apply quite that drastic a terminology to failure to follow counsel, yet in the Church, under the priesthood, counsel always is given for the primary purpose of having the law observed, so that it does occupy a place of standing and importance, almost comparable to that law of the gospel."
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., pinpointed today's need: "What we need today is not more prophets. We have the prophets. But what we need is more people with listening ears. That is the great need of our generation.
"There are those who insist that unless the Prophet of the Lord declares, 'Thus saith the Lord,' the message may not be taken as revelation. This is a false testing standard. For while many of our modern revelations as contained in the Doctrine and Covenants do contain these words, there are many that do not."
President Marion G. Romney clarified the responsibility of those who hear the witness of a servant of God: "We who are his present witnesses are but discharging our responsibility when we bring these testimonies of the prophets and our own testimonies to your attention.
"To the extent we do bring them to your attention, the responsibility passes from us to you to determine the credibility of the witnesses and their testimonies. Let no man underestimate the importance of his decision concerning this matter."
It is a privilege to follow the President of the Church.
There will be other General Authorities and prophets and apostles who will counsel us during this conference. May we listen and hear the voice of the Lord, for-
"What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.
"For behold, and lo, the Lord is God, and the Spirit beareth record, and the record is true, and the truth abideth forever and ever."
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder L. Tom Perry
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
"Now therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways."
"Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.
"Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways."
I have read this great scripture and continue to be impressed with how clearly the Old Testament prophet describes the conditions of today. Almost daily we read of those who invest for little return. We eat food so refined that the nourishment is lacking. We witness the drink that can never satisfy the thirst for those who drink; the dressing for style, rather than warmth, comfort, and modesty; the high wages of the wage earner today which still do not satisfy or supply his needs.
A noted historian several years ago summarized the reasons for the fall of Rome as follows:
1. The breakdown of the family and the rapid increase of divorce.
2. The spiraling rise of taxes and extravagant spending.
3. The mounting craze for pleasure and the brutalization of sports.
4. The decay of religion into myriads of confused forms, leaving the people without a uniform guide.
Our unconquered appetites and consuming drive for material possessions appear to be leading us on a course so often repeated in history. Greed, lust, and desire historically have only led mankind to waste, destruction, and suffering.
James E. Talmage has written:
"Material belongings, relative wealth or poverty, physical environment-the things on which we are prone to set our hearts and anchor our aspirations, the things for which we sweat and strive, ofttimes at the sacrifice of happiness and to the forfeiture of real success-these after all are but externals, the worth of which in the reckoning to come shall be counted in terms of the use we have made of them."
Isn't this the time and isn't this the hour to follow the admonishion of the Lord to "consider your ways"?
I have spent considerable time since the last general conference examining my ways to determine what I have to do to measure up to the calling the Prophet has issued to me. Let me share one or two of these lessons that this new experience has given me.
For 21 years, before receiving this call, I was employed by some of the great department stores of the country. I have been blessed with some close associations with some of the most talented leaders this industry has produced. I find myself today making a comparison between my former business associates and those with whom I am now busily engaged. Both groups have great leaders, but how different is their motivation! I have found in these Brethren seated before you the fulfillment in their lives of the promise given to the Prophet Joseph Smith:
" let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
"The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion. "
I have watched them armed with the Holy Ghost as a constant companion, taking on enormous work loads at an age when most men would be confined to rocking chairs, and engaging in strenuous travel schedules with great enthusiasm to be anxiously engaged in building the kingdom of God. Then by observation, the realization has come to me that this great Spirit that blesses them in their activities is not a special gift to them alone, but is available to all mankind if they will but be partakers and earnestly seek it and be humbly guided by it. "The office of the Holy Ghost is to enlighten the mind, to purify and sanctify the soul, to incite to good works, and to reveal the things of God."
Isn't this spirit a constant companion you need in your life? "Consider your ways." Isn't now the time to follow the Lord's direction and receive the divine assurance that he is with you, guiding you in the paths that will make your life meaningful, rewarding, and satisfying?
Secondly, I was reared in a home by noble parents who gave their children the security of love. We as a family were tied together by those great bonds. During our married life, with the exception of an occasional visit, we have lived at least a thousand miles away from our family center. What a great enjoyment it is to be near them again!
The last high school basketball tournament gave our family a rallying point for a common activity. My brother's boy participated on one of the teams. They had lost their first game, and his personal production for that game was 12 points. This was about average for what he had been doing during the regular season. Then tragedy struck the team in the second game. Their big center, who was their high scorer, was injured and was out for the balance of the tournament. The team realized that another loss meant elimination.
My nephew was placed under the pressure of having to make up for that loss. He was moved from his regular position of forward to replace the center. He met the challenge by scoring 32 points that game. Then in the final two games he led the team to victory and finished second in total scoring in the state tournament. His scoring was twice what he had normally been producing.
Bearing his testimony the following week in meeting, he remarked that when the pressure became great and the burden difficult to bear, he would hear the encouraging cries of his family above the roar of the crowd and would be inspired to try harder.
The courage of this young man taught us all a lesson that day. One of the gifts of a loving family is the encouragement and confidence we receive to magnify ourselves. Is your family one of strength, help, and support one for another, or do you waste and depreciate one of the greatest gifts of our eternal Father with jealousy, bickering, or the lack of interest of one for another? Do you fail to communicate the love you have for each other and thus deprive yourself of some of life's choicest moments?
One of our prophets has said: "I have but one thought in my heart for the young folk of the Church and that is that they be happy. I know of no other place than home where more happiness can be found in this life. It is possible to make home a bit of heaven; indeed, I picture heaven to be a continuation of the ideal home."
"Consider your ways." Isn't this the time to bring that sweet influence of the Lord into your home?
The home we have just purchased since moving west has one unique feature. The small study provided has an adjoining large closet about one-fourth the size of the entire study. We thought when we were considering the purchase of the home that this closet was an error in design. Since occupying the home, it has become one of my favorite places. Here is where I can shut myself off from the world and communicate with my Father in heaven. "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
"Consider your ways." Couldn't your life stand some open rewarding by the Father? Isn't this the time to learn how to communicate with our Father which is in heaven?
I leave you my witness that I know that God lives. I know that his Son is directing the affairs of this church today through his chosen prophet. I sustain and support him.
"Consider your ways." If that witness has not been given to you, isn't now the time to seek it? Come and join with us, and let us continue to build the kingdom of God here and now, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
Elder Robert L. Simpson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters: I am grateful for this opportunity and with each of you express gratitude for this lovely choir. I always have a little glimpse into heaven as I listen to them sing, and I feel lifted up. This entire conference has been lifted and edified by their great singing this morning.
I feel closer to heaven and have better insight as to what heaven might be like as I feel the spirit of you wonderful leaders assembled here today. There is a feeling of unity, a feeling of strength, a feeling of wanting to do that which the Lord has asked us to do. I am grateful to be in your presence. I often think of President David O. McKay's great observation that heaven would be just an extension of the ideal home. I believe that with all my heart, and it is that feeling that I sense with us here.
Speaking of heaven and the hereafter, I would like to address my remarks to things I feel would be imperative in order that we might have the great privilege of one day living in the very presence of our Heavenly Father, which should be the objective of every Latter-day Saint.
It has been truthfully said that the Savior is even more concerned for our success here in mortality than we ourselves are, the reason being, of course, that he has greater capacity for concern and love than do we mortals. He also has a superior knowledge of the gospel plan and man's potential in God's divine, eternal scheme. As stated by one prophet, God's work and glory is achieved through our attainment of immortality and eternal life.
Someone once suggested that it would be relatively simple for Christ to do all of the religious teaching here on earth. How easy it would be for the Creator to deliver every sermon and to teach every Sunday School class by means of closed-circuit television! Each religious meeting place could be equipped with a large video screen, and the master teacher of all time could then present every gospel lesson and deliver every sermon in a way that would hold us spellbound and indeed convert even the most critical. I suppose it would also be within his power to take over all of the compassionate service for mankind, but such is contrary to the development of God's children.
Before the foundations of this earth were laid, a glorious decision was made allowing you and me to be our brother's keeper. By faith and service we would be able to achieve a degree of glory in the hereafter suited to our Christlike efforts and our Christlike attainments.
Adversity, heartache, bitter disappointment, grievous transgression, and disability are but a few of the obstacles that beset the inhabitants of this world. Few, if any, escape. None would have to linger in despair for long, however, if man could just bring himself to heed that one great teaching recorded in the 25th chapter of Matthew. You all remember it.
On this occasion the Savior was describing the day of judgment, wherein those to be judged were divided, some on the right hand and some on the left. Finding themselves in a favored position, those on the right expressed surprise and wanted to know why the reward had come to them. The Savior replied:
"For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
"Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me."
Then the righteous answered, stating that not once had they found him hungry or thirsty or a stranger; and then the Savior's classic teaching: "Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Other expressions of the Savior further confirm the same charges. He said: "Feed my sheep"; " all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them". Then, having set the perfect example of service during his ministry, he concluded by saying, "Go, and do thou likewise."
During the past 12 months it has been my privilege to work closely with many emotionally disturbed people; others who have transgressed; some who have found themselves out of harmony with society; still others who were lonely and afraid. It has not been a year of discouragement and despair, however, because the vast majority of these people have made an important decision, and they have said: "I want to change my life. I am ready to take direction from someone who really cares." And in this church, we have bishops and stake presidents who really care.
How touching it was to hear a hardened prisoner say: "That is the first time anybody ever told me they loved me." This was after a six-year-old girl kissed him on the cheek during a Church-sponsored family home evening visit in the prison.
Consider with me an unwed mother who came to her bishop with some reluctance. Her heart was belligerent, and she also had a drug problem; but months later, following compassionate service by many, she was heard to say: "Life was over for me. I didn't want to live anymore, but things are different now, and I know the true meaning of God's love."
A confirmed alcoholic found a new lease on life because an assigned couple had won his confidence, and they were there when he needed them. His problem is now history. His own family is back together for the first time in years.
A sexual deviant discovered with help that his problem was not God-given, as so many had told him in the past, but rather self-acquired from an early age. He recently declared with confidence: "I have conquered Satan himself. Nothing can stop me now."
Every success story of the past year has been the result of special effort on the part of people who cared. They cared enough to give some time and to be sincere and compassionate; in other words, to follow the great example set by the Savior.
The only joy that is comparable with the joy of the one receiving the help is the glow that seems to emanate from the one who has given so unselfishly of his time and strength to quietly help someone in need.
The Savior did not seem to be so much involved in giving money. You will remember that his gifts were in the form of personal attention, in performing an administration, and in sharing the gifts of the Spirit. In fact, it was the Savior who said: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. " We could add to peace the gift of love, the gift of immortality, the gift of eternal life, the gift of understanding, the gift of compassion, the gift of eternal justice. All of these gifts are beyond monetary consideration and could well be our gift to someone sometime, if we weren't "too busy."
Members of this church understand clearly that baptism is essential for entrance into the celestial kingdom. We also know and understand that total fulfillment can only be found in that ultimate celestial state called eternal life or exaltation, which, of course, is to live eternally in his holy presence.
Only those who have been justified and sanctified through service to their fellowmen can hope to reach such a lofty goal. To be justified is to be found acceptable in our "good works" as well as by our superior faith. James used this excellent example:
"If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
"And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?"
After citing other similar examples, he concludes with this thought: "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only."
Moroni explained that we are sanctified "by the grace of God" as we become "perfect in Christ" and "deny not his power."
No man can become "perfect in Christ" without a deep, abiding, and sincere concern for his fellow beings. This example just read from James cites physical needs. However, there are also emotional problems about us in every direction. Loneliness and discouragement, for example, are two of Satan's most effective tools against us.
Is there someone you know who needs a friend, a friend who is willing to listen to him? The Church is reaching out to such people as never before. Resource volunteers are being organized throughout the Church to help carry out one of the Savior's most sacred challenges.
There are those who associate high calling in the Church with guaranteed rights to the blessings of heaven, but I wish to declare without reservation that the ultimate judgment for every man will be on the simplest terms, and most certainly on what each has done to bless other people in a quiet, unassuming way.
If this life's effort is to be justified, then there should be a major and continuing attempt to justify or, in other words, to conform our actions with the example of the Master. The central theme of his mortal span was purely and simply serving those about him. He fulfilled an eternal truth which should be a part of your life and my life. "And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant."
If our life's effort is to be sanctified or, in other words, ratified by the standards of eternal truth, then our actions must be in harmony with the sanctifying principles of the gospel, which most certainly includes sincere concern for others and a concerted effort to alleviate their problems.
I can think of no better guarantee for the future, your future and my future, than to follow the admonition of the Savior when he said at the beginning of his ministry: "Come and follow me"; and then, after showing the way, he said very simply, "Go, and do thou likewise."
Brothers and sisters, may we go and do likewise, is my fervent prayer in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Ted Nagata
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Of the Council of the Twelve
A few weeks ago on a day when this area was experiencing one of its worst snowstorms, and that is saying quite a bit because we had plenty of severe weather this past winter, a handsome young serviceman and his beautiful bride-to-be encountered extreme difficulty in getting to the Salt Lake Temple for their marriage appointment. She was in one location in the Salt Lake Valley and he was to come from another nearby town. Heavy snows and winds had closed the highways during the night and early morning hours. After many hours of anxious waiting, some of us were able to help them get to the temple and complete their marriage plans before the day was over.
How grateful they, their families, and friends were for the assistance and concern in their keeping this most important appointment. My friend-we will call him Bill-expressed his deep gratitude with, "Thank you very much for all you did to make our wedding possible. I don't understand why you went to all this trouble to help me. Really, I'm nobody."
I am sure Bill meant his comment to be a most sincere compliment, but I responded to it firmly, but I hope kindly, with, "Bill, I have never helped a 'nobody' in my life. In the kingdom of our Heavenly Father no man is a 'nobody.'"
This tendency to wrongfully identify ourselves was again brought to my attention the other day during an interview with a troubled wife. Her marriage is in great difficulty. She has tried earnestly to correct the communication blocks with her husband but with little success. She is grateful for the time her bishop has spent in counseling. Her stake president has also been most patient and understanding in his willingness to try and help.
All of her problems are not resolved, but she is making progress. Her many contacts with properly channeled priesthood direction have left her not only grateful, but somewhat amazed. Her concluding observation the other day was, "I just don't understand all of you people giving so much time and showing so much concern. After all, I'm really 'nobody.'"
I am certain our Heavenly Father is displeased when we refer to ourselves as "nobody." How fair are we when we classify ourselves a "nobody"? How fair are we to our families? How fair are we to our God?
We do ourselves a great injustice when we allow ourselves, through tragedy, misfortune, challenge, discouragement, or whatever the earthly situation, to so identify ourselves. No matter how or where we find ourselves, we cannot with any justification label ourselves "nobody."
As children of God we are somebody. He will build us, mold us, and magnify us if we will but hold our heads up, our arms out, and walk with him. What a great blessing to be created in his image and know of our true potential in and through him! What a great blessing to know that in his strength we can do all things!
Ammon taught a great lesson not only to his brother Aaron, but to all of us in this day, in Alma 26:10–12:
"And it came to pass that when Ammon had said these words, his brother Aaron rebuked him, saying: Ammon, I fear that thy joy doth carry thee away unto boasting.
"But Ammon said unto him: I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God.
"Yea, I know as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever."
As grievous as labeling ourselves as a "nobody" is man's tendency to classify others as a "nobody." Sometimes mankind is prone to identify the stranger or the unknown as a nobody. Often this is done for self-convenience and an unwillingness to listen. Countless numbers today reject Joseph Smith and his message because they will not accept a 14-year-old "nobody." Others turn away from eternal restored truths available today because they will not accept a 19-year-old elder or a 21-year-old lady missionary or a neighbor down the street because they are "nobody," so they may suppose.
There is no doubt in my mind that one of the reasons our Savior Jesus Christ was rejected and crucified was because in the eyes of the world he was blindly viewed as a "nobody," humbly born in a manger, an advocate of such strange doctrine as "Peace on earth, good will toward men."
I bear witness to you and the world that Joseph Smith knew with earth-shattering impact he was "somebody" when, in answer to humble prayer, God appeared with his Son, Jesus Christ, and spoke unto Joseph, calling him by name. God through the centuries has often chosen what the world would classify as a "nobody" to bear his truths. Listen to Joseph Smith's thoughts and self-analysis in this area:
"It caused me serious reflection then, and often has since, how very strange it was that an obscure boy, of a little over fourteen years of age, and one, too, who was doomed to the necessity of obtaining a scanty maintenance by his daily labor, should be thought a character of sufficient importance to attract the attention of the great ones of the most popular sects of the day, and in a manner to create in them a spirit of the most bitter persecution and reviling. But strange or not, so it was, and it was the cause of great sorrow to myself.
"However, it was nevertheless a fact that I had beheld a vision. "
May I remind all of us that Joseph Smith referred to himself as "an obscure boy" but never as a "nobody." Joseph Smith was sustained all the days of his perilous life by the knowledge that in God's strength he could accomplish all things.
God help us to realize that one of our greatest responsibilities and privileges is to lift a self-labeled "nobody" to a "somebody," who is wanted, needed, and desirable. Our first obligation in this area of stewardship is to begin with self. "I am nobody" is a destructive philosophy. It is a tool of the deceiver.
It is heartbreaking when youth in difficulty look up and respond to offered guidance with, "What does it matter? I'm nobody."
It is just as disturbing when a questioned student on campus responds with, "I am no one special on campus. I'm just one of the thousands. I'm really nobody."
May we learn an important lesson from a missionary recently interviewed. This elder, in answer to the question, "How often do you receive letters from your parents?" responded with, "Very, very seldom."
"What are you doing about it?" I asked.
"I'm still writing them every week."
Here is a young man who may have had some excuse to pity himself with a "nobody" label when his parents don't bother to write, but he is having no part of this kind of attitude. Further conversation with him emphatically convinced me that here is a young man who is really someone. If his parents don't write, that is their responsibility. His responsibility is to write, and that is just what he is doing with enthusiasm. I have never met this missionary's mother or father, probably never will, but wherever they are, in my mind they are "somebody" just to have him for their son. This missionary will succeed because he knows he is someone and is conducting himself accordingly.
More than once during the past few months President Harold B. Lee has called me to his office to listen with him to someone he has invited to share a suggestion, concern, bewilderment, or heartache. Some might well conclude for President Lee that he just doesn't have time for the least of these his brethren, but he knows well the worth of every soul in the kingdom. I recall one saying to President Lee at the time of departure, "I can't believe you would take the time to listen to someone like me."
To mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, and children everywhere, we declare that regardless of your present station in life you are someone special. Remember, you may be an obscure boy, girl, man, or woman, but you are not a "nobody." Please enjoy with me one of the truly great parables in all of the holy scriptures as we think along this subject.
"A certain man had two sons:
"And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.
"And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.
"And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.
"And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
"And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.
"And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
"I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,
"And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.
"And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
"And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.
"But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:
"And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:
"For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.
"Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing.
"And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant.
"And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.
"And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him.
"And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends:
"But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou has killed for him the fatted calf.
"And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.
"It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found."
Brothers and sisters, think well again on these points, if you will. "Father, divide your goods and give me my share. I am going off on my own." In the days ahead he wasted his possessions with riotous living. He became so low, so hungry, he lived with the swine. "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son." His heart was crying out, "I am lower than the low. I am now absolutely nothing-I am absolutely nobody."
Please weigh the impact of the father's response once more. He saw the son coming; he ran to him; he kissed him; he placed his best robe on him; he killed the fatted calf; and they made merry together. This self-declared "nobody" was his son; he was "dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found."
In the father's joy he also taught well his older, bewildered son that he too was someone. "Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine." Contemplate, if you will, the death-yes, even the eternal proportions-of "all that I have is thine." I declare with all the strength I possess that we have a Heavenly Father who claims and loves all of us regardless of where our steps have taken us. You are his son and you are his daughter, and he loves you.
Do not allow yourself to be self-condemning. Avoid discouragement. Teach yourself correct principles and govern yourself with honor. Appropriately involve yourself in helping others. As we develop proper self-image in ourself and others, I promise you the "nobody" attitude will completely disappear. Ever remember wherever you are today within the sound of my voice that you are someone.
God lives. He too is someone-real and eternal-and he wants us to be someone with him. I bear witness that in his strength we can become like him. I leave you this my witness and my testimony humbly and in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by William Whitaker
Elder Bruce R. McConkie
Of the Council of the Twelve
Peter said, "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God", which means he must be guided by the power of the Holy Ghost; and this is the thing, above all else, that I desire at this time.
This morning we heard the chief officer, the chief oracle of the kingdom of God on earth, give the mind and will and voice of the Lord to the Latter-day Saints and to the world. I can think of nothing more important at this time than to follow in that pattern, and speak as President Lee speaks, unless it is at all times to live as he lives so that I can have the association, eternally, of the kind of people with whom he will associate.
I have counseled with the Lord as to what I should say today; have made some suggestions to him as to what I thought proper, subject, of course, to his approving concurrence; have received that concurrence; and if I may now be given an uttering tongue and you may be given a listening ear, then all of us together shall be edified as we now seek to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth.
I have written a text of my own which I have entitled "Upon Judea's Plains."
Now salvation is in Christ. He is our Savior and Redeemer. He came into the world to redeem men from the temporal and spiritual death brought into the world by the fall of Adam, and he gave to us a plan and system of salvation that is called the gospel of Jesus Christ. This plan of salvation is that all men everywhere should have faith in Christ; should repent of their sins; should covenant in the waters of baptism to keep the commandments and serve God with all their heart, might, mind, and strength; that they should then receive the gift and companionship of the Holy Spirit and thereafter live in righteousness and devotion all their days, with the assurance and promise that by so doing they shall gain peace in this life and eternal glory in the life to come.
Now we are the agents and representatives of the Lord. He has given us the fullness of his everlasting gospel. The heavens have been opened in our day. The voice of God is heard again. Angels have come from his presence. Keys and power, authority and priesthood have been given again to mortal men, and once again we have all of the laws and the prerogatives and possess all of the powers that are needed to save and exalt a human soul. We have in this kingdom, in this church, the keys of the kingdom of God, the keys of salvation for all men everywhere.
And he has given us the same commission that he gave to people in ancient days who had similar powers, and that commission is to carry his word to all the world and make salvation available to all his children everywhere. Now this places upon us the obligation of learning how we are going to do this thing, this thing of such incomparable and transcendent magnitude. How are we going to proclaim the truths of salvation among our own people and take the message of the restoration to the world?
There are some eternal principles involved here, and what we do in our day is not only the same in principle, but is exactly and precisely what the prophets and righteous men have done in all ages past.
In the early days of this dispensation the Lord said, " the elders, priests and teachers of this church shall teach the principles of my gospel, which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, in the which is the fulness of the gospel." Then he said on another occasion that we were sent out "to testify and warn the people. "
I suppose these two commissions-on the one hand to teach the doctrines of the gospel, and on the other hand to testify by personal knowledge that we know that the things that we are proclaiming are true-I suppose these are perfectly illustrated in the ministry of the sons of Mosiah. The record says that "they were men of a sound understanding," who "had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God. But this is not all; they had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting; therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation, and when they taught, they taught with power and authority of God."
Now this gives us two premises. On the one hand we are obligated and required to know the doctrines of the Church. We are to treasure up the words of eternal life. We are to reason as intelligently as we are able. We are to use every faculty and capacity with which we are endowed to proclaim the message of salvation and to make it intelligent to ourselves and to our Father's other children. But after we have done that, and also in the process of doing it, we are obligated to bear testimony-to let the world know and our associate members of the Church know-that in our hearts, by the revelation of the Holy Spirit to our souls, we know of the truth and divinity of the work and of the doctrines that we teach.
Now let me, if I may, take a classical illustration from the ancient records of how this is done. Peter and his associates had the same obligation for their day that we have for ours: to carry the message of salvation to the ends of the earth. I suppose Peter read and taught the revelations that Isaiah and the prophets gave about Christ and his gospel. He reasoned with the people about them. He followed the divine counsel, "Come now, and let us reason together. " He obeyed the divine decree, " bring forth your strong reasons."
But he did something more than that. After he had taught the doctrines and after he had reasoned, he bore a personal witness of the truth and divinity of what he was presenting to his fellowmen; and the Lord prepared him to do just that by giving him spiritual experiences, by letting the power of the Holy Spirit rest upon him.
You will recall, for instance, that Peter and some others of the Twelve and a small group of saints were assembled in an upper room; that the Lord Jesus appeared; that the people there assembled were terrified and affrighted; and that the Lord said to them: "Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." Then they stretched forth their hands and felt the wound marks that scarred his body. He called for meat and ate it before them.
Thomas was absent on this occasion and believed not the testimony of his fellow disciples; eight days later the Lord made a similar appearance to the whole group and said to him: "Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing." Thomas said: "My Lord and my God."
All this was done to show that Jesus had come forth from the tomb with a tangible body. It was the Lord's way of giving to Peter and his associates a witness of the truth and divinity of his divine Sonship. If he rose from the dead, he was the Son of God; if he was the Son of God, then the gospel of salvation they were proclaiming was true; and so their obligation was to establish in the minds of men that Jesus rose from the dead. Now as I say, they might have attempted to do this by quoting Isaiah, or reasoning out of the revelations, which of course they did; but having so done, they then had to bear a personal witness; and I now read a sample of such a witness that Peter bore. He said to a group of assembled gentiles:
"The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ:
"That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
"How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
"And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
"Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
"Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.
"And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead."
And then comes this comprehensive, all-inclusive statement: "To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins."
Let me read one other testimony that Peter bore:
"For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
"For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
"And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount."
Now I do not minimize in any degree or to any extent the obligation that rests upon us to be gospel scholars, to search the revelations, to learn how to reason and analyze, to present the message of salvation among ourselves and to the world with all the power and ability we have; but that standing alone does not suffice. When that is all over, we have to comply with the command the Lord gave for us in this day: " ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, that I am God." We have to put an approving, divine seal on the doctrine that we teach, and that seal is the seal of testimony, the seal of a personal knowledge borne of the Holy Ghost.
Now Peter could have reasoned at great length, and after having so done people could have argued with him and said, "You don't understand the scriptures. Your interpretations are in error. This or that is wrong." But you can't argue with a testimony, and so after Peter had reasoned, if he then said to them, as he must have done in substance and in thought content on many occasions, if he said to them, "I was in an upper room. The Lord Jesus came through the wall. He appeared to us. I recognized him. He was the same person with whom I had labored and traveled for three and a half years. He is the person who lived in my home in Capernaum. I then felt the nail marks in his hands and in his feet. I thrust my hand into his side. I was there when he ate food and drank before us. I know he is the Son of God. The Holy Spirit of God has borne this witness to my soul"-if he said this to them, there was nothing left to debate. You can't argue with that kind of a presentation. You can say, as Festus said to Paul: "Thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad", but in the final analysis all you can do is accept or reject the witness that is borne. It is either true or it is false. There is no middle ground.
Now how do you prove and establish that the Father and the Son appeared to Joseph Smith; that angels came in our day; that there has been a restoration of the gospel; that all the glorious things we present to the world are true? Well, you reason out of the revelations. You can make a good case; and that isn't any problem. The truth is with us. The Lord is the author of the system we have received. But after you have reasoned and after you have analyzed, you have got to stand as a personal witness who knows what he is saying. You have to do what the sons of Mosiah did-speak and teach by the spirit of prophecy and the spirit of revelation; and the result is that you speak as one having authority. This is the great thing that separates us from the world, and thanks be to God we have this knowledge. We have received this revelation, and we are in a position to speak as those having authority.
And I attempt with all the vigor of my soul so to do on this occasion, because I am one, among many among great hosts in latter-day Israel, who has this knowledge. I know of myself of the truth and the divinity of this work and of the doctrine which I now teach.
We began with "Upon Judea's Plains." Let us close with "In an Upper Room."
And of this I testify, in solemnity and sobriety, with full knowledge of what I speak. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by William Whitaker
President Paul H. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
This is always a wonderful sight and a great occasion, brothers and sisters, and I thrill to add my testimony to that of our president and these great leaders who have preceded me. How delighted I felt this afternoon to see these young people assembled and to hear their sweet voices tell of, I think, the greatest story since the birth of our Savior.
Someone once said, "I am intensely interested in the future because I expect to spend the rest of my days there." I get excited about young people such as these because they project that kind of a positive future. We love and trust them. Seeing them seated behind me brings to mind a short story from Mt. Kisco, New York, reported in the Reader's Digest.
"Once upon a time, there was a little red schoolhouse with one big room for 27 children. The teacher sat with an American flag on one side of her and a blackboard on the other. The children sat in rows facing her, the littlest ones in front. The youngest was seven, and she was very little. The biggest was 16, and he was six feet tall. The youngest was smart, and she could read with the other children. The biggest was dumb, but he was strong and could help the teacher carry in wood. In bad weather, he carried the littlest girl across the puddle in front of the schoolhouse. And sometimes she helped him with his reading.
"Then one day the state built a big highway, right past the schoolhouse door. And the State Education Department came by and said, 'Great things are happening in education. There are special teachers for arithmetic, reading, art and music. If you combine with other schoolhouses, you could have a great big school where your children could have all the advantages. And big yellow buses could carry your children over the new highway right up to the school door.' So the parents voted to consolidate, and the little red schoolhouse was abandoned.
"At first things went well in the big school. But after a while, the State Education Department said that it wasn't providing the children with enough meaningful experiences. And some parents complained that the children were not learning to read and write and figure as well as they had in the little red schoolhouse. 'We will try some new things,' said the educators. So they tried the ungraded primer, where fast readers were not slowed down by slow readers, and where children who had trouble with numbers did not get moved on to the next grade before they could add 3 and 5. This helped, but not enough.
"'We will try something more,' the educators said. 'We will tear down some walls at the new school, so the children will be working together in one big room. That way, there will be less peer-group competition.'
"Finally, an important educator came along, looked at the school and said, 'This is good, but it is not good enough. It is too big, and the children are losing their identity. There are not enough interpersonal relationships in the infrastructure. What we really need is a one-room schoolhouse. And since red is a cheerful color, I think we ought to paint it red.'"
The educator in this story did not mean that the consolidated school, the special teachers, or the ungraded primer were not advantages. The point of the story is that along with the wonderful new discoveries in education, the emphasis must still be placed upon the individual and upon his needs and relationships with others.
This philosophy applies just as importantly to Church organizations as it does to the little red schoolhouse. In a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith just prior to the organization of the Church, the Lord said:
"Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;
"For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him.
"And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of repentance."
Our Lord's response to the Pharisees' question, "Why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?" was, "The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath."
I understand from what the Lord has revealed to us through the prophets that people are his greatest concern. We are his children. We are somebody, as Elder Ashton so wonderfully stated this morning. We are his children, and he continually reveals himself through the prophets so that one day we can be like him.
Programs, then, wonderfully inspired programs, like the Sabbath, exist to help people. If we are not careful, it is very easy to put the mechanics of the program ahead of the person. Jesus was constantly trying to put the spirit back into the letter of the law. Our first priority, I feel, as parents, leaders, and teachers should be the individual within the home or Church program.
I remember some years ago an experience I had while directing one of the religious education programs of the Church in Southern California.
One of my responsibilities as a coordinator was to secure property, eventually erect an institute building, and then provide a religious program for our college youth. We had secured a wonderful institute site adjacent to the Los Angeles State College. Shortly after the transaction was consummated, the State of California indicated to me that they wanted to take the property by right of eminent domain, which was their prerogative. I checked with my superiors and they said, "Look into the legal side and see if we still don't have a chance." I did. We went into court for a hearing. The judge was impressed with the program of the Church and what we do for youth and people. We were sent back to do some additional homework and gather added information.
The day came for the final hearing, and I had about eight hours of work to do in four when at that very moment about ten o'clock one morning a knock came at the door, and because of my frustration I almost said, "COME IN!" Instead I said, "Come in." And in the framework of that door stood a 19-year-old USC freshman student who had refused our offers to come and join our group on four previous occasions. His head bowed, hands in his pockets, he said, "Brother Dunn, I have got to see you, now." And I almost said, "Can't you see I am busy?" Because I was. Fortunately I had the presence of mind to invite him in; and as he took a chair, several questions went through my mind.
Question number 1, "What are you going to court for this morning, Paul?" "Well, to try to save a piece of property." "What do you want the piece of property for, Paul?" "Well, to erect a building." "Well, what do you want a building for?" "Well, to teach some students." "What just knocked on your door?" "Oh, a student." And wouldn't you know, he took the whole four hours.
The time came for legal counsel to arrive, and we went to court. I don't know all of the ramifications. We lost the hearing and eventually the piece of property, and it took us two years to secure another site. You would be happy with what the Church has done at Los Angeles State College, but more important, we saved the boy. Had it been your son, I think you would agree that we made the right decision.
God grant us the vision as leaders, teachers, and parents to put people first. Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God. I add my personal witness. God lives. Jesus is the Christ. This is his church. This is his prophet. I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
Elder John H. Vandenberg
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
It was a wintry Sunday morning in northern New York. The temperature was several degrees below freezing. The walks were icy; roads were blocked with heavy snowdrifts. No one came to church that morning except the minister and an 89-year-old woman, who had hobbled ten blocks from where she lived.
Surprised at seeing her, the minister called her by name and asked: "How did you get here on such a stormy morning?"
"My heart gets here first," was the cheerful reply, "and then it's easy for the rest of me."
This simple illustration brings to mind that all individuals are confronted with decisions to make every day, and whatever the choice, it is commensurate with the persuasion of the heart.
These persuasions of the heart are related to two opposing forces constantly at work within every human being. They are the forces of good and evil, which the Master referred to as God and mammon. Coupled with these forces is the individual's power to reason, which only man, of all God's creations, possesses. This enables him to make choices. It is man's control valve of what he wants to be. The forces governed by his own reasoning determine the nature and quality of the choice made. Thus, that which we call character is formed. We refer to this privilege of choice as the agency of man.
It has been said that "every day is election day, for throughout every hour of every day we each exercise our right of choice. We don't have to have a local or national election in order to elect or vote. A man's election can determine the deciding vote for or against his own success. You elect to gain a thorough knowledge of your business or you don't. You elect to be honest or you don't. You elect to save a part of what you earn or you don't. You elect to always do your best or you don't. And by your own election you will be defeated or you will succeed."
Our Father in heaven was aware of the reality of this principle of agency in the beginning. We read from the scriptures in some detail:
"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was;
"And God saw these souls that they were good.
"And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
"And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.
"And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me." And that one said, "Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever."
" And another answered and said: 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."
" And the Lord said: I will send the first.
"And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate. " "And he became Satan, 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."
Satan rebelled against God and "sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him. "
Unfortunately, many do not realize the quality and blessing of that gift of agency of man. If we would but reason the matter, we would come to realize as is expressed in this thought: "Choice is an element of human dignity. Without the power of choice, a man is a lot less than a man. Without the exercise of choice a man never discovers what he can be or what he can do. Choice is the key to the future."
Since the authorship of the agency of man is God's, should we not look to him for the best media to help us to control our choices? The media he has given to us are the words spoken by his prophets, as are recorded in the scriptures. Jesus confirms this in responding to the recreant Jews of his time, who accused him of breaking the Sabbath by healing a man on that day. He included in his rebuke to them these words:
"And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
"And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.
"Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
"And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life."
The guide to the answer to their problem was to be found in the scriptures. He rebuked them for not accepting the scriptures that they had. The guide to the solution to every problem of life is to be found there. The knowledge on which to pursue our reasoning is in them. Listen to the counsel of Paul to Timothy:
"And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Jesus Christ.
"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
"That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works."
As fellow workers for the cause of building the kingdom of God, they are our source of faith, commitment, determination, and leadership; doctrine for the foundation of our decisions. Let us refer to the scriptures for a few well-known examples to illustrate. I refer to the example of the faith of Job, a very affluent, God-fearing man, having much of the world's goods and a fine family. Overnight, he suffered the sudden loss of all his earthly possessions and his children and then responded to the situation with faith and realism.
He "rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,
"And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."
Then upon being rendered with bodily affliction and poor health, his own wife chided him and said to him, "Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die."
Job answered, "Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?"
And then in the midst of all his afflictions, Job gave this testimony: "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."
As to commitment, is there a more touching example of devotion than Ruth to her mother-in-law, Naomi, as Naomi pled with Ruth to return to her own people following the death of her husband, when Ruth clave unto her and said:
"Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:
"Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me."
And Queen Esther, in her determination to save her kindred people from destruction, seeking God's help through fasting, instructed Mordecai: "Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish."
And Joshua the leader, as he turned the hearts of the belligerent people by his example of choice, spoke to them: "Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord.
"And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
"And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods;
"And the people said unto Joshua, The Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey."
These are but a few of the unnumbered examples to be found in the scriptures, but even as we examine these few evidences of outstanding characters, our spirits receive the inspiration of their strength. Reasoning tells us that the development of their lives had to be built on making proper choices. They were established on truth. Their examples teach us celestial lessons.
The Lord's call to us is: "Come now, and let us reason together. " He wants us to listen to and consider his doctrine. The scriptures tell us this: " that men might be made partakers of the glories which were to be revealed, the Lord sent forth the fulness of his gospel, his everlasting covenant, reasoning in plainness and simplicity."
He wants us to become acquainted with his gospel, to test it, to prove it, to participate in it, and to use it as a base on which to make our decisions. This is that men might base their choices on truth. When reason is joined with truth, there is convincing logic that sets up the path in our hearts that leads upward and onward to a nobler life.
Reason is only compatible with truth. Error and evil, no matter how one may try to reason with it, still remain error and evil leading to chaos. It is difficult to understand that anyone, after examining the truth, could "say unto God, Depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways."
One of the sad expressions of the scriptures is when Christ said: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate."
The expression is applicable in this day to those who deliberately will not come and reason with the Lord.
Let us incline our hearts toward God, that we may receive these words of John:
"Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
"And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
"And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
"And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us."
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Courtesy of Providence Lithograph Company
Bishop Vaughn J. Featherstone
Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
President Romney recently said, "Welfare is not a program of the Church; it is of the essence of the Church." I truly believe that. Welfare is more than just furnishing the temporal needs of the Church members. Welfare is for every single member of the Church. It involves the 96 percent who do not need to be assisted by the commodities and by those things furnished by the bishop's storehouse. Welfare is for those who have, to give, as well as those who have not, to receive.
Now the scriptures are replete with verses bearing witness to what President Romney has said. In Mosiah, King Benjamin said:
" and ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain.
"Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance for his punishments are just-
"But whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God.
"For behold, are we not all beggars? "
And then clearly Paul said: "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal."
And then, of course, the great Savior of heaven and earth, in one of his great parables, taught us a most profound lesson. He said:
"There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
"And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
"And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
"And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died and was buried;
"And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
"And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
"But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
"And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
"Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
"For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
"Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
"And he said, Nay, father Abraham; but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
"And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead."
I believe the Savior here teaches us a great lesson. There are those who have want, and in his great charitable way he will provide, for I believe the pure love of Christ is welfare. I believe it seeks out beyond the dimensions of that which we do. I think it is charity in its purest form.
Myra Brooks Welch in her great poem, "The Touch of the Master's Hand," said:
I believe that is what it is. It is more than just physical welfare. It is the social and emotional needs furnished and provided and trained and taught in the Church. It is taking care of the health of those who have twisted bodies. I believe we have a great and sacred responsibility in this area. I think President Lee probably said it more beautifully in our day than any I have read. In 1946 in the October conference, he said:
"I know there are powers that can draw close to one who fills his heart with love. I came to a night, some years ago, when on my bed, I realized that before I could be worthy of the high place to which I had been called, I must love and forgive every soul that walked the earth, and in that time I came to know and I received a peace and a direction, and a comfort, and an inspiration, that told me things to come and gave me impressions that I knew were from a divine source."
Isn't it having the prophet feel the responsibility of caring for every living soul on the earth, loving and forgiving them?
I have a great friend, Brother Les Goates, a great and gifted writer, and I asked him if I could lift a part of a story. He told how welfare first came into his home:
"But 'as for me and my house,' the welfare program began in the Old Field west of Lehi on the Saratoga Road in the autumn of 1918, that terribly climactic year of World War I during which more than 14 million people died of that awful scourge 'the black plague,' or Spanish influenza.
"Winter came early that year and froze much of the sugar beet crop in the ground. My dad and brother Francis were desperately trying to get out of the frosty ground one load of beets each day which they would plow out of the ground, cut off the tops, and toss the beets, one at a time, into the huge red beet wagon and then haul the load off to the sugar factory. It was slow and tedious work due to the frost and the lack of farm help, since my brother Floyd and I were in the army and Francis, or Franz, as everybody called him, was too young for the military service.
"While they were thusly engaged in harvesting the family's only cash crop and were having their evening meal one day, a phone call came through from our eldest brother, George Albert, superintendent of the State Industrial School in Ogden, bearing the tragic news that Kenneth, nine-year-old son of our brother Charles, the school farm manager, had been stricken with the dread 'flu,' and after only a few hours of violent sickness, had died on his father's lap; and would dad please come to Ogden and bring the boy home and lay him away in the family plot in the Lehi Cemetery.
"My father cranked up his old flap-curtained Chevrolet and headed for Five Points in Ogden to bring his little grandson home for burial. When he arrived at the home he found 'Charl' sprawled across the cold form of his dear one, the ugly brown discharge of the black plague oozing from his ears and nose and virtually burning up with fever.
"'Take my boy home,' muttered the stricken young father, 'and lay him away in the family lot and come back for me tomorrow.'
"Father brought Kenneth home, made a coffin in his carpenter shop, and mother and our sisters, Jennie, Emma, and Hazel, placed a cushion and a lining in it, and then dad went with Franz and two kind neighbors to dig the grave. So many were dying the families had to do the grave digging. A brief graveside service was all that was permitted.
"The folks had scarcely returned from the cemetery when the telephone rang again and George Albert was on the line with another terrifying message: Charl had died and two of his beautiful little girls-Vesta, 7, and Elaine, 5-were critically ill, and two babies-Raeldon, 4, and Pauline, 3-had been stricken.
"Our good cousins, the Larkin undertaking people, were able to get a casket for Charl and they sent him home in a railroad baggage car. Father and young Franz brought the body from the railroad station and placed it on the front porch of our old country home for an impromptu neighborhood viewing but folks were afraid to come near the body of a black plague victim. Father and Francis meanwhile had gone with neighbors to get the grave ready and arrange a short service in which the great, noble spirit of Charles Hyrum Goates was commended into the keeping of his Maker.
"Next day my sturdy, unconquerable old dad was called on still another of his grim missions-this time to bring home Vesta, the smiling one with the raven hair and big blue eyes.
"When he arrived at the home he found Juliett, the grief-crazed mother, kneeling at the crib of darling little Elaine, the blue-eyed baby angel with the golden curls. Juliett was sobbing wearily and praying: 'Oh, Father in heaven, not this one, please! Let me keep my baby! Do not take any more of my darlings from me!'
"Before father arrived home with Vesta the dread word had come again. Elaine had gone to join her daddy, brother Kenneth, and Sister Vesta. And so it was that father made another heartbreaking journey to bring home and lay away a fourth member of his family, all within the week.
"The telephone did not ring the evening of the day they laid away Elaine nor were there any more sad tidings of death the next morning. It was assumed that George A. and his courageous companion Della, although afflicted, had been able to save the little ones Raeldon and Pauline; and it was such a relief that Cousin Reba Munns, a nurse, had been able to come in and help.
"After breakfast dad said to Franz, 'Well, son, we had better get down to the field and see if we can get another load of beets out of the ground before they get frozen in any tighter. Hitch up and let's be on our way.'
"Francis drove the four-horse outfit down the driveway and dad climbed aboard. As they drove along the Saratoga Road, they passed wagon after wagon-load of beets being hauled to the factory and driven by neighborhood farmers. As they passed by, each driver would wave a greeting: 'Hi ya, Uncle George,' 'Sure sorry, George,' 'Tough break, George,' 'You've got a lot of friends, George.'
"On the last wagon was the town comedian, freckled-faced Jasper Rolfe. He waved a cheery greeting and called out: 'That's all of 'em, Uncle George.'
"My dad turned to Francis and said: 'I wish it was all of ours.'
"When they arrived at the farm gate, Francis jumped down off the big red beet wagon and opened the gate as we drove onto the field. He pulled up, stopped the team, paused a moment and scanned the field, from left to right and back and forth-and lo and behold, there wasn't a sugar beet on the whole field. Then it dawned upon him what Jasper Rolfe meant when he called out: 'That's all of 'em, Uncle George!'
"Then dad got down off the wagon, picked up a handful of the rich, brown soil he loved so much, and then in his thumbless left hand a beet top, and he looked for a moment at these symbols of his labor, as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
"Then father sat down on a pile of beet tops-this man who brought four of his loved ones home for burial in the course of only six days; made caskets, dug graves, and even helped with the burial clothing-this amazing man who never faltered, nor finched, nor wavered throughout this agonizing ordeal-sat down on a pile of beet tops and sobbed like a little child.
"Then he arose, wiped his eyes with his big, red bandanna handkerchief, looked up at the sky, and said: 'Thanks, Father, for the elders of our ward.'"
Isn't that what the Lord would want us to do if he were here to show us the way, for didn't he entreat us by saying:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
Who received the greater blessing? Was it the elders who went out into the field and harvested Brother Goates' load of beets? I want you to know they received a great blessing.
And now in conclusion, you remember the words of Paul. He said: "And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity."
And I pray that the charity of Jesus Christ will be with and abide with each one of us, that we will understand the total dimension of welfare services in the Church, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Master. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
Of the Council of the Twelve
The prophet Ezekiel declared:
"Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
"When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
"Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul."
The inspired Book of Mormon prophets saw our day and warned us of the strategy of the adversary. Hear their words:
"For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.
"And others will be pacify, and lull them away into carnal security.
" wo be unto him that hearkeneth unto the precepts of men, and denieth the power of God. "
Through a modern prophet, Joseph Smith, the Lord has given this further warning: "Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear:
" and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people;
"For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant;
"They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world.
"What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice, or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."
These warnings were given 140 years ago. The fulfillment is now. We are living witnesses, unless we are blinded by our own complacency and the craftiness of evil men.
As watchmen on the tower of Zion, it is our obligation and right as leaders to speak out against current evils-evils that strike at the very foundation of all we hold dear as the true church of Christ and as members of Christian nations.
As one of these watchmen, with a love for humanity, I accept humbly this obligation and challenge and gratefully strive to do my duty without fear. In times as serious as these, we must not permit fear of criticism to keep us from doing our duty, even at the risk of our counsel being tabbed as political, as government becomes more and more entwined in our daily lives.
In the crisis through which we are now passing, we have been fully warned. This has brought forth some criticism. There are some of us who do not want to hear the message. It embarrasses us. The things which are threatening our lives, our welfare, our freedoms are the very things some of us have been condoning. Many do not want to be disturbed as they continue to enjoy their comfortable complacency.
The Church is founded on eternal truth. We do not compromise principle. We do not surrender our standards regardless of current trends or pressures. Our allegiance to truth as a church is unwavering. Speaking out against immoral or unjust actions has been the burden of prophets and disciples of God from time immemorial. It was for this very reason that many of them were persecuted. Nevertheless, it was their God-given task, as watchmen on the tower, to warn the people.
We live in an age of appeasement-the sacrificing of principle. Appeasement is not the answer. It is never the right answer.
One of these modern Church watchmen has given this sound warning:
"A milk-and-water allegiance kills; while a passionate devotion gives life and soul to any cause and its adherents. The troubles of the world may largely be laid at the doors of those who are neither hot nor cold; who always follow the line of least resistance; whose timid hearts flutter at taking sides for truth. As in the great Council in the heavens, so in the Church of Christ on earth, there can be no neutrality. We are, or we are not, on the side of the Lord. An unrelenting faith, contemptuous of all compromise, will lead the Church and every member of it, to triumph and the achievement of our high destiny.
"The final conquerors of the world will be the men and women, few or many matters not, who fearlessly and unflinchingly cling to truth, and who are able to say no, as well as yes, on whose lofty banner is inscribed: No compromise with error. "
"Tolerance is not conformity to the world's view and practices. We must not surrender our beliefs to get along with people, however beloved or influential they may be. Too high a price may be paid for social standing or even for harmony.
The Gospel rests upon eternal truth; and truth can never be deserted safely."
It has been well said that "our greatest national problem is erosion. Not erosion of the soil, but erosion of the national morality."
The United States of America has been great because it has been free. It has been free because it has trusted in God and was founded upon the principles of freedom set forth in the word of God. This nation has a spiritual foundation. To me, this land has a prophetic history.
In the year 1831 Alexis de Tocqueville, the famous French historian, came to our country at the request of the French government to study our penal institutions. He also made a close study of our political and social institutions. In less than ten years, de Tocqueville had become world-famous, as the result of the four-volume work that he wrote, entitled Democracy in America. Here is his own stirring explanation of the greatness of America:
"I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers, and it was not there; in her fertile fields and boundless prairies, and it was not there; in her rich mines and her vast world commerce, and it was not there. Not until I went to the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great."
How strong is our will to remain free-to be good? False thinking and false ideologies, dressed in the most pleasing forms, quietly-almost without our knowing it-seek to reduce our moral defenses and to captivate our minds. They entice with bright promises of security, cradle-to-grave guarantees of many kinds. They masquerade under various names, but all may be recognized by one thing-one thing they all have in common: to erode away character and man's freedom to think and act for himself.
Effort will be made to lull us away into a false security. Proposals will be and are being offered and programs sponsored that have wide appeal. Attractive labels are usually attached to the most dangerous programs, often in the name of public welfare and personal security. Again, let us not be misled.
Freedom can be killed by neglect as well as by direct attack.
Too long have too many Americans, and people of the free world generally, stood by as silent accessories to the crimes of assault against freedom-assault against basic economic and spiritual principles and traditions that have made nations strong.
Let us strive for progress down the road of goodness and freedom. With the help and blessings of the Lord, the free people of the United States and the free world can and will face tomorrow without fear, without doubt, and with full confidence. We do not fear the phony population explosion, nor do we fear a shortage of food, if we can be free and good. The Lord has declared, " the earth is full, and there is enough and to spare. " We can accept this promise with confidence.
President Calvin Coolidge pinpointed the problem some years ago with these words:
"We do not need more material development, we need more spiritual development. We do not need more intellectual power, we need more moral power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character. We do not need more government, we need more culture. We do not need more law, we need more religion. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen. It is on that side of life that it is desirable to put the emphasis at the present time. If that side is strengthened, the other side will take care of itself. It is that side which is the foundation of all else. If the foundation be firm, the superstructure will stand."
As a free people, we are following very closely in many respects the pattern which led to the downfall of the great Roman Empire. A group of well-known historians has summarized those conditions leading to the downfall of Rome in these words:
" Rome had known a pioneer beginning not unlike our own pioneer heritage, and then entered into two centuries of greatness, reaching its pinnacle in the second of those centuries, going into the decline and collapse in the third. Yet, the sins of decay were becoming apparent in the latter years of that second century.
"It is written that there were vast increases in the number of the idle rich, and the idle poor. The latter were put on a permanent dole, a welfare system not unlike our own. As this system became permanent, the recipients of public largesse increased in number. They organized into a political block with sizable power. They were not hesitant about making their demands known. Nor was the government hesitant about agreeing to their demands and with ever-increasing frequency. Would-be emperors catered to them. The great, solid middle class-Rome's strength then as ours is today-was taxed more and more to support a bureaucracy that kept growing larger, and even more powerful. Surtaxes were imposed upon incomes to meet emergencies. The government engaged in deficit spending. The denarius, a silver coin similar to our half dollar, began to lose its silvery hue. It took on a copper color as the government reduced the silver content.
"Even then, Gresham's law was at work, because the real silver coin soon disappeared. It went into hiding.
"Military service was an obligation highly honored by the Romans. Indeed, a foreigner could win Roman citizenship simply by volunteering for service in the legions of Rome. But, with increasing affluence and opulence, the young men of Rome began avoiding this service, finding excuses to remain in the soft and sordid life of the city. They took to using cosmetics and wearing feminine-like hairdo's and garments, until it became difficult, the historians tell us, to tell the sexes apart.
"Among the teachers and scholars was a group called the Cynics whose number let their hair and beards grow, and who wore slovenly clothes, and professed indifference to worldly goods as they heaped scorn on what they called 'middle class values.'
"The morals declined. It became unsafe to walk in the countryside or the city streets. Rioting was commonplace and sometimes whole sections of towns and cities were burned.
"And, all the time, the twin diseases of confiscatory taxation and creeping inflation were waiting to deliver the death blow.
"Then finally, all these forces overcame the energy and ambition of the middle class.
"Rome fell.
"We are now approaching the end of our second century."
In 1787 Edward Gibbon completed his noble work The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Here is the way he accounted for the fall:
1. The undermining of the dignity and sanctity of the home, which is the basis of human society.
2. Higher and higher taxes and the spending of public monies for free bread and circuses for the populace.
3. The mad craze for pleasure, sports becoming every year more and more exciting and brutal.
4. The building of gigantic armaments when the real enemy was within the decadence of the people.
5. The decay of religion-faith fading into mere form, losing touch with life, and becoming impotent to warn and guide the people.
Is there a parallel for us in America today? Could the same reasons that destroyed Rome destroy America and possibly other countries of the free world?
For eight years in Washington I had this prayerful statement on my desk: "O God, give us men with a mandate higher than the ballot box."
The lessons of history, many of them very sobering, ought to be turned to during this hour of our great achievements, because during the hour of our success is our greatest danger. Even during the hour of our great prosperity, a nation may sow the seeds of its own destruction. History reveals that rarely is a great civilization conquered from without unless it has weakened or destroyed itself within.
The lessons of history stand as guideposts to help us safely chart the course for the future.
As American citizens, as citizens of the nations of the free world, we need to rouse ourselves to the problems which confront us as great Christian nations. We must recognize that these fundamental, basic principles-moral and spiritual-lay at the very foundation of our past achievements. To continue to enjoy present blessings, we must return to these basic and fundamental principles. Economics and morals are both part of one inseparable body of truth. They must be in harmony. We need to square our actions with these eternal verities.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands firm in support of the great spiritual and moral principles which have been the basic traditions of the free world. We oppose every evil effort to downgrade or challenge the eternal verities which have undergirded civilization from the beginning.
We will use every honorable means to strengthen the home and family; to encourage obedience to the first and great commandment to multiply and replenish the earth through noble parenthood; and to strengthen character through adherence to high spiritual and moral principles.
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chastity will never be out of date. We have one standard for men and women, and that standard is moral purity. We oppose and abhor the damnable practice of wholesale abortion and every other unholy and impure act which strikes at the very foundation of the home and family, our most basic institutions.
A continuation of these immoral practices will surely bring down the wrath and judgments of the Almighty.
In our concentration upon materialism and material acquisitions, are we forgetting the spiritual basis upon which our prosperity, security, and freedom rest? God help us to repent of our evil ways and humble ourselves before the offended power.
There is great safety in a nation on its knees.
What assurance it would give of the much-needed blessings of the Lord if the American people, and people everywhere, could all be found daily-night and morning-on their knees expressing gratitude for blessings already received, acknowledging our dependence upon God, and seeking his divine guidance.
The spectacle of a nation praying is more awe-inspiring, more powerful, than the explosion of an atomic bomb. The force of prayer is greater than any possible combination of man-controlled powers, because "prayer is man's greatest means of tapping the resources of God." The Founding Fathers accept this eternal verity. Do we? Will we?
Yes, it is in our own enlightened self-interest to engage in this simple practice, this powerful practice of prayer. Roger Babson said many years ago: "What this country needs more than anything else is old-fashioned family prayer." Yes, our greatest need is a return to the old-fashioned, time-tested verities.
God help us, as free men, to recognize the source of our blessings, the threat to our freedom and our moral and spiritual standards, and the need for humble, yet courageous, action to preserve these priceless, time-tested blessings, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
One of God's greatest gifts to man is freedom of choice.
At an early period in the journey through life, man finds himself at a crossroad where he must choose one of two great highways-the right, leading to progress and happiness; and the wrong, leading to retardation and sorrow. There exists this eternal law that each human soul, through the choices he makes, will shape his own destiny. Our success or failure, peace or discontent, happiness or misery, depend on the choices we make each day.
According to the scriptures, the first and most important question pertaining to the individual was that of freedom of choice. Before the world was, and in a great council in heaven, God the Father presented his plan to organize and people the earth.
He explained that his spirit children would go to earth, gain bodies of flesh and blood, be tried and tested in all things to see if they would keep all of his commandments, and prepare to come back to his eternal presence.
Lucifer, a son of the morning, came forth with his plan to redeem all mankind by force, that not one soul would be lost, for which he wanted the honor. Then Christ presented his plan, which was to follow the will of the Father and allow all men to choose for themselves, and the glory would go to the Father. Christ's plan was accepted, and all who come to dwell upon the earth in bodies of flesh and blood elected in that great council to follow Jesus Christ.
Satan rebelled and influenced a third of the hosts of heaven to follow him.
As recorded in Moses, God said:
"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;
"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."
At that time, Satan, with his followers, committed himself to destroy our free agency and the cause of righteousness. He began his nefarious work in the Garden of Eden by successfully tempting Adam and Eve to partake of the forbidden fruit. God had said:
"Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat,
"But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it, nevertheless, thou mayest choose for thyself, for it is given unto thee. "
While Satan is determined to destroy us, the Savior says: " this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
He gave his life so that all mankind might enjoy immortality; and through his gospel and the teachings of the prophets, both ancient and modern, we are given a clear understanding of the purpose of life and how to distinguish right from wrong, with promises of salvation and exaltation to all who keep the commandments. But remember that Satan has committed himself to destroy mankind and is continually at work to accomplish this one thing. The scriptures tell us:
"Satan stirreth them up, that he may lead their souls to destruction.
"And thus he has laid a cunning plan, thinking to destroy the work of God;
"And he leadeth them along until he draggeth their souls down to hell;
"And thus he goeth up and down, to and fro in the earth, seeking to destroy the souls of men."
The reality of Satan and the power and influence he wields have been evident since that first temptation in the Garden of Eden. He influenced Cain to slay his brother Abel, which resulted in great suffering and sorrow. The Book of Mormon is replete with examples of the destruction of individuals and groups who refused to follow the teachings of the Lord and instead succumbed to the influence of Satan.
Now, in the Bible we have the story of the great flood, when, because of the wickedness of the people, none but Noah and his family were spared. We know what happened to the great cities of Sodom and Gomorrah because the people chose to follow Satan. In secular history we read of the fall of the Roman Empire; and accounts are too numerous to mention of the destruction of other civilizations, cities, and individuals who chose to turn away from the Lord.
In a recent challenging speech, which was titled "Who Is Tampering with the Soul of America?" Jenkin Lloyd Jones said the pathway of history is littered with the bones of dead states and fallen empires. He points out that Rome did not fall because its walls were low, but because Rome itself was low. The sensuality, orgies, and gradually weakened fibre of a once self-disciplined people brought Rome down.
With all of these examples, what more or greater evidence do we need to convince us that when we choose evil rather than good, we lose our freedom and become the slaves of those who would destroy us and deprive us of the blessings attendant upon righteousness? As we make our choices each day, we must keep in mind that as we sow, so shall we reap. We cannot sow seeds of iniquity and reap a harvest of blessings. Let me relate a story to illustrate.
A certain man, well up on the ladder of success, had great prospects for a very bright future. Then one day at a businessmen's luncheon he decided that social drinking would make him more popular and successful. He soon began looking forward to the cocktail hours, and then found they didn't come often enough. Finally he became an alcoholic, lost his job, his wife, and his friends. Because of the wrong choice at a moment of decision, he had lost everything he once so hopefully and diligently set out to accomplish.
On the other hand, we have the examples of Joseph, who was sold into Egypt; of Moses, who led the Israelites from bondage; of Daniel, through whom the Lord gave marvelous prophecies and predictions and of whom it was said, as he was taken from the lion's den: " no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God." They, with many others, had the courage to say no to temptation and to choose the right, and thereby save themselves and their people from destruction.
Self-discipline is essential in helping us make proper choices. It is much easier to drift than to row, to slide downhill than to climb up. Satan is constantly at work to drag us down by placing temptations in our way in the form of alcohol, tobacco, drugs, pornography, deceit, dishonesty, and flattery, always waiting to catch us in our misdeeds.
How can we combat the evil that surrounds us and which is so prevalent in the world today? Satan is trying harder than ever before to claim souls for his own domain. We must and we can thwart him, but only by choosing to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and making our influence an active and positive force. As leaders, as parents, as teachers, and as neighbors, all good people everywhere who are striving for liberty and freedom, peace, success, happiness, and for eternal life with our Father in heaven must by example and precept be actively engaged in fighting against those forces which are threatening us and endangering our well-being and that of our children.
Don't let us be fooled or misled by the claim extant in the world today that restraints and conventions are damaging to the psyche of a child. In promoting a permissive and unrestricted society, they would have a child undisciplined for misbehavior. This is a false premise, and we are better advised to heed the counsel of the Lord when he said:
"And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.
"And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
Children do not learn by themselves how to distinguish right from wrong. Parents have to determine the child's readiness to assume responsibility and his capacity to make sound decisions, to evaluate alternatives, and the results of doing so. While we are teaching them, we have the responsibility to discipline them and to see that they do what is right. If a child is besmudged with dirt, we do not let him wait until he grows up to decide whether or not he will bathe. We do not let him wait to decide whether or not he will take his medicine when sick, or go to school or to church. By example, persuasion, and love we see that he does what we know is best for him. We cannot overemphasize the importance of example. The late J. Edgar Hoover said that if fathers and mothers would take their children to Sunday School and church regularly, they could strike a felling blow against the forces that contribute to juvenile delinquency.
Parents also should teach their children early in life the glorious concept and fact that they are spirit children of God, and that choosing to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ is the only way to enjoy success and happiness here and eternal life hereafter. They must be taught that Satan is real and that he will use all agencies at his disposal to tempt them to do wrong, to lead them astray, make them his captives, and keep them from the supreme happiness and exaltation they could otherwise enjoy.
To meet the serious issues facing us in our respective communities today, we must be examples of virtue and righteousness ourselves and choose today to take our stand on the moral issues which threaten us. We do not want our civilization to decay and fall because we failed to keep it on a high spiritual plane and allowed it to sink to the level where the animal instincts and passions dominate.
Let me refer again to Jenkin Lloyd Jones. He said that we are suffering from a collapse of moral standards and the blunting of our capacity for righteous indignation. Then, referring to our Puritan ancestors, he said: "For all their exaggerated attention to sin, their philosophy rested on a great granite rock. Man was the master of his soul. You didn't have to be bad. You could and should be better. And if you wanted to escape the eternal fires, you'd well better be."
Then concerning our present-day entertainment he said:
"Can anyone deny that movies are dirtier than ever? But they don't call it dirt. They call it 'realism.' Why do we let them fool us? Why do we nod owlishly when they tell us that filth is merely a daring art form, that licentiousness is really social comment? Isn't it plain that the financially-harassed movie industry is putting gobs of sex in the darkened drive-inns in an effort to lure curious teenagers away? Last week the screen industry solemnly announced that henceforth perversion and homosexuality would no longer be barred from the screen provided the subjects were handled with 'delicacy and taste.'" What nonsense!
"We are drowning our youngsters in violence, cynicism, and sadism piped into the living room and even the nursery. The grandchildren of the kids who used to weep because The Little Match Girl froze to death now feel cheated if she isn't slugged, raped, and thrown into a Bessemer converter.
"The quick-buck boys have apparently convinced our bumfuzzled judges that there is no difference between a peep show and a moral lecture.
" We have reached the point where we should re-examine the debilitating philosophy of permissiveness. Let this not be confused with the philosophy of liberty. "
"It's time we hit the sawdust trail. It's time we revived the idea that there is such a thing as sin-just plain old willful sin. It is time we brought self-discipline back into style."
It is also time we realized that these are all Satan's ways of destroying mankind. Now, what must we do? If there is pornography or obscenity in bookstores, on television or radio, or in places of entertainment, if there are those who would make more easily available to the young and inexperienced alcohol and its attendant evils, including drunken driving, highway fatalities, broken homes, and if we are threatened with the passage of laws which violate the commandments of God, it is our duty and responsibility as individuals to speak out, to organize, and to protect ourselves and our community against such encroachments. We have seen how people react to the high price of food. It is far more important that we react effectively against the immorality and evil in our communities which threaten the morals and the very lives of our children. As President Nixon has said, the only way to attack crime in America is the way crime attacks the people-without pity.
People who argue that they have constitutional rights and want to use what they call their free agency to accomplish unrighteous ends abuse the idea of free agency and deprive others of their constitutional rights. While many of our problems are caused by those who are deliberately trying to further their own selfish and devilish interests, there is also a vocal, misled minority which is responsible for other problems as they exist in our country and in our communities. We must be equally vocal and firm in our efforts to maintain the quality of our surroundings, where we can enjoy family solidarity, which is the strength of any nation. We must take a firm stand against the concerted efforts in many areas to destroy the family unit.
As we contemplate these devastating conditions rampant in the world today-the wars, death, suffering, poverty, and disease-and while many question why God permits such troublous conditions to plague us, let us remember that man himself is responsible. Even though the innocent suffer with the wicked in many instances, all the strife and contention and wickedness abroad in the land today is because man has chosen to follow Satan instead of accepting and living according to the teachings of Jesus Christ. From the beginning we have been told that there must be opposition in all things in order that we might progress according to God's plan for us. Again we turn to the scriptures:
"For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad.
"Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other.
"Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great mediation of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself."
Men are not created to be miserable, for "men are, that they might have joy." To assist us and guide us in our choices, to counteract the forces of Satan, and to give us the joy and happiness for which we are all seeking, God has seen fit through his Son Jesus Christ to reestablish upon the earth in these, the latter days, his church and kingdom, with the restored gospel in its fullness. He has reestablished the priesthood, which is the power to act in God's name, with a prophet through whom God speaks to direct us. I join with thousands of others in bearing witness to all the world that the gospel alone offers the only true way to happiness and peace which passeth understanding, and eternal life to all who will accept it and keep the commandments.
Yes, every day of our lives we are determining by our choices whether we shall reap good or evil, whether salvation or destruction, whether eternal life with our Father or the utter despair at being cast out from his presence. Each day we choose whether or not we believe in God the Eternal Father and in his Son Jesus Christ, and whether or not we will accept their teachings and keep the commandments.
We choose whether or not we will accept President Harold B. Lee as a prophet of God, listen to his voice, and follow him, in the sure knowledge that he is the mouthpiece of the Lord and the leader of God's children on the earth today. We choose whether or not we are prepared to accept and live by the Articles of Faith and be honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, honorable and upright in our dealings with our fellowmen, showing our love for them by being good neighbors. As we choose to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, we can know that all other things for our good will be added unto us.
We cannot go astray if we listen to the prophet's voice and follow him, and as we do so we will be led in the path of truth and righteousness and enjoy the love, respect, and confidence of our fellowmen, and eventually enjoy eternal life with our Father in heaven. Or we may refuse and lose all these great blessings.
"Nevertheless, thou mayest choose for thyself."
May we choose wisely, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Ralph Barksdale
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
Some 23 years ago I was called as a young man to serve as the bishop of a large ward in Salt Lake City. The magnitude of the calling was overwhelming and the responsibility frightening. My inadequacy humbled me. But my Heavenly Father did not leave me to wander in darkness and in silence, uninstructed or uninspired. In his own way he revealed the lessons he would have me learn.
One evening at a late hour my telephone rang. I heard a voice say, "Bishop Monson, this is the hospital calling. Kathleen McKee, a member of your congregation, has just passed away. Our records reveal that she had no next of kin, but your name is listed as the one to be notified in the event of her death. Could you come to the hospital right away?"
Upon arriving there, I was presented with a sealed envelope which contained a key to the modest apartment in which Kathleen McKee had lived. A childless widow 73 years of age, she had enjoyed but few of life's luxuries and possessed scarcely sufficient of its necessities. In the twilight of her life she had become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Being a quiet and overly reserved person, little was known about her life.
That same night I entered her tidy basement apartment, turned the light switch, and in a moment discovered a letter written ever so meticulously in Kathleen McKee's own hand. It rested face up on a small table and read:
"Bishop Monson,
"I think I shall not return from the hospital. In the dresser drawer is a small insurance policy which will cover funeral expenses. The furniture may be given to my neighbors.
"In the kitchen are my three precious canaries. Two of them are beautiful, yellow-gold in color, and are perfectly marked. On their cages I have noted the names of friends to whom they are to be given. In the third cage is 'Billie.' He is my favorite. Billie looks a bit scrubby, and his yellow hue is marred by gray on his wings. Will you and your family make a home for him? He isn't the prettiest, but his song is the best."
In the days that followed, I learned much more about Kathleen McKee. She had befriended many neighbors in need. She had given cheer and comfort almost daily to a cripple who lived down the street. Indeed, she had brightened each life she touched. Kathleen McKee was much like "Billie," her prized yellow canary with gray on its wings. She was not blessed with beauty, gifted with poise, nor honored by posterity. Yet her song helped others to more willingly bear their burdens and more ably shoulder their tasks. She lived the message of the verse:
-Deseret Sunday School Songs, 1909, No. 197
The world is filled with yellow canaries with gray on their wings. The pity is that so precious few of them have learned to sing. Perhaps the clear notes of proper example have not sounded in their ears or found lodgment in their hearts.
Some are young people who don't know who they are, what they can be or even want to be. They are afraid, but they don't know of what. They are angry, but they don't know at whom. They are rejected, and they don't know why. All they want is to be somebody.
Others are stooped with age, burdened with care, or filled with doubt-living lives far below the level of their capacities.
All of us are prone to excuse our own mediocre performance. We blame our misfortunes, our disfigurements, or our so-called handicaps. Victims of our own rationalization, we say silently to ourselves: "I'm just too weak," or "I'm not cut out for better things." Others soar beyond our meager accomplishments. Envy and discouragement then take their toll.
Can we not appreciate that our very business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves? To break our own records, to outstrip our yesterdays by our todays, to bear our trials more beautifully than we ever dreamed we could, to give as we have never given, to do our work with more force and a finer finish than ever-this is the true idea: to get ahead of ourselves.
To live greatly, we must develop the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and triumph with humility. You ask, "How might we achieve these goals?" I answer, "By getting a true perspective of who we really are!" We are sons and daughters of a living God, in whose image we have been created. Think of that truth: "Created in the image of God." We cannot sincerely hold this conviction without experiencing a profound new sense of strength and power, even the strength to live the commandments of God, the power to resist the temptations of Satan.
True, we live in a world where moral character ofttimes is relegated to a position secondary to facial beauty or personal charm. We read and hear of local, national, and international beauty contests. Throngs pay tribute to Miss America, Miss World, and Miss Universe. Athletic prowess, too, has its following. The winter games, the world Olympics, the tournaments of international scope bring forth the adoring applause of the enthralled crowd. Such are the ways of men!
But what are the inspired words of God? From a time of long ago the counsel of Samuel the prophet echoes in our ears: " the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."
Sham and hypocrisy found no place with the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He denounced the scribes and Pharisees for their vanity and shallow lives, their pretense and feigned righteousness. He called them "whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones."
They, like the beautiful yellow canaries, were outwardly handsome, but a true song came not from their hearts.
To their counterparts on this continent God's prophet declared: "For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted.
"Why are ye ashamed to take upon you the name of Christ?
"Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not?"
The Master could be found mingling with the poor, the downtrodden, the oppressed, and the afflicted. He brought hope to the hopeless, strength to the weak, and freedom to the captive. He taught of the better life to come-even eternal life. This knowledge ever directs those who receive the divine injunction: "Follow thou me." It guided Peter. It motivated Paul. It can determine our personal destiny. Can we make the decision to follow in righteousness and truth the Redeemer of the world? With his help a rebellious boy can become an obedient man, a wayward girl can cast aside the old self and begin anew. Indeed, the gospel of Jesus Christ can change men's lives.
In his epistle to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul taught: " God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty."
When the Savior sought a man of faith, he did not select him from the throng of self-righteous who were found regularly in the synagogue. Rather, he called him from among the fishermen of Capernaum.
While teaching on the seashore, he saw two ships standing by the lake. He entered one and asked its owner to put it out a little from the land so he might not be pressed upon by the crowd. After teaching further, he said to Simon, "Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets."
Simon answered: "Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes.
When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord."
Came the reply: "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Simon the fisherman had received his call. Doubting, disbelieving, unschooled, untrained, impetuous Simon did not find the way of the Lord a highway of ease nor a path free from pain. He was to hear the rebuke: "O thou of little faith", and likewise the denunciation, "Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me". Yet, when the Master asked him, " whom say ye that I am?" Peter answered: "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."
Simon, man of doubt, had become Peter, apostle of faith. A yellow canary with gray on his wings qualified for the Master's full confidence and abiding love.
When the Savior was to choose a missionary of zeal and power, he found him not among his advocates but amidst his adversaries. Saul of Tarsus made havoc of the church and breathed out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord. But this was before the experience of Damascus Way. Of Saul, the Lord declared: " he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake."
Saul the persecutor became Paul the proselyter. Like the yellow canary with gray on his wings, Paul, too, had his blemishes. He himself said: "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. "
Both Paul and Peter were to expend their strength and forfeit their lives in the cause of truth. The Redeemer chose imperfect men to teach the way to perfection. He did so then. He does so now-even yellow canaries with gray on their wings.
He calls you and me to serve him here below and sets us to the tasks he would have us fulfill. The commitment is total. There is no conflict of conscience. And in our struggle, should we stumble, then let us plead: "Lead us, oh lead us, great Molder of men; out of the darkness to strive once again."
Our appointed task may appear insignificant, unnecessary, unnoticed. We may be tempted to question:
-Meade MacGuire
My prayer today is that we indeed will follow the Man of Galilee. May we praise his name, and so order our lives as to reflect our love. May we ever remember that to us God our Father gave his Son, and that for us Jesus Christ gave his life. I testify that he lives and pray we may be worthy of such a divine gift, in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
Illustrated by Ralph Barksdale
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
During the few minutes that I am before you, I would like to address my remarks to those who are not of this faith; and since we are all the children of God, I would like to refer to you as my brothers and sisters.
With the approach of the Easter season, the world takes note of the greatest event known to mankind. The literalness of the death and burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ lifts him above the status of a great man or an inspired leader. To overcome death for all mankind, Jesus Christ had to be the Son of God and the Redeemer and Savior of the world.
To members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, this miraculous event has double meaning. For there are two sources to which we can look for an account of the resurrection. The one, of course, is the Holy Bible. Who can help but gain peace and reassurance from the words of John which say, "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live", or the words of Mark describing the experience of those going to the tomb after the death of the Savior: "And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him".
Following these experiences in the land of the Bible, another people in a far-off land, a remnant of the house of Israel who also had prophets and kept their own scriptural record, recorded the following concerning the resurrected Lord:
"And it came to pass, as they understood they cast their eyes up again towards heaven; and behold, they saw a Man descending out of heaven; and he was clothed in a white robe; and he came down and stood in the midst of them; and the eyes of the whole multitude were turned upon him, and they durst not open their mouths, even one to another, and wist not what it meant, for they thought it was an angel that had appeared unto them.
"And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the people, saying:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.
"And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning."
A second evidence then is recorded to verify what was mentioned in the Holy Bible concerning the resurrection of the Savior. This second witness for Christ can be found in the volume of scripture known as the Book of Mormon. It is a compilation of the writings of the prophets of God who were part of the great civilization which lived anciently in the Americas. These prophets taught the gospel of Jesus Christ as did their counterparts in the Holy Land, and they spoke of the birth and life of the Savior and also of his death and resurrection-although these events would transpire in another part of the world.
The highlight of this great record was when the resurrected Savior appeared to these people and taught them the same gospel and the principles of salvation that he had presented to those who were his disciples in the Holy Land. It was only a matter of three generations from that time, however, when the people had almost entirely rejected the teachings of Jesus Christ. They had become warlike and even rejected the prophets.
One of the last prophets to live was a man by the name of Mormon, who took all of the records and abridged them. For this reason the volume is known as the Book of Mormon. Mormon passed the sacred records to his son Moroni, who was one of the last followers of Christ in that generation, himself being a hunted man because of his beliefs. It was made known to Moroni and to other prophets that the Lord would bring this record forward in a later generation of time, to testify of the events that took place in Jerusalem and to convince mankind that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that there is a plan whereby man can be saved and receive eternal life.
Being commanded of the Lord, the prophet Moroni buried the record in a hill, and there it remained until the year 1827, when a young man by the name of Joseph Smith was shown by a divine messenger where the record was hidden and was given power to translate it so that the world might have a second evidence that the basic truths of the Bible are correct.
There were witnesses to the translation of these plates. In a joint statement Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris gave the following testimony: "BE IT KNOWN unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, unto whom this work shall come: That we, through the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, have seen the plates which contain this record, And we also know that they have been translated by the gift and power of God, for his voice hath declared it unto us; wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true."
The reason for the Book of Mormon coming forth in this generation of time can be found on the title page of the book, which is part of the translated record and which says in part, "And also to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that JESUS is the CHRIST, the ETERNAL GOD, manifesting himself unto all nations." The Book of Mormon, then, is a means whereby men can be convinced that God lives and that Jesus Christ is his Son and Savior of the world.
This book, then, bears record of the divine Sonship of Jesus Christ and recognizes him as Redeemer of the world. This passage from 3rd Nephi in the Book of Mormon is a good example:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are.
"Behold, I have come unto the world to bring redemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.
"Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved."
A second message of the Book of Mormon is to teach mankind the plan of salvation in its pure and basic form so that we might know what the Lord expects of us in order to be saved. Again, an example of this can be found from the words of the Savior in 3rd Nephi, which are as follows:
"And this is my doctrine, and it is the doctrine which the Father hath given unto me; and I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me.
"And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God."
At the same time the Savior spoke these words, he also commissioned certain disciples with specific authority to perform the baptism just spoken of. He also explained what he meant by repentance and what steps must be taken in order to gain this repentance.
And finally, if the Book of Mormon is true, then it must attest to the fact that Joseph Smith, the translator of this record, was a prophet of God and was divinely inspired to bring forth this work. In the revelation concerning the coming forth of the Book of Mormon the Lord referred to Joseph Smith in the following way: " he has translated the book, even that part which I have commanded him, and as your Lord and your God liveth it is true."
Joseph Smith once made the statement that the Book of Mormon was the keystone of this religion, that a person could get closer to God by following its precepts than by any other book. Joseph Smith has long since passed away. But The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Book of Mormon live on as a sign and witness to all nations that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that there is a way to return to the presence of God and that the basic truths of the Holy Bible are correct.
Realizing that there would be those who might say, "Yes, but how can we know?"-the last prophet to write in the book gave this promise to all who want to know and in these words:
"Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.
"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
This promise is made, then, to all who want to know, that if they will read these things and ponder them in their hearts and do it prayerfully, the truth will be made known unto them.
Today the Church is known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to distinguish it from the church of Jesus Christ that existed at the time of the New Testament and the Book of Mormon.
As in the ancient church, it has apostles and prophets at the head, and it teaches that all mankind can be saved through obedience to the principles and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We believe that the Savior literally leads his church through direct and continuous revelation to its leaders. We believe too that all mankind are the sons and daughters of God and that if they will prayerfully and honestly seek him, he will bless them with a realization of the truthfulness of these things. We believe that Jesus Christ will come again to the earth, and when he does, he will reign as King of kings, as the resurrected Lord and as the Prince of Peace.
To this I bear my humble witness that I know God lives and that Jesus the Christ is his Son, and that this work is true, for the Lord God has revealed it to me. And if we are the children of God, then all men can and should have this experience, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
On the evening of his betrayal, Jesus met with his Twelve Apostles in an upper room guest chamber in Jerusalem to observe the annual Feast of the Passover.
Previously, Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, had bargained with the chief priests and had agreed to betray the Lord for a price of 30 pieces of silver. Jesus, being aware of this treachery, sat at the table with the Twelve. He said sorrowfully: "Verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me."
After they had eaten, Jesus blessed the bread and wine and in a simple but impressive manner instituted the sacrament of the Lord's Supper.
A beautiful, inspirational discourse was then delivered by the Savior, who concluded the sermon with a prayer. Before they left the guest chamber in the building, a hymn or psalm was sung. Then Jesus and the 11 apostles departed. Judas had previously left the group to meet the enemies of Christ.
Jesus and his associates passed through one of the several gates in the wall of Jerusalem, crossed over the brook called Cedron, and entered an olive orchard, known as Gethsemane, on the slope of Mount Olivet. This was a favorite meeting place for the Lord and his apostles.
Entering the garden, Jesus asked eight of the apostles to remain behind; then with Peter, James, and John, he went a short distance, where he requested them to wait and watch. Going on alone a little ways, he knelt and prayed to his Father, saying: "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt."
Three times he prayed, and we read: "And being in agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground."
Elder James E. Talmage, a member of the Twelve in our dispensation, made this observation: "Christ's agony in the garden is unfathomable to the finite mind, both as to intensity and cause. The thought that He suffered through fear of death is untenable. Death to Him was preliminary to resurrection and triumphal return to the Father from whom He had come, and to a state of glory even beyond what He had before possessed; and, moreover, it was within His power to lay down His life voluntarily." Then Elder Talmage testifies: "In some manner, actual and terribly real, though to man incomprehensible, the Savior took upon Himself the burden of the sins of mankind from Adam to the end of the world."
Following the Savior's crucifixion and resurrection came the long dark night of the apostasy. Finally the heavens were reopened and the voice of the Lord was heard again on the earth. The gospel and priesthood were restored, and the church of Jesus Christ was reestablished in these latter days. Then from the Lord came this admonition to the members of the Church: "And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day."
And then the Lord further instructed: "It is expedient that the Church meet together often to partake of bread and wine in the remembrance of the Lord Jesus."
In these words was the sacrament of the Lord's Supper authorized in our day, the dispensation of the fulness of times. The bread and water, duly consecrated by prayer, become emblems of the Lord's body and blood, to be partaken of reverently and in remembrance of him.
The sacrament is a sacred and solemn service. As we partake of the sacrament, we make covenants with the Lord. This is not unusual, because Latter-day Saints are a covenant-making people.
There are few set prayers in the Church, and the sacramental prayers, which came from the Lord by revelation, are two of them. We should listen attentively as the prayers are given and realize-
First, that the bread and water are in remembrance of the body and blood which the Savior shed for us;
Secondly, that we pledge to take upon ourselves the name of the Lord Jesus;
Thirdly, that we will keep the commandments that he has given us; and,
Fourthly, that we promise we will always remember him.
There is one part of the prayer that I should like to emphasize. It is this: "that we will always remember him."
Of what do we think when we remember Jesus Christ, the Savior?
Do we think or remember that he is a member of the Godhead or Trinity, together with God our Eternal Father and the Holy Ghost, the three personages comprising the great presiding council of the universe?
Do we recall that Jesus was the Creator of this world and the chief executive in carrying out the wishes of the Father? John the Beloved, who referred to the Savior as "the Word," gives this testimony: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
"The same was in the beginning with God.
"All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made."
Do we remember that at the great council in the heavens in which we participated as preexistent spiritual beings, he presented a plan in which he offered his life, and that he was willing to suffer death to atone for the sins that would come into the world? In doing this he would assure us of a resurrection from the dead, and he would make salvation possible for us, his brothers and sisters, and thus become our Savior.
Do we remember his intense agony and suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane, as he took upon himself the sins of mankind?
As we partake of the sacrament, do we remember that we enjoy membership in the restored church which bears his name; do we resolve that we will strive to demonstrate our appreciation by responding to calls and assignments made by our leaders; and do we commit ourselves to do everything within our power to help build up his church?
And, finally, do we remember the promises and assurances given to us by the Savior, that he will return once again, in what is referred to as his second coming? Do we remember that those who are faithful and keep his commandments may again have the privilege of entering his presence and that of our Father in heaven?
We learn, then, from the beautiful sacramental prayers that, first, the bread and water are taken in remembrance of the body and of the blood that the Savior shed for us; secondly, that we pledge to take upon us the name of the Lord Jesus Christ; and thirdly, we promise that we will always remember him, and that we will keep the commandments which he has given us. And if we do these things, we are then in a position to realize the meaningful promise: "that we may always have his Spirit to be with us."
What a wonderful blessing it would be if we could always have the Spirit of the Savior in our lives to guide and direct us!
While Wilford Woodruff was crossing the ocean on his final mission to Great Britain, he testified that the martyred Prophet, Joseph Smith, and his brother Hyrum appeared to him in his cabin aboard the ship. The vessel had been caught in a terrible storm, which had abated as a result of the prayers of the brethren. Hear Brother Woodruff's own words of what happened: "The night following Joseph and Hyrum visited me, and the Prophet laid before me a great many things. Among other things, he told me to get the Spirit of God, as we all needed it."
Many years later Brigham Young, after his death, also appeared to Brother Woodruff and said virtually the same thing-the importance of gaining and keeping the Spirit of the Lord in our lives.
One of the surest ways to obtain and retain the Spirit of the Lord is to so live and keep ourselves unspotted from the sins of the world that we can partake worthily of the Lord's Supper each week as we attend our sacrament meetings.
That we may do this and thus obtain the blessings predicated upon this law, is my humble prayer, which I ask in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Richard Hull
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved associates in this great work, I never come into this Tabernacle without thinking of the devotion and sacrifice of our pioneer fathers who constructed it as a house of God. They dedicated and consecrated it to worship and the teaching of truth. A great and sacred trust is placed in us, as we occupy this pulpit, to speak words of faith. To that end I humbly seek the direction of the Holy Spirit.
Mine has been the opportunity to meet many wonderful men and women in various parts of the world. A few of them have left an indelible impression upon me. One such was a naval officer from Asia, a brilliant young man who had been brought to the United States for advanced training. Some of his associates in the United States Navy, whose behavior had attracted him, shared with him at his request their religious beliefs. He was not a Christian, but he was interested. They told him of the Savior of the world, of Jesus born in Bethlehem, who gave his life for all mankind. They told him of the appearance of God, the Eternal Father, and the resurrected Lord to the boy Joseph Smith. They spoke of modern prophets. They taught him the gospel of the Master. The Spirit touched his heart, and he was baptized.
He was introduced to me just before he was to return to his native land. We spoke of these things, and then I said, "Your people are not Christians. You come from a land where Christians have had a difficult time. What will happen when you return home a Christian and, more particularly, a Mormon Christian?"
His face clouded, and he replied, "My family will be disappointed. I suppose they will cast me out. They will regard me as dead.
As for my future and my career, I assume that all opportunity will be foreclosed against me."
I asked, "Are you willing to pay so great a price for the gospel?"
His dark eyes, moistened by tears, shone from his handsome brown face as he answered, "It's true, isn't it?"
Ashamed at having asked the question, I responded, "Yes, it's true."
To which he replied, "Then what else matters?"
These are the questions I should like to leave with you this morning: "It's true, isn't it? Then what else matters?"
Yesterday the growth statistics of the Church were presented. They are impressive and gratifying. They called to mind a recent broadcast of one of the nation's popular television programs in which Joe Garragiola interviewed the Reverend Dean M. Kelley of the National Council of Churches, who spoke of the declining membership of some of the larger, well-known religious bodies and also of the accelerating growth of others. He gave as the reason for the decline: "Because they have become permissive; they allow just anybody to become members or remain members. They don't insist on any rigorous requirements of belief or of contributions." He pointed out, on the other hand, that those groups which require sacrifice of time and effort and means are enjoying vigorous growth.
He then went on to say: "The fastest growing church over a million members in this country is the Mormon Church, the Latter-day Saints, with headquarters in Salt Lake City, which is growing at five percent a year, that's a very rapid increase."
This is a most striking commentary, and one that should concern every thoughtful man and woman. One thing that it says is that a religion which requires devotion, which asks for sacrifice, which demands discipline, also enjoys the loyalty of its membership and the interest and respect of others.
It was ever thus. The Savior did not equivocate when he said to Nicodemus: "Except a man be born of the water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." There were no exceptions. There was no permissiveness in complying with the rule. It was so in other matters of which he spoke.
Paul never hedged nor quibbled when setting forth the requirements of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is so today. The Lord himself declared that "strait is the gate and narrow is the way." Any system dealing with the eternal consequences of human behavior must set guidelines and adhere to them, and no system can long command the loyalties of men that does not expect of them certain measures of discipline, and particularly of self-discipline. The cost in comfort may be great. The sacrifice may be real. But this very demanding reality is the substance of which come character and strength and nobility.
Permissiveness never produced greatness. Integrity, loyalty, strength are virtues whose sinews are developed through the struggles that go on within a man as he practices self-discipline under the demands of divinely spoken truth.
But there is another side of the coin, without which this self-discipline is little more than an exercise. Discipline imposed for the sake of discipline is repressive. It is not in the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is usually enforced by fear, and its results are negative.
But that which is positive, which comes of personal conviction, builds and lifts and strengthens in a marvelous manner. In matters of religion, when a man is motivated by great and powerful convictions of truth, then he disciplines himself, not because of demands made upon him by the Church but because of the knowledge within his heart that God lives; that he is a child of God with an eternal and limitless potential; that there is joy in service and satisfaction in laboring in a great cause.
The remarkable progress of this church, to which the Reverend Kelley referred, is not so much the result of the requirements of the Church upon its members as it is the result of the conviction in the hearts of those members that this is in very deed the work of God, and that happiness and peace and satisfaction are found in righteous service.
We are gathered today on Temple Square in this historic Tabernacle, surrounded by other remarkable buildings, but the strength of the Church is not in these buildings, nor in its thousands of houses of worship across the world, nor in its universities and hospitals. These are all facilities, desirable, means to an end, but only auxiliary to that which is the true strength. As President Lee indicated yesterday, the strength of this church lies in the hearts of its people, in the individual testimony and conviction of the truth of this work. When an individual has that witness and testimony, the requirements of the Church become challenges rather than burdens. Declared the Savior: " my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
The yoke of Church responsibility, the burden of Church leadership become opportunities rather than problems to him who wears the mantle of dedicated membership in the church of Jesus Christ.
While attending a conference in the East the other day, I listened to the experience of an engineer who joined the Church some months ago. The missionaries had called at his home, and his wife had invited them in. She had eagerly responded to their message, while he felt himself being pulled in against his will. One evening she indicated that she wished to be baptized. He flew into a fit of anger. Didn't she know what this meant? This would mean time. This would mean the payment of tithing. This would mean giving up their friends. This would mean no more smoking. He threw on his coat, walked out into the night, slamming the door behind him. He walked the streets, swearing at his wife, swearing at the missionaries, swearing at himself for ever permitting them to teach them. As he grew tired, his anger cooled, and a spirit of prayer somehow came into his heart. He prayed as he walked. He pleaded with God for an answer to his questions. And then an impression, clear and unequivocal, came almost as if a voice had spoken with words that said, "It's true."
"It's true," he said to himself again and again. "It's true." A peace came into his heart. As he walked toward home, the restrictions, the demands, the requirements over which he had been so incensed began to appear as opportunities. When he opened the door, he found his wife had been on her knees.
Then, before the congregation to whom he told this, he spoke of the gladness that had come into their lives. Tithing was not a problem. The sharing of their substance with God who had given them everything seemed little enough. Time for service was not a problem. This required only a little careful budgeting of the hours of the week. Responsibility was not a problem. Out of it came growth and a new outlook on life. And then this man of intellect and training, this engineer accustomed to dealing with the facts of the physical world in which we live, bore solemn testimony with moistened eyes of the miracle that had come into his life.
So it is with hundreds of thousands in many lands-men and women of capacity and training, of business and the professions, hardheaded, practical men who do things in the work of the world, in whose hearts there burns a silent witness that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that this work is divine, that it was restored to earth for the blessing of all who will partake of its opportunities.
Said the Lord: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."
Jesus, speaking to the Jews in the temple, said: "My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
This is the wonder of this work, that every man may know for himself. He is not dependent on the teacher or the preacher or the missionary, except as they might instruct and bear witness. As Job declared long ago: " there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding."
Each man may know for himself that it is true through the gift of the Holy Spirit, and with as certain an assurance as that the sun will rise in the morning. And knowing that it is true, he will be inclined to discipline himself as becomes one who has a knowledge of the meaning and purpose of life, of his great responsibility to his fellowmen, of his responsibility to his family, of his responsibility to God.
"Learn of me," said the Lord, "and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me."
This is "the peace that passeth all understanding," because it comes not of the mind, but of the Spirit, and "the things of God are understood by the Spirit of God."
A brilliant and highly educated young woman spoke in Berchtesgaden, Germany, to a conference of American military personnel who were members of the Church. I was there and heard her. She was a major in the army, a medical doctor, a highly respected specialist in her field. She said:
"More than anything else in the world, I wanted to serve God. But try as I might, I could not find him. The miracle of it all is that he found me. One Saturday afternoon in September 1969 I was at home in Berkeley, California, and heard my doorbell ring. There were two young men there, dressed in suits, with white shirts and ties. Their hair was neatly combed. I was so impressed with them that I said: 'I don't know what you're selling, but I'll buy it.' One of the young men said: 'We aren't selling anything. We're missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and we would like to talk with you.' I invited them to come in, and they spoke about their faith.
"This was the beginning of my testimony. I am thankful beyond words for the privilege and honor of being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The joy and peace this glad gospel has brought to my heart is heaven on earth. My testimony of this work is the most precious thing in my life, a gift from my Heavenly Father, for which I will be eternally thankful."
This knowledge comes now just as it came anciently. It so came to my friend, the naval officer from Asia. It so came to the engineer in the East whose words I quoted. It so came to this medical doctor whose testimony I have repeated. In this hall there are thousands who could speak similarly. Across the world there are now millions. And if there be any within the sound of my voice who are searching for the witness of the Holy Spirit in these matters, I give you my testimony that it may be had. It will come now just as it came to Peter of old:
"When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, whom say ye that I am?
"And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
"And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
"And I also say unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
This rock of revelation is the source of knowledge concerning the things of God. It is the witness of the Holy Spirit that testifies of eternal truth, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against any man who seeks it, who accepts it, who cultivates it, and who lives by it.
Of these sacred things I offer my solemn testimony and invoke the blessings of this knowledge upon all earnest seekers after truth, in the name of the author of truth, even the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Ted Henninger
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
Who has not been touched by the singing of these innocent children? I think of the account in Third Nephi, chapter 17, when the Lord commanded that the little ones should be brought. As they brought them they placed them upon the ground. He commanded that the multitude should give way until all the little ones were there. Then he commanded that the multitude should kneel. He knelt among the little children and prayed.
The account records:
" The eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvelous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father;
"And no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak. "
After the prayer, it is recorded that he wept. And then, "he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them.
"And when he had done this he wept again;
"And he spake unto the multitude, and said unto them: Behold your little ones."
I confess, I am not ashamed to confess, that little children get inside of me very easily. We have a little fellow at home not quite four. All he has to say to turn lights on in me is one word, "Dad." I am indebted to him for some of the help with this assignment today.
" children are an heritage of the Lord", and I desire today to talk to little children. Many of them are here in the choir. Others, a great number of them, are listening in. I think the grown-ups won't mind if I don't talk to them.
There is something very important that I want to say to you children. Something I hope you'll always remember. Something you should learn when you are children and things are easy to remember.
Did you know that you lived before you were born on earth? Before you were born to your father and mother you lived in the spirit world.
That is a very important thing to know. It explains many things that otherwise are very difficult to understand. Many people in the world do not know that, but it is the truth.
When you were born into this life you were not created then. Only your physical body was created. You came from somewhere. You left the presence of your Heavenly Father, for it was your time to live upon the earth.
There were two reasons you were to come into this life. First, to receive a mortal body. This is a great blessing. Our Heavenly Father arranged things so that through a very sacred expression of love between your father and mother your body was conceived and began to grow. Then at some time, I don't know just when, your spirit entered into your body and you became a living person. But it did not all begin with your birth as a little baby.
Your body becomes an instrument of your mind and the foundation of your character. Through life in a mortal body you can learn to control matter, and that will be very important to you through all eternity.
Pretend, my little friends, that my hand represents your spirit. It is alive. It can move by itself. Suppose that this glove represents your mortal body. It cannot move. When the spirit enters into your mortal body, then it can move and act and live. Now you are a person-a spirit with a body, living on the earth.
It was not intended that we stay here forever. Just for a lifetime. Little ones, you are just beginning your lifetime. Your grandparents and great-grandparents are nearly finished with theirs. It wasn't long ago that they were little fellows and little girls just like you are now. But one day they will leave this mortal existence, and so will you.
Someday, because of old age, or perhaps a disease, or an accident, the spirit and the body will be separated. We then say a person has died. Death is a separation. All of this was according to a plan.
Remember my hand represents your spirit and the glove represents your body. While you are alive the spirit inside the body can cause it to work and to act and to live.
When I separate them, the glove, which represents your body, is taken away from your spirit; it cannot move anymore. It just falls down and is dead. But your spirit is still alive.
"A spirit born of God is an immortal thing. When the body dies, the spirit does not die."
It is important that you get in your mind what death is. Death is a separation.
The part of you that looks out through your eyes and allows you to think and smile and act and to know and to be, that is your spirit and that is eternal. It cannot die.
Do you remember when someone, perhaps a grandmother, died? Remember your parents explained to you that it was just her body lying in the casket, that grandmother had gone to live with Heavenly Father, and that she would be waiting there. You remember having them say that, don't you?
Death is a separation and is according to the plan. If the plan ended there, it would be too bad, because we came to obtain a body and it would be lost.
When he made it possible for us to come into this world, our Heavenly Father also made it possible for us to return to him, because he is our Father and he loves us. Do not think that because we are living on this earth, away from him, and because we can't see him, he has forgotten us.
Didn't you notice, when your older brother was away on his mission, or your sister was away at school, how your parents did not stop loving them? Sometimes it seemed to you they loved them more than they did you. At least they would talk about them and sometimes worry about them. They sent help and messages to encourage them. Distance can make love grow stronger.
Little children, our Heavenly Father knew that we would need help. So, in the plan, he provided for someone to come into the world and help us.
This was Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He is a spirit child as all of us are; but also, Jesus was his Only Begotten Son on the earth. I speak very reverently of him. And he it was, my little friends, who made it possible for us to overcome death and get things put back the way they should be.
You are learning about him in Sunday School, in Primary, and in family home evening. It is very important that you remember him and learn all you can about what he did.
He overcame the mortal death for us. Through the atonement, he made it possible for our spirit and body to be one again. Because of him we will be resurrected. He made it possible for us to be resurrected, for the spirit and the body to be put back together. That is what the resurrection is. That is a gift from him. And all men will receive it. That is why he is called our Savior, our Redeemer.
The second reason you came here was to be tested: something like going away to school to learn good from evil. It is very important for us to be able to know the right from the wrong.
It is important for us to know that there is an evil one who will tempt you to do wrong. Because of this, there is another separation you should know about. Even when you are very young you should know about it. There is another separation that you need to think about-not the separation of the body from the spirit; rather, a separation from our Heavenly Father.
If we remain separated from him and can't get back to his presence, then it would be as though we were spiritually dead. And that would not be good. This separation is like a second death, a spiritual death.
You are now learning to read, and you can begin to read the scriptures: the Bible, especially the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. From them we know that little children can learn spiritual truths. For the prophet said:
" he imparteth his word by angels unto men, yea, not only men but women also. Now this is not all; little children do have words given unto them many times which confound the wise and the learned."
In the scriptures we learn that our spirits must be clean, in order to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father:
" there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God. "
Two important things must happen to us then. First, somehow we must get our body back after we die-that is, we want to be resurrected; and we must find a way to keep ourselves clean, spiritually clean, so that we will not be separated from our Heavenly Father and may return to where he is when we leave this earth life.
We are sure you will overcome mortal death. You will be resurrected because of what Christ did for us. Whether or not you overcome the spiritual death-that separation from the presence of our Heavenly Father-will depend a great deal upon you.
When Jesus Christ was living on the earth, he taught his gospel and organized his church. If we live the gospel, we will remain spiritually clean. Even when we make mistakes, there is a way to become clean again. That is what repentance is.
To enter his church we must have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We must repent, and we must be baptized.
Baptism is like being buried in the water. When we come out of the water, it is like being born again, and we are clean. We receive a remission of our sins. That means they are taken away. We can retain this remission of our sins if we will.
We are then confirmed members of his church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We may have the gift of the Holy Ghost to guide us. That is like receiving messages from our heavenly home, to show us the way to go.
The Lord called prophets and apostles to lead his church. He has always revealed his will through his prophets.
Let me tell you something I learned when I was about your age. I think I was about six or seven years old. My brother and I walked to the stake conference together. I can still go in that building in Brigham City and go back just under the balcony, and say, "I was sitting about there when it happened."
What was it that happened? There was a man speaking at the pulpit, Elder George Albert Smith. He was a member of the Council of the Twelve at that time. I do not remember what he said, whether he was talking about the Word of Wisdom, or about repentance, or about baptism. But somehow while he was speaking it was fixed in my little-boy mind that there stood a servant of the Lord. I have never lost that testimony or that feeling. In my mind I came to know that he was an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.
My little friends, although I sit now in the Council of the Twelve, I have never lost that feeling about these men. Often when we meet in the Council, I look around the circle and know again that these are the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ upon the earth. They are special witnesses of him.
Little ones, you will be tested, perhaps more than any generation that ever lived here. You will meet many people who do not believe in Christ. Some will be agents for the evil one and teach wickedness. Sometimes this will be very tempting. There will be times when you will make mistakes. There will be times when you will wonder if you can live the way he taught we should live. When you are tested, when you are disappointed, or ashamed, or when you are sad, remember him and pray to your Heavenly Father in his name.
Some men will say that he did not come to earth. But he did. Some will say that he is not the Son of God. But he is. Some will say that he has no servants upon the face of the earth. But he has. For he lives. I know that he lives. In his church there are many thousands who can bear witness of him, and I bear witness of him, and tell you again the things you should remember, things you should learn when you are yet a little one.
Remember that each of you is a child of our Heavenly Father. That is why we call him our Father.
You lived before you came to this earth. You came to receive a mortal body and to be tested.
When your life is over, your spirit and body will be separated. We call that death.
Our Heavenly Father sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to redeem us. Because of what he has done we will be resurrected.
There is another kind of death you should think of. That is the separation from the presence of our Heavenly Father. If we will be baptized and live his gospel, we may be redeemed from this second death.
Our Heavenly Father loves us, and we have a Lord and Savior.
I thank God for a church where you, our little children, are precious above all things. I thank God for our Savior who suffered the little children to come unto him.
You sang these words, just a few minutes ago:
-Sing with Me, no. B–69
My little brothers and sisters, my little children, I know that God lives. I know something of how it feels to have his hand put upon you, to call you to his service. I bear witness and share with you the witness that has been given me, that special witness. He is the Christ! He loves us! I pray for you, our little ones, and plead with him to behold our little ones and to bless them, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
Elder David B. Haight
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
In the brief period that I occupy this pulpit, I pray that my remarks may be in harmony with the spirit of this conference. I acknowledge the divinity of the direction the Church is receiving from President Harold B. Lee, our prophet, and the strength and wisdom of President Tanner and President Romney and all of the other General Authorities as they assist in guiding and encouraging the Church membership throughout the world to live lives that are compatible with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We have all been greatly touched by these beautiful voices of the Primary children, and I hope to direct my remarks to those who have a great responsibility regarding these precious lives.
As I view the struggles of mankind in this challenging time, I reflect on the familiar phrase of Henry Van Dyke, which most high school students were required at one time to memorize. Van Dyke wrote:
"To trust in God and heaven securely." Wouldn't there be a feeling of great security if you knew that your home produced sons and daughters who trust in God securely -really trust in him, believing in him and in his Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world?
In these times, it can be difficult to think clearly, to hold to a high degree of integrity and loyalty, and to maintain lofty ideals in a generation that seems to have lost its scale of values. The current wave of permissiveness in many areas of our lives is being encouraged by false interpretations of our true, basic, moral principles.
The Savior warned us of these times:
" there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."
Unfortunately, along with much of the world, some of our loved ones are influenced by false prophets, false Christs, and modern movements of spiritualism. Some have become victims of satanic influences because they do not understand or realize the power of the adversary who knows human weaknesses and is ever present.
Who is this evil power? Is he real? Does he exist?
John the Revelator capsuled that powerful struggle in heaven, the outcome of which has such an impact on all of humanity:
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
"And prevailed not;
"And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
"And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, for the accuser of our brethren is cast down.
" Woe to the inhabiters of the earth ! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time."
There is an eternal struggle with evil forces. John the Revelator has warned us, "Woe to the inhabiters of the earth !" He is speaking to all of us. He says, Be on guard; beware.
The Lord God also warns us in modern revelation:
"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;
"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."
Does God's warning of this evil power come through to us clearly? " to deceive to blind men lead them captive as many as would not hearken unto my voice." This evil is influencing the rapid deterioration of our sacred, moral principles that seems to be sweeping the land. Some neighborhood movie houses now show films that neither parents nor society would have tolerated a few years ago. Hard-core pornography is now available at candy stores and supermarkets at popular prices.
In the brief period of the past ten years, this country and most of the free world have been converted into a space-age Sodom and Gomorrah, aided by some publishers, movie producers, and even some so-called educators. Moral principles have been eclipsed by the blind, ungodly pursuit of pleasure-pleasure at any price.
Alma in the Book of Mormon records Korihor's sad experience with Satan:
" behold, the devil hath deceived me; for he appeared unto me in the form of an angel, and said unto me: There is no God; yea, and he taught me that which I should say. And I have taught his words; and I taught them, even until I had much success, that I verily believed that they were true; and for this cause I withstood the truth; even until I have brought this great curse upon me."
Many people who believe at least tentatively in the reality of God have a much harder time believing in the reality of the devil. Some even soft-pedal the subject and go along with the popular idea that the devil is a purely mythological creature.
Some people roar with laughter as a television comic remarks, "The devil made me do it." Well, maybe he did! He will always try.
To deny the existence of Satan and the reality of his evil power and influence is as foolish as ignoring the existence of electricity. We know electricity is real; we see and feel its power. We also know about war, hatred, backbiting, false witnesses, cheating, and the broken hearts and broken homes caused by the moral sins of modern Babylon. Do members of this church feel a lack of evidence in the reality of Satan and his power?
We are told that some of the "very elect" will be enticed and deceived. Couldn't this "very elect" include your sons and daughters, even though through baptism they have already accepted Christ as their Savior? Wouldn't the evil one concentrate on them if he found a weakness or an opportunity?
A college student hoping to repent of some serious mistakes and straighten out his life told me only a few days ago of an influence which, for a time, controlled his life. His desire to have some expert ski equipment encouraged him to accept a job on Sundays and evenings. This prevented him from attending priesthood and other Sunday meetings. Now he was too tired to attend early morning seminary. With his new, fancy ski equipment, he made the high school team and made some new friends. To be "with it," he started to smoke and soon moved to marijuana and from marijuana to LSD. His father and mother now appeared old-fashioned to him. He moved from his parents' home to live with his newfound friends in an old house. The house had extra rooms, so they invited a young lady-also on drugs-to move in. His father tried to visit him, to communicate through letters. But this young man now felt completely disenchanted with church and home. After these tragic mistakes, he finally came to his senses and moved home with his parents. He told me, "The devil seemed to be in charge of my life."
After interviewing the youth in his ward, a dedicated bishop recently commented on the lack of spiritual direction given by some parents to their own teenage sons and daughters. He said, "Bishops and teachers can't do it all. Parents must teach their children of the pitfalls of evil." This bishop then compared differences in priorities in the homes as reflected in his interviews with the youth. One girl said, "I know the gospel is true; I live it; I keep the commandments; no problems." Another young lady remarked, "I don't accept all of it; I'm battling with some parts; we never discuss it at home."
" never discuss it at home." What a tragedy! Strengthen your home. Teach your loved ones to distinguish between Satan and our Savior. Teach your loved ones that "all things which are good cometh of God; and that which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God, and inviteth and enticeth to sin."
Not explaining these eternal truths of the gospel in the warm atmosphere of your home could be the difference between exaltation and darkness. At a crucial moment in a youth's life, the humble testimony of mother and father could be recalled and make the difference in a critical decision.
True happiness in this life and the life to come is found in keeping the commandments of God. " you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
I bear witness this day that the devil is real. I have felt of his influence. The apostle Paul knew firsthand of his power. As Saul of Tarsus he persecuted the saints; locked them in prison; gave voice against them when they were put to death. Saul, now the believer and great apostle, encouraged the followers of Christ at Ephesus:
"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world. "
If you and your loved ones keep and live the commandments of God, following the counsel of his living prophet to strengthen your homes, this protecting armor of God that Paul referred to will fit comfortably; the shield of righteousness will be sufficient to withstand the evil darts; and your loved ones will find great joy and salvation, for they will have learned and will know how-
May this be your lot with you and your families, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.
Illustrated by Richard Hull
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Following the theme that was so masterfully developed this morning by President Tanner, I would like to present a few thoughts on success.
Success is that illusive and almost indefinable goal to which all men are looking, but success is hardly ever the same thing to two different people.
The dictionary defines success as "the favorable termination of a venture," which implies it is a risky, daring, or dangerous undertaking. A second definition is, "the attainment of wealth, favor, or eminence," and surely this is the most commonly used definition today.
We are prone to apply the term successful to those who look prosperous or wealthy or appear to have scaled the pinnacle of accomplishment in their own particular profession. Whether a man be a doctor, lawyer, financier, builder, politician, an admiral or a general, an actor, an airline pilot, or an athlete, all these and many others have the term success applied to them. But is this really success?
Man's definition of success is, many times, very difficult to comprehend. Some feel to be right is to be successful. Henry Clay said he would rather be right than president. Perhaps he felt successful: he ran for the presidency three times and failed all three times. "Even a stopped clock is right twice a day. After some years it can boast a long series of successes."
"The reasonable man will know that the actual magnitude of success obtained bears no real relation to the amount of pleasure that is conveyed; the man who becomes prime minister or wins a Nobel prize is not really more elated than he who secures a trophy for playing Ping Pong or wins a bronze medal for growing large chrysanthemums."
The Lord doesn't seem to measure success in terms of attainment of position or power or wealth. A prophet in the Book of Mormon said, "But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things. Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." If man is that he might have joy, then success to the Lord must include the attainment of real joy. On the basis of this definition, then, no one is really successful who is not happy.
If this be the Lord's definition, then there is precious little success in this world. Success in its practical application seems to be more a state of mind than anything else. Obviously, many people never make it because they are ungrateful. They are not thankful for what they have; therefore, they are unhappy and thus are not successful. I have never seen a happy person who was not thankful for what he had, to paraphrase the Prophet Joseph Smith, who stated that "doubt and faith cannot exist in the same person at the same time." It is also doubtful that success and unhappiness can exist in the same person at the same time.
Generally speaking, we are unhappy because we are dissatisfied, and this because we pursue after things that cannot make us happy, even if we obtain them. In the words of H. W. Beecher, "Success is full of promise till men get it, and then is as a last year's nest, from which the bird has flown."
There is a great lesson to be learned here. Some think of success as obtaining "something for nothing" or the securing of a great bargain. The words of James Russell Lowell seem particularly applicable. He said, "Earth gets its price from what Earth gives us." In order to be happy, it is particularly important that we learn that everything has its price and not expect something for nothing. This seems to be what earth life is all about-to teach us the lesson that as ye sow, so shall ye reap. We cannot receive something for nothing: on the contrary, we will pay for everything we receive. To continue with Lowell's quote:
How true this is! We pursue after bubbles many times, thinking they will make us happy and that obtaining this particular bubble would make us successful. There are many, many bubbles for sale. This is another word for material possessions, which the world would have us believe are necessary to make us happy. We get the idea from modern advertising that happiness comes from the accumulation of material possessions. We must have a new house, a new car, or a snowmobile, or maybe even a boat.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen tells an interesting story about his neighbor who bought a boat. He really couldn't afford a boat; but he bought it anyway, because he had a credit card. In order to pay for the boat, he had to take a second job, which meant he had to work on Saturday. This, of course, left one day per week on which he could use the boat. When do you suppose that was? Yes, you are right-it was Sunday. But he loved his boat and invited Brother Christiansen over to admire it, saying, "Isn't it beautiful? What shall we name it?"
Brother Christiansen said, "Why don't you call it The Sabbath Breaker?" Now, please don't misunderstand me-I have nothing against boats. I have a friend who has a boat, and he calls his boat "Never on Sunday," which, of course, is a better name for a boat.
There is no real joy or happiness in the accumulation of material possessions. There are too many people today who are so miserable in this life that they cannot stand themselves. They are seeking any avenue of escape-to get out of this life, even to taking their own lives. Many of these people have material possessions heaped up in piles all around them-and many of their associates would say they were successful. But material possessions have not made them happy.
The Master emphasized this when he said, "For what is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" And then he added significantly, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."
A young man came to see me recently who had been called by the Lord to fill a mission. He was a fine young man-handsome, strong, sharp-but he said he didn't want to go on his mission because there were other things that he would rather do. As we visited he told me that one thing he would rather do was drive a dune buggy. We talked about the relative merits of trading eternal life for a dune buggy; and he decided, perhaps, that was not exactly a fair exchange. I suggested to him that if he still wanted to drive a dune buggy after he had filled his mission, the Lord would probably let him do so, since the Lord always grants unto men "according to their desire."
We must not be misled. The only real joy and happiness we can know here upon this earth, as well as in the eternities, will come through obedience to the Lord's commandments. Alma's statement that "wickedness never was happiness" is still valid. Again he has said, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." He did not say, but could have said, "Unhappy are ye if you don't."
Sometimes young people get upset because they do not know what profession to follow. They feel it is so vital that they must have a revelation from the Lord, so they will know what to do with their lives. Generally speaking, I'm not sure that the Lord really cares what we choose as a vocation-whether we are a plumber or a librarian-so long as we keep the commandments of God. Of course, it is sometimes easier to keep the commandments when we are happy in our professions, and to that extent it is important that we do something we enjoy.
The Lord, through living prophets as well as prophets in earlier times, has made it abundantly clear where real joy can be found, and he has placed the emphasis for real joy squarely on the family. President David O. McKay's statement that "no other success can compensate for failure in the home" will forever live in our hearts.
President Harold B. Lee uttered an equally significant statement when he said, "Now, you husbands, remember that the most important of the Lord's work that you will ever do will be the work you do within the walls of your own home." These statements and others update and reemphasize the Lord's injunction to Adam and Eve in the Garden when he commanded them to "be fruitful, and multiply and replenish the earth." Why should they do this? "That ye may have joy and rejoicing in your posterity."
The Lord gives no commandments to his children that are not calculated to make them happy and thus successful. Therefore, he has added to the basic commandment of "be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth," the reason for so doing: that you may have joy and rejoicing in your posterity.
Lehi's statement that "man is that he might have joy" takes on even more significance in light of this and the foregoing statement made by living prophets. And the Prophet Joseph Smith also added to this statement when he said, "Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it. "
From what we have considered, that path inevitably leads to the altar of the temple. I have, many times, seen the Spirit lift choice young people who had come to the temple to become a family; and it seemed to me in these instances that the temple became a "heavenly family house," the sealing room became a "heavenly family room," and the altar of the temple became a "heavenly family altar." For as they knelt there, they were joined by the Lord through his priesthood for all eternity and thus were made "one," a family, in the Lord. The importance of this ordinance cannot be overemphasized, for if we raise a family outside the temple, we may lose it. We have no promise with respect to the continuation of family ties after we leave this life unless the covenants have been solemnized at the altar of the temple. Otherwise, it is only "until death do ye part."
God is the Heavenly Father of the human family. He is obviously concerned with families. If you doubt it, look around you. We are all his children-we belong to him. For this reason, he has commanded that a house be built for his family.
Our heavenly and eternal Father wants us to be happy, so he has established and ordained families as the basic unit of his church. Yes-and also of exaltation in his celestial kingdom. Happiness seems vital to success, or is it that success is vital to happiness? Either way. I do not believe I have ever seen happy parents who had unhappy children; and, conversely, I have never seen unhappy children who had happy parents.
So, then, what is required of parents, who have been so joined in the Lord's house, concerning their children? First, they are to love each other-this is so vital; then they are to welcome choice spirits from the Lord and teach them to love the Lord, keep his commandments, and walk uprightly before him. When they do this, they have given these children the foundation for attaining real joy here in this world and in the world to come. For they will have eternal life, which is the ultimate success, and they will be made rich. " Behold, he that has eternal life is rich."
May this be our goal, and may we be willing to pay the price to obtain it and not be taken in by all the misinformation which is abroad in the land today about birth control, abortion and sex education, and other Satan-inspired philosophies; that we may look to the Lord and follow his living prophets and oracles today. I pray that we will, for I bear witness that God our Heavenly Father lives, and that he hears and answers prayers, and that he is concerned about his children, so much so that he sent his Only Begotten Son that we might have immortality and eternal life.
May we follow him, and may we keep his commandments, and may we be successful, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Richard Hull
Elder O. Leslie Stone
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I am sure that as grandfathers and fathers, you rejoice with me in these children who have rendered the singing at this session of the conference. They are wonderful. Being a grandfather of 14, I have learned to love grandchildren.
I am reminded of the grandfather who got on the airplane. As he went down the aisle looking for a seat, he came to an attractive woman, and he said, "Are you a grandmother?" And she said, "Yes, I am." So he passed her up. He went on and repeated it again. Finally he asked a lady, "Are you a grandmother?" And she said, "No, I am not." He said, "May I sit down? I want to talk about my grandchildren."
In the few moments allotted to me, I would like to discuss the subject of faith, what it means, and how it affects us as individuals.
When I made preparation for this talk, I had no idea that in our family we would be called on so soon to exercise great faith and prayers for the well-being of my sweet companion, who underwent major surgery just last Monday. Our faith and prayers were answered, and I want to thank all of my brethren here and all of my friends and others who joined with us in their faith and prayers for her recovery. She is listening from her hospital bed. I would like to take just a moment to tell her how much I love her. She has been a wonderful companion for 49 years this month. She has been an inspiration to me all the days that we have been married. She has been a fine mother and grandmother. We are looking forward to her return from the hospital.
The apostle Paul tells us: " faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen." Faith and belief have been used synonymously, and it is sometimes difficult for us to differentiate between the two. There is a difference.
We cannot have faith without belief, but we can believe without having faith. Belief is the foundation of faith. Faith is trusting in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The scriptures contain many assurances of salvation to those who exercise faith and obey the commandments. One such assurance is found in Mark 16:16, which reads: "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." Note that the Lord said: "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." In other words, we must do more than believe-we must act. Faith is the motivating force that impels action.
In James 2:20 we read: "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?"
Many believe that God will provide, but we cannot sit idly by and expect to get results. The Lord requires us to work for that which we seek. If we do our part and exercise faith, then we are promised he will help us in all our righteous undertakings. However, if we do not do our part, how can we expect the help of our Heavenly Father? Our late President David O. McKay said, "The rich rewards come only to the strenuous strugglers." In other words, to those who not only have faith but are willing to work and sacrifice in order to achieve their goals.
Some may ask, "How do we gain faith?" The answer is that we gain faith just as we gain any other attribute. We must first establish a foundation, and then cultivate our thoughts and actions.
Joseph Smith said: "Faith comes by hearing the word of God, through the testimony of the servants of God. " Our very presence in meetings of this conference will tend to increase our faith because we come here with a desire to learn and to worship, to be motivated, and to be spiritually uplifted.
I testify to all within the sound of my voice that my attendance at general conferences over a period of many years, hearing the testimonies of our leaders here and in other places, has constantly increased my faith and helped me to build a strong testimony as to the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Partaking of the sacrament administered by those having authority is a great aid to faith. The broken bread symbolizes the broken flesh of our Redeemer, and the holy cup represents his atoning blood. Reading the scriptures nurtures faith. Earnest prayer is essential to increasing one's faith. Prayer is vocalized faith.
Right living is the greatest of all faith builders. Sin is the greatest of all faith destroyers. Even small sins destroy faith. Vanity, pride, selfishness, greed, and hatred wound the fine spirit of God which nurtures and gives life to faith.
Ceaseless striving to find the bright light of living faith purifies the heart, strengthens the will, and develops sterling character.
The constant exercise of our faith by lofty thinking, prayer, devotion, and acts of righteousness is just as essential to spiritual health as physical exercise is to the health of the body. Like all priceless things, faith, if lost, is hard to regain. Eternal vigilance is the price of our faith. In order to retain our faith we must keep ourselves in tune with our Heavenly Father by living in accordance with the principles and ordinances of the gospel.
Moses exercised faith when he led the children of Israel out of bondage. The Lord instructed him what to do, and he had faith that it could be done. He gathered the Israelites and proceeded on the journey. You will remember that they were closely followed by the Egyptians, who wanted to prevent their leaving.
They reached the Red Sea, and the Israelites felt there was no chance of escape. The sea lay before them and the Egyptians behind. Some said: " it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness."
Moses told them: "Fear ye not. the Lord shall fight for you and ye shall hold your peace."
The Lord, speaking to Moses, said:
" lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.
"And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
"And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.
"And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen."
And then the Lord told Moses to stretch out his hand, and the water would come back and destroy the Egyptians. Moses again exercised his faith in God, and the Egyptians were destroyed.
The Prophet Joseph demonstrated great faith throughout his ministry. When he was only 14, he was reading the scriptures, and in the first chapter of James, fifth and sixth verses, he read:
"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
"But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed."
This passage of scripture rocked his very soul, for he felt that if ever a person needed wisdom in deciding what to do, it was he.
He believed; he had faith; his faith impelled action, and so he went into the woods to pray. His prayers were answered.
How different our lives would be if it had not been for the strong faith of the Prophet Joseph!
Brigham Young was a man of great faith. He had faith in a living God. He had faith in every principle and doctrine revealed and taught by the Prophet Joseph. He had faith in himself.
He once made this statement:
"If the Latter-day Saints will walk up to their privileges, and exercise faith in the name of Jesus Christ, and live in the enjoyment of the fulness of the Holy Ghost constantly day by day, there is nothing on the face of the earth that they could ask for, that would not be given to them."
The Latter-day Saint pioneers certainly demonstrated great faith when they crossed the plains. They left their homes and most of their worldly belongings. Some of them left their families and friends to follow the Church leaders to an unknown land. The reason was obvious: they had great faith. They sought and found a place where they could exercise their faith, worship in peace, and serve the Lord.
Sometimes we become impatient because the world is converted so slowly. In our impatience, we wonder why God does not reveal himself in majesty and glory, that the whole world might instantly be brought to their knees to worship him. But when we think intelligently about the matter, we understand that God's slow, patient way of converting the world is best. When people are required to believe largely upon the testimony of others, they are compelled to grip the threads of truth firmly and hold on until they can develop strong faith. God's plan makes it necessary for us to nurture, cultivate, and enlarge our faith. In this long, patient process of developing our faith, we acquire fortitude and strength of character. These sterling qualities are of eternal worth.
I have been thrilled with the faith manifested by many of our recently returned prisoners of war. Many have expressed their faith in God, their faith in their families, and their faith in this great country and its leaders.
It is indeed gratifying to hear these expressions of love, faith, and gratitude from these men who have suffered so much. This is in such contrast to those who have protested everything our leaders have done to bring about the release of our prisoners and to reunite them with their families. I am sure we all feel grateful that this has been accomplished, and join together in giving thanks to our Heavenly Father for these great blessings. Our prayers and love are extended to all of these men, that they might get reestablished in the stream of life; that they might have joy in their labors and continue to show love for their God, their families, their country, and their fellowmen.
There has never been a time in our lives, the history of the Church, or the history of our nation, when there existed a greater need for faith than today.
We need faith in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, faith in our church leaders, faith in America, faith in ourselves.
I conclude by bearing my witness as to the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The greatest blessings we have received in our family have been when we have been most liberal with our time, our means, and our efforts in carrying out our responsibilities in the Church. These blessings are available to everyone if they will but have faith, accept the gospel of Jesus Christ, and then live in conformity with its teachings.
It is my humble prayer that each of us will increase our faith day by day; that we will keep the commandments; that we will love, honor, and sustain our prophet, President Harold B. Lee, and all who are closely associated with him in building the kingdom of God; that we will so live as to be true to the end and worthy to receive the greatest of all blessings, which is salvation, exaltation, and eternal life in the kingdom of our Heavenly Father.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Rex D. Pinegar
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My dear brothers and sisters: It is a great privilege to be here with you on this occasion. I bring you greetings from the greatest group of missionaries in the world. It is a marvelous thing to labor among them and to feel the strength of the Lord as he works through them and the Saints to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to his children.
The blessing of sharing the gospel message is overwhelming. I am often filled with the feelings I think Paul may have had when he wrote to the saints at Ephesus, regarding his call to serve the Lord:
"Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me
"Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
"According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus, our Lord:
"In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.
"For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."
This same feeling of humble gratitude seems to fill the hearts of every member and missionary who becomes involved in sharing the gospel. As we see the peace and assurance that come to those who receive the gospel, we become more conscious of the great obligation and opportunity we have to share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ with our friends and neighbors, our brothers and sisters.
The Lord has spoken clearly regarding this sacred responsibility and the condemnation which rests upon members of his church should we fail to keep this commandment. On September 23, 1832, having given commandment unto the Twelve concerning the preaching of the gospel, the Lord then stated:
"And this revelation unto you, and commandment, is in force from this very hour upon all the world, and the gospel is unto all who have not received it.
"But, verily I say unto all those to whom the kingdom has been given -from you it must be preached unto them. "
Joseph Smith has said that the greatest and most important duty we have is to teach others the gospel. He declared the same thing about doing the work for the dead. Each of these activities makes available to others the blessings of membership in the kingdom of God.
Fulfilling this sacred assignment to "warn our neighbors" brings unspeakable joys to both the receiver and the giver of the gift. Many families throughout the Church are experiencing the joys of doing this most important work. Not only are they "laying up in store that they perish not," but they are helping our nonmember brothers and sisters to become eligible for these same blessings. They are finding that missionary work is not a task, but a glorious opportunity to assist the Lord in his greatest work-saving the souls of men.
There are many ways one may help others find the Lord. The Jones family, in Raleigh, North Carolina, assisted the Lord by preparing a copy of the Book of Mormon with their family picture and testimony inside the front cover. They then invited the missionaries to their home to meet some close friends, the Browns. The next day the missionaries went to the Browns and presented to them this copy of the Book of Mormon as a gift from the Jones family. The Browns were so appreciative of the gift that they agreed to read, ponder, and pray about this marvelous book of scripture. They did. The elders continued to teach them. The Jones family continued to fellowship them. Today the entire Brown family enjoys church membership.
Members in a small Virginia branch recently asked for missionaries to labor with them in spreading the gospel in that area. They felt they could arrange at least five meetings per week for the missionaries with interested friends and neighbors. The members have found many more than they had supposed waiting to hear their message. For the past three months the elders have held from four to eight meetings per day. There have been so many meetings that one of the missionaries wrote on the bottom of his weekly report: "Dear President: I am sorry. We have been so busy teaching, we haven't had time to tract; but don't worry, we'll do better next week!"
These missionaries had spent 65 hours that week teaching the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ to friends the members had found. This small branch has made tremendous growth in attendance and home teaching. Several persons who had been absent from church meetings for some time are now active. Through member participation, missionary work has become the solution to several of their problems.
There is a dentist who shares the gospel at every opportunity-to the "captive audience" in his chair, at the service station where he takes his car, at the post office, even at his neighbor's home as he seeks advice in running his farm-just everywhere. He says he has read the Book of Mormon until he feels he understands the love and peace the sons of Mosiah felt when they went to preach to the Lamanites. And, I believe, he has the same zeal they had.
Through his efforts during the past year, missionaries have been introduced to hundreds of people and have brought four families into the Church. This fine member and his home teaching companion diligently go before the elders and set up meetings. He feels the people respond more readily to him because he is a permanent resident in the area. Again, member-missionary oneness has brought the light and peace of the gospel of Christ into the lives of those seeking the truth.
Another member, many miles away, shared the gospel in correspondence to a friend in Richmond, Virginia. A wonderful experience followed. Two missionaries were tracting one day in Richmond. One had been ill; the other felt uneasy as they walked the streets, knowing that his companion was not at his best. Both desired to persevere, however.
After two hours of having little success, they knocked on a door and introduced themselves as missionaries with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "Oh, yes," the woman replied, "Ann Smith sent you." The elders looked at each other, shook their heads, then told her they were just knocking at the doors in the neighborhood and that no person in particular had sent them to her. She invited them in; the husband and other family members were present in the room.
She then told the missionaries something that caused them to marvel. She said, "Just an hour or two ago I finished reading a letter that I had received today from my dearest friend who lives in California. A year ago her husband and she were converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and were recently married in the temple. When we last heard, their marriage was falling apart, and she confided in me the sad situation. But today I received this ten-page letter telling me all about your church and the marvelous change it has made in their lives."
She allowed the missionaries to read the contents of that letter, which covered Relief Society, Primary, Sunday School, MIA, and much, much more. Then they read a short note at the bottom, which said, "I will be sending two missionaries to your house to teach you more about the Church."
After hearing the elders' message, she said, with tears streaming down her face, "I believe the Lord sent you to us."
When members and missionaries work faithfully together, they become as one and the Lord can use them to achieve his purposes among his children. The Lord had united as one the efforts of this faithful member and these diligent missionaries, to bring this family instruction which, if followed, will bring them joy and peace beyond measure and lead them back into the presence of our Heavenly Father.
Today we live in a time of trouble and turmoil. Many people are disturbed, discouraged, confused, and looking for something better. The Lord has provided that "something better" in the gospel of Jesus Christ. He has shown his love and concern for us in our time by appearing to a prophet, by revealing the Book of Mormon, and by restoring his church with his authority and power. We have the truth, the authority and power. Now it is our individual and family responsibility and our joy to share these blessings with others.
President Joseph Fielding Smith, in addressing the British area conference of the Church, said:
"There is only one plan of salvation. There is only one way for men to gain a celestial inheritance of eternal glory, and that is to forsake the world, have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, enter his kingdom through the door of baptism, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and then keep his commandments.
"We respect our Father's other children of all sects, parties, and denominations, and have no desire except to see them receive the added light and knowledge that has come to us by revelation, and to become with us inheritors of the great blessings of the restoration of the gospel.
"But we have the plan of salvation; we administer the gospel; and the gospel is the sole hope of the world, the one way that will bring peace on earth and right the wrongs that exist in all nations."
Brothers and sisters, we have the charge to share "the unsearchable riches" of Christ with all of Heavenly Father's children. We are blessed to have the promise of Ephraim to bring the blessings of the gospel to them. May we keep the commandment to "preach the gospel unto them" who have not yet received the kingdom, by working as one in the Lord's great missionary effort.
Each of us can give a Book of Mormon to a friend or business associate, each can invite someone to his home to be introduced to our Heavenly Father, each can write a letter to someone else, sharing testimony of these revealed truths and extending an invitation to them to receive the Lord's plan. Yes, as you build your desire to be a missionary for the Lord, he will open up the way.
We invite all men everywhere to join with us that we might receive the blessing described by Paul when he wrote that the Lord "would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
"That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
"May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
"And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
"Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. "
I solemnly declare my witness to you that Jesus is the Christ, that this is his church, and that President Harold B. Lee is his anointed prophet and seer today, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Ted Nagata
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
Having spent nearly ten years in the mission field, I can appreciate very much the spirit that Brother Pinegar brings to us from the mission field. To me, missionary work is the greatest thing in all the world. I have the privilege nearly every week of talking to the new groups of missionaries before they leave for their missions. My assignment has been to discuss the use and the value of the holy scriptures.
"Just think," I say, "what would we know about our Father in heaven and his great love for us in giving us his Only Begotten Son, and his great atoning sacrifice for us, and why he created this earth, and why we are here, where we are going, and how to get there-if we didn't have the holy scriptures?" I thank the Lord for the information that has come to us through the restoration of the gospel to help us to understand the holy scriptures.
Now, we don't only live in the past, by what is in the scriptures that has already transpired, for Isaiah said the Lord hath declared "the end from the beginning." It is all there in the holy scriptures when we know how to understand it. He said, "The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand forever."
I think of the words of the Lord to the prophet Malachi when he said: "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple. But who may abide the day of his coming? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap."
Obviously that had no reference to his first coming. He did not come suddenly to his temple. All men could abide the day of his coming. He did not come cleansing and purifying as a refiner's fire and fullers' soap, but we are told that when he shall come in the latter days, the wicked shall cry out, and "then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us."
If the Lord were to send a messenger to prepare the way for his coming, that messenger could be none other than a prophet. You remember Amos said, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." When John the Baptist was sent to prepare the way for the Savior in the meridian of time, the Savior bore testimony that there was no greater prophet in Israel than John the Baptist.
Now, it being true that the Lord would send a messenger in these latter days to prepare for the second coming of the Savior, just as he did at his first coming, it is important that we learn what that messenger has to say to the world. I think it is a wonderful thing that the Lord has indicated the end from the beginning. I would just like to refer to a few of the prophecies that relate to the day in which we live.
For instance, when John was banished upon the Isle of Patmos, the angel of the Lord said, "Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter." This was 30 years after the crucifixion of the Savior. He saw the power that would be given to Satan to make war with the saints and to overcome them and to rule over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations, showing a complete apostasy from the original church.
But the Lord didn't leave it at that. This same angel showed John another angel flying in the midst of heaven, "having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." That isn't the gospel of men. That is the gospel of Jesus Christ that has been restored.
Now why do you suppose that that passage of scripture is in the Bible, if we are not to look for an angel coming with the everlasting gospel to be preached to them that dwell upon the earth, to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people? That doesn't leave anybody out, and that is why the Lord had to send his messenger so that this work could be restored to the earth.
Now John did not only see that the angel would bring the everlasting gospel, but he would call men back to the worship of the true and the living God "that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." And if you will just stop to think, at the time that Joseph Smith had that marvelous vision of the Father and the Son, he saw that they were two glorified personages, that they were not three in one, without body, parts, or passions. There wasn't a church in the world at that time, so far as we know, that was worshiping the true and the living God; so when the angel was to come with the everlasting gospel, he was also to bring men back to the worship of the true and living God who made the heavens and the earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
In fact, at that time the whole Christian world believed in a God without body, parts, or passions. That means he had no eyes; he couldn't see. He had no ears; he couldn't hear. He had no voice; he couldn't speak. How could they believe in such a god as that?
Moses knew that this condition would prevail, because when he went to lead the children of Israel into the promised land, he told them that they would not remain there long, but that they would be scattered among the nations, and that they would "serve gods, the work of men's hands, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell."
And then Moses said that in the latter days, if Israel would seek after God, they would surely find him. The Prophet Joseph sought after him, and he found him.
Why do you think that should be in the Bible if it should not happen? And when we announce that it has happened in our day, you would think that men would want to know more about it. When the apostles asked Jesus for the sign of his second coming and the end of the world, he told them of the wars and pestilence and earthquakes and famine, and we read a lot about them. Then he said, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come."
If we expect to see him come again, we have to look for the preaching of that very same gospel, and that is the message of every Mormon elder who goes out into the world to bear testimony of the truth. I tell the missionaries, "If you can bring to people an understanding and a faith to believe in this message, it will be worth more than if you were to give them a million dollars."
I heard a missionary reporting his mission up in Oregon some years ago. He himself was a convert to the Church, and he came down with his fist on the pulpit and said he wouldn't take a check for a million dollars for the experience of his mission, to go out and share with the world these marvelous truths.
I sat back of him, and I asked myself: Would you take a check for a million dollars for your first mission over in the little land of Holland? I began counting the families whom I had been instrumental in bringing into the Church, who have come to Zion and sent their boys and girls on missions. What kind of a man would I be if I were to sell them out of the Church for a million dollars? I could not do that for all the money in this world. There is nothing else, no riches, that can compare with the joy and the happiness that come from this great missionary program of the Church.
Then let us consider some other prophecies. For example, the Lord said through Isaiah:
"Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:
"Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid."
There are so many marvelous things that have happened in the restoration of the gospel. Take the Book of Mormon, for example. Why, that is a miracle that no man can account for, if he will read it and study it. The greatest criticism of that book has come from those who have never read it. Yet it is full of marvelous truths that no man could have written with the knowledge that was available at the time that book was published.
The Book of Mormon tells us that when Lehi was in the desert, he told his son Joseph that the Lord had promised Joseph who was sold into Egypt that he would raise up a prophet in the latter days from his loins like unto Moses; that his name would be Joseph, his father's name would be Joseph, and that he should bring forth his word. That obviously was the Prophet Joseph Smith. He brought us the Book of Mormon. He brought us the Doctrine and Covenants. He brought us the Pearl of Great Price and many other writings.
Then the Lord said: " unto him will I give power to bring forth my word and not to the bringing forth my word only, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them." In other words, he would bring them to a true understanding of the Bible.
Then he said, shall bring my people unto salvation." Why? Because he had the holy priesthood restored so that he could administer the saving ordinances of the gospel. And then the Lord adds, "And I will make him great in mine eyes." Whatever the world may think of the prophet of this dispensation, the Lord knew he would be great, for he had him in waiting for three thousand years when he promised Joseph that out of his loins he would raise up a prophet in our day.
I would like to mention an experience to indicate what I think he meant when he said, " unto him will I give power to bring forth my word and not to the bringing forth my word only, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them."
While I was on my first mission in Holland, I was invited to speak to a Bible class of businessmen in The Hague. They met every week, holding a Bible class. We met in the home of a prominent furniture dealer; the only woman there was the daughter of the man of the house.
They invited me to speak for an hour and a half and explain our doctrine of universal salvation, which includes the work for the dead. I gave them chapter and verse and let them read these passages from their own Bibles so they would believe more completely, as they seemed to think we have a different Bible. Then I closed my Bible and laid it on the table, folded my arms, and waited for their comments.
The first comment came from the daughter of the man of the house. She said, "Father, I just can't understand it. I have never attended one of these Bible classes in my life that you haven't had the last word to say on everything, and tonight you haven't said a word."
The father shook his head and said, "My daughter, there isn't anything to say." He said, "This man has been teaching us things we have never heard of, and has been teaching them to us out of our own Bibles."
That is what the Lord meant when he said that the prophet he would raise up would not only bring forth his word, but would bring men to the convincing of his word that had already gone forth among them.
I preached a sermon down in Quitman, Georgia, on the eternal duration of the marriage covenant and the family unit. At the end of the meeting I stood at the door, and a man came up and introduced himself as a minister of the gospel. Since I had quoted what the major churches had to say about that principle, and not one of them believed in the eternal duration of the marriage covenant and the family unit, I said to this minister: "Did I misquote you tonight?"
"No, Mr. Richards, but it is just like you say, we don't believe all the things our churches teach."
I said, "You don't believe them either."
Then I said, "Why don't you go back and teach your people the truth. They will take it from you, but they are not ready to take it from the Mormon elders yet."
He said, "I will see you again," and that was all I could get out of him that night.
The next time I went there, about four months later, he was standing out in front of the church. We shook hands. I said, "I would certainly be interested to know what you thought of my last sermon here."
He said, "Mr. Richards, I have been thinking about it ever since. I believe every word you said, only I would like to have heard the rest of it."
Here was a man occupying a pulpit in his own church who believed every word I said, and yet he couldn't teach it to his people.
I am going to tell you one more experience. A few years ago two of the major churches on the west coast, including California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, and Nevada, were holding a convention here in Salt Lake. Their leader wrote a letter to President McKay and asked if he would send one of the General Authorities to attend their convention and talk for two hours in the morning session and tell them the story of Mormonism, and then remain as their guest for lunch, and then remain for an hour and a half in the afternoon and let them ask questions. I got the assignment-and I was glad to get it! I tell the missionaries that you never need to argue with anybody when you learn how to tell our story.
Some of these ministers wanted to get away on earlier planes up to the Northwest, so they set the luncheon back a half an hour, and they gave me two and a half hours in that morning meeting. I explained the restoration of the gospel, the difference between a restoration and a reformation, and at the conclusion of my talk I only got one question out of all these ministers and church leaders.
The man in charge said, "Mr. Richards, you have told us that you believe that God is a personal God."
I said, "That is right."
He said, "We have heard it said that you believe that God has a wife. Would you explain that to us?"
I think he thought he had me in trouble, and so rather facetiously I said, "I don't see how in the world he could have a son without a wife, do you?"
And they all began to titter. I didn't have any more trouble with that question.
At the close of my remarks, I told them that while I was the Presiding Bishop of the Church, we had charge of the building program. We had the plans prepared for the Los Angeles Temple. One day we took them and showed them to the First Presidency, but we didn't have the electrical or plumbing plans completed. We had 84 pages about 4 feet long and 2 1/2 feet wide, and I imagine you have all seen blueprints. I said, "Now you could take those blueprints and try to fit them to every building in this world, but there is only one building they will fit, and that is the Mormon temple down in Los Angeles." Then I said, "Of course you can find buildings that have material in them such as cement, lumber, electrical wiring, plumbing, and so forth, but you can't find any building that they will fit."
Then I held up the Bible. I said, "Here is the Lord's blueprint. Isaiah said the Lord had declared the end from the beginning. It is all here. Now," I said, "you could take this, the Lord's blueprint, and try to fit it to every church in this world, but there is only one church that it will fit, and that is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Now," I said, "I will proceed to illustrate to you what I mean."
I said that in Canon Frederick William Farrar's work Life of Christ, he said there were two passages in the New Testament for which he could find no excuse. The first is John 10:16, where Jesus said, "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd."
I said, "Do any of you men know why that is in the Bible? Do any of you know any church in the world that does know why it is in the Bible? Well, we know all about it." And then I explained the promise to Joseph of a new land in the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills, and in describing that land, Moses uses the word precious five times in just a few verses.
I said, "Do any of you know where that land of Joseph is?" Then I explained that it was the land of America, and that Jesus visited his people here in America, and he told them that they were the other sheep of whom he spoke to his disciples. He said that not at any time did the Father command him to tell his disciples who the other sheep were, only that he had other sheep.
The other passage they couldn't understand was the one where Paul said, "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?" I said, "Do any of you know why that is in the Bible? Do any of you know any church in the world that does know why it is in the Bible?" Then I explained this doctrine to them.
I quoted to them the words of Peter following the day of Pentecost, when he said to those who had put to death the Christ, "And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
That is not a reformation; that is a restitution. I said, "That is what I have been telling you here for two hours and a half, and you can't look for the coming of the Savior as was promised by Peter and the prophets until there has been a restitution, and not a reformation."
When I concluded, the man in charge said, "Mr. Richards, this has been one of the most interesting experiences of my entire life." That is what Isaiah meant when he said, " the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid."
I bear you my witness that there isn't a man or a woman in this world who really loves the Lord with all their heart who wouldn't join this church if they would just take time to find out what it is, for I know that it is God's eternal truth. He has sent his messenger to prepare the way for his coming. I pray God to bless us and help us all to be missionaries. I leave you my blessing in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Presiding Bishop
This is a wonderful sight, brethren, to see so many priesthood holders gathered in one hall, and then to recognize so many gathered throughout the various other chapels and buildings. I am grateful to be with you tonight and to participate in this priesthood meeting.
On November 9, 1972, the First Presidency announced the organization of the Melchizedek Priesthood MIA and the Aaronic Priesthood MIA. This decision by the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve will have great impact on the lives of the members of the Church in years to come. President Lee referred to it as potentially one of the most significant changes in the Church in our lifetime. Having been involved in the development of the plan, I can testify to you that it came through inspiration from the Lord.
In great measure it fulfills the prophecy of President Joseph F. Smith, who said, "We expect to see the day, if we live long enough, when every council of the Priesthood in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will understand its duty, will assume its own responsibility, to the uttermost, according to the intelligence and ability possessed by it. When that day shall come, there will not be so much necessity for work that is now being done by the auxiliary organizations, because it will be done by the regular quorums of the Priesthood. The Lord designed and comprehended it from the beginning, and He has made provision in the Church whereby every need may be met and satisfied through the regular organizations of the Priesthood."
In the Lord's eyes the basic responsibility for our young people first rests jointly with parents and with the youth themselves. The Church and its organizations exist to aid parents in their sacred callings. It is in this light that we discuss the Aaronic Priesthood MIA this evening. With this change in organization, the Presiding Bishopric as the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood, assisted by the Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Men's and Young Women's presidencies and boards, became responsible on the general level for supporting the parents of youth ages 12 to 18. The MIA under this reorganization becomes part of the priesthood and is no longer an auxiliary.
Until tonight, this change has been limited to the general level of the Church. It is my great honor and privilege now to introduce this change, as far as the Aaronic Priesthood MIA is concerned, to the stakes, missions, wards, and branches of the Church. What I shall tell you now has the approval and support of the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve, and all of the General Authorities.
Let us begin with the ward organization. The bishopric is the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood. This now means the total priesthood responsibility for Aaronic Priesthood MIA in the ward. The bishopric is directly responsible for all young men and women between the ages of 12 and 18. The bishop is president of the priests quorum and responsible for all priest-age boys and Laurel-age girls. One counselor is responsible for all teacher-age boys and Mia Maid-age girls; the other counselor, for the deacon-age boys and Beehive-age girls.
The bishopric will call and set apart four adult male leaders. One will be the president of the Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Men. He will coordinate all activities of the adult youth leaders in the above three age groups under the direction of the bishopric. He will in large measure assume the responsibilities formerly held by the general secretary-Aaronic Priesthood youth. The other three will be advisers to these specific age groups and will be responsible for all their activities and functions. For instance, the deacons' adviser will teach the deacons quorum in priesthood meeting, be the Scoutmaster, and be involved in the activities of all the 12-through 13-year-old boys. The other two advisers will have the same responsibilities for their age groups.
The bishopric will likewise call four adult women leaders. One will be set apart as the president of the Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Women. The other three will be set apart as advisers to the three age groups, namely, Laurels, Mia Maids, and Beehive girls, just as their counterparts are the advisers to the young men. The Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Women's president will then coordinate all activities for the young women under the direct supervision of the bishopric, as does her counterpart for the young men.
A service and activity committee composed of not more than three men and/or women will be called to function under the direction of both presidents to provide leadership in these areas with special emphasis on service. There is a great desire in the hearts of our young people to be of service to their fellowmen-service such as helping a widow with her yard, taking a family home evening program to an elderly shut-in, helping the poor, the sick, the handicapped, or those who are in emotional distress. This limited committee will also be responsible for the activity projects, such as dance, drama, sports, athletics, etc. These leaders will not be known as drama director, dance director, etc., but will function on a broad base.
AARONIC PRIESTHOOD ORGANIZATION-STAKE AARONIC PRIESTHOOD ORGANIZATION-WARD
When the bishopric and Aaronic Priesthood MIA presidents and youth leaders request assistance in service and activity areas, this committee or its members individually will assume the responsibility. The committee will have available to them specialists in various areas of activity on a temporary basis. They may be adults or youth. For instance, a drama night will be directed by a member of the activity committee assisted by a specialist whom the bishop calls for that special project only.
The two presidents of the Aaronic Priesthood MIA will each have a secretary to complete the ward organization.
The bishop's youth committee, composed of quorum and class officers, will continue to function but with greater emphasis placed on leadership training for the youth. Young quorum and class presidencies have much to offer if helped to learn and allowed to perform in their callings. It is of the utmost urgency that every bishop in the Church organize his bishop's youth committee and help them to function effectively in this new organization. Their involvement and contribution are of great importance to this realignment of responsibilities.
The bishopric now has more direct priesthood responsibility for all youth of the ward between 12 and 18 than ever before. This responsibility is in partnership with parents, and it is essential that the energy and talent of youth themselves be used.
This modified organization is primarily ward oriented.
In many aspects the stake organization parallels that of the ward. The stake presidency is the presidency of the Melchizedek and Aaronic priesthoods of the stake. One member of the stake presidency will be appointed chairman of the Aaronic Priesthood MIA of the stake. He will supervise matters involving the youth between 12 and 18 in the stake under the overall direction of the stake presidency.
Four high councilors will serve under his supervision. One will be designated as the adviser to the Aaronic Priesthood MIA of the stake. This includes young men and young women. There are no Aaronic Priesthood MIA presidents on the stake level. This high councilor will see that the entire youth program of the stake functions properly, of course, reporting to the chairman. A second high councilor adviser will be responsible for the young men of priest age, another of teacher age, and the third of deacon age. They will also work with the advisers of the young women of the same age group.
The stake president will call four adult women advisers. One will be set apart as the adviser to the Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Women of the stake. Another will be the adviser to Laurel-age girls, another to the Mia Maid-age girls, and the fourth the Beehive-age girls. To assist these leaders, there will be an assistant stake clerk for the young men and a young women's secretary.
As on the ward level, a service and activity committee of not more than three adults, men and/or women, will be called. Again, they will not be known as dance or drama directors, etc. They will function under the supervision of the advisers to the Aaronic Priesthood MIA. As needed, they will have specialists available to them on a temporary basis to perform a stake service or activity for a single project. These may be adults or youth. A stake youth committee will be formed as needed to further involve the young people themselves.
Regional activity for these ages is to be deemphasized. If it seems appropriate to have regional activities, the service will be provided through temporary appointments from the Quorum of the Twelve or, in the case of athletics, through the Melchizedek Priesthood MIA regional organization.
These changes have been presented to all Regional Representatives of the Twelve. Bishops and stake presidents will receive more detailed information in the near future, including job descriptions of each position. This organization is to provide experiences that focus on the relationship that youth have with the Savior.
In summary, may I list some of the objectives of these changes:
1. Aaronic Priesthood MIA actually is now priesthood oriented.
2. Our interest is centered on each individual youth, not on programs alone. We must provide activities for those who do not presently come to church as well as for those who do.
3. Direct involvement of young people themselves is of the utmost Importance.
4. There will be greater accountability for our stewardship as leaders.
5. All that is done is intended to strengthen the family.
6. Finally, because of the emphasis on people rather than programs, local leaders, both youth and adult, will have the opportunity to determine in great measure the appropriate activities for their young people.
Inasmuch as these modifications will be reviewed in detail at June Conference, it is essential that the new stake Aaronic Priesthood MIA organization be implemented as soon as possible so that the proper stake officers will come to conference. We realize there will be limitations of distance as far as attendance at June Conference is concerned, but would hope that all stakes throughout the Church would implement the new organization as soon as possible. Sufficient information will come through the mail for this to be accomplished. Stake leaders will then train ward officers so that the entire program on both the stake and ward levels will be functioning by September 1 of this year. Until instructions come after June Conference, the ward organization and program should continue as at present.
You will be interested to know that June Conference is not an auxiliary conference but will be a priesthood conference. The First Presidency will preside and conduct the opening and closing sessions of the conference. President Harold B. Lee will give the keynote address.
Never has the Lord blessed the earth with a finer generation of youth, nor has there ever been a time when Satan has been more active in influencing the lives of our people. I pray the stake presidencies, bishoprics, and all leaders of youth will sense the urgency of the needs and the lateness of the hour, that we may be magnified and made equal to our responsibilities, that through our love of youth and dedicated leadership, all young men and women in our stakes, wards, and branches may taste the sweetness of the gospel of Jesus Christ and draw close to him in this life so they will be worthy to be with him in the life to come. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Dale Kilbourn
President Robert L. Backman
Aaronic Priesthood MIA Young Men
My beloved brethren: Last Saturday I was honored to speak to several hundred young men and women graduating seminary students from the high schools in Utah Valley. Under the leadership of a council of their own peers, they had planned a full day's activity, which included visits to Welfare Square and the Beehive House, a talent assembly, a devotional and testimony meeting, and a lovely dance. To my knowledge, the only adult who took active part was the area supervisor who introduced me. The rest of the adults present were there to give silent support and, by evening, were feeling their age after sharing a day of youthful vitality and enthusiastic activity.
I wish every adult leader in the Church could have been in attendance to share the spirit of that testimony meeting. With deep emotion, one lovely girl spoke of her reaction when it was discovered that her father had cancer. How she prayed and prayed that he be healed, then came to the realization that her prayers were selfish-that our loving Father in heaven was in control and that she should submit to his will. She evidenced a very mature outlook on life, something that some of us as adults never experience in a lifetime of living.
A handsome young man, obviously a football player, told of how his testimony had been strengthened through association with fine, faithful friends, most of them a year older than he. Graduating from high school and soon to be separated from one another, they had a "last fling" together, a visit to the lovely grounds of the Provo Temple. Then they went to a quiet spot where in the late evening hours 12 future leaders of the Church bore their testimonies of the divinity of the gospel and expressed their love for one another.
I have never heard so many expressions of love for friends and adult leaders who had influenced their lives.
The meeting was closed with "I Know That My Redeemer Lives." I have never heard those beautiful lyrics sung with more genuine feeling. Tears fell freely as those great young people sang from their hearts.
I mention their experience because it is so typical of many other experiences I have enjoyed among this royal generation of youth. As Bishop Brown has stated, there has never been a finer generation. I have great confidence that the kingdom of God will be in capable hands as they assume their future roles of leadership, and I am equally confident that they now are capable of assuming much more responsibility for their own welfare than we have been willing to give them.
With the new direction given to the Aaronic Priesthood MIA program, it now becomes our responsibility as adult leaders to give our youth the opportunity to grow in their capacity to lead, to serve, and to love.
What a challenge adult leaders have in helping youth, particularly youth leaders, to learn their duty and perform to their fullest capacity while still leaving room for their own initiative and challenge as they anxiously engage in a good cause, doing many things of their own free will.
The Church leadership of the future will be built upon the foundation that is laid today. If youth are denied opportunities to test their own strength, then the leadership foundation will be weak and unready. Equally as serious, however, is thrusting unprepared youth leaders into situations in which they fail because the demands of that situation exceed their experience and capacity. Discouragement and doubt will result. The balance between enough responsibility and too much calls for fasting, prayer, and diligent service by youth and adult leadership as they labor together to build the kingdom. The Aaronic Priesthood MIA organization as introduced by Bishop Brown provides a setting where such a fine balance may be struck. With the bishopric of the ward-the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood-in direct charge, the bishop's youth committee, composed of the priests group leader, the Aaronic Priesthood quorum presidents, the girl class presidents, and the adult presidents of the Aaronic Priesthood MIA, becomes a forum where youth leaders can communicate with the bishopric. They can be totally involved in selecting their activities and be tested and taught great leadership principles without being smothered by too many adult leaders. Yet, this youth committee expands to the ward Aaronic Priesthood council with the addition of the adult leaders of the age groups, who can temper unbridled enthusiasm and zeal with their experience and practicality, exercising some degree of control without dominating the youth councils.
Bishops, an effective youth committee is vital to the success of your Aaronic Priesthood program. It may surprise you what these bright young people will come up with in the way of individual and group service projects and meaningful activities or suggestions for implementing their program.
If you have not discovered it yet, you will. Our young men and women have a deep sense of purpose and a keen appreciation for our social needs. They want to be of service; they want to be useful; they want to make this a better world in which to live. Witness the joy of the youth who gathered by the hundreds to clean ditches and gather the debris left by the recent floods in southern Arizona, or those who cleaned up an entire Utah community in a day of service.
An active youth committee in Cache Valley made it their project to take care of the aged and shut-ins. Each week the girls would prepare suppers and the boys would prepare lessons or activities to take to the homes of the unfortunate, giving them plenty of tender loving care in a family home evening situation. What do you think that did for those young people to be involved in such a worthy, compassionate service?
Their deep desire to be of service and to demonstrate their love can even benefit the bishop. In Sacramento, California, while the bishop was away on vacation with his family, the youth committee determined to paint his house. These young people had the time of their lives working together and anticipating the pleasant surprise of the bishop when he returned. A real bond of love was established between the youth and their bishop with such meaningful service.
Bishops, we urge you to make use of your youth committee; make it the effective instrument it should be to meet the needs of the youth of your ward. I hope every one of you will keep in mind the words President David O. McKay gave us so stirringly: "The spirituality of a ward will be commensurate with the activity of the youth."
You will note, from Bishop Brown's explanation, that each member of the bishopric has been given a particular age group-both boys and girls-to direct. What a marvelous opportunity this gives for the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood to help our youth leaders learn the duties and responsibilities of their respective callings. And what a blessing it will be for our youth leaders to enjoy a close relationship with the great youth leaders of the ward.
To you Aaronic Priesthood quorum leaders, I hope you understand that the Lord outlined your duties as presidents of the Aaronic Priesthood quorums. He directed you to preside, to sit in council with your quorum members, and to teach them their duty. He didn't give that assignment to your advisers; he gave it to you. You share the responsibility, with the bishopric, of blessing the lives of every member of your quorum as you fulfill your sacred calling. What a transformation takes place when young Jack Smith becomes President John Smith, deacons quorum president, entitled to revelation from the Lord in directing the affairs of that quorum, and President Smith really assumes the responsibilities of his office. You are too young for such responsibility? The apostle Paul sensed something of the inadequacy young men feel when they are thrust into leadership. He counseled his young "son in the faith," Timothy, "Let no man despise thy youth. "
Dana Miller was approaching his twelfth birthday, looking forward to becoming a deacon. One evening, just prior to his birthday, the front doorbell rang. Dana's father, a high councilor in the stake, answered the door to find three young men on the porch. "We are the deacons presidency and have come to call on your son, Dana." Admitting these quorum leaders, Brother Miller retired to another room while the presidency sat down with Dana and outlined his duties and responsibilities as a priesthood holder. That visit had more impact on a boy's life than hours of counseling from an adult could have. Today Dana is president of the deacons quorum. What kind of a president do you think he is with that kind of an introduction to the priesthood and example from his leaders?
The Lord has assured us, "For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves."
My beloved young brethren, why are we so anxious to have you assume responsibility and learn your duties as priesthood bearers? Perhaps our reason was best stated by Elder Ezra Taft Benson in a speech he delivered to an Explorer conference several years ago. He said: "We are not a church of organized sitters; we are a church of organized workers, and we want you to get into it with all your enthusiasm and power. Young men, my brethren, we want you on the field. We want you sweating it out. We want you to have responsibility because you grow under responsibility."
You royal generation, you special people that God has reserved to come forth in this day, may God bless you with an understanding of who you are and bless you with a knowledge and understanding of the mission that he has in store for you. May your lives reflect that you are disciples of Jesus Christ, and may you, like our elder brother, grow in "wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man", that you will be prepared for the awesome responsibilities that he has before you. I challenge you to do so, to honor your priesthood and to show these good brethren of ours, who are placing increased responsibility on you as bearers of the priesthood, that you are worthy of that honor.
I bear my witness to you that God is our Father, that he loves you. He has given you the opportunity to come to this life to gain a body and to experience the joys and the sorrows of life that you can return to him and be prepared for even greater service. May God bless all of us who render service to him. May we honor our priesthood and truly represent his cause, I pray humbly in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James E. Faust
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brethren, I am humbled and honored by the transcending privilege of being able to speak to you in this great assemblage of the priesthood.
I express appreciation to the First Presidency for the assignment that I share with my choice colleagues, Elders Marion D. Hanks and L. Tom Perry, to have concern for the adult single members of the Church over 18 who have, on occasion, been referred to as the "forgotten ones." I am grateful to our advisers of the Twelve, Elders Thomas S. Monson, Boyd K. Packer, Marvin J. Ashton, and Bruce R. McConkie, for their constant interest and support, and to our director, Jeffrey R. Holland, as well as to the faithful and dedicated members of the general board.
During the past few months, we have spent many hours listening. Most of the single adult members are well adjusted to life and its problems, but they still need the loving attention from the Church and its members to reaffirm their usefulness and the love that God has for each of them. They are not problem people, but many have problems, often not of their own making. A choice friend reminds us, "If you don't have any problems, just wait awhile."
We have been deeply moved and sobered as we have heard a common thread running through the expressions of many of the single adults. Loneliness and discouragement are for some their most constant companions. One great soul who has a good bishop, a good home teacher, a good position, and comfortable circumstances said, "I don't need more to do; I just need someone to do it with." This becomes a matter of great concern when we consider that approximately one-third of the adults in the United States are single.
The proper and rightful focus of the Church on the home and the family frequently causes the single members who have no companion and family to feel left out. One writes, "Many members of the Church treat a divorcee as if she had leprosy. I have lived in a certain LDS ward in Salt Lake for several years, where they had a widows' and widowers' party every year at Christmas time. I was never invited. I have always lived a good life and believe the Savior would have invited me. I am acquainted with some who have experienced both death and divorce, and they say that divorce is worse than death."
Still another writes, "Believe me, with the Church emphasis on families and children, we are already thoroughly aware that we are 'oddballs.' It has been a real pleasure to be accepted as a normal person."
We must begin by trying to reach the one-every single individual. We want all to feel that they belong to the Church in the context of Paul's message to the Ephesians: " ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God." In our minds we draw two circles: one for the Young Adults, who are of the ages 18 to 25 and include all, whether at home, away from home, on campus, on missions, or in the military, within the circle. We draw another circle and include all of those age 26 and over in the Special Interests, whether never married, widow, widower, or divorced. Everyone who is single belongs in one of these two circles. There are none who are outside the circles.
Brother Hanks recently reminded us of how the Lord directed Ananias to the one. Ananias was sent to the street called Straight to restore the sight of Saul of Tarsus, stricken blind at the time of his conversion. Ananias responded by reminding the Lord of how much evil Saul had done. The Lord said, "Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me. " Paul states that Ananias "came unto me, and said unto me, Brother Saul. "
Somehow we must reach the one-every single one-for they are "chosen vessels" unto the Lord.
Speaking to the single members, President Lee recently said, "In your ranks are some of the noblest members of the Church-faithful, valiant, striving to live the Lord's commandments, to help build up the kingdom on earth, and to serve your fellowmen."
As we undertake to reach the one, we should remember the counsel of the Lord to Samuel, as he was sent to the house of Jesse to find the one who should reign over Israel. The Lord said to Samuel, "Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature , for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."
We believe that each single adult member of the Church may be reached through three fundamental principles: priesthood direction and correlation, individual involvement, and flexibility.
All activities will function under the priesthood.
Under the principle of individual involvement, priesthood leaders will advise and direct, but should encourage the growth and development of the single adults by delegating to them all appropriate responsibility in conceiving, planning, preparing, and executing their activities. This should be done within the context of the recent teaching of the General Authorities by President Lee, when he referred to the scripture, "Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty. " President Lee placed the emphasis on let, in the sense of permitting or allowing those given responsibilities to function within their callings without unnecessary restrictions.
It is hoped that priesthood leaders will make things happen by letting or permitting single members to involve themselves in planning and carrying out their activities locally, directed toward service. Through service, wounds can be turned into muscles for living. Leaders from the single members' groups themselves must be sufficiently innovative and creative to involve each one.
There may be complete flexibility in age groupings and in organizing according to their specific interests.
It is not intended that detailed programs will be sent out from Church headquarters. We hope to be sending principles, options, and models for local implementation into local programs and to stimulate other activities. Elder Packer suggests that you are being sent a cookbook, rather than a casserole. We will be asking the stake presidents to share their successful recipes with others.
There are limitless opportunities and possibilities within the concepts of the principles announced, which can be summed up in the statement of the Prophet Joseph Smith when asked how he governed his people. His response was, "I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves."
The First Presidency has recently authorized ward leaders to organize single adults not living at home for family home evening, with one designated as the leader. It was made clear that the group should not be called a family and the leader cannot appropriately be designated as a father. Monday evening will be the most convenient for these groups to meet.
There has been complete cooperation between Bishop Brown and his counselors directing Aaronic Priesthood MIA, Sister Spafford and her counselors in the Relief Society, and the managing directors of Melchizedek Priesthood MIA. We are all interested in having our combined efforts fit together with all other Church activities in the interest of all members of the Church.
Within the next few weeks, priesthood leaders throughout the Church will be receiving more detailed instructions from the First Presidency for the implementation of the adult single members' activities of the Church. All will wish to study these instructions carefully and to follow them. One stake president, who has been leading out in these activities, recently said, "This program is not more work for the priesthood leaders, but it is an aid to them, if they will let the single members themselves organize and plan their own activities."
What is proposed is a way to reach the one and have each feel that someone cares and that each has a place in the Lord's church. Too often we are thoughtless and insensitive to the feelings of these choice souls among us. One well-meaning priesthood leader, concerned about one of these choice single women, whose heart was aching for companionship and a more fulfilling life, asked, "Why don't you get a husband?" She replied in good humor, "Brother, I would love to, but I can't go pick one off a tree."
Reaching the one will involve reaching out in many ways. Recent research indicates that 40 percent of the 18- to 22-year-olds feel that they do not have a single friend they can rely upon. Gerald A. Speedy, commenting on this problem, said, "Think what it would be like not to have a single friend. It is almost impossible to comprehend. Without a friend, a person is in a state of potential crisis."
I bear solemn witness to the divinity of this great and marvelous work and to the continuing inspiration that has come from the Lord through his chosen prophet, who has been far ahead of all of the thinking and the planning that has been done. Somehow, some way, we must reach the one, every single one, for they are "chosen vessels" unto the Lord. President Lee's message to the single members is sublime: "To you, the words of the Master have a special meaning: 'He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.'" That this may be so, I pray humbly in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Melchizedek Priesthood MIA Where available, Institute of Religion personnel could be used at any level deemed necessary by priesthood leaders. Other resource personnel such as social service agencies, athletic directors, etc., may also be used as needed.
Magnifying One's Calling in the Priesthood
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brethren of the priesthood:
I encourage each of us and, if I had the power, I would inspire each of us to magnify our callings in the priesthood.
When we accepted ordination to the priesthood, we covenanted with the Lord that we would magnify our callings. At the same time, he covenanted with us that if we do so, we shall be "sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of bodies" and "become the sons of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God," and unto us shall be given all that the "Father hath."
The specified penalty for breaking our covenant and "altogether therefrom" is that we "shall not have forgiveness of sins in this world nor in the world to come."
The Lord further said to the brethren assembled at the time he revealed the covenant:
"And I now give unto you a commandment to beware concerning yourselves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life.
"For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
In order to magnify our callings in the priesthood, three things at least are necessary:
One is that we have a motivating desire to do so.
Another is that we search and ponder the words of eternal life. And a third is that we pray. Over and over again the scriptures teach that men receive from the Lord according to their desires. Alma declared:
" I know that granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto men according to their wills, whether they be unto salvation or unto destruction."
Jesus acted on this principle. In John's parchment record, he wrote:
" the Lord said unto me: John, my beloved, what desirest thou?
"And I said unto him: Lord, give unto me power over death, that I may live and bring souls unto thee.
"And the Lord said unto me: Verily, verily, I say unto thee, because thou desirest this thou shalt tarry until I come in my glory, and shalt prophesy before nations, kindreds, tongues and people."
At the opening of this last dispensation, the Lord said to the Prophet's father: " if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work."
And two months later he said to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery: " as you desire of me so it shall be unto you. "
The importance of desire is dramatically pointed up in this quotation from the 18th section of the Doctrine and Covenants:
"And now, behold, there are others who are called to declare my gospel, both unto Gentile and unto Jew;
"Yea, even twelve; and the Twelve shall be my disciples, and they shall take upon them my name; and the Twelve are they who shall desire to take upon them my name with full purpose of heart.
"And if they desire to take upon them my name with full purpose of heart, they are called.
"And now, behold, I give unto you, Oliver Cowdery, and also unto David Whitmer, that you shall search out the Twelve, who shall have the desires of which I have spoken;
"And by their desires and their works you shall know them."
The desire these men were to have was not a desire to be called to an office. It was a desire to take upon themselves the name of Christ "with full purpose of heart."
I remember one occasion in the mission field when I was trying to stir an interest in a discouraged missionary. I finally asked him, "Isn't there anything that you desire?" He said, "Yes, Brother Romney, I desire to be an apostle."
No one should seek to be appointed to any particular office in the Church. Such an aspiration is not a righteous desire; it is a self-serving ambition. We should have a motivating desire to magnify our callings in the priesthood, whatever they may be. We should demonstrate that desire by living the gospel and diligently performing whatever service we are called upon to render. Holding a particular office in the Church will never save a person. One's salvation depends upon how well he discharges the duties of the service to which he is called. The Prophet Joseph said:
"From a retrospect of the requirements of the servants of God to preach the Gospel, we find few qualified even to be Priests, and if a Priest understands his duty, his calling, and ministry, and preaches by the Holy Ghost, his enjoyment is as great as if he were one of the Presidency; and his services are necessary in the body, as are also those of Teachers and Deacons.".
Nor is an effective desire a mere wish. It is not impassive; it is a motivating conviction which moves one to action. One of the things it impels a priesthood bearer to do is to search and ponder the words of eternal life.
Since we cannot "live by proceedeth forth from the mouth of God" unless we know what they are, it is imperative that we study them. This the Lord has directed us to do.
As the Jews disputed with Jesus because he said that God was his Father, he pointedly responded: "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."
In the Lord's preface to his Book of Commandments, he said: "Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled."
We are under divine instruction to "teach the principles of gospel, which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon." This we cannot do unless we know what they are.
To Joseph the Prophet, Oliver Cowdery, and John Whitmer, the Lord said: "Behold, I say unto you that you shall let your time be devoted to the studying of the scriptures. "
To the Saints in Kirtland, he said, concerning the instruction he had given them, "Hearken ye to these words. Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. Treasure these things up in your hearts, and let the solemnities of eternity rest upon your minds."
As I have read the scriptures, I have been challenged by the word ponder, so frequently used in the Book of Mormon. The dictionary says that ponder means "to weigh mentally, think deeply about, deliberate, meditate." Moroni thus used the term as he closed his record:
"Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men and ponder it in your hearts."
Jesus said to the Nephites:
"I perceive that ye are weak, that ye cannot understand all my words.
"Therefore, go ye unto your homes, and ponder upon the things which I have said, and ask of the Father, in my name, that ye may understand. "
Pondering is, in my feeling, a form of prayer. It has, at least, been an approach to the Spirit of the Lord on many occasions. Nephi tells us of one such occasion:
"For it came to pass," he wrote, "after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceeding high mountain. "
Then follows Nephi's account of the great vision he was given by the Spirit of the Lord, because he believed the words of his prophet father and had such a great desire to know more that he pondered and prayed about them.
President Joseph F. Smith tells us that "on the third of October, in the year nineteen hundred and eighteen, I sat in my room pondering over the Scriptures. " He had particular reference at this time to Peter's statement that Christ "went and preached unto the spirits in prison" while his body lay in the grave.
"As I pondered over these things which are written," President Smith continued, "the eyes of my understanding were opened, and the Spirit of the Lord rested upon me, and I saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great. " He then gives us an account of his great vision concerning missionary work among the spirits of the dead.
Desiring, searching, and pondering over "the words of eternal life," all three of them together, as important as they are, would be inadequate without prayer.
Prayer is the catalyst with which we open the door to the Savior. "Behold," he says, "I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."
From the very beginning we have been instructed to pray. The Lord commanded Adam and Eve to "worship the Lord their God," and he later sent an angel to say to them, "thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son forevermore."
Jesus instructed the Nephites:
"Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation; for Satan desireth to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.
"Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name;
"Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed."
In this dispensation, even before the Church was organized, the Lord said to the Prophet:
"Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work."
He instructed the priests to "visit the house of each member, and exhort them to pray vocally and in secret. "
Of Church members who went to build up Jackson County, Missouri, he said: " he that observeth not his prayers before the Lord in the season thereof, let him be had in remembrance before the judge of my people."
And finally, he said: " pray always lest that wicked one have power in you, and remove you out of your place."
In conclusion, I ask you to listen to Nephi's exhortation. I hope it moves you as deeply as it does me. He said:
" behold, my beloved brethren,
" I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.
"Wherefore, now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark.
"And now, my beloved brethren, I perceive that ye ponder still in your hearts; and it grieveth me that I must speak concerning this thing. For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray.
"But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul."
That the Lord will help each of us bearers of the holy priesthood to acquire such a powerful motivating desire that we will, through searching and pondering upon the words of eternal life and praying about them, be led to magnify our callings in the priesthood, and that we may thereby qualify ourselves to receive the promised blessings of the "covenant which belongeth to the priesthood," I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Ted Nagata
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
It is a great privilege, honor, and responsibility to stand before and speak to the priesthood assembled in this historic Tabernacle and in the 800 other buildings in the United States and Canada. This is the largest group of priesthood ever gathered to hear the voice of the Prophet, and when we think that they can hear this through closed circuit transmission as he speaks to them, it reminds me that we have an open conduit and a private closed circuit or wave length by which we can speak to our Heavenly Father and hear him, if we keep in tune and try to listen to him.
I often wonder if we really appreciate what the priesthood means. President Romney, who is so close to the Lord, has given us some instructions tonight which, if we would follow, would help us to appreciate the priesthood and enjoy the blessings of those who magnify their callings in the priesthood. If I should say in my talk tonight to magnify the priesthood, I should like it to mean to be in complete harmony with President Romney, to magnify the priesthood in the office which you hold, because that is what we should do, my brethren. We have this heavy responsibility placed upon us when we are given the priesthood of God.
Every time I think of the priesthood, I think of the great honor and privilege we have of speaking and acting in the name of our Heavenly Father, and the responsibility it places upon us. I often say, "What are we going to do about it? Are we going to realize who we are, what we have, and what our responsibilities are?"
I would like to say to you young men: Have a good time; play basketball, play football; play tennis; play anything you want to play, and do anything you want to do as long as it is right, but honor your priesthood wherever you are, that you might be an example to the world.
I would like to deal briefly with the question of how we as priesthood holders should live, and I would like to say just a few words first about the family. The father must realize always that the family is the most important thing in his life. He should never neglect his family. As he looks after his family, he should remember that if he is going to enjoy the family now and throughout eternity, it is essential that they live according to the teachings of the gospel, and remember that "no other success can compensate for failure in the home." Remember too that it is in the home that the most impressive teachings are taught and where the lives of our children are shaped.
If the father will love God, love his wife, love his family, and honor his priesthood, he will have very little to worry about. If all the priesthood would do that throughout the world, what a great influence we would have. Some will be saying: "What about the girls, and the mothers, and the women?" The same is true for them, but I am speaking to the priesthood and how they should act.
Keep the Sabbath day holy. Keep the Word of Wisdom strictly. Pray always, and be honest with one another and with your fellowmen. Study the gospel. Know what is expected of us, why we are here, that we are actually spirit children of God, and as such we must keep ourselves morally clean. And that is one thing, fathers, that we should teach our boys to do.
I should like to give you, as I speak about the family and fathers, an example by reading what Sister McKay said about President David O. McKay: "I am very, very proud of my husband. He is just as lovely, just as courteous, just as polite, just as kind and just as sweet in our home as he is anywhere else, and I am very proud of him. And I am grateful for him. I cannot see anything wrong with him. I pray that our brethren will try to follow his example in every way, shape, and form."
And I can't think of much better advice, brethren, for us to have.
As an example of good teaching, I remember a young man telling me one day about his parents and how they taught him the importance of going to the temple and preparing himself to be worthy to go into the house of the Lord by going to the temple regularly. As they were preparing to go to the temple, they would talk about it, and the experiences they would have, and what a great privilege it was to go to the temple, and to go regularly. When they would return from the temple, they would talk about it, and how lovely it was to see a young couple married in the temple, realizing that they could then be parents of spirit children of God, and what a great privilege it was for them to be there in the temple. This boy could hardly wait then for the time to come when he could go in and receive his own endowments, and he knew how important it was to prepare himself to be clean and pure and to go there knowing that the Lord would accept him.
Personally, I should like to express the appreciation I have always felt for my father. Father taught us to pray. It seemed that he was talking directly to the Lord when he kneeled down in family prayer. He taught us to pray privately. He was honest and honorable in all of his dealings. I wish I had time to tell you some of the experiences I had to let me know that he was honest and upright in his dealings with his fellowmen. He magnified his priesthood, and he expected us to do it. He always showed great love for Mother.
He used to take us hunting or fishing, as busy as we were on the farm. He found it difficult, I am sure, to leave, but he would go with us, and he would never go on Sunday; he never thought of that. We always attended our meetings regularly with him. I remember some of my friends saying, "I wish I had a dad like yours. It is sure great to be with him." And I can tell you that we boys-there were four of us-would rather be with our dad than anybody else because he was a good father. Fathers, it is important that you be with your boys so they can see how you live, and you can see how they live.
I remember Father's placing confidence in me. We used to work on the farm, as I said before, and he would call me in the evening or early morning to discuss his plans, his program for the day, and ask me what I thought about it. Should we do this or should we do that? I felt that I was a part of it. I know now that he had his plans pretty well formed, but he showed that confidence in me. And realizing that I was part of it, I worked my head off to accomplish it, and I loved my dad for it.
And then I remember him saying to me one day, "You know, my son, I would rather have you helping me than any hired man I have. I have full confidence in you, and you surely do a good day's work." Such an expression of confidence and appreciation makes one more determined to do well what he is expected to do.
It is very important that we help our boys set their goals high and then set about to reach them. We must understand that Satan is there and is real, as has been told us twice tonight, and is determined to destroy us, to discourage us, to tempt us, and to lead us astray.
I should like to repeat a beautiful experience, which is very touching to me. I hope Bishop Featherstone won't mind my mentioning him as the one about whom I am going to speak. This happened just after they moved here from their lovely home, where they had many friends and were very popular. He had come home after work and had gotten into his lounging clothes, and his young son, Joe, said, "Dad, I wish you would give me a special blessing so that I can adjust and feel at home and be happy here."
His father went upstairs and changed his clothes. As he was coming down, his wife said, "Surely you are not going out tonight." He said, "I am going to give someone a blessing." And then he said, "Joe has asked for a special blessing, and I wanted to be dressed and ready to honor the priesthood and to show Joe the interest I have in him, and to make it possible for him to enjoy the blessings through the faith he has in me and the priesthood."
Brethren, that is the spirit to have. And, of course, as he told his wife, you can naturally imagine what happened. She shed tears as she realized she had a husband, the father of her son, who would be an example and be so interested in him that he would be prepared to represent the Lord in the priesthood that he holds.
I would like to say just a few words to the bishops, to the other officers in the wards and stakes, including the stake presidents, and to mission presidents. We have a heavy responsibility; and especially the bishop, with his counselors, has the responsibility for the Aaronic Priesthood. Much has been said about that tonight, but I would like to say just a few words. You should know every boy by his first name. Show an interest in him; stay close to him. When you know his first name, use it. You remember when God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph, and he asked the question, God turned to him and said, "Joseph," calling him by name, "this is my beloved Son." A boy likes to hear his name called.
Let us remember and remind our boys always, when they are officiating as holders of the priesthood, that they are representing the Lord. They can have their good times every other place and play the way they want to do, but when they are officiating in the priesthood, they should realize that they are representing the Lord, and be so dressed and so prepared and humble and reverent as to properly represent him.
And bishops, it is important that we help them to understand and appreciate what the priesthood means. When I was a bishop I had six boys in my ward old enough to be ordained elders. I could only recommend five of them, because one of them wasn't ready. We had talked about it several times, and he had said to me, "I am not worthy." He felt very bad about it, but he didn't expect to be recommended to the stake president. His uncle came to me and said, "You are surely not going to hold that boy back with his five friends going forward." He pled with me to let him go. He said, "You will be driving him out of the Church if you don't."
I explained to this man, "The priesthood is the most important thing that we can give this boy. We are not handing the priesthood out on a silver platter. This boy and I understand each other, and he is not ready to be ordained an elder." And he wasn't recommended.
A few years later I was attending a general conference right here on this Temple Square, and a young man came up to me and said, "President Tanner, you wouldn't remember me. I am the boy whom you didn't recommend to be ordained an elder." As he put his hand out, he said, "I want to thank you for it. I am a bishop now in California. If you had recommended me when I wasn't worthy, I possibly never would have appreciated what the priesthood is and what is expected of one, and surely I would never have been a bishop as I am today."
Bishops, these young men don't expect something for nothing. They don't appreciate anything they get for nothing, and they should realize and appreciate just what the priesthood means and then be prepared to qualify and be worthy before they are advanced.
By a searching interview, know that they are ready for a temple recommend, for advancement in the priesthood, for a mission, or anything that you are considering them for, and be sure they are ready. It is certainly no kindness to recommend someone when he is not ready-in fact, it is a great disservice and it shouldn't be done. Help them to appreciate what it means and the importance of being ready and worthy. Encourage them, let them know that you love them, and do all you can to help them prepare.
I would like to say, bishops, that as fathers of the wards you have the great privilege, the great joy of directing all the affairs in the ward and of helping these young men to become the kind of young men who will be the leaders in the ward and in the stake, and someday sitting on this stand-some of them certainly will be. Help them to prepare and help them to appreciate that they might be holding responsible positions. And let me say this to you tonight: It is not possible for everyone holding the priesthood to be called to positions of leadership, but holding the priesthood of God is a great privilege, a great blessing, and it alone, if we honor it, will prepare us for salvation and exaltation, if we are ready to serve the Lord wherever we are called. The priesthood of God is something the world doesn't have.
Bishops, you have an additional responsibility. You are judges in Israel, and you should always judge and deal with the transgressor with love and confidence, with a desire in your heart to help him, and carry out your responsibilities to deal with him. Stake and mission presidents also have this responsibility. It is important that when you know there is iniquity, you be kind enough to show an interest in the transgressor and bring him to repentance, and that is a kindness. Love all, but tolerate no iniquity. When it appears that something is wrong, it is your duty to investigate and handle all cases of transgression according to the seriousness of the case. By moving promptly, you might be able to prevent further transgression.
Study the scriptures and the handbook and do as they direct. Bishops and stake presidents must not shirk this responsibility. Anyone who says that he has never disciplined, disfellowshiped, or excommunicated anyone, and that he never intends to, has an entirely wrong attitude and may himself be held accountable.
The Lord has said, "Any member of the church of Christ transgressing, or being overtaken in a fault, shall be dealt with as the scriptures direct."
And President John Taylor said this: "Furthermore, I have heard of some Bishops who have been seeking to cover up the iniquities of men; I tell them, in the name of God, they will have to bear them themselves, and meet that judgment; and I tell you that any man who tampers with iniquity, he will have to bear that iniquity, and if any of you want to partake of the sins of men, or uphold them, you will have to bear them. Do you hear it, you Bishops and you Presidents? God will require it at your hands. You are not placed in a position to tamper with the principles of righteousness, nor to cover up the infamies and corruptions of men."
The cases that are to be handled by the Church include but are not limited to fornication, adultery, homosexual acts, abortion, or other infractions of the moral code; intemperance; criminal acts involving moral turpitude, such as burglary, dishonesty, theft, or murder; apostasy; open opposition to and deliberate disobedience of the rules and regulations of the Church; cruelty to spouse or children; advocating or practicing so-called plural marriage; or any un-Christianlike conduct in violation of the law and order of the Church.
Those who are guilty of transgression are never happy until they confess their sins and repent. Experience has proven that every transgressor who is dealt with as he should be, with love and a desire to help and with the proper discipline, is able to start out anew with a clear conscience and can then and only then progress as he could not do otherwise. He will thank you for it, and as you try to help him, the Lord will bless both you and the repentant individual.
I would like to say just a few words to the boys and young men as priesthood holders-the young men particularly. You have been told what your responsibility is tonight. I want to impress upon you the importance of keeping morally clean. Prepare yourselves for the great blessings that come only through the priesthood, such as temple blessings, filling missions, and doing other things that you can do in the offices you hold. No man, young or old, who holds the priesthood of God can honor that priesthood without honoring and respecting womanhood. Any young man should be prepared to protect a woman's virtue with his life, if necessary, and never be guilty of lusting after a woman or doing anything that would degrade her or cause her to lose her virtue. Every young woman has a perfect right to feel safe in going out with a young man holding the priesthood, knowing that he will respect and protect her in every way.
We all know that the morals of the world are loose. Though we are in the world, we must not be of it. Whether your associates are members of the Church or not, and whether or not they are transgressors, they will expect you who hold the priesthood to honor that priesthood and will respect you if you do. Otherwise, they lose confidence in you and respect for you and for the Church.
If we would live each day so that we could look the bishop, branch president, the stake president, the president of the Church, or the Lord in the eye and say, "I am doing my best to magnify my priesthood," then we would be safe.
No young man guilty of serious transgression should apply for a temple recommend or expect to be called on a mission or wish to be advanced in the priesthood until he has repented and is worthy of such a call. I can think of no greater disappointment, sadness, or sorrow that can come to anyone than to have a missionary who is not worthy, not dedicated, and guilty of transgression, be sent home dishonorably released, disfellowshiped, or excommunicated. This is a great disappointment to his companion, and it makes the mission president's heart bleed to have to deal with one of his missionaries who is guilty of transgression either before coming or while in the mission field, and then to have the difficult responsibility of sending him home. It distresses the parents and grieves the bishop and stake president and those with whom he has worked so closely. It is an affront to the Lord and seriously affects the life of the missionary.
May the Lord help us to appreciate who we are and to live accordingly, realizing that we do hold the priesthood of God in the church of Jesus Christ, the only men in the world who hold the authority to speak in God's name. Assembled here tonight in these different buildings, every priesthood office of the Church is represented, and the success and progress of this church depend on you as individuals who hold the priesthood. May we prove worthy, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
President Harold B. Lee
We have here Captain Larry J. Chesley, Major Jay C. Hess, and Lieutenant Commander David J. Rollins. Will you stand up, please? Captain Chesley, United States Air Force, was a prisoner of war for seven years. He comes from the Burley Stake, Star Ward. Major Jay Hess, United States Air Force, was a prisoner of war for six years, from Bountiful East Stake. Lieutenant Commander Rollins, United States Navy, a prisoner of war for six years, is from the San Diego North Stake.
These three young men represent many of those boys who have gone through the fire of adversity. We just want you men to know that our hearts have been touched by the announcement of your faith, your confidence in your country and in your commander-in-chief, that you have come through thus far. We want to say to you that we have been praying, we have been hoping with every means at our command; and we now say to the priesthood, brethren, will you put your arms around these boys, and help them now to make their adjustments as may be necessary in their homecoming.
The Lord bless you, brethren. We love you and the many others who have been in these circumstances and have come through the fire, and have now been prepared to go forward. You will be the kind of men that we look to for the standards of our youth in the years that lie ahead. Thank you, brethren. We welcome you home.
Our hearts go out to the many others, to the mothers and fathers in the thousands of homes where the boys didn't come home. We are having an Easter program where they have asked me to respond, seeing what might be done to ease the aching hearts of the thousands of others who didn't come home. There is hope. Thank God for the promise of the gospel and the blessings that lie beyond the grave.
Just a word now about what has been said regarding the Aaronic Priesthood MIA and the Melchizedek Priesthood MIA. I am sure that you listened to President Romney and heard him define that word ponder, and then made its application; that is what we are asking you to do now, and not go out as a Monday morning quarterback and try to do all the second-guessing. I want to say to you that there is no topic that has received longer and more searching, prayerful discussion by the General Authorities of the Church than the matters that pertain to the young people of the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthood groups, and the women of similar ages.
May I just make this one statement, so that you will get this thing in proper focus. These announced Aaronic Priesthood and Melchizedek Priesthood MIAs do not do away with the Young Men's and Young Women's Mutual Improvement Associations. What is intended, as you see this unfold, is that the programs will go forward, but with priesthood identity the like of which they have not enjoyed before. And we sincerely believe that if you fully understand and this program is fully comprehended, as the priesthood identity is now explained, many of those who have not been active will now be brought into activity; and the priesthood and the youth and the young adults, and those over 25, and many others who have felt themselves forgotten souls will now, under the leadership of these great leaders, move forward. We hope that there will not one be missed, and everybody will be taken into focus by the great plan of salvation.
As I have gone out to youth conferences on various occasions, I have asked, "What is your greatest problem?" And surprisingly, the leaders have always said something like this: "We want to have you put all the youth organizations belonging to the same church together." We have had our campus stakes, institutes, M Men and Gleaners, Delta Phi, Lambda Delta Sigma, Latter-day Saint Student Associations, all of them, and sometimes the same ones clamoring to be with the others in the group. Institutionalized, these same groups will still function as far as religious activities are concerned; but so far as the activity part of the program, the social part, is concerned, we trust that as you see this move into action, you will see that our youth of these various organizations, of these various groupings, will now be brought together so that there will be a wider relationship than there has ever been before. Hopefully there will be a greater chance for young people to find companionship within their groups, and eventually, we hope, in temple marriage.
Suspend judgment, then, and ponder what has been said tonight until you receive further instructions, which will be given you in detail, as the brethren have explained.
I have a letter from some man who seemingly has found something in the hieroglyphics of some discovery that is the answer to a lot of the things that lay ahead for the world. And interestingly enough, as I looked at this, my mind reflected back to an address I heard delivered from this pulpit by President Anthony W. Ivins on October 4, 1931. Just why I thought of that-I suppose it was intended that I should-is because he gave an address at that conference and used as his text the recently published book called Our Bible in Stone. Many of you remember this treated principally the erection, the symbolism, and the prophetic character of the pyramid of Gizeh, or in Greek, the Cheops. Students of the pyramid, after a study of the measurements, symbols, and the record of the pyramid, if it had a record, said that the year 1928 would witness the beginning of a period of great tribulation, which would culminate with intensity in 1936. That period, according to the reckoning of the students, would close with the advent of the Lord and the establishment of a period of peace, happiness, and goodwill among men.
Then President Ivins gave these wise words of counsel with reference to this book: "Now, my brethren I have referred to this little book and its contents as I desire that you might understand. It will undoubtedly go into the mission field and our elders may make use of it. I simply want to warn you against sensationalism of any kind. I do not say that his conclusions are wrong, but I do say that they do not come to us as the voice of the Church, nor are they to be accepted as such."
Then he said something that seems very significant to me. He said: "Brother J. Golden Kimball told us yesterday that he was a great believer in dreams that come true." I wish you would think of that. That accords with my feelings. I am a great believer in dreams that have come true.
"I am reminded of the fact," he said, "that immediately after the close of the World War these students of the Pyramids announced and published it that according to their measurements and calculations there would begin in the year 1928 a period which would bring tribulation and sorrow to the people of the world; that they would be required to humble themselves before the Lord, and that that period of tribulation would continue until the year 1936. We all know that a part of this dream at least has come true."
After commenting on the financial condition throughout the nations at that time, in the 1930s, President Ivins then concluded his remarks with these profound words of wisdom: "Well, now, my brethren and sisters, what about it all? Just be calm and turn to the Lord. I pleaded with the people to put their houses in order and get out of debt, for I knew this was coming, because God himself through his Only Begotten Son had declared it.
"Now, my brethren and sisters, if the Church has anything to say to you it will come from them direct and not from the writings of other men. It will come to you in a manner that you will understand it. It will not be speculative. It will come to you philosophically, truthfully, and governed by common sense. God bless you," he said, "is my humble prayer. "
Now this is something that needs repeating to this great body of priesthood, because we have a rash of writings by certain persons who claim to be of good standing in the Church, going into considerable detail as they recite their past and present Church affiliations and activities in the foreword, interlude, and advertising. There are sensational predictions and observations, and to make their writings appear to have Church sanction, they use quotations and addresses from Church leaders, past and present, taken out of context in such a way as to make it appear as though these quotations were the endorsement of the book they wish to sell to Church members, who may thereby be induced to accept their writings as from unquestioned sources.
Now we have also had some who claim to be in good standing in order to take advantage of the gathering of the Saints at some of our general conferences, and who have gone so far as to program group meetings for their own interest, with the obvious hope that by doing so, many of our conference visitors may be urged to attend their meetings, even if it may have necessitated their absence from vitally important instructional sessions of the conference.
Furthermore, some designing individuals have solicited opportunities to speak at church gatherings, firesides, priesthood quorums, sacrament meetings. Now, brethren, we feel it is of the utmost importance to lift a warning voice so that our people will be safeguarded against such tactics as an all too obvious self-seeking opportunity to spread their own propaganda for their own interests.
We must urge that priesthood leaders use careful discretion in screening out those whose motives may be subject to serious questions.
Now a word about magnifying the priesthood. Much has been said about that tonight. I would like to read a portion of a short revelation given through the Prophet Joseph Smith to Edward Partridge in 1830:
"Thus saith the Lord God, the Mighty One of Israel: Behold, I say unto you, my servant Edward, that you are blessed, and your sins are forgiven you, and you are called to preach my gospel as with the voice of a trump;
"And I will lay my hand upon you by the hand of my servant Sidney Rigdon, and you shall receive my Spirit, the Holy Ghost, even the Comforter, which shall teach you the peaceable things of the kingdom;
"And now this calling and commandment give I unto you concerning all men-
"That as many as shall come before my servants Sidney Rigdon and Joseph Smith, Jun., embracing this calling, shall be ordained and sent forth to preach the everlasting gospel among the nations.
"And this commandment shall be given unto the elders of my church, that every man which will embrace it with singleness of heart may be ordained and sent forth, even as I have spoken.
"I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God; wherefore, gird up your loins, and I will suddenly come to my temple. "
Now, I want to refer particularly to this one verse, and then make a few comments about magnifying the priesthood. Notice what the Lord said: "And I will lay my hand upon you by the hand of my servant Sidney Rigdon, and you shall receive my Spirit, the Holy Ghost, even the Comforter, which shall teach you the peaceable things of the kingdom."
The other night I had a group of young Cub Scouts, who are about the age to become ordained deacons, and I said to these young men, "When you get to be deacons, what will be the duties of a deacon?"
And they all said, "The duty of the deacon is to pass the sacrament."
And I said, "Now I would like you to think of this a little differently. That isn't the way to explain the duty of a deacon. What does it mean to pass the sacrament? When a deacon carries the emblems of the bread and water which have been blessed to the good of those to whom it shall be passed, it is then a renewal of a covenant that if they will keep the commandments of God and remember the Lord Jesus Christ, for whom those emblems stand, they will have the Spirit of the Lord to be with them."
A deacon, then, has the responsibility of representing the Lord to carry these emblems and thus be the Lord's agent in submitting these to the body of the Church.
When you ask a teacher what are his duties, he may answer, "Well, it's to do home teaching." But suppose you say to him, "When you do home teaching you are representing the Lord, to visit the home of each member, to see that they are doing their duty, and to see that they are all keeping the commandments of God." The duties of a priest: The priest is to preach, teach, expound, exhort, and baptize, and administer the sacrament; and to visit the house of each member, and exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties." They should have in mind when they are acting in those capacities it is as though they were acting for and responsible to the Lord.
When we officiate in the name of the Lord, as holders of the priesthood, we are doing it in the name and in behalf of our Heavenly Father. Priesthood is the power by which our Heavenly Father works through men, through deacons, through teachers, through priests, and I have a feeling that we are not impressing that upon our young men. They are not taking the understanding of their priesthood as seriously as they might. If they did, they would always want to appear as President Tanner has said of Bishop Featherstone. They would always want to appear at their best when they are exercising their priesthood. Their hair would be properly groomed; their clothing and appearance would reflect the sanctity they should feel in the performance of their priesthood duties. I have had that same feeling. I have never performed an ordinance, such as administering to the sick, without first excusing myself, if I were out in the garden or somewhere, until I was properly clothed, to make the best appearance I could, because I felt in so doing I was drawing close to the Lord himself, and I want to appear at my best in his presence.
Brethren, I am afraid that some of our elders do not understand this, that when they are officiating as elders of the Church, or as seventies or as high priests, it is as though when they perform the ordinance, the Lord through them is acting upon the heads of those for whom they minister. I have often thought one of the reasons why we are not magnifying our priesthood is because we don't understand that as holders of the priesthood, He is working through us by the power of the holy priesthood, and I would wish that we could all have that feeling, and so teach our young people what it means to hold the priesthood and to magnify it.
Now tonight, brethren, we have touched a number of subjects. We come to you, one of the greatest bodies of priesthood that has ever been assembled, so we understand. What an influence! At the sessions of this conference you have had your attention called to some of the most dangerous trends in our public life-sex education, pornography, permissiveness-running rampant over the world. Brethren of the priesthood, this army, if they would reach out with all the influence that they could wield and really magnify their priesthood as the representatives of our Heavenly Father, could engender such a power and might that by the use of our priesthood in our various communities, these things would not be allowed to continue without a sturdy defense on the part of the priesthood of the living God.
We must call ourselves to new service and new responsibilities, and not stand idly by and let these things go without challenge. Our youth are in danger. Keep your home ties strong, brethren. See to it, as we have all tried to say, and as I have repeated it many times and some have quoted it in this conference, that "the greatest of the Lord's work you brethren will ever do as fathers will be within the walls of your own home." Don't neglect your wives, you brethren. Don't neglect your children. Take time for family home evening. Draw your children around about you. Teach them, guide them, and guard them. There was never a time when we needed so much the strength and the solidarity of the home. If we will do that, this church will grow by leaps and bounds in strength and influence throughout the world. No longer need you be considered as a hiss and byword. We should stand four-square for the things that are honorable, righteous, pure, virtuous, and true.
Brethren of the priesthood, we love you. We stand ready. As you pray for us, we will try to meet that high expectation, God being our helper. We realize the magnitude of the responsibility we bear, and except we can be assured of your faith and your loyalty, and your unquestioned one hundred percent keeping of the commandments of God, we cannot meet it.
I quoted in the opening session of this conference a wonderful letter that I received from a student body president who is greatly concerned about things going on on the campus and 'round about in the society where he moves, and then his statement was, "I can assure you that every Latter-day Saint on this campus who is keeping the commandments of God one hundred percent is supporting and sustaining you." Brethren, I know that that is true throughout this whole church. Every Latter-day Saint who is keeping the commandments is following the leadership of the Church. By that same token, if you find those who are not willing to follow the leadership of the Church, you may be sure it is a certainty that they are not keeping the commandments of God one hundred percent.
So it is a call to arms-arms to do what? To keep the commandments of God in order that we might lay claim to the blessings we need so much in this day of uncertainty, in this crazy mixed-up world, as some have spoken of it, and our youth have seemed to feel. In these new movements with our young people, our only hope is that by intensifying the responsibility of the priesthood with the youth organizations we can strengthen their hands and reach out to these young men and women who need so much the shepherding influence of the priesthood, for in so doing we feel sure we can help to raise up a righteous generation that will carry on the work throughout the ages that lie ahead of us.
I bear you my solemn witness, my beloved brethren, that these things that have been spoken tonight have been spoken under the inspiration of the Lord, and we give it to you for your pondering, for your prayerful consideration, suspending judgment, and not raising your voices in criticism, but carrying on the youth organizations as they now exist until these brethren have given you the full details of just what lies ahead; then you can begin to see the merits of what it is all about.
So I bear you that witness and leave you my blessing this night, and pray God's blessings upon you, the priesthood of the Church, the strength of Zion, the backbone of the kingdom of God on earth. So I pray and leave you my blessing, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
Illustrated by Marvin Friedman
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brothers, sisters, and friends, members and nonmembers, wherever you are: I have a very important message for you today, but what I say will be but words unless we enjoy the Spirit of the Lord. I therefore invite you to join with me in a prayer that the Lord will bless us all while I speak.
The truth I desire to emphasize today is that we mortals are in very deed the literal offspring of God. If men understood, believed, and accepted this truth and lived by it, our sick and dying society would be reformed and redeemed, and men would have peace here and now and eternal joy in the hereafter.
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accept this concept as a basic doctrine of their theology. The lives of those who have given it thought enough to realize its implications are controlled by it; it gives meaning and direction to all their thoughts and deeds. This is so because they know that it is the universal law of nature in the plant, animal, and human worlds for reproducing offspring to reach in final maturity the likeness of their parents.
They reason that the same law is in force with respect to the offspring of God. Their objective is, therefore, to someday be like their heavenly parents.
They not only so reason; they know they may so become because God has revealed the fact that it is his work and glory to bring to pass their eternal life, which is the life God lives.
Adam, the first man, knew that he was a son of God. He walked and talked with him in the Garden of Eden before the fall. After the fall, "Adam and Eve, his wife, called upon the name of the Lord, and they heard the voice of the Lord from the way toward the Garden of Eden, speaking unto them. "
Later, the Lord sent an angel who taught them the gospel plan, whereupon, "Adam and Eve blessed the name of God, and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters." Then "Satan came among them, saying: Believe it not; and they believed it not, and they loved Satan more than God. And men began from that time forth to be carnal, sensual, and devilish."
From then until now, most men, like the first generation of Adam's posterity, have "believed it not," although God has repeatedly revealed it to all the prophets from Adam to Noah. He likewise revealed it to Abraham and thereafter to Moses "at a time when Moses was caught up into an exceedingly high mountain,
"And he saw God face to face, and he talked with him,
"And God spake unto Moses, saying: Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty,
" behold, thou art my son;
"And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be the Savior, for he is full of grace and truth;
"And now, behold, this one thing I show unto thee, Moses, my son; for thou art in the world, and now I show it unto thee."
In this short scripture, the Lord three times addressed Moses as "my son."
Paul, in his great speech on Mars' hill, speaking of God, said: " in him we live, and move, and have our being; for we are his offspring."
Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery declared "that he lives!
"For we saw him, and we heard the voice bearing record
"That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
"Begotten sons and daughters unto God." Can this be true in light of the fact that we all know that we are begotten sons and daughters of our earthly fathers? Yes, it is true because human souls are dual beings-spirits tabernacled in bodies of flesh and bone. The revelation says, " the spirit and the body are the soul of man." God is the father of man's spirit, even as his earthly father is the father of his mortal body.
The nature of a spirit is plainly revealed in the scriptures. A clear word picture of a spirit is recorded in the third chapter of Ether in the Book of Mormon, which gives an account of the appearance of Jesus Christ, as a spirit, some 2200 years before he was born to Mary in the flesh. The record says that Jesus stood before the brother of Jared in the form and likeness of a man and said:
" Behold, I am Jesus Christ.
" Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image? Yea, even all men were created in the beginning after mine own image.
"Behold, this body, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and man have I created after the body of my spirit; and even as I appear unto thee to be in the spirit will I appear unto my people in the flesh."
Corroborating this truth, Jesus declared to Joseph Smith as late as 1833:
" I was in the beginning with the Father, and am the First-born;
"Ye were also in the beginning with the Father; that which is Spirit. "
We learn something more about our spirits in their premortal state from a record made by Abraham of a vision in which he was shown a multitude of spirits assembled in a great heavenly council. Consideration was there being given to the creation of this earth as a place upon which they, the spirits, could come and receive bodies of flesh and bone, thus becoming human souls. The plan provided that after a probationary period in mortality they should die-that is to say, their eternal spirit bodies and their corruptible mortal bodies would be separated. Later on, in resurrection, they would be reunited as immortal souls.
Abraham also learned that if during their sojourn on this earth they proved faithful, they would, as resurrected beings, be permitted to come back into the presence of their Heavenly Father-the Father of their spirits-and enjoy eternal progression. These are the words of Abraham:
"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was;
"And God saw these souls that they were good, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.
"And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
"And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
Such is the revealed truth concerning man's lofty estate.
By way of contrast, consider Alexander Pope's portrayal of the predicament into which man has fallen, as a result of his having rejected the revealed word of God as to his identity. Pope pictures him as being-
-"An Essay on Man," Epistle II
The theory that man is other than the offspring of God has been, and, so long as it is accepted and acted upon, will continue to be, a major factor in blocking man's spiritual growth and in corrupting his morals.
That it would be so was clearly predictable. In the mind of its devotee, any such theory as Pope's doubt as to whether "to deem himself a God or Beast" is resolved in favor of being a beast; and his doubt as to whether to prefer "his mind or body," in favor of his body.
The concept that man is a beast relieves him of a sense of accountability and encourages him to adopt the fatalistic attitude of "eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die." He becomes, in truth, as Pope says:
The truth is, my beloved brethren and sisters, man is a child of God-a God in embryo. Every righteous soul responds with empathy to the children singing:
-Naomi W. Randall
That man is a child of God is the most important knowledge available to mortals. Such knowledge is beyond the ken of the uninspired mind. Neither logic, science, philosophy, nor any other field of worldly learning has ever been, or ever will be, able to find it out. Those who limit their search to such learning techniques will continue to be as they have always been, "Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth."
The only means by which such knowledge can be had is divine revelation. Fortunately for us, as has already been shown, it has been so revealed repeatedly from Adam until today.
The aspirations, desires, and motivations of one who accepts, believes, and by the power of the Holy Spirit obtains a witness to the truth that he is a begotten son or daughter unto God differs from the aspirations of him who believes otherwise, as the growing vine differs from the severed branch.
Knowing that he is a child of God, one does not doubt whether to "deem himself a God or Beast." He is not of "chaos thought," driven by "passion" and "all confused." He is not "fix'd like a plant on his peculiar spot, to draw nutrition, propagate, and rot." He thinks of himself, as the scriptures teach, possessed of the innate ability, as are all other reproducing offspring, to reach in final maturity the status of his heavenly parents and have "glory added upon head for ever and ever." This is his goal.
He accepts the Ten Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount, the Word of Wisdom, and every other direction and commandment given of God to be statements of laws, the observance of which is indispensable to the attainment of his goal, to reach which he has dedicated his life.
He strives to respond to the Master's invitation:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
And to his challenge:
" be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect."
He knows that the wise and proper response is to heed the Lord's command to "beware concerning yourselves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life. For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
He believes implicitly the Lord's promise that "it shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am."
He joins with Job in declaring, "I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."
He joins with Alma in his wish:
"O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!
"Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth."
And finally, with Nephi he resolves:
"I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."
I add my personal testimony that I know that I am a son of God, and that you, my beloved listeners, are individually a son or a daughter of God, and that this knowledge implemented in our lives will lift us back into his presence through the atoning sacrifice of our Savior, Jesus Christ; and in his name I leave you this witness, even so. Amen.
Elder Delbert L. Stapley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My brothers, sisters, friends, and all who are listening to the messages of this conference via radio and television: It is always difficult to follow President Romney because there is much meat in the talks and sermons he gives.
Today many people of the world are questioning their belief in God, thinking they have progressed intellectually and scientifically beyond their need for his guidance in the affairs of life. They choose to forget that he is the source of all knowledge, he controls all life, and all things are his works of creation.
Man cannot afford to forsake God, depending solely upon his own intelligence. Such a course can only lead to utter confusion and ultimate destruction. Not knowing the mind, will, and purpose of an infinite God, man does not have, regardless of his advanced knowledge, the wisdom and judgment, nor the correct answers to solve all world problems. With implicit faith we must all turn to the God of our fathers in humility and sincere prayer for counsel and guidance.
The prophet Isaiah admonished the children of Israel to "seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
"Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."
This counsel is as important for us today as it was in those ancient times. Worsening, frustrating world problems, aggravated by a general departure from true Christian teachings and ethical practices, give warning of impending dangers and much sorrow unless man forsakes sin and turns to God in sincere repentance. Only by avoiding the pitfalls of evil and following Isaiah's counsel can we expect to receive God's mercy and his abundant pardon.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the only sure basis for a righteous life. No other plan, moral code, or creed can match or supplant its teachings. The gospel is a wise and guiding set of laws, principles, and ordinances for all men to live by.
The weakness and foolishness of many today cause them to be more interested in the teachings of man than in the teachings of God, as found in both ancient and modern scriptures. Unfortunately, for the most part, the thoughts of mortal men are centered in this temporal life and not on the eternal life. The philosophies of men cannot replace nor transcend gospel philosophy as given in the revelations of God, nor can the science of man replace the truths revealed by God through his prophets.
God's ways are not man's ways, but are infinitely superior thereto. The Lord proclaimed to the prophet Isaiah:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,
"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."
By revelation the Savior has furnished the following formula to guide our path to eternal glory:
"Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am;
"And that I am the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world."
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches the complete way of life. Our whole life requires that we reach constantly for high ideals and noble standards of true Christian conduct. The faith of Latter-day Saints should not depend upon the wisdom of men, but upon the knowledge and power of God.
"Be not deceived," warned the apostle Paul; "God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
"For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting."
Seek learning by faith and earnest prayer to know the mind and will of the Lord. Have the courage to obey. Remember, the Lord gives no commandment or law unto the children of men that he himself does not obey. Obedience is a loving principle of a just God, and through obedience we can gain power from on high.
In this mortal life we not only have the opportunity, but the moral obligation, to right our wrongs. We should repent of our evil doings and confess them in order to give our lives spiritual direction. We are counseled to have faith in our Eternal Father and in his Son, our Redeemer. We should seek the desire, through righteous living, to once again dwell with them in the heavenly mansions they have prepared for the faithful. The following scripture sustains this thought:
"For if you will that I give unto you a place in the celestial world, you must prepare yourselves by doing the things which I have commanded you and required of you."
It is unfortunate that so many have to learn the lessons of life the hard way, but what a great blessing it is to have an Eternal Father who cares enough to teach us, to bring us to repentance, and to forgive. Hear the words of encouragement as given to the prophet Ezekiel: "Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?"
The Lord expressed to Moses great concern for the welfare of his children when he said: " behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Immortality is assured to all of us through the atonement of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. But eternal life is a personal responsibility we must earn and be worthy of.
David the Psalmist emphasized the importance of man in this inspired statement:
"What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
"For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
"Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet."
Man's recent scientific and technological accomplishments, his desire and courage to explore the universe, and his attainment in so many fields of learning testify he is a child of God and, therefore, should always look to God for guidance and further light and truth.
God has revealed that he desires all of his people to grow together in the unity of faith, understanding, and devotion. The apostle Paul so encouraged the Corinthian saints: "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment."
We are here to help each other progress, to inspire one another unto love and good works, and not just to sit in judgment. Our responsibility is to give encouragement to those who are inactive and erring. We have a duty to "see that there is no iniquity in the Church, neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking."
This teaching was emphasized by the apostle Peter when he gave this advice:
" be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
"Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing."
The real strength of the Church is in the character and dedication of its members. The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthians: "Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel." This counsel can be applied to every member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-that by living the gospel and setting a good example we are automatically preaching its tenets and showing the right way for others to follow. The greatest gift we can give another is the gift of a good example.
President Spencer W. Kimball said: "Our challenge today is to be a light unto the world. if the three million members of the Church would live the gospel principles, all the errors of the world would evaporate. The world would come to us, and we would change the frustration of the world to the peace of the gospel."
I plead with all members of the Church to actively and honestly live the gospel of Christ. Our eternal happiness and joy depends upon the kind of life we chart and live here in mortality. The apostle Paul taught: "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils." In other words, we cannot serve two masters, for either we will hate the one and love the other, or else we will hold to the one and despise the other. We cannot serve both God and mammon.
Anyone who thinks he can obtain eternal goals some other way than outlined in the gospel of Christ should remember the Savior classified such as a thief and robber. Christ gave this parable to his disciples:
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:
"Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it."
Each of us has the responsibility to seek that goodly pearl, the kingdom of heaven, which is, according to the Savior's parable, the pearl of great price. Its attainment is worth every effort and sacrifice we make. To be saved in the kingdom of God is the greatest of all the gifts of God, for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation, and he that hath eternal life, proclaims the Lord, is rich.
To those members who are not living the gospel, I challenge you to do so, obeying all gospel requirements and attending church regularly for a full year. Then compare your life after a year's trial of faithful gospel living with your previous manner of living, and ask yourself conscientiously which way is best. Give the gospel a chance in your life by living it, to prove its worth and value to you and to your family.
Live to be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost. If you have its spiritual influence, it will bring conviction into your hearts. It will build testimony and create in you a desire to love the Lord. You will manifest that love by keeping his laws and commandments and serving him. The Holy Spirit will testify to the truth of these teachings and you will know, as the apostle Paul knew, that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation.
It will also give you the perfect assurance that the Lord's way is the only way one can find the abundant life the Savior promised.
I extend this challenge to all people everywhere who desire to know the truth and who are not satisfied with their present lives and associations. It takes courage to accept the challenge to seek the Lord while he may be found and call upon him while he is near; but I promise you, if you do so, it will pay off in dividends of peace of mind, joy of heart, comfort of soul, satisfaction of personal needs, and a love that never fails.
Now, brothers, sisters, and friends, I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ, our Redeemer and Savior, the very Son of God. He sacrificed his own life upon the cross that we might live eternally. He broke the bonds of death through his resurrection, which guarantees the resurrection of all mankind. He bought us with the price of his own blood. We can show our gratitude by living righteously and setting a proper example to all people everywhere.
May God bless and guide us aright; may we be blessed with the spiritual strength to close the door to all temptations of evil and walk uprightly before the Lord, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Howard Post
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters: I appreciate very much this privilege of having some part with you in these great general conferences of the Church. This is the place where we come each six months to be instructed in our duties and built up in our faith. This is where some of the most important business of the Church is transacted. And then twice each year we have this thrilling, exciting experience of holding up our hands and making a personal covenant with the Lord that we will sustain and support those who are placed in authority over us in the Church and that we will also keep all of the Lord's commandments.
The other evening I reread Saint Paul's famous twelfth chapter of First Corinthians, in which he compared the various parts of the human body with the spiritual gifts and ecclesiastical offices which have been placed in the Church. He said that all were necessary and that the eye could not say to the hand, "I have no need of thee." And each six months, as I see the thousands of raised hands in this assembly, I like to think of the great power and many important duties, both symbolic and otherwise, that we hold in our hands.
The Lord has placed in our hands the responsibility for working out our eternal exaltation in fear and trembling before him. When we are sick we have hands placed upon our heads and we are given a blessing for the restoration of our health. By the laying on of hands we confirm people members of the Church. We confer the Holy Ghost. We ordain people to the priesthood, and we set them apart for that portion of the work of the Lord that they are called to perform. We raise our hands in salute. We hold them over our hearts as we take our pledge of allegiance to the flag. We clasp hands in friendship and fellowship. We lay them upon the shoulders of our friends to give commendation and encouragement. With a pair of willing, ambitious, capable, clean hands, we can move mountains and we can save souls.
It was probably one of the greatest good fortunes of our lives when creation decided to flatten out the ends of both of our arms and place a hand on each one. When you put on your shirt in the morning, just imagine how you would get along if you had any other device except a hand on the end of your arm. Just suppose that you had a hoof or a claw or a wing, or a pair of pliers.
The story is told of a young man who went blind in his early youth. Many years later after an operation, the first thing that his newly restored vision rested upon was his own hand, and he thought he had never imagined anything quite so wonderful as his own hand with its circulation system, its communication system, its temperature control, its self-healing ability, and its wonderful covering of skin.
Or think of the usefulness of these wonderful little bony levers that we call fingers. They can readily be trained to play the piano, dial telephone numbers, and do the accounting. Someone once said that a man's best friends are his fingers. He said, "About the only thing that a man can really count on these days are his fingers."
I would like to remind you of an assignment that the Lord once gave to the fingers of the Israelites when he instituted this ancient custom of wearing phylacteries. The Lord knew then what every one of us ought to know now, that there are certain passages in the scriptures that must never be forgotten if our lives are to be successful. Therefore, to help the people to remember, he required that they write some of these passages down on pieces of parchment, encase them in little leather tubes, and bind them across their foreheads and between their eyes. They were required to hang them around their necks and bind them on their arms like wrist watches and wear them like rings upon their fingers. About this custom the Lord said to the people: "And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
"And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes."
You will recall that your mother used to make an interesting adaptation of this idea. When she sent you on an important errand, the purpose of which she did not want you to forget, she helped you to remember by tying a red string on your finger with a bow on the top so that no matter where you went or what you did, you would always remember what your mother wanted you to do. And that is about what the Lord did to the children of Israel.
When I raise up my hand to make my personal covenant with the Lord, I try to imagine which phylacteries he would most like to see on my hand, and here are some of the things that I have been thinking about.
The first finger on the hand is the thumb. The thumb serves as the anchor man of the hand. And the first law of any success says that "you must know your business." Lord Bacon said, "Knowledge is power." Jesus said, " this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
Dr. Henry C. Link once pointed out that "nothing puts so much order into human life as to live by a set of sound principles." And the most sound principles are the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. However, before we can live by them very effectively, we must know what they are.
The first question that Adam and Eve were asked to decide when they were placed in the Garden of Eden was whether or not they would eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And after they had eaten, God said, " the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil."
I would just like to point out in passing that the right kind of knowledge still tends to have that effect upon people. It still tends to make men and women become as God. A flaming sword was placed in the Garden of Eden to guard the tree of life, but fortunately for us there is no flaming sword guarding the tree of knowledge, and each one of us may eat to his heart's content. And maybe you can think of something more exciting than that, but I don't know what it would be. In this great age of restoration and enlightenment we can know about as much as we want to know about any subject, including God and his program for our eternal exaltation.
The second finger is the pointing finger. This is the finger you use to show people the way. This is the directing finger. And the second law of success says that you must be a convert before you can be a disciple. You must be a convert before you can be a leader. You must be a convert before you can show other people the way.
Jesus said to Peter, "Simon, when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." Peter may have been a little bit offended at this, as he probably felt that as the chief apostle, he was already converted; but what happened that very night at the house of Caiaphas when he denied the Lord three times may have indicated that even Peter was not fully converted. And it would help us if we made up a great credenda of beliefs and had strong, well-worked-out convictions centered in each one.
The third finger is the big finger. This is the power finger. It has the best location on the hand. The third law of success says that you must WANT to succeed-in capital letters. If I want to succeed in letters an inch high, I will fail. But if I want to succeed in letters a yard high, then I will succeed.
The Lord said, " if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work." If we don't WANT to do it we can't do it. Alma said that God grants unto every man according to his desires. And we ought to spend a lot more time than we ordinarily do in increasing the volume and intensity of our righteous desires.
A young man once came to Socrates and said, "Mr. Socrates, I have come sixteen hundred miles to talk to you about wisdom and learning." He said, "You are a man of wisdom and learning and I would like to be a man of wisdom and learning. Would you teach me how to be a man of wisdom and learning?"
Socrates said, "Come, follow me." And he led the way down to the seashore.
Then they waded out into the water up to their waists. Then Socrates seized his friend and held his head under the water. His friend struggled and kicked and bucked and tried to get away but Socrates held him down. Now if you hold somebody's head under the water long enough he will eventually become fairly peaceable, and when this man had quit kicking, Socrates carried him out on the bank and laid him out to dry, and he went back to the marketplace.
After this man had thawed out a little bit he came back to Socrates to find the reason for this rather unusual behavior, and Socrates said to him, "When your head was under the water, what was the one thing you wanted more than anything else?"
And he said, "More than anything else I wanted air."
Then Socrates said, "When you want wisdom and learning like you wanted air, you won't need to ask anybody to give it to you."
When we really WANT to be disciples of Christ, in capital letters, when we really WANT to be servants of the Master, then everything else will be easy. Someone once said to Mozart, "Would you teach me how to write symphonies?" Mozart said, "You are too young to write symphonies." The young man said, "But you were fifteen years younger than I am when you began writing symphonies." Mozart said, "But I didn't have to ask anybody to teach me." Only when we get some of these great qualities inside of ourselves are we in a position to make progress.
Now the fourth finger is the ring finger. This is the finger that you use to fall in love with. This is the finger you get married with. This is the family finger. This is where you wear your family home evening phylactery. This is the finger that represents the source of most of your education and your satisfactions and your eternal happiness for both here and hereafter.
Shakespeare said, "No profit comes where there is no pleasure taken." You can't do very well that which you don't enjoy doing. If we don't get great pleasure out of our families, we should repent, because we are doing something wrong. If the work of the Lord seems burdensome and makes us weary, or if we don't get exhilaration and uplift out of that part of the work of the world that life has given us to do, then we should repent. We need some more powerful satisfactions from life.
Now the last finger is the little finger. This is the weakest finger. This is the finger that has the poorest position on the hand, and we might imagine that we could just take him off the team and throw him away without losing very much. However, the big finger cannot say to the little finger, "I have no need of thee." The little finger may come at the end of the line-up, but that is the quarterback position, and you don't need a great big man to be the quarterback, providing the other members of the team are fully qualified and effectively functioning. That is, the thumb knows his business backwards and forwards and upside down and standing on his head. The pointing finger has some powerful, well-developed convictions about it; the big finger WANTS to do it, in capital letters; the ring finger gets great satisfaction from doing it; and all the little finger has to do is to do it. He is the worker. He is the one who takes care of the mechanics of production. He is the one that handles the checkup and does the follow-through. He is the one Jesus came calling for when he pleaded for "doers of the word" and not just hearers and talkers only.
Someone has said, "My, oh my, what miracles we could accomplish if our hands moved as fast as our tongues." He said, "After all is said and done, there is usually a lot more said than done."
As I sit here on this platform each conference and raise up my hand to make my personal covenant with the Lord, it is stimulating to me to remember that the President of the Church sits directly behind me and God is over my head, and I would not like to have either of them feel that my hand was not clean or that any of my necessary phylacteries were missing. And if I had the gift of speech and the power to plant a conviction that I would like to have, I would say to the millions of people in the world who are earnestly seeking to be disciples of the Master to hold up their hands to God and make a solemn covenant with him to keep all of his commandments.
And I would remind everyone of that thrilling occasion when Moses was leading the children of Israel in their battle against the Amalekites. Moses took the rod of God in his hands and went to the top of a sacred mount, where he held up his hands to God over the battle; and as long as Moses held up his hands, Israel prevailed. But when he let his hands down, the Amalekites prevailed. And as Moses' arms became heavy with weariness, Aaron and Hur stood on either side of Moses and helped him to hold up his hands until the battle was won.
If we all hold up clean, honest, industrious hands to God, then his work will prevail. And then it will not be long before the prayer of the Master is fulfilled wherein he said to his Father, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." And may God bless you, my brothers and sisters, that all of us together may effectively hold up our hands to God and that our covenants may be acceptable to him. For this I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Enoch, the sixth from Adam, was most certainly one of the great prophets of all time, for he walked and talked with the Lord for three hundred years, according to the scriptures. Imagine the understanding that entered his mind, the enlargement of his soul, and the eternal truths that were revealed to him by the Creator of the earth and the heavens.
In the Book of Moses in the Pearl of Great Price, we read:
"And I saw the Lord; and he stood before my face, and he talked with me, even as a man talketh one with another, face to face; and he said unto me: Look, and I will show unto thee the world for the space of many generations."
The Lord showed unto Enoch all the inhabitants of the earth, and he told him all the doings of the children of men. He saw the wickedness of the people, the flood which covered the earth in the days of Noah. He saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man in the flesh in the meridian of time; he beheld him lifted upon the cross; he saw the mourning of the creations of God and heard the earth groan; and in answer to Enoch's inquiry and pleading, the Lord said to Enoch:
"As I live, even so will I come in the last days, in the days of wickedness and vengeance. the day shall come that the earth shall rest, but before that day the heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall cover the earth; and the heavens shall shake, and also the earth; and great tribulations shall be among the children of men, but my people will I preserve."
Our Father and his Beloved Son knew before man was placed upon the earth, and before this world was created, the story of man's existence upon this earth-the plan of life here and salvation and exaltation in the life to come. The dispensations of time were understood, the purpose of earth life was known, and the development of that plan was fully charted. Otherwise, how could the Lord show unto Enoch, as he did to other prophets also, the history of this world, including the families that should dwell upon the earth throughout the centuries of its existence?
In the Book of Abraham we read:
"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
"And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born."
In the first chapter of the book of Jeremiah in the Bible, the Lord, in speaking to the prophet Jeremiah, said: "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations."
Not only did the Lord know who were to be his rulers, but undoubtedly there was a chart or outline prepared showing the times of the various dispensations of the gospel, the things that would happen in those dispensations, and the conditions that would precede those periods of time.
The scriptures record the prophecies of God's servants relative to these things. And from the time of Adam, the Lord through his prophets has foretold the events that would precede his second coming, the time when the gospel of our Lord should be restored to earth and proclaimed to all mankind.
When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered Israel, he arranged to have brought to Babylon some of the princes of Israel; the record says: "Children in whom was no blemish, but well favoured, and skilful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science. " Among these princes who were brought into Babylon was the Hebrew prophet, Daniel.
In the book of Daniel in the Bible, we read of a dream that Nebuchadnezzar had, which dream gave him great concern. The account says that upon awakening he was unable to recall the dream. He called upon the wise men of Babylon, the magicians, the sorcerers and Chaldeans, to tell him the dream and to give him the interpretation thereof. This, of course, was an unusual request, and these wise men were greatly agitated; they were unable to comply with the king's demand.
The king had told them that if they did not make these things known to him, they would be destroyed. Daniel, recognizing the predicament, inquired of the Lord and was inspired by him to make known to Nebuchadnezzar the information he requested. He recalled to the king the dream and gave him the interpretation thereof.
In his dream Nebuchadnezzar had seen a great image like unto a man. The head of the image was of gold and represented the Babylonian kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar. The other various parts of the image represented the kingdoms that would follow. The account relates that, among other things, Daniel reminded the king: "Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces." He further said that "in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed. "
The Lord knew in the days of Nebuchadnezzar the kingdoms that would come forth upon the earth. He knew the time when his kingdom, God's kingdom, would be set up. He knew those choice souls, his prophets in this dispensation, Joseph Smith and those who have succeeded him. He knew and knows today the destiny of his church and kingdom, that it will roll forth and accomplish the purposes indicated in that remarkable dream.
How is it possible that in our day through his patriarchs and prophets the Lord can and does make known conditions pertaining to the future? How can they foretell that certain persons will be apostles and prophets in his church, even when such individuals are merely small children or young men at the time of the foretelling?
As an illustration, it was made known to Presidents Joseph F. Smith, Heber J. Grant, David O. McKay, and others that they would one day be in the leading councils of the Church, that they would be apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, that they would become presidents of the Church in this dispensation. And to many others it has been made known that they would be appointed to positions of eminence, which predictions have been fulfilled.
" both Presidents Wilford Woodruff and Lorenzo Snow had prophesied that Joseph F. Smith would sometime become president of the Church. Thirty-seven years earlier in the Hawaiian Islands when President Snow, then a member of the Council of Twelve, nearly lost his life by drowning, he declared that the Lord made known to him 'that this young man, Joseph F. Smith would some day be the Prophet of God on the earth.' President Woodruff was once relating to a group of children some incidents in the life of the Prophet Joseph Smith. 'He turned to Elder Joseph F. Smith and asked him to arise to his feet. Elder Smith complied. "Look at him, children," Wilford Woodruff said, " He will become the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I want everyone of you to remember what I have told you this morning."'"
When Heber J. Grant, who became the seventh president of the Church, was a child playing on the floor in a Relief Society meeting, Eliza R. Snow, who was truly a prophetess, gave him a blessing in tongues, which was interpreted by Sister Zina Y. Card, to the effect that that little boy would someday be an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.
On another occasion Heber C. Kimball, one of the counselors to President Brigham Young in the First Presidency of the Church, stood that same boy on a table and prophesied that someday he would be a greater man in the Church than his father, and his father, Jedediah M. Grant, was a counselor to President Brigham Young.
Again, when Brother Grant, at the age of 24 years, was president of the Tooele Stake, Patriarch John Rowberry gave him a patriarchal blessing in which he was told that he would someday be in the leading councils of the Church; and after the blessing was given, he told Brother Grant: "Heber, I dare not tell you what I saw when I had my hands upon your head."
Brother Grant later, after becoming president of the Church, said that when Brother Rowberry made that statement it went through his mind just as if a voice said it, "You will someday be the president of the Church." Brother Grant thought it was such a presumption on his part to even think such a thought that he never mentioned it to anyone until after he did become president of the Church.
On one occasion, when President David O. McKay was in his youth serving as a missionary in the land of Scotland, a very spiritual missionary meeting was held under the direction of Elder James McMurrin, a counselor in the mission presidency. As testimonies were borne and spiritual experiences mentioned, President McMurrin turned to President McKay and said: "Elder McKay, I'll say to you as the Savior said to Peter, 'Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.'" He then said, "If you are faithful you will yet stand in the leading councils of the Church."
Other similar experiences could be related.
As was the case with Abraham and Jeremiah and others of the ancient prophets, these men, leaders of God's kingdom in this dispensation, were chosen before they were born to represent him in this last dispensation.
It is interesting to read the history of the past wherein are related conditions leading up to the ushering in of this dispensation of the gospel: the work that was done by the reformers, Luther, Calvin, Knox, and others; the manner in which the way was opened for the printing of the Bible so that the people generally could have the privilege of reading God's word: the miraculous development of the art of printing; how the spirit of people who wanted to worship God according to the dictates of their conscience; the coming of the Pilgrim fathers to this land in search of freedom and liberty; the war for independence; the establishment of the Constitution-all looking forward to the time and preparing the way for the restoration of the gospel, the opening of this dispensation.
The dispensation of the fulness of times was introduced upon the earth by the visit to the boy Joseph Smith of the Father and the Son and other heavenly beings. Darkness was dissipated and there came an outpouring of light and intelligence. The kingdom of God, as indicated in the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, has been established upon the earth and is rolling forth as the stone cut out of the mountain without hands, and it will continue to do so, looking forward to the time of the coming of the Lord.
Through his experience and his omniscience, our Heavenly Father knows the end from the beginning. Through his prophets he has revealed and does reveal the history of mankind, the timetable of life upon this planet.
This is the dispensation of the fulness of times, when the keys of all former dispensations have been given to the prophets of the restoration, a time when God has spoken from the heavens and angels have appeared to man, a time when men and women have the Holy Ghost conferred upon them, and by the power of the Holy Ghost we may know the truth of all things. There is need for this great power in the earth today.
The history of this world is in fulfillment of the plan prepared in the heavens before this earth was created. That which the world calls Mormonism is based upon the rock of revelation. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the eternal truth, the plan of life and salvation. I testify to these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Dale Kilbourn
President Spencer W. Kimball
President of the Council of the Twelve
Brothers and sisters and friends: Much has already been said in this conference about the powerful influence for good that the family and home training have been and will be upon the rising generation. For the past three months President Harold B. Lee has been speaking through film the great story Strengthening the Home. It is going to many people in many lands and in many languages.
It seems that while the world accepts the spurious and the vulgar and the errors, there is an increasing number of wise leaders who write and speak of the importance of the family and home life.
One such leader wrote: " strong family life is indispensable, not merely to the culture but actually the survival of any people."
He continues: "In the history of mankind one nation after another has followed this pattern and they have disappeared."
The family provides the involvement in selfless activities and the acceptance of responsibility. He says, again:
" for the well being of the community; for the very existence of the nation, one of the first questions asked about any proposed change in the culture should be, 'Will it strengthen the family?'"
The Lord organized the whole program in the beginning with a father who procreates, provides, and loves and directs, and a mother who conceives and bears and nurtures and feeds and trains. The Lord could have organized it otherwise but chose to have a unit with responsibility and purposeful associations where children train and discipline each other and come to love, honor, and appreciate each other. The family is the great plan of life as conceived and organized by our Father in heaven.
To any thoughtful person it must be obvious that intimate association without marriage is sin; that children without parenthood and family life is tragedy; that society without basic family life is without foundation and will disintegrate into nothingness and oblivion.
The Father knew all this when he gave this command to his children in November 1831. He was not arguing that there should be families. He seemed to take that for granted and commanded: " as parents have children in Zion they shall also teach their children to pray and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
We see the blessings of family life as we make contrasts. In the address above referred to, President Lee gave these figures:
"Of 180,000 divorces recorded by the Census Bureau 57 percent were in homes where there were no children; 21.2 percent where there was only one child; and in families with five or more children, divorces were less than one percent."
This is a telling story.
Once when I talked to leaders in a foreign world where different ideologies touch their children, I asked how the parents were able to hold their children and keep them from the evil, and their reply was so natural and so proper:
"We train our children in our homes so completely in the way of right and truth that the destructive, godless philosophies and heresies of their other teachers run off without penetrating, like water on a duck's back, and our children remain true to the faith."
Ah, that is the answer. Family life, home life, home evenings, dedicated, selfless parents. That is the way the Lord ordained our lives to be.
More than a decade ago a major in the U.S. Air Force told of his test flights. He was born of goodly parents who taught him righteousness. He had flown 25 different types of military aircraft in 4,000 hours in the air. He had flown 142 combat missions in Korea and had received many distinguished medals. He told us that "before takeoff every pilot takes a few moments to make a last-minute check of his engine, flight controls, hydraulic and pneumatic systems and other essential subsystems of his aircraft to be sure the flight can at least begin safely. His reactions to emergency conditions must be instinctive and as infallible as human thought and reflexes permit.
" Yet, there is something missing on the printed checklist which to me has become as necessary to a successful flight as lowering the wheels for a smooth landing. It is a prayer to ask my Father in heaven to bless me that my best judgment and skill will guide my actions, especially in periods of stress. There have been several instances in which I know the answer to this prayer has been received with dramatic suddenness. "
Being born of goodly parents in a goodly home with goodly training in his infancy, childhood, and youth, he seemed to feel secure in his hazardous work.
This major was unafraid, for he was prepared. He knew the power of the Lord's statement: "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear."
Someone said that "fear and fortitude are opposites but both are necessary for the growth of character. wholesome fear generates its own antibodies."
These three lines were lettered on the mantel in an English hotel at the time of Dunkirk, a time when every man or boy who could navigate, no matter how amateurishly, found a hero in himself brave enough to help rescue England's army: "Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. No one was there."
During the blitzkrieg, many a man saw a sign down by the London docks and followed its suggestion: "If your knees are knocking, kneel on them."
Again, the revelation says, "If ye are prepared ye shall not fear."
That preparation comes from infancy and childhood training, when faith is born and character established. It is a bit late to try to build faith when the ship is sinking or the plane is falling or the head-on collision is certain.
One air navigator gave us this: "I had said my prayer back in the fifteenth orbit"; and another: "Courage is said to be fear that has said its prayers."
If children are tuned in on the right wave length, if they are taught early the responsibilities of time and eternities, they will usually react properly when engulfed in emergencies. If they have conscientiously and faithfully done all that is expected of them, nothing can be too far wrong. The Nephite prophet insisted: " ye pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places; and in your wilderness."
And what a great legacy to our children Isaiah promised: "And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the peace of thy children."
Surely every good parent would like this peace for his offspring. It comes from the simple life of the true Latter-day Saint as he makes his home and family supreme.
"Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed."
Is that too much to ask?
I was in Idaho Falls and was the guest in a home of a typical Church family. There were a dedicated set of parents and many children. The oldest was in military duty in the dreaded South Pacific, and the hearts of the family followed him from place to place. They handed me his latest letter from the war zone. I read this:
"There have been times when we were so scared, we would tremble, but the fear was out of our minds with prayer and the knowledge that we were being guided by the Lord.
"Dad, I love my religion and I am proud that I had someone like you and Mother to teach me to pray. Then I also know that you are praying for me each morning and night. "
Spirituality is born in the home and is nurtured in the home evenings, in the twice-a-day and oftener daily prayers, in the weekly meetings when the family goes en masse. That spirituality as the foundation of one's life comes to his rescue when emergency strikes.
Security is not born of inexhaustible wealth but of unquenchable faith. And generally that kind of faith is born and nurtured in the home and in childhood.
Prayer is the passport to spiritual power.
From World War II comes a story of a young Utah boy who was called to serve his country in the faraway places across several time zones.
On his wrist he wore the conventional wristband watch to tell him the time in the area in which he was living. But strangely enough, he carried a larger, old-time heavier watch in his pocket, which gave another time of day. His buddies noted that frequently he would look at his wrist watch, then turn to the old-fashioned one in his pocket, and this led them, in their curiosity, to ask him why the additional watch. Unembarrassed, he promptly said:
"The wristwatch tells me the time here where we are, but the big watch which Pa gave me tells me what time it is in UTAH. You see," he continued, "mine is a large family-a very close family. When the big watch says 5 A.M. I know Dad is rolling out to milk the cows. And any night when it says 7:30, I know the whole family is around a well-spread table on their knees thanking the Lord for what's on the table and asking Him to watch over me and keep me clean and honorable. It's those things that make me want to fight when the goin' gets tough. I can find out what time it is here easy enough. What I want to know is what time it is in UTAH."
I knew this family well. I knew the sailor slightly. I knew this father. His cows had to feed a large family, but his greater interest was the growing children who needed more than milk and bread. I have knelt in mighty prayer with this wonderful family. The home training has carried through to the eternal blessing of this large family.
O my beloved hearers, what a world it would be if a million families in this church were to be on their knees like this every night and morning! And what a world it would be if nearly a hundred million families in this great land and other hundreds in other lands were praying for their sons and daughters twice daily. And what a world this would be if a billion families through the world were in home evenings and church activity and were on their physical knees pouring out their souls for their children, their families, their leaders, their governments!
This kind of family life could bring us back toward the translation experience of righteous Enoch. The millennium would be ushered in. Enoch was asked questions about himself; he answered, among other things, " my father taught me in all the ways of God." And Enoch walked with God and he was not, for God took him.
Enoch and his people dwelt in righteousness in the City of Holiness, even Zion. And Zion was taken up into heaven.
Yes, here is the answer: righteous, teaching parents; obedient, loving children; faithfulness to family duties.
These qualities in a home make for security and character in the lives of children.
The following verses of Adelaide Proctor, written more than a century ago, emphasize unity of the family and real parental love.
A childless man of wealth offers ease and security in exchange for one of seven children. Which shall it be?
May we in the Church and in this world come to know the Lord's ways and follow them explicitly, I pray.
I add my solemn witness that President Harold B. Lee is the Lord's divinely called prophet to this world. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by William Whitaker
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
When the Savior established his church during his mortal ministry, and as it was further developed by the twelve apostles of that day, one important fact became conspicuously clear, which is: that salvation comes through the Church.
It does not come through any separate organization or splinter group nor to any private party as an individual. It comes only through the Church itself as the Lord established it.
It was the Church that was organized for the perfecting of the Saints.
It was the Church that was given for the work of the ministry.
It was the Church that was provided to edify the body of Christ, as Paul explained to the Ephesians.
Therefore it was made clearly manifest that salvation is in the Church, and of the Church, and is obtained only through the Church.
The Lord established one strait and narrow way, and understandingly observed that "few there be that find it."
Not only did he provide that salvation should come through his regularly constituted church, but he set up safeguards to protect its members from being tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine and to preserve them from the sleight of men who, with cunning craftiness, lie in wait to deceive.
Those safeguards, according to Paul's epistle to the Ephesians, rested primarily in the persons of the apostles and prophets whom God placed at the head of the Church for that specific purpose.
They were the inspired leaders in the Church. They were the mouthpieces of the Lord, and their inspired messages to the people were the will of the Lord, the mind of the Lord, the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation.
With such heavenly guidance, none need go astray.
But there were men in the Lord's own day who taught false doctrines and led the people into mistaken paths. These the Savior severely criticized, accusing them of apostasy from the very law of Moses which they pretended to preach.
He said to them, "Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law?"
And again he said, " had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me."
What a sad commentary! Had the people believed Moses, instead of the crafty false teachers of their day, they would have accepted Christ, because Moses wrote of Christ. And if they had accepted Jesus, they would have received salvation through his church.
But being blinded by false teachers, they rejected both Moses and Christ, and thus never joined the Lord's church and hence did not receive the salvation which was available through it.
Obviously all of the writings of Moses are not in our Bibles of today, but in the Savior's time they must have been available, for Jesus criticized the elders and scribes for not believing what Moses said when he testified of Christ.
Isn't it interesting that Moses testified of the Savior, and that when the people would not believe Moses they therefore were not prepared to receive the Christ either? Do you recall that Paul said the law of Moses was a schoolmaster to bring the people to Christ?
Not only did Moses write of the Lord, but the other prophets did likewise. Peter said, in speaking of Jesus, "To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins."
We read in the 28th chapter of Acts that Paul, while he was in Rome, received many visitors "to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening."
Obviously, therefore, the scriptures available in that time spoke repeatedly of the Savior as all the prophets gave witness to him.
So there was no excuse for those who led the people astray, persuading them to crucify the Lord, knowing full well that the scriptures spoke plainly of him.
These false teachers of New Testament times established cults of their own, separate and apart from the true work of God, and they, with their man-made traditions, formed the chief opposition to Jesus as he began his ministry.
You are familiar with the names of some of those cults. The Pharisees and the Sadducees are best known. Both were apostate in their teachings. Both were condemned by the Lord, and both developed the religious bigotry which eventually brought about the crucifixion.
Others of these cults included: The Zadokites, who wanted a stricter observance of the Mosaic laws.
The Essenes, who are believed to have written the Dead Sea Scrolls. They rejected temple worship.
The Zealots, a religious anti-Roman cult.
Among the strongest were the Hellenists, who sought to impose Greek philosophy upon the people, trying to merge it with the Mosaic law. They also rejected temple worship.
But a new apostasy developed even during the Lord's own ministry. As early as the events recorded in the sixth chapter of John, this falling away took place. You will recall from reading that chapter in the New Testament that many of his disciples would not accept his pure doctrine and therefore fell away and no longer followed him.
In apparent dismay, Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, "Will ye also go away?"
Then it was that Simon Peter replied, "Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life."
Note if you will that the words of eternal life were not with those who fell away, but rather with those who remained faithful and loyal.
Subsequently, during the administration of the Twelve, serious apostasy developed again. As a result, nearly all of the epistles of the New Testament were written to combat it.
Historians say that within one hundred years after Christ, as many as thirty splinter groups and separate denominations of Christians arose.
Further evidence of early apostasy in the Church is brought forcefully and particularly to our attention by the manner in which Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthians.
In it he testified that there can be no divisions in Christ. Rather, he said, " I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment."
Some of the denominations which developed during the very early years of Christianity were these:
The Judaeo-Christians, who tried to Judaize Christianity and force it to include the Mosaic rites.
The Millenarianists.
The Ebionites, who preserved the custom of using water in the sacrament instead of wine.
The Gnostics, who rejected Jehovah and the Mosaic law.
The Elkesaites, known as baptists.
The Archontics, who taught the existence of a supreme mother in heaven.
The Coptics, who are still extant in Egypt.
The Syriac Christians.
The Mandaeans, another baptist sect.
The Manecheans, and a number of others.
After the Fall of Jerusalem about A.D. 70, the Hellenists seized the upper hand in the Christian religion, taking advantage of the Greek influence, which was being superimposed on the existing culture of the area. Greek philosophical ideas entered strongly into the Christian picture, changing the doctrines and practices of the gospel. This will be understood more readily when it is remembered that both Arius and Athanasius of the Nicene Creed controversy were Greek philosophers. This also is why the early New Testament manuscripts were written in Greek.
These bits of history reveal clearly the importance of avoiding splinter groups, for as Paul expressed it, some "saith I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas", but Christ cannot be divided. There is no Savior but Jesus, and he saves only in his own strait and narrow way and not according to man-made creeds and rituals.
It is all important, then, that members should not separate themselves from the true church, nor apostatize from it, nor be guilty of behavior which would justify their excommunication.
If persons separate themselves from the Lord's church, they thereby separate themselves from his means of salvation, for salvation is through the Church.
Some modern people have created cults of their own, and among them are those who attempt to take refuge in section 85 of the Doctrine and Covenants.
They endeavor to say that the Church has gone astray, that the leaders are no longer inspired, and that "one mighty and strong" is needed to take over the affairs of the Lord. And without any evidence of modesty whatsoever on their parts, they themselves volunteer for the position.
There is one verse particularly in that section which they fail to consider. It is especially pertinent. It says that apostates and others who have been cut off from the Church will not be found among the Saints of the Most High at the last day. Why? Because salvation is in the Church, not elsewhere.
Listen to the Lord's words: "And they who are of the High Priesthood, whose names are not found written in the book of the law, or that are found to have apostatized, or to have been cut off from the church, as well as the lesser priesthood, or the members, in that day shall not find an inheritance among the Saints of the Most High."
But cultists are not the only ones who are excommunicated from the Church. There are those who are cut off for moral transgressions and other infractions of the Lord's rules of behavior. They too should ponder this scripture most carefully.
If people believe in God at all, if they have any regard whatever for their own salvation, should they not realize, as is expressed in scripture, that salvation is through the Church, and that if people are cut off from the Church for any reason, they thus lose their inheritance in the kingdom of God?
President Brigham Young was very expressive in describing the fate of apostates when he said:
"Why do people apostatize? You know we are on the 'Old Ship Zion.' We are in the midst of the ocean. A storm comes on, and, as sailors say, she labors very hard. 'I am not going to stay here,' says one; 'I don't believe this is the "Ship Zion."' 'But we are in the midst of the ocean.' 'I don't care, I am not going to stay here.' Off goes the coat, and he jumps overboard. Will he not be drowned? Yes. So with those who leave this Church. It is the 'Old Ship Zion.' Let us stay in it."
And then he added: "If the candle of the Almighty does not shine from this place, you need not seek for its light anywhere else."
And then this mighty man in Israel declared:
"Whenever there is a disposition manifested in any of the members of the Church to question the right of the President of the whole Church to direct in all things, you see manifested evidences of apostasy-of a spirit which, if encouraged, will lead to a separation from the Church and to final destruction; wherever there is a disposition to operate against any legally appointed officer of this Kingdom, no matter in what capacity he is called to act, if persisted in, it will be followed by the same results." So spoke President Brigham Young.
The language of the Lord is simple and easily understood. If any have apostatized from the Church or have been cut off by the duly appointed courts provided by the Lord, they shall not find an inheritance among the Saints of the Most High unless they repent.
Salvation is not to be found in splinter groups today any more than it was to be found in the various denominations which polluted the teachings of Moses anciently or which, in the days of early Christianity, transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances, and broke the everlasting covenant.
The Lord says further in this same section of the Doctrine & Covenants: " all they who are not found written in the book of remembrance shall find none inheritance in that day, but they shall be cut asunder, and their portion shall be appointed them among unbelievers, where are wailing and gnashing of teeth."
There are some who claim that even though they are excommunicated from the Church, their priesthood and temple blessings are not taken away. Let us remind those persons that the power to seal is also the power to loose, for the Lord has said of his true servants that "whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Excommunication takes away all rights, privileges, and blessings of the Church.
What is so precious as salvation? And how is it to be obtained? Only through the Church and "being anxiously engaged" in its program.
There is no other way. If we are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus and if we fail to repent, we lose the crown over the kingdom and are assigned elsewhere.
But how wonderful is repentance. The Lord has said that if we will repent of our sins and from then on keep all of his statutes, forgiveness will result and reformation is made possible.
What greater promise can the wayward expect?
The Lord came to save sinners. He taught that it is the sick who need the physician. Therefore, he invites the sick-as well as all others-to come unto him, repent, and be cleansed, sanctified, and saved in his kingdom.
"Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?"
And so in his goodness and mercy, he calls out and says:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
But let us remember that his yoke cannot be separated from his church, and his burden requires that each one of us live by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. And to this I testify humbly in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
It is my purpose today to bear testimony to some who have special needs, and to those who have accepted commission from the Lord and covenanted with him to try to help satisfy those needs.
As Christ taught the gospel to the people of this hemisphere, he asked them, " what manner of men ought ye to be?" and answered, "Verily I say unto you, even as I am."
As Christians, we accept that instruction reverently as our guide and our goal.
We know that Christ loves his Father. He came into the world to do the will of his Father, knowing the part he was to play, the price he would have to pay.
He loves us, and for us he fulfilled his mortal mission with suffering so intense and so deep as to cause him to bleed at every pore. With his blood he bought us, brought us the gift of immortality, and made possible for us all good and lovely things now and eternally.
He was gracious but he was not timid. He taught men the truth about his Father, the living God, and testified of him and of his own atoning mission, even though many who had followed him thereafter no longer walked with him. He cried repentance and was baptized of John in Jordan, and taught all men to do likewise, and promised the obedient and faithful the blessing of the Holy Ghost.
Christ knows the worth of souls. He came as Isaiah had prophesied and as he affirmed in the synagogue in Nazareth: " to preach the gospel to the poor; to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised."
He taught the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin and the lost son, and he lunched with accused Zacchaeus; admonished men to emulate the compassionate act of the demeaned Samaritan-"Go thou and do likewise." He exalted the humble Publican, who, in contrast to the self-righteous Pharisee, "would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner"; and he confronted the accusers of the repentant woman.
So closely is he tied with his fellowmen that in one of the most powerful parables he taught that bread given to one of the least of his brethren is bread given to him, and so is any kindness or act of grace or mercy or service. To deny help to one of the least of his brethren, he said, was to deny him.
His message is one of hope and promise and peace to those who mourn the loss of loved ones: "And ye now therefore have sorrow; but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you."
To the lonely and the hopeless and those who are afraid, his reassurance reaches out: "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."
Christ understands. "Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted." "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin."
He prayed to the Father for those who were not obedient, and he wept.
He called little children to him and blessed them, and wept.
He taught us to pray.
These and much more he taught and did. They represent the manner of person he was.
Of course he was more: he was the Divine Redeemer, the Savior of all mankind, the Firstborn in the spirit and the Only Begotten in the flesh. He was the Prince of Peace. He "came into the world to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness; That through him all might be saved. "
What he did for us we could never do for ourselves, and his example of love and service and sacrifice and seeking first the kingdom of God is our guidestar and our path.
What does he expect of us?
At his call, commissioned with his holy priesthood, being his agents, on his errand, we are under covenant to represent him faithfully and to do the will of the Father.
All about us are opportunities. There came the other day the story of the small boy who had lost his pet and who in tears beseeched his anxious mother for help. She reminded him lovingly that she had tried as hard as she could to find the pet without success. "What more can I do, son?" she asked. "You can cry with me," he said.
"Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ."
A cherished friend who works with little children who have difficulties told me recently of a nine-year-old girl who has lived in 17 foster homes. She needs someone to cry with her, and laugh with her, and teach her, and love her.
There are so many who are not-or feel they are not-understood. Recently our family visited with a dear friend, Sister Louise Lake, who has lived her gracious, sharing life in a wheelchair for more than a quarter of a century.
Perhaps because our 12-year-old son was with us, Sister Lake told us of another 12-year-old with whom she became acquainted in a rehabilitation center in New York where she was working. The boy had been blind and for most of his 12 years had lived a sad existence, thought to be uneducable, incapable of learning. Then he was given a chance, thank the Lord, and a marvelous spirit and fine mind were discovered. He told his friend that he had thought all his life that being blind was the worst thing that could happen to one-until he met Campy. Campy was Roy Campanella, great athlete, who at the height of his career was rendered physically helpless in an automobile accident. The blind boy said he had decided after meeting Campy that his condition was worse than not being able to see. "But there is something even worse than that," he said. He talked of feeling his way down the hall at the hospital, hearing the scuff of feet as people passed him by. "There is something worse than being blind or crippled, and that is to have people not understand you," he said. "I guess they think that because I am blind I can't hear or speak either."
There is one who always understands, and those who seek to become the manner of person he is must seek to understand. We are never really alone when we love God and accept the friendship of his loving Son. I think of the mother of 14 children who was asked if she had a favorite. "Well," she said, "if I do, it's the one who is ill until she gets well, or the one who is away until he gets home." So it seems to be with the Lord.
After a meeting with our servicemen at DaNang in South Vietnam, we talked with a senior pilot who had come very close to death that day and who was still shaken. He had a request to make, and he made it shyly, not wanting to impose. "I wonder if you might have just a minute when you get home, Brother Hanks, to call or write a note to my 12-year-old son to tell him that I am all right and that his dad is thinking about him. He was ordained a deacon last Sunday without his father there, and I want him to know how much I love him."
Those nearest us need love also. There are so many who grieve and are weighted down because they have not behaved in a way their own conscience can approve. To them the Lord still speaks through his prophets ancient and modern. Recall the words of Jacob to his brethren:
"And now my beloved brethren, seeing that our merciful God has given us so great knowledge concerning these things, let us remember him, and lay aside our sins, and not hang down our heads, for we are not cast off. "
In the last recorded letter of the great prophet Mormon to his son Moroni are written the lamentings of the prophet over the wickedness of the people, described in the record to be "without principle, and past feeling." Mormon's final testimony to his beloved son included this marvelous admonition and explanation of the effect Christ's gifts should have in all of our lives: "My son, be faithful in Christ; and may not the things which I have written grieve thee, to weigh thee down unto death; but may Christ lift thee up, and may his sufferings and death, and his mercy and long-suffering, and the hope of his glory of eternal life, rest in your mind forever."
Christ in our lives is not meant to grieve us or weigh us down unto death because we have been imperfect. Through him we may be lifted up by accepting his gifts and his mercy and long-suffering. These blessings we must seek to keep in our minds always. "For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?"
They who would follow him and be the manner of person he is will, as he did, lift up the repentant who suffer and sorrow for sin, and bless them with love and forgiveness.
Of course, all honest men on occasion feel their weakness and groan in the face of their inadequacies and ignorance and pride. Even Job, that good and godly man who possessed a faith which all his afflictions could not shake, bore this witness at the conclusion of his ordeal, when, seeing God, he said, "I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee. I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes."
But Christ will lift us up and help us to become as he is as we do as he did; as we love our Father and give him our lives; as we love each other and all men, and learn to live and teach his word; believe in the worth of souls and let our lives be the warrant of our earnestness; mourn with those who mourn, and bring hope to them; understand and comfort those who weep; cry unto the Lord.
"Yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those who are around you.
"And now behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you, do not suppose that this is all; for after ye have done all these things, if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need-I say unto you, if ye do not any of these things, behold, your prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites who do deny the faith."
God bless us to look up and to look around and to kneel down, and to be worthy, and to become the manner of person he is, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
When I decided to choose a subject for this moment, I discovered I did not have enough words in the English language to properly express my true feelings, but it is the only language I know and so I shall have to use them and hope that the prayer of Brother Burton, which he offered at the beginning, will be applied to me as well as to you.
It is my purpose to speak of the Lord Jesus Christ.
From the depths of my soul I know that he has established the Church in these last days so that I may partake of the blessings of his kingdom on earth, to the end that I may inherit the eternal joy of dwelling in his presence when I have completed my work here, if I can prove faithful. He did not intend this to be my privilege alone. In his infinite love he reaches out to all of my family, all of my kin, to all of your families and kin, and to all of the people on the earth.
I know that I cannot know him as he is unless he reveals himself to me. That is the great hope-to penetrate the veil and see and know him as he is. Yet I do know some things because he has told holy men, who are prophets, about himself and has commanded that they bear record of what they saw and heard. I know that by reading about him in the scriptures I can hear his voice by the power of the Holy Ghost; that is, to read his word is to hear his voice.
Speaking through the Prophet Joseph Smith to his future modern apostles, he said: "These words are not of men nor of man, but of me; For it is my voice which speaketh them unto you; for they are given by my Spirit unto you, and by my power you can read them one to another. Wherefore, you can testify that you have heard my voice, and know my words."
I begin by learning that all things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made. It is plain that this great being, this Word, as John expressed it, was made flesh and dwelt among us and was identified as the Only Begotten in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ.
I learn, too, that all of the children of God were organized as spirits to come to the earth to be tested, to see if they would obey the principles of salvation and exaltation as proposed by this Son. They were told: "We will go down, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell; And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them." Then, in due time, he himself came to earth, the light and life of men.
Believing this with all my heart, I read of the earthly life of this great being, the Messiah. I learn that when he was born, a host of angels sang anthems of joy to an audience of shepherds. Out of the East, with no explanation as to why they started, wise men came and deposited with Joseph and Mary presents which were of value: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I do not doubt that they were inspired to find the Lord or that they were prompted to leave valuable gifts which could be used to sustain his family.
I am thrilled when I read of the scene at Jordan. There came the Son of God, unmarked and unknown; yet, recognizing him by the Spirit, John the Baptist could not help crying out: "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." What do you imagine could have been John's feeling when, after the baptism, he heard a voice out of the heavens say in holy confirmation: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased"?
Then later, as I follow his life, I sense the extraordinary importance of this climb up the mountain with three fishermen who did not yet quite know what it was to be apostles, to be special witnesses. There, as his glory was manifest before them and their eyes were opened to the presence of Moses and Elijah, they heard the same solemn witness as had John, only this time it came from a bright cloud nearby, which overshadowed them. In my soul I hear the solemn words from out the cloud saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him."
There are many events in the life of the Lord in which I experience exquisite joy as I read of them, and there are others which bow me down with the tragedy of his suffering and of his sacrifice.
Many of us know what it is to suffer physically for ourselves, and we suffer mentally and emotionally for our friends and loved ones in their sorrows and afflictions. I am not capable of fully understanding the suffering of this great firstborn Son of God for the sins of the world. We call it Gethsemane. He gave us agency and then, knowing all would sin to a greater or lesser degree, took the responsibility on himself of paying the price of the atonement for our sins, provided we would repent and follow him and his teachings. I find peace in doing what he said to do. When he said: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you ", he meant what he said. Someday I hope to be able to understand better. I know the peace I can have if I will keep his law and abide in his commandments.
I read that he was hung on a cross. I look at my own hands and feet and try to imagine the pain of such torture-to hang there in the heat of the day, the weight of his body on those tearing nails, every muscle and nerve drawn tight in agony. No stopping, no escape until he, having said, "It is finished", gave up the ghost. I realize that this was endured for me and for you; I bow my head; it is hard to hold back the tears. Even now, 1900 years later, it is as poignant as though it occurred yesterday.
I read on and discover that each one of the gospels ends on a triumphant note. He has risen! He is the King of kings. He is the one named "Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." I think of each of these titles given to him in prophecy and marvel as the meaning of each one touches my own heart.
What did the 11 apostles think as the cloud received him out of their sight? I can see them, in my mind, walking across the Kedron, then the narrow streets to a common meeting place, each lost in his own fears, and in his own hopes according to his understanding. I read with gratitude of the great event of the day of Pentecost, when the promise of the Lord was realized and the Spirit of the Holy Ghost was on them in miraculous abundance.
I am puzzled over the long period of time in which there was no spiritual light, nearly 1700 years of spiritual darkness. And then I read in a book of scripture, newly discovered, with an unusual name-the Book of Mormon-of his coming to a people in this land, a people descended from the Jews and their kin in Israel. I read of his descent from the heavens above them, of the great multitude of Nephites gathered together round about their temple, and of the voice from heaven which pierced them to the center.
My heart sings in confirmation as I hear once more in my soul the words of introduction and acceptance twice heard during his ministry in Palestine and now repeated and enlarged: "Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name-hear ye him." Once more the voice of the Father out of the cloud is placing his approval on his divine Son. I know that the account is true.
I have already read of how this great personage lived as the firstborn of his Father in the spirit, and so I am not surprised, although I am deeply moved, to learn that he, as a premortal spirit, visited the brother of Jared, and I can sense his fear when the brother of Jared saw the finger of the Lord and realized that it was like unto the finger of a man. It surprised this prophet, but it does not surprise me, for I have learned that the Lord was the firstborn Son of God, whose name is Man of Holiness. So when the Lord showed his complete self to that great prophet, I am not surprised, but I am awed. The more I study and read the scriptures, the more I know this is true.
Finally, I read of a great vision in this dispensation, in this modern day. For the first time, so far as I know, the personage who spoke in testimony at the baptism of Christ, again on the mount, and to the Nephites did not speak out of a cloud as on those occasions. This time he stood in majestic holy light together with his Son and declared to Joseph Smith: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear him!" With Joseph Smith, as I read, I know that there is a God and he is indeed my Father. He is the great Elohim, the Father of us all. And there with him stood his Son Jesus Christ, identified once more by his Father.
It is no coincidence that the Father used the same introduction. If the young Joseph Smith was to bear witness of the truth, he must know the truth. It was revealed to him in that grove of trees 153 years ago. By the spirit of truth I know that the vision is true.
For 1700 years men had claimed to represent Christ, but none had declared him, none had heard a voice declaring him. In 1700 years no man had imagined or dared to imitate this great statement of truth to justify his own claims. This time is different. There in one moment on a spring morning the eternal truth was once more revealed in such a way and in such power that no one with the Holy Spirit in his heart can doubt that the heavens were opened and that God our Father and his Son appeared together-the Father declaring the Son in almost exactly the same words as he did three times nearly 2,000 years ago.
The boy was too young to perpetrate a fraud. The sacred words are from the lips of the Eternal Father. This is my testimony, and our testimony to the world. Here today we declared his Beloved Son, and here today we worship him and give praise and honor and glory. Today in honor of him we assemble at this conference of his people.
We look forward to his return to reign a thousand years. Let us worship him in spirit and in truth. Let us give loyal support to his presently anointed prophet and mouthpiece and those who assist him. President Harold B. Lee is that prophet. He holds the same keys that were given to Joseph Smith by the heavenly messengers in 1829. His word, inspired of the Holy Ghost, is the modern revelation of our day. This is my witness to you and to the world, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters: This has been a most stimulating and inspiring conference, and I sincerely pray for the guidance of the Spirit in the things that I have to say to you.
Frequently the question is asked, What is the difference between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other churches?
On one occasion the Prophet Joseph Smith was asked this question. He replied that one of the main differences was in our mode of baptism, including the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and that we believe in the continuing power of the Holy Ghost.
The first and fourth Articles of Faith of the Church outline this belief:
"We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
"We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost."
Through modern revelation we are told that "the Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's, the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us."
This is the simple and beautiful conception of the Godhead as taught by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
When Nicodemus, one of the rulers of the Jews, came to Jesus at night and asked him what he should do to be saved, he was told, "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
In this dispensation we have been admonished to "go among this people, and say unto them, Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins; And whoso doeth this shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of the hands of the elders of the church."
That this new birth included a spiritual regeneration was indicated when the Savior explained, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again."
Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, and baptism by water are prerequisites to receiving the Holy Ghost.
The apostle Paul, in writing the Corinthian saints, stated: " know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you ", and "If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are".
To keep in tune with the Holy Ghost, we must keep our bodies clean in every respect.
President Brigham Young stated: "The Holy Ghost opens the vision of the mind, unlocks the treasures of wisdom, and they begin to understand the things of God.
They comprehend themselves and the great object of their existence."
If a person is going to get the most out of this life, he must comprehend the object of his existence.
The gifts of the Holy Ghost, to worthy recipients, are many and extremely helpful in answering the question, What is the purpose of life or the object of our existence?
One of the chief functions of the Holy Ghost is to bear witness of God the Father and Jesus Christ, his Son. The apostle Paul, in writing to the Corinthian saints, told them that "no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost."
To know that God lives and that Jesus Christ is his Son and our Savior and Redeemer is absolutely essential to understand the purpose of life.
In addition to being a witness for the Father and the Son, the Holy Ghost is a comforter. As the Savior was about to be crucified, he promised the disciples another comforter as he told them, " the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
Thus we see that the Holy Ghost is a witness of the Father and the Son, a comforter, a teacher, and the bearer of valuable gifts of the spirit, such as wisdom, knowledge, faith, discernment, and direction.
Yes, the blessings of the Holy Ghost are real and very helpful in understanding and appreciating life, although in some respects beyond our comprehension at times.
I recall a testimony given by a young cadet attending the United States Air Force Academy.
He was experiencing great difficulty in passing his courses and was very discouraged. At this point, he met a Mormon cadet, and from him he learned that there were a number of Mormon boys attending the academy and that they met together at five o'clock each weekday morning in a religious study class. The cadet was invited to attend one of these classes.
He did so and was deeply impressed by the wonderful spirit. He continued attending, met the missionaries, was given the discussions, and, through study, prayer, and attending church, received a testimony and was baptized.
He bore witness that upon receiving the Holy Ghost he felt its influence quicken his mind and understanding and refresh his memory, and that thereafter he had no trouble in getting satisfactory grades. His feelings of discouragement left him, and a spirit of peace and comfort came over him. This was a most inspiring and impressive testimony of the great value of the Holy Ghost.
Likewise, I have felt the guidance of the Holy Ghost many times in my life. In following these whisperings, my family and I have been blessed abundantly.
When our children were young, we were living in Salt Lake City, and I had an opportunity to accept a position with the government in Washington, D.C. This was an important decision for our family to make. After very careful and prayerful consideration, we decided to accept. We felt good about this decision, but it took considerable courage to follow the inspiration.
Years later, when I left the government, I had another important decision to make-whether to accept an attractive opportunity to work for others or go into business for myself. There were many pressures, many considerations, and after much deliberation I decided I would go into business for myself. After fervent prayers, I felt strongly that this was the path to pursue. I prayed for the courage to follow the whisperings of the Spirit.
I am sure many of you could testify that you have been troubled in making important decisions and have asked the Lord for direction and guidance, and that you have received it.
Likewise, manifestations of the Spirit are found in many other areas of life's activities.
We hear many testimonies where worthy members have been warned of impending dangers.
A young father bore witness to me of a great blessing that had come to him and his family. He was awakened one night by a voice that clearly told him to get up and go downstairs. He heeded the warning, and in going into the kitchen he found one wall engulfed in flames. Hurriedly he awakened his family, called the fire department, and with the help of his family fought the fire, keeping it down until the fire department arrived and put it out.
There was no question in his mind that this warning was a manifestation of the protection the Holy Ghost can give to those who keep their lives in harmony with the Spirit.
Again the Savior has promised that to worthy members the Holy Ghost would be a comforter in times of sickness and death.
Many have borne witness of the comforting spirit that has attended them in times of sorrow, helping them to find peace and understanding.
A few weeks ago it was my privilege to meet two wonderful women, close friends, who had lost their husbands in a tragic airplane accident. Did I find them in despair and deep mourning? No, indeed. I have never witnessed greater courage and strength. They both bore witness to the fact that they had truly felt the comfort of the Spirit, that they knew there was a purpose in the call that had been given to their husbands, and that they had an assurance that all would be well with them and their families as they lived close to the Church and kept the commandments of the Lord.
I have heard the still small voice, or the whisperings of the Spirit, as I have counseled with you, my brothers and sisters; as I have conferred the priesthood upon men; as I have set men and women apart to positions in the Church; as I have given blessings to the sick; as I have borne my testimony to nonmembers as well as members; as I have been delivering a sermon, and at many other times.
Sometime ago a young lady asked me, "How do you know when you are speaking under the influence of the Holy Ghost?" My answer was, "I can feel it spiritually and physically."
I testify to you that the Holy Ghost has borne witness to me that God lives and is the Father of our spirits; that Jesus is the Christ, our Redeemer and Savior; that Joseph Smith was and is a great prophet, through whom the gospel in its fullness was restored, the church of Jesus Christ was reestablished, and the power to act in the name of God was restored to earth. The Holy Ghost has also borne witness to me many times that President Harold B. Lee is a great modern-day prophet, standing at the head of Christ's church on this earth. I pray that the Lord and each one of us will sustain him in every way. I am most grateful for the influence of the Holy Ghost in my life.
I bear my witness to you that as one accepts the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and conforms to the principles and ordinances thereof, the Holy Ghost will truly be a guide and comfort to him throughout his life.
Yes, one of the great differences between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and any other church is that the worthy members may enjoy the continuing power and gifts of the Holy Ghost. May we all seek these gifts and be worthy of them, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Ted Nagata
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
At this late hour of the conference, one would be hard pressed to find a subject regarding the teachings of the Savior that has not been touched upon. I would like to have the ability to summarize what has been said by the Brethren, but let me touch upon one of the occasions of the Master's teachings.
This thought comes to me because we are approaching the season of the year when Christians around the world celebrate Easter by commemorating the events of the Savior's last few days in mortality, his death, and his resurrection from the tomb. These happenings, which occurred many years ago in Jerusalem, are recalled to us by the writings of the New Testament. His death, however, did not bring his personal ministry to a conclusion.
An account in the Book of Mormon, a second witness for Christ, gives us additional knowledge of the teachings of the Master. This record tells of his appearance to the people of this Western Hemisphere after his death and resurrection, adding much to our understanding of the great atoning sacrifice.
The Nephite prophets foretold of the signs that would be given to the people of this continent at the crucifixion of the Savior, and according to their prophecies, a devastating tempest did burst upon the land. There was thunder and lightning greater than had ever been known, and earthquakes rocked the earth. The city of Zarahemla was burned by fire, the city of Moroni sank into the sea and the inhabitants drowned, and the city of Moronihah was covered by a mountain. Highways were broken up, other cities destroyed, and many people were slain or carried away by the tempest. The raging storm and devastation continued for three hours, and the face of the whole land was changed.
As the tempest ceased, a thick darkness gathered, and for three days no light was seen. Out of the darkness could be heard the great mourning, howling, and weeping of the people.
"And it came to pass that there was a voice heard among all the inhabitants of the earth, upon all the face of the land, crying:
"Wo, wo, wo unto this people; wo unto the inhabitants of the whole earth except they shall repent; for the devil laugheth, and his angels rejoice, because of the slain of the fair sons and daughters of my people; and it is because of their iniquity and abominations that they are fallen!"
The voice enumerated the widespread destruction. The survivors of the tempest and earthquakes were declared to be the more righteous, and hope was offered to them through repentance and conversion to the gospel of the Savior.
The speaker then identified himself:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified his name.
"I came unto my own, and my own received me not. And the scriptures concerning my coming are fulfilled."
The Lord told them that the law of Moses had been fulfilled and he would no longer accept burnt offerings, but only the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit.
"Behold," he said, "I have come unto the world to bring redemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.
"Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved."
Many hours passed in silence and darkness, and again his voice was heard, sorrowing over his people and promising to gather them "as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings" if they would repent and follow him. Darkness continued, and on the morning of the third day the earth ceased to tremble and all became quiet and peaceful. Christ had risen from the tomb. Many of the righteous dead of this land in the Western Hemisphere rose from their graves, as did many saints in Judea.
A multitude assembled at the temple in the land Bountiful. If we would join with them as we read, we would learn a great lesson. They talked about the changes that had taken place in the land because of the earthquakes and the inrush of the sea, and about Jesus Christ of whom these signs had been given. While they were conversing one with another, they heard a voice which said unto them: "Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name-hear ye him." They cast their eyes toward heaven and beheld a man clothed in a white robe who descended and stood in the midst of them.
"And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the people, saying:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.
"And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me.
"Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet. "
The Master called twelve disciples and gave them the authority to baptize. He admonished the multitude to cease their contentions and disputations; and he taught them, among other things, truths he had proclaimed to his followers on the eastern continent-the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord's Prayer, the fulfillment of the Mosaic law. He healed the sick, blessed little children, administered the sacrament and gave instruction concerning it.
As he taught the Nephites, the Savior defined his gospel. The statement he made to them describes the glories of the plan and explains the requirements for man to gain eternal life and exaltation. These are his words:
"Behold, I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you-that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.
"And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil.
"And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in my name shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge the world.
"And he that endureth not unto the end, the same is he that is also hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence they can no more return, because of the justice of the Father.
"Now this is the commandment: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day. Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel. "
The gospel is often referred to as the good news, or glad tidings of salvation. The plan of salvation, therefore, is the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Master explained to the Nephites that he had fulfilled his mission on earth by complying with the will of the Father, thereby becoming the Redeemer of all mankind. The further statement to "repent and be baptized in my name" defines the gateway to the narrow path leading to eternal life. This gives rise to the fundamental statement expressed in the Articles of Faith of the Church:
"We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
"We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost."
These four are only the first of all the principles and ordinances of the gospel. Returning to the words of the Savior to the Nephites, we learn that after complying with these four, there must be a lifetime of compliance with the laws and commandments of the Lord, for he said, " and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge the world."
The first principles alone are not sufficient: man is thereafter accountable in the eternal judgment for what he has done in life, whether good or evil. The atonement was for this very purpose, to bring about the resurrection and subsequent judgment of all men. The Master made it very clear by saying: "And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works."
An analysis divides the gospel plan into two parts:
First, that which is preparatory and administered under the authority of the Aaronic Priesthood. The 84th section of the Doctrine and Covenants states it this way: "And the lesser priesthood continued, which priesthood holdeth the key of the ministering of angels and the preparatory gospel; Which gospel is the gospel of repentance and of baptism, and the remission of sins. "
Second, the fullness of the gospel administered by the authority of the Melchizedek Priesthood. The same revelation makes this statement: "And this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.
"Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.
"And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;
"For without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live."
From the teachings of the Savior to the Nephites during this brief period after his resurrection, the gospel plan is unfolded. The pathway of the preparatory gospel for the forgiveness of sins and entrance to the kingdom is clearly marked. The way is pointed out for the fullness of the everlasting gospel to be enjoyed by man, blessed by the Spirit of the Holy Ghost, to so live as to obtain a knowledge of God and receive his approbation upon resurrection.
We should be grateful, as Easter approaches, for the record of the people of the western world, which has preserved for us the teachings of the resurrected Savior to the Nephites. It is an additional witness to his divine mission. I know the Book of Mormon is the word of God.
It is my witness that Jesus is the Christ. If the world would follow the principles of the gospel proclaimed by him, a real peace, beyond the cessation of hostilities, would come to all people, for he said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. "
May this peace come to us by living the commandments of the Savior and by following the counsel of his prophet here upon the earth, I humbly pray, in the name of the Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
We are grateful to all who have contributed to the success and inspiration of this conference, especially to our General Authorities who have delivered such timely, inspired messages. Sitting where we do as the First Presidency, we have been aware these last six months that there has been such a feeling of need to have questions answered, to have spoken from this pulpit at this conference things that are needed by so many in this mixed-up world, to help them to set guidelines for their own lives.
I believe I have never known when the General Authorities have so completely covered the various areas where we have had great concern. If you want to know what the Lord has for this people at the present time, I would admonish you to get and read the discourses that have been delivered at this conference; for what these brethren have spoken by the power of the Holy Ghost is the mind of the Lord, the will of the Lord, the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation. I am sure all who have listened, if they have been in tune, have felt the sincerity and the deep conviction from those who have spoken so appropriately and so effectively.
My soul is filled with joy as I think of these great men whom the Lord has brought to the service of the Church as General Authorities and all others who have served, our Regional Representatives of the Twelve, our Mission Representatives of the Twelve and the First Council of Seventy, and all who serve in the various organizations. As we have seen them being brought into key positions, we have marveled as to how, when we have need of a man or person for a particular office, the man of the hour seems to have been brought to us, almost in a miraculous way.
As I have listened to the brethren, and feeling the concern that has been so frequently referred to, I have remembered the instruction that was given by the prophet Alma as a group of those who had been converted waited on the banks for baptism; and as he explained to them the nature of the covenant in which they were to enter as baptized members, he said:
" as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light;
"Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in,
"Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?"
I call your attention to one of these requirements, particularly that which has been stressed by direct and indirect words in this conference: "are willing to bear one another's burdens that they may be light." If I were to ask you what is the heaviest burden one may have to bear in this life, what would you answer? The heaviest burden that one has to bear in this life is the burden of sin. How do you help one to bear that great burden of sin, in order that it might be light?
Some years ago, President Romney and I were sitting in my office. The door opened and a fine young man came in with a troubled look on his face, and he said, "Brethren, I am going to the temple for the first time tomorrow. I have made some mistakes in the past, and I have gone to my bishop and my stake president, and I have made a clean disclosure of it all; and after a period of repentance and assurance that I have not returned again to those mistakes, they have now adjudged me ready to go to the temple. But, brethren, that is not enough. I want to know, and how can I know, that the Lord has forgiven me, also."
What would you answer one who would come to you asking that question? As we pondered for a moment, we remembered King Benjamin's address contained in the book of Mosiah. Here was a group of people who now were asking for baptism, and they said they viewed themselves in their carnal state:
" And they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified;
" after they had spoken these words the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience. "
There was the answer.
If the time comes when you have done all that you can to repent of your sins, whoever you are, wherever you are, and have made amends and restitution to the best of your ability; if it be something that will affect your standing in the Church and you have gone to the proper authorities, then you will want that confirming answer as to whether or not the Lord has accepted of you. In your soul-searching, if you seek for and you find that peace of conscience, by that token you may know that the Lord has accepted of your repentance. Satan would have you think otherwise and sometimes persuade you that now having made one mistake, you might go on and on with no turning back. That is one of the great falsehoods. The miracle of forgiveness is available to all of those who turn from their evil doings and return no more, because the Lord has said in a revelation to us in our day: " go your ways and sin no more; but unto that soul who sinneth shall the former sins return, saith the Lord your God." Have that in mind, all of you who may be troubled with a burden of sin.
And to you who are teachers, may you help to lift that great burden from those who are carrying it, and who have their conscience so seared that they are kept from activity, and they don't know where to go to find the answers. You help them to that day of repentance and restitution, in order that they too may have that peace of conscience, the confirming of the Spirit of the Lord that he has accepted of their repentance.
The great call has come now in the sermons of the brethren to aid those who are in need of aid, not just temporal aid, but spiritual aid. The greatest miracles I see today are not necessarily the healing of sick bodies, but the greatest miracles I see are the healing of sick souls, those who are sick in soul and spirit and are downhearted and distraught, on the verge of nervous breakdowns. We are reaching out to all such, because they are precious in the sight of the Lord, and we want no one to feel that they are forgotten.
I read again and again the experience of Peter and John, as they went through the gate beautiful on the way to the temple. Here was one who had never walked, impotent from his birth, begging alms of all who approached the gate. And as Peter and John approached, he held out his hand expectantly, asking for alms. Peter, speaking for this pair of missionaries-church authorities-said, "Look on us." And, of course, that heightened his expectation. "Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk."
Now in my mind's eye I can picture this man, what was in his mind. "Doesn't this man know that I have never walked? He commands me to walk." But the biblical record doesn't end there. Peter just didn't content himself by commanding the man to walk, but he "took him by the right hand, and lifted him up."
Will you see that picture now of that noble soul, that chiefest of the apostles, perhaps with his arms around the shoulders of this man, and saying, "Now, my good man, have courage, I will take a few steps with you. Let's walk together, and I assure you that you can walk, because you have received a blessing by the power and authority that God has given us as men, his servants." Then the man leaped with joy.
You cannot lift another soul until you are standing on higher ground than he is. You must be sure, if you would rescue the man, that you yourself are setting the example of what you would have him be. You cannot light a fire in another soul unless it is burning in your own soul. You teachers, the testimony that you bear, the spirit with which you teach and with which you lead, is one of the most important assets that you can have, as you help to strengthen those who need so much, wherein you have so much to give. Who of us, in whatever station we may have been in, have not needed strengthening?
May I impose upon you for a moment to express appreciation for something that happened to me some time ago, years ago. I was suffering from an ulcer condition that was becoming worse and worse. We had been touring a mission; my wife, Joan, and I were impressed the next morning that we should get home as quickly as possible, although we had planned to stay for some other meetings.
On the way across the country, we were sitting in the forward section of the airplane. Some of our Church members were in the next section. As we approached a certain point en route, someone laid his hand upon my head. I looked up; I could see no one. That happened again before we arrived home, again with the same experience. Who it was, by what means or what medium, I may never know, except I knew that I was receiving a blessing that I came a few hours later to know I needed most desperately.
As soon as we arrived home, my wife very anxiously called the doctor. It was now about 11 o'clock at night. He called me to come to the telephone, and he asked me how I was: and I said, "Well, I am very tired. I think I will be all right." But shortly thereafter, there came massive hemorrhages which, had they occurred while we were in flight, I wouldn't be here today talking about it.
I know that there are powers divine that reach out when all other help is not available. We see that manifest down in the countries we speak of as the underprivileged countries where there is little medical aid and perhaps no hospitals. If you want to hear of great miracles among these humble people with simple faith, you will see it among them when they are left to themselves. Yes, I know that there are such powers.
As I came to realize the overwhelming magnitude of the responsibility that now has been given to me, if I were to have sat down and tried to think of the burden, I would have been devastated and wholly incapable of carrying it. But when I was guided by the Spirit to name two noble men, whose powerful words of teaching and testimony you have heard today, President N. Eldon Tanner and President Marion G. Romney, I realized that mine was not the responsibility to carry these responsibilities alone. And then as we meet week by week in the temple and look across the room and see 12 stalwart men, men chosen from out the world and given the power of the holy apostleship, I am aware that no greater men walk the earth than these men.
Once each month on the first Thursday, we meet with all the General Authorities, except a few that are not able to be with us.
We have been glad that we had the appearance briefly of President Hugh B. Brown at this conference. We wish that Brother Alvin R. Dyer could have been here. Brother Alma Sonne has been able to be with us. We have talked with Sister Dyer, and we are praying earnestly that Brother Dyer may soon be recovered to his normal strength. These men and their families are carrying great burdens and responsibilities.
The other day we met in the seminar for Regional Representatives of the Twelve. These are men who are fanning out over the whole earth now, to every corner of the earth. Newly baptized members who know little about the gospel and much less about the disciplines of the Church must be taught if the Church is to be safely led. These men who have been chosen from out of the strongest men we have in the Church now are going out now under the direction of the Council of the Twelve. And there are also the Mission Representatives of the Twelve and the First Council of the Seventy associated with them. They are going out to the humblest everywhere and teaching them these fundamental principles, teaching them, as the Prophet Joseph answered when asked, "How do you govern your people?" His answer was, "I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves."
They are not going out to do the work themselves. As we have said to them, they are standing as "coaches" rather than as "quarterbacks" on the football team, teaching the quarterbacks how to direct, teaching them correct principles. They are men of faith. And how grateful we are for all these auxiliary workers who have gone out, likewise at great expense, great travel, and sacrifice on the part of their businesses and their families.
To you great leaders, stake presidencies, mission presidencies, bishoprics, priesthood quorum leaders, all of you, the faithful Saints everywhere, you who pray for us, I want you to know that we pray earnestly at the altars of the temple for all of you faithful who pray for us. How grateful we are for you!
As I come to you at the closing moments of this conference, I would like to take you back now to just one incident, and I am sorry that I can tell you only a part of it because of the limitations of some things contained therein.
It was just before the dedication of the Los Angeles Temple. We were all preparing for that great occasion. It was something new in my life, when along about three or four o'clock in the morning, I enjoyed an experience that I think was not a dream, but it must have been a vision. It seemed that I was witnessing a great spiritual gathering, where men and women were standing up, two or three at a time, and speaking in tongues. The spirit was so unusual. I seemed to have heard the voice of President David O. McKay say, "If you want to love God, you have to learn to love and serve the people. That is the way you show your love for God." And there were other things then that I saw and heard.
And so I come to you today, with no shadow of doubting in my mind that I know the reality of the person who is presiding over this church, our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. I know that he is. I know that he is closer to us than many times we have any idea. They are not an absentee Father and Lord. They are concerned about us, helping to prepare us for the advent of the Savior, whose coming certainly isn't too far away because of the signs that are becoming apparent.
All you need to do is to read the scriptures, particularly the inspired translation of Matthew, the twenty-fourth chapter, found in the writings of Joseph Smith in the Pearl of Great Price, where the Lord told his disciples to stand in holy places and be not moved, for he comes quickly, but no man knows the hour nor the day. That is the preparation.
Go home now to your people, I pray you, and say as did Joshua of old: " as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Teach your families in your family home evening, teach them to keep the commandments of God, for therein is our only safety in these days. If they will do that, the powers of the Almighty will descend upon them as the dews from heaven, and the Holy Ghost will be theirs, which has been spoken of so excellently by Elder Franklin D. Richards. That can be our guide, and that kind of Spirit shall guide us and direct us to his holy home.
And so as it is my privilege to do, I give you faithful members of the Church everywhere my blessing. God bless you, take care of you, preserve you as you travel home, that there may be no accident or no untoward experience. Take to your people out in the far reaches the feeling of love that we have for all of them; and indeed, as the missionaries go out, that love extends not only to those of our Father's children who are already members of the Church, but those who are our Father's children to whom he would have us bring the gospel of truth; make them also to enjoy all the blessings that we now have.
May the Lord help us so to understand and do, and fill our stations, and not be found wanting in the day of judgment that we have not done all we know how to do to advance his work in righteousness, I humbly pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Illustrated by Marvin Friedman
President Harold B. Lee
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends who are listening by radio and television, may I now for a few moments make some comments about a condition which is of great concern to all of us today. I speak of the shocking lack of self-respect by so many individuals, as is evidenced by their dress, their manner, and engulfing waves of permissiveness which seem to be moving over the world like an avalanche.
We see among us so many who seem to be forsaking standards of decency or an understanding of the meaning of time-honored words which, since the beginning of time, have had real meaning to our forebears; words that have made for strength of character and righteousness and harmony and unity and peace in the world.
There are eternal words which, if understood and taught and practiced, would bring salvation to every man, woman, boy and girl who does now live or has lived or will yet live in the world.
To some it may seem old-fashioned to speak of virtue and chastity, honesty, morality, faith, character, but these are the qualities which have built great men and women and point the way by which one may find happiness in the living of today and eternal joy in the world to come. These are the qualities which are the anchors to our lives, in spite of the trials, the tragedies, the pestilences, and the cruelties of war which bring in their wake appalling destruction, hunger, and bloodshed.
To those who fail to heed the warnings of those who are striving to teach these principles and choose to go in the opposite course, they will eventually find themselves in the pitiable state which you are witnessing so often among us. The prophet Isaiah described the tragic result most dramatically when he repeated the words of God which came to him as he sought to fortify his people against the wickedness of the world, and I quote his words:
" Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the Lord; and I will heal him. But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked."
Other prophets have declared likewise, so forcibly as to not be misunderstood, that "wickedness never was happiness."
As I have prayerfully thought of the reasons why one chooses this course which is dramatically described by the prophet Isaiah-when one who has departed from the path which would have given him peace is like the troubled sea, casting up mire and dirt-it seems to me that it all results from the failure of the individual to have self-respect. Listen to these words of wisdom from those whose lives have been worthy of emulation and who have experienced the realities of the periods of time from which they speak. I quote:
"Self-respect-that corner-stone of all virtue."
-Sir John Frederick William Herschel
Others have declared:
"Self-respect is the noblest garment with which a man can clothe himself, the most elevating feeling with which the mind can be inspired."
-Samuel Smiles
"Every man stamps his value on himself. The price we challenge for ourselves is given us by others.-Man is made great or little by his own will."
-Johann von Schiller
A lovely mother in a nearby community wrote this to me, "I love America, I love my husband, I love my children, I love my God, and why is this possible? Because I truly love myself."
Such are the fruits of self-respect. Conversely, when one does not have that love for himself of which this sister speaks, other consequences can be expected to follow. He ceases to love life. Or if he marries, he has lost his love for his wife and children-no love of home or respect for the country in which he lives, and eventually he has lost his love of God. Rebellion in the land, disorder and the lack of love in the family, children disobedient to parents, loss of contact with God, all because that person has lost all respect for himself.
I recall an invitation I had to speak to men who, for the most part, had not been advanced in the Church because of their lack of desire or their lack of understanding of the importance of conforming to certain standards required for advancement. The subject on which I was to speak was "Who Am I?" As I pondered this subject and searched the word of God to prepare for this assignment, I immediately sensed that I was to talk about a subject that is of first importance to each of us as it was to those men among whom, no doubt, there were some who had not found themselves and lacked the basis of a solid foundation upon which to build their lives.
The rowdiness of children, the incorrigibility of adolescence are more often than not a bid for a kind of attention or popularity that physical and mental endowments do not invite. So the blasé girl and the unkempt boy are often but a reflection of an individual who is seeking, by superficial adornment or by abnormal conduct, to supply that indefinable quality they may think is charm-a clumsy attempt to draw attention by conduct which certainly reflects that inward frustration because of the lack of understanding of their true identity as a human being.
Well, then, "Who am I?" Those lacking in that important understanding, and, consequently, in some degree failing to hold themselves in the high esteem which they would have if they did understand, are lacking self-respect.
May I begin to answer that question by posing two questions from scriptural texts which should be impressed upon every soul.
The psalmist wrote: "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour."
And the next is the question the Lord posed to Job: "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"
Reduced to more simple language than the words of those questions from the scriptures, the prophets in these quotations are simply asking each of us, "Where did you come from? Why are you here?"
A great psychologist, MacDougall, once said: "The first thing to be done to help a man to moral regeneration is to restore if possible his self-respect." Also I recall the prayer of the old English weaver, "O God, help me to hold a high opinion of myself." That should be the prayer of every soul; not an abnormally developed self-esteem that becomes haughtiness, conceit, or arrogance, but a righteous self-respect that might be defined as "belief in one's own worth, worth to God, and worth to man."
Now, consider these answers to the searching questions which must be burned into the consciousness of all those who have strayed away or who have not arrived at a true evaluation of themselves in this world of chaos. In the limited time allotted me, I hope that in some measure my voice will be heard above the dismal dreariness of this troubled world.
The apostle Paul wrote: "Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?"
This suggests that all who live upon the earth, who have fathers on earth, likewise have a father of their spirits. So did Moses and Aaron, as they fell upon their faces, cry out: "O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?"
Note how they addressed the Lord, " the God of the spirits of all flesh. "
From the revelations through Abraham, we get a glimpse of who and what the spirit is:
"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
"And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born."
There we are told that the Lord promised that those who were faithful in that premortal world would be added upon, by having a physical body in this second estate of this earth's existence and, furthermore, if they would keep the commandments as God taught by the revelations, they would have "glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
Now, there are several precious truths in that scripture. First, we have a definition of what a spirit is, as it relates to our physical body. What did it look like in that premortal world? A modern Latter-day prophet gives us an inspired answer:
" that which is spiritual being in the likeness of that which is temporal; and that which is temporal in the likeness of that which is spiritual; the spirit of man in the likeness of his person, as also the spirit of the beast, and every other creature which God has created."
The next truth we learn from this scripture is that you and I, having been spirits and now having bodies, were among those who passed that first test and were given the privilege of coming to earth as mortal individuals. If we hadn't passed that test, we wouldn't be here with mortal bodies, but would have been denied this privilege and would have followed Satan or Lucifer, as he came to be known, as did one-third of the spirits created in that premortal existence who were deprived of the privilege of having mortal bodies. These are now among us, but only in their spiritual form, to make a further attempt to thwart the plan of salvation by which all who would obey would have the great glory of returning to God our Father who gave us life.
So the Old Testament prophets declared with respect to death: "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it."
Obviously we could not return to a place where we had never been, so we are talking about death as a process as miraculous as birth, by which we return to "our Father who art in heaven," as the Master taught his disciples to pray.
A further truth is clearly set forth in that scripture, that many were chosen, as was Abraham, before they were born, as the Lord told Moses and also Jeremiah. This was made still more meaningful by the Latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, who declared, "I believe that every person who is called to do an important work in the kingdom of God, was called to that work and foreordained to that work before the world was." Then he added this, "I believe that I was foreordained to the work that I am called to do."
But now there is a warning: Despite that calling which is spoken of in the scriptures as "foreordination," we have another inspired declaration: "Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. "
This suggests that even though we have our free agency here, there are many who were foreordained before the world was, to a greater state than they have prepared themselves for here. Even though they might have been among the noble and great, from among whom the Father declared he would make his chosen leaders, they may fail of that calling here in mortality. Then the Lord poses this question: " and why are they not chosen?"
Two answers were given-First, "Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world. " And second, they " aspire to the honors of men."
Now then, to make a summary of what I have just read, may I ask each of you again the question, "Who are you?" You are all the sons and daughters of God. Your spirits were created and lived as organized intelligences before the world was. You have been blessed to have a physical body because of your obedience to certain commandments in that premortal state. You are now born into a family to which you have come, into the nations through which you have come, as a reward for the kind of lives you lived before you came here and at a time in the world's history, as the apostle Paul taught the men of Athens and as the Lord revealed to Moses, determined by the faithfulness of each of those who lived before this world was created.
Hear now the significant words of that powerful sermon to "The Unknown God" preached by the apostle Paul, to those who were ignorantly worshipping images of stone and brass and wood, and I quote:
"God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
"And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
"That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us."
Here then again we have the Lord making a further enlightening declaration to Moses as recorded in the Book of Deuteronomy:
"When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel."
Now, mind you, this was said to the children of Israel before they had arrived in the "Promised Land," which was to be the land of their inheritance.
Then note this next verse: "For the Lord's portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance."
It would seem very clear, then, that those born to the lineage of Jacob, who was later to be called Israel, and his posterity, who were known as the children of Israel, were born into the most illustrious lineage of any of those who came upon the earth as mortal beings.
All these rewards were seemingly promised, or foreordained, before the world was. Surely these matters must have been determined by the kind of lives we had lived in that premortal spirit world. Some may question these assumptions, but at the same time they will accept without any question the belief that each one of us will be judged when we leave this earth according to his or her deeds during our lives here in mortality. Isn't it just as reasonable to believe that what we have received here in this earth life was given to each of us according to the merits of our conduct before we came here?
Now there is another important understanding that we have from the scriptures. We are all free agents, which means to some people who manifest a spirit of rebellion that they are free to do anything they please, but that is not the correct meaning of free agency as the prophets have declared in the scriptures where free agency has been defined. I quote:
"Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great mediation of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself."
The apostle Paul impressed the sacredness of our individual bodies in this statement: "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."
And, again, he said further to those who had been baptized members of the church that they had received the gift of a special endowment known as the Holy Ghost. This was his teaching: "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
If we can get a person to think what those words mean, then we can begin to understand the significance of the words of the renowned psychologist, MacDougall, from whom I have previously quoted, "The first thing to be done to help a man to moral regeneration is to restore, if possible, his self-respect." How better may that self-respect be restored than to help him to fully understand the answer to that question, "Who am I?"
When we see one devoid of respect for himself, as indicated by his conduct, his outward appearance, his speech, and his utter disregard of the basic measures of decency, then certainly we are witnessing the frightening aspect of one over whom Satan has achieved a victory, as the Lord declared he would try to do "to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will to destroy the agency of man." This is the fate of "even as many as would not hearken unto my voice", so declared the Lord to Moses.
Some years ago I read a report from a survey made by ministers who had studied a number of cases of students who had committed suicide. This was their firm conclusion after an exhaustive study: "The philosophy of the students who took their lives was so lacking that when a severe crisis came in their lives, they had nothing to hold fast to, and so they took the coward's way out."
Such could be the awful state of those described by the Master in a parable with which he concluded the Sermon on the Mount:
"And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
"And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
The Lord's eternal purpose with respect to his plan of salvation was declared to Moses: "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
The first goal in that eternal plan was for each of us to come to earth and gain a physical body, and then, after death and the resurrection which would follow, the spirit and the resurrected body would not thereafter be subject to death. All of this was a free gift to every living soul as Paul declared: "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."
What this means to one dying with a malignant malady or to a mother bereft of a child may be illustrated by the expressions of a young mother whom I visited in the hospital some years ago. She said to me, "I have thought all this through. It doesn't make any difference whether I go now or whether I live to 70, 80, or 90. The sooner I can get to a place where I can be active and doing things that will bring me eternal joy the better for all concerned." She was comforted by the thought that she had lived such a life as to be worthy to enter into the presence of God, which is to enjoy eternal life.
The importance of taking advantage of every hour of precious time allotted to each of us here was impressed forcibly upon me by an incident in my own family. A young mother came with her beautiful flaxen-haired six-year-old daughter to her grandparents. The mother asked if we would like to hear a beautiful new children's song which the daughter had just learned in her Primary class. While the little mother accompanied her, she sang:
-Sing with Me, no. B-76
Her grandparents were in tears. Little did they know then, that hardly before that little girl would have had the full opportunity for her mother to teach her all that she should know in order to return to her heavenly home, that the little mother would be suddenly taken away in death, leaving to others the responsibility of finding the answer to the pleadings of that childhood prayer, to teach and train and to lead her through the uncertainties of life.
What a difference it would make if we really sensed our divine relationship to God, our Heavenly Father, our relationship to Jesus Christ, our Savior and our elder brother, and our relationship to each other.
Contrasted with the sublime peace to one such as that wonderful sister I visited in the hospital is that terrifying state of those who do not, as they approach death, have that great comfort, for as the Lord has told us plainly: "And they that die not in me, wo unto them, for their death is bitter."
It was George Bernard Shaw who said, "If we all realized that we were the children of one father, we would stop shouting at each other as much as we do."
Now, as I come to the closing of this address, I trust that I might have given to you and others who have not yet listened to such counsel, something to stimulate some sober thinking as to who you are and from whence you came; and, in so doing, that I may have stirred up within your soul the determination to begin now to show an increased self-respect and reverence for the temple of God, your human body, wherein dwells a heavenly spirit. I would charge you to say again and again to yourselves, as the Primary organization has taught the children to sing "I am a of God" and by so doing, begin today to live closer to those ideals which will make your life happier and more fruitful because of an awakened realization of who you are.
God grant that each of us here today may so live that all among us, and with us, may see, not us, but that which is divine and comes from God. With that vision of what those who have lost their way may become, my prayer is that they may receive strength and resolution to climb higher and higher and upward and onward to that great goal of eternal life and also that I may do my part in seeking to show by example, as well as by precept, that which will be the best of which I am capable of doing.
I again bear my solemn witness to the great truth of the Master's profound words to the sobbing Martha: "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live."
I thank God that I too can say, with the same spirit as did Martha, who bore her testimony as the Spirit witnessed to her from the depths of her soul:
"Yea, Lord: I that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which into the world."
In the name of our Lord and Master, Jesus, the Christ, the Savior of the world, even so. Amen.
Bishop H. Burke Peterson
First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
I thrill with you, brethren and sisters, as we have listened this morning to a prophet's voice and heard the word of God; and I pray that the Lord will continue to sustain his mouthpiece on the earth for the blessing of all of his children throughout the world.
One young mother once said to me, "It seems in our home we go from one crisis to another. We never seem to be in calm waters. Either it's sick children, a Primary lesson to prepare, a car that breaks down before meetings, a flooded bathroom-you name it, we've had it."
I suppose there are many of us whose life pattern would echo that refrain, even though the experiences will vary with each of us.
Because of the countless problems surrounding us and because of the trials and tribulations we are all confronted with, I've felt a need to be built up again in our understanding of why we have adversity and what we can do-to weather its storm. It seems that life is tilled with a variety of difficult experiences that test us and try us.
We should understand that a life filled with problems is no respecter of age or station in life. A life filled with trials is no respecter of position in the Church or social standing in the community. Challenges come to the young and to the aged-to the rich and to the poor-to the struggling student or the genius scientist-to the farmer, carpenter, lawyer, or doctor. Trials come to the strong and to the weak-to the sick and to the healthy. Yes, even to the simplest child as well as to a prophet of God. At times they seem to be more than we can bear.
Now, some will say, "Why would a Father in heaven who calls us his children-who says he loves us above all of his creations-who says he wants only the best for us-who wants us to be happy and enjoy life to the fullest-why does he let these things happen to us-if we are really that dear to him?" The scriptures and the prophets have some needed answers for us:
We read in Helaman: "And thus we see that except the Lord doth chasten his people with many afflictions, yea, except he doth visit them with death and with terror, and with famine and with all manner of pestilence, they will not remember him."
At a recent stake conference the stake president called a young father, who had just been ordained an elder, from the audience to bear his testimony. The father had been active in the Church as a boy, but during his teenage years had veered somewhat from his childhood pattern. After returning from the military service he married a lovely girl and presently children blessed their home. Without warning an undisclosed illness overcame their little four-year-old daughter. Within a very short time she was on the critical list in the hospital. In desperation and for the first time in many years the father went to his knees in prayer-asking that her life be spared. As her condition worsened and he sensed that she would not live, the tone of the father's prayers changed-he no longer asked that her life be spared-but rather for a blessing of understanding-"Let thy will he done," he said. Soon the child was in a coma, indicating her hours on earth were few. Now, fortified with understanding and trust, the young parents asked for one more favor of the Lord. Would he allow her to awaken once more that they might hold her closely. The little one's eyes opened, her flail arms outstretched to her mother and then to her daddy for a final embrace. When the father laid her on the pillow to sleep till another morning, he knew their prayers had been answered-a kind, understanding Father in heaven had filled their needs as he knew them to be. His will had been done-they had gained understanding-they were determined now to live that they might live again with her.
Do you remember the words of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith when he was having that great test of his faith in the Liberty Jail? The Lord said, "If thou art called to pass through tribulation " and then the Lord called to mind a series of possibilities that would test any man to the utmost-and he then concluded: "Know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience and shall be for thy good."
It's interesting to note that from the depths of trial and despair have come some of the most beautiful and classic passages of modern-day scripture-not from the ease of a comfortable circumstance. Might this also be the case in our own lives! From trial comes refined beauty.
We could cite Beethoven or Abraham Lincoln or Demosthenes who won out in a most difficult struggle to become a magnificent orator-but closer to us we see the great beauty and wisdom in the speaking and teaching of President Spencer W. Kimball and we see the price he's paid that our lives might be blessed.
In speaking of the Savior, the scriptures tell us: "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered."
From Hebrews we also read: "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth."
Let us remember-trials are an evidence of a Father's love. They are given as a blessing to his children. They are given as opportunities for growth.
Now, how do we approach them? How do we overcome them? How are we magnified by them? There seems to be a reason why we lose our composure in adversity-why we think we can no longer cope with what we're faced with here in this life. There is a reason why we give up, why we "fall apart at the seams" so to speak. The reason may be so simple that we lose sight of it.
Could it be it's because we begin to lose contact with our greatest source of strength-our Father in heaven? He is the key to our enjoying sweetness in adversity-in gaining strength from our trials-he and he alone.
As a reassurance to us, let us read from the New Testament: "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."
Did you get the significance of that scriptural promise-we will have no temptation or trial beyond our ability to overcome-he will provide a way for us to rise above-whatever it may be.
May I suggest the best way I know to keep close to the source of this great strength is through prayer. No man can stand alone in his struggle through life. Sometimes in discouragement our prayers, at best, become occasional or maybe not at all. Sometimes we forget or just don't care. Brigham Young once said, "Prayer keeps man from sin, and sin keeps man from prayer."
Some may be thinking that because they have a Word of Wisdom problem or because they have been dishonest or immoral-because they have not prayed for years-because of any reasons they now feel unworthy-they may say, "It's too late, I've made so many mistakes-so why even try?" To these we say, "For your own sake, give yourself another chance."
Sincere prayer is the heart of a happy and productive life. Prayer strengthens faith. Prayer is the preparation for miracles. Prayer opens the door to eternal happiness. The Father of us all is personal, ever waiting to hear from us, as any loving father would his children. To learn to communicate with him, to learn to pray effectively, requires diligence and dedication and desire on our part. I wonder sometimes if we are willing to pay the price for an answer from the Lord.
As we learn to develop this two-way communication, the standard of our life will improve. We will see things more clearly, we will try harder to do better, we will see the real joy that can come through trials and testing. Although problems will still be with us, peace, contentment, and true happiness will be ours in abundance.
As you feel the need to confide in the Lord or to improve the quality of your visits with him-to pray, if you please-may I suggest a process to follow: go where you can be alone, go where you can think, go where you can kneel, go where you can speak out loud to him. The bedroom, the bathroom, or the closet will do. Now, picture him in your mind's eye. Think to whom you are speaking, control your thoughts-don't let them wander, address him as your Father and your friend. Now tell him things you really feel to tell him-not trite phrases that have little meaning, but have a sincere, heartfelt conversation with him. Confide in him, ask him for forgiveness, plead with him, enjoy him, thank him, express your love to him, and then listen for his answers. Listening is an essential part of praying. Answers from the Lord come quietly-ever so quietly. In fact, few hear his answers audibly with their ears. We must be listening so carefully or we will never recognize them. Most answers from the Lord are felt in our heart as a warm comfortable expression, or they may come as thoughts to our mind. They come to those who are prepared and who are patient.
Yes, the trials will still be there; but with the companionship of the Spirit, our approach to trials will change frustrations and heartaches to blessings.
Just for a moment, think with me. Forget the trials you now have. Remember back to those trials you had last year, five years ago, ten years ago. What did you gain? What did you learn? Aren't you better prepared now because of them?
I testify he is ready and waiting to help us. For our own good we must take the first step and this step is prayer. I know he lives, brothers and sisters, I know Jesus is the Christ. I know he established his church here for our blessing. I know his mouthpiece is before us this morning, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
After a meeting with a group of students recently one young man waited to ask a question. "Elder Hanks," he said, "what are your goals? What do you want to accomplish?" I observed his seriousness of purpose and answered in the same spirit that my strongest desire is to qualify to be a friend of Christ.
I had not responded to such a question just that way before, but the answer did put into words the deep yearnings of my heart.
In ancient times Abraham was called the "friend of God." Jesus, shortly before his crucifixion, said to his disciples, "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants but I have called you friends. "
In 1832, to a group of elders returning from missionary service, he repeated the message: " from henceforth I shall call you friends. "
Today I would like to speak of one lesson among many that he taught us and that you and I must learn if we are to merit his friendship.
Christ's love was so pure that he gave his life for us: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." But there was another gift he bestowed while he was on the cross, a gift that further measured the magnitude of his great love: he forgave, and asked his Father to forgive, those who persecuted and crucified him.
Was this act of forgiveness less difficult than sacrificing his mortal life? Was it less a test of his love? I do not know the answer. But I have felt that the ultimate form of love for God and men is forgiveness.
He met the test. What of us? Perhaps we shall not be called upon to give our lives for our friends or our faith, but it is certain that every one of us has and will have occasion to confront the other challenge. What will we do with it? What are we doing with it?
Someone has written: " the withholding of love is the negation of the spirit of Christ, the proof that we never knew him, that for us he lived in vain. It means that he suggested nothing in all our thoughts, that he inspired nothing in all our lives, that we were not once near enough to him to be seized with the spell of his compassion for the world."
Christ's example and instructions to his friends are clear. He forgave, and he said: " Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."
What is our response when we are offended, misunderstood, unfairly or unkindly treated, or sinned against, made an offender for a word, falsely accused, passed over, hurt by those we love, our offerings rejected? Do we resent, become bitter, hold a grudge? Or do we resolve the problem if we can, forgive, and rid ourselves of the burden?
The nature of our response to such situations may well determine the nature and quality of our lives, here and eternally. A courageous friend, her faith refined by many afflictions, said to me only hours ago, "Humiliation must come before exaltation."
It is required of us to forgive. Our salvation depends upon it. In a revelation given in 1831 the Lord said:
"My disciples, in days of old, sought occasion against one another and forgave not one another in their hearts; and for this evil they were afflicted and sorely chastened.
"Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin.
"I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men."
Therefore, Jesus taught us to pray. "And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."
Does it not seem a supreme impudence to ask and expect God to forgive when we do not forgive?-openly? and "in our hearts"?
The Lord affirms in the Book of Mormon that we bring ourselves under condemnation if we do not forgive.
But not only our eternal salvation depends upon our willingness and capacity to forgive wrongs committed against us. Our joy and satisfaction in this life, and our true freedom, depend upon our doing so. When Christ bade us turn the other cheek, walk the second mile, give our cloak to him who takes our coat, was it to be chiefly out of consideration for the bully, the brute, the thief? Or was it to relieve the one aggrieved of the destructive burden that resentment and anger lay upon us?
Paul wrote to the Romans that nothing "shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
I am sure this is true. I bear testimony that this is true. But it is also true that we can separate ourselves from his spirit. In Isaiah it is written: " your iniquities have separated between you and your God. " Again, " they have rewarded evil unto themselves."
Through Helaman we learn that "whosoever doeth iniquity, doeth it unto himself "; and from Benjamin, " ye do withdraw yourselves from the Spirit of the Lord. "
In every case of sin this is true. Envy, arrogance, unrighteous dominion-these canker the soul of one who is guilty of them. It is true also if we fail to forgive. Even if it appears that another may be deserving of our resentment or hatred, none of us can afford to pay the price of resenting or hating, because of what it does to us. If we have felt the gnawing, mordant inroads of these emotions, we know the harm we suffer.
So Paul taught the Corinthians that they must "see that none render evil for evil unto any man. "
It is reported that President Brigham Young once said that he who takes offense when no offense was intended is a fool, and he who takes offense when offense was intended is usually a fool. It was then explained that there are two courses of action to follow when one is bitten by a rattlesnake. One may, in anger, fear, or vengefulness, pursue the creature and kill it. Or he may make full haste to get the venom out of his system. If we pursue the latter course we will likely survive, but if we attempt to follow the former, we may not be around long enough to finish it.
Years ago on Temple Square I heard a boy pour out the anguish of his troubled heart and make a commitment to God. He had been living in a spirit of hatred toward a man who had criminally taken the life of his father. Nearly bereft of his senses with grief, he had been overcome with bitterness.
On that Sabbath morning when others and I heard him, he had been touched by the Spirit of the Lord, and in that hour through the pouring in of that spirit had flooded out the hostility that had filled his heart. He tearfully declared his determined intent to leave vengeance to the Lord and justice to the law. He would no longer hate the one who had caused the grievous loss. He would forgive and would not for another hour permit the corrosive spirit of vengefulness to fill his heart.
Sometime later, touched with the remembrance of that moving Sabbath morning, I told the story to a group of people in another city. Before I left that small community the next day I had a visit from a man who had heard the message and understood it. Later a letter came from him. He had gone home that night and prayed and prepared himself and had then made a visit to the place of a man in his community who had years before imposed upon the sanctity of his home. There had been animosity and revenge in his heart and threats made. That evening when it was made known that he was at the door, his frightened neighbor appeared with a weapon in his hand. The man quickly explained the reasons for his visit, that he had come to say that he was sorry, that he did not want hatred to continue to consume his life. He offered forgiveness and sought forgiveness and went his way in tears, a free man for the first time in years. He left a former adversary also in tears, shaken and repentant.
The next day the same man went to the home of a relative in the town. He said, "I came to ask your forgiveness. I don't even remember why we have been so long angry, but I have come to tell you that I am sorry and to beg your pardon and to say that I have learned how foolish I have been." He was invited in to join the family at their table, and was reunited with his kin.
When I heard his story I knew again the importance of qualifying ourselves for the forgiveness of Christ by forgiving.
Robert Louis Stevenson wrote: "The truth of Christ's teaching seems to be this: In our own person and fortune, we should be ready to accept and pardon all; it is our cheek we are to turn and our coat we are to give to the man who has taken our cloak. But when another's face is buffeted, perhaps a little of the lion will become us best. That we are to suffer others to be injured and stand by, is not conceivable and surely not desirable."
So there are times when, in defense of others and principle, we must act. But of ourselves, if we suffer injury or unkindness, we must pray for the strength to forebear.
Christ gave his life on a cross; and on that cross he fully, freely forgave. It is a worthy goal to seek to qualify for the friendship of such a one.
More than 250 years ago Joseph Addison printed in The Spectator a paragraph of sobering thoughtfulness:
"When I look upon the tombs of the great, every emotion of envy dies in me; when I read the epitaphs of the beautiful, every inordinate desire goes out; when I meet with the grief of parents upon a tombstone, my heart melts with compassion; when I see the tombs of the parents themselves, I consider the vanity of grieving for those whom we must quickly follow; when I see kings lying by those who deposed them, when I consider rival wits placed side by side, or the men that divided the world with their contests and disputes, I reflect with sorrow and astonishment on the little competitions, factions, and debates of mankind. When I read the several dates of the tombs, of some that died yesterday, and some six hundred years ago, I consider that great Day when we shall all of us be contemporaries, and make our appearance together."
God help us to rid ourselves of resentment and pettiness and foolish pride; to love, and to forgive, in order that we may be friends with ourselves, with others, and with the Lord.
" even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye."
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James E. Faust
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends: Because of a great desire to be understood, I have humbly prayed for the Spirit of the Lord, and I also earnestly seek your sustaining spirit in what I have to say.
Recently a father of a family of six children, who has had the sole responsibility for raising the family, beginning when the youngest was in diapers, told of the struggles in raising the family alone. One night he came home from work, faced with the problems of being both father and mother and felt unusually burdened with his responsibilities. One of his appreciative little girls, age 12 years, approached him eagerly, after having laid a rock on his dresser, which she had painted at school. On the flat portion of the rock she had written, "Happiness is having a dad who cares." This painted rock and its sublime message instantly and permanently lightened the burden of this father.
Some years ago, from this pulpit, President Stephen L Richards quoted Judge Samuel S. Liebowitz, to both of whom I give full acknowledgement, in an article appearing in the Reader's Digest entitled "Nine Words That Can Stop Juvenile Delinquency." The nine words suggested by the judge were, "Put father back at the head of the family." President Richards concluded from the article "that the primary reasons for reduced percentages of juvenile delinquency in certain European countries, was a respect for authority in the home, which normally reposes in the father as head of the family." President Richards continued: "For generations in the Church, we have been endeavoring to do just what the judge advocates, to put and keep the father at the head of the family, and with all our might, we have been trying to make him fit for that high and heavy responsibility." Since the primary purpose of the Church is to help the family and its members, how well the father functions in his responsibility is of utmost importance.
In urging that the fathers be put back at the head of their homes, we wish to take nothing away from mothers. In all the world, there is no higher or greater honor or responsibility than motherhood. It is to be hoped that they too will have their powerful influence extended to even a greater degree within the home and beyond the home.
In order to strengthen the father in his position, I make two simple suggestions: first, sustain and respect the father in his position; second, give him love, understanding, and some appreciation for his efforts.
There are some voices in our society who would demean some of the attributes of masculinity. A few of these are women who mistakenly believe that they build their own feminine causes by tearing down the image of manhood. This has serious social overtones, because a primary problem in the insecurity of both sons and daughters can be the diminution of the role of the father image.
Let every mother understand that if she does anything to diminish her children's father or the father's image in the eyes of the children, it may injure and do irreparable damage to the self-esteem and personal security of the children themselves. How infinitely more productive and satisfying it is for a woman to build up her husband rather than tear him down. You women are so superior to men in so many ways that you demean yourselves by posturing or belittling masculinity and manhood.
In terms of giving to fathers love and understanding, it should be remembered that fathers also have times of insecurity and doubt. Everyone knows fathers make mistakes-especially they themselves. Fathers are in need of all the help they can get; mostly they need love, support, and understanding from their own.
President Harold B. Lee has said, "Most men do not set priorities to guide them in allocating their time and most men forget that the first priority should be to maintain their own spiritual and physical strength; then comes their family; then the Church and then their professions, and all need time." In giving time to his children, a father should be able to demonstrate that he has enough love for his children to command as well as discipline them. Children want and need discipline. As they approach some dangers, they are silently pleading, "Don't let me do it." President McKay said that if we do not adequately discipline our children, society will discipline them in a way we may not like. Wise discipline reinforces the dimensions of eternal love. This reinforcement will bring great security and stability into their lives.
All society, including the adult single members, for whom I have special concern, have a vested interest in fathers and mothers and families. Recently, Elder Boyd K. Packer said to the single members of the Church, "We talk a lot about families. Sometimes in bitterness, you will want to say 'all this talk about families, but I don't have a family, and ,' stop there! Don't add that extra phrase, 'I wish they would stop talking so much about families.' You pray that we do keep talking about families; about fathers and mothers and children and family home evening, temple marriage and companionship and all of the rest, because all of that will be yours. If we stop talking about it, then you, among all others, will be the losers."
In this Church we have another fatherlike relationship with our bishops who are the spiritual fathers of the wards. Recently I set apart the chief of police of a large city to serve as bishop for the second time. One of the women who was in the room at the time commented afterwards that she found it a little strange for the chief of police to be a bishop. The next morning in a conference meeting, the bishop responded by saying that he found nothing incompatible as chief of police with being bishop. He said that as chief of police he needed all of the help and guidance he could get from his ecclesiastical office as a spiritual father. He further said that he recommended the same source of help for all police chiefs.
The exalted position of a father was well stated by General Douglas MacArthur who said, "By profession, I am a soldier and take pride in that fact, but I am prouder, infinitely prouder, to be a father. A soldier destroys in order to build. A father only builds, never destroys. The one has the potentiality of death; the other embodies creation and life. And while the hordes of death are mighty, the battalions of life are mightier still. It is my hope that my son, when I am gone, will remember me, not for the battle, but in the home repeating with him, our simple, daily prayer, 'Our Father Who art in Heaven.'"
It is important to remember that in this Church, the husbands and fathers, and members of the family through them, enjoy a power and influence in their lives, far beyond the natural gifts of intellect and character of the father. I refer to the priesthood of God, which every worthy man and boy over 12 years of age enjoys.
A prominent Church and business leader in this community was born without life. His father, exercising his priesthood, made a promise that if his firstborn could live, that he, the father, would do all in his power to provide the proper example and teachings for his son. After a few minutes his infant son began to breathe and is well and vigorous to this day.
It is through the power of the priesthood that marriage and the family unit can extend into and continue throughout all eternity. The conscientious women of this Church wish to have such a righteous influence in abundance in their homes.
Just a few weeks ago, in a stake conference, one gracious mother joyously recounted a marvelous experience of being in one of the temples with her husband and with all of her children but one and being sealed together as husband and wife and family for time and all eternity. Her husband, newly involved in the priesthood, sat in the conference audience a few rows back. For a moment she seemed to forget all of the rest of us and spoke only to him. Over the pulpit, and through the loudspeaker, with over 1,000 people in tears watching and listening, she said, "John, the children and I don't know how to tell you what you mean to us. Until you honored the priesthood, the greatest blessings of eternity would not open up for us. Now they have. We all love you very much and we thank you with all our hearts for what you have made possible for us."
You may recall the story about a child being trapped in a hole in the ground, who could only be extricated by sending another smaller child into the tunnel. One little fellow was approached to see if he would be willing to go down and rescue the one who was lodged. The lad said, "I am scared to go in that hole, but I will go if my father will hold the rope."
Elder Richard L. Evans gave the proper dimension for all fathers in this faith when he said, "First of all, fathers are for giving a name and a heritage to their children-clean and honorable. Fathers are for long, hard work. Mostly their own kind of work. For not being home so much as mothers; for seeming to be pretty busy; and for trying to give their children the things their fathers never had. Fathers are for talking with, for encouraging; for putting arms around; for understanding mistakes, but not condoning them; for disciplining when needed, then loving all the more; for being strong and forceful, and for being tender and gentle."
It is always appropriate in all family relationships to ask, "What would Jesus do?" Having turned to the scriptures for the answer to this question, President Romney testifies, "There in the gospel as recorded by St. John, I found the clear and certain answer: Jesus would always do the will of his Father. 'For I do always those things that please him.'"
God bless you children to have listening ears and understanding hearts.
God bless you mothers for the endless dimension of your love and for all of the help you give the fathers of your children.
God bless you fathers to be equal to your overwhelming responsibilities and to have a father's special caring for each one under your protective arms. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
That this may be so, I pray, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
President Lee concluded our last conference in April with the statement that in his 32 years as a General Authority he had learned that the most inspired preaching is always accompanied by beautiful, inspired music. I am grateful this morning to be sustained by the beautiful renditions of the choir.
"Music," Addison said, "is the only sensual gratification in which mankind may indulge to excess without injury to their moral or religious feelings."
If that were true in his day, it is not in ours. Music, once that innocent, now is often used for wicked purposes.
It has been obvious for centuries that lyrics of the worst kind can be set to music that is innocent of itself. Words which are bad can be set to music which is otherwise good, and lead men astray.
Recently the First Presidency restated this counsel:
"Through music, man's ability to express himself extends beyond the limits of the spoken language in both subtlety and power. Music can be used to exalt and inspire or to carry messages of degradation and destruction. It is therefore important that as Latter-day Saints we at all times apply the principles of the gospel and seek the guidance of the Spirit in selecting the music with which we surround ourselves."
In our day music itself has been corrupted. Music can, by its tempo, by its beat, by its intensity, dull the spiritual sensitivity of men.
Studies citing physiological effects from some of the extreme music of today neglect the most serious thing concerning it.
Our youth have been brought up on a diet of music that is loud and fast, more intended to agitate than to pacify, more intended to excite than to calm. Even so, there is a breadth of it, some soft enough to be innocent and appealing to our youth, and that which is hard, and that is where the problem is.
One of the signs of apostasy in the Christian churches today is the willingness of their ministers to compromise and introduce into what had been, theretofore, the most sacred religious meetings the music of the drug and the hard rock culture. Such music has little virtue and it is repellent to the Spirit of God.
The pity of it is, their foolishness has not accomplished the ends they sought. Their young people are not drawn to them as they hoped and expected. Rather, young people are inventing so-called churches of their own, groping and seeking for something that they find missing in their lives.
Some have been critical when our leaders have exercised restraint on the kind of music we will allow at Church activities.
"Do you want to lose your youth?" they ask.
I would remind all such that it is not the privilege of those called as leaders to slide the Church about as though it were on casters, hoping to put it into the path that men or youth will be safe within it.
President J. Reuben Clark said:
"We may not, under our duty, provide or tolerate an unwholesome amusement on the theory that if we do not provide it the youth will go elsewhere to get it. We could hardly set up a roulette table in the Church amusement hall for gambling purposes, with the excuse that if we do not provide it the youth would go to a gambling hall to gamble. We can never really hold our youth thus. Our task is to help the home to plant better standards in the minds of the youth."
And so we urge parents in the Church to show as much interest in the records and tapes their children purchase as they would the books and magazines they bring into the home. There are many parents who would not for one moment tolerate a pornographic magazine in their homes who unwittingly provide money for music, some of which in its influence can be quite as damaging.
Someone said recently that no music could be degrading, that music in and of itself is harmless and innocent.
If that be true, then there should be some explanation for circumstances where local leaders have provided a building-expansive, light, and inviting-and have assembled a party of young people dressed modestly, well-groomed, with manners to match. Then overamplified sounds of hard music are introduced and an influence pours into the room that is repellent to the Spirit of God.
The youth of the Church, by and large, have found a sensible and reasonable adjustment to the grooming and dress styles of our day. Our young men and women can dress with decency and modesty and yet not be unstylish or look all that different or odd.
We have said a good deal through our youth organizations and at our Church schools about dress and grooming standards and have been successful.
By comparison, we have not given sufficient counsel and attention, I think, to the music that our young people consume. And "consume" is a proper word. There is much of today's music that they may well enjoy, if they avoid the hard kind.
Parents and Church leaders who counsel young people in this area soon learn that they must move very wisely.
If a little child picks up a sharp object, sometimes a foolish adult will grab for it, frightened for the safety of the child. Instinctively, the child will grip it more tightly and perhaps be injured. The wise parent will trade him for it-some equally appealing, but harmless object, given in exchange, so that he lets go willingly and without tears.
Keep that in mind when you have a problem with young people and their music. To change it may take some time and require inspiration.
In the Church we have great confidence in our youth; and, particularly in the last year or two, we have moved to a pattern of programming where their desires and wishes are more dominant in our activities.
This places great responsibility on you, our young people. Pay careful attention to the music you program for your activities.
It is not that we lack confidence in you. However, the breach between the world and the extremes of its music and the Church is wider in our day than ever in generations past. And the middle of the road runs through an entirely different valley now than it did a few years ago.
Remember, young leaders, He is your Lord, and it is your Church quite as much as it is ours.
I would recommend that you go through your record albums and set aside those records that promote the so-called new morality, the drug, or the hard rock culture. Such music ought not to belong to young people concerned about spiritual development.
Why not go through your collection? Get rid of the worst of it. Keep just the best of it. Be selective in what you consume and what you produce. It becomes a part of you.
If you are blessed with musical talent, develop a wide range of good music.
There is so much wonderful, uplifting music available that we can experience to our advantage. Our people ought to be surrounded by good music of all kinds.
Parents ought to foster good music in the home and cultivate a desire to have their children learn the hymns of inspiration.
The time for music lessons seems to come along when there are so many other expenses for the family with little children. But we encourage parents to include musical training in the lives of their children.
Somehow Andrew and Olive Kimball did, and Spencer learned to play. Somehow Samuel and Louisa Lee managed to do it, and Harold learned to play. And now, as the leaders of the Church assemble for our sacred meetings in the upper room of the temple, we always sing a hymn. At the organ is President Spencer W. Kimball or President Harold B. Lee.
How wonderful is the music instructor who will teach children and youth to play and will acquaint them with good music in their formative years, including the music of worship. To have such music as a part of one's life is a great blessing.
The Lord has said, "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads."
I think I would like to share with the young people something about how such music has been very important in my life, although I am not trained as a musician.
Probably the greatest challenge to people of any age, particularly young people, and the most difficult thing you will face in mortal life is to learn to control your thoughts. As a man "thinketh in his heart, so is he." One who can control his thoughts has conquered himself.
When I was about ten years old, we lived in a home surrounded by an orchard. There never seemed to be enough water for the trees. The ditches, always fresh-plowed in the spring, would soon be filled with weeds. One day, in charge of the irrigating turn, I found myself in trouble.
As the water moved down the rows choked with weeds, it would flood in every direction. I raced through the puddles trying to build up the bank. As soon as I had one break patched up, there would be another.
A neighbor came through the orchard. He watched for a moment, and then with a few vigorous strokes of the shovel he cleared the ditch bottom and allowed the water to course through the channel he had made.
"If you want the water to stay in its course, you'll have to make a place for it to go," he said.
I have come to know that thoughts, like water, will stay on course if we make a place for them to go. Otherwise our thoughts follow the course of least resistance, always seeking the lower levels.
I had been told a hundred times or more as I grew up that thoughts must be controlled. But no one told me how.
I want to tell you young people about one way you can learn to control your thoughts, and it has to do with music.
The mind is like a stage. Except when we are asleep the curtain is always up. There is always some act being performed on that stage. It may be a comedy, a tragedy, interesting or dull, good or bad; but always there is some act playing on the stage of the mind.
Have you noticed that without any real intent on your part, in the middle of almost any performance, a shady little thought may creep in from the wings and attract your attention? These delinquent thoughts will try to upstage everybody.
If you permit them to go on, all thoughts of any virtue will leave the stage. You will be left, because you consented to it, to the influence of unrighteous thoughts.
If you yield to them, they will enact for you on the stage of your mind anything to the limits of your toleration. They may enact a theme of bitterness, jealousy, or hatred. It may be vulgar, immoral, even depraved.
When they have the stage, if you let them, they will devise the most clever persuasions to hold your attention. They can make it interesting all right, even convince you that it is innocent-for they are but thoughts.
What do you do at a time like that, when the stage of your mind is commandeered by the imps of unclean thinking?-whether they be the gray ones that seem almost clean or the filthy ones which leave no room for doubt.
If you can control your thoughts, you can overcome habits, even degrading personal habits. If you can learn to master them you will have a happy life.
This is what I would teach you. Choose from among the sacred music of the Church a favorite hymn, one with words that are uplifting and music that is reverent, one that makes you feel something akin to inspiration. Remember President Lee's counsel; perhaps "I Am A Child of God" would do. Go over it in your mind carefully. Memorize it. Even though you have had no musical training, you can think through a hymn.
Now, use this hymn as the place for your thoughts to go. Make it your emergency channel. Whenever you find these shady actors have slipped from the sidelines of your thinking onto the stage of your mind, put on this record, as it were.
As the music begins and as the words form in your thoughts, the unworthy ones will slip shamefully away. It will change the whole mood on the stage of your mind. Because it is uplifting and clean, the baser thoughts will disappear. For while virtue, by choice, will not associate with filth, evil cannot tolerate the presence of light.
In due time you will find yourself, on occasion, humming the music inwardly. As you retrace your thoughts, you discover some influence from the world about you encouraged an unworthy thought to move on stage in your mind, and the music almost automatically began.
"Music," said Gladstone, "is one of the most forceful instruments for governing the mind and spirit of man."
I am so grateful for music that is worthy and uplifting and inspiring.
Once you learn to clear the stage of your mind from unworthy thoughts, keep it busy with learning worthwhile things. Change your environment so that you have things about you that will inspire good and uplifting thoughts. Keep busy with things that are righteous.
Young people, you cannot afford to fill your mind with the unworthy hard music of our day. It is not harmless. It can welcome onto the stage of your mind unworthy thoughts and set the tempo to which they dance and to which you may act.
You degrade yourself when you identify with all of those things which seem now to surround such extremes in music: the shabbiness, the irreverence, the immorality, and the addictions. Such music as that is not worthy of you. You should have self-respect.
You are a son or a daughter of Almighty God. He has inspired a world full of wonderful things to learn and to do, uplifting music of many kinds that you may enjoy.
The choir, I think, will sing in conclusion, that pioneer hymn, "Come, Come, Ye Saints."
I have a brother who became a brigadier general in the Air Force. During World War II he was a bomber pilot and took part in some of the most dangerous and desperate raids in Europe. He returned to an assignment in Washington, D.C., about the time I finished pilot training in the same B-24 bombers and was heading for the Pacific. We had a day or two together in Washington before I left for overseas.
We talked of courage and of fear. I asked how he had held himself together in the face of all that he had endured.
He said, "I have a favorite hymn-'Come, Come, Ye Saints,' and when it was desperate, when there was little hope that we would return, I would keep that on my mind and it was as though the engines of the aircraft would sing back to me:
-Hymns, no. 13
From this he clung to faith, the one essential ingredient to courage.
There are many references in the scriptures, both ancient and modern, that attest to the influence of righteous music. The Lord, Himself, was prepared for His greatest test through its influence, for the scripture records: "And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives."
I bear witness that God is our Father, that we are His children, that He loves us and has provided great and glorious things in this life. I know this, and I thank Him for the uplifting influence of good music in my life and in the lives of my children. There are many things we can do together as a family; inspired music we can feel together. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
One summer day I stood alone in the quiet of the American War Memorial Cemetery of the Philippines. A spirit of reverence filled the warm tropical air. Situated among the carefully mowed grass, acre upon acre, were markers identifying men, mostly young, who in battle gave their lives. As I let my eyes pass name by name along the many colonnades of honor, tears came easily and without embarrassment. As my eyes filled with tears, my heart swelled with pride. I contemplated the high price of liberty and the costly sacrifice many had been called upon to bear.
My thoughts turned from those who bravely served and gallantly died. There came to mind the grief-stricken mother of each fallen man as she held in her hand the news of her precious son's supreme sacrifice. Who can measure a mother's grief? Who can probe a mother's love? Who can comprehend in its entirety the lofty role of a mother? With perfect trust in God, she walks, her hand in his, into the valley of the shadow of death that you and I might come forth unto life.
-George Griffith Fetter
In this spirit, let us consider mother. Four mothers come to mind: first, mother forgotten; second, mother remembered; third, mother blessed; and finally, mother loved.
"Mother forgotten" is observed all too frequently. The nursing homes are crowded, the hospital beds are full, the days come and go-often the weeks and months pass-but mother is not visited. Can we not appreciate the pangs of loneliness, the yearnings of mother's heart when hour after hour, alone in her age, she gazes out the window for the loved one who does not visit, the letter the postman does not bring. She listens for the knock that does not sound, the telephone that does not ring, the voice she does not hear. How does such a mother feel when her neighbor welcomes gladly the smile of a son, the hug of a daughter, the glad exclamation of a child, "Hello, Grandmother."
There are yet other ways we forget mother. Whenever we fall, whenever we do less than we ought, in a very real way we forget mother.
Last Christmas I talked to the proprietress of a Salt Lake City nursing home. From the hallway where we stood, she pointed to several elderly women assembled in a peaceful living room. She observed, "There's Mrs. Hansen. Her daughter visits her every week, right at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday. To her right is Mrs. Peek. Each Wednesday there is a letter in her hands from her son in New York. It is read, then reread, then saved as a precious piece of treasure. But see Mrs. Carroll; her family never telephones, never writes, never visits. Patiently she justifies this neglect with words which are heard but do not convince or excuse, 'They are all so busy.'" Shame on all who thus make of a noble woman "mother forgotten."
"Hearken unto thy father that begat thee," wrote Solomon, "and despise not thy mother when she is old." Can we not make of a mother forgotten a "mother remembered"?
Men turn from evil and yield to their better natures when mother is remembered. A famed officer from the Civil War period, Colonel Higgenson, when asked to name the incident of the Civil War that he considered the most remarkable for bravery, said that there was in his regiment a man whom everybody liked, a man who was brave and noble, who was pure in his daily life, absolutely free from dissipations in which most of the other men indulged.
One night at a champagne supper, when many were becoming intoxicated, someone in jest called for a toast from this young man. Colonel Higgenson said that he arose, pale but with perfect self-control, and declared: "Gentlemen, I will give you a toast which you may drink as you will, but which I will drink in water. The toast that I have to give is, 'Our mothers.'"
Instantly a strange spell seemed to come over all the tipsy men. They drank the toast in silence. There was no laughter, no more song, and one by one they left the room. The lamp of memory had begun to burn, and the name of "Mother" touched every man's heart.
As a boy, I well remember Sunday School on Mother's Day. We would hand to each mother present a small potted plant and sit in silent reverie as Melvin Watson, a blind member, would stand by the piano and sing, "That Wonderful Mother of Mine." This was the first time I saw a blind man cry. Even today, in memory, I can see the moist tears move from those sightless eyes, then form tiny rivulets and course down his cheeks, falling finally upon the lapel of the suit he had never seen. In boyhood puzzlement I wondered why all of the grown men were silent, why so many handkerchiefs came forth. Now I know. You see, mother was remembered. Each boy, every girl, all fathers and husbands seemed to make a silent pledge: "I will remember that wonderful mother of mine."
Some years ago I listened intently as a man well beyond middle age told me of an experience in his family history. The widowed mother who had given birth to him and his brothers and sisters had gone to her eternal and well-earned reward. The family assembled at the home and surrounded the large dining room table. The small metal box in which Mother had kept her earthly treasures was opened reverently. One by one each keepsake was brought forth. There was the wedding certificate from the Salt Lake Temple. "Oh, now Mother could be with Dad." Then there was the deed to the humble home where each child had in turn entered upon the stage of life. The appraised value of the house had little resemblance to the worth Mother had attached to it.
Then there was discovered a yellowed envelope which bore the marks of time. Carefully the flap was opened and from inside was taken a homemade valentine. Its simple message, in the handwriting of a child, read, "I love you, Mother." Though she was gone, by what she held sacred, Mother taught yet another lesson. A silence permeated the room, and every member of the family made a pledge not only to remember, but also to honor mother. For them it was not too little and too late, as in the classic poem of Rose Marinoni entitled "At Sunrise":
Now that we have considered "mother remembered," let us turn to "mother blessed." For one of the most beautiful and reverent examples, I refer to the holy scriptures.
In the New Testament of our Lord, perhaps we have no more moving account of "mother blessed" than the tender regard of the Master for the grieving widow at Nain.
"And it came to pass that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.
"Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.
"And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.
"And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.
"And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother."
What power, what tenderness, what compassion did our Master and exemplar thus demonstrate. We, too, can bless if we will but follow his noble example. Opportunities are everywhere. Needed are eyes to see the pitiable plight, ears to hear the silent pleadings of a broken heart. Yes, and a soul filled with compassion that we might communicate not only eye to eye or voice to ear, but in the majestic style of the Savior, even heart to heart. Then every mother everywhere will be "mother blessed."
Finally, let us contemplate "mother loved." Universally applicable is the poem recalled from childhood and enjoyed by children even today, "Which Loved Best?"
-Joy Allison
One certain way each can demonstrate genuine love for mother is to live the truths mother so patiently taught. Such a lofty goal is not new to our present generation. On this continent, in times described in the Book of Mormon, we read of a brave, a good, and noble leader named Helaman who did march in righteous battle at the head of 2,000 young men. Helaman described the activities of these young men: " never had I seen so great courage, as they said unto me: behold our God is with us, and he will not suffer that we should fall; then let us go forth; Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them. And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it.
At the end of the battle, Helaman continued his description: " behold, to my great joy, there had not one soul of them fallen to the earth; yea, and they had fought as if with the strength of God; yea, never were men known to have fought with such miraculous strength; and with such mighty power. "
Miraculous strength, mighty power-mother's love and love for mother had met and triumphed.
The holy scriptures, the pages of history are replete with tender, moving, convincing accounts of "mother loved." One, however, stands out supreme, above and beyond any other. The place is Jerusalem, the period known as the Meridian of Time. Assembled is a throng of Roman soldiers. Their helmets signify their loyalty to Caesar, their shields bear his emblem, their spears are crowned by Roman eagles. Assembled also are natives to the land of Jerusalem. Faded into the still night, and gone forever are the militant and rowdy cries, "Crucify him, crucify him."
The hour has come. The personal earthly ministry of the Son of God moves swiftly to its dramatic conclusion. A certain loneliness is here. Nowhere to be found are the lame beggars who, because of this man, walk; the deaf who, because of this man, hear; the blind who, because of this man, see; the dead who, because of this man, live.
There remained yet a few faithful followers. From his tortured position on the cruel cross, he sees his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing by. He speaks: " woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! "
From that awful night when time stood still, when the earth did quake and great mountains were brought down-yes, through the annals of history, over the centuries of years and beyond the span of time, there echoes his simple yet divine words, "Behold thy mother!"
As we truly listen to that gentle command and with gladness obey its intent, gone forever will be the vast legions of "mothers forgotten." Everywhere present will be "mothers remembered," "mothers blessed," and "mothers loved" and, as in the beginning, God will once again survey the workmanship of his own hand and be led to say, "It very good."
May each of us treasure this truth; one cannot forget mother and remember God. One cannot remember mother and forget God. Why? Because these two sacred persons, God and mother, partners in creation, in love, in sacrifice, in service, are as one.
May we, by our thoughts and our actions, honor God and mother, I pray humbly yet earnestly, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Rex D. Pinegar
Of the First Council of the Seventy
It is a great blessing to be here today. After briefing the office staff at our mission in Virginia, I turned to leave, and our treasurer and fleet coordinator said: "President, just tell President Lee we're behind him." On behalf of all the missionaries throughout the world who testify daily that Jesus is the Christ and of your prophetic calling, President Lee, we want you to know, "We are behind you."
William Jennings Bryan wrote:
In our search for happiness we may get so involved with the "human measure of life" that we fail to recognize the temporary value of such riches. Christ warned that we can become spiritually "choked" with the "cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection."
The Savior also said, " a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
"And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
"And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
"And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
"And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou has much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
"But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
"So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."
It is, then, our blessing and responsibility to become rich toward God. We are to go beyond acquiring something for ourselves. The Savior also taught us how to do this when he said, " seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you", and, " whoso desireth to reap, let him thrust in his sickle with his might, and reap while the day lasts, that he may treasure up for his soul everlasting salvation in the kingdom of God."
This means we may gain eternal life. "Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich."
The significance of this truth was brought to the heart of a certain man when his friend approached him with a plan to obtain the riches of this life. He wrote:
"Dear friend,
"During one of our conversations you said something which has been on my mind ever since. In fact, you might say that it has really 'troubled' me and has caused me to do some real 'soul' searching. In explaining why you felt compelled to make the sales plan known to me, you said, 'I would feel real bad a few years from now if I knew about this, got rich from it, and did not tell my friends about it.'
"You will never know how that statement has troubled me because I have made no attempt to share something more precious than money with you. I am speaking of the true gospel of Jesus Christ.
"Now hold on a minute. I know what is going through your mind. 'This kook has lost his cool and gone off the deep end.' T'ain't so. I believe we spent enough time together in the past couple of years for you to know that I haven't turned into a freak or something. But I am sure you have noticed a change. I no longer do many of the earthly things you probably remember of me. I have a great love for my family and mankind in general. I am truly sorry for many things in my past and will do my best to never do them again. But this isn't the most important thing.
"The most important thing in all this world is that I know that I existed in the preexistence as a spirit child of my Heavenly Father; that I am here in mortality as part of his great plan for me in order that I may prove my worthiness to him by constantly making the proper choices between good and evil; and that if I prove myself worthy I will return to his presence.
"I further know that there is a prophet, Harold B. Lee, here upon the earth today who communicates regularly with the true and living Jesus Christ, the son of God. Through this prophet I can learn everything necessary to help me live my life and guide my family in the proper manner to return to his presence.
"Oh, there is so much more that I could tell you, but suffice it to say that there is absolutely no unanswered question in my mind concerning my reason for being here at this time, nor what reward I will earn if I obey the teachings of my Father in heaven.
"Of course, I have learned all of these things through study and prayer and the teachings of the Mormon Church. It is this that I have never shared with you that has troubled my conscience so.
"Now I am going to do something about it. At the same time this letter is mailed, I am sending your name to the Church representatives in your area and asking them to contact you. They will undoubtedly send a couple of young men missionaries to see you. These will be people who are dedicating a couple of years of their lives at their or their family's expense to tell people like yourselves of this gospel. They have about six one-hour lessons they will want to teach you. I beg of you to listen to their message. I testify to you that it is true."
I also testify that this is the true Church, that Harold B. Lee is a prophet of the true and living God, and that this gospel of Jesus Christ is more precious than money.
A recent Relief Society film, "Walk in the Light," highlights the incident of a young granddaughter who desired to become the heir to her grandmother's watch. It seemed to the grandchild a real treasure. Here are the soul-stirring words of her grandmother's reply:
"The watch is of small value. But I do want to leave you something very precious. It is something I brought with me all the way from Scotland. I carried it with me across the plains. It is something that will be of value to you all the days of your life and into the eternities. I want to leave to you my testimony-my testimony of the gospel. I know that the gospel is true. I know that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ."
It is said that many grandchildren honor the name of that grandmother and recall her testimony with joy. How great are the riches she has laid up in store in our Heavenly Father's kingdom.
I am grateful to the Lord for you members of the Church who desire to share the wealth of the gospel of Jesus Christ with your family and friends. Not only are you becoming rich toward God, but you are making other lives rich also. You are giving them the true Christian religion.
Patrick Henry, a great American patriot, said:
"I have now disposed of all my property to my family. There is one thing more I wish I could give them, and that is the Christian religion. If they had that, and I had not given them one shilling they would have been rich, and if they had not that, and I had given them all the world, they would be poor."
May we all share our wealth of testimony with others that we and they may become rich toward God, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
So many timely subjects have been discussed today, beginning with the great address by President Lee, that I have been edified and I am sure that you have been as well. Now I humbly pray that I may not detract from but may add a little bit to your thinking and doing as we consider the second great principle of the gospel. I feel there is need for it.
The primary purpose of the gospel and of the Church is to provide a pattern for living and a prescription for happiness and success-here and hereafter. President McKay declared on many occasions that next in importance to life itself is the privilege of directing that life. To direct one's life is a privilege. It is also a real personal responsibility.
Speaking to his sons, Lehi explained this by saying: "Wherefore, men are free. They are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great mediation of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.
"And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit;
"And not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the devil power to captivate, to bring you down to hell, that he may reign over you in his own kingdom."
Because sin is such a devastating, destructive force, the great principle of repentance was provided by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to extricate ourselves from the clutches of sin. Without the blessed privilege of repentance, we would have but little incentive to improve our lives.
Repentance isn't easy. It takes ability. It takes self-discipline and humility.
Repentance is not a negative teaching, but rather it is a positive process of building good character.
Repentance could become a remedy for most spiritual ills. However, it is not a mere superficial, shallow-rooted expression of regret.
What, then, is true repentance?
President Joseph F. Smith declared that: "True repentance is not only sorrow for sins, and humble penitence and contrition before God, but it involves the necessity of turning away from them, a discontinuance of all evil practices and deeds, a thorough reformation of life, a vital change from evil to good, from vice to virtue, from darkness to light. Not only so, but to make restitution, so far as it is possible, for all the wrongs we have done, to pay our debts, and restore to God and man their rights-that which is due to them from us. This is true repentance, and the exercise of the will and all the powers of body and mind is demanded, to complete this glorious work of repentance; then God will accept it."
If one truly repents, it will be manifested by his works, for, "By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins -behold, he will confess them and forsake them."
Thus repentance calls for a heartfelt sorrow for sin resulting not only in a cessation thereof but also in reformation of life. That's the important thing-a reformation of life!
To repent isn't exactly popular these days. Yet the Lord expects each of us to repent, to improve, and to conscientiously reform our lives. In fact, he set for us a lofty goal, saying:
"Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."
Admittedly, this is an imperfect world. Nevertheless, each of us should be constantly striving toward perfection.
1. "Let him that stole steal no more. "
2. " let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly. "
3. " pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." Destroy your enemies by making them your friends.
4. Let the unkind among us become considerate.
5. Let the truth be spoken always, no matter what the consequences may be.
I would like to add Brother Packer's recommendation that we rid ourselves of the unmusical music and adopt some that does the soul and the heart good and which is pleasing to the Lord. We can at least do that in our own homes.
To practice such virtues as these gives evidence of forsaking wrong. We ought not to let personal faults, bad habits, and moral weaknesses persist. They should be overcome and corrected without delay. I have often said: "You can't repent too soon because you don't know how soon it will be too late."
One of my distant Scandinavian relatives who was thriving financially in Denmark came with his family as converts to the Church to America and his family was directed to settle in Sanpete County. He was quite well-to-do, as I said, and he sold his lands, herds, and flocks for what he could and came without complaint. For a while he did well as far as the Church and his activities were concerned; and amazingly, even without the abundant rainfall and the water and the resources, he began to thrive again. He accumulated wealth again. He became so interested and involved in his possessions that he forgot about the purpose of his coming to America. They waited upon him as ward teachers. The bishop would call upon him and implore him to become active as he used to be, and he would promise them that in the future when he got certain things settled that he would do it. Finally he was growing old, and they came and said to him, "Now, Lars, the Lord was good to you when you were in Denmark. He has been good to you since you have come here. See all of the things that you possess. We think now, since you are growing a little older, that it would be well for you to spend some of your time in the interests of the Church. After all, you can't take these things with you when you go."
He stopped. He was shocked, and he said, "Vell, den, I vill not go." But he did. And so will we. It is time today to begin the program and process of repenting!
Brothers and sisters, you know and I know that the power of the destroyer is persistently, relentlessly operating upon the minds and hearts of the children of men, young and old, in the Church and out of the Church, and too many are yielding to his evil enticements.
We have been warned by the Lord and by our leaders through the years to repent. President Lee this morning urged us to begin with ourselves and develop self-respect, and beginning there, set out on the real purpose of life.
We have been supplied with heaven-sent programs such as the family home evening program, to keep families secure and our homes intact. It has been predicted that in the last days men shall become "lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God."
"For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.
"And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well-and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell."
I like that word carefully because that is the way he operates. He never jerks. He never pulls-just misleads us gradually, step by step. Now in this situation and in the world today, let us remember the admonition of James:
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
"Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
"Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up."
May we all repent and place our lives and our homes in order and in perfect harmony with the gospel of Jesus Christ, I pray, testifying to the truthfulness of the restored gospel and in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
After the Lord had created Adam, he made it crystal clear that he did not intend that Adam should go through life without a companion, when he said: "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him." So Eve was created and given to Adam to be his wife and companion.
Many of you young people in the Church have reached an age where you are old enough to look for a companion and mate. As you commence dating on a steady basis, you will enter a period known as courtship. This will be a thrilling and important time in your lives. President McKay referred to it in these words:
"Courtship is a wonderful period. It should be a sacred one. That is the time in which you choose your mate. Young men, your success in life depends upon that choice. Choose prayerfully the one who inspires you to your best and always remember that no man injures the thing he loves. The seeds of a happy marriage are sown in youth. Happiness does not begin at the altar; it begins during the period of youth and courtship. "
Young people, choose prayerfully and carefully. Don't rush hastily into marriage. Determine that you have common goals and interests. Especially be certain that you possess the same religious convictions and beliefs.
A wise man once counseled: "Before marriage keep thine eyes wide open, then after marriage keep them half closed."
Marriage brings adjustments, because each has his or her own personality. Reared in homes with varying backgrounds, marriage naturally will require the making of adjustments.
Marriage, my beloved young brothers and sisters, should not be just taken for granted. It must be worked at, but realize that you can have the kind of marriage that you earnestly desire and for which you are willing to work. Marriage will require giving and taking; it will mean sharing, because life was meant to be shared. A happy and successful marriage means forgetting oneself and thinking of ways in which to make one's companion happy. It might be well each day for the husband to think, "What can I do today to make Mary happy?" And Mary should say to herself, "What can I do today to make John happy?" A happy Home is where the wife is treated like a queen and the husband is treated like a king. And so, it is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner.
A happy and successful marriage will be one that is built on the important principle of love; a love recognizing not only a fleeting physical attraction, but more importantly a deeply spiritual love that will continue forever. At the dedication of the beautiful Oakland Temple, the prophet of the Lord, David O. McKay, emphasized the fact that love is eternal in these words: "One great purpose carried out by those who come into the temple is the sealing of man and wife in the sacred bonds of matrimony. That purpose is based upon the fact that man and woman truly love each other. That means that a couple coming to the altar should be sure that there is love in each heart. It would be a terrible thing to be bound for eternity to one whom you do not love, but it is a glorious thing to be sealed for time and eternity to one whom you do love." President McKay then continued, saying: "Let us ever remember that love is the divinest attribute of the human soul. love must be fed; Love must be nourished; love can be starved to death just as literally as the body can be starved without daily sustenance. If that love is fed daily and monthly and yearly throughout a lifetime, the husband's attention will not be drawn to somebody else. " He then concluded with these words: "If your spirit lives after death, as it does, then that attribute of love will persist. "
Honeymoons should not end right after the marriage ceremony, but should never cease. President and Sister McKay set a wonderful example to the Church and to the world. On their 65th wedding anniversary President McKay referred to their married life as 65 years of "wedded courtship."
There are many kinds of marriages, but Latter-day Saints should realize that there is only one place on earth where one can obtain a first-class marriage, and that is in a House of the Lord, and it is one of the purposes for which temples are built. What a worthwhile and splendid tradition it is for those who are married and sealed in the temple to return each year on or near their wedding anniversary and recall the promises they have made to each other and to the Lord. Of course, this will be in addition to the many other times that they will attend the temple.
We are mindful that the Church has constantly stressed the importance of the home. Many valuable and worthwhile suggestions and programs have been introduced to point to ways in which a happy home may be realized.
I am convinced that a happy home is the result of a happy marriage: that is why it is so important to select a suitable companion and mate.
In our world today there is an apparent disregard for the marriage vows made, and we view with concern and alarm the noticeable increase in divorces throughout the land. This would indicate that homes are not happy and, as a result, marriages are failing. Too many men and women become discontented and develop a "roving eye" as their attention is attracted to someone else. Hence, too many divorces are a result of unfaithfulness on the part of the wife, the husband, or both. There would be fewer divorces if the counsel and guidance given by the Lord were followed. In a revelation to the Prophet Joseph he said: "Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else."
I am persuaded that many divorces today could be avoided and are not justifiable. President Stephen L Richards, a former counselor in the First Presidency, once aptly remarked: "In the case of marital disagreement, which may lead to separation, the proper remedy is not divorce, but repentance-repentance usually on the part of both husband and wife, repentance for both acts committed and harsh words which have made a 'hell' instead of a 'heaven' out of the home."
In order for a married couple to make a "heaven" out of their home, they must realize that repentance, love, faithfulness, humility, and forgiveness are basic essentials in achieving this noble and lofty goal.
A serene home must also be a place where the Spirit of the Lord will dwell and abide. The Spirit of the Lord will not dwell nor abide in a home where there is constant bickering, quarreling, arguing, discord, or disharmony.
The Prophet Joseph had to learn many of these valuable lessons, as we will likewise have to do. David Whitmer, a close associate of the Prophet and one of the Three Witnesses for the Book of Mormon, related an enlightening experience which occurred while the prophet was translating the gold plates. These are Brother Whitmer's words:
"He was a religious and straightforward man. He had to be; for he was illiterate and could do nothing himself. He had to trust in God. He could not translate unless he was humble and possessed the right feelings towards everyone. To illustrate so you can see: One morning when he was getting ready to continue the translation, something went wrong about the house and he was put out about it. Something that Emma, his wife, had done. Oliver and I went upstairs and Joseph came up soon after to continue the translation but he could not do anything. He could not translate a single syllable. He went downstairs, out into the orchard, and made supplication to the Lord; was gone about an hour-came back to the house, and asked Emma's forgiveness and then came upstairs where we were and then the translation went on all right. He could do nothing save he was humble and faithful."
It is my sincere and humble prayer that we may all live in such a way that we will have happy and serene homes where love abounds and the Spirit of the Lord is ever present, for which I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
Elder O. Leslie Stone
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
It is an inspiration to all of us to remember the teachings of our Savior and the many wonderful things that he gave to the world. He lived long before recorded history. He was in the great council in heaven-he helped his Father in the shaping of the heavens, in the creation of the earth, and in the making of man.
In opposition to Satan's plan, it was he who proposed man's free agency-giving him the glorious privilege of choice which means so much to all of us.
He lived on earth in the meridian of time-in the promised land.
He went about teaching and doing good. Men followed him, not for worldly riches but to gain treasures in heaven.
He set up a new code for living-to love one another-even one's enemies. He enjoined us to judge not, to forgive, and to give all men a second chance.
In the Doctrine and Covenants section 64, verses 8–11, he tells us that it is our duty to forgive one another and that he who does not forgive his brother stands condemned and is the greater sinner.
He gave our society our most undying formula for getting along together when he made this statement found in Matt. 7:12:
"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."
There are very few of us that are fully living up to this. Yet I am sure we all agree that if men followed this principle they would solve the problems that we are now facing in all the nations of the earth. Yes, if we lived this principle it would be easy to love and forgive those who trespass against us.
In Matt. 22:36–39, we read about an instance where Christ was approached by some of the leading lawyers of the day who said:
"Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
It should be remembered that our nearest neighbors are the members of our own family. Next are those living next door to us, in the same block, the same city, the same state, the nation, yes, even the whole world. All whom we associate with or influence in any way are our neighbors.
Can a man reach the celestial kingdom if he does not love his neighbor as himself? When Jesus gave the second commandment, He said it was like unto the first and repeating both of them he said, "On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
He made them very important-so important that all other laws and commandments rest upon them.
Let us ask another question. Can a man live the first and great commandment if he does not live the second? In other words, can he love God with all his heart if he does not love his neighbor?
John the apostle said:
"If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also."
In third Nephi 11:29–30 we find this statement:
"For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
"Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away."
These statements and many others should make it clear to all of us that the Lord desires us to love and forgive one another. It behooves us to conquer our pride and settle our differences with our fellowmen. As just quoted from third Nephi, contentions and disputations are of the devil and are not approved by our Heavenly Father. Loving our neighbors as ourselves will bring great joy and happiness into our lives.
Christ practiced forgiveness. You remember the story of the woman that had sinned. The law was that she should be stoned to death. They brought her before the Savior to see how he would judge her. In John 8:6–7 it is recorded:
"This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
"So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."
Not any in the group could qualify, and the crowd dispersed. He then turned to the woman and said: "Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more." He certainly did not approve of what she had done, but he demonstrated forgiveness and left it up to his Father in heaven to judge her.
He forgave those who would take his life. At the very time when he was suffering the most, he said: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."
The gospel he brought to earth and which was restored in this dispensation provides us with a beautiful plan of salvation. We know that we had a previous existence and were valiant there. The Lord permitted us to come to earth that we might obtain a body, gain knowledge, develop our skills and our characters, learn to overcome evil, and see if we can remain true and faithful to him, and be sufficiently diligent and obedient to the commandments as to be worthy to return and abide in his presence.
Many of our problems are blessings in disguise. They are provided so that we might gain the experiences intended for us on this earth and thus prepare us for meeting and solving problems in the next phase of our eternal existence.
Today, as I contemplate the many, many blessings that have been given us, I recall the words of King Benjamin in the Book of Mormon when, after enumerating the blessings which had been poured down upon his people by the Lord, he said this to them: "And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments." Yes, the only thing the Lord requires of us is that we keep his commandments! This sounds relatively simple, doesn't it? But we all know that it isn't simple, nor was it intended to be. Where much is given, much is expected. The Lord requires of those who dwell with him the ability to overcome weaknesses and imperfections. He requires self-denial and self-discipline.
Some of us may feel from time to time that some of the Lord's commandments are an impediment to happiness in this life, but this isn't so; and deep down in our hearts we know that so long as we adhere to the commandments, just as surely as night follows day, we will reap the blessings that are promised to the faithful. Sometimes the way of fulfillment may not be apparent to us, but the actuality of it is assured. The Lord said:
"I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."
How many of us on judgment day would like to be told that we had failed to do our part-that we had been unworthy servants of the Lord because our own lives had been such a poor example in keeping the commandments?
In Matt. 5:16 the Lord gives us a very important message:
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."
To fail to keep the commandments of the Lord not only brings condemnation, but actually deprives us of many blessings here on this earth-to say nothing of those eternal blessings for which we are all striving. In 1 Cor. 2:9 we read this statement:
"Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."
Think of that great promise. And finally, the wonderful promise given to all men:
"And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of the gifts of God."
Our late President Heber J. Grant told us how to endure to the end when he said:
"Let us do the will of our Father in heaven today-we will then be prepared for the duties of tomorrow and for the eternities to come."
Christ repeatedly emphasized the fact that the gospel is one of work and service. To gain blessings, we must be doers of the word and not hearers only. In Matt. 7:21 we read: "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
This means if we are to gain salvation, exaltation, and eternal life we must live in accordance with the principles of the gospel. We must love and forgive all men and keep the commandments of God.
I leave my testimony with you today that I know the true gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored in this dispensation, that Joseph Smith was an instrument in the hands of the Lord in bringing this about. He was and is a prophet of God. I testify that we are led today by a prophet, President Harold B. Lee. May we all give him and his associates our love and support, and pray continually that they may be blessed with health, strength, and inspiration to carry their tremendous responsibilities. May we have courage and determination to keep the commandments and live in accordance with the principles of the gospel, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder David B. Haight
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
May I share in the prayers expressed for all of us that I may say some words of encouragement to our youth.
A Brigham Young University student wrote the editor of the Daily Universe following President Oaks' recent address to the students on standards of dress and conduct: "Why must we always tag along behind the rest of the world, trying to get as close as our religion will let us? 'A style of our own' is not an empty phrase."
Today's teenagers live in a world far different from that experienced by their parents. Though the world is becoming more wicked, the youth of Christ's church can become more righteous if they understand who they are, understand the blessings available, and understand the promises God has made to those who are righteous, who believe, who endure. All of our youth are entitled to and need this knowledge to combat the forces of deception that would lead them captive into darkness.
Peter, writing from Rome to the scattered saints, understood their trials and temptations to desert the faith and go back to their old ways. He encouraged the saints as he wrote: "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth. "
Peter then adds a broader dimension with stirring words to help us understand who we are when he wrote: "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people;" and as a chosen and peculiar people, " ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." What a wonderful declaration of identity for our youth to ponder-"chosen generation"-"royal priesthood"-"a peculiar people."
Recently, while attending a stake conference and having the added blessing of meeting with the young people, some of whom had driven long hours, I learned that several of them were the only Latter-day Saints in their high schools. When I asked, "You set the right example for the rest of the students, don't you?" they replied, "We really try." As they said "we really try," I could see the light of belief and conviction in those youthful faces. I could begin to understand what Peter meant by our being "called out of the darkness into his marvellous light."
Our youth, with all of their distractions, must realize that through their membership they are very special; that the Lord is counting on them that the prophecies might be fulfilled. You of a noble birthright are different from your friends who are not members of Christ's true church. You are a "chosen generation"; you live "in the world" but you do not follow worldly trends or habits which are contrary to your beliefs. May I remind you of only a few of the very special events in your life that cause you to be different. You have made some promises, and some eternal promises have been made to you.
Many of you were born under the covenant, your parents having made a covenant with God. You can, if worthy, " inherit thrones, kingdoms, principalities," and have " exaltation and glory sealed upon heads, forever and ever." Chances are your nonmember friends wouldn't understand these terms. In today's world they may sound rather strange.
You have been baptized "even by water, and of fire and of the Holy Ghost", making your salvation possible if you endure and are faithful to the end.
You partake of the sacrament at our meetings, symbolic of the torn flesh and spilled blood of our Savior, giving you an opportunity to renew your covenant to keep the Lord's commandments that his spirit may continue to be with you as it did with a teenage girl in Scotland who told of being with nonmember friends. She wanted to be part of the group and thought, "Surely one little drink wouldn't hurt-why not?" Then she realized her celestial kingdom goal. After that, she said, the ridicule didn't matter. She had felt of his spirit and could feel of his influence at that moment.
You are surrounded with temptation and wickedness, but you don't succumb to them. A Chinese scholar wrote: "The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials."
You young men have received the priesthood of God with the authority to perform special ordinances in his name, this right delegated to you, to be his fully qualified servants with the power to bind on earth and in heaven-to administer spiritual things.
Just this week we received a letter from a mother telling of her Navy son, now stationed on a small island 1,200 miles south of India out in the Indian Ocean. It has only the military base and a small coconut plantation. This young man has located six other LDS boys and they are now holding regular Church services. He wrote his mother telling of his opportunity now to prepare lessons for their priesthood meetings-young men on a tiny speck of land in a vast ocean recognizing and using their priesthood authority. They are different.
The Lord said:
"For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies."
Such an experience these young men are having!
You can, if you qualify, go to the temple with your sweetheart-the one you love dearly-to be married in a manner prescribed by the Lord to continue forever as husband and wife in the celestial kingdom of God; and, if you live worthily, to gain eternal life-the greatest of all God's gifts to man.
At times I wonder if you fully comprehend the far-reaching, eternal significance of temple marriage. If you really understand, you will never settle for less. Marriage is a divine ordinance, not to be performed by a justice of the peace or to be taken lightly; but, " ordained of God unto man."
You can, if worthy, even perform miracles-which makes you different from the rest of your friends; to heal the sick, cure all manner of disease. Healings are among the signs that follow true believers. Faithful young elders have this power.
These are only a few of the eternal principles that distinguish you from the materialistic style being developed by worldly men today. As you place the weight of your influence on the side of good, truth, and beauty, your life will achieve an endless splendor, nobler than you might imagine.
Paul, writing to his beloved Timothy and realizing the pressure Timothy was experiencing, said: " God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
Some of you attend schools where there are few Church members; others, where we are a majority. But if you conduct yourselves properly and develop your personalities along Church standards, your candle will be high on a hill and will burn brightly for all to see. Dare to think for yourself. Have the strength of character to act the way you know to be right.
Debbi Brown, the only Mormon in her Roanoke, Virginia, high school senior class, said: "It is so important for us to live the standards of the Church. Most people who know anything about our Church know that it maintains the highest moral standards.
"There is never a need to apologize. We are so lucky to have the true gospel. By making the Church standards our standards, we can share this gospel with others."
She continues: "A good friend invited me to a party celebrating our victorious football season. He was a popular football player. I was hesitant. He knew I was a Mormon. My hesitation must have been evident. He quickly added, 'No drinking allowed.' People know our standards and respect us for them. To be different from the crowd is a privilege."
Now to our young friends, you may feel at times that the Lord's commandments restrict your freedom as compared with others. Freedom does not mean license, nor does it imply the absence of all restrictions and discipline. The Savior did not teach undisciplined, permissive-type freedom. When he said, "know the truth, and the truth shall make you free", he is telling us that his truth, if followed, would free us from falsity, from deception; that his gospel, if followed, would free us to gain eternal life. As the light of the gospel fills our souls, our abilities will increase. We will love our neighbors and be of sincere service in helping others.
We have a young military chaplain, a former missionary who is happily married, who lives the gospel as he should. His superior officer at his first duty assignment was so impressed with his spirit that he wrote: "I want you to know how much we chaplains and the thousands of men have appreciated his presence. To describe him like a breath of fresh, clean air would be poetic and not intended to demean other chaplains who labor at our large base. He has a special charisma that radiates love."
The officer then went on to say: "We have benefited in many ways from this young chaplain. We not only admire him but renew our own enthusiasm. Thousands have derived great spiritual and social benefit from his service."
I testify to our noble youth who will be the future leaders of our society and the Church that you are different. You need not look just like the world; you need not entertain like the world; your personal habits should be different; your recreation will be different; your concern for your family will be vastly different. If you establish this distinctiveness firmly in your life pattern, only blessings await you for doing what is right.
It is written: "If you speak and act with pure thoughts, happiness will follow like a shadow."
Remember, my young friends, that Christ is the only one through whom we can reach the divine destiny. You and I must believe in him-believe that his Church was founded and established upon divine revelation, that we have presiding over his Church a true and living prophet through whom revelation is received for the world today-for all of his people-now today-1973.
President Harold B. Lee sits here with us now. We have heard his voice, listened to his counsel and wisdom, knowing we will never be lead astray, but encouraged by him to live as we should, to obey God's commandments down to the latest day.
President Lee once remarked that President Heber J. Grant counseled: "Brethren, keep your eye on the President of this Church. If he 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 this people astray."
President Lee recently said in a most moving address to the Brigham Young University student body: "The measure of your true conviction is whether or not you see the power of God resting on the leaders of this Church and that testimony goes down into your heart like fire." May these words of his have a deep impact on all, but especially on you-our youth. The world may not comprehend what he said, but you can. You are different. You are a chosen generation. May you see the power of God resting on him as His prophet, as I testify to you it does, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Delbert L. Stapley
Of the Council of the Twelve
I feel confident, brothers and sisters, that we are most grateful for the splendid and timely message given by President Lee in this morning's session of conference. He gave encouragement and counsel for all of us to walk uprightly before the Lord and to keep his laws and commandments. It is the only way we can find our way to the eternal life that God has held out to the faithful of his people. In fact, our God gave this promise: " if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God."
"Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich." Very few people give enough thought to eternal life. Yet it is something each of us should keep uppermost in our minds and hearts. As children of God, we cannot afford to forget our origin and destiny if we desire the realms of celestial glory.
Through revelation, God has given the gospel plan of salvation and exaltation for men to live by. Eternal life is God's life, which he hopes to share with all his children. But we are free to act for ourselves, " to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great mediation of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself."
The first step on the path to eternal life is baptism. Our Savior set the example when he went into the water with John the Baptist, who was authorized of God to baptize Jesus by immersion. This sets the mode of baptism for all men to follow.
The apostle Paul taught that there is "one Lord, one faith, one baptism."
Christ is the one Lord, the gospel plan taught by him is the one faith, and his baptism by immersion is the one baptism.
Nephi, a Book of Mormon prophet, stated it this way: " For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.
"And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life. "
"Enter ye in at the strait gate: " said our Lord, "because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
Christ made this positive statement: "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." If we believe in Christ and his mission, we cannot bypass him and obtain eternal life. The Savior gave his life as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world, thus opening the door for man who, through faithfulness, may gain eternal life and exaltation.
However, conversion and baptism alone are not sufficient to one's assurance of eternal life. To receive exaltation in the kingdom of God, a person must abide the fulness of celestial law.
Some people erroneously think if they receive all the ordinances of the gospel, regardless of their transgressions, they will inherit the celestial mansions of our God. What a rude awakening awaits such false-thinking individuals, " for the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance."
Listen to the teachings of Nephi on this subject: "Yea, and there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us.
"And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God-he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God.
"Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark."
We must not fall to the misleading precepts of man and foolishly break God's laws and thus lose our opportunity for exaltation. Jesus stated:
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
A person earnestly seeking eternal life must avoid the pitfalls of temptation and sin. He is never safe from committing sin unless he has fully prepared himself and decided on the course he will take before temptation comes into his life.
There are two great opposite forces at work in the world. One is the force of evil which takes away man's agency, destroys freedoms, and makes the nonvaliant a follower of Satan; which can only lead to unhappiness in life and eternal misery. The second is the force of God. This is the power to do good; to live righteously, to enjoy freedom of choice, and to be courageous, faithful followers of Christ through whom only is salvation and exaltation assured.
We should determine whose side we are on and then have the courage, in spite of evil persuasion, to faithfully stay on the Lord's side.
We cannot mix evil with good and attain the eternal mansions of our Heavenly Father. Our duty is to constantly do the works of righteousness. The Lord has said that light and truth, which is the word of God, forsake the evil one. Without light and truth in our lives, we are subject to the powers of Satan.
We must be ever aware of the deceiving servants of the Satanic hosts. The stratagems of Satan are many to entrap mankind in his powerful clutches. Some of the more obvious ones are apathy, complacency, immorality, drugs, greed for money, dishonesty, and corruptive practices.
The Savior taught his disciples: "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
This can be stated another way: You cannot serve both God and Satan. Life is a real challenge, but blessed with God-given powers, we can overcome every stratagem and obstacle Satan may place in our path. The path to eternal life may not be an easy one to follow with all the worldly enticements about us, but when we consider the rewards and blessings we gather if we travel the narrow way, it is worth every sacrifice we make.
Alma taught his people that this life is the time for men to perform their labors and to prepare for eternity. He warned those who procrastinate their repentance: "Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.
"For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, therefore, the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you. "
We need the constant companionship of the Holy Spirit. Without it we are deprived of its spiritual guidance and lose our sense of eternal values and drift further into disbelief and evil practices.
The Lord is displeased with those who do not forsake their wicked ways, the pride of their hearts, their covetousness, and all their detestable things, which keep them from the eternal life he has offered unto them.
"But this much I can tell you," said King Benjamin to his people, "that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not."
The invitation for eternal life is open to all who are willing to pay the price. The Lord has said: "Yea, blessed are they who have obeyed my gospel; for they shall receive for their reward the good things of the earth, and shall also be crowned with the blessings from above they that are faithful and diligent before me."
Entering into sacred covenants and obligations with God is not all that is required. Nephi stated: "And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.
"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."
We cannot stand idly by, being merely an interested spectator, rather than a participating member, and still receive the blessing of eternal life. It is our duty to gain an appropriate witness and testimony which will change and improve our lives for good.
The gift of eternal life cannot be obtained outside of the Church established by the Father and the Son. The church set up by Christ in the meridian of time became apostate following the ministry of his apostles, and thus was steeped in error by false gospel teachings, changing ordinances, and loss of divine authority. The same condition prevailed during the dark ages, requiring a new gospel dispensation-the restoration of Christ's church to earth. I testify this restoration occurred in the year 1830, through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands firmly on divine principles of eternal truth. It is meeting the temporal and spiritual needs of its members. It is not liberalizing its standards nor the teachings of Christ. Mormonism is growing because of its disciplines. The old-fashioned virtues of honesty, integrity, morality, and fidelity are God-given standards to live by. Unfortunately, these qualities are fast disappearing in the world, and wickedness is rising.
I bear witness there is a future life that holds much in promise for the faithful of God's children. It is time for all men to turn fully to God. Our trust and faith in him assures his protective care and guiding influence which will lead us, if faithful and true, to his holy presence.
I hope, brothers and sisters we will all be worthy of this wonderful gift and blessing. I know God lives. I know this is his church. I know it is directed by divine inspiration. We are most blessed in having a living prophet in our beloved Harold B. Lee. He is a great individual and one whom we can admire, respect, and look up to for teaching, counsel, and guidance. May God bless us to be faithful and true to all the covenants and obligations we have entered into with him, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brothers and sisters, far and near, members of the Church and nonmembers:
The first Article of Faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reads: "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost."
Last spring in general conference I spoke about "God, the Eternal Father." Today I shall speak about "His Son, Jesus Christ," our Redeemer. Since this is such a sacred theme I invite each of you to join with me in a prayer that our Heavenly Father will help each of us to get a deeper understanding and a greater appreciation of his Only Begotten Son-our Savior.
Chronologically, we get our earliest information about Jesus from the scriptures, which tell of a great pre-earth council attended by the spirit children of God. In that council the Father's plan for man's eternal progression was presented. Whereupon, Jesus volunteered and was appointed to make the atonement required to make possible man's salvation and exaltation. Abraham records the proceedings of that council as he had seen them in vision.
"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham," he says, "the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
"And God saw these souls that they were good, for he stood among those that were spirits. "
In the following lines from his "Elias: An Epic of the Ages," the late Elder Orson F. Whitney paraphrased what Abraham and other seers have revealed concerning the proceedings and consequences of that heavenly council and the role Jesus played in it. Now listen to these majestic lines of Brother Whitney:
All the prophets, from Adam to President Harold B. Lee, our present prophet, have testified that Jesus Christ, the firstborn spirit Son of God, was so chosen to be and is our Redeemer.
The prophets who preceded Jesus into mortality bore witness to the fact that he had been so chosen and that he would come to earth and fulfill his mission.
In the very beginning, as Adam offered sacrifice in obedience to divine command, " an angel of the Lord appeared unto, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me.
"And then the angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father. "
From that time until Christ's mortal ministry, all people who understood God's plan for man's eternal progression offered like sacrifice. This the Father required them to do that they might constantly be reminded of the coming of Christ and the atonement he would make in his role as Redeemer.
The Lord further said to Adam:
" If thou wilt turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth, which is Jesus Christ, the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men, ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. "
"Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son forevermore.
"And Adam and Eve made all things known unto their sons and their daughters."
From Adam to the meridian of time the inhabitants of the earth were repeatedly reminded of God's divine program for the salvation of men-the gospel of Jesus Christ. Enoch, Noah, Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other prophets taught it.
During the 2,000 years immediately preceding the birth of Christ there flourished in America two great civilizations. To them also the mission of Christ was made known. The Book of Mormon reveals the fact that to one of the leaders of a colony being divinely led from "the great tower" to America, "the Lord showed himself and said :
"Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. In me shall all mankind have light, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name.
"Behold, this body, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and even as I appear unto thee to be in the spirit will I appear unto my people in the flesh."
The Book of Mormon further records that some 2,200 years later, on the night before Christ was born, "the voice of the Lord came unto" another American prophet, saying:
"Lift up your head and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on the morrow come I into the world, to show unto the world that I will fulfill all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets."
Every one of us, of course, knows of the angelic announcement on the fields of Bethlehem, "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
Both the Father and the Son have repeatedly born convincing witness that Jesus is our Redeemer. At Christ's baptism the Father said: " Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased"; and later on the Mount of Transfiguration, " This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him".
The New Testament repeatedly makes record of Christ's own witness to his identity and mission. One of the most impressive declarations of both the Father and the Son was to the Nephites in America, whom Christ visited following the close of his post-resurrection ministry in the land of Jerusalem. To them the Father introduced the resurrected Jesus with these words:
"Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name-hear ye him."
Whereupon, Jesus himself, the resurrected Jesus, descended from heaven " and stood in the midst of them.
" and spake unto, saying:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world."
"Behold, I have come unto the world to bring redemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.
"Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved."
Since time will permit but one more testimony to Christ's appointment and mission as Redeemer, I now want to bear my own testimony.
I bear personal witness to the truth of all the testimonies I have cited. I testify that through the atonement wrought by Jesus Christ men are to be resurrected to immortality and, conditioned upon obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ, to eternal life.
I know that Jesus Christ was the firstborn spirit child of God the Father; that he is the Only Begotten Son of God in the flesh; that, as the scriptures teach, in the spirit world before this earth was created he sponsored the Father's plan for the mortality, the death, the resurrection, and the eternal life of men; that, commissioned of the Father, he was the creator of this earth; the Jehovah of the Old Testament, "the God of Adam and of Noah, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Israel, the God at whose instance the prophets of the ages have spoken, the God of all nations, and He shall yet reign on earth as King of kings and Lord of lords."
He came to earth as the Babe of Bethlehem, begotten of the Father, born of Mary; the gospel he taught is the one and only means by which men can fulfill the full measure of their creation. "His immaculate life in the flesh" and "his voluntary death as a consecrated sacrifice for the sins of mankind," with his victory over death, secured for all men resurrection and immortality and, upon the conditions specified by him, eternal life.
I bear personal witness to these truths and to the further fact that in the spring of 1820 this same Jesus Christ, in company with his Father, appeared to Joseph Smith, Jr., in a grove near Palmyra, New York, in one of the greatest theophanies ever given to man. The Prophet thus spoke of it:
" When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
Jesus is as he said, "the life and light of the world"; " Jesus Christ is the name which is given of the Father, and there is none other name given whereby man can be saved". His "Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world" and continues to enlighten "every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit.
" every one that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit cometh unto God, even the Father."
I further testify that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-presently presided over by the Lord's prophet, President Harold B. Lee-is Christ's church, established at his direction, endowed with his authority, and charged by him to teach his gospel and administer its saving ordinances, all to the end that men may qualify for the blessings, joy and glory placed within their reach by Jesus Christ, their Lord and their Redeemer. I bear witness to all these things in the holy name of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. Amen.
Elder Bruce R. McConkie
Of the Council of the Twelve
If the Lord himself had chosen to come down, open the conference, and address the Saints, what message would he have delivered? If he had elected and chosen to come and speak at this session, what word would he have given us for our blessing and benefit and salvation?
Such an appearance is not wholly outside the realm of possibility. The Prophet Joseph Smith said that if we would come together and strip ourselves of jealousies and have perfect faith, that the veil might as well be rent today as at any time. I think that when the Lord dwelt in the city of Enoch, without question he spoke in their congregations; and when in due course he will reign in millennial splendor on the earth, he will do exactly the same thing again.
But we also operate under the principle that the word of eternal truth which is given to the children of men, whether it comes by his own voice or the voice of his servants, it is the same. And I had it impressed upon me, when President Lee opened the conference yesterday, and again when President Romney bore the persuasive and powerful and true witness that has just come from his lips, that if the Lord himself were here, those statements which came from them are the very things that he would say at this time.
These brethren who stand in the First Presidency of the Church are the Lord's agents, his representatives. They hold the keys of the kingdom of God on earth at this hour and from them come the words of life and truth and revelation that will give us, if we conform to them, peace in this life and eternal glory in the life to come.
Now I desire very much to have the same spirit attend me that has rested so mightily upon these others who have stood here so that what I say will be what the Lord wants said on this occasion. I desire, if I may be so guided, to counsel the Latter-day Saints to take an affirmative, wholesome attitude toward world and national conditions; to turn their backs on everything that is evil and destructive; to look for that which is good and edifying in all things; to praise the Lord for his goodness and grace in giving us the glories and wonders of his everlasting gospel.
In view of all that prevails in the world, it might be easy to center our attention on negative or evil things, or to dissipate our energies on causes and enterprises of doubtful worth and questionable productivity.
I am fully aware of the divine decree to be actively engaged in a good cause; of the fact that every true principle which works for the freedom and blessing of mankind has the Lord's approval; of the need to sustain and support those who espouse proper causes and advocate true principles-all of which things we also should do in the best and most beneficial way we can. The issue, I think, is not what we should do but how we should do it; and I maintain that the most beneficial and productive thing which Latter-day Saints can do to strengthen every good and proper cause is to live and teach the principles of the everlasting gospel.
There may be those who have special gifts and needs to serve in other fields, but as far as I am concerned, with the knowledge and testimony that I have, there is nothing I can do for the time and season of this mortal probation that is more important than to use all my strength, energy and ability in spreading and perfecting the cause of truth and righteousness, both in the Church and among our Father's other children.
I think the Latter-day Saints have a great obligation pressing in upon them to rejoice in the Lord, to praise him for his goodness and grace, to ponder his eternal truths in their hearts, and to set their hearts on righteousness.
Now for a text I take these words of Isaiah, words which he addressed to us, to the House of Israel, to the members of the Lord's Kingdom. He asked:
" Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burrlings?
That is, who in the Church shall gain an inheritance in the celestial kingdom? Who will go where God and Christ and holy beings are? Who will overcome the world, work the works of righteousness, and enduring in faith and devotion to the end hear the blessed benediction, "Come, and inherit the kingdom of my Father."
Isaiah answers:
"He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil; He shall dwell on high. "
Now if I may, I shall take these words of Isaiah, spoken by the power of the Holy Ghost in the first instance, and give some indication as to how they apply to us and our circumstances.
First, "He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly." That is, building on the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, we must keep the commandments. We must speak the truth and work the works of righteousness. We shall be judged by our thoughts, our words and our deeds.
Second, " he that despiseth the gain of oppressions." That is, we must act with equity and justice toward our fellowmen. It is the Lord himself who said that he, at the day of his coming, will be a swift witness against those that oppress the hireling in his wages.
Third, " he that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes." That is, we must reject every effort to buy influence, and instead deal fairly and impartially with our fellowmen. God is no respecter of persons. He esteemeth all flesh alike; and those only who keep his commandments find special favor with him. Salvation is free; it cannot be purchased with money; and those only are saved who abide the law upon which its receipt is predicated. Bribery is of the world.
Fourth, he " that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil." That is, we must not center our attention on evil and wickedness. We must cease to find fault and look for good in government and in the world. We must take an affirmative, wholesome approach to all things.
There is an eternal law, ordained by God himself before the foundations of the world, that every man shall reap as he sows. If we think evil thoughts, our tongues will utter unclean sayings. If we speak words of wickedness, we shall end up doing the works of wickedness. If our minds are centered on the carnality and evil of the world, then worldliness and unrighteousness will seem to us to be the normal way of life. If we ponder things related to sex immorality in our minds, we will soon think everybody is immoral and unclean and it will break down the barrier between us and the world. And so with every other unwholesome, unclean, impure, and ungodly course. And so it is that the Lord says he hates and esteems as an abomination, "an heart that deviseth wicked imaginations. "
On the other hand, if we are pondering in our hearts the things of righteousness, we shall become righteous. If virtue garnishes our thoughts unceasingly, our confidence shall wax strong in the presence of God and he in turn will rain down righteousness upon us. Truly as Jacob said, " to be carnally-minded is death, and to be spiritually-minded is life eternal." And as Paul said, "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting."
And yet again from Paul:
" whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."
To enable us to keep our minds centered on righteousness, we should consciously elect to ponder the truths of salvation in our hearts. Brother Packer yesterday pleaded with eloquence that we sing the songs of Zion in order to center our thoughts on wholesome things. I would like to add that we can also-after we have had the opening song-call on ourselves to preach a sermon. I have preached many sermons walking along congested city streets, or tramping desert trails, or in lonely places, thus centering my mind on the Lord's affairs and the things of righteousness; and I might say they have been better sermons than I have ever preached to congregations.
If we are going to work out our salvation, we must rejoice in the Lord. We must ponder his truths in our hearts. We must rivet our attention and interests upon him and his goodness to us. We must forsake the world and use all our strength, energies and abilities in furthering his work.
I think the Lord's people should rejoice in him and shout praises to his holy name. Cries of hosannah should ascend from our lips continually. When I think of the revealed knowledge we have about him whom it is life eternal to know, and of the great plan of salvation which he ordained for us; when I think about his Beloved Son, who bought us with his blood, and who brought life and immortality to light through his atoning sacrifice; when I think of the life and ministry of the Prophet Joseph Smith, who has done more save Jesus only for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man who ever lived in it, and who crowned his mortal ministry with a martyr's death-my soul wells up with eternal gratitude and I desire to raise my voice with the choirs above in ceaseless praise to him who dwells on high.
When I think that the Lord has a living oracle guiding his earthly kingdom, and that there are apostles and prophets who walk the earth again; when I think that the Lord has given us-the gift and power of the Holy Ghost so that we have the revelations of heaven and the power to sanctify our souls; when I think of the unnumbered blessings-the gifts, the miracles, the promise that the family unit shall go on everlastingly, all the blessings that are poured out upon us, and offered freely to all men everywhere-my desire to praise the Lord and proclaim his goodness and grace knows no bounds. And so in this spirit of praise and thanksgiving, which is the same spirit that attended the expressions made by President Romney this morning, I shall conclude with these words of my own psalm:
And we have the promise that if we seek him with full purpose of heart, keeping his commandments and walking uprightly before him, we shall indeed see his face and eventually be inheritors with him of eternal life in his Father's kingdom. Of this I testify, and for this I pray for all of us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
In about the year A.D. 30 there came to the banks of the River Jordan a man-young, strong, and rustic in appearance. He began to baptize people, but he was not like others who were baptizing in Jordan; and there were others, for they baptized only to bring people into their particular religious sect.
He was different. He preached repentance from sin and said that he baptized for repentance, but that there would come one after him who would baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, one who would be so much greater than he, John, that he would not be worthy to perform the most menial of tasks, that of stooping down and loosening the fastenings of his sandals.
So powerful was John's preaching and so important was the message he bore that people flocked to him to be taught and to be baptized.
In addition he bore witness that they must do good, must share their goods with the poor; and he witnessed that they were about to see their salvation.
Those who heard him were much affected by what he said, and some asked him if he were the Christ.
Then one day there came to him a man asking to be baptized. When John saw him, he recognized him to be the Son of God and protested that the situation should be reversed. He said: " I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?" The Lord, for it truly was he, said: "Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. "
Then John witnessed that the Holy Ghost fell upon Jesus like a dove, and he heard the voice of the Father from heaven say: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
In this manner the earthly work of the Lord began. A prophet testified and identified him, after which the voice of God confirmed the identification.
You have already heard from Brother Romney of the beginning, when the preexistent Savior appeared to the brother of Jared, and I shall not repeat that. You have also heard how in the beginning Adam was taught to make a sacrifice, the reason for it being that the Lord Jesus Christ was that sacrifice to be consummated in the meridian of time.
It was the purpose of the Father and the plan that men on earth should not forget what Adam taught. There was to be a Savior, and he was to do what his father intended-to be a lamb without blemish slain from before the foundation of the world-that is, the whole plan for the sacrifice of the Savior and for the redemption of men on earth was completed long before the earth was made.
Enoch asked the Lord when the great sacrifice would be made and was told that it would "be in the meridian of time, in the days of wickedness and vengeance."
By the mouths of the prophets as the time drew closer to the eventful year, the Lord spelled out to the people how they might know of the coming of the true Redeemer. Witness: "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."
He was to be despised and rejected and bruised for our iniquity. He was to bear our grief and carry our sorrows; he was himself to be a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief. He was to be brought as a lamb to the slaughter, yet he would open not his mouth, even as sheep brought to be sheared are dumb. He was to make his grave with the wicked and the rich. He was to be an offering for sin.
It was prophesied also that this son should "be called Wonderful, Counsellor," and with a final burst of inspired words Isaiah revealed him as "The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
And now in our day, our message is that once more the voice of God, the Eternal Father, has been heard. In this dispensation he has revealed himself in his own glory, his majesty, his person. With him also was revealed his Beloved Son Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, the Counseler and Wonderful of Isaiah; the Lord who met Moses on the mountain amid thunderings and lightnings; the Lord who stood transfigured with glory before Peter and James and John on the mount; who, having arisen on the third day, after suffering the most painful death ever devised by man, appeared to Mary, then to the eleven apostles, and later to upwards of 500; and who, after a cloud had received him out of their sight, sent an angel to tell them that he would return even as he had ascended into heaven.
The visit of these two to Joseph Smith, their persons filling the forest aisle with heavenly light, testified that indeed they live. The young prophet heard the heavenly voice of the Father affirm his Son: " this is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" Joseph Smith heard! He saw! He bore solemn testimony of the great revelation.
We bear witness that this revelation is true. From that glorious morning until now The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which Joseph Smith was commanded to organize, has journeyed 143 years on its divine and destined mission to fill the earth.
We invite all men to listen to the message of salvation which is offered by the Lord through his servants, some of whom you have heard yesterday and today. By repentance from sin and baptism by immersion by those having divine authority from the Lord, anyone may find the peace which the Lord has promised to those who will accept him and obey his word.
You may ask: "How may I know The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church which Christ the Lord accepts as his?" He, the Lord, has prepared an infallible witness that you may know. Nearly four thousand years ago the Lord began to prepare this witness by showing himself as a preexistent spirit to the brother of Jared, a prophetic leader in the days of the Tower of Babel. The Lord inspired his people who followed this prophet to be led to America, an unknown land in that day; and later he caused groups of the House of Israel in Palestine to migrate also. Of them all he commanded that records be kept of their travels and their knowledge of the Lord.
At the appointed time, his birth in Bethlehem was marked in America by three days of light in which there was no darkness, and at his crucifixion there were three days of total darkness with mighty destruction of the wicked and their cities and habitations. The righteous received a visit from the Lord. Listen to the description given by the prophet who compiled the record:
" they heard a voice as if it came out of heaven; and they cast their eyes round about, for they understood not the voice which they heard; and it was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn.
"And it came to pass that again they heard the voice, and they understood it not.
"And behold, the third time they did understand the voice which they heard; and it said unto them:
"Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name-hear ye him.
"And it came to pass, as they understood they cast their eyes up again towards heaven; and behold, they saw a Man descending out of heaven; and he was clothed in a white robe; and he came down and stood in the midst of them;
"And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the people, saying:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.
"And behold, I am the light and the life of the world. "
I shall not take time to describe his visit except to say that he taught them his gospel and organized his church here in America among them. He taught the same principles as he had taught in his earthly ministry in Palestine. He blessed their children and blessed them, stating that he would come again. You will be interested to know that the promise to come again lingers in the legends handed down to this day by the descendants of those people. Cortez easily conquered Mexico because the Mexican people thought he was that God returning.
Moroni, the last prophet to keep the records, seeing the destruction of the people by war and contention about four hundred years later, said:
"And now I, Moroni, bid farewell unto the Gentiles, yea, and also unto my brethren whom I love, until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ, where all men shall know that my garments are not spotted with your blood.
"And then shall ye know that I have seen Jesus, and that he hath talked with me face to face, and that he told me in plain humility, even as a man telleth another in mine own language, concerning these things."
This prophet sealed his record and deposited it in a stone box in a hill. In 1827 this same prophet, resurrected, delivered the record to Joseph Smith, who by the power of God translated it. In it is a promise that any man who will read the book with a contrite heart and desire to know the truth will receive a witness that it is true. This book is called the Book of Mormon. It could not have been written by a man without divine help. It is an abridgment of more than a thousand years of records kept, yet it rings true. No person mentioned in the book is out of place or out of character. The Lord stands forth as sharp and vivid as in Palestine, and he completed his witness when the translation wag published in 1830, a witness began two thousand years before Christ. Anyone reading this book, the Book of Mormon, with a desire to know, and who will ponder as he reads and then ask the Lord if it be true, will know that it is a true account. He will know too that this Church is Christ's Church and he will know that Joseph Smith was a prophet, a true prophet of the Lord Jesus Christ and his Father, the living God. Jesus Christ is the God of this earth, and he has carried its destiny in his hands from the beginning and will continue to do so until he gives the work complete to his Father, who is our Father in heaven.
Anyone who will do these things will also know that President Harold B. Lee is a prophet of God. I add my witness to that of the others, that I know he is as I know the others have been, and I know that God will see that this work goes on to its end as he plans it, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder L. Tom Perry
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
There is a section in old Boston town where the gas lanterns still adorn the streets to remind us of a bygone era of "the old lamplighter"-a profession that has become obsolete with the modern age. But the service of bringing light to a troubled world must never end.
Let us examine some histories of those who were not afraid to be lamplighters and give of their light for the benefit of mankind.
The first few pages of the Book of Mormon record an exciting story of a family living in an environment where wickedness abounded to such an extent the Lord sent his prophets to warn the people they must repent or face destruction. Troubled with this admonition, the father inquires of the Lord concerning the course he should follow to safeguard his family from the prophesied destruction. He was instructed to take his family and leave the city. The scriptures record: "And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents. "
So they were instructed to leave with just the bare essentials of food, clothing, and a tent for shelter. All of the other worldly accumulations were considered nonessentials and were to be left behind; that is, save one. For they had not traveled a great distance when the Lord reminded them that they had left one essential behind and were not to proceed until they had acquired it. It is interesting to note what the Lord considered that essential to be. He instructed them to return for the record of their people and also the genealogy of their forefathers. This was not an easy assignment. They had been asked to return to an unfriendly city to ask for a favor. The father made the request of his sons to undertake this dangerous assignment. The two older sons murmured at such a difficult task but Nephi recognized it to be inspired of the Lord and makes this declaration: " I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."
Their first approach on this dangerous mission was to reason with Laban, the keeper of the record. This brought the response from him, " Behold thou art a robber, and I will slay thee ", and they were forced to flee for their lives. The second approach was to go to their former home and gather up all of the riches they had left behind in an attempt to purchase the record. This approach also failed, for Laban recognized that he could have both. He took their riches from them and drove them away. After much internal strife and contention, Nephi decides to put his complete trust in the Lord and under the cover of night, seeks after the record. Laban is delivered into his hands in a drunken state and the Lord teaches Nephi a great lesson about the value of history. He declared to him that, " It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief." Frightening results occur if a nation does not preserve and safeguard its sacred history. Nephi must have then realized that this sacred history would serve as a lamp to give light and direction to future generations. Certainly he was a lamplighter and willing to carry the torch to establish a new nation.
There comes a time when commemorations and anniversaries of historical events give us special significance and highlight the great heritage which has been given to us. In 1976, the United States of America will celebrate its 200th birthday-a time to pause and reflect on that which has been bestowed on us.
I marvel at the faith and courage of our early leaders. Among them were many lamplighters who carried the torch of freedom. Ben Franklin was one of them. He was born in Boston in 1706, the fifteenth child and the youngest son in a family of 17. His parents were hard-working and God-fearing folk. His father made soap and candles in a shop at the sign of the blue ball on Milk Street. Ben was permitted to attend school for only two years, but he made the most of that short school experience. At the age of ten, he was put to work in his father's shop helping to make candles. After two years of making candles he became restless and wanted to try something else. His older brother gave him the opportunity of learning the printing trade. His brother was a good teacher and Ben was a good student. But he was not content to be just a printer. He started to write under an assumed name of "Silence Dogood." He would write an article and slip it under the door of the print shop at night. His brother would find it the following morning and was so impressed with many of the articles that he published them, until he found his younger brother was the author, and that was the end of "Silence Dogood." At 17, Ben left home and moved to Philadelphia where he soon had a job with a printing firm. At the age of 24, he owned his own newspaper which soon became one of the most noted in the colonies.
Franklin had a simple formula for business success. He believed that a successful man had to work a little harder than his competitors. Ben Franklin never actually sought public office, although he had a keen interest in public affairs which led him to civic service. When he found the postal service to be poor, he made several suggestions which led to his appointment as postmaster. He established the first subscription library. When fire losses were high, he reorganized the fire department. He reformed the city police when he found that criminals were getting away without punishment. The people of Philadelphia shamefully neglected the sick and the insane in Franklin's time. He raised money to build a city hospital, the Pennsylvania Hospital for the unfortunates. Scientists in this city were not organized, so Franklin set up the first American Philosophical Society to bring them together. The city had no school for higher education, so he helped them form an academy which later grew into the University of Pennsylvania. As a result of these and other projects, Philadelphia became the most advanced city in the 13 colonies and Pennsylvania was one of the leading colonies. What happened to the 13 colonies literally affected free people throughout the world. One man touched a city, a city touched a state, a state touched a nation, and a nation touched the world. This was the man who said he would like to come back in 200 years to see if Americans still valued their freedom. I wonder what his reaction would be if he were granted that privilege. I believe his scientific mind would be excited with our growth and progress. But I believe that his civic pride would be wounded and hurt if he witnessed how content we are to fill the role of spectator rather than player on the field, making our contribution to the betterment of mankind.
I am certain, however, Ben Franklin's hurt feelings would not last long. He would see the opportunities around him in the world today, and off would come his coat, up would go his sleeves, and he would be at the job of creating something better. Here is a lamplighter who set an example for us to follow.
There is a familiar hymn I would like to have you adopt as a theme song for the next three years as we prepare for our year of celebration. I would like to have you sing it each morning as you arise to lift the hearts and spirits of your family. Whistle it as you go down the street on your way to work to remind you that the path you take will be a cleaner, happier place because you passed that way. Hum it in your shops or offices to encourage all around you to make a greater contribution. Meditate on it as you retire and kneel in prayer of thanksgiving for the opportunities you have had that day to make the world a better place.
-LDS Hymns, no. 58.
Let us sound the call today to revive the old profession of lamplighters. Let us each pick up our torch and illuminate the sacred histories, the eternal truths that divine providence has bestowed on us. Let us have the faith and courage of Nephi, roll up our sleeves like Ben Franklin, and "go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded." May we be prepared and ready to celebrate with pride and thanksgiving our 200th anniversary with the comforting knowledge that we have made a worthy contribution to safeguard and protect those divinely inspired principles upon which this nation was established. I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
In the short period of time I stand at this pulpit, I would like to testify to you of my knowledge of the truthfulness of the doctrines and teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
We live in what is described as the period of most enlightenment since the creation of the world. Scientific achievements of today are staggering to the human mind. We realize that the law under which these achievements have been accomplished has always been in existence, but it was not until this era that man's learning and understanding have sufficiently increased to make use of natural laws to produce the accomplishments of today's world.
A few generations ago, goods were produced with hand tools from crude materials; but in our day, mass production has replaced the old methods with greater efficiency and better quality because of the genius and skills of man and the machines he has developed.
Agriculture is the means of livelihood for more than half of the world's population. As we pass through modernized farming areas, we no longer see farmers tilling the land with horse and plow, cutting one furrow at a time, or families working together in the fields at harvest time. These things seem to have disappeared. Today large pieces of mechanical equipment with the strength of a hundred horses plow many furrows at one time. Not many years ago the hand sickle was used to harvest the fields of ripened grain. The sheaves were flailed by hand and tossed into the wind to separate the chaff. Large combines now do all of the work in one operation as they mow the fields.
Happenings in faraway places are viewed in the quiet of our own homes, a phenomenon which would have been considered a miracle in the generations preceding ours. Modern living requires that we have instantaneous communications at our side so that we may quickly dial and transact business or have the luxury of visiting, regardless of long intervening distances. Animals provided man's transportation for centuries, but these have now been replaced by vehicles of great speed and comfort. There has always been a curiosity as to what lies beyond the river. Today's rapid flight through the air has made the oceans no wider than the rivers of years past and man has quick access to the world.
We take great pride in modern accomplishments-the fact that we are better housed and fed, have greater conveniences, improved medical facilities, greater advantages in education, and the highest standard of living ever enjoyed in the history of the world.
Many of my ancestors were engaged in the world's most followed occupation of tilling the soil. Some of them left their old moorings in England and came to the shores of the New World, settling in the Plymouth and Massachusetts colonies. I get a warm feeling when I read the soul-stirring accounts of their conquest against hardship and the difficulties that faced them and their families.
Early missionaries of the Church went to Scotland, Denmark, and Norway, where other of my early ancestors lived. They accepted the teachings of the gospel, gave up the security of their homelands, and participated in the gathering to Zion. These people faced even greater hardships as they walked across the dusty plains of the Middle West and over the Rockies to the desert valleys of the mountains, pushing all of their earthly belongings in self-styled carts. The difficulties they endured bring tears to the eyes of those who are their beneficiaries today.
The stories of these people who have gone before us are ones of faith, devotion, and dedication. Although there were trials, hardships, and lack of the conveniences we think necessary in our world today, there seems to have been a happiness in their living, in their individual lives, and in their families. In their homes there was faith and prayer-faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and prayers to God asking for their needs and thanking him for his goodness to them. The Bible was read in the home and there was profound belief in its teachings. Life was more simple, but can we say that there was less happiness in simplicity?
Society has made a great effort to modernize the world in education, communication, travel, health, commerce, housing, and in many other ways, so as to increase the standard of living; but what has this socialization and modernization done to the family-the basic institution of society? Never before has there been greater instability. The divorce rate is higher now than at any time in history. Modernization has transferred the responsibility of education from the family to public institutions where modern thought has become paramount and moral principles have become abandoned. The crime rate has increased alarmingly. Drug addiction, disobedience to law, increase in venereal disease, and corruption in all forms seem to be accepted. In this day of modernization, freedom of thought and action is sponsored and promoted without consideration of the responsibilities that must accompany such freedoms if society is to be stabilized. Surely we would agree that the family institution has been seriously, if not irreparably, damaged in our society.
In the past, churches have taken a leading role in teaching men to have faith in God and to develop moral stability. What is happening to organized religion as a stabilizing force in society? Many of the largest of the Christian churches have reported losses in membership and also in income to carry on the work of their religious endeavors. Here again modernization has taken a heavy toll.
Modernism has become the order of the day in some religious thought. Modernists advocate a restatement of traditional doctrine on the grounds that today's modern scholastic and scientific advances require a new critical interpretation of the Bible and the history of dogma. The term "modernism" is often used interchangeably with "liberalism." Its advocates claim that religious truths are subject to constant reinterpretation in the light of modern knowledge; therefore, new and more advanced concepts are required to express modern thought and progress.
The Bible has been the subject of attack by modernists. It is said by some that science refuses to support the authenticity of such Biblical accounts as the creation of the world, placing life upon the earth, Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden, the flood, and many other happenings in the Old and New Testaments. What is claimed to be superior knowledge in this day of enlightenment causes some men to look upon these accounts as fables. Because of this, can believers in Christ repudiate them? In an attempt to regain the confidence of communicants who have ceased to believe, many liberal churches have abandoned one doctrine after another, even to the extent of failing to stand by the doctrine of the existence of a personal God. They no longer uphold as a reality the resurrection of the crucified Savior, and the doctrine of the atoning sacrifice has lost its credibility. Under such circumstances, how can organized religion maintain its place as a stabilizing influence in society?
In this day of increased knowledge, higher thought, and a modernization of the old, the simple has been overlooked and the profound sought after. The basic, simple, fundamental truths of the gospel are being ignored. Paul taught the true gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of Galatia and, after he left them, spurious teachers came and turned them from his teachings. This gave rise to the letter written by Paul in strong language of criticism, denouncing those who would pervert his teachings. He said to them:
"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed."
From the earliest days of the Christian church, spurious gospels have been taught-not really gospels, as Paul pointed out, for there is only one gospel of Christ. Today is not different. We are surrounded by frustrations and advances in thought and learning which raise questions and doubts. These seem to drag men down and destroy faith and morality. Where, then, is hope in this world of frustration and moral decay? It lies in the knowledge and understanding of the truths taught by the Master, which must be taught by the Church of Christ without deviation and believed in and lived by its membership. These are eternal truths and will be so in perpetuity regardless of changing circumstances in society, development of new scientific achievements, or increase of man's knowledge.
I believe we can be modern and enjoy the fruits of a modern world and its high standard of living, and I believe we can have the benefits of modern scholarship and scientific advances without turning to the theories of the modernist. I believe the principles of the gospel announced by the Savior in his personal ministry were true when they were given and are true today. Truth is eternal and never changing, and the gospel of Jesus Christ is ever contemporary in a changing world.
The knowledge explosion of which the world is so proud is not of man's creation. It is his discovery of portions of the unlimited knowledge and information which is part of God's knowledge. How we use it is determined by whether we are of the eternal kingdom of God or a part of the temporary understanding of the world. The question is simply this: are we seeking to find our place in the world in the realm of worldly thought, or are we seeking to find our place in the unchanging kingdom of God?
How grateful I am for my membership and association in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which takes an undeviating course in the world of change, believing in being modern, of course, but not subjecting the doctrines and truths announced by the Savior to reexamination and alteration to express "so-called" modern thought and modern progress. We take no such course.
Contrary to the views of many modernists, I know that God our Eternal Father lives; that the Bible is inspired and the Book of Mormon is also an inspired writing; that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is real and also lives, having shed his blood for us, and is truly and literally resurrected. I also bear witness that there is a prophet of God on the earth today.
May the Lord bless us in our righteous endeavors to shun the influences that lead into the ways of the world, that we may take our place, in faith and believing, in the kingdom of God, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Revealed Truths of the Gospel
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
I rejoice, my brethren and sisters, in the privilege of attending this great conference with you. I thank the Lord that in the establishment of his latter-day kingdom, he made provision for these conferences where we can come together and be fed the bread of life eternal, and in the words of the song:
-LDS Hymns, no. 46
We have been listening to the prophet's voice in this conference. We will go back to our fields of labor strengthened in our faith and with a greater desire to help build his kingdom, and prepare the way for the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The prophet Isaiah saw our day when men would worship Him through the precepts of men, and said because of that He would "proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid." Now I take it that that marvelous work and a wonder was to correct the precepts of men, because Isaiah indicated that it was for that reason that He would do a marvelous work and a wonder.
There isn't time to discuss all of the wonderful corrections that have come through the restoration of the gospel, this marvelous work and a wonder. However, the first and great correction, I think, was the knowledge that came through the vision of the Father and the Son to the Prophet Joseph Smith, that President Marion G. Romney so beautifully described this morning. Instead of being a God which is an essence everywhere present, without body, parts, or passions, they were two glorified beings, as we will be following the resurrection. What a marvelous thing to have this commitment and to know that we are his children-the children of God the Eternal Father-and that we will be able to live in his presence and know who he is, and his Son Jesus Christ, who arose from the dead, and who atoned for the sins of the world.
The next great correction, I think, came in the great organization of the Church. Just think of the priesthood in this Church, and all of the auxiliary organizations, reference to which has been made here in this meeting as we have sustained the directing officers thereof. President Lee pointed out that the priesthood meeting tonight would be broadcast in 850 different buildings.
Where in all the world can you find an organization of priesthood like that, for every man and every man's son can bear the priesthood of God and help to build his kingdom in the earth? Thus they lay away treasures in heaven, where moth and rust doth not corrupt and where thieves cannot break through and steal, and where they can develop their gifts and talents, because the kingdom is here for that very express purpose.
Now there is another beautiful tenet of the Church today that I would like to mention a few words about, and that is our belief in the eternal duration of the marriage covenant and the family unit. It seems incredible that, as plainly as that principle is taught in the holy scriptures, we should be the only church that so believes. Here a few years ago, one of our brethren wrote a book called Do Men Believe What Their Churches Prescribe? In that book he had a chart prepared showing various doctrinal principles. He had inquired and obtained first-hand comments from the major churches and there wasn't one of those other nine churches that believed in the eternal duration of the marriage covenant and the family unit. They indicated that marriage was "until death do you part," which in substance is a bill of divorcement. If it is to last only until death parts us, then what are we going to do from that time on? Where are the ties that bind us together, particularly in this church where we brethren work in the priesthood all the time, leaving our wives to raise our families for us, and all of that just to be parted when death comes along?
I spoke in a meeting down in Quitman, Georgia, when I was president of the mission down there, and I quoted the statement that I have referred to from the chart prepared in this book, and at the close of the meeting I stood at the door to greet the people as they left. A man came up and introduced himself to me as a Baptist minister, and I said: "Did I misquote you here tonight?"
"No, Mr. Richards," he said. "It is just like you say. We don't all believe all the things our churches teach."
I said, "You don't believe them either. Why don't you go back and teach your people the truth? They will take it from you, and they are not ready to take it from the Mormon elders yet."
He said, "I will see you again."
The next time I went there, about four months later, as I walked up to that little church, there stood that Baptist minister. As we shook hands I said, "I would certainly be interested to know what you thought of my last sermon here." He said, "Mr. Richards, I have been thinking about it ever since. I believe every word you said, only I would like to have heard the rest of it." You know we never get talked out when we start talking about these beautiful principles that the Lord has given us through the restoration of the gospel, through the bringing forth of this marvelous work and a wonder.
While I was president of the mission in Atlanta, Georgia, I went to the study of Dr. Peter Marshall. He was the pastor of the Presbyterian Church there and we spent an hour or two together. When he died he was the chaplain of the United States Senate. You may have read his book, A Man Called Peter, or may have seen the movie depicting his life. Many of the things he stood for he learned from us down in Atlanta. He used to send over to the mission office to get the MIA books and other Church material for his young people because he felt we were stealing them all away from him.
As I sat in his study with him, I asked him what was the attitude of his church with respect to the principle of eternal marriage, and the eternal duration of the marriage covenant. He said, "Well, Mr. Richards, we are not allowed to teach that in our church, but in my mind I have some stubborn objections." He went on, "When you take the kitten away from the cat, in a few days the cat has forgotten all about the kitten; when you take a calf away from the cow, in a few days the cow has forgotten all about the calf; but when you take the child away from its mother's bosom, though she live to be a hundred years old, she never forgets the child of her bosom." He added, "I find it difficult to believe that God created love like that to perish in the grave." Thank God we know that he didn't create love like that to perish in the grave. Love is eternal.
Now while the other churches don't teach that principle, there are some people who believe it. For instance, Anderson M. Baten said this in a little verse he wrote to his wife Beulah on the mysteries of life:
Now that is what we believe. We believe that the marriage tie is eternal.
We have had quoted in the conference today the statement made by the Lord when Adam was placed in the garden. He said that "it was not good that the man should be alone;" and he made a help meet for him, and he said "they shall be one flesh,", not two halves but one flesh, because he couldn't have peopled this earth without the man and the woman, and it took two to make a complete person in that sense. Then I say this: if it wasn't good for man to be alone before death came into the world, it certainly won't be good for man to be alone after we are resurrected from the dead and restored to the condition that Adam was in before the fall.
That is what Paul meant when he said, " as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." If it wasn't good to be without a wife before the fall, it certainly won't be good to be without a companion after the resurrection, and anyone who repudiates that actually repudiates the great atonement, because in that event the Savior would only have atoned in part for the loss that came through the fall of Adam and Eve.
These are great eternal truths that the Lord understood, and so the Savior said, "For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." It couldn't be written much plainer than that, could it? What did he really mean when he said that they should be one flesh and never be put asunder if it wasn't that the marriage tie should project itself beyond the grave?
Paul said, " neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord." They might get along here in mortality without each other, but not in the eternities that are to come.
Peter said that the husband should live with his wife "according to knowledge, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered." Now what does it mean "being heirs together of the grace of life"? What life? They already had their lives here in mortality, but they are to become heirs together of the blessings of eternal life. How could it be written any plainer than that?
Then we remember when Isaiah saw the new heaven and the new earth, when the lamb and the wolf should feed together, and "the lion shall eat straw like the bullock. " He saw that men "shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
"They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them." How could you make it any more plain than that, that they and their offspring with them would inhabit the houses that they would build?
Now this great eternal principle is one of the great truths that has been revealed through the restoration of the gospel. Personally I would just as soon believe that death was a complete annihilation of both body and spirit as to think that I would have to live on forever and forever without a continuation of the love ties that bind my wife and me together, and our family and our loved ones here in this life. Heaven will only be a projection of our life here.
That helps us to understand the statement and the counsel and the advice of President McKay when he said that no success in life can compensate for failure in the home. President Lee has emphasized the same thing by saying that our greatest responsibility is within the walls of our own home, not just because those homes should be good until death parts us, but because we are building a foundation of a kingdom over which we will be privileged to preside throughout the eternities that are to come, if we are true and faithful. And that is one of the glorious principles of the gospel that has come through the restoration here in our day and in our time.
We have read in the papers in time past where children have been kidnapped, and their parents in some cases have offered hundreds of thousands of dollars to get them back just so they could enjoy them during this period of mortality. Yet through the new and everlasting covenant and the sealing ordinances of the holy priesthood in God's holy temples, we can have our children throughout the countless ages of eternity. The Lord has indicated through the Prophet Joseph that they should come forth in the morning of the first resurrection and "grow up without sin unto salvation." To those of us who have laid away children in their infancy, just think of the joy and happiness that comes from this, compared with feeling that there would be no family relationship in the eternal world.
Brethren and sisters, I thank God for this great truth that has come to us in the restoration of his gospel. That is only just a beginning. And to this great audience here today, and all that are listening in over the radio and those who will listen in tonight, and those in whose hearts God has planted a witness and a testimony of the divinity of this work, I bear you my witness. I know that it is the marvelous work and a wonder that our Father promised through his great prophet that he would send to us, and I leave you my love and blessing and witness, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
In the greatest sermon that was ever preached, the greatest man who ever lived gave what was probably the wisest counsel that has ever been given when he said that we should lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven. And that is probably our most profitable idea.
However, the thing that we spend more time doing than about anything else in our lives is laying up for ourselves treasures upon the earth. And that is also a great idea, providing we know how to handle it. Many people have contended for the treasures in heaven on the grounds that they have much greater value, they are a lot more satisfying, they are a lot more permanent. Someone has complained that one of the disadvantages of the treasures of the earth is that you can't take them with you. Someone else has pointed out that with taxes like they are, you can't even keep them while you are here. This man put this idea in rhyme. He said:
Now that may not be very good poetry, but it is a striking idea. And some pessimist has added that even if you could take them with you, they would only melt. However, it seems to me that frequently we spend a lot more time than is necessary in downgrading these great treasures that we get from the earth. We sometimes refer to our medium of exchange by calling it such unsavory names as "filthy lucre" or "tainted money," and sometimes that may be an accurate description, but it need not necessarily be so.
Somebody said, "Money can't buy happiness," but his friend said, "Maybe not, but it does enable one to pick out the particular kind of misery that he enjoys the most." And someone has pointed out that if there is anyone who can't buy happiness with money it must be that he just doesn't know where to shop. We can build temples with money, we can send out missionaries with money, we can erect educational institutions, operate hospitals, and pay our tithing with money. We can feed and clothe our families with money, and in many ways we can build up the kingdom of God with money.
Someone said, "Money ain't everything," and his friend said, "Just name me three things that it ain't." But we also should think of some of those things that it is. Money is preserved labor, it is industry made negotiable, it is stored up accomplishment. It is the medium of exchange that we can trade for things that we can take with us and a great many of them we can actually send on ahead. We can take our families with us. We can take our education with us. We can take our great character qualities with us. And money is the medium that we can use to share the treasures of the earth with others who need our help.
In 1931, Vashni Young wrote a popular best-seller entitled A Fortune to Share. Vashni Young had worked as a salesman during the lush, easy, prosperous years of the late 1920s, and then the market crash of October 1929 had plunged Vashni Young, with a few million other people, into the bottomless economic pit of the early 1930s. But he did not like the depression and he had become pretty sour on this world generally. And so he bought a gun and decided to have a look at the next world by committing suicide. But before he pulled the trigger, he spent a little time thinking about his wife and children and he decided that suicide was not a very manly way to solve a problem. And so instead of shooting himself, he did a little analyzing and he discovered that his mind had been operating like a giant junk factory, turning out all kinds of mental, emotional, and spiritual junk.
Then he remembered William James, the great Harvard psychologist who said, "The greatest discovery of my generation is that you can change your circumstances by changing your attitudes of mind." And while everybody wants to change his circumstances, Vash Young decided to change himself. He said: "I got tired of being a fool." He wanted to get out of the junk business and so he dumped overboard a lot of his bad habits of liquor, tobacco, and irresponsibility. He decided to adopt some good attitudes, think like a man, be responsible, and go to work.
It wasn't long before Vash Young discovered that life was much more pleasant and that his prosperity level was going up by leaps and bounds. And then he made a great discovery that he had personal possession of a vast fortune which he could share with every other person in the world without lessening his own supply.
He wrote his great book, A Fortune to Share, and gave it as wide a circulation as possible, telling people about his discovery. Then he set aside one day each week which he called "trouble day" during which he worked with other troubled people trying to persuade them to get out of the junk business and share in this great fortune which was so readily available.
If I were asked to give the best idea of which I am capable, it would be closely related to this, that we should get out of the junk business and then start laying up treasures in heaven by sharing with others that vast fortune which each of us has or can get possession of.
Yesterday President Rex D. Pinegar mentioned Patrick Henry, one of our early American patriots who lived a long, useful, and successful life. Just before his death he said, "I have now finished distributing all of my property to my children. However, there is one more thing that I wish I could give them, and that is the Christian religion. If I could give them that, though I had not given them a single shilling, they would be rich. And if they did not have that, though I had given them the whole world, they would be poor."
I hold in my hand a copy of the Holy Bible. In this is written the word of the Lord. It contains the covenants that he has made and would like to make with every person who has lived or who ever will live upon the earth. This book gives an account of one occasion some 34 centuries ago when the God of creation came down on to the top of Mt. Sinai in a cloud of fire, and to the accompaniment of the lightnings and thunders of that sacred mountain gave us the Ten Commandments, in which he enumerated ten ways that we can get out of the junk business. Just think what would happen in our world if we all fully observed the Ten Commandments. That would mean that we would stop cheating and lying and stealing and killing and being immoral and violating the Sabbath day. Then this earth would soon be God's paradise and our material prosperity would go up like a skyrocket. The Lord has also included in the Bible a great credenda of those soul-saving truths that we can share with other people. The Bible is the Lord's own fortune-to-share book.
As Sir Walter Scott lay dying, he said to his son-in-law, "Lockhart, read to me from the book." His son-in-law said, "Which book?" Sir Walter said, "Lockhart, there is only one book. Read to me from the book."
But in our own day, the Lord has given to the world three great volumes of new scripture outlining in every detail the simple principles of the gospel of Christ, with a "thus saith the Lord" attached to each one. Therefore, the Lord now has four fortune-to-share books.
However, one of the shortcomings of even the holy scriptures is that they are not automatic. That is, they will not work unless we do. More than anything else the great message of the Lord needs messengers. The Lord has invited us to have as large a share as we like in his important family concern which Jesus referred to as "my Father's business." Now that is the business of building integrity and character and righteousness and eternal life into the lives of his children. The Lord has told us many things about the importance of the family. He has given us this miraculous power of procreation where we can create children in God's own image and share with them the tremendous blessings of life itself. Then during our family home evenings we may share with them the great treasures of the gospel of salvation. And through the missionary program we can share the blessings of eternal life with all of our friends and neighbors. God has promised us that if we will effectively be his messengers he will share his fortune with both those who give it and those who receive it.
In speaking of the oath and covenant of the priesthood, he has said:
"For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
"And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
"And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him." If you can think of something more exciting than that, I don't know what it would be.
God is a very wealthy personage. We all like to inherit from a wealthy parent and what could be more exciting than to inherit from God, to get everything that God has. Someone has said that thrift is a great virtue, especially in an ancestor. And God has been very thrifty, he has also been very wise and he has been very generous. To begin with, he created us in his own image and has endowed us with a set of his attributes and potentialities, the development of which is one of the purposes for which we live. He desires that every one of us should be rich. He has said: " the fulness of the earth is yours ", and it pleaseth God that he has given all these things unto men to be used with judgment and thanksgiving. He has shared with us the fulness of the treasures of the earth and he desires to share with us the fulness of the treasures of heaven. He wants us to inherit the celestial kingdom and belong to that celestial order of which he himself is a member. And he has said that the greatest of all the gifts of God is the gift of eternal life in his presence.
And so we come back to the place where we began and hear again those great words as they come down to us from the mount in which the Lord of Hosts has said, " lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. "
And that we may be fully successful in this greatest of all enterprises, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church
In the heavens, before the earth was formed, the plan of this earth life was explained to all of us. We were then but spirit offspring of our Father and Mother in heaven.
We all learned then that through this earth life experience we would have the opportunity of going through the same type of experiences they had done and so become as they are.
The records tell us that we all shouted for joy at this glorious news.
We also learned that to attain such lofty goals, we would have to be found true and faithful in all things and withstand the trials and tests which would be put upon us by Satan. In spite of all the warnings, I'm sure we were still anxious to come to this earth.
Adam and Eve were the first to come. They were given their free agency without the capacity of knowing right from wrong until after they had partaken of the fruit of "the tree of knowledge of good and evil. "
In consequence thereof, the Lord declared to Adam: " cursed shall be the ground for thy sake. " We often hear it said that Adam was cursed because he partook of the forbidden fruit. The record says "the ground" was cursed, not Adam. Then the Lord added "for thy sake." This means for his benefit; also for your benefit and mine.
Adam and Eve had been in a state of stagnation: no progress-no growth-no reproduction. Without a change, they would have remained in that state forever. It was necessary for a change to take place. This change meant that Adam and all his posterity would have to work and overcome obstacles to provide the necessities of life.
After Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden, an angel of the Lord came and explained to them the gospel plan. He explained the plan of life and salvation. He told them of a Savior who would come and redeem all mankind so that all could return to our Father in heaven.
In the Book of Moses we read: "And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying: Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient."
Modern revelation tells us: " it must needs be that the devil should tempt the children of men, or they could not be agents unto themselves; for if they never should have bitter they could not know the sweet."
So it is with us today, we must also have the bitter in order to know the sweet. Sometimes some of us think we have the bitter and not enough of the sweet. This is normal. We all have our trials of life to strengthen us. Each thinks he has the hardest or most severe trials. It may be that they are the most difficult only because they are the hardest or most difficult for you. The diamond is enhanced and made more valuable with polishing. Steel is made harder and more valuable through tempering. So also opposition builds the character of man.
All progress is made by overcoming an opposing force. Lehi said to his son Jacob: "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. "
"Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy."
"God shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain."
Opposition, then, is good for us as long as we don't seek it for opposition's sake.
This reminds me of one of President Lee's favorite sayings: "It's all right to pull the cow out of the mud on Sunday, provided that you don't push him in on Saturday night."
Henry Kaiser, of the steel industry, said that if you want to find who your leaders are, load them up with work, pour it on. You'll then find who the leaders are.
It may be that's just what the Lord does with us. He too is trying to develop leaders.
I remember a brass plaque I had on the wall in my room when I was much younger. It depicted a tramp going over the top of a fence. A piece out of the seat of his pants was missing. A bulldog was in close pursuit with the missing piece of pants in his teeth. The verse read:
God would be very unjust if he were to turn Lucifer loose to tempt man without giving him help to overcome. God will not permit Satan to have power over you, to tempt you beyond the strength He will give you if you will seek and accept His help.
In the beginning, an angel of the Lord taught Adam and Eve. He instructed them in all things so they would know the will of the Lord.
I think it is the same today. We must study the scriptures, learn what God's plan is for us. We must learn the consequences of obedience and disobedience. He has provided prophets and teachers in each dispensation to teach us God's will concerning us. He has provided us with scriptures-the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and modern-day revelations. He has restored the gospel with the fulness of the priesthood. He has given us the Holy Ghost to reveal to us the will of the Father and the Son and to enlighten us in all truth. He has given us temples and the keys to officiate in the ordinances thereof.
The Prophet Joseph Smith has said: "God shall give unto you knowledge by his Holy Spirit, yea, by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost, that has not been revealed since the world was until now;
"Which our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation to be revealed in the last times, which their minds were pointed to by the angels, as held in reserve for the fulness of their glory."
This means that even our forefathers came ahead of us for our benefit, with a promise we would render a service to them.
Yes, the Lord will help us, if we do our part. We must do something more than just resist Satan. We must render service to our fellowmen. Are you doing your part?
God has said: "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Remember that this world was created and all the development and the progress on this earth from Adam till now have been primarily for you as much as anyone else.
Christ came to atone for you.
The gospel was restored for you.
The Lord will answer your prayers.
God is mindful of you, for you are a son or daughter of God.
It is true-each has a different life to live and a different task to fill. Some tasks may be more important than others, but you-a son or daughter of God-are just as important to God as anyone else.
I think the song written by William Clayton is as important for our encouragement today as it was to the pioneers.
-LDS Hymns, no. 13.
May the Lord bless each one of you to accomplish your goal in life, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder William H. Bennett
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
At one of the stake conferences to which I was assigned, a home teacher was invited to be a speaker at the general session on Sunday morning. He began by telling about a man who accidentally fell into the waters of the Niagara River some distance above the falls. As he was carried downstream by the current, he called out repeatedly, "Which way to shore? Which way to shore?" There were people along the banks on both sides of the river who saw and heard this man but they were slow to act. They noticed that he could swim and was keeping himself afloat, so they concluded that he was engaged in some kind of a publicity stunt and gave him no further attention. However, when he reached the point where he was precariously close to the falls some of the people along the banks went into action and tried to get ropes to him to pull him from the water. But they had waited too long and he went over the brink of the falls and was killed. When his body was recovered and identification made, the horizons of those along the banks of the river were pushed back and their understandings improved and increased. Yes, the man could swim, but he could not swim with purpose or direction because he was blind.
That illustration used by a home teacher to motivate the members of his stake to become more actively engaged in discharging their responsibilities in doing missionary work with their nonmember friends and neighbors had a missionary thrust; but I found many other messages there also. There are many people in the world today who are in distress, and who, in their hearts, are calling out, "Which way to shore?" All too often those of us who are around them do not even hear them, or if we do, we do not respond because we allow ourselves to become so busy doing this, that, or the other, that we are not tuned in properly, or perhaps it is because we just don't want to get involved.
Let me say, my brothers and sisters, that if we want to save individuals, to save the souls of our Father's children, we must be willing to get involved and to help others get involved in meaningful ways also.
Some of those who are calling out for help are the honest in heart who are earnestly seeking the truth, but they do not know where to find it. They fit into the category referred to in the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 123, verse 12, which reads as follows:
"For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are blinded by the subtle craftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive, and who are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it."
My brothers and sisters, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has the truth, the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, restored to the earth in these the last days through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Furthermore, this Church has received a charge from the Lord to proclaim the restored gospel message to all the world. Obedient to that charge the Church is carrying out a vigorous missionary program in many countries of the world. In addition, the members of the Church everywhere have been challenged to do missionary work with their nonmember friends and neighbors, and to do a better job of living the gospel, so that their lives are shining examples of the gospel of Jesus Christ in action. This will open the doors of the honest in heart and the teaching of the precepts can then be done most effectively.
We say to the honest in heart everywhere: Listen to our message; give it prayerful, careful consideration, and then seek a witness from on high through the power of the Holy Ghost that our message is true. There is just too much at stake to do otherwise. We make some strong claims in our Church; we do not apologize for that. We have that responsibility. We have the truth. We are proclaiming the truth. Give it careful, prayerful consideration.
Some of those who are calling out for help are confused and disturbed by this complex, somewhat contradictory world in which we live, a world that has many crosswinds and crosscurrents, and even some eddies and whirlpools that can entrap and destroy. Let us remember that. Many of these people are yearning for the inner peace and joy that really can come only through love of God and love of fellowmen and from keeping God's commandments. We have been promised in Deuteronomy, in chapter 4, verse 29, that if we seek the Lord diligently we shall surely find him, and these are the words:
"But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul."
Remember that, you, the honest in heart, wherever you may be and listen to our message.
In some cases those who are seeking help are young people who are the products of broken homes or who have been raised under conditions where force has been used instead of love and where there is contention and strife and bickering and quarreling, instead of unity and harmony. It has been my privilege to work with young people all my life, and I know that ofttimes young people who are raised under such conditions frequently lack purpose and direction in their living.
Some who need help are in bondage to sin and seemingly cannot break those bonds without help from others. Many of them are crying out in their hearts for assistance. Some of them haven't yet reached the stage where they have truly repented, and they need assistance in that, too. Others are having difficulty reconciling science and religion, perhaps because they have pulled the horizons in too close, and haven't brought into the picture all they should bring into the picture in order to see relationships clearly, to interpret correctly, and draw sound conclusions; and perhaps because they have used man's measuring sticks instead of God's measuring sticks.
Some who need help are disillusioned because they have been taken advantage of by dishonest individuals. Then there are those who do not have loved ones or friends, and who are lonely and discouraged, and need the hand of fellowship extended to them.
My brothers and sisters, how fortunate we are to have the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fulness, and the marvelous programs of this Church, and a living prophet, a true prophet of God to guide us and direct us in these troubled times. I say to you, my brothers and sisters, that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the way to shore and to safety, to happiness in this life and to eternal life and eternal joy in the life to come. It can light the way for all who will open their eyes, their ears, and their hearts. But it isn't enough for us to just look and listen. We must listen and apply. We must act. This has been stated very effectively by the poet, Longfellow, in his poem, "Psalm of Life," which is one of my favorites. I should like to repeat part of that at this time:
Let us remind ourselves, my brothers and sisters, that the gospel of Jesus Christ is to be lived, not just read about or talked about or thought about. It is to be lived. That is when it takes on its great power in the lives of men and women, and in building the kingdom of God. As we learn to do that, my brothers and sisters, we are blessed, for the Lord has said, "I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."
As we are able to perfect our lives, the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ become more and more meaningful, and we experience that inner joy and peace for which there is no substitute.
Now we all know we do not have to obey the laws of God or keep the commandments because we have our free agency, but I should like to emphasize that none of us have our free agency to determine the consequences of the choices we make, because laws operate, and along with the exercising of our free agency, we become accountable and responsible for our acts.
The scriptures are replete with examples of what happens when people do not heed the words of the prophets and do not keep the commandments. Let your minds recall what happened to the wicked when the flood came in the days of Noah, of what happened when Jerusalem was destroyed, and what happened to the Jaredites and the Nephites in Book of Mormon days because they did not keep the commandments and did not listen to the voices of the prophets.
I think we should also remember that the scriptures, and even the pages of secular history, are replete with examples of what can happen when people do keep the commandments of God. Those great blessings have been referred to in various ways during this conference.
Reference was made, I believe, in the welfare meeting this morning to Enoch and the righteousness of the people who were associated with him. Let me just read verse 67 from chapter 7 of Moses in the Pearl of Great Price:
"And the Lord showed Enoch all things, even unto the end of the world; and he saw the day of the righteous, the hour of their redemption; and received a fulness of joy."
There are many other things that could be said, but let me just summarize some of the things that have already been said pertaining to the great blessings that come through keeping the commandments and obeying the laws.
President Lee in his opening message talked about self-respect. That is a great blessing we can get if we really keep the commandments and we won't have self-respect unless we do. Other great blessings I should like to mention are: a clear conscience, inner peace, the companionship of the Holy Ghost to guide us and direct us, and the blessings promised to those who keep the Word of Wisdom.
The Word of Wisdom has had special meaning in my life because of my involvement in athletics, my interest in education, and the appreciation I have had for good health. Let us remind ourselves of the promises given in verses 18 to 21 of the 89th section of the Doctrine and Covenants:
"And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;
"And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;
"And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.
"And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them."
What great promises! My brothers and sisters, let me just end by emphasizing the great blessings of eternal happiness, eternal joy, and eternal life, and those are related of course; they are tied together. They cannot be separated.
I leave you my testimony, my brothers and sisters, that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the way to shore, and to safety, and to happiness here and to joy eternally. I bear testimony that God does live, his Son Jesus Christ lives. The gospel of Jesus Christ is true, and we have a true and living prophet guiding us today, pointing the way under guidance and direction from on high in the troubled conditions under which we live. I leave you that testimony, my brothers and sisters, in all humility, and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
There is genuine concern over the diminishing role of the father in the home. His influence is fading. Presiding responsibilities formerly assumed are left either to the mother or to agencies outside the home. This diminishing role is at the root of a multitude of our problems. Numerous things go awry when the scriptural family organization is upset!
The father is the patriarch in the home. This means that the father is the presiding authority. This does not mean that he should be dictatorial. Modern scriptures set forth qualifications for all who preside:
"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. "
In reality, each family is a dominion within itself. Father heads that government. In the beginning it was the only government on the earth and was passed down from Adam to his descendants. Properly organized in the Church, the father is the patriarch of an eternal family unit. Heaven, to us, will be simply an extension of an ideal home. As the presiding priesthood officer, the father fills an irreplaceable role.
A worthy father who holds the Melchizedek Priesthood should be encouraged to name and bless his children. He should administer to the sick in his home. The father may baptize, confirm, and ordain his children, at the invitation of his file leader in the Church. He may give a father's blessing. President Joseph Fielding Smith has said:
"A faithful father who holds the Melchizedek Priesthood may bless his own children, and that would be a patriarchal blessing. Such blessing could be recorded in the family records, but it would not be preserved in the archives of the Church. in addition, children may receive a blessing by an ordained patriarch. A father blessing his own child could, if he received the inspiration to do so, declare the lineage of the child. As the Patriarch of his home, a father is also a revelator to his family and, in this sense stands in line to receive the revelations from the Lord for the good and blessing of that family."
The father exercises his spiritual leadership in the home by calling his family to prayer each morning and evening. Weekly family home evening, likewise, is called and presided over by the father, though all others participate.
The father is the protector of the home. He guards it against the intrusion of evil from without. Formerly he protected his home with weapons and shuttered windows. Today the task is more complex. Barred doors and windows protect only against the intrusion of a corporeal creature. It is not an easy thing to protect one's family against intrusions of evil into the minds and spirits of family members. These influences can and do flow freely into the home. Satan can subtly beguile the children of men in ways we have already mentioned in this conference. He need not break down the door.
Fathers, you will have to live close to the Lord. Develop a sensitivity to the impressions of the Spirit.
There is yet another intrusion into the home that needs to be mentioned. It is an unwise father who carries to his family his daily business cares. They disturb the peace existing there. He should leave his worries at the office and enter his home with the spirit of peace in his heart and with the love of God burning within him. If there is friction, his presence should soothe it. If there is turmoil, he should resolve it.
I have a friend, a businessman in this city, who does special ordinance work in the temple. One day I passed him on the street and asked where he was going. "I'm going to the temple. Inside those thick walls, in the quiet serenity of that lovely building," he said, "I find peace." Then he added, "There is only one other place in the world where I can find peace-in my own home." What a compliment to his wife! What a compliment to his children! What a credit to him. This should be the ideal for all fathers-to so live that we can find peace in our homes.
Fathers, draw close to your children. Learn to communicate. Learn to listen. This means giving a father's most valuable commodity-time! Only good results occur when a father interviews his sons and daughters regularly. He can know their problems and their hopes. He can align himself with them as their unconditional friend. To the extent we become friends with our children in unconditional love, to that extent we become like our Heavenly Father.
The story is told of an elementary teacher who had students write essays in hopes that it would motivate the fathers to attend a PTA meeting. The fathers came in $4,000 cars and $400 cars-bank president, laborer, clerk, salesman, meter reader, baker, etc.-"every man with a definite estimate of himself in terms of money, skill, and righteousness or looks. The children's essays were read at random.
"'I like my daddy, he built my doll house, took me coasting, taught me to shoot, helps with my schoolwork, takes me to the park, gave me a pig to fatten and sell.' Scores of the essays could be reduced in essence to: 'I like my daddy. He plays with me.'
"Not one child mentioned his family house, car, neighborhood, food, or clothing.
"The fathers went into the meeting from many walks of life; they came out in two classes: companions to their children or strangers to their children."
God help us to be real companions.
A father is a teacher. The Lord has commanded sons and daughters to honor their parents and to give heed to their counsel. The words that open that great volume of scripture, the Book of Mormon, ought to be our guide as fathers: " having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father."
Enos, likewise, credited his father for his teachings: " knowing my father that he was a just man-for he taught me in his language, and also the nurture and admonition of the Lord-and blessed be the name of my God for it. "
Have you fathers noticed that the present Melchizedek Priesthood lessons are like father-training lessons? I cite an example:
"One father and son have an agreement that the son will be in at a specified time. Before the parents retire they set the alarm for that time with the understanding that the son is to turn the alarm off before it rings when he comes home. If it does go off, the son knows that his parents will be waiting for him and further, he will not have the privilege of going out for two weeks. Follow-through on the agreement between them is the key that creates better understanding."
Someone has said: "There is no need of searching out your genealogy if you do not know where your children were last night." Many inspiring suggestions enliven this practical course of study for fathers. I heartily commend this course to strengthen fathers for better spiritual leadership.
Discipline is part of the process of governing children. The Lord has told us how:
"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."
There has been no better statement of a father-child relationship. When a father wisely corrects his son, it proves his love. Only the unwise foolishly indulge their sons and withhold proper discipline.
And finally, the father is to be an example of the highest Christian virtues. To walk uprightly in the admonition of the Lord requires not only patience and forebearance, but an exercise in constant practice of all the Christian virtues by each family member. Perhaps the Lord knew this when he instituted the family. A man needs the responsibility of a wife and family. He needs the responsibility of being an example of righteousness. There is wisdom in this requirement. This kind of gentle persuasion is needed to keep a father "on course" and gently guide him toward perfection.
In the family relationship, we find our best laboratory in which to practice celestial living. While this task is fraught with much challenge and some adversity, it is, nevertheless, blessed with that supreme joy that can come only to a father.
It should have great meaning that of all the titles of respect and honor and admiration that could be given him, that God himself, he who is the highest of all, chose to be addressed simply as "Father."
I am grateful indeed to see the emphasis given by the Church leaders today on the place and position of fathers. There has never been a time in the history of the Church when the importance and place of the Melchizedek Priesthood quorums have been emphasized more and where the activity of fathers has been stressed so much. I know that this is inspired direction by our leaders today.
I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that he guides this Church through a living prophet on the earth today, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
Of the Council of the Twelve
My brethren and sisters, seen and unseen; we are all brothers and sisters, children of the same Father in the spirit. Humbly and gratefully I stand before you this afternoon. I have been on my knees, in fasting and prayer, as have members of my family, that I may have the blessing of the Spirit.
My text today is from a revelation of the Lord to Joseph Smith, the Prophet, at a conference of the Church January 2, 1831, as follows: " if ye are prepared ye shall not fear."
In section 1 of the great Doctrine and Covenants, a volume of modern scripture, we read these words: "Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come. " Further in this same revelation are these warning words: " I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth. "
What are some of the calamities for which we are to prepare? In section 29 the Lord warns us of "a great hailstorm sent forth to destroy the crops of the earth." In section 45 we read of "an overflowing scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land." In section 63 the Lord declares he has "decreed wars upon the face of the earth. "
In Matthew, chapter 24, we learn of "famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes. " The Lord declared that these and other calamities shall occur. These particular prophecies seem not to be conditional. The Lord, with his foreknowledge, knows that they will happen. Some will come about through man's manipulations; others through the forces of nature and nature's God, but that they will come seems certain. Prophecy is but history in reverse-a divine disclosure of future events.
Yet, through all of this, the Lord Jesus Christ has said: " if ye are prepared ye shall not fear."
What, then, is the Lord's way to help us prepare for these calamities? The answer is also found in section 1 of the Doctrine and Covenants, wherein he says:
"Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
"And also gave commandments to others. " He has also said: "Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled."
Here then is the key-look to the prophets for the words of God, that will show us how to prepare for the calamities which are to come. For the Lord, in that same section, states: "What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."
Again, the Lord warned those who will reject the inspired words of his representatives, in these words: " and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people."
The present-day Church welfare program was instituted by revelation from God to his mouthpiece, the prophet and earthly president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was inaugurated by the First Presidency at a general conference of the Church held in October, 1936, thirty-seven years ago. It is significant that the man who served for a quarter century as the first managing director of the General Church Welfare Committee is today the Lord's mouthpiece on earth, President Harold B. Lee, and that President Marion G. Romney, who was so closely associated with him in that endeavor, now stands as a counselor at his side.
At the April 1937 general conference of the Church, President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., of the First Presidency, asked: "What may we as a people and as individuals do for ourselves to prepare to meet this oncoming disaster, which God in his wisdom may not turn aside from us?" President Clark then set forth these inspired basic principles of the Church welfare program:
"First, and above and beyond everything else, let us live righteously.
"Let us avoid debt as we would avoid a plague; where we are now in debt, let us get out of debt; if not today, then tomorrow.
"Let us straitly and strictly live within our incomes, and save a little.
"Let every head of every household see to it that he has on hand enough food and clothing, and, where possible, fuel also, for at least a year ahead. You of small means put your money in foodstuffs and wearing apparel, not in stocks and bonds; you of large means will think you know how to care for yourselves, but I may venture to suggest that you do not speculate. Let every head of every household aim to own his own home, free from mortgage. Let every man who has a garden spot, garden it; every man who owns a farm, farm it."
For the righteous the gospel provides a warning before a calamity, a program for the crises, a refuge for each disaster.
The Lord has said that "the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven ", but he assures us that "he that is tithed shall not be burned. "
The Lord has warned us of famines, but the righteous will have listened to prophets and stored at least a year's supply of survival food.
The Lord has set loose the angels to reap down the earth, but those who obey the Word of Wisdom along with the other commandments are assured "that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. "
The Lord desires his Saints to be free and independent in the critical days ahead. But no man is truly free who is in financial bondage. "Think what you do when you run in debt," said Benjamin Franklin, "you give to another power over your liberty." " pay thy debt and live " said Elisha. And in the Doctrine and Covenants the Lord says, " it is my will that you shall pay all your debts."
For over 100 years we have been admonished to store up grain. "Remember the counsel that is given," said Elder Orson Hyde, "' Store up all your grain,' and take care of it! And I tell you it is almost as necessary to have bread to sustain the body as it is to have food for the spirit; for the one is as necessary as the other to enable us to carry on the work of God upon the earth." And he also said: "There is more salvation and security in wheat, than in all the political schemes of the world. "
As to the foodstuffs which should be stored, the Church has left that decision primarily to the individual members. Some excellent suggestions are available from the Church Welfare Committee. "All grain is good for the food of man " the Lord states, but he particularly singles out wheat. Dry, whole, hard grains, when stored properly, can last indefinitely, and their nutritional value can be enhanced through sprouting, if desired.
It would be well if every family have on hand grain for at least a year. And may I remind you that it generally takes several times as much land to produce a given amount of food when grains are fed to livestock and we consume the meat. Let us be careful not to overdo beef cattle and other livestock projects on our welfare farms.
From the standpoint of food production, storage, handling, and the Lord's counsel, wheat should have high priority. Water, of course, is essential. Other basics could include honey or sugar, legumes, milk products or substitutes, and salt or its equivalent. The revelation to store food may be as essential to our temporal salvation today as boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah.
President Harold B. Lee has wisely counseled that "perhaps if we think not in terms of a year's supply of what we ordinarily would use, and think more in terms of what it would take to keep us alive in case we didn't have anything else to eat, that last would be very easy to put in storage for a year just enough to keep us alive if we didn't have anything else to eat. We wouldn't get fat on it, but we would live; and if you think in terms of that kind of annual storage rather than a whole year's supply of everything that you are accustomed to eat which, in most cases, is utterly impossible for the average family, I think we will come nearer to what President Clark advised us way back in 1937."
There are blessings in being close to the soil, in raising your own food, even if it is only a garden in your yard and/or a fruit tree or two. Man's material wealth basically springs from the land and other natural resources. Combined with his human energy and multiplied by his tools, this wealth is assured and expanded through freedom and righteousness. Those families will be fortunate who, in the last days, have an adequate supply of each of these particulars.
Concerning human energy, we can be grateful for the Word of Wisdom, which tells us it is possible to "run and not be weary, and walk and not faint." The Lord has advised us to "retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated." He has also counseled, "Do not run faster or labor more than you have strength. "
Healthful foods, proper rest, adequate exercise, and a clean conscience can prepare us to tackle the trials that lie ahead.
Concerning clothing, we should anticipate future needs, such as extra work clothes and clothes that would supply warmth during winter months when there may be shortages or lack of heating fuel. Leather and bolts of cloth could be stored, particularly for families with younger children who will outgrow and perhaps outwear their present clothes.
"The day will come," said President Wilford Woodruff, "when, as we have been told, we shall all see the necessity of making our own shoes and clothing and raising our own food. "
In a message to the Saints in July of 1970, President Joseph Fielding Smith stated that the pioneers "were taught by their leaders to produce, as far as possible, all that they consumed This is still excellent counsel."
Wood, coal, gas, oil, kerosene, and even candles are among those items which could be reserved as fuel for warmth, cooking, and light or power. Some may be used for all of these purposes and certain ones would have to be stored and handled cautiously. It would also be well to have on hand some basic medical supplies to last for at least a year.
Men should seek honorable employment and do their work well in order to provide for their own. Men who can perform useful skills with their hands will be in increasing demand. Handymen, farmers, builders, tailors, gardeners, and mechanics can and will prove a real blessing to their families and their fellowmen.
The Saints have been advised to pay their own way and maintain a cash reserve. Recent history has demonstrated that in difficult days it is reserves with intrinsic value that are of most worth, rather than reserves, the value of which may be destroyed through inflation. It is well to remember that continued government deficits cause inflation; inflation is used as an excuse for ineffective price controls; price controls lead to shortages; artificial shortages inevitably are used as an excuse to implement rationing.
When will we learn these basic economic principles? However, " when we really get into hard times," said President Clark, "where food is scarce or there is none at all, and so with clothing and shelter, money may be no good for there may be nothing to buy, and you cannot eat money, you cannot get enough of it together to burn to keep warm, and you cannot wear it."
The strength of the Church welfare program lies in every family following the inspired direction of the Church leaders to be self-sustaining through adequate preparation. God intends for his Saints to so prepare themselves "that the church may stand independent above all other creatures beneath the celestial world."
"How on the face of the earth could a man enjoy his religion," said Elder George A. Smith many years ago, "when he had been told by the Lord how to prepare for a day of famine, when, instead of doing so, he had fooled away that which would have sustained him and his family."
And President Brigham Young said, "If you are without bread, how much wisdom can you boast, and of what real utility are your talents, if you cannot procure for yourselves and save against a day of scarcity those substances designed to sustain your natural lives? If you cannot provide for your natural lives, how can you expect to have wisdom to obtain eternal lives?"
When will all these calamities strike? We do not know the exact time, but it appears it may be in the not-too-distant future. Those who are prepared now have the continuing blessings of early obedience, and they are ready. Noah built his ark before the flood came, and he and his family survived. Those who waited to act until after the flood began were too late.
Let us not be dissuaded from preparing because of a seeming prosperity today, or a so-called peace.
I have seen the ravages of inflation. I shall never forget Germany in the early 1920s. In December 1923 in Cologne, Germany, I paid six billion marks for breakfast. That was just 15 cents in American money. Today, the real inflation concern is in America and several other nations.
Brethren and sisters, I know that this welfare program is inspired of God. I have witnessed with my own eyes the ravages of hunger and destitution as, Under the direction of the president of the Church, I spent a year in war-torn Europe at the close of World War II, without my family, distributing food, clothing, and bedding to our needy members. I have looked into the sunken eyes of Saints, in almost the last stages of starvation. I have seen faithful mothers carrying their children, three and four years of age, who were unable to walk because of malnutrition. I have seen a hungry woman turn down food for a spool of thread. I have seen grown men weep as they ran their hands through the wheat and beans sent to them from Zion-America.
Thanks be to God for a prophet, for this inspired program, and for Saints who so managed their stewardship that they could provide for their own and still share with others. What a marvelous way to become a savior on Mount Zion!
"The time is about ripe," said President Lee, "for the demonstration of the power and efficacy of the Lord's Plan which He designed as 'a light to the world, and to be a standard for my people, and for the Gentiles to seek to it.'" May we ever remember the Lord's promise: " if ye are prepared ye shall not fear."
Let us live the gospel fully, and may we recognize the infallibility of God's inspired word-whether by his " own voice " or the "voice of my servants, it is the same." The days ahead are sobering and challenging. Oh, may we be prepared spiritually and temporally, I pray humbly in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Vaughn J. Featherstone
Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
At a news conference in Mexico City after the area conference, President Marion G. Romney was invited by a newsman to answer a question. The question was this: Do you have a welfare program in your church? And President Romney responded, "Yes, and if you join the Church, you can contribute to it also."
That is a true principle of welfare and one that we should understand. Welfare is literally giving and not receiving in the Church of Jesus Christ.
In the 107th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, we read: "The office of a bishop is in administering all temporal things;" and also to be a judge in Israel, "to do the business of the church, to sit in judgment upon transgressors. "
And then in the 72nd section, we read that he is to keep the bishops storehouse.
Now in the Church in order to fill the bishops storehouse we have a commodity budget, and we assign this out to the regions; they in turn assign it to the stakes and the wards. In some cases it is in commodities and in some cases it is in money, cash in lieu. And as these funds come into the Church, then we use them to take care of the needs of the poor throughout the regions of the Church.
Now, brethren, during the past year we have not taken sufficient into the bishops storehouse to have a full year's inventory. We have about an eight and a half months' inventory. This is partially due to the commodity price index rising from.185 on January 1 to.285 on August 1, 1973, on the wholesale index. Now you can see we had to use cash in lieu funds to buy products which are not produced in the storehouse. We used many of these funds for that purpose and this has been a factor in reducing our inventory to eight and a half months. We will build this back to a full year inventory at the end of this year.
The storehouse is to furnish the food for approximately 3 percent of the Church. Around 96,000 people receive commodities from the storehouse. We have a one-year inventory to supply needs for this 3 percent drawing from the storehouse. Brethren, bishops, those who administer these great funds and commodities, would you recall with me some principles that I think are urgent?
For example, in the bishops storehouse we have foods that are going to the homes of our less fortunate Saints. We feel possibly as you deal with these commodities you may need to make some slight adjustments. We feel the best commodities that are produced on our projects should be brought into the storehouses, not the culls from the farm or from the flocks or from the herds of cattle. We think it ought to be the very best, for do we not recall the scripture, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." I believe that is a two-edged sword, and if we give to the Lord, or give to these fine Saints who receive from the bishops storehouse the culls, I believe then that we might be dealt with justly by the Lord in a like manner.
Now there are some principles we also need to understand. One is this: when stake presidents and bishops contribute to the general committee from your projects, would you consider that we must have the very best. For example, we had one stake president in a nearby stake who the central storehouse called and said, "We need a few head of cattle." The wholesale index that the Church was working on was a little under that which represented the present market. He said, "No, we won't furnish you the cattle. We will sell them and then we will give you the cash in lieu," which he did. They gave us the cash in lieu, brethren. We had to go out on the wholesale market and buy dressed beef at an up price. Now you think about that. It is all the Lord's money. I don't believe he would be pleased with that kind of a transaction. I wouldn't want to offend anyone. I just think we ought to give the best we have to the Lord's storehouse.
I think there is another thing we must consider: have your eating habits changed a little over the past year? Ours have, greatly. We used to eat potatoes regularly, but when they got up to $1.69 for ten pounds, we decided to not eat as much of that product as we used to. We switched to rice. Our meat diet has considerably decreased. Our grocery mix has changed at home. However, we understand that those who are receiving commodities through the storehouse are receiving just as much meat as they were previously. Now we don't want them to be treated any better or any worse than anyone else in the Church. We just want them to be treated with dignity, and so it might be well for you to adjust that mix a little bit as you are doing in your own homes.
Let me give you a better example. In the business world every groceryman understands that in a particular section, if you want to raise the gross you don't have to raise the price. You can raise the gross profit by changing the product mix. A very simple mathematical example will tell you how to do this. Let's take for example, in one section you had a product markup of zero on 60 percent of your products in that section. Sixty percent times zero is zero. It contributes no gross points to the overall gross mark up. If you had a 20 percent mark up on the remaining 40 percent, 40 percent times 20 equals 8 percent, so you contributed eight gross points to your overall gross in that section.
Now, brethren, let's say we reversed things and took those high mark up items at 20 percent and displayed them on the heavy traffic impulse ends where the customers are more likely to buy, and took the low mark up items off those ends and put them on the shelf in a less favorable position, then we change the product mix. Now, say we get 20 percent markup on 60 percent of our gross and 0 percent on 40 percent. We get 40 percent times nothing is still nothing; 60 percent times 20 is 12 gross points, so we have increased our gross by four points by just changing the mix without having raised the price.
Brethren, that is a great principle in welfare. Our home food bill is no more than it was six months ago or a year ago. We had to change the mix. We feel, bishops, you might well change the mix on those who are eating out of your bishops storehouse. When potatoes are $1.69 for ten pounds, let's switch to rice. When meat is as high as it is, let's not do as one bishop did, continue to give one family 67 pounds of beef each month. I don't know that there are too many families here that are eating 67 pounds of beef each month. Those Saints receiving commodities through the bishops storehouse should not be receiving more than you are using in your homes. I hope this is a principle that we will remember and use very wisely.
Now to those who raise beef and potatoes, please don't be disenchanted with the Church. This is just Vaughn Featherstone speaking, not the prophet. We are trying to spend the Lord's sacred funds in the best possible way. Use your Relief Society president as she goes into the homes to help determine how much should be used.
In Isaiah, the 58th chapter, the 6th verse, the Lord gives a great promise to those who contribute to the good of the Saints' welfare. He said: "Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
"Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?"
Then if you do this, he promises this: "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am."
Now brethren, if I gave to a fast offering fund or contributed to a welfare production project, I want to tell you that if I did it for no other reason than to know that when I would cry the Lord would say, "Here I am," that would be motivation enough.
Now a great, pure-in-heart King Benjamin said: "And ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain, and turn him out to perish.
"Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just-
"But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the Kingdom of God.
"For behold, are we not all beggars?"
I believe King Benjamin laid it on the line with us, brethren. Now think about that principle. I believe if we would use wisdom as we deal with the bishops storehouse, I think the Lord would be pleased. Let's use wisdom in distributing those sacred funds, those sacred commodities, and change the mix if necessary, but let's do it righteously and with the best wisdom with which the Lord has blessed us.
Now I would like to switch to a subject that I feel is welfare service-oriented. As President Lee discussed in his talk the great compromise in many different areas, I want to tell you what is going on in the area of work. The subject I would like to address myself to the young men of the Church is work. Brethren, there is no substitute for work. You cannot be lazy. Businesses who say, "Come with us and work for us; the wages are high and the labor is easy; the work week has been reduced considerably," have only shame to offer. You are destroying your soul and character when you accept such an offer. The Lord expects us to be industrious; he expects us to be mentally and physically ambitious with all our hearts and souls. And I promise you this-that this compromise work attitude never was what the Lord intended.
President J. Reuben Clark said: "We must purge our hearts of the love of ease; we must put from our lives the curse of idleness." And then President Lee has said, "The greatest poverty is the poverty of desire." President Kimball said, "Only the mediocre person is always at his best." And Brother Thomas S. Monson has said in his W formula: "Work will win when wishy-washy wishing won't." Dorothea Brande in her book Wake Up and Live, says that we ought to "act as though it were impossible to fail." That is true, brethren, in the Church. The Lord wants us to be successful, and it is especially true here.
There is a modern-day version of "The Little Red Hen" that I would like to leave with you. I think it is very impressive. It is simply this:
I am indebted to a good friend of mine, Aldin Porter, for a story and I would like to share it with you. He shared it with me about two years ago.
"No one in our Utah town knew where the Countess had come from; her carefully precise English indicated that she was not a native American. From the size of her house and staff we knew that she must be wealthy, but she never entertained and she made it clear that when she was at home she was completely inaccessible. Only when she stepped outdoors did she become at all a public figure-and then chiefly to the small fry of the town, who lived in awe of her.
"The countess always carried a cane, not only for support, but as a means of chastising any youngster she thought needed disciplining. And at one time or another most of the kids in our neighborhood seemed to display that need. By running fast and staying alert, I had managed to keep out of her reach. But one day when I was about thirteen, as I was short-cutting through her hedge, she got close enough to rap my head with her stick.
"'Ouch!' I yelled, jumping a couple of feet.
"'Young man, I want to talk to you,' she said. I was expecting a lecture on the evils of trespassing, but as she looked at me, half smiling, she seemed to change her mind.
"'Don't you live in that green house with the willow trees in the next block?'
"'Yes, ma'am.'
"'Good. I've lost my gardener. Be at my house Thursday morning at seven, and don't tell me you have something else to do; I've seen you slouching around on Thursdays.'
"When the Countess gave an order, it was carried out. I didn't dare not come on that next Thursday. I went over the whole lawn three times with a mower before she was satisfied, and then she had me down on all fours looking for weeds until my knees were as green as the grass. She finally called me up to the porch.
"'Well, young man, how much do you want for your day's work?'
"'I don't know. Fifty cents, maybe.'
"'Is that what you figure you're worth?"
"'Yes'm. About that.'
"'Very well. Here's the fifty cents you say you're worth, and here's the dollar and a half more that I've earned for you by pushing you. Now I'm going to tell you something about how you and I are going to work together. There are as many ways of mowing a lawn as there are people, and they may be worth anywhere from a penny to five dollars. Let's say that a three-dollar job would be just what you have done today, except that you'd have to be something of a fool to spend that much time on a lawn. A five-dollar lawn is-well, it's impossible, so we'll forget about that. Now then, each week I'm going to pay you according to your own evaluation of your work.'
"I left with my two dollars, richer than I remembered being in my whole life, and determined that I would get four dollars out of her the next week. But I failed to reach even the three dollar mark. My will began to falter the second time around her yard.
"'Two dollars again,' eh? That kind of job puts you right on the edge of being dismissed, young man.'
"'Yes'm. But I'll do better next week.'
"And somehow I did. The last time around the lawn I was exhausted, but I found I could spur myself on. In the exhilaration of that new feeling, I had no hesitation in asking the Countess for three dollars.
"Each Thursday for the next four or five weeks, I varied between a three-and a three-and-a-half dollar job. The more I became more acquainted with her lawn, places where the ground was a little high or a little low, places where it needed to be clipped short or left long on the edges to make a more satisfying curve along the garden, the more I became aware of just what a four-dollar lawn would consist of. And each week I would resolve to do just that kind of a job. But by the time I had made my three dollar or three and-a-half dollar mark I was too tired to remember even having had the ambition to go beyond that.
"'You look like a good consistent $3.50 man,' she would say as she handed me the money.
"'I guess so' I would say, too happy at the sight of the money to remember that I had shot for something higher.
"'Well, don't feel too bad,' she would comfort me. 'After all, there are only a handful of people in the world who could do a four-dollar job.'
"And her words were a comfort at first, but then, without my noticing what was happening, her comfort became an irritant that made me resolve to do that four-dollar job, even if it killed me. In the fever of my resolve, I could see myself expiring on her lawn, with the Countess leaning over me, handing me the four dollars with a tear in her eye, begging my forgiveness for having thought I couldn't do it.
"It was in the middle of such a fever, one Thursday night when I was trying to forget the day's defeat and get some sleep, that the truth hit me so hard that I sat upright, half choking in my excitement. It was the five-dollar job I had to do, not the four-dollar one! I had to do the job that no one could do because it was impossible.
"I was well acquainted with the difficulties ahead. I had the problem, for example, of doing something about the worm mounds in the lawn. The Countess might not even have noticed them yet, they were so small; but in my bare feet I knew about them and I had to do something about them. And I could go on trimming the garden edges with shears, but I knew that a five-dollar lawn demanded that I line up each edge exactly with a yard stick and then trim it precisely with the edger. And there were other problems that only I and my bare feet knew about.
"I started the next Thursday by ironing out the worm mounds with a heavy roller. After two hours of that I was ready to give up for the day. Nine o'clock in the morning, and my will was already gone! It was only by accident that I discovered how to regain it. Sitting under a walnut tree for a few minutes after finishing the rolling, I fell asleep. When I woke up minutes later, the lawn looked so good and felt so good under my feet, I was anxious to get on with the job.
"I followed this secret for the rest of the day, dozing for a few minutes every hour to regain my perspective and replenish my strength. Between naps, I mowed four times, two times lengthwise, two times across, until the lawn looked like a green velvet checkerboard. Then I dug around every tree, crumbling the big clods and smoothing the soil with my hands, then finished with the edger, meticulously lining up each stroke so that the effect would be perfectly symmetrical. And I carefully trimmed the grass between the flagstones of the front walk. The shears wore my fingers raw, but the walk never looked better.
"Finally about eight o'clock that evening it was all completed. I was so proud I didn't even feel tired when I went up to her door.
"'Well, what is it today?' she asked.
"'Five dollars,' I said, trying for a little calm and sophistication.
"'Five dollars? You mean four dollars, don't you? I told you that a five-dollar lawn job isn't possible.'
"'Yes it is. I just did it.'
"'Well, young man, the first five-dollar lawn in history certainly deserves some looking around.'
"We walked about the lawn together in the light of evening, and even I was quite overcome by the impossibility of what I had done.
"'Young man,' she said, putting her hand on my shoulder, 'what on earth made you do such a crazy, wonderful thing?'
"I didn't know why, but even if I had, I could not have explained it in the excitement of hearing that I had done it.
"'I think I know,' she continued, 'how you felt when this idea first came to you of caring for a lawn that I told you was impossible. It made you very happy when it first came, then a little frightened. Am I right?'
"She could see she was right by the startled look on my face.
"'I know how you felt, because the same thing happens to almost everyone. They feel this sudden burst in them of wanting to do some great thing. They feel a wonderful happiness, but then it passes because they have said, "No, I can't do that. It's impossible." Whenever something in you says, "It's impossible," remember to take a careful look and see if it isn't really God asking you to grow an inch, or a foot, or a mile, that you may come to a fuller life.'
"Since that time, some 25 years ago, when I have felt myself at an end with nothing before me, suddenly, with the appearance of that word, 'impossible,' I have experienced the unexpected lift, the leap inside me, and known that the only possible way lay through the very middle of impossible."
Now, my brethren in the Church, all things are possible in the Church. We can accomplish anything. This is the Lord's work. I want to testify to you that we must be wise. Don't be a sluggard. Do a day's work. Give it your heart and soul, and the Lord will bless you with success and prosper you. This is his kingdom.
Emma Lazarus has written words which describe the great Statue of Liberty. These words have special meaning to us in the Church, for truly these same words entreating all to come to America may well apply to the Church. I will just quote the last few lines. She said:
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the golden door, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Elder Robert L. Simpson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Tonight we meet in what is possibly the largest gathering of priesthood members in the history of this world. May we congratulate each of you for being here where the Lord would have you be. Your very presence is an indication of your faith and your desire to be a vital part of the kingdom of God.
Our message to the world is that he lives, that the heavens have been opened, that priesthood authority has been restored, and that a living prophet stands at our head.
We regard as scripture that chapter of the Pearl of Great Price that records the precious thoughts and words of the Prophet Joseph Smith as he recounts the astounding events that occurred in the spring of 1820. He said he did it to "put all inquirers after truth in possession of the facts, as they have transpired. " He further states: " I shall present the various events in truth and righteousness. "
You will remember that, after recounting some family history and commenting about religious unrest in the community, the Prophet tells of being impressed by the scripture found in James, chapter 1, verse 5, which reads: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." Then the Prophet said:
"Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart.
" I at length came to the determination to 'ask of God,' concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally, and not upbraid, I might venture.
"So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never as yet made the attempt to pray vocally."
Does this sound like a 14 1/2-year-old boy? Then he said:
"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 desire 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. Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction.
"But, exerting all my powers to call upon God 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 marvelous power as I had never before felt in any being-just at this moment of great alarm, I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.
"It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
Now, brethren, we have just recounted together the most significant singular event in the world since the resurrection of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The First Vision is the very foundation of this Church, and it is my conviction that each member of this Church performs his duty in direct ratio to his personal testimony and faith in the First Vision. How well do you believe this story? No man having heard the Joseph Smith testimony can, in good conscience, remain on neutral ground.
Joseph Smith was an ordinary boy with a rather ordinary name, but he was now to become an extraordinary prophet. For nine long years following the First Vision Joseph prepared for the privilege of the priesthood. As you remember, it was John the Baptist who appeared on the banks of the Susquehanna in answer to a fervent prayer offered by Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. How simple the words for such a historic occasion:
"Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of Messiah, I confer the Priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; and this shall never be taken again from the earth until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering unto the Lord in righteousness.
"He said this Aaronic Priesthood had not the power of laying on hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, but that this should be conferred on us hereafter; and he commanded us to go and be baptized, and gave us directions that I should baptize Oliver Cowdery, and that afterwards he should baptize me.
"Accordingly," continues the Prophet, "we went and were baptized. I baptized him first, and afterwards he baptized me-after which I laid my hands upon his head and ordained him to the Aaronic Priesthood, and afterwards he laid his hands on me and ordained me to the same Priesthood-for so we were commanded."
It was just a few weeks later that Peter, James, and John appeared to confer the Melchizedek Priesthood and the apostleship upon these same two men. That priesthood authority remains today in an unbroken chain. How reassuring to know that God's house is a house of order and that the same great leaders of 2,000 years ago were privileged to reestablish true priesthood authority on the earth. The logical sequence of events and the personages involved help to confirm the divine nature of all that transpired on that historic occasion.
It was in the following year, 1830, that the Church was organized. At last truth was established and continuing revelation was assured.
Then nearly six years later at the Kirtland Temple on a Sabbath afternoon, the Lord himself appeared in glorious vision to Joseph and Oliver. That same day Moses, Elias, and Elijah also appeared, each ancient prophet restoring an important function of the gospel. Listen again to the glorious description of the Savior's appearance as recounted by the Prophet Joseph Smith:
"The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened.
"We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber.
"His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah. "
The Savior then delivered a message that we should all read on occasion. It is recorded in the 110th section of the Doctrine and Covenants.
We attending this meeting tonight have accepted the obligation of priesthood. The commitment has been made, and there is really no excuse for failure because " the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." With a promise like that, there is really no excuse for us to fail.
Now, brethren of the priesthood, after reviewing these divine appearances-God the Father; Jesus Christ, his Son; John the Baptist; Peter, James, and John; and other ancient prophets-doesn't this make you excited about this great work!
Knowing that these events transpired, if I were a young deacon all over again, I would pass the sacrament like it was one of the most important things I had to do all week. My every act and my appearance would be in strict harmony with the dignity and honor of the position entrusted to me by the Savior.
The gathering of fast offerings would take on a rich, new meaning, and I would remind myself as I approached each home that I was the bishop's personal representative, that poor and needy people would be blessed more abundantly as a result of my efforts to participate in what James described as "pure religion and undefiled."
If I were a young teacher or priest again, I would strive to really be an asset to my home teaching companion. I would try harder to cement friendships with the members we visit. I would attempt to lift people like the Savior did. My responsibility toward the sacrament would be regarded as a rich, spiritual experience, never to be taken lightly. To participate in a sacred ordinance with anything but our highest respect and best effort is a disservice to the people of the ward and a betrayal of the true Spirit of Christ.
If I were one of you young adults over 25 and still unmarried, I would start looking for someone who has the potential for perfection instead of someone who has already achieved it. Just off the record, and quite confidentially, it is my understanding that there is only one perfect girl produced in each century, and I have already found her; she is all mine.
If I were a young father just starting out, I would practice kindness, patience, and love unfeigned. I would check my priority system constantly just to make certain that my course was true and that eternal life was my destiny.
If I were a prospective elder, I would give myself to some kind of Church service and at the same time set out to improve my gospel scholarship on a daily basis so that my family could be sealed to me for all eternity.
If I were an active Melchizedek Priesthood holder, high councilor, member of the stake presidency, member of a bishopric, and especially if I had children at home, knowing all that I know about eternity, I would remember above all else the wise counsel of the past: that if you spend all your days and save the whole world but lose your own family, you will be counted as an unprofitable servant.
Brethren, four great statements I leave with you to ponder. First, the words of God the Eternal Father, "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" Not 2,000 years ago, but in our time.
Next, the memorable words of John the Baptist who declared with authority: "Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of Messiah I confer the Priesthood of Aaron " in our day.
Third, the Savior's statement about: "Peter, and James, and John, whom I have sent unto you, by whom I have ordained you and confirmed you " happening in our time of the world's history.
And fourth, from Kirtland, as recorded by the Prophet Joseph: "We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber."
Indeed, fellow priesthood holders, these statements are not the idle words of men. We live in a remarkable time. The Lord has spoken in our day. You and I have received the message. Our fundamental obligation is to the priesthood of God which cannot be regarded casually, as though it were a man-made club or a mere fraternal organization.
I testify with all the sobriety of my heart and soul that we are committed, that we are depended upon. All things are possible in the Lord; President Lee made this crystal clear this morning in his masterful discourse at the welfare services meeting. As we unite in our faith and determination, His work will be accomplished. May this obligation burn within us. May it never be dimmed. May we be excited about the opportunity that is ours as we move forward deliberately, in humility, and with constant preparation, and do what we have to do. And I pray it in the name of Jesus Christ, the Master. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
Brethren, you who were at the welfare meeting this morning heard President Tanner say that we had installed approximately 1,400 new bishops during this last year. It is therefore thought advisable that we say something about the fundamentals of Church welfare. As I talk to you, I shall quote from handbooks and speeches given in the past. Sources are noted in my manuscript.
Church welfare is an approach to the law of consecration-the Lord's perfect economic program. Of Enoch and his people who implemented that perfect program it is written:
" the Lord blessed the land, and called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them.
" and lo, Zion, in process of time, was taken up into heaven. "
Of the Nephites who survived the cataclysm which accompanied the crucifixion of Jesus and thereafter lived the program, the record says:
"And it came to pass the people were all converted unto the Lord, and there were no contentions and disputations among them, and every man did deal justly one with another.
"And they had all things common among them; therefore there were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the heavenly gift.
" and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God."
The basis of God's perfect economic program is labor. In Eden the Lord said to Adam:
" Because thou hast eaten of the fruit of the tree of which I commanded thee, saying-Thou shalt not eat of it, cursed shall be the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.
"By the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, until thou shalt return unto the ground. "
Now this was not a vindictive decree. The Lord was not retaliating against Adam. He was simply placing Adam in a situation where he would have to work to live.
The ground was cursed in the manner prescribed for Adam's sake, not to his disadvantage. Had Adam and his posterity been able to live without working, the human race would never have survived. Idleness is pernicious.
Recently my secretary put on my desk an article which reported an experiment carried on by the National Institute of Mental Health. "A tiny Eden for mice" was built. In it was placed everything that could be included "in a mouse's dream of paradise. Food, housing supplies-everything was there in abundance." In it were placed four pair of mice. There was room for "4,000 mice. Every 55 days the population doubled. But when there were a little over 600 mice things began happening. Not only did the population fall off; but big problems arose in the mouse society. the mice were becoming lazy. Many appeared greatly distressed, some utterly frustrated. Their behavior became quite unpredictable. The making of nests dropped off. Some of the mice began to eat each other!
"The planned mouse population never did climb to 4,000. They had reached slightly more than half that figure when reproduction came to a complete halt. The mouse society turned into an emotional mob!
"The population in mouse-Eden has now dropped to a little more than 600. No new baby mice are being born. The mouse society is doomed. And not a mouse shows any interest in saving his dying paradise."
Idleness is just as devastating to men as it is to mice.
"Give everything they ask for while making no demands on their own efforts, and they will deteriorate into an unfit mob."
This is the lesson of all history. "My experience has taught me," said President Brigham Young, "and it has become a principle with me, that it is never any benefit to give, out and out, to man or woman, money, food, clothing, or anything else, if they are able-bodied, and can work and earn what they need, This is my principle and I try to act upon it. To pursue a contrary course would ruin any community in the world and make them idlers."
The Lord himself in revealing the gospel in this dispensation, said:
"Thou shalt not be idle; for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer."
And to the missionaries, he said, "Thou shalt not idle away thy time. "
" the inhabitants of Zion," he added, " shall remember their labors in all faithfulness; for the idler shall be had in remembrance before the Lord." And finally he decreed:
"Let every man be diligent in all things. And the idler shall not have place in the church, except he repent and mend his ways."
Perhaps we can appropriately say concerning the implementation of this edict what President Brigham Young said about the payment of tithing:
"They say we cut people off the Church for not paying tithing; we never have yet, but they ought to be. God does not fellowship them."
Think about that, you who have trouble paying tithing. "God does not fellowship them."
Pursuant to the foregoing principles and instructions, " welfare workers earnestly teach and urge Church members to be self-sustaining to the full extent of their powers. No true Latter-day Saint will, while physically able, voluntarily shift from himself the burden of his own support. So long as he can, under the inspiration of the Almighty and with his own labors, he will supply himself with the necessities of life. We should not forget these principles when we administer the Church Welfare Program.
"Obviously no person should become a charge upon the public when his relatives are able to care for him. Every consideration of kinship, of justice and fairness, of the common good, and even of humanity itself, requires this. Therefore all Church welfare workers will urge to the utmost the caring for the needy by their kin, if they have sufficient funds or supplies to enable them to do so. Where Church relatives, financially competent to take care of their kin, refuse to do so, the matter should be reported to the bishop of the ward in which such relatives reside."
This last statement was approved by the First Presidency of the Church years ago. We must not forget or neglect our family obligations in this respect.
Paul writing to Timothy declared that " if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."
To the Church in this dispensation, the Lord gave this law:
"Women have claim on their husbands for their maintenance, until their husbands are taken;
"All children have claim upon their parents for their maintenance until they are of age."
Although each of us is under divine command to work and sustain ourselves and our families, the varied circumstances under which we live make it impossible for all Church members and families to be at all times self-sustaining.
Before the Church had been organized a year, the Lord made it abundantly clear that such poor, that is, those who by their efforts and the help of their families cannot sustain themselves, are to be cared for by the Church.
" for your salvation I give unto you a commandment, for I have heard your prayers, and the poor have complained before me, and the rich I have made, and all flesh is mine, and I am no respecter of persons.
" I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine."
We hear this quoted, and properly so, about being one in many ways, but when this was given, the Lord was talking about the poor and the rich. He continued:
"And now, I give unto the church in these parts a commandment, that certain men among them shall be appointed, and they shall look to the poor and the needy, and administer to their relief that they shall not suffer. "
" repeatedly the duty of the Saints to look after the poor. "
In the revelation referred to by the Lord as "the law of my church," he said:
"' behold, thou wilt remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support. And inasmuch as ye impart of your substance unto the poor, ye will do it unto me.'
" later the Lord said:
"'Behold, I say unto you, that ye must visit the poor and the needy and administer to their relief. "
"Still later:
"'Wo unto you rich men, that will not give your substance to the poor, for your riches will canker your souls; and this shall be your lamentation in the day of visitation, and of judgment, and of indignation: The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and my soul is not saved!'
"And when giving instructions regarding the united order, the Lord said:
"'Therefore, if any man shall take of the abundance which I have made, and impart not his portion, according to the law of my gospel, unto the poor and the needy, he shall, with the wicked, lift up his eyes in hell, being in torment.'
In light of these teachings it seems to me that every Church member, and particularly every priesthood bearer who wishes peace and joy here and eternal life hereafter, would give bounteously of his sustenance to the poor.
While all Church members are required to give, the bishop is the Lord's authorized representative to administer Church relief to the needy. On this aspect of Church welfare I quote President Clark:
" By the word of the Lord the sole mandate to care for and the sole discretion in caring for, the poor of the Church is lodged in the bishop. It is his duty and his only to determine to whom, when, how, and how much shall be given to any member of his ward from Church funds and as ward help.
"Help given by the bishop is different from help given by other organizations and agencies.
"Relief by public agencies is given primarily from political, social, or economic considerations. Moral and spiritual considerations play a secondary part. The welfare of the State, not the upbuilding of the individual, is the measure.
"Relief by private non-church agencies and individuals is often motivated by the highest considerations. But in this giving, the emphasis is rather on the giver than the receiver.
"But the help given by the bishop is wholly different from either. "
"In the first place, the church is expressly and directly commanded to care for its poor and needy, and the bishop is charged with the responsibility of carrying it out, and is given all the rights, prerogatives, and functions necessary therefor.
"In the next place, the standard of care has been indicated. The bishop has been directed 'To keep the Lord's storehouse; to receive the funds of the church and to administer to their wants. ' "
In his administering aid to the needy the bishop must ever keep in mind that in doing so he is the Lord's agent and that the Lord said:
" it is my purpose to provide for my saints.
"But it must needs be done in mine own way; and behold this is the way that I, the Lord, have decreed to provide for my saints, that the poor shall be exalted, in that the rich are made low."
And the bishops must never forget that the only way the poor can be exalted in receiving assistance is to be given the opportunity and be required to work, to the extent of their ability, for what they receive. The dignity and self-respect of the receiver must be preserved.
We shall have taken a long stride forward in the Lord's perfect economic program when everyone contributes to Church welfare in the spirit of the widow's mite; everybody works individually to sustain himself and discharge his family responsibilities in this respect; and when everyone helped through the bishops storehouse desires, and is assisted to obtain, the opportunity to work; for after all, the real purpose of caring for the poor and the needy according to the Lord's plan is not merely to give temporal help but to save souls.
"The rule of the bishop in all these matters is the rule of the priesthood-a rule of kindness, charity, love righteousness."
"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;
"By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile."
God bless us in performing this great service, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
What a tremendous thing it is to think of 180,000 priesthood holders meeting in 800 different groups throughout Canada and the United States to listen to a prophet's voice and to be instructed. This is the greatest gathering of priesthood holders in the history of the Church.
I am always humbled and inspired and encouraged as I stand before a body of the priesthood, realizing that they have been chosen, ordained, and set apart and authorized to act in the name of the Lord, to be a light unto the world, and to so live and use their influence to thwart the ways of Satan. There are many young boys in our priesthood gatherings tonight.
One of my grandsons said just this week, when it was mentioned what he needed to do to gain certain things, "Well, that is a long way in the future." I think when we are talking about our duties in the priesthood, especially with our younger people, and I am sorry to say with so many old people, too, who think they will never die, they think it is a long way in the future. They seem to think they can live this way today, and they can live the way the Lord wants them to tomorrow.
I would like to have these young men try to listen to what I have to say because it is in your best interest. You hold the priesthood; you have been chosen to come forward in these latter days to hold the priesthood of God in the only church in the world which has the priesthood of God. You are given the opportunity to act in his name; you have made covenants with the Lord to magnify your priesthood, and help build the kingdom of God here upon the earth. You have been given this promise:
"For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining of these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
"They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.
" therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him."
Now note the commandment the Lord gives unto all priesthood holders:
"And I now give unto you a commandment to beware concerning yourselves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life.
"For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
Never before has your strength and influence been needed more than now to combat the evils of the world which are as predicted and recorded in Second Nephi. Speaking of this day, and referring to the devil, Nephi says:
"For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.
"And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well-and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell."
Brethren, we seem to think that is a long way away, and when we die we won't be well met unless we are prepared to do what the Lord has asked us to do.
If we are to accomplish what we have been called and set apart to do, we must honor our priesthood, magnify our calling, and as President Lee has admonished, love God and keep his commandments. To keep the commandments requires self-discipline and obedience to the law. Obedience is the first law of heaven, and it is obedience to the laws of God that I should like to talk about particularly, because these laws affect not only our happiness and well-being here upon the earth, but are essential to our eternal life.
First I should like to emphasize that one of the greatest gifts that God has given to man is his free agency. You may choose your life and what you will be. But the Lord has said; "If ye love me, keep my commandments", whether you are boys or men.
I should like to read a little poem which most of you have heard-some, many times:
We have the laws, we may choose how we will apply them. We must be prepared, however, to take the consequences of our choices. All laws of God are for our good and welfare and benefit. Through obedience we will be blessed. If disobedient, we will suffer, though sometimes the consequences may be much later.
Self-discipline is the basis of our success. Man has been given a mind to think, to ponder, and to understand and decide what he wants to do and whether or not the sacrifice and discipline is worth it; and, in the Church, whether or not he can stand the ridicule and pressure of those with whom he associates. You have been called. You have been given the priesthood. You have been given the gospel. You are an example to the world. Be a good one.
The measure of our success depends on our decision, our determination, discipline, and dependability. But let us always remember that the Lord has said:
"When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated."
He also said:
"I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."
The laws of nature are inflexible and rigid and right. Through ignorance or deliberate intent, if you touch a hot stove, you are going to be burned; or if you touch a high voltage wire, you will suffer the consequences. If you say, I am going to defy gravity and jump off a high building or a high precipice, you might say halfway down, "All is going well."
When you think of the sun, the moon, the stars, and when you think of the eclipse of the sun and the moon, though years may pass between one time and another, still the scientists can tell you to the exact minute when the sun will be eclipsed and where you can see it best. What a terrible thing it would be if we couldn't depend upon the sun coming up in the morning. How uncomfortable we would be if it were just a few hours late. We would freeze, and there would be very little life, if any, left upon the earth, just because the sun said, "Well, I won't do it today."
Those who were in the Skylab and Apollo programs never thought of laws as restricting them in what they were doing, but they used them as a means by which they could determine how to do it. They and all who were associated with them spent years concentrating, trying to live and do those things which the laws of nature commanded.
It is an interesting thing when we are training animals, we expect those animals to do exactly what they are told, and we will spend hours, we will spend days, and we will spend weeks, and we will spend months training a hunting dog or a sheep dog or a horse; and they do the same in a circus with their circus animals. Those men who are acrobats in a circus spend months and years in preparing to do those things that are necessary, using all the laws and obeying those laws to accomplish what they wish to do.
This is true with anything in life. But we are prepared to spend that time and give rewards to our animals when they do right and punish them otherwise, and if they won't do what we tell them and we can't train them, we dispose of them. How much more important that we take time to train our children to do what is right, and ourselves as children of God, to do what is right, and to be sure we are where we should be when we should be, doing the things we should be doing in keeping the commandments of God, being obedient in every way. As we do this, we can gain eternal life. How true this is!
Priesthood holders, how fortunate and how blessed to have the scriptures, the word of God, to guide us, and a prophet of God to direct us. We have our quorums and leaders to instruct and teach us correct principles and encourage us.
How important that we listen to the prophet's voice and govern ourselves and obey the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave his life for us, and gave us the gospel as our guide. We should always remember what Joseph Smith, the Prophet, said:
"Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may not see the reason thereof until all of the events transpire."
Often throughout the ages man has not known or understood why certain laws were given, but through faith in God, he has accepted and kept the commandments, if he were wise.
Adam, when asked why he offered sacrifice, said, "I know not, save the Lord commanded me." That was enough for Adam, and he kept the commandments. Imagine yourself being in Noah's place when the Lord told him to go and build an ark. There was no rain or anything to worry about, but he was told to go and build an ark; and he set about to build the ark and he followed directions. But there were many people who did not follow; they didn't believe; they thought it was a long way away and wouldn't happen, and you know the result.
Lehi was directed to leave Jerusalem, and you know objections were raised by his family. Some questioned his sanity, but he followed and accepted the words of the Lord and was obedient to them, and the Lord directed Nephi to build a ship to take them across the waters.
I wonder if anyone here can tell us why the Lord has said that we should be baptized by immersion. We are obedient to that. Why the laying on of hands? Why can't we just say, "Yes, I would like to be a member of this Church," and let it go at that?
When the Word of Wisdom was given, many people questioned it, and many didn't accept it as the word of the Lord. Some say it was not a commandment, but when the Lord said he would like you to do it, to me that is commandment enough. I have an article here that refers to the use of nicotine. It was written 140 years after the Word of Wisdom was given. At the beginning of the article these statements appear:
"It attacks the lungs, the heart, and the brain. It has killed more people than the great epidemics of typhoid, tuberculosis and yellow fever."
At the conclusion of the article it says that "all of the epidemics of typhoid throughout Western Europe since the beginning of the 16th century have caused fewer estimated deaths than the total number known to be caused by cigarettes in one year in the United States."
Did the Lord know what he was talking about? Should the people listen to the commandments, whether or not they realize just why they are given? Brethren, we as priesthood holders, members of his Church and kingdom here upon the earth-and I bear testimony that this is his Church and he directs it through a prophet of God-should keep the commandments.
The same article tells of a woman on the autopsy table and states: "Her scalp has been peeled back and there is only a cavity where her brain once functioned."
It also tells of a prominent lawyer in a large southern city who died of a heart problem caused by the smoking of cigarettes. It tells of the suicide of the dean of a community college who had blown off the top of his head when the agony of smoker's emphysema had become too much to bear.
The article goes on to say that the use of nicotine and tobacco often leads to the use of heroin, other drugs, and alcohol. In the face of all these facts and this information, thousands and thousands of people continue to use cigarettes. This is another example of how important it is to listen to the Prophet of God and keep the commandments given through him. The Lord has said of his prophet:
"Wherefore, meaning the church, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
"For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
"For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory."
Is that promise enough, brethren?
Regarding the Sabbath day, surely the members of the Church and priesthood holders will listen to the Lord when he commands us to keep the Sabbath day holy:
"And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day;
"For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High."
Surely we can give one day out of seven serving the Lord who came and gave his life for us. Surely we can follow the teachings of the Lord, where he says that we should do these things, worshipping him, expressing our gratitude and thanks for the sacrifice he has made. It seems that this commandment is being ignored and broken more often all the time by men who hold the priesthood.
Brethren, in many, many areas it is time we take stock of ourselves and do what the Lord wants us to do. A man said to me the other day, not long ago, "This Church just demands too much of us."
I said, "Brother, this Church demands nothing of you. It just offers you a better way of life." He said, "But it is awfully hard." I said, "Let's see if it is. Let's go and get a cigar and have a good smoke. Let's go and hold up a bank and see what happens. Let us go and join a group tonight as they go out on a big drunk." He said, "President Tanner, don't be ridiculous." I said, "All right, I won't if you won't." Then I said, "Just name one commandment that you think you shouldn't keep, or you would advise your son not to keep." He could not.
Regarding our tithing, surely, brethren, we should be prepared to pay one-tenth of what the Lord has given us, especially when we realize that it could be taken away from us overnight with fire or hurricane, or any other thing that might take it away from us.
When I was presiding over the Edmonton Branch a man came to me and said, "I can't pay a full tithing this year. I have had to do some building, some remodeling, and so on." I told him that the Lord had said that he would pour out blessings that we would hardly be able to contain. He said, "I still can't do it." Right after the first of the year that man spent several days in the hospital with a high doctor bill, and he paid it. I am not suggesting that he was there because he didn't pay a full tithing, but I am suggesting that the evidence is there that he could have paid a full tithing.
How would you like the Lord to figure out his blessings on the same basis that you do when you are figuring out your tithing? If you were in deep trouble, had physical or mental illness, or your family were suffering and causing you much concern, would you want him to say, "Well now, just how much can I keep from giving him? How close can I figure this blessing?"
Brethren, let us be obedient to the commandments of God. Let us prove faithful, let us be an example to the world, a light unto the world. Appreciate the priesthood which we have and the calling that is ours. We have been given the great privilege of holding the priesthood and the responsibility of taking the gospel to the world. We can do it by our actions as well as by precept, which is much more effective. Only as we live and keep the commandments of God, being obedient in all things can we fully enjoy life here and eternal life in the world to come, and be able to influence the world for good, and help build the kingdom of God here upon the earth.
May we do this, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ, which we are, and follow the prophet of God who has been chosen and through whom the Lord speaks, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
My brethren of the priesthood: We have met here tonight in a great assembly. You didn't come here to be entertained. You came here, presumably, because you wanted to be instructed, and you wanted some guidelines. You have received from those who have spoken to you some very important things for you to think about. I commend all that has been said for your very serious thinking.
There are a few matters that I should like to talk about before we close this meeting.
We have just come from a great experience at an area conference in Munich, Germany. There we had 14,000 saints gathered from more than eight European countries, including Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Austria, Belgium, Holland, and Switzerland. Besides that, there was a large representation from the German Democratic Republic. They permitted a number of our people to come from behind what we call the "iron curtain." In addition, of course, were a number of us from America. This required some very careful and extensive preparations for translating into five different languages, six including English.
It was a tremendous challenge, and we said as we closed the conference, "Now brothers and sisters, it is impossible for the General Authorities to learn seventeen different languages, the number of languages in which we are teaching the gospel today. But how simple it would be if all of you would try to learn English besides your own mother tongue. Surely you could learn one language, English, rather than to expect the General Authorities to learn seventeen different languages."
Apparently somebody listened because we have been hearing since that in their fast and testimony meetings in these countries they have said, "Now we have been told that we should learn English, so we had better get busy and do something about it." And I think that is the feeling that has been engendered. These people came wanting to know clear signals of what they ought to do.
Think of the wars in the past, involving these very countries, political differences where some of these countries have been at war, and now we assemble them all under one roof. We quoted to them what the Apostle Paul had said to the Galatians, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus and heirs according to the promise."
Then we paraphrased saying, "Now you are neither English, nor German, nor French, nor Spanish, nor Italian, nor Austrian, nor Belgian, nor Dutch, but you are all one as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Despite the political differences that you have had with various countries, in you now, because you are all members of The Church of Jesus Christ, the war must end so far as you are concerned."
If we could think of that as we felt the united brotherhood as these from various countries mingled together, we came away with a feeling that if-as I quoted in my first talk at this conference-as George Bernard Shaw said, "If we all realized that we were the children of one father, we would stop shouting at each other as much as we do." We are all of one great family. And that should apply not only in political matters, but it should apply in our dealings with each other. What we may do as politicians, or as those who are engaged in competitive temporal activities, we must say, "Because I am a holder of the priesthood of the living God, I am a representative of our Heavenly Father and hold the priesthood by which He can work through me; I can't stoop to do some of the things that I might have done otherwise because of my fellowship with the priesthood of God."
As we witnessed the feeling that was there, we have felt that we should continue these area conferences. The first such conference was held in Manchester, England, where we had about 14,000 there. We were in Mexico City next, where we had representatives from all the Central American countries and from Mexico. There we had 16,000, and to see what had happened from the time I first went down there in 1945 was an inspiration. To see congregations that at that time were meeting many times in houses with dirt floors! Many of the women came barefooted, showing the extremes of poverty; very few leaders-and now to go back after these few years and see under one roof well-dressed, fine-looking leaders taking their own responsibilities as bishoprics, stake presidencies, high councilors, stake mission presidents-it is one of the miracles. The world is asking the question, "How are you able to do it?" and there is only one answer: that when we become fellow citizens in the kingdom of God we must be men and women different. And that is what the holders of the priesthood must say to themselves: "We can't be holders of the priesthood and be like other men. We must be different, because priesthood means a fellowship in the royal household of the kingdom of God."
There is another matter I would like to talk about. Last June we announced some changes in the structuring of the MIA. The Aaronic Priesthood MIA is now for those 12 to 18 years of age; and the Melchizedek Priesthood MIA is for those from 18 to 25 for Young Adults; those 26 and over for Special Interest. And the announced purpose of this last grouping was to focus attention upon those who have not, up to this time, been involved. They have come to us many times in the last few years saying, "We have nowhere to go. We don't relate to the Relief Society. We are not young adults. We go to sacrament meeting, we go to Sunday School. Why can't we have a program that is suited to our needs?" And so this organization, as set up, is now moving forward and is designed to focus on every individual, and to make everyone feel that they are wanted; and the leaders of the Church must be in the forefront in carrying out these programs suited to the needs of those in these age groups.
There is evidence of much enthusiasm for those who are now involved, but unfortunately we are getting some feedback over the Church, where some who have heard of this program are writing to us. Brethren, may I read one or two comments, and if these could be true as a sampling, I hope would not be repeated too many times.
Here is a sister who writes to us and says, "While I have greater peace of mind, there are times I do get discouraged. My bishop informed me of the Special Interest group in the Church. In this area, the program is still quite new and many people have never heard of it yet. I didn't know it existed until about a month ago. I am sure there are many who need this program but they have been cheated because many of the bishops where we are are not converted to it. Therefore, they are not really trying to take the leadership in getting this thing started."
"If anyone is to attain the highest degree of the celestial kingdom, one has to be married to a worthy companion," another sister writes, "as well as being worthy individually. We sometimes make mistakes in choosing a companion, which sometimes results in a divorce. Or we may be widowed, and there are some who just haven't found the right companion at twenty-five years of age."
"Whatever the reason," another writes, "The want to be 'needed' is a very strong force. Without the Special Interest group a single person after the age of 25 is like a fifth wheel. As a Church, most of the talks are centered around the complete family unit. This concept I fully agree with, and certainly should be encouraged."
Then we have here a sister who tells about her experience. Her husband passed away, and then she writes, "After the funeral services were over, I took my five children and went home, and was left to sink or swim. And I sank; I was all alone. How was I going to look after those five children? Oh, sure, the bishop would see that I didn't go hungry and that we were taken care of, and we had enough food to eat, and so on, but we needed something more than that."
And then she said this, "I need Special Interests because I need to know that there are other people in the world with feelings like mine. I need to meet other widows who have managed to raise their children alone successfully, without the hang-ups psychologists insist they will have. I need to know that some people's problems are worse than mine, so I can recognize and count my blessings. I need people to talk to who fully understand my problems and needs. I need Special Interests because I have to learn how to handle my own problems. The first thing I learned as a widow was that no one else will help except in emergencies, and sometimes not then. As soon as the funeral was over, I repeat, I was left on my own either to sink or swim.
"Then," she said, "your classes geared to the whole families don't help us a bit, but a class I took this fall with the Special Interests showed me how I can communicate with my family and friends. There is no way you can fully understand our needs or problems, except you go through it yourself. Do you know what it is like to lose your wife or husband in death? It is nothing like losing your father or even your daughter. I know; I lost both before I lost my husband. Do you know what it is like to go through the hell of a divorce? Do you know what it is like to be a girl over 26, and still be single? You can't know. We need each other. Some of us need small group activities. Some of us need large group activities where we can go and have to talk to people and visit. Sometimes we don't feel like talking. Special Interests is not a dating bureau or a marriage bureau. As such it would be a complete failure. There are women in our stake who like to go places, but not alone. They come to our small activities hoping to meet other women with similar interests to go places with. One lady buys a season pass to the symphony every year, and she is still looking for someone to go with her.
"We resent being invited to the Young Marrieds activities. To me it is like a slap in the face to have the Young Marrieds or elders announce that Special Interests are invited to their party. I know you may not understand why I feel so strongly about it, but other Special Interests I have talked to understand, and most of the others feel the same way. I feel like this new Special Interest program is inspired of God. It is what we need, if it is done like it should be. I needed it eight-and-a-half years ago. Thank the Lord my president is working hard on it to do his part. Will you recognize us as a special group of people, long ignored and neglected with special problems and special needs and special interests? Some of us are raising special children, boys without fathers, girls without mothers. They have special problems and special needs. If our needs aren't met, you are also neglecting some of their needs."
Now brethren of the priesthood, if you knew the processes by which these new programs came into being, you would know that this just didn't come out of a brainstorm, the figment of somebody's imagination; this was done after some of the most soulful praying and discussing that I believe I have ever experienced. We know, and we announced when it was given that this came from the Lord. This was an evidence of a thing that the Lord was giving us to do to meet a special need. But it troubles me when I read some of these things where sisters are pleading with us to try to do something to stimulate the activities where the bishops or stake presidents have not caught on to what it is all about.
In the early days of the Welfare Program, everywhere I went people were saying to me, "Brother Lee, how is the Welfare Program going?" And I would answer, "Just as well as the individual bishop of each ward makes it go. In some wards it is an absolute failure. In other wards it is going great guns." And that is exactly what is happening with what we are now launching.
In some places we see the enthusiasm; if you were to start these activities now, you would catch the enthusiasm of the young people, and these young widows, divorcees, those who haven't found companions. If we can catch them while their enthusiasm and anticipation are great, great things will come out of it; and we must ask you brethren now to remember that these things come from a source from which you brethren want to receive instruction. Please, I beg of you, don't let these people down, who are pleading that you listen to your leaders, and follow the counsel that has been given in these Special Interest activities.
Now, there is another matter that I would like to talk about. There are some examples that point up an area of need which applies directly to young men in the past-25-age, who for some reason, and hard to understand, as holders of the priesthood, are shirking their responsibilities as husbands and fathers.
President Joseph F. Smith said, "The house of the Lord is a house of order and not a house of confusion; and that means," as the Lord has said, "that the man is not without the woman in the Lord, neither is the woman without the man in the Lord; and that no man can be saved and exalted in the kingdom of God without the woman, and no woman can reach perfection and exaltation in the kingdom of God, alone. That is what it means. God instituted marriage in the beginning."
President Joseph F. Smith further said this, which strikes right at the heart of what I want to emphasize: "I desire to emphasize this. I want the young men of Zion to realize that this institution of marriage is not a man-made institution. It is of God. It is honorable, and no man who is of marriageable age is living his religion who remains single. It is not simply devised for the convenience alone of man, to suit his own notions, and his own ideas; to marry and then divorce, to adopt and then to discard, just as he pleases. Marriage is the preserver of the human race. Without it, the purposes of God would be frustrated; virtue would be destroyed to give place to vice and corruption, and the earth would be void and empty.
" Now, every young person throughout the Church should understand this very thoroughly. The Church authorities and the teachers of our associations should inculcate the sacredness, and teach the duty of marriage, as it has been revealed in the latter days to us. There should be a reform in the Church in this regard, and a sentiment created in favor of honorable marriage, and that would prevent any young man, or any young woman, who is a member of the Church, from marrying except by that authority which is sanctioned of God. And no man holding the priesthood who is worthy and of age should remain unmarried.
"Many people," he continues, "imagine that there is something sinful in marriage; there is an apostate tradition to that effect. This is a false and very harmful idea. On the contrary, God not only commends but he commands marriage."
I had come to my office the other night a beautiful mother and seven children. I think I am far enough away, and probably no one would guess of whom I am speaking. She is a very talented young woman, but she said, "I have come to a time where I believe that I must think of divorcing my husband." So I began to ask about her husband. In answer to my questions, she said he was kind to her. He was a good provider, but somehow the luster of the romance of marriage, now that their children were pretty well grown, had now brought her to a point where she had begun to think that maybe if she were footloose she could do better than she was able to do with the husband who was the father of her children. We had quite a talk about it; but the other morning, after the first session of the conference, this lovely young woman met me and she said, with tears rolling down her cheeks, "I have had the answer to every problem. This session has changed my life. I am a woman different now, because I have understanding that I never had before. I am going back. I am going to take care of my family. I am going to love my husband, and I am going to correct the mistakes that are in me, where I think most of the problem lies."
Brethren, we are living where there may be many like that, where a husband now may be in the change of life like women are at a certain age, and maybe the zest for the intimacies of married life has passed him. But here she is now and she might say, "Well I yet have some good looks and some youth left; maybe I should cut loose and find other companionship." That is the frivolous sort of thinking that some women go through, so we are told by psychologists. That must never find root in this Church.
I performed a marriage some ten or fifteen years ago for a couple. I received a letter not long ago from this mother. As the letter began I thought, "Well, here goes another one of the temple marriages that has failed." But then the tone of the letter began to change. She said, "When we thought that the end was here and that there was only one thing to do and that was to get a divorce, we had been told that we should counsel with our bishop. At first thought we hesitated, because he was just a young man. He was younger than we are. But he was our bishop so we went to see him. We poured out our souls to our young bishop. He sat and listened silently, and when we ran out of conversation he said, simply, 'Well, my wife and I, we had problems, too, and we learned how to solve our problems.' That is all in the world he said. But you know there was something that happened as a result of that young bishop's statement. We walked out of there and we said, 'Well, if they can solve their problems, what is the matter with us?'"
Teach those who are having problems to go to the father of the ward, their bishop, for counsel. No psychiatrist in the world, no marriage counselor, can give to those who are faithful members of the Church the counsel from one any better than the bishop of the ward. Now, you bishops don't hesitate to say, marriage is the law of God, and is ordained by him and man and wife are not without each other in the Lord, as the apostle Paul declared.
Now, let me say just a bit more about this matter of marriage. This may sound a little bit bold to urge marriage for those who are past the marriageable age; but in some of our countries, where we are bringing in new converts, we are shocked to know that some men are delaying marriage until their later thirties or into their forties, and they have never talked of marriage. Here I have quoted from a president of the Church, President Joseph F. Smith, who has told us in plainness that today a flood of iniquities is overwhelming the civilized world and that one great reason therefore is the neglect of marriage. It has lost its sanctity in the eyes of the great majority. It is at best a civil contract, but more than often an accident, or a whim, or a means of gratifying the passions; and when the sacredness of the covenant is ignored or lost sight of, then a disregard of the marriage vows under the present moral training of the masses is a mere triviality, a trifling indiscretion.
Brethren, we must again think of our responsibilities as holders of the priesthood. I believe I have a letter here from a sister that pinpoints something that some of these girls are going through. I think I can read this without divulging any confidence, without telling her name. She is talking about an experience she has gone through, and others she meets with tell her the same thing. There is a man who has been dating her for years and he comes especially at meal time. She is a 27-year-old woman.
Here is another one who says, "I am a 40-year-old single woman." Another one says, "I am a 30-year-old single woman." And then they all say about the same thing, and without repeating these stories, they all read about the same: "For the past year and a half I have been dating a fellow who is 33. We see each other almost every day. I have sought counsel from my bishop; and although he has been very kind, patient, and understanding, he really doesn't know how or what to advise me. I have tried to terminate the relationship, but it seems to drag on. There is no commitment; realistically, there is also very little hope."
Pages could be filled with similar cases, each a little different and yet all so similar.
"He has a job; he hangs around; he is playing marriage. His lifestyle seems to be an adaptation of that of worldly couples who live together without benefit of or commitment to marriage. There probably is no immorality involved in many cases, but it is a degenerative condition and does not by any means 'avoid the appearance of evil.' And the girls are probably as guilty as the fellows for allowing such conditions to exist; however, they are limited in their efforts to bring about satisfactory solutions."
I think that is enough to give you the other side of the story from the girls who are frustrated. All women have a desire for companionship. They want to be wives; they want to be mothers; and when men refuse to assume their responsibility of marriage, for no good reason, they are unable to consummate marriage. Brethren, we are not doing our duty as holders of the priesthood when we go beyond the marriageable age and withhold ourselves from an honorable marriage to these lovely women, who are seeking the fulfillment of a woman's greatest desire to have a husband, a family, and a home.
Now don't misunderstand me. I am not trying to urge you younger men to marry too early. I think therein is one of the hazards of today's living. We don't want a young man to think of marriage until he is able to take care of a family, to have an institution of his own, to be independent. He must make sure that he has found the girl of his choice, they have gone together long enough that they know each other, and that they know each other's faults and they still love each other. I have said to the mission presidents, "Don't you ever say that to one of your missionaries. Maybe in six months they will not have found a wife; and if they take you seriously, they may rush into a marriage that will be wrong for them."
Please don't misunderstand what we are saying; but, brethren, think more seriously about the obligations of marriage for those who bear the holy priesthood at a time when marriage should be the expectation of every man who understands the responsibility; for remember, brethren, that only those who enter into the new and everlasting covenant of marriage in the temple for time and eternity, only those will have the exaltation in the celestial kingdom. That is what the Lord tells us.
Now, brethren, will you think seriously about that, and take from us our counsel, and don't rush hastily into it. Take time, yes, but don't neglect your responsibility and your obligations as holders of the holy priesthood.
Brethren, we look to you to carry the banner of the holy priesthood of God. What a force, 185,000 is the estimated number of you who are within the sounds of our voices tonight. Brethren, let us have our eyes fixed on the eternal value of things, with an eye single to the glory of God, and say each to himself, that "from now on, God being my helper, I am not going to engage in any activity unless it helps me to move myself further toward that goal of eternal life, eventually to return back to the presence of my Heavenly Father."
Brethren of the priesthood, you who are home teachers, when you see families that are on the verge of divorce, when you see incorrigible children that haven't found their way, parents who seem to have lost contact with their children-brethren of the priesthood, you have a responsibility to stay with those families and not let them drift apart until you have done everything within your powers to stop this trend of divorce.
One of the painful things that I have as a responsibility is to have a flood of recommendations for cancellations of sealings of those who have been married in the temple. It is frightening, brethren, and much of it stems from one of the greatest of all the sins next to murder, the sin of adultery, that is running rampant throughout the Church. Brethren, we must ourselves resolve anew that we are going to keep the law of chastity; and if we have made mistakes, let's begin now to rectify these mistakes. Let's walk towards the light; and for goodness sake, brethren, don't prostitute the wonderful opportunity you have as men, as those who may link hands with the Creator in the procreation of human souls, by engaging in a kind of unlawful relationship that will only go down to disgrace and break the hearts of your wives and your children. Brethren, we plead with you to keep yourselves morally clean, and walk the path of truth and righteousness, and thereby gain the plaudits of a Heavenly Father whose sons you are.
I bear you my witness, brethren, and want you to know of our love for you brethren of the priesthood. But we want you to rise to your responsibilities, brethren, and keep yourselves in tune with the Spirit of the Lord. One of the greatest and saddest things that we can see is one who has had the Spirit of the Lord and then has lost it by sin, and they stand now in the dark and are turned over to the buffetings of Satan, and then experience the torture chambers of the hell in which they must live, which is terrible indeed as the Lord has warned. Brethren, let us try to catch people on the way down before they reach that kind of a goal, and where you see them going in that direction, brethren, rise to your responsibilities and try to save the manhood of this Church.
I plead with you, my brethren, and leave with you my blessing, and bear you my witness this night, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
Those two beautiful songs, "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name," and "Arise, Shine, Thy Light is Come," together with that comprehensive prayer, have made me feel this morning to bear testimony to the world that I know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, who came and gave his life for us. Though he gave us the plan of life and salvation, he was crucified. Through his resurrection it is possible for us to enjoy eternal life. Prophets of God have always been persecuted, and many of them killed when they taught the word of the Lord. What a serious situation to think of!
Also, I wish to bear my testimony to you today that his Church, with the gospel in its fulness, has been re-established through one of his chosen prophets; that the Church of Jesus Christ is here upon the earth today; and that Jesus is directing his Church through a living prophet, Harold B. Lee. I would appeal to men everywhere to listen to the word of the Lord as given unto us by the voice of his Prophet for the salvation of all mankind. Do not ignore, ridicule, or try to destroy.
Today I should like to speak about the role of womanhood in this Church, where we have such a great body of wonderful women-wives, mothers, and single women engaged in the work of the Lord and in the service of their fellow men. They are affiliated with the Relief Society, the principal women's organization; the Primary, where our children are instructed; the Sunday School, where the gospel is taught to all members; the MIA, which is the activity and social organization for youth and adults; and our women serve with dedication and skill in various other capacities.
After I had discussed business matters with some men the other day, the conversation took on a more personal, informal note when one man said: "I have the most wonderful wife in the world." Another said: "That's what you think. I think I have the best." A third man said: "Isn't it a great blessing to have a wife you love, who loves you, one who is a good mother and homemaker, with high ideals, who believes in God and wants to help her family accept and live the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ?"
What woman could want any greater glory or tribute than that which comes from an appreciative and loving husband? The applause and homage of the world fades into insignificance when compared with the approbation of God and expressions of love and appreciation which come from the hearts and lips of those who are nearest and dearest to her.
From the beginning God has made it clear that woman is very special, and he has also very clearly defined her position, her duties, and her destiny in the divine plan. Paul said that man is the image and glory of God, and that woman is the glory of the man; also that the man is not without the woman, neither the woman without the man in the Lord. You will note that significantly God is mentioned in connection with this great partnership, and we must never forget that one of woman's greatest privileges, blessings, and opportunities is to be a co-partner with God in bringing his spirit children into the world.
It is of great concern to all who understand this glorious concept that Satan and his cohorts are using scientific arguments and nefarious propaganda to lure women away from their primary responsibilities as wives, mothers, and homemakers. We hear so much about emancipation, independence, sexual liberation, birth control, abortion, and other insidious propaganda belittling the role of motherhood, all of which is Satan's way of destroying woman, the home, and the family-the basic unit of society.
Some effective tools include the use of radio, television, and magazines where pornography abounds and where women are being debased and disgracefully used as sex symbols-sex-ploited, some call it. Immodest dress, drugs, and alcohol daily take a tremendous toll through the destruction of virtue and chastity and even lives. With modern electronic devices of communication and speedy transportation, much more is being heard throughout the world by many more people than would be possible otherwise, and it is having its degrading influence and effect.
Yes, pornography, drugs, and alcohol are available to young and old in alarming quantity, and are destroying the moral values, and further deteriorating the minds and thought processes of those who succumb to these devilish wiles.
President Dallin Oaks recently said to the student body at Brigham Young University: "We are surrounded by the promotional literature of illicit sexual relations on the printed page and on the screen. For your own good, avoid it. Pornographic or erotic stories and pictures are worse than filthy or polluted food. The body has defenses to rid itself of unwholesome food, but the brain won't vomit back filth. Once recorded it will always remain subject to recall, flashing its perverted images across your mind, and drawing you away from the wholesome things in life."
It is so important that our young girls keep themselves from this kind of pollution. The girls of today will be the women of tomorrow, and it is necessary that they prepare for that role. Can you imagine the kind of world we will have in the future if the girls of today are weakened morally to the extent that virtue will not be taught in their homes, and if their children, if any, are not nurtured within the walls of homes sanctified by the holy laws of matrimony?
Marriage is ordained of God, and we must do everything we can to strengthen the ties that bind, to strengthen our homes, and to prepare ourselves by exemplary living to teach our children the ways of God, which is the only way for them to find happiness here and eternal life hereafter.
As we enumerate the many important responsibilities a woman has in connection with her duties as a wife, a mother, a homemaker, a sister, a sweetheart, or a good neighbor, it should be evident that these challenging responsibilities can satisfy her need to express her talents, her interests, her creativity, dedication, energy, and skill which so many seek to satisfy outside the home. It is impossible to estimate the lasting influence for good a woman can have in any of these roles. Let me remind us all of her primary responsibilities.
First of all, as I mentioned before, she is a co-partner with God in bringing his spirit children into the world. What a glorious concept! No greater honor could be given. With this honor comes the tremendous responsibility of loving and caring for those children so they might learn their duty as citizens and what they must do to return to their Heavenly Father. They must be taught to understand the gospel of Jesus Christ and to accept and live his teachings. As they understand the purpose of life, why they are here and where they are going, they will have a reason for choosing the right and avoiding the temptations and buffetings of Satan, who is so very real and determined to destroy them.
A mother has far greater influence on her children than anyone else, and she must realize that every word she speaks, every act, every response, her attitude, even her appearance and manner of dress affect the lives of her children and the whole family. It is while the child is in the home that he gains from his mother the attitudes, hopes, and beliefs that will determine the kind of life he will live, and the contribution he will make to society.
President Brigham Young expressed the thought that mothers are the moving instruments in the hands of Providence and are the machinery that give zest to the whole man, and guide the destinies and lives of men and nations upon the earth. He further said, "Let mothers of any nation teach their children not to make war, and the children would not grow up and enter into it."
When the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet ", he meant just that, and so presented Eve to Adam. We are taught that a man should leave his father and mother, and cleave unto his wife, and that they should be one flesh, and thus is described the relationship that should exist between husband and wife. It is said that behind every good man there is a good woman, and it is my experience and observation that this is generally true.
It is interesting to note that when executives of companies look for new employees, or are planning promotions for their experienced ones, they always want to know what kind of wife a man has. This seems to be very important. In the Church when men are being considered for new priesthood offices, the question is always raised about the worthiness of the wife and whether or not she can give him full support.
Women, you are of great strength and support to the men in your lives, and they sometimes need your help most when they are least deserving. A man can have no greater incentive, no greater hope, no greater strength than to know his mother, his sweetheart, or his wife has confidence in him and loves him. And men should strive every day to live worthy of that love and confidence.
President Hugh B. Brown once said at a Relief Society conference: "There are people fond of saying that women are the weaker instruments, but I don't believe it. Physically they may be, but spiritually, morally, religiously, and in faith, what man can match a woman who is really converted to the gospel! Women are more willing to make sacrifices than are men, more patient in suffering, more earnest in prayer. They are the peers and often superior to men in resilience, in goodness, in morality, and in faith."
And girls, don't underestimate your influence on your brothers and your sweethearts. As you live worthy of their love and respect you can help greatly to determine that they will be clean and virtuous, successful and happy. Always remember that you can go much further on respect than on popularity. I was reading the other day of a report of a conversation between two young prisoners of war in Vietnam. One said: "I am sick of war, bombers, destruction, prison camps, and everything and everybody."
"I feel much like that myself," said the other. "But there is a girl back home who is praying that I will come back. She cares, and it really helps me endure all these atrocities."
To mothers, daughters, and women everywhere, let me stress the fact that because of your great potential and influence for good in the lives of all of us, Satan is determined to destroy you. You cannot compromise with him. You must have the courage, the strength, the desire, and the determination to live as the Lord would have you live-good clean lives. Girls, keep yourselves virtuous and worthy of a fine young man who has likewise kept himself clean, so that together you can go to the House of the Lord to be sealed in the holy bonds of matrimony for time and all eternity, and prepare a home where God will be pleased to send his spirit children. Then you will be able to face your children secure in the knowledge that your own example is the way to happiness and eternal progression. They are entitled to this heritage. I humbly pray that you will so live as to give it to them.
The whole purpose of the creation of the earth was to provide a dwelling place where the spirit children of God might come and be clothed in mortal bodies and, by keeping their second estate, prepare themselves for salvation and exaltation. The whole purpose of the mission of Jesus Christ was to make possible the immortality and eternal life of man. The whole purpose of mothers and fathers should be to live worthy of this blessing and to assist God the Father and his son Jesus Christ in their work. No greater honor could be given to woman than to assist in this divine plan, and I wish to say without equivocation that a woman will find greater satisfaction and joy and make a greater contribution to mankind by being a wise and worthy mother raising good children than she could make in any other vocation.
The Lord has promised us great blessings if we will do our part in this divine plan. President Herbert Hoover gave this incentive: "If we could have but one generation of properly born, trained, educated and healthy children, a thousand other problems of government would vanish. We would assure ourselves of healthier minds, more vigorous bodies, to direct the energies of our nation to greater heights of achievement."
How fortunate we are to have the Church of Jesus Christ established in these latter days, with a prophet of God upon the earth to receive divine revelation and direction for the children of men! We are blessed to know the personality of God, his attributes, and his characteristics. We have been given the plan of life and salvation. We are continually directed as to how we should live so we may have happiness here and eternal life hereafter. We have organizations set up to instruct and educate us in all matters pertaining to our temporal and spiritual welfare.
One of the finest programs the Church has instituted is what we call Family Home Evening, where all members of the family are called together once a week. It is quite thrilling to me when I contemplate that each Monday evening all over the Church throughout the world our families are gathered together in their homes, and the father, where possible, as head of the house, is directing his family in a discussion of all problems pertaining to their spiritual and temporal welfare, using a manual which has been carefully prepared and distributed to each family in the Church. Where these gatherings are held regularly and properly, they are of inestimable value to the family unit, as is evidenced by the many testimonies we receive. I wish to urge every family to follow this program, and I can promise you that as you do so you will be greatly blessed in unity, love, and devotion, and will be delighted with the outcome. Of course, family prayer should be a significant part of this evening, as well as regular family and individual prayer every day.
I can think of nothing sweeter than a home where a man is living his religion, magnifying his priesthood, with his wife supporting him in every way, where love and harmony exists, and where together they are trying to raise a family of righteous sons and daughters whom they can take back into the presence of their Heavenly Father. This may sound like an impossible dream, but I can assure you that there are thousands of such families within the Church, and it is something that can be a reality for every one of us as we accept and live the teachings of Jesus Christ. How fortunate a child is to live in such a home, and how great will be the joy of the parents in their posterity!
I repeat: Satan is trying to keep us from the full enjoyment which comes from keeping the commandments of God. We must never forget, and we must teach our children to know, that Satan is real and determined to destroy us. He knows the importance and significance of the family unit. He knows that entire civilizations have survived or disappeared depending on whether the family life was strong or weak. We can keep him out of our homes by living and teaching our children to live the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, thereby resisting temptation when it comes, as it surely will.
Girls, prepare yourselves to assume the roles of mothers by gaining knowledge and wisdom through a good education. We teach that the glory of God is intelligence, and so we must all be aware of what is going on around us and be prepared to thwart Satan in his attempts to divert us from our divine destiny. With knowledge, wisdom, determination, and the Spirit of the Lord to help us we can succeed.
We also believe that women should involve themselves in community affairs and in the auxiliary organizations of the Church, but always remember that home and children come first and must not be neglected. Children must be made to feel that mother loves them and is keenly interested in their welfare and everything they do. This cannot be turned over to someone else. Many experiments have been made and studies carried out which prove beyond doubt that a child who enjoys mother's love and care progresses in every way much more rapidly than one who is left in institutions or with others where mother's love is not available or expressed.
Fathers, too, must assume their proper role and responsibility. Children need both parents. While they are at home fathers should assume with mothers the duties attendant upon the young children, the discipline and training of the older ones, and be a listening ear for those who need to discuss their problems or want guidance and counseling. Through love establish a good relationship and line of communication with your children.
I would urge all husbands, fathers, sons, and brothers to show our great respect and love and try to be worthy of the women who are our wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, and sweethearts. There is no surer way for a man to show his lack of character, of good breeding, and of quality than for him to show lack of respect for woman or to do anything that would discredit or degrade her. It is unchristianlike, unfair, and displeasing to God for any husband or father to assume the role of dictatorship and adopt the attitude that he is superior in any way to his wife.
At the Area Conference in Munich, Germany, President Lee said: "If you husbands remember that the most important of the Lord's work you will ever do will be within the walls of your own home, you can maintain close family ties. If you will strengthen your family ties and be mindful of your children, be sure that home is made a strong place in which children can come for the anchor they need in this day of trouble and turmoil, then love will abound and your joy will be increased."
As women realize the importance of the home and family, and with their husbands keep the commandments of God to multiply and replenish the earth, to love the Lord and their neighbors as themselves, to teach their children to pray and to walk uprightly before him, then will their joy be increased and their blessings multiplied to the extent that they will hardly be able to contain them.
These blessings will be joy and rejoicing in our posterity of healthy, happy children, which blessings those who reject this way of life will never know. There will be peace and satisfaction in the accomplishments of children who succeed, and in turn make their own contribution to making this a better world for generations yet unborn. What a joyous privilege and blessing it will be for those families who, through obedience and love, have prepared themselves to go back into the presence of our Heavenly Father and have it said of each of them: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant enter thou into the joy of thy lord."
May this be our privilege and blessing I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Of the Council of the Twelve
Last evening in our priesthood meeting President Lee recalled some of the blessings that came from the recently completed great Munich conference. In my mind one of the highlights of this conference came in sharing the heartwarming statement and spirit of a beautiful young adult Latter-day Saint lady.
She was neatly dressed, with her head held just a little higher than would seem to be usual. Her eyes were still dropping meaningful tears following the soul-stirring closing Sunday afternoon session. In her best limited English-and incidently I don't know now and I didn't know then from which country she came, and it made no difference then, it makes no difference now except to say that she was one of us as she shook my hand she said, "President Lee has lifted my soul to new heights. I feel I can now walk in strength beyond my own."
This touching declaration reminded me of a similar quotation found in the book of Mark: " Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose."
Certainly the day is here when, if we are to follow in his paths, we must take the weary, lonely, depressed, the troubled soul, and the gospel-hungry by the hand and lift and help. Yes, we also need to lift the dishonest, the self-condemning, and those who have chosen expediency over correct principles. Countless numbers today will be able to take their first steps in the right direction when we are willing to provide the lift of confidence and encouragement and give them back that self-respect spoken of by President Lee in the opening session of this conference and to help others retain that self-respect.
"For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me."
Today we can appropriately add, "I was down and ye lifted me up. My soul was sick and ye comforted me. My steps were unsteady and ye took my hand. I was uncertain and ye lifted me to paths of security."
How beautiful in the eyes of the Lord are the spiritually well, those who have been taken by the hand and lifted up and made spiritually whole. How beautiful in the eyes of the Lord are those who take the time to lift the needy hand. Peace of mind only comes to us when we are spiritually healed. True joy comes from within. Freedom from a troubled soul is a worthy goal of all.
Many were healed physically from ailments and suffering during the Savior's ministry, but real joy and happiness were not always realized. People may be healed but not lifted. Happiness does not come from physical, social, or economic success. " a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."
Frequently the Savior admonished the physically healed to boast not of their new strength, but rather to go their ways, walking in truth and using their new powers to lift others. Evidence teaches us many were healed physically but remained undisciplined and spiritually ill. " return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you", the Savior said.
Healings are not to be made the subject of pride and boasting. Rather, healings should be used to lift self and others to greater heights and service. May we not appropriately conclude the lift can be more important than the healing.
Certainly the greatest miracles of our day are the lifting and healing of troubled souls. Spiritual strength is a priceless possession available to those who will endure in righteousness. The healing of the troubled soul gives health and strength to those dead in things righteous. Purity, faith, hope, and charity are restored, making the once spiritually sick whole.
This healing comes through conversion to truth and adherence to correct principles. We have the scriptural promise that Christ "shall rise from the dead, with healing in his wings; and all those who shall believe on his name shall be saved in the kingdom of God. "
Spiritual death and spiritual sickness vanish for those who would be healed by him and his atoning sacrifice.
President Lee, in speaking recently to the priesthood, admonished them with: "In your hands is given a sacred trust not only to have the authority to act in the name of the Lord, but to so prepare yourselves as clean and pure vessels so that the power of Almighty God may be manifested through you as you officiate in the sacred ordinances of the priesthood." Yes, in our hands is not only the power and authority to act, but the strength to lift if we remain true and faithful.
Brothers and sisters, we must learn to look beyond the flesh and see the spirit, the soul, the attitude, the real human being.
May I share with you a recently published letter to "Dear Abby" that seems to clinch a point in this area of vision and values.
"Dear Abby: Cold chills ran up my spine when I read the letter from the heartbroken mother, whose daugther, a nurse, was marrying an amputee. The mother said her daughter was beautiful and could just as easily have married 'a whole man.' I am sure many people think my husband could have married 'a whole woman' instead of me. You see, when I was three I was shot with a.22 rifle. Thank God I am still alive, although my left side is paralyzed. I can walk and do most things other women can do. But best of all, a wonderful man thought I was 'whole' enough to marry. He is handsome, kind, and faithful, and he treats me like a queen. We've been happily married for ten years. I still can't believe my good luck. Sign me, Freddy's wife."
"Dear Freddy's Wife: It's more than 'luck.' You must have a lot going for you. Congratulations."
May I add my congratulations to you, too, Abby, for taking someone by the hand and giving her a lift.
In this great Church we must try to lift those who need us economically, socially, physically, and spiritually as we earnestly link hands with the Lord in "this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
"Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.
"And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;
"Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.
"And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.
"And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
"Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
"And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ancle bones received strength.
"And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.
"And all the people saw him walking and praising God." This scripture is used for many purposes, to put over many points, but this morning I would just like to say that this man did not know he could walk until Peter took him by the hand and lifted him. He didn't realize or believe he could now walk and go forth on his own. This initial lift started him on his way. Peter was able to lift him because he stood on high ground in God's service.
In this area of thinking, lifting, and taking by the hand, it seems to me a scripture that is often misunderstood and one quoted by President Tanner so effectively earlier in this session is this:
"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."
Certainly a now-married man should cleave unto his wife in faithfulness, protection, comfort, and total support, but in leaving father, mother, and other family members, it was never intended that they now be ignored, abandoned, shunned, or deserted. They are still family, a great source of strength, a refuge, a delight, and an eternal unit. Wise parents, whose children have left to start their own families, realize their family role still continues, not in a realm of domination, control, regulation, supervision, or imposition, but in love, concern, and encouragement.
Many a full-time missionary has been heard to say, "I received some of my best letters while away, from a grandmother, an aunt, or a brother-in-law." Others have said: "My father passed away some years ago, but my uncle or grandfather is keeping me financially in the mission field." The whole family belongs to us and we to them. What a blessing. What a sacred obligation.
Joseph Smith, the Prophet, valued this continuing source of strength. He on many occasions fervently prayed for the improved health of his ailing father so "that I might be blessed with his company and advice, esteeming it one of the greatest earthly blessings to be blessed with the society of parents, whose mature years and experience render them capable of administering the most wholesome advice." Can we not appropriately say this morning and remind ourselves that though he were a prophet, yet learned he from the wisdom and love of a good family?
Joseph once said of Hyrum: "There was Brother Hyrum who took me by the hand-a natural brother. Thought I to myself, Brother Hyrum, what a faithful heart you have got! Oh may the Eternal Jehovah crown eternal blessings upon your head, as a reward for the care you have had for my soul!" "I could pray in my heart that all my brethren were like unto my beloved brother Hyrum, who possesses the mildness of a lamb, and the integrity of a Job, and in short, the meekness and humility of Christ; and I love him with that love that is stronger than death, for I never had occasion to rebuke him, nor he me."
Often the greatest lifts we receive come from within the ranks of our families. Sometimes the hands needed most are those closest to us. Often the hands closest to us are the strongest. When we begin to realize this relationship, one family member to another, we begin to understand the basics of our great welfare services programs which are the gospel of Jesus Christ in action. God has decreed family members are to help family members. God has decreed family members are to be a blessing to family members. When some of us in a discouraged frame of mind identify a family member as not worth a hand or a lift, may I remind us that when we continue to lift, regardless of the apparent results, added strength is ours. The more we lift, the more we are able to lift.
Worthy Latter-day Saint marriages are forever, and as we cleave to the one most precious to us we are entitled to the blessings of the total family. The family lift will be available to us. We must take family members by the hand and show our love is real and continuing. When we take someone by the hand, both hands are left stronger. No one ever lifted someone else without stepping toward higher ground. We must make our home ties strong and available to all family members. Our homes should be places our children will want to come.
If we keep the commandments of God and walk hand in hand with him in his paths, Satan cannot touch us. Faithful members of the Church do not have to walk alone. The troubled soul need not find its way back alone. God's hand is available to all if we will but reach out and up.
" Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.
"And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?
"And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting."
I pray our Heavenly Father to help us so live that we may have that inner strength and power to take those about us by the hand and lift.
I leave you my witness that God lives. This is the Church of Jesus Christ, restored in these latter days for the benefit of all mankind. President Harold B. Lee is a prophet of God. He, as witnessed by that beautiful young woman in Munich and thousands of others, has the God-given capacity to take us all by the hand and lift us to new heights if we will keep the commandments and follow his counsel. To this I declare and testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I deem it a great honor and privilege to greet you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are met in his name and we act under his direction because this is his church, and we look to him as the only way-the truth and the light. In the words of a great prophet recorded in the Book of Mormon:
"And moreover, I say unto you, that there shall be no other name given nor any other way nor means whereby salvation can come unto the children of men, only in and through the name of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent."
Further, he said we must humble ourselves "and become as little children, and believe that salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent."
We are Christian. We want the whole world to know it. We look to Christ as the author and finisher of our faith, and he has not left us without direction for he has given us a living prophet and many revelations-revealing his will with respect to his church and kingdom on earth today.
In Section 42 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord sets forth the conditions for service in his kingdom. Beginning with verse 11, he says:
"Again I say unto you, that it shall not be given to any one to go forth to preach my gospel, or to build up my church, except he be ordained by some one who has authority, and it is known to the church that he has authority and has been regularly ordained by the heads of the church."
This indicates that the Lord will select those who are to act for him. No one is authorized to take this authority or honor to himself; rather, an authorized servant of the Lord will ordain them or set them apart to a specific assignment, and it will be known that the authorizing agent has such authority because he will have been regularly ordained to his position by the heads of the Church.
The Lord next proceeds to indicate what he expects his authorized ministers to teach:
"And again, the elders, priests and teachers of this church shall teach the principles of my gospel, which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, in the which is the fulness of the gospel."
Here the Lord specifically spells out what he wants preached and taught-the principles of the gospel-and further what he wants his servants to use as source materials-the standard works of the Church. He did not mention the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price, possibly because they were not in existence in February of 1831 when this statement was received from the Lord.
From this it is plain that we are not called to preach the philosophies of men mingled with scripture or our own ideas or the mysteries of the kingdom, nor are we called to bring forth new doctrine. The president of the Church will do that. But we are to stick to the basic fundamental principles of the gospel.
The Prophet Joseph Smith re-emphasized this principle when he said:
"After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the gospel."
President Joseph Fielding Smith reiterated this in his opening conference remarks in April of 1972 when he said:
"To those who are called to positions of trust and responsibility in the Church we say: Preach the gospel in plainness and simplicity as it is found in the standard works of the Church. Testify of the truth of the work and the doctrines revealed anew in our day."
This is a clear signal as to what the Lord would have taught by his servants today.
The Lord next gives some specifics as to the conduct he expects of his authorized ministers:
"And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them. "
Once again, these are very plain, clear instructions. He did not say it would be "nice" if we keep the commandments. He says "they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them." Surely obedience is the first law of heaven. We are given to understand that there will be no disobedience in the celestial kingdom. It is therefore vitally important that we keep the commandments with exactness and not just "almost."
The account of the Lamanite striplings in the Book of Mormon as mentioned by Elder Monson is an excellent illustration of the blessings that flow from precise obedience. Helaman had formed them into an army of 2,060 young men who fought on the side of the Nephites, and when they were fighting for the Nephites, the Nephites could not lose.
At one time 200 of them were so badly wounded that they fainted from the loss of blood. When they were carried from the battlefield, it was thought they were dead, but they weren't. They came back to life again-it seemed they could not be killed. What was their secret? It is recorded in Alma 57:21: "Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness. "
Yes, they gave their mothers credit for teaching them, but they kept the commandments with exactness. This is the great secret. It is so important that we be in condition to serve the Lord, and condition comes only through obedience. To be a great leader, we must first be a great follower.
The revelation continues:
"And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them, and these shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit."
Here the Lord stresses the fact that his servants must be led by his Spirit.
Brigham Young's counsel to missionaries going into the field was to the effect that he would: "rather hear an Elder speak only five words accompanied by the power of God than to hear long sermons without the Spirit."
It is true that the Spirit giveth direction. It is the Spirit that carries conviction to the hearts of those who are honest.
Our living prophet, President Harold B. Lee, made a significant statement on this subject and clearly illustrated the correct philosophy of a servant of the Lord. He did so shortly after he was ordained to the office.
The new First Presidency held a news conference in the administration building with many members of the press in attendance. One reporter asked President Lee if he would mind explaining what his goals were. He asked:
"What do you expect to accomplish during your administration as president of the Church?"
President Lee answered in his most characteristic way, substantially as follows:
"Well," he said, "I can only answer that question in the words of a great prophet when he was given an assignment by the Lord to secure an ancient record. He said:
"'And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do.'"
Being led by the Spirit is vitally important because this is the Lord's church and he runs it. Those who are called to serve must let the Lord run his church. They must be led by his Spirit because man's thoughts are not God's thoughts and man's ways are not God's ways; therefore, for man to do God's work he must have the Spirit of the Lord or he won't know what to do or how to perform.
To continue with the revelation, now that the Lord has established the necessity for the Spirit, he proceeds to explain how to get the Spirit. The formula is apparently so simple:
"And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach."
On the surface it appears that all that is necessary to receive the Spirit is to ask for it, but it is not quite so easy a question! What is the difference between just ordinary prayer and a "prayer of faith"?
As we consider that question, the difference is immediately apparent. The difference is faith, and what is faith? Of course, there are many definitions of faith, but one definition is "a strong belief plus action." It is not perfect knowledge, but real faith lets a man act as if he knows it is true when he really doesn't.
Therefore, faith in a real sense is power-power to act and perform without actual knowledge. The Lord's formula for receiving the Spirit, then, is to get on our knees and communicate with him. Tell him what we are going to do-make commitments with him-outline our program-and then get up off our knees and go and do precisely what we have told him we would do. In the doing, the Spirit comes.
From the record, it is obvious that most home teachers do not really enjoy home teaching. I have been a home teacher for 21 years. I don't think I have missed a half dozen visits over the whole period. I cannot say that I love to home teach until I get to the first home, and then I do love it because I then get the spirit of a home teacher because I am acting like a home teacher-doing what a home teacher does.
In order for a bishop to get the spirit of a bishop, he must first be called, ordained, and set apart, and that is in accord with the revelation we have just read. Does that give him the spirit of a bishop? Wouldn't it be grand if it did? But of course it doesn't. In order to get the spirit of a bishop, he must get on his knees and communicate with the Lord and then get up off his knees and go and do precisely what he has told the Lord he would do. Then he gets the spirit of a bishop as he acts like a bishop, and he is able to act for the Lord and do what the Lord would do if the Lord was the bishop.
Suppose he gets up off his knees after telling the Lord he is going to conduct a priesthood executive committee meeting, and instead of conducting the committee meeting he goes fishing. Do you suppose he will get the spirit of a bishop? No, probably not, but rather he will likely get the spirit of a fisherman instead. And while the spirit of a fisherman is not altogether bad, it is not the spirit that he needs to conduct a priesthood executive committee meeting. If a man never acts like a bishop, even though he is called, ordained, and set apart so to be, he will never get the spirit of a bishop.
If a missionary never acts like a missionary, even though he is called and set apart so to be, he will never get the spirit of a missionary and thus will never really be a missionary, because without the Spirit he shall not teach, and a missionary that cannot teach is not a missionary. Likewise, a stake president who cannot teach is not a stake president. A home teacher who cannot teach is not a home teacher. An MIA president who cannot teach is not an MIA president.
Is it any wonder that the Lord commands:
"Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence." Surely in the action, the Spirit comes as the Lord has promised.
There is one additional qualification that must be acquired in order to have success in the Lord's work. We must love the people we are called to serve. Without this, all else is vain, because they will not accept our offering to them unless they know we love them.
In "The Vision of Sir Launfal," an interesting story is told of a young knight who rode out into the world in search of the Holy Grail. He had dedicated his life to the quest. He was young, handsome, and strong, clothed in bright and shining armor, mounted on a gallant white charger. As he crossed the drawbridge riding out into the world, a beggar put up his hand to him, begging alms. The young knight reached into his pouch, took out a gold coin and flung it to the beggar as he rode on, but he really did not give the beggar very much because no one would accept even a gold coin from a leper.
The young man searched for the cup; of course he didn't find it, although he spent his life in the quest. He did, however, learn a lot, and at the close of his life he was returning to his castle, no longer young. He is now shrunken with age. His armor is no longer bright; his mount is no longer a charger but just a tired old gray horse. As he was about to cross the drawbridge into the castle, once again a beggar put up his hand begging for alms. This time Sir Launfal stopped, got down from his horse, reached into his knapsack and took out the only thing he had-a crust of bread. He then dipped his cup into the stream and gave the crust of bread and one cup of cold water to the beggar.
The wooden cup from which the beggar drank turned into the Holy Grail for which he had searched, and the beggar turned into a Christ and said a very interesting thing. He said:
I long ago learned what all real missionaries must learn: "People do not really care how much you know until they know how much you care." If you love them, they will listen to you; they will let you serve them.
Because the Lord Jesus Christ loved us, he died for us, and we accept his sacrifice in our behalf as the only way back to our Heavenly Father. May we be qualified to bear his name and may we have his spirit as we act in the office in which we are appointed in all diligence, but with love. I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Presiding Bishop
A story is told in the Book of Mormon of 2,000 young men who responded to the call of their country to take up arms in its defense. Their leader's name was Helaman. They became known as the sons of Helaman. We read of them in the book of Alma.
"And they were all young men, and they were exceedingly valiant for courage, and also for strength and activity; but behold, this was not all-they were men who were true at all times in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.
"Yea, they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before him."
The lives of these exemplary young men are an inspiration to the youth of today. They displayed the traits of character needed so desperately today.
As I think of the sons of Helaman in relationship to our youth, I am impressed that many of the young men of this generation are endowed with the same traits of character as those of Helaman's time, and that there is even more danger today.
At the present time, there are wars and rumors of wars. Yet, may I suggest that there is another war currently going on in the world-a war more destructive than any armed conflict-yes, a war between good and evil, between freedom and slavery, between the Savior and Satan. Satan's legions are many. In their battle to enslave mankind, they use weapons such as selfishness; dishonesty; corruption; sexual impurity, be it adultery, fornication, or homosexuality; pornography; permissiveness; drugs; and many others. I believe Satan's ultimate goal is to destroy the family, because if he would destroy the family, he will not just have won the battle; he will have won the war.
Notwithstanding this influence among men, it is my conviction that a generation of youth is preparing for this battle as no generation has ever done before. I firmly believe the youth of today understand clearly, more clearly perhaps than their parents, the importance of the family. Just the other day a young lady said to me, and she was talking of so-called "responsible" parents as well as others, "Why can't parents realize how important the family is?"
May I emphasize that when I refer to this generation I include girls and boys, for if a generation is to thrive in righteousness, and if family unity is to be preserved, the boys must have the same standards and nobility of character as the girls. There is no double standard in the eyes of God.
It is impressive and inspiring to see the many young men and young women of this generation who are endowed with the same traits of character as the 2,000 youth in Helaman's time: traits of honesty, courage, willingness to serve, etc.
Take for instance the 12- and 13-year-old deacons who raised money to buy lumber so they could build a doll house for a child in a fatherless home, or the young teenager who was addicted to drugs and sought the help of her Laurel class president, one of her peers. This president, through kindness, encouragement, and the work of other class members, helped this girl to freedom.
The examples are numerous. Some girls on their own initiative made a quilt for the baby of a blind couple. Another group of young people in one ward were concerned about the elderly and visited them, offering to run errands, etc. In this same ward one elderly couple reported that every time it snowed, some person whom they did not know cleared their driveway.
A counselor in a bishopric who was responsible for the deacon-age youth lost his life in an accident. The deacons quorum president, 13 years old, immediately called a presidency meeting. As a presidency they called on the widow, assuring her that she need not be concerned about completing duties around the home or yard, but could count on all those duties being done.
In another case, a 12-year-old nonmember, motherless girl from an unfortunate environment was befriended by her peer group of Beehive girls and was made to feel welcome, wanted, and loved. Their adviser commented, "Many of the girls seemed more concerned about her happiness than about their own."
Another class of teenage girls, upon learning of a physical disability of a neighbor, did her home canning for her. A group of young teenagers spent nine months writing, rehearsing, and preparing a readers theater-the subject by their own choice, "How Do I Know God Really Cares About Me?"
Probably none of these activities would ever make the headlines; however, they are strong evidence that this generation of youth has the character to fight this battle against the forces of Satan.
A few months ago something wonderful happened. The Lord through a prophet gave a revelation pertaining to this generation of youth such as has not been given to any other generation. The foundation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is revelation-ancient and modern. Our message to the world is that God lives; the heavens are open; and he, the Lord, speaks through a living prophet, President Harold B. Lee. It was through this process that the Lord directed that the Aaronic Priesthood MIA organization be established. It was inaugurated in the Church on September 1 of this year. In the short time since then, reports indicate that exciting things are happening in the lives of youth as they begin to understand the significant and important principles involved in this change. These are:
First, the programs and activities of youth between the ages of 12 and 18 have now come under the umbrella of the Aaronic Priesthood. In other words, the programs and activities for both boys and girls are now priesthood oriented. They have priesthood leadership which draws them closer than ever before to the very lifeline of the Church.
Second, it means involvement of youth to a degree never before experienced. The youth, with shadow leadership from adults, will plan and execute their own programs and activities.
Third, the activities of youth will be service as well as activity oriented. This means personal service to others, not just games and parties.
Fourth, the entire effort of the Church is now individual boy and girl oriented-not program oriented. The welfare of the individual is the important factor.
Fifth, the Aaronic Priesthood MIA is committed to strengthening the family, recognizing it as the basic unit in society and the most important unit in all eternity.
Now I should like to discuss in more detail some of these principles which are vital to the raising up of a generation of righteous, stalwart young men and women in these, the last days.
What does it mean to be priesthood oriented? The priesthood is the power to act in the name of God. The young men who hold the priesthood are organized into quorums with a president and two counselors. In the case of the priests, the bishop is president assisted by a group leader. The presidency presides over the other young men of their same age. As a presidency they are concerned with the total well-being of each member of their quorum. If the president has been properly introduced to his responsibility in the quorum, he will know he has been called of God through inspiration. He will know the bishopric prayed about his call beforehand. What stronger motivating force could a young man have than to know he is called of God?
To illustrate, one deacons quorum president, missing one of his quorum members at meeting, called him on the telephone. The boy's father, an elder, answered the phone. He was negative, not caring about his son's activity. This deacons quorum president immediately called the elders quorum president and said in effect, "You've got a problem, and so have I." He asked the elders quorum president to please labor with the father as he labored with the son and to report his progress.
Do we catch the significance of peer leadership as well as the example of a young man being true at all times in whatsoever thing he was entrusted?
How about the girls? The bishop calls and appoints the class president of each age group. The president then chooses her counselors who are approved by the bishopric. These class presidencies also receive strength in knowing their callings have been inspired.
A 17-year-old girl, going through the trauma of having only one parent in the home as well as the normal problems of adolescence, was called to be president of her Laurel class. Her response to this responsibility was, "I have never been so excited and thrilled about the Church in my life. I love it with all my heart and love every minute I have the privilege of serving." Then she made another statement equally impressive. She said, "Since having received this call and having felt the responsibility, I have wanted to purify and refine my life so that I would be worthy of the call."
And yet another example of a young president. May I quote her adviser: "The other night when I took a few of the girls home after our meeting, the Beehive class president was the last girl in the car and wanted to talk about her new calling to be a youth leader. When the bishop visited with her about her responsibilities, he emphasized the importance of her being an example to her class members. As we talked, she mentioned that she had always attended church meetings and kept the commandments but was concerned that her family did not hold family home evening. She knew that she should be involved in family home evening if she were to be an example in all things. She talked to her father, but he was still reluctant to bring the family together on Monday nights. As an alternative, so that she would feel good about fulfilling her responsibilities to her peers, this 13-year-old girl had been reading the Book of Mormon each Monday night."
Do we as adults see the powerful, motivating force when young people realize the tie they have with the priesthood? No wonder exciting things are happening as the youth are allowed to lead out under the wise direction of adult leaders. The greatest and perhaps the most difficult adjustment will come to these adults who are now to be shadow leaders. They must have the patience and the sensitivity to stand in the shadows watching the youth grow and develop-a little painfully at times. Nevertheless, these leaders need to stand back and yet have the insight to know when the opportunity is right to take advantage of those choice teaching experiences which come occasionally, but come only once. I pray that adult leaders everywhere will work diligently to become this kind of shadow leader.
Earlier we talked about the increased emphasis on service. Youth today want meaningful, spiritual experiences. They will have them through service to others, not the kind that causes great excitement, but the kind that is simple and plain and good.
From what has been said I hope we all see the importance of the individual. Surely programs and activities are important, but they are important only as they influence for good the lives of individual boys and girls.
Finally, the Aaronic Priesthood MIA is committed to strengthening the family. The Church in no way intends to take the place of the family. Its entire effort is to strengthen the family. Parents, the greatest responsibility you will ever have is the responsibility for your family. We plead with you: love your children. Be interested in them. Be an example to them. Teach them correct principles. Bless them with discipline when appropriate and afterwards show forth a greater measure of love. I believe with all my heart that our sons and daughters have all the potential of the sons of Helaman if we as parents with the support of the Church will do our part.
May I paraphrase from Alma:
"And they are all young men and women, and they are exceedingly valiant for courage, and also for strength and activity; but behold this is not all, they are men and women who are true at all times in whatsoever thing they are entrusted.
"Yea, they are men and women of truth and soberness for they have been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before him."
May the Lord bless this royal generation that they may achieve that which he has foreordained for them, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
The Savior taught with many parables, and they are well known. But he also taught with pertinent and piercing questions. One of them was this: " what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?"
This is particularly important when we realize that the Lord defined eternal life as the greatest of all the gifts of God.
Each one of us has a soul to save. Each has the opportunity to obtain eternal life. Since our souls are so precious, we should leave no stone unturned in our effort to save them.
The Savior illustrated this great fact with some of his best-known parables. For example, he said:
" The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls; Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it."
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field."
In other words, he is telling us that salvation is the pearl of great price, salvation is the treasure in the field; and if we only realized its worth, we would give all that we have to obtain it.
Shall we not waken to this important lesson? It comes from the lips of God, who cannot lie.
The thing which is of most worth unto us is to be in the service of the Lord.
This means that we must not be blinded by the glitter of gold or the allurement of position or pleasure or even the false excitement of sin.
We must open our eyes to the fact that to serve God is the greatest career in the world.
To be saved in his presence is the greatest gift that can come to us, and to bring our family with us into the enjoyment of salvation will be the greatest achievement of our lives.
But we must understand that salvation is not a free gift. The offer is free indeed, through the atonement of the Savior. But its enjoyment must be earned, not with any halfhearted effort, but with wholesouled, undivided, concentrated application to a program of development which is called the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
If we believe in immortality at all, we must also believe in God. And if we believe in him, we should accept the fact that it is possible for us to become like him. Actually, this is what God expects of us.
He gave us his Beloved Son Jesus Christ as a pattern to live by, and through him we can become perfect, even as God.
What a marvelous destiny! What an opportunity!
Is it any wonder that the scripture calls it the pearl of great price?
Then should we not make every effort to achieve it? But on the other hand, if we do not, what are we exchanging for our souls?
The Savior told us that in his house are many mansions. The apostle Paul gave us the further detail that in the world to come there are various degrees of glory. We will be assigned to them on a basis of our worthiness. We will be judged according to our works.
The rewards on the day of judgment will differ as one star differs from another star in glory. Paul said also that beyond the glory of the stars is another glory which he likened to the brightness of the moon, in contrast to the stars.
And still another is mentioned by him-the celestial glory-which is as superior to the others as the light of the sun outshines that of both the moon and the stars.
In modern revelation we are told that only those who are devoted to God and his way of life will reach the celestial glory. Only those who go there may become like him.
All others, going to the lesser glories, will be restricted in that they may not become like him.
I ask you here today-where do you want to spend eternity? Where would you like your family to spend eternity?
If you knew that by living the gospel you may have celestial glory rather than a lesser one, would it not be worth the effort to obtain it?
Who would be satisfied with the subdued twinkle of a star if he could enjoy the brilliance of the sun?
Who would be content with the reflected light of the moon if he could have the radiance of the sun?
Who would exchange the privilege of becoming like God for the very questionable and temporary advantages of this world?
Who in his right mind would prefer the corruptions of the flesh, the sensual pleasures, and the false excitement of sin, rather than the opportunity of becoming like God; rather than having inspired intelligence, or of some day wielding some of the powers that God uses as he walks in his majesty?
Which of us would sell his birthright for a mess of pottage?
Isn't it advisable that we direct to our own selves the question raised by the Savior: " what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?"
Whether we realize it or not, we answer that question every day of our lives by what we think and say and do. Our actions demonstrate whether we are working toward becoming like God or the world.
What will a man give in exchange for his soul?
What will a woman give in exchange for her soul?
What will parents barter for the souls of their little children, these tiny ones, who are given into their care by the Almighty himself, to whom they should teach the principles of righteousness, and whom these parents should lead into the proper pathways of life?
Are there any parents who are willing to trade their children's future for a mess of pottage to be consumed greedily by themselves? Dare they sacrifice the welfare of their little ones to gratify their own self-centered interests?
Child neglect! How widespread it is!
What is the value of a child's soul?
What is any soul worth?
Would you exchange it for a thrill? Would you exchange it for advantage in business? Would you exchange it for social life, or for emancipation from home and family in a woman's liberation movement? Would you exchange it for any amount of money? What is your rate of exchange?
Whether we realize it or not, we are making this very kind of bargain if we prefer worldly things over our religion.
The only way to save our souls is to put God first in our lives.
If we reverse the process and relegate him to second, third, or fourth place, we make an exchange that we will rue throughout the eternities. It is possible to lose our salvation by default.
Realizing this, can we afford to be other than active in the Church? Can we afford to neglect our families? Can we afford to mix worldliness and Godliness, knowing very well that they will not blend and knowing, too, that Jesus said we cannot serve both God and mammon?
The Lord teaches that unless we are valiant in his service, we surrender the opportunity for celestial glory. To be valiant means to be anxiously engaged in the good cause. It means to serve him in all diligence, with an eye single to his glory, and to labor in his kingdom with all our heart, might, mind, and strength.
But it must be in his kingdom, not in some other group, religious or otherwise.
So what will we exchange for our soul? Will it be worldly advantage, or money, or pleasure, or the corruption of sin, thinking that wickedness gives enough thrill to compensate for all its miseries?
What will a man give in exchange for his soul?
Fathers and mothers, are you listening? Are you listening to the Savior calling to you and your little ones?
Do you hear his words: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
And hear these words, too, from your Savior and your Redeemer:
" inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.
"For this shall be a law unto the inhabitants of Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized.
"And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.
"And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord."
Are we doing all of this, parents, or are we making an exchange that we will later regret?
Can you hear the words of the Savior, speaking by modern revelation and saying: " thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy might, mind, and strength; and in the name of Jesus Christ thou shalt serve him."
Are we doing this, or are we making an exchange for something else?
Do you hear him say, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself "?
Do you obey?
And do you hear him say, " thou shalt not steal; neither commit adultery, nor kill, nor do anything like unto it"?
Do you comply? Or do you put aside his words in exchange for your personal desires? Do you suppose for one minute that you can separate the salvation of your soul from obedience to the gospel?
One of the greatest of all the commandments is the Golden Rule. Do we do unto others as we would be done by? And if not, what kind of exchange do we make?
What shall we say of those who cheat a little newsboy out of his collections? What kind of bargain do they make?
And what shall we say of those who refuse to pay their doctor bills or hospital bills, but in their hypocrisy go to Church on Sunday and sing praises to the Lord?
And then comes this appeal of the Savior:
" the inhabitants of Zion shall also observe the Sabbath Day to keep it holy."
"And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day."
How many meet this requirement? It is a commandment from heaven, given to each of us. If we fail to keep it, do we tend to exchange our soul's welfare for worldly things such as Sunday business, Sunday pleasure, and weekend vacations?
What will a man give in exchange for his soul?
We should realize that the Lord means just what he says in dealing with us. He offers us the riches of eternity; and while we are in mortality, he offers us an abundant life, with peace of mind, true happiness, and freedom from the enslaving influences of sin.
But this can come only through obedience. And why obedience? Because he desires that we become like him-because we are his children-and because we cannot achieve perfection by imperfect means.
To become Christlike we must do the works of Christ.
The Lord does not take any free agency away from us in giving us this commandment. He gives us unlimited and unrestricted freedom of choice.
But he makes it abundantly clear that if we do not serve him, we shall not receive his reward.
Mere membership in the Church will not save us. The revelation says:
" he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
"Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause.
" he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned."
And again: "He that receiveth my law and doeth it, the same is my disciple; and he that saith he receiveth it and doeth it not, the same is not my disciple, and shall be cast out. "
So you see, what we do or fail to do determines our status before him.
It is not Church membership alone that he asks. Nor is it reading the scriptures alone, nor paying tithing alone. It is wholehearted obedience and faithfulness of heart that counts.
The choice is placed before us-worldliness or salvation. Which shall it be? There is no middle ground in this matter. Lukewarm obedience is spurned by the Lord. What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
The Savior asked another pertinent question:
" what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? "
It must needs be that there is an opposition in all things.
It must needs be that we have complete freedom of choice.
But knowing the facts, will we exchange the divine blessings of both here and hereafter for the questionable things of this world? Is it really conceivable that we would choose darkness rather than light, or sorrow rather than joy?
Yet this is what we do if we turn away from active service in the Church. This is the exchange we make.
Let us never forget that the Lord has promised that if we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, all that he has may be ours.
And this is my testimony to you, in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Spencer W. Kimball
Of the Council of the Twelve
Beloved brothers and sisters:
Again we meet in a glorious conference.
In the sessions of this impressive conference we have had exhortation, instructions, and warning. The sermons were each mighty and sobering. We were instructed quite fully in the ways of the Lord. Very prominent in the sermons were the words like this: Walk uprightly. Keep my commandments. Live my laws. We were reminded about marriage-proper marriage-about repentance and forgiveness, about building self-esteem, and walking in the ways of righteousness. We have heard of the "troubled seas" and that "wickedness is never happiness."
A story is written by Roy H. Stetler, publisher of a religious journal in the East:
"It occurred outside the Crimean Castle of Livadia. The castle was aglow with lights. A soldier was pacing in carefully measured steps back and forth, guarding the castle, which, at the moment, housed within its walls a most momentous conference of world men. The soldier appeared proud of his task, for what soldier would not like to tell his children, and grandchildren, that he had once done guard duty for the momentous meeting of the 'Big Three.'
"Suddenly, out of the darkness, like a phantom, a figure appeared on the path that led to the entrance of the castle. As the figure approached, the guard commanded, 'Halt! Who goes there? Come hither and make yourself known!' And with that the guard quickly took his gun from his shoulder and poised it for any emergency.
"The stranger spoke. 'I wish to meet with the men who are in the castle.'
"'Preposterous!' exclaimed the guard. 'You cannot enter the castle. Do you not know that the "Big Three" are meeting to decide the course of the whole world? No one is permitted to enter.'
The man replied, 'You say it is the "Big Three"? Why are they called the "Big Three"?'
"'They are they,' said the guard, 'who shall say how this world shall be ruled.'
"The stranger looked intensely at the guard. His eyes flashed as he said, 'That is why I must be with them, because I can help them. I have a plan that will really work, and will keep the peace of the world, if they will only adopt my plan.'
"The soldier laughed. 'Go on your way, man; you have no credentials.'
"The man replied, 'Credentials? Perhaps not-here.' And he raised his hand in salute as he left. The guard saw an ugly scar in his hand. Then he looked at the other hand, and it, too, had a scar.
"'You were in battle?' he asked, a little more gently. 'I see wounds in your hands.'
"The stranger turned again. 'No, I did not think you would notice,' he replied. 'No, I did not receive these wounds in battle.' With that, he disappeared suddenly, as if the darkness had enveloped him.
"The guard looked after him, and marveled. 'I should have known!' he exclaimed. 'If only I had let him in!' And he slumped to the ground in dismay."
This was he who brought blessings to all the inhabitants of the earth. This was he who spoke of those who would ask the stranger this question:
"What are these wounds in thine hands and in thy feet? Then shall they know that I am the Lord; for I will say unto them: These wounds are the wounds with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. I am he who was lifted up. I am Jesus that was crucified. I am the Son of God."
And remembering that life is a time of rewards and punishments, may we consider the positive side today for a while, the rewards which come from him for obedience.
"And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
"And he said unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
"And they straightway left their nets and followed him."
And two others, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, followed him.
And two sets of brothers became apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And I assure you that is one of the greatest blessings of all blessings that can come to any man, and honor, too. Exactly 30 years ago today, October 7, 1943, almost to the hour, I knelt at the feet of President Heber J. Grant and I was ordained an apostle of Jesus Christ.
In the 76th revelation called The Vision, blessings are promised:
"That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power;
"And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true.
"They are they who are the church of the Firstborn.
"They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things-
"They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory;
"And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son.
"Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God-
"Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's.
"And they shall overcome all things."
"These shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever.
"These are they who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just.
"These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood."
"Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing
"And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee. ", and other places,
"And seeing the multitudes he went up into a mountain his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
"Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
"Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
"Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
"Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
"Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
"Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven. "
It seems that Jesus' heart was always filled with blessings.
As the Prophet Joseph records:
"And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all things-where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and ever;
"Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory forever and ever."
"And the glory of the celestial is one, even as the glory of the sun is one."
And again:
"But great and marvelous are the works of the Lord, and the mysteries of his kingdom which he showed unto us, which surpass all understanding in glory, and in might, and in dominion."
"Neither is man capable to make them known, for they are only to be seen and understood by the power of the Holy Spirit, which God bestows on those who love him, and purify themselves before him;
"To whom he grants this privilege of seeing and knowing for themselves."
The revelation of 1832, known as The Vision, begins thus:
"Hear, O ye heavens, and give ear, O earth, and rejoice ye inhabitants thereof, for the Lord is God, and beside him there is no Savior.
"Great is his wisdom, marvelous are his ways, and the extent of his doings none can find out.
"His purposes fail not, neither are there any who can stay his hand.
"From eternity to eternity he is the same, and his years never fail.
"For thus saith the Lord-I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end.
"Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory."
And when be gives a blessing, he fulfills it; when he makes a promise, it comes to pass. In 1831 the Lord said:
"What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."
The message of the Lord was love and peace.
As the Lord began to prepare his apostles for his crucifixion, he said, "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."
And we remember the story of Abraham, when three persons came to him in the Plains of Mamre, and Abraham bowed himself to the ground. They asked, "Where is Sarah, thy wife?" and continued:
"Lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.
"Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.
"Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?
"And the Lord said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?
"Is any thing too hard for the Lord? Sarah shall have a son."
Certainly nothing is impossible with the Lord. His promises are fulfilled.
In 1833 the Lord made promises which we should never take lightly:
He said, " the destroying angel shall pass by them and not slay them," bringing back to our memory the days of Egypt.
They shall have good health, he said, and strength and power with marrow in their bones and health in their navel.
And perhaps even greater promises than those: "And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures."
All these blessings to all of us who remember the sayings and walk in obedience.
"If ye love me, keep my commandments," he told his people constantly.
There are depths in the sea which the storms that lash the surface into fury never reach. They who reach down into the depths of life where, in the stillness, the voice of God is heard, have the stabilizing power which carries them poised and serene through the hurricane of difficulties.
There are so many beautiful promises. To read the scriptures and turn the pages, and it seems that it is almost all rewards, evidence of living the commandments of the Lord.
And another solemn promise came from the Lord:
"And shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye. "
"Hearken ye to these words. Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. Treasure these things up in your hearts, and let the solemnities of eternity rest upon your minds.
"Be sober. Keep all my commandments."
Another blessing promised:
"For in mine own due time will I come upon the earth in judgment, and my people shall be redeemed and shall reign with me on earth."
From the Psalms we have this promised blessing. He said:
"The earth is the LORD'S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
"Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?
"He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation."
Then in our own dispensation comes this great reward:
"For all who will have a blessing at my hands shall abide the law which was appointed for that blessing."
Then he speaks about the blessings of eternity. He said of those who keep the commandments and live worthily:
" and they shall pass by the angels, and the gods which are set there, to their exaltation and glory in all things, as hath been sealed upon their heads, which glory shall be a fulness and a continuation of the seeds forever and ever.
"Then shall they be gods, because they have no end then shall they be gods, because they have all power, and the angels are subject unto them
" if ye receive me in the world, then shall ye know me, and shall receive your exaltation; that where I am ye shall be also."
To the children of Israel he spoke. He promises this to us today.
"For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you.
"And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new.
"And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.
"And I will walk among you, and be your God, and ye shall be my people."
And as he left them, he promised:
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
All this-what more could be desired or asked for? All these blessings and numerous others to every one of us who is willing to live the commandments and be truthful and honorable in our dealings.
I bear witness that God has given us conditionally all these and thousands of other good things. He has organized his true church upon the earth. This is his church. He has given us the total program which will carry us forward toward perfection; and he has given us prophets to lead and guide us. And President Harold B. Lee today is the leader of this kingdom and this people, and he is a prophet of God. This I know. To this I bear solemn witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My Church assignments require me to do considerable traveling throughout the world. When I arrive in a city, a stake president or one of his counselors usually meets me at the airport. Although seldom if ever have I met him before, I can invariably find him among the crowd of watchers at the gate and can walk up to him and greet him. He can also recognize me among the crowd of deplaning passengers. A certain amount of publicity is associated with our work as General Authorities. Our pictures appear in various magazines and news articles, so I can explain how he can recognize me from having seen my picture. But how is it that I can so readily recognize him?
Just this January, Sister Burton and I were walking along a street in Rio de Janeiro, when I saw a man walk past us who appeared as though he would make a good Mormon. I thought to myself, "If I could only speak Portuguese, there would be a fine missionary contact." He stopped ahead of us to look in a shop window and as he did so, he turned facing us. When he saw us he waited until we came up to him and then spoke to us in English. We returned his greeting and he asked us if we were Americans. We replied in the affirmative and he asked, "Are you perchance Mormons?" I replied, "Yes. What do you know about the Mormons?" He told us he was a Mormon also and we had a lovely visit with him. We learned he was a bishop's counselor in one of the Rio Wards. We met him again in a conference session, along with other wonderful Latter-day Saints who lived in that beautiful city. How was it that we could recognize one another among the teeming thousands of people walking along that busy street?
A question asked by one of the ancient prophets in the Book of Mormon gives an answer. He was talking to church members when he said:
"And now behold, I ask of you, my brethren of the church, have ye spiritually been born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye received this mighty change in your hearts?"
What a challenging question not only to them, but to us also! If we truly accept God in our lives and live in accordance with his commandments, God will work a mighty change in our appearance and we will begin to appear more like our Heavenly Father, in whose image we have been created. Could it be this appearance we recognize when we meet men and women who are trying to live close to the Lord?
The prophet then goes on to say this about the final day of judgment which someday each one of us must face:
"I say unto you, can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands? I say unto you, can you look up, having the image of God engraven upon your countenances?"
I dare not say that Mormons are perfect, for you know as well as I do that we each have many human faults. We do, however, call ourselves saints as did the members of the Church of Jesus Christ in the days of the original apostles. When those apostles wrote letters to the members of the Church they addressed them as saints. A saint is not necessarily a person who is perfect, but he is a person who strives for perfection-one who tries to overcome those faults and failings which take him away from God. A true saint will seek to change his manner of living to conform more closely to the ways of the Lord.
It is true that we each have imperfections to overcome. Life is a constant series of challenges and trials. Notwithstanding, we should never fail to strive for that perfection of life which can bring us closer into harmony with God. As the apostle Paul said in writing to the Philippians:
"I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in anything ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you."
Thus we should seek to overcome any discovered fault in our characters which tends to take us away from a total commitment to God.
I would like to speak about that principle of dedication or total commitment. It appears to me that when we join the Church of Jesus Christ and especially when we receive the oath and covenant of the priesthood, we should commit ourselves wholly and completely to the cause of God. By this I do not mean we need give up our daily occupations or our interests in the daily affairs of mankind unless we are called by authority from God to do so. I do mean that a true change must occur in our thinking so complete and so total that our very lives are changed for the better as far as our attitudes and our actions are concerned.
A person's attitude is perhaps the hardest of all personal attributes to change. If your attitude is right, then your life is made right. If your heart is touched, your mind and way of thinking will change and your life will change for the better accordingly. I believe we must become so immersed in the gospel of Jesus Christ that we become physically as well as mentally more and more like the Lord himself. We must yield our whole hearts to him. What we then do is done not because we are asked to, nor because we are forced to, but because we want to. Neither pressure nor force can be exerted upon us from outside, when what we do is done because it is our own choice and desire. It then makes no difference to us what other men may think, or say, or do. Our hearts being committed wholly to God, what we do is done out of our love for and our trust in him. We then serve God in every way we can because we have been converted, our attitude has been changed and we now desire to become like him both spiritually and physically.
If we believe in Jesus Christ that completely, then we can say as did the people of King Benjamin that we know of a surety of the truth of the gospel:
" because of the Spirit of the Lord God Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually."
When I speak then of total commitment, I do not refer to a momentary dedication which comes from being filled with the Spirit of God only on certain occasions such as in this conference. I refer to a daily or continuing spirit of devotion and dedication which comes from keeping all the commandments of God every day. We must not pick and choose which commandment of God we will or will not obey. Every one is important. For example, we cannot postpone genealogical research, temple work, or missionary work until after we retire. When we accept Jesus Christ, we accept his apostles and prophets and his total concept of Christian living. We then gladly accept the admonition of God's servants and willingly have family prayer, hold family home evening, keep a year's supply of food on hand for emergencies, send our sons and daughters on missions, keep the fast, pay an honest tithe, care for the poor and the needy, and are kind and thoughtful and Considerate of others. We willingly become saviors for our families and go to the temple regularly to officiate in behalf of our kindred dead who have sacrificed so much for us.
When we therefore understand this principle of commitment, we will realize the importance of priesthood genealogy and temple work. The Lord said that unless the hearts of the fathers are turned to their children and unless the hearts of the children are turned to their fathers, this earth life would fail its purpose. Genealogical work is therefore important and we should get on with it. Yet it will succeed no faster than the bishops in the individual wards give leadership to this program. It will succeed no faster than stake presidents in their individual stakes become actively involved in priesthood genealogical work. There are those who say that they are too busy to give leadership to this program, but I believe such persons fail to understand that it is a basic priesthood program given us by God. Will God's work fail in its purpose? Is anything too difficult For God? The answer we all know. God's purposes will be fulfilled by those servants he has chosen to lead out in this work. It is this total commitment, this dedication of purpose, this unfailing faith in God's work that I am referring to, not only in this, but in all priesthood programs.
From the following scripture, it is clear that the admonition to become totally committed to the cause of Jesus Christ is important to all, especially to those who regard themselves as members of the Church of Jesus Christ in good standing:
"And we know also, that sanctification through the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is just and true, to all those who love and serve God with all their mights, minds and strength.
"But there is a possibility that man may fall from grace and depart from the living God;
"Therefore let the church take heed and pray always, lest they fall into temptation;
"Yea, and even let those who are sanctified take heed also."
As I understand this scripture, it means that Jesus Christ is kind and merciful to us when we serve him with our whole hearts, but not any of us can take refuge in past righteousness or service. It also means that there is a possibility that any one of us can fall out of good standing, even those who have already achieved a certain degree of righteousness. Therefore, we need to be on our constant guard, each of us, that we not allow ourselves to fall into habits of carelessness in our faith, in our prayers, or in our various Church activities or responsibilities. It is for this reason that I am resolving again to live closer to God each day and to follow his chosen prophets and apostles more diligently than I have ever done in the past.
As the coming of the Lord approaches, Satan's pressure on us will increase. We will thus have to live closer to the Lord than we have ever done before. I resolve to do this for I know that God lives. I know that Jesus Christ is his Only Begotten Son, and that these brethren who we sustain as our leaders are true apostles and prophets. They have been called and ordained of God to lead us back into his very presence. I invite all of you who hear my voice or who read this message to take heed as the scriptures have indicated, and that you rededicate yourselves in a total commitment to serve the Lord with all your heart, might, mind, and strength. I so pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
The Lord's thoughts and ways are higher than the thoughts and ways that come from men.
The Lord said to man: " my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, for as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."
God's way was to create man, male and female, in his own image and likeness.
Man's way is that man came from a lower form of life. God's way justifies self-respect.
God's way provides man a divine way of life. The Lord promised his children salvation in the kingdom of God if they would live and follow his ways. It is important to know that man can become godlike through the thoughts and ways of the Lord.
The Lord's way was to send a savior who would live and teach the ways of a living God. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."
Jesus Christ said, " I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me."
"And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life. "
" the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise."
" all men should honour the Son," he said, "even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."
God has provided one way and only one way for his mortal children to attain godlike perfection. Jesus Christ proclaimed, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: No man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Jesus Christ brought to this earth from heaven the Lord's ways and the Lord's truths.
Jesus Christ lived and exemplified the heavenly life, that the Father desires all of his children to live.
" I am come," Jesus said, "that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."
The full, abundant, divine way of life can be gained by following and walking in the light of Jesus Christ.
" I am the light of the world"; Jesus said, "he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."
"That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day."
By following the Son of God and by living worthy to receive the light of life we can take on the radiance of godliness. Not only can we be children of God, in his image and likeness, but we can be sons and daughters of God in this life and in the kingdom of heaven.
We have this promise from the Savior: "Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I am the life and light of the world. verily, I say unto you, that as many as receive me, to them will I give power to become the sons of God. "
God's greatest gift to his children is for them to be saved in the kingdom of God. The Lord said, "If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God, for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation." This is the gift of all gifts; this is the diploma of all diplomas. This is the degree in salvation that qualifies one for eternal life in the kingdom of God.
Jesus taught that few would find the way to salvation. He commanded his disciples to follow the Lord's way.
He said, "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
Yes, our Heavenly Father so loved us that he sent his only begotten Son down from heaven to this earth that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life, but few find the divine way. Only a few will follow Jesus Christ. Only a few will love God first. Only a few will keep God's commandments. Because they love the lower thoughts and ways of men more than they love the higher thoughts and ways of God. "And this is the condemnation," Jesus said, "that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil."
And again we read from the scriptures:
"For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God.
"For the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
"And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world: and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit.
"And every one that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit cometh unto God, even the Father."
The voice of the Lord continues, "And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things." What a glorious promise!
The light of the Savior is available to everyone who will follow him. This divine light, through repentance, will remove darkness and sin from the soul.
Jesus showed the light of brightness of his divinity to three of his apostles:
" Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John and bringeth them up into an high mountain
"And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
"While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him."
Our Heavenly Father has commanded, "hear ye him."
Jesus Christ was truly a God, living in a mortal body, with divine power; he was sent from heaven, to show mankind God's way to celestial perfection.
The Lord's ways and his thoughts are found in his scriptures.
In a parable, Jesus taught his disciples how they could partake of his life, his light and his power.
He said, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
"Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
"Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
"Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
"I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
"If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
"If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
"Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
" even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
"These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full."
Jesus Christ is the vine and all who sincerely want to become godlike, prepared to live with their Heavenly Father in his kingdom, must receive their strength and power from the Savior. No man cometh unto the Father but by and through Jesus Christ.
The nonproducing branches on the vine, some lost in the darkness and sin of the world, some weak and sick from the blight of evil, some branches fluttering in the winds of worldly pleasure and disrespect for the power to produce godlike fruit through the divine vine, having disrespect for Jesus Christ and for the Father and for their commandments, will be pruned from the vine. They will be cut away from their source of divine nourishment and their chance to become godlike. Pruned away from their divine opportunity, as a child of God, to partake of the light and divine way of life, their chance to live with God was foolishly dissipated away. They failed to feed on the living bread of life.
All of God's children are branches on the vine; all have the opportunity to partake of the life, example, and commandments of Jesus Christ and to become like him.
The Lord also commanded man to build godlike perfection into his life. He said, " I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect."
Divine perfection can only come through and by Jesus Christ, by knowing and following his ways, his truths, and his life. To be perfect we should be charitable, loving, honest, virtuous, upright, clean, and possess every godlike attribute. To become perfect, a child of God should live like a child of God. We can attain perfection by knowing and loving God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind; and by loving our neighbors as ourselves. This leaves no love for the devil or for the darkness of the world.
Perfection comes by seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Perfection comes by praying to a living God through a living Jesus Christ. Perfection comes by knowing and keeping all of God's ways and commandments.
The Apostle Paul, as he counseled the saints to completely and fully accept the Lord, said:
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
Yes, we wrestle against the thoughts and ways of men that are contrary to the thoughts and ways of God.
The whole armor of God will keep the divine light of Jesus Christ inside and the darkness of evil outside. All who wear the full armor of God will be filled with pure love, happiness, peace, and godlike self-respect.
It is a blessing to have a living prophet and living apostles of the Lord to help us to know the higher thoughts and ways of the Lord and to encourage us to put on the whole armor of God and to be perfect even as our Father in heaven is perfect.
May we radiate from our countenance the light of life and walk as Jesus walked.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
In one of the most beautiful prayers ever offered, the Savior invoked the blessings of the Father upon his apostles. He sensed his time was near when he must leave them. He prayed:
"And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
"I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil."
The members of the Church are constantly being reminded that even though they are "in the world, they should not be of the world."
What do we mean by the "world"? President McKay refers to it as those " alienated from the Saints of God. They are aliens to the Church, and it is the spirit of this alienation that we should keep ourselves free from." Elder Bruce R. McConkie defines the "world" as "the social conditions created by such of the inhabitants of the earth as live carnal, sensuous, lustful lives, and who have not put off the natural man by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel."
John, in his epistle, describes the "world" as "the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life." He said:
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
"For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
"And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
It is obvious the "world," as referred to by the Savior, does not mean the sphere on which we live, but an environment created by individuals who live contrary to his teachings.
Just as the Savior prayed that his apostles not be taken out of the world, but kept from the evil of the world, so are members of the Church everywhere praying that by the power of the Holy Ghost and the priesthood they may be strengthened to withstand the "world."
We would not want to be free of our responsibility of being in the world by being taken out of the world, for this life is a probationary state. The "world" is our opportunity to prove ourselves. This is a part of the great plan of the Lord, to be confronted with the things of the "world," that we might overcome them and be strengthened.
As the Lord showed Abraham the creation of the earth, he said: " We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them."
It is important that each of us overcome the "world." "That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment," says the Lord.
Lehi taught, "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. "
It matters not what our nationality, our race, our culture, our academic degree, or our political or social standing. We build security and strength in our lives by living the gospel. President Joseph Fielding Smith said: "And there is no cure for the ills of the world except the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our hope for peace, for temporal and spiritual prosperity, and for an eventual inheritance in the kingdom of God is found only in and through the restored gospel."
May I say to members of the Church everywhere, this is how we establish Zion where we live, by living the gospel, by being pure in heart, by being worthy.
Zion is defined by the Lord as the "pure in heart." The Lord said, " let Zion rejoice, for this is Zion-THE PURE IN HEART; therefore, let Zion rejoice, while all the wicked shall mourn."
Since Zion is defined as the "pure in heart," those who make up Zion must be free from worldly practices and indulgences.
President Lee said to us in last April conference that "The rule by which the people of God must live in order to be worthy of acceptance in the sight of God" is indicated in this scripture: "For Zion must increase in beauty, and in holiness; her borders must be enlarged; her stakes must be strengthened; yea, verily I say unto you, Zion must arise and put on her beautiful garments."
President McKay referred to Zion as the pure in heart and said: " the strength of this Church lies in the purity of the thoughts and lives of its members, then the testimony of Jesus abides in the soul, and strength comes to each individual to withstand the evils of the world."
The righteous lives of members of the Church throughout the world is a great leaven to the gospel loaf. There are many wonderful, honest men and women in the world whose lives are influenced by the teachings of the gospel, as seen in the virtuous lives of good members of the Church.
Everything in the world is not evil. There are many things of virtue, many great men and women working for the finer things of life, who have high standards and live righteously. 'Possibly a good definition of the world would be: "Exposure to things about us, whether good or bad-right or wrong."
President Lee said on one occasion to the youth of the Church: "We don't pray that you may be withdrawn into a 'Shangri-la' away from the evils of the world, because you are to be a leaven wherever you are, to bring about righteousness, but we are pleading with the Lord with all our might that while you are in the world, you may be kept from evil."
There is a great challenge in living in the "world." The concern is not where we live-but how we live. Obedience to the laws of the Lord will bring happiness and peace. We never need apologize for living the standards of the Church. Listen to two stalwart members of the Church who have proven this in their lives.
John K. Edmunds, now president of the Salt Lake Temple, was an outstanding attorney in Chicago for over a quarter of a century. He said, "During all my years in Chicago, I have never felt the necessity for indulging in alcohol, tobacco, tea, or coffee, nor have I ever served or kept these things in our home. And I have never felt the need to apologize for the observance of our church standards.
"I have found no magic formula for keeping the standards of the Church. To me the observance of these standards is a matter of the will. God gives to every man and woman, to every boy and girl who sincerely desire it the power to keep his commandments. "
De Witt J. Paul, who is now serving as a mission president in California and who was an executive of one of the nation's largest financial institutions, states:
" Adhering to gospel standards has never stood in my way. Quite to the contrary, doing so has been an asset rather than a liability. Moreover, it has not been difficult or embarrassing.
"In a world of rather wishy-washy convictions, one who believes in something and lives in accordance with his beliefs is usually admired and respected. I never appreciated this so much as when the chairman of the board of directors of my company one day said to the board members: 'I am retiring, and I propose Mr. Paul as my successor. As you know, Mr. Paul is a Mormon. Mormons have rather high standards to live by, and among other things they do not smoke or drink. I have kept an eye on this fellow for many years now, and never once have I seen him make a slip. I recommend him to you as a man of integrity. '
"It is my experience that there are a lot of very fine people in the world. Just because they do not have my outlook on life has never given me reason to alienate them through prudish self-righteousness. Perhaps herein lies the secret of 'living in the world without being a part of the world.'"
We are living in the most glorious time since the creation of the world. Never before has man been able to do so many remarkable things, see and know so much of the world, have so many conveniences, enjoy so many luxuries.
We are living in the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times, in which the Lord has said: " in the which I will gather together in one all things, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth."
He said further, "For I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times."
The prophet Joel prophesied of the times in which we live when he said, "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
"And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth. "
The Lord has already commenced to pour out his spirit upon all flesh. Since the restoration of the gospel, the Spirit of the Lord has inspired men in the world to accomplish things almost unbelievable to those who behold them. We are able to travel all over the world at incredible speed. Inventions too numerous to mention bless the lives of the inhabitants of the world.
President Wilford Woodruff described this day when he said, "The day has already dawned when the light of heaven is to fill the earth; the day in which the Lord has said that nothing should be kept hidden, the day in which everything that has been kept from the knowledge of man ever since the foundation of the earth, must be revealed; It is a day in which the gospel is to be preached to every nation, tongue and people for a witness of what shall follow. "
The Prophet Joseph wrote an editorial in the Times and Seasons in May 1842 regarding the purpose of the Church in which he indicated the great joy of living in this day:
"The building up of Zion is a cause that has interested the people of God in every age; it is a theme upon which prophets, priests, and kings have dwelt with peculiar delight; they have looked forward with joyful anticipation to the day in which we lived; and fired with heavenly and joyful anticipations, they have sung, and wrote, and prophesied of this our day;-but they died without the sight. "
May we appreciate the privilege that is ours in living in this time, in the beautiful, wonderful world in which we live. May we let the gospel light guide us that we may be in the world and yet not partake of the evil of the world. I so ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
Thirty-four gifted and inspired speakers have preceded me, and now on this autumn day I feel like the last leaf on the tree as I say a few words before President Lee gives his final counsel and blessing. It is not a new experience for me to speak immediately preceding President Lee. I have had that privilege a score of times recently. Each time I have felt like the freshman team before the varsity comes out for the big game.
But I regard this as a great opportunity to add my testimony. I humbly seek the direction of the Holy Spirit as I speak upon a sacred theme.
We have sung in this conference a marvelous hymn, a hymn we have sung in conferences for more than a century: "We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet." It is distinctive with us. As a people we sing some hymns that have come from other churches, and others sing some of ours. But only we can properly sing, "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet to guide us in these latter days."
It was written more than a century ago by a man of humble circumstances who lived in Sheffield, England. He worked in the steel mills and was discharged because he joined the Mormon Church. But there burned in his heart a great and fervent testimony; and out of an overflowing spirit of gratitude, he penned these marvelous lines. They have become a grateful expression of appreciation for millions over the earth. I myself have heard them sung in 21 different languages as a reverent prayer of thanksgiving for divine revelation.
How thankful we ought to be, my brethren and sisters, how thankful we are, for a prophet to counsel us in words of divine wisdom as we walk our paths in these complex and difficult times. The solid assurance we carry in our hearts, the conviction that God will make his will known to his children through his recognized servant is the real basis of our faith and activity. We either have a prophet or we have nothing; and having a prophet, we have everything.
Twelve years ago, in company with the mission president from Hong Kong, it was my opportunity to initiate the work in the Philippines. On April 28, 1961, we held a meeting that will never be forgotten by those of us who were present. We had no hall then in which to meet. We made a request of the United States Embassy for permission to meet on the beautiful porch of the marble memorial in the American military cemetery at Fort McKinley on the outskirts of Manila. We convened at 6:30 in the morning. In that hallowed and sacred place, where are remembered the tragedies of war, we commenced the work of teaching the gospel of peace.
We called upon the only native Filipino member we had been able to locate. He recounted a story which I have never forgotten.
When he was a boy he found in a garbage can an old tattered copy of the Reader's Digest. It contained a condensation of a book giving the story of the Mormon people. It spoke of Joseph Smith and described him as a prophet. The word prophet did something to that boy. Could there actually be a prophet upon the earth? he wondered. The magazine was lost, but concern over the presence of a living prophet never left him during the long, dark years of war and oppression when the Philippines were occupied. Finally the forces of liberation came, and with them the reopening of Clark Air Base. David Lagman found employment there. His supervisor, he learned, was a Mormon, an Air Force officer. He wanted to ask him if he believed in a prophet, but was afraid to do so. Finally, after much inner turmoil, he mustered the courage to inquire.
"Are you a Mormon, sir?" the young man asked. "Yes, I am," was the forthright reply. "Do you believe in a prophet, do you have a prophet in your church?"came the anxious question.
"We do have a prophet, a living prophet, who presides in this church and who teaches the will of the Lord."
David asked the officer to tell him more, and out of that teaching came his baptism. He was the first native elder ordained in the Philippines and today serves as president of the Northern Luzon District of the Church, now knowing for himself that there is indeed a living prophet, on the earth.
Could any people have a greater blessing than to have standing at their head one who receives and teaches the will of God concerning them? We need not look far in the world to know that "the wisdom of the wise has perished and that the understanding of the prudent has come to naught." That wisdom for which the world should seek is the wisdom which comes from God. The only understanding that will save the world is divine understanding.
"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
It was so in the days of Amos and in all the years when holy men of God spake as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost. Those ancient prophets warned not only of things to come, but more importantly, they became the revealers of truth to people. It was they who pointed the way men should live if they were to be happy and find peace in their lives.
I think today of a young man I know who, as a Christian, trying one church after another, could find none that taught of a prophet. Only among the Jewish people did he find reverent mention of the prophets, and so he accepted and embraced the Jewish religion.
In the summer of 1964, he went to New York City and visited the World's Fair. He entered the Mormon Pavilion and saw pictures of the prophets of the Old Testament. His heart warmed within him as he heard the missionaries speak with appreciation of these great men of ages past through whom Jehovah revealed his will. Then, as he progressed through the pavilion, he heard of modern prophets-of Joseph Smith who was called a prophet, a seer, and a revelator. Something stirred within him. His spirit responded to the testimony of the missionaries. He was baptized. He served a mission in South America where he had many converts. He returned home and has since become the means of bringing his family and others into the Church. It is heartwarming to hear him testify that Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet of God and that all who have succeeded him have been legal successors in this high and sacred calling.
Could anyone, willing to read without bias the story of Joseph Smith, doubt that he was a great foreteller of events to come? Nearly thirty years before a shot was fired, he foretold the tragic American Civil War and stated that following that, war would be poured out upon all nations. You and I of this generation are witnesses to the fulfillment of those remarkable words.
He foretold that this people, then living in Illinois, would be driven out, would suffer much affliction, and would become a great and mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains. Our presence today in this great Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City is evidence of the fulfillment of those marvelous words of prophecy.
It has been so with his successors. On a cold winter day in 1849, when our forebears in this valley were hungry and living on sego roots and thistle tops, while gold was being found in California, Brigham Young stood in the old bowery on this square and spoke prophetic words to those who felt they might leave the hardships of life here to go to greener pastures in California. Among other things, he said:
"We have been kicked out of the frying pan into the fire, out of the fire into the middle of the floor, and here we are and here we will stay.
"We shall build a city and a temple to the Most High God in this place. We will extend our settlements to the east and the west, to the north and south, and we will build towns and cities by the hundreds, and thousands of saints will gather in from the nations of the earth.
"This will become the great highway of the nations. Kings and emperors and the noble and the wise of the earth will visit us here. "
How could anyone stand in the Visitors Center to the north of us and witness the hundreds of thousands, yes, the millions, who come each year to visit us, and have any doubt that Brigham Young spoke other than as a prophet? Over the years there has been a veritable parade of notables who have found their way to the office of the First Presidency, there to meet particularly the man whom we sustain as the president of the Church and as the prophet of our day. They include leaders in the governments of the earth, in business and commerce, in education, in the professions. These are among "the noble and the wise of the earth" of whom Brigham Young spoke when we were an outcast people, isolated in a mountain wilderness.
Two weeks ago we were riding a plane from San Francisco to Sydney, Australia. We noted a young man in a nearby seat reading the book Joseph Smith, an American Prophet. When opportunity presented itself, I spoke to him. I told him that I had read the book, that I had known the author, and asked him what his interest was. He said, among other things, that he had an interest in prophets and that this matter of a possible modern prophet had intrigued him. He had picked up the book at the library. We had a lengthy conversation in which I bore my witness that Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet. Not only did he speak of things to come, but more importantly, he was a revealer of eternal truth and a testifier of the divine mission of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am hopeful that that young man, as he continues his studies, will have come into his heart a similar testimony. I feel confident that he will.
I am profoundly grateful, my brethren and sisters, not only for Joseph Smith as the prophet who served as an instrument in the hands of the Almighty in restoring this work, but also for all of those who have followed him. A study of their lives will reveal the manner in which the Lord has chosen them, has refined them, and has molded them to his eternal purposes. Joseph Smith declared on one occasion: "I am like a huge, rough stone rolling down from a high mountain; with all hell knocking off a corner here and a corner there, and thus I will become a smooth and polished shaft in the quiver of the Almighty."
He was hated and persecuted. He was driven and imprisoned. He was abused and beaten. And as you read his history, you see the evolution of which he spoke. There developed a power in his life. There came a refinement. There grew a love for others which even overcame his own love for life. The corners of that rough stone were knocked off, and he became a polished shaft in the hand of the Almighty.
It has been so with those who have succeeded him. Through long years of dedicated service, they have been refined and winnowed and chastened and molded for the purposes of the Almighty. Could anyone doubt this after reading the lives of such men as Brigham Young, Wilford Woodruff, and Joseph F. Smith? The Lord subdued their hearts and refined their natures to prepare them for the great and sacred responsibility later thrust upon them. It has been so with him who stands as President of the Church today, our beloved leader, President Harold B. Lee. I hope he will pardon me. I do not wish to embarrass him. But can one who knows something of his life deny the same influences at work? He came out of circumstances that would today be classed as poverty. From firsthand experience he knows the meaning of hard manual labor. He served as a missionary and was rejected by most of those upon whom he called. He sacrificed for an education. He has known serious illness when life seemed to hang by a thread. He has walked through deep and dark valleys of sorrow. Looking back upon the history of his life, it all appears to be part of a pattern, a refining process that he might better understand the trials, the afflictions, the sorrows of others. And yet, with all of this, there is a great buoyancy of spirit that rises above the tragic and the sorrowful and lifts to higher ground all of those he touches and influences.
As one who recently walked with him as a junior companion in the missions of Europe and England, I have seen young people eagerly press about him with tears in their eyes and smiles, sweet and beautiful, upon their faces. I have seen missionaries sit enraptured as he taught from the scriptures, speaking, like the Master, "as one having authority." I have seen little children sit almost motionless as he spoke their language and led them to understand sacred truths of the sacrament. I have seen elderly men and women weep as he blessed them.
I have seen few things more touching than a strong young man embracing the President and then later with tear-moistened eyes saying, "Never have I been so near to heaven."
As one to whom the spirit has borne witness, I testify of his prophetic calling, and add my voice to the voices of our people over the earth, "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet to guide us in these latter days." I am grateful. I am satisfied that the peace and the progress and the prosperity of this people lie in doing the will of the Lord as that will is articulated by him who shall speak to us as we close this great conference. If we fail to observe his counsel, we repudiate his sacred calling. If we abide his counsel, we shall be blessed of God.
-LDS Hymns, no. 386
God lives and is a revealer of eternal truth. Jesus Christ is our Savior and stands at the head of this Church. We have a prophet upon the earth, a seer and a revelator to teach us. God give us the faith and the discipline within ourselves to follow that teaching, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Harold B. Lee
If the Lord will give me utterance, there are a few things I should like to say to you. We have members of the Church in all parts of the world. One of the anxious centers right today is over in Israel, where a war is raging. As yet we don't know very much about the extent of it, but it seems that Egypt and Syria are moving into areas of Israel.
We have a number of our BYU students there, and also we have a branch of the Church organized in Jerusalem. We have had anxious parents who have been wondering, watching, waiting. The word has come to us that they are all safe and they are being watched over. You can be sure that we have shepherds of the flock, and we will continue to pray with you that no harm will come to any of them.
There has been turmoil down in Chile, where we have thousands of members of the Church and almost two hundred missionaries. The word comes to us, from one of the presiding authorities who has been here from Santiago, that there has been no loss of life as far as we know. Our people are holding fast, not taking part in the political turmoil, rising above it, as true members of the Church of Jesus Christ are expected to do, giving allegiance to those who are in command, and not wishing to take sides, but merely to bow their heads and yield obedience to the authority of the government where they are.
We pray for our Saints everywhere, pray that they will hold steadfast. But, some of the greatest of our enemies are those within our own ranks. It was the lament of the Master, as he witnessed one of those chosen men, who under inspiration he chose as one of the Twelve, betray him with a kiss and for a few paltry pieces of silver turn him over to his enemies. Judas then stood by and, realizing the enormity of what he had done, took the only escape out to sacrifice himself. And Jesus could only explain that of the Twelve, meaning Judas, he had a devil.
When we see some of our own today doing similar things, some who have been recognized and honored in the past as teachers and leaders who later fall by the wayside, our hearts are made sore and tender. But sometimes we have to say just like the Master said, "The devil must have entered into them."
A few years ago, we had a woman who had written some scurrilous things about the Prophet Joseph Smith. Shortly thereafter, I met someone on the street and they asked me if there had been a revelation or an utterance at the recently concluded general conference that might be considered as a prophecy. And I said, "Did you hear the closing remarks of President George Albert Smith as he closed the conference? If you did, you heard a prophet speaking, and let me tell you what he said." I happened to have a clipping in my wallet. This is what President George Albert Smith said:
"Many have belittled Joseph Smith, but those who have will be forgotten in the remains of mother earth, and the odor of their infamy will ever be with them, but honor, majesty, and fidelity to God, exemplified by Joseph Smith and attached to his name, will never die."
No truer words were ever spoken, and that person fell just as all others will fall who try to tear down the work of the Lord.
We have had some who, writing in the public press occasionally, are among those who have fallen by the wayside. They befoul the honored family names that they have. They have disgraced the honors that we had given to them in times past. They are trying to join the forces of the enemy against the work of the Lord. And we can say to them, as President George Albert Smith said then, "Those who have will be forgotten in the remains of mother earth, and the odor of the infamy will ever be with them, but honor, majesty, and fidelity to God, exemplified by the leaders of this church and attached to their names, will never die."
I always remember the word of the Lord when I hear these things said by those who are trying to tear down his work. The Lord has said:
"Wherefore, confound your enemies; call upon them to meet you both in public and in private;
"Wherefore, let them bring forth their strong reasons against the Lord.
"Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you-there is no weapon that is formed against you, shall prosper;
"And if any man lift his voice against you he shall be confounded in mine own due time.
"Wherefore, keep my commandments. "
What he is trying to have us understand is that he will take care of our enemies if we continue to keep the commandments. So, you Saints of the Most High God, when these things come, and they will come-this has been prophesied-you just say,
"No weapon formed against the work of the Lord will ever prosper, but all glory and majesty of this work that the Lord gave will long be remembered after those who have tried to befoul their names and the name of the Church will be forgotten, and their works will follow after them."
We feel sorry for them when we see these things happen.
Now, one thing more I should like to say. I am sure that many people came to this conference with many questions on their minds, seeking to know the answers to some of the troublesome things about them, wanting to know what to do in this case or in that case, how to act under these circumstances. As we have listened to their questions, we have remembered what the Lord said here in the preface to the revelations. He said:
"And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people." And then he continued, "What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."
In another great revelation he explained something else that we would have the Saints remember today. Where are you going to go to hear and find out what the Lord wants you to do today? The Lord declared again:
"And this is the ensample unto them, that they shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost.
"And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
To the Twelve shortly after the organization of the Church, he said something else that I would like you to remember before I draw one or two conclusions from what the Lord has told us. The Lord here is talking about the revelations that had been compiled up to that time in the Doctrine and Covenants.
First may I quote something that the Prophet Joseph Smith said about the Book of Mormon: "I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." And then he added, "If we didn't have the Book of Mormon and the revelations of God, we would have nothing."
It is that foundation upon which the Church and kingdom of God is built in our day; and so with respect to these revelations the Lord said this, as may be found in the eighteenth section of the Doctrine and Covenants:
"And now I speak unto you, the Twelve-Behold my grace is sufficient for you; you must walk uprightly before me and sin not.
"And I, Jesus Christ, your Lord and your God, have spoken it.
"These words are not of men nor of man, but of me; wherefore, you shall testify they are of me and not of man;
"For it is my voice which speaketh them unto you; for they are given by my Spirit unto you, and by my power you can read them one to another; and save it were by my power you could not have them."
And then he added this, listen: "Wherefore, you can testify that you have heard my voice, and know my words." For as I have already quoted, he said, " whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."
Now, you Latter-day Saints, I think you have never attended a conference where in these three days you have heard more inspired declarations on most every subject and problem about which you have been worrying. If you want to know what the Lord would have the Saints know and to have his guidance and direction for the next six months, get a copy of the proceedings of this conference, and you will have the latest word of the Lord as far as the Saints are concerned. And all others who are not of us, but who believe what has been said has been "the mind of the Lord, the will of the Lord, and the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
As I say, realizing that is a very bold statement to make, I have thought of a great revelation where the Lord said something about the creation of the universe. In the eighty-eighth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord said:
"The earth rolls upon her wings, and the sun giveth his light by day, and the moon giveth her light by night, and the stars also give their light, as they roll upon their wings in their glory, in the midst of the power of God.
"Unto what shall I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand?
"Behold, all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these hath seen God moving in his majesty and power."
Likewise I say to you, as I stand with you and see the moving hand of the Lord in the affairs of the nations of the world today, we are seeing the signs of our times as foretold by the prophets and by the Master himself, and we see what is happening and the things transpiring before us in our day. In the Church, we have been witnessing some of the most dramatic things, and I can testify that you are seeing what the Lord is revealing for the needs of this people today.
May I paraphrase what the Lord has said in this great revelation from which I have quoted: any man who has seen any of the least of these happenings among us today, has seen God today moving in his majesty and in his power. Let us make no mistake about that.
Where else can you go for guidance? Where is there safety in the world today? Safety can't be won by tanks and guns and the airplanes and atomic bombs. There is only one place of safety and that is within the realm of the power of Almighty God that he gives to those who keep his commandments and listen to his voice, as he speaks through the channels that he has ordained for that purpose.
In the answer that he gave to his disciples, when he told them that he was coming again, he explained some important things to them. The disciples asked him, " Tell us, when shall these things be and the end of the world or the destruction of the wicked, which is the end of the world?" In their question, you have the definition of what it means to say "the end of the world."
And then he gave to his disciples what we read in the twenty-fourth chapter of the Book of Matthew, what may be better understood from the Inspired Version, which is found in the Pearl of Great Price. He said, when the fig tree "begins to put forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh at hand."
He gave them certain signs by which they might know that his coming was nigh, even at their very doors. There will be great tribulation upon the Jews and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, "such as was not before sent upon Israel, of God, since the beginning of their kingdom until this time; no, nor ever shall be sent again upon Israel."
"And except those days should be shortened, there should none of their flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake, according to the covenant, those days shall be shortened.
"Behold, these things I have spoken unto you concerning the Jews; and again, after the tribulations of those days which shall come upon Jerusalem, if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there, believe him not;
"For in those days there shall also arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch, that, if possible, they shall deceive the very elect, who are the elect according to the covenant."
"Wherefore, if they shall say unto you: Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth; Behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not;
"For as the light of the morning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be."
Then he speaks of the wars that shall come: " for nations shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
"And again, because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold; but he that shall not be overcome, the same shall be saved.
"And again, this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come, or the destruction of the wicked;
"And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
"Verily, I say unto you, this generation, in which these things shall be shown forth, shall not pass away until all I have told you shall be fulfilled.
"But of that day, and hour, no one knoweth; no, not the angels of God in heaven, but my Father only.
"But as it was in the days of Noah, so it shall be also at the coming of the Son of Man;
"For it shall be with them, as it was in the days which were before the flood; for until the day that Noah entered into the ark they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage;
"And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be.
"Then shall be fulfilled that which is written, that in the last days, two shall be in the field, the one shall be taken, and the other left;
"Two shall be grinding at the mill, the one shall be taken, and the other left;
"And what I say unto one, I say unto all men; watch, therefore, for you know not at what hour your Lord doth come.
"Therefore be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh."
Brothers and sisters, this is the day the Lord is speaking of. You see the signs are here. Be ye therefore ready. The Brethren have told you in this conference how to prepare to be ready. We have never had a conference where there has been so much direct instruction, so much admonition; when the problems have been defined and also the solution to the problem has been suggested.
Let us not turn a deaf ear now, but listen to these as the words that have come from the Lord, inspired of him, and we will be safe on Zion's hill, until all that the Lord has for his children shall have been accomplished.
And so, in the closing moments of this conference, I have been moved as I think I have never been moved before in all my life. If it were not for the assurance that I have that the Lord is near to us, guiding, directing, the burden would be almost beyond my strength, but because I know that he is there, and that he can be appealed to, and if we have ears to hear attuned to him, we will never be left alone.
I am grateful for strong men like President Tanner and President Romney and the Twelve and all the General Authorities, who are united more so than I have ever experienced before during my lifetime. The General Authorities are united and working together and are speaking with one voice to the world.
Follow the Brethren, listen to the Brethren. I bear you my witness as one whom the Lord has brought to this place, as Brother Gordon Hinckley has said. I thank the Lord that I may have passed some of the tests, but maybe there will have to be more before I shall have been polished to do all that the Lord would have me do.
Sometimes when the veil has been very thin, I have thought that if the struggle had been still greater that maybe then there would have been no veil. I stand by, not asking for anything more than the Lord wants to give me, but I know that he is up there and he is guiding and directing.
I extend my blessings to you wonderful Saints. Go back to your homes now. Take the love of the General Authorities to your people. We extend to those who are not members of the Church the hand of fellowship. May we reach out to those who have lost their sense of direction and, before it is too late, try to win them back into the fold; because they are all God's children, and he wants us to save all of them.
Peace be with you, not the peace that comes from the legislation in the halls of congress, but the peace that comes in the way that the Master said, by overcoming all the things of the world. That God may help us so to understand and may you know that I know with a certainty that defies all doubt that this is his work, that he is guiding us and directing us today, as he has done in every dispensation of the gospel, and I say that with all the humility of my soul, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
My brothers and sisters and friends, another April has come, and with it the birthdate of the Church, organized on the birthday of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, which we have celebrated on the sixth of April. This weekend, we conduct the 144th Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The last three conferences we had as our leader President Harold B. Lee, whom we miss greatly today. He was a man of many talents, of great strength and courage, and with an obsession to follow the instructions of the Lord.
Since December 26, we have been lonely without him. He was as a high peak in a mighty range of impregnable mountains. He has become an important part of eternity.
Sister Jo M. Shaw has written lines in memory of him, and may I quote those words as I express humbly, but sincerely, our love and affection for President Harold B. Lee. We are grateful to have Sister Lee with us today.
We would not have had it thus, but now the only thing for us to do is press forward firmly.
In the press conferences an ever-recurring question has been asked us: "Mr. President, what are you going to do now that you have the leadership of the Church in your hands?"
My answer has been that for the past 30 years, as a member of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, I have had a little to do with the making of policies and the formation of the present extensive, full, and comprehensive program. I anticipate no major changes in the immediate future, but do hope to give increased emphasis to some of the programs already established. This is a day of consolidating our efforts, and firming up our programs, and reaffirming our policies.
We recognize our greatest problem is our rapid growth. Our increase in numbers is phenomenal, for the population has doubled in these past few years. Thirty years ago we counted our members in hundreds of thousands, and today over three million. There were 146 stakes in 1943 when I first visited stakes, and today there are some 635 stakes. There were 38 missions in 1943; today there are 107. In 1943 there were no stakes overseas, and now 70. This unprecedented growth pleases us, but challenges us tremendously. We are interested in numbers only incidentally. We are obsessed first to see that all men obtain eternal life.
The monumental challenge in 1974, then, is to provide trained leadership for the fast-multiplying units of members and to help that membership to keep clean from that world in which they must live. May we then reaffirm some vital matters which concern us.
One is our civil obligations. We are approaching election time, when we must choose again those persons who will represent us in positions of responsibility in our civil government-federal, state, and local.
Early in this dispensation the Lord made clear the position his restored church should take with respect to civil government. In the revelation he gave to the Prophet Joseph Smith, he said: "And now, verily I say unto you concerning the law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me.
"Therefore, I, the Lord, justify you in befriending that law which is the constitutional law of the land."
In harmony with this statement, the Church later adopted as one of its Articles of Faith: "We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law."
In 1835 at a general assembly the Church adopted by unanimous vote a "Declaration of Belief regarding Governments and Laws in general," in which it said:
"We believe that all governments necessarily require civil officers and magistrates to enforce the laws of the same; and that such as will administer the law in equity and justice should be sought for and upheld by the voice of the people if a republic, or the will of the sovereign."
In 1903 President Joseph F. Smith said, "The Church does not engage in politics; its members belong to the political parties at their own pleasure. "
And in the October conference in 1951, the First Presidency said:
"A threat to our unity derives from unseemly personal antagonisms developed in partisan political controversy. The Church, while reserving the right to advocate principles of good government underlying equity, justice, and liberty, the political integrity of officials, and the active participation of its members, and the fulfillment of their obligations in civic affairs, exercises no constraint on the freedom of individuals to make their own choices and affiliations any man who makes representation to the contrary does so without authority and justification in fact."
Now these statements we reaffirm as setting forth the position of the Church today concerning civil government and politics.
Furthermore, in order to implement our divine charge to seek for such "civil officers as will administer the law in equity and justice," we urge Church members to attend the mass meetings of their respective political parties and there exercise their influence.
Every Latter-day Saint should sustain, honor, and obey the constitutional law of the land in which he lives.
Along with our unprecedented growth, our next problem is definitely the world-not the high ranges and the wide valleys and the hot deserts and the deep oceans, but the pattern of life to which too many of our people gear their lives.
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world," said John. "If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
"For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world."
The encroachment of the world into our lives is threatening! How hard it seems for many of us to live in the world and yet not of the world.
Through Isaiah the word of the Lord comes:
"And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible."
When Satan took the Lord into an exceeding high mountain, he promised, "All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me."
"These things" were the dens of vice and areas of sin and physical gratification and lustful temptations.
Long ago the Lord made his plans with great precision and announced them, saying, "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
His further words: " that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory."
Now the works of the flesh are many, as given by Paul: " perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, Without natural affection incontinent ", " vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another inventors of evil things ", thieves, drunkards, extortioners.
"Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God."
These are some of the ugly acts and activities that we call the world.
Just before the crucifixion, the Lord pleaded, "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil."
This is the prayer we continually utter, and our major effort is to see that the members of the Church are sanctified through their righteousness.
These ugly transgressions Paul called "doctrines of devils," and their authors "seducing spirits." These distortions of the normal life have not changed in this century, except possibly to grow more vile and permissive and vulgar and degenerate.
And we plead with our people everywhere, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
Our sermon is one of reaffirmation and reassurance. We urge our people to "stand in holy places."
What we are saying today is not new doctrine, but as old as the day of creation.
There may be some who have a general feeling of uneasiness because of world conditions and lengthening shadows of evil, but the Lord said, " if ye are prepared ye shall not fear", and again, "Peace I leave with you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
You have come here seeking guidance. It is the purpose of your leaders to give that direction. As the brethren speak, you will feel the inspiration of our Lord. The gospel gives purpose in our lives. It is the way to happiness.
Sister Eliza R. Snow wrote of our Lord:
LDS Hymns, no. 68.
Now the family is basic. We are children of our Heavenly Father, and as he loves us, so our souls are bound up in our posterity. All the morals are woven into the warp and woof of the gospel of Christ.
The lighted way, then, brings us to normal, clean courting of young men and women, coming eventually to a virtuous union at an altar where a fully authorized servant of God seals the union for eternity. The Hebrew saints were properly taught, "Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge."
And to those who might decry marriage or postpone it or forbid it Paul spoke, condemning them. It is generally selfishness, cold and self-centered, which leads people to shun marriage responsibility. There are many who talk and write against marriage. Even some of our own delay marriage and argue against it. To all who are deceived by these "doctrines of devils," we urge the return to normalcy. We call upon all people to accept normal marriage as a basis for true happiness. The Lord did not give sex to man for a plaything. Basically marriage presupposes a family. The psalmist said:
"Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.
"Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them. "
Certainly anyone who purposely denies himself or herself honorable parenthood is to be pitied, for the great joy of parenthood is fundamental in the normal, full life, and we remember the command of God in the beginning, " Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it. "
Then the recorder writes: "And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. "
In our dispensation comes the doctrine: " for are given unto to multiply and replenish the earth, according to commandment, and for their exaltation in the eternal worlds, that they may bear the souls of men; for herein is the work of my Father continued, that he may be glorified."
We decry the prevalence of broken homes. Every man should love his wife and cherish and protect her all the days of their lives and she should love, honor, and appreciate her husband; and we hear the historian Moses quoting his Lord: "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."
Paul says: "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.
"For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church.
"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.
"So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.
"For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church."
This is often misunderstood, both by husbands and by wives. Consider it well, and do not contend nor argue with your Heavenly Father. When a man gives leadership in his home as Christ gives leadership in his church, little else can be desired.
Analyze the divorces of which you know, and you will find so often selfishness is in them.
Most divorces are unwarranted and come of weakness and selfishness and often result in great unhappiness for the divorced persons and also almost irreparable damage and frustration to the unfavored children, who are torn and disturbed.
Certainly, selfishness is near its greatest peak when innocent children must suffer for the sins of their parents. Almost like a broken record come from divorcees that it is better to have them grow up in a single-parent home than a fighting home. The answer to that specious argument is: there need be no battling parents in fighting homes.
Someone checked a long list of divorces and found that almost all of them came about through selfishness, where people were determined to get as much as they could and give as little as possible. It was found in this survey that about 90 percent gave as the reason for the breakup immorality on the part of one or both of the participants.
Immorality is totally selfish. Can you think of a single unselfish element in that sin? Accordingly, if two good people will discard selfishness, generally they can be compatible.
Again, abortion is a growing evil that we speak against. Certainly the terrible sin of premeditated abortion would be hard to justify. It is almost inconceivable that an abortion would ever be committed to save face or embarrassment, to save trouble or inconvenience, or to escape responsibility. How could one submit to such an operation or be party in any way by financing or encouraging? If special rare cases could be justified, certainly they would be rare indeed. We place it high on the list of sins against which we strongly warn the people.
"Abortion must be considered one of the most revolting and sinful practices in this day, when we are witnessing the frightful evidence of permissiveness leading to sexual immorality."
As to drugs " the Church has consistently opposed the improper and harmful use of drugs or similar substances under circumstances which would result in addiction, physical or mental impairment or in lowering moral standards." We reaffirm this positive statement.
Then in the area of one of Satan's most destructive evils, we strongly warn all our people from childhood to old age to beware of the chains of bondage, suffering, and remorse which come from improper use of the body.
The human body is the sacred home of the spirit child of God, and unwarranted tampering with or defilement of this sacred tabernacle can bring only remorse and regret. We urge: stay clean, uncontaminated, undefiled.
Jude says: " There should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts."
We urge, with Peter, " Abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul." No indecent exposure or pornography or other aberrations to defile the mind and spirit. No fondling of bodies, one's own or that of others, and no sex between persons except in proper marriage relationships. This is positively prohibited by our Creator in all places, at all times, and we reaffirm it. Even in marriage there can be some excesses and distortions. No amount of rationalization to the contrary can satisfy a disappointed Father in heaven. In this connection, we quote a paragraph from a popular evangelist, Billy Graham:
" The Bible celebrates sex and its proper use, presenting it as God-created, God-ordained, God-blessed. It makes plain that God himself implanted the physical magnetism between the sexes for two reasons: for the propagation of the human race, and for the expression of that kind of love between man and wife that makes for true oneness. His command to the first man and woman to be 'one flesh' was as important as his command to 'be fruitful and multiply.'
"The Bible makes plain that evil, when related to sex means not the use of something inherently corrupt but the misuse of something pure and good. It teaches clearly that sex can be a wonderful servant but a terrible master: that it can be a creative force more powerful than any other in the fostering of a love, companionship, happiness or can be the most destructive of all of life's forces."
We reaffirm again our strong, unalterable stand against unchastity in all of its many manifestations.
Now our mothers have a sacred role. The following is a partial quote from the First Presidency of the Church. We reaffirm it strongly:
"Motherhood thus becomes a holy calling, a sacred dedication for carrying out the Lord's plans, a consecration of devotion to the uprearing and fostering, the nurturing in body, mind, and spirit, of those who kept their first estate and who come to this earth for their second estate 'to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them.' To lead them to keep their second estate is the work of motherhood, and 'they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.'
"This divine service of motherhood can be rendered only by mothers. It may not be passed to others. Nurses cannot do it; public nurseries cannot do it; hired help cannot do it-only mother, aided as much as may be by the loving hands of father, brothers, and sisters, can give the full needed measure of watchful care.
"The mother who entrusts her child to the care of others, that she may do non-motherly work, whether for gold, for fame, or for civic service should remember that 'a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.' In our day the Lord has said that unless parents teach their children the doctrines of the Church 'the sin be upon the heads of the parents.'
"Motherhood is near to Divinity. It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind. It places her who honors its holy calling and service next to the angels. To you mothers in Israel we say, God bless and protect you, and give you the strength and courage, the faith and knowledge, the holy love and consecration to duty, that shall enable you to fill to the fullest measure the sacred calling which is yours. To you mothers and mothers-to-be we say: Be chaste, keep pure, live righteously, that your posterity to the last generation may call you blessed."
This, then, is our program: to reaffirm and boldly carry forward the work of God in cleanliness, uprightness, and to take that gospel of truth to that world that needs so much that godly life.
Eternal life is our goal. It can be reached only by following the path our Lord has marked out for us.
I know this is true and right. I love our Heavenly Father and I love his Son, and I am proud to be even a weak vessel to push forward their great eternal work. I testify to all this humbly, sincerely, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
As we listened to the remarks of President Kimball, there came into my mind the words of the hymn Latter-day Saints love to sing:
LDS Hymns, no. 196.
It would seem of the utmost importance that thinking people everywhere should conscientiously reflect upon their spiritual assets. Man is a dual being, spiritual and physical. Whether it be an individual or a nation, he or it cannot achieve permanent success or happiness without spirituality. Paul said: "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace."
There is a constant battle between the things of the flesh and the things of God-the desire for peace and the attractions of the flesh. It is also a well-known fact that in times of prosperity man is often tempted to forget God, but in days of trial and sorrow he prays unto the Lord that his countenance may smile upon him and that the Lord will remember him in the days of his affliction. This pertains to peoples as well as individuals.
The world needs today a return to the outmoded standards of character. We need to return to a faith in God and a determination to serve him.
The following excerpt from a statement in the Evening and Morning Star of July 1832 is as pertinent today as it was at the time it was first published:
"The old world was destroyed for rejecting the revelations of God given to them through Noah. The Israelites were destroyed in the wilderness for despising the revelations given to them through Moses; and Christ said that the world, in the days of the apostles, would be condemned for not receiving the word of God through them: thus we see that the judgments of God in the past ages have come upon the people, not so much for neglecting the revelations given to their forefathers, as for rejecting those given immediately to themselves."
We are living in an important time in the history of mankind and in the history of the Church. People are confused. There was a time when they were willing to accept the word of their ministers and religious advisers, but that time is changing. Regretfully, some ministers of religion are as confused as are the members of their flocks, and, among other mistaken ideas, have come out against the Ten Commandments, declaring that they are out of date and irrelevant to modern society.
As recorded by Matthew, the Lord said to the people at that time:
"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
"Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."
In our own modern scriptures, we read:
"And now, behold, I speak unto the church. Thou shalt not kill; and he that kills shall not have forgiveness in this world, nor in the world to come.
"Thou shalt not steal; and he that stealeth and will not repent shall be cast out."
And again:
"Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Thou shalt not steal; neither commit adultery, nor kill, nor do anything like unto it."
We are living in a time of unrest, or fear, in many respects. Men with money are in doubt as to how they should invest it so that it may be safe. Parents of children are concerned as to where their children are and what they are thinking and doing. Men and women of religious faith are seeking a church, a doctrine that will satisfy their longing and their desire to find a religion that will satisfy their yearning.
"But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
"For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
"And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh."
We cannot expect permanent peace, nor will it come until such time as the hearts of men are turned to peace, and men will not have peace in their hearts until they no longer permit selfishness to be their ruling power. Until men recognize God as the ruler of the universe and his Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior and Redeemer of the world, Satan will reign in the hearts of men. Man must love God and his neighbor as himself. Man the world o'er must recognize that we are all the children of God, truly brothers and sisters, before peace in the true sense will prevail upon the earth.
The following is an excerpt from President McKay's remarks at the Christmas program in the Church Office Building, December 22, 1961:
"Jesus taught that God-like character is not a thing of favor or chance, it is a natural result of continued effort and right thinking, the effect of long cherished association with God-like thoughts. That man is not at peace who is untrue to the whisperings of Christ and the promptings of his conscience. He cannot be at peace when he is untrue to his better self, when he transgresses the law of righteousness in any way, either in dealing with himself or indulging his passions, his appetites, yielding in any way to the temptations of the flesh, or whether he is untrue to a trust imposed upon him, transgressing the law of righteousness in dealing with his fellowmen. Peace does not come to the transgressor of law; peace comes by obedience to law, and it is that message which Jesus would have us portray among men. Peace is to the individual that he may be at peace with his God, perfect harmony existing between himself and law, the righteous laws to which he is subject and from which he can never escape. Life is a struggle, really a struggle to gain mastery over these tendencies, the animal part of our being."
No one can have complete peace in his heart who shuts out of his heart and soul, by harboring immoral thoughts or indulging in improper conduct, those thoughts and actions that pertain to a godlike life. By neglecting to give heed to the will of God as revealed through the prophets of the Lord, by succumbing to the wiles of the adversary and indulging in unrighteous behavior, by yielding to evil passions and destructive appetites, by failure to give heed to the revealed will of the Lord, one cannot enjoy the peace of which the Lord spoke when he said: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. "
The commandments which have been given by the Lord to his prophets in this dispensation pertain to eternal truth and set forth the mind and will of the Lord to his people in this day and age, which is the dispensation of the fulness of times, preparing a people to be worthy to meet the Lord when he shall come again in power and in glory. There are those who would desire to destroy this great nation and its liberties for which our forefathers struggled and fought and bled, and there are also those whose great ambition is to cast reflection and doubt upon the revelations and teachings of the Church. They seriously question God's revealed word and seem to have no desire for or interest in matters pertaining to the Spirit, which are of an eternal nature.
The Lord has revealed to us in our time a life-shaping purpose in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. It is given to us to bless mankind. It is our responsibility to carry its message, the message of salvation and exaltation, the message of freedom and happiness, to all mankind, that none may be left without excuse. He that is warned must warn his neighbor. While it is only natural and proper that we should desire and seek those things of a temporal nature that tend to make mortal life wholesome and pleasurable, it is of the utmost importance that we keep in mind the great purpose of life, which is to prepare us for eternal life-the salvation and exaltation of the souls of God's children.
Like ancient Israel, modern Israel is a peculiar people in that we believe and know that we have constant revelation from God, revealing to us those things that are of eternal value, those things which pertain to the salvation of our own souls. There is no greater service in which we can be engaged than that of helping our fellowmen and ourselves to attain the glorious salvation which is dependent upon obedience to the principles of righteousness which he has revealed.
Many years ago with President Heber J. Grant and others it was my privilege to witness work that was being carried forward in the construction of the Hoover Dam near Las Vegas, Nevada. Some of those present at that time, including President Grant, went to the top of the dam on a makeshift elevator as far as it was completed at that time, and they then climbed a ladder still higher where the concrete was being poured. This concrete, which consisted of boulders and rocks, was held together by cement. Without the cement, which held the rocks together, the dam could not have been made effective in holding back that great stream of water. There would be just a pile or mass of boulders which would have been washed away when the flood waters came against it. But with the cement, a dam curving between the deep sides of the canyon was built in accordance with mathematical principles, one that now holds back the water and brings it into control and provides water for the thirsty land and makes possible, through the great turbines that were built, the creation of electricity to bring light and blessing to peoples far and wide.
Our lives consist of this act and that act, this experience and that, one accomplishment after another. But if we are to accomplish the great purpose of our earth life, we must have power to resist the forces of the evil one; we must overcome the weaknesses of the flesh; we must distinguish between the physical desires and the spiritual strength, which latter provides the cement that makes possible the accomplishment of life's purposes and goal.
And what is that life-giving purpose, that goal toward which we should all be striving? It is the gospel of Jesus Christ as restored to man in this great dispensation. It is, of course, necessary that we have the physical necessities of life. It is natural that we should want the things that make life, physical life, desirable and pleasurable. But if in obtaining such things we neglect those things that are of eternal worth, the spiritual part of life, then we have mistaken the chaff for the wheat of life. We have failed to recognize the eternal purpose of our existence. We have neglected the cement which is necessary if we are to build a life that will make our calling and election sure-yes, eternal life in the presence of our Heavenly Father.
Again may I say it is of the utmost importance that people everywhere reflect upon their spiritual assets and spiritual strength, thus preparing themselves for eternal life in the kingdom of our Heavenly Father. That we may do this I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder John H. Vandenberg
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Visiting with some of the members of the Church at the Munich conference last summer, a young lady, a recent convert, queried: "Since we are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, why do we refer to ourselves as Mormons?"
Joseph Fielding Smith, in responding to a similar question, said: "The Nephites believed in Christ; they wrote and prophesied of him and his mission, and while there is no opprobrium that can justly be attached to one who believes in the Book of Mormon, there is no valid reason why Latter-day Saints should speak of themselves as 'Mormons' or of the Church as the 'Mormon Church.' The mission of persuading people to believe in Christ, the Son of God, and of becoming members of His Church-the church of Jesus Christ."
A flashback in my mind recalled to my memory an incident when two business acquaintances entered my office and greeted me with, "You're a Mormon; tell us, where does the word Mormon come from and what is its meaning?" My response was, "The word Mormon was the name of an ancient prophet of God. He lived on the American continent a few hundred years after the advent of Christ. He had at his disposal a continuous religious and historical record of the people who had migrated to, and lived for hundreds of years on, the American continents. Mormon made an abridgment of these records, which contained the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The record was engraved on gold plates and deposited in a hill known as Cumorah, located in what we now know to be the state of New York. In this latter day, under divine direction, Joseph Smith obtained the plates and translated them by the power of God. This abridgment was titled the Book of Mormon. The meaning of the word, as given by Joseph Smith, is 'more good.'" The gentlemen seemed interested, thanked me, and departed without further comment.
In retrospect I have recalled this experience and pondered over the words more good, which undoubtedly mean "an extension of the good." Joseph Smith, in commenting on the subject, referred to the Bible as being "good." As to the Book of Mormon, he stated: "It may be well to observe here, that the Lord greatly encouraged and strengthened the faith of his little flock, which had embraced the fulness of the everlasting Gospel, as revealed to them in the Book of Mormon, by giving some more extended information upon the scriptures. "
Religious history confirms through the Bible that the very basic truths- the nature of the Godhead and revelation through the prophets-which are essential to the salvation of mankind, were available to the religious leaders through the centuries before and after the advent of the Savior. Yet because of transgressions there was a turning away from these truths, and there was a fulfillment of the prediction of the apostle Paul, who said: "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
"That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that day of Christ is at hand.
"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition."
President Joseph Fielding Smith summed up well what had happened as he said: "It should be remembered that the entire Christian world in 1820 had lost the true doctrine concerning God. The simple truth which was understood so clearly by the apostles and saints of old had been lost in the mysteries of an apostate world. All the ancient prophets, and the apostles of Jesus Christ had a clear understanding that the Father and the Son were separate personages, as our scriptures so clearly teach. Through apostasy this knowledge was lost, and in the year 325 A.D., a strange doctrine was introduced and soon spread throughout the Christian world. This doctrine confounded the persons of the Godhead, and distorted the true doctrine of God."
There is no question that Jesus taught the very nature of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost-three personages of form and substance, individual and distinct. He taught that the true knowledge of the Godhead was essential to eternal life. He included in a prayer to his Father in heaven: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." Other references in the scriptures substantiate the individuality of the Holy Ghost.
Yet in the light of this truth there was a "strange doctrine" introduced of man-made creeds. Says one: "There is but one God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the supreme, incorporeal, uncreated being, who exists of himself and is infinite in all his attributes. " Says another: "There is one living and true God, everlasting, without body, parts, or passions; of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness." Yet another says: "God is as he reveals himself. He is creative reality He is expressive act He is responsive power He is one God experienced in a trinitarian fashion."
These are but a few examples of the extent of the departure from the true teachings of the scriptures. Now the Book of Mormon gives us an extension and reaffirmation of the true corporeal nature of a member of the Godhead. Jesus speaks to the brother of Jared, saying: " therefore I show myself unto you.
" Behold, I am Jesus Christ
"And never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast. Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image?
"Behold, this body, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and even as I appear unto thee to be in the spirit will I appear unto my people in the flesh."
Two thousand years later, this same Jesus came to earth in the same form and said: " he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. "
This corporeal individuality was substantiated by the Prophet Joseph Smith who had the revealing experience of seeing the Father and the Son in corporeal form and conversing with them. He specifically states: "The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. "
Another basic scriptural truth is that Jesus taught that his church was founded upon the rock of revelation, in harmony with the words of the prophet Amos, who declared: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
There seems to be astonishment among mankind generally that God would speak again in this latter day. "The heavens are closed," they declare. It was a dark day when the religious leaders declared that revelation had ceased and when they presumed that mankind could negotiate his way by his own wisdom, leaning on the arm of flesh. But "'The world by wisdom know not God,' so the world by speculation are destitute of revelation. " It was a glorious day when the doctrine of revelation was again restored to mankind in this latter day.
Again the Book of Mormon gives us this expansion of this doctrine:
"Behold, great and marvelous are the works of the Lord. How unsearchable are the depths of the mysteries of him; and it is impossible that man should find out all his ways. And no man knoweth of his ways save it be revealed unto him; wherefore, brethren, despise not the revelations of God.
"Wherefore, brethren, seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand. For behold, ye yourselves know that he counseleth in wisdom, and in justice, and in great mercy, over all his works."
The whole purpose of the gospel is to teach men that the most important thing in life is life itself and that man may pursue happiness. " Men are, that they might have joy" is the decree of the Lord. The purpose of the Book of Mormon is to convince both Jew and gentile that Jesus is the Christ, for only through him can salvation, eternal life, and eternal joy be obtained.
There is great comfort in the knowledge of truth, for truth has the quality of certainty and authority. It has been said that "'no pleasure is comparable to the standing upon the vantage ground of truth', 'and to see the errors, and wanderings, and mists, and tempests, in the vale below': so always that this prospect be with pity, and not with swelling pride. Certainly, it is heaven upon earth, to have a man's mind move in charity, rest in providence, and turn upon the poles of truth."
The Prophet Joseph Smith stood upon that vantage ground and spoke with authority. He said: " The boldness of my plans and measures can readily be tested by the touchstone of truth, for truth is a matter of fact; and the fact is, that by the power of God I translated the Book of Mormon from hieroglyphics, the knowledge of which was lost to the world; in which wonderful event I stood alone, an unlearned youth, to combat the worldly wisdom and multiplied ignorance of eighteen centuries with a new revelation, which would open the eyes of more than eight hundred millions of people, and make 'plain the old paths,' wherein 'if a man walk in all the ordinances of God blameless' he shall inherit eternal life. "
And further he said: "I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book."
The promise is to every man that he may know the truth if he will accept the challenge to test it by the "touchstone of truth."
So were the words of Jesus: " My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
So were the words of Mormon: " I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost."
Many souls who have directed their inquiries in this manner can attest to the truth.
With certainty the Book of Mormon is a pure and holy record, having been recorded by prophets under the guidance of our Heavenly Father, having been hid up for hundreds of years unto the Lord, having been revealed and translated by the power of God in the latter day. It is an undefiled record, undisturbed by the wisdom of man, uncorrupted by the designs of men-a light on a hill to beckon all to come unto Christ.
Yes, we talk of Mormon; we respect him as a man of God. We accept his recorded doctrine as divine. He stands among the great men of God. His great book written under divine command stands without blemish. It is truth. Its teachings give strength and gladness to the heart. Yet it is not likely that Mormon would desire the true church to be called after him, for he testified of Jesus Christ and his mission.
May we ponder the privilege of being members of the Church of Jesus Christ and live according to its precepts, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Paul H. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I am grateful this morning, my brothers and sisters, for the uplifting and inspired message we have heard from our president. As he spoke, I thought in my mind that if all the world would heed this counsel, most all of its problems would be resolved.
One of the basic tenets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that we believe in continuous revelation. It is our testimony to the world that God communicates to prophets today the same as he did in ancient times. God's revelations in times past have been sustained and revered in holy scripture. New revelation is the mind and will of the Lord through current prophets, and when they speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, it is "the will of the Lord, the mind of the Lord, the word of the Lord, the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
This morning we heard from a prophet of God, and he communicated the mind and will of the Lord to all who would listen and receive counsel. Concerning the importance of such an occasion as this, it was President Kimball some years ago who made this observation:
"Sunday night, April 7, the great Tabernacle was closed, the lights turned out, and the record machines stopped, the door locked, and another historical conference became history. It will have been lost motion-a waste of time, energy, and money-if its messages are not heeded. In the seven two-hour sessions and in the several satellite meetings, truths were taught, doctrines expounded, exhortations given, enough to save the whole world from all its ills-and I mean from all its ills. " He reaffirmed that in our hearts and minds this morning.
I remember hearing President Kimball just the other day quote from Samuel:
"And the Lord said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle." Today our president has caused our ears to tingle.
Now for a few moments I would like to direct some remarks to parents everywhere in this great listening audience.
An oft-quoted passage of scripture and revelation of the Latter-day Saints is one referred to a few moments ago by President Kimball. It's contained in the Doctrine and Covenants:
"And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the Living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents."
I don't know how many times you have heard this passage of scripture, and appropriately so, but certainly no counsel could be more timely or pertinent to the problems besetting families throughout the world. How many times have parents said to themselves after hearing this message, "I know it's true and I know what the Lord expects, but how do I do it?" In other words, how do I become an effective teacher of the gospel to my own children?
As I have thought about this, it has been my observation that most parents really want to be good parents. Most want to do a better job.
May we consider this morning four things that parents can do that will help them to better achieve success in rearing their children in righteousness?
First, I would itemize the power of parental precept. Parents teach two ways. The first is by precept-or what we say by way of teaching correct principles to our children.
I am reminded of the father who, in gathering his children together one morning, asked, "What would you learn of me?"
The reply came, "How shall we care for our bodies? How shall we play? How shall we work together? How shall we live with our fellowmen? How shall we pray? How shall we know God? For what ends shall we live?"
And the father pondered these words and sorrow was in his heart, for his own life and teaching touched not these things.
You may recall the old farmer who had quite a reputation for being a philosopher. He said, "You can no more teach what you ain't got than you can go back to where you ain't been."
I recall as a young man when I first heard our text quoted from the Doctrine and Covenants, I went to my own mother and exclaimed, "Well, Mom, how does it feel to have all my sins on your head?" Then she taught me the lesson of that passage. She said, "Ah, Paul, you forgot to read carefully what the Lord said. He said that the sin be upon the head of parents if they do not teach their children the principles of the gospel. And you've been taught!"
And I had been taught! Thank the Lord for parents who realize their responsibility to instill in their children the principles of the gospel and who follow the counsel of the Lord's prophets. Parents in the Church today have been counseled to regularly, consistently, and inspiringly hold family home evenings and to take advantage of other great teaching moments to so acquaint their children.
The second way would be the power of parental example. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "What you do thunders so loudly in my ears I cannot hear what you say." Will you remember this little couplet:
I'm grateful for the example of a father who, as a busy executive of a great supermarket chain, still found the time to demonstrate by his concern that groceries were less important than his boy.
Like many young men, I once had a paper route; and I had to get up early in the morning to deliver them. One morning I woke up and looked outdoors to see one of those torrential Arkansas downpours. I thought we were in for another flood! As I prepared to go out in that rain, my father came into the room dressed in his business suit. "Get in the car, Paul," he said. "I'll drive you around your route this morning." This meant that he would have to go without his own breakfast.
On that morning, in addition to the heavy rain, the papers came late. By the time we had them delivered, it was considerably past the hour that my father had to be to work. And on this particular morning he had scheduled a very important board meeting.
He arrived at the meeting late, walked into the board room, and announced, "I'm sorry I'm late, gentlemen, but I had to deliver my papers this morning."
Do you think that there was ever any doubt in my mind as to my father's greatest concern? Interestingly, I don't recall too many lessons my parents verbally taught, but their example is still a part of me till this day.
Third, the power of parental love. Recently I came across a little article by Doris Jehnke, entitled "Saturday with a Teenage Daughter." It seems all too typical of parent-daughter relationships these days. Let me share it with you.
"Are you going to sleep all day? Who said you could use my hairspray? Clean the dishes off the table. Turn down the radio. Have you made your bed? That skirt is much too short. Your closet is a mess. Stand up straight. Somebody has to go to the store. Quit chewing your gum like that. Your hair is too bushy. I don't care if everybody else does have one. Turn down the radio. Have you done your homework? Don't slouch. You didn't make your bed. Quit banging on the piano. Why don't you iron it yourself? Your fingernails are too long. Look it up in the dictionary. Sit up straight. Get off the phone now. Why did you ever buy that record? Take the dog out. You forgot to dust that table. You've been in the bathroom long enough. Turn off the radio and get to sleep now.
"Another day gone, and not once did I say, 'I love you.'"
Too often it is easier to criticize, to point out the faults, than to praise or give love. Mothers and dads, when was the last time you told your children "I love you"?
A good friend of mine makes it a point every day to find something positive that he can compliment in his children so that he can truly say, "I love you." Will you make the opportunity soon?
Finally, the power of parental prayer. The Book of Mormon provides a great example of a father who recovered a lost son by the power of personal prayer. The conditions of his time are akin to our own day.
"Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand the words of king Benjamin, being little children at the time he spake unto his people; and they did not believe the tradition of their fathers.
"They did not believe what had been said concerning the resurrection of the dead, neither did they believe concerning the coming of Christ.
"And now because of their unbelief they could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened."
One of these of the "rising generation" was Alma the Younger. He was "a man of many words, and did speak much flattery to the people," leading away "many to do after the manner of his iniquities."
We are further told that he was "a great hinderment to the prosperity of the church of God" because of the dissension that he caused.
I suppose the tendency then, as it often seems to be today, was to "write him off." But you know the miraculous story of how an angel of the Lord appeared to that young man and how he became one of the greatest missionaries in the church of Christ. What was it that caused that great change to occur? The angel testified to Alma the following: " Behold, the Lord hath heard the prayers of his people, and also the prayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father. "
Think of it! The power of parental prayer! As we consider the challenge of rearing children in a world fraught with temptations, false ideologies, and materialistic enticements, do you not feel the need for guidance and inspiration beyond your human capacity? There is no greater help or strength that a father or mother can obtain than through securing that help from the Lord.
Just the other day I had a sweet experience. I stood in the presence of a mother and a father who had just greeted their long-lost son home from the wars-I mean the worldly wars. What a tender moment! I can tell you their prayers were heard and answered.
Remember what Alma said: "Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good. "
May I testify to all parents in Zion everywhere to the efficacy of these great principles in rearing our children righteously: the power of precept, the power of example, the power of love, and the power of prayer. I add my personal witness that Jesus Christ really lives, that his kingdom is here upon the earth, and that this morning we heard from his appointed prophet and servant, Spencer W. Kimball. May we abide by the counsel and teachings given to us by the Lord through his servants, I humbly pray as I testify to these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
A few years less than 2,000 years ago this very day, the initial events of the most important week in human history began to unfold outside of Jerusalem near the little village of Bethany. Jesus of Nazareth, with scarcely a three-year ministry among his countrymen, left the home of his friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus and walked resolutely toward the gates of Jerusalem. Some of the inhabitants of that ancient city considered him to be a blasphemer, a demon, a transgressor of Jewish law. Others believed him to be a prophet, the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Whatever the opinions may have been, all Judea knew of this man who taught with power and authority though he was neither Scribe nor Pharisee.
"And the Jews' passover was nigh at hand:" John records, "and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the passover, to purify themselves.
"Then sought they for Jesus, and spake among themselves, as they stood in the temple, What think ye, that he will not come to the feast?"
Jewish law required the attendance of all adult males at this, the most sacred of Israel's ceremonial commemorations. But members of the Sanhedrin had openly vowed to put Jesus to death, and the likelihood of his appearance at such a public gathering was doubted by many.
The feeling of danger for him was everywhere present, but Jesus did come to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover, not with pomp and ceremony, but on a lowly donkey-the symbol of humility and peace. A great multitude went out of Jerusalem to greet him, spreading branches of palm trees before his path and crying: " Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. "
Matthew records that "all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?
"And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee."
To all who had knowledge of the law, this was the triumphant entry of Israel's king, long predicted by the prophets and long awaited by Israel's seed. The multitude was jubilant and vocal; Jesus was regal and silent. Indeed, as he approached this city so highly favored of God, he wept for Jerusalem saying:
"For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
"And shall lay thee even with the ground ; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another."
Jesus also knew of his own impending fate. He spoke in parables of grain that had to die in order to bring forth fruit, and of a chosen son sent by his father into the family vineyard only to be killed as the father's servants before him had been killed. At times the burden seemed almost too heavy to bear.
"Now is my soul troubled;" he admitted. " Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour." His singleness of purpose and unwavering commitment to do the will of his Father carried him forward.
As his own mortal future dimmed, he gently declared: "I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness." Such statements were uniting his enemies against him, yet he proclaimed: "For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak."
Hoping to trap Jesus in his utterances, some of the shrewdest of his adversaries posed double-edged questions on political and rabbinic law. One group of Pharisees and Herodians asked him a most diabolic question:
" Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth.
"Tell us therefore, Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?" If he were to answer yes, he would easily be accused of betraying his heritage among Abraham's seed, the very group staggering under the oppression of Roman law. If he were to answer no, he would immediately be apprehended as a political agitator. He answered neither, but rather asked to be shown a coin by which such tribute money commonly was paid.
Holding the piece of money up to his accusers, he asked: "Whose is this image and superscription?" Of course, they answered as any child in the street could have: "It is Caesar's." With that single question he had taken command of the confrontation. He returned the coin saying: " Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's", as if to say: "The man's name and picture are on the coin. Surely it belongs to him. Please be kind enough to return it to its rightful owner."
Brilliantly he had destroyed the ploy of his oppressors, but that was never his true mission or desire. These, too, were sons of God. These, too, were among those he came to save. He feared for them and loved them even in their malice. As they turned away he added a plea: " and unto God the things that are God's." As the coin bore the image of Caesar, so these and all men bore the image of God, their Heavenly Father. They had been created by him in the likeness of his image, and Jesus was to provide a way for them to return to him. Yet, "When they heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way."
A short time later a lawyer baited a theological trap for him, saying: "Master, which is the great commandment in the law?" Legal scholars had divided, subdivided, and categorized the original Mosaic code so minutely that some parts of the law seemed to be in direct opposition to other parts. But Jesus would not be paralyzed by the jots and tittles of legal debate. In a single stroke he penetrated to the heart of the law and integrated those several parts into its one great whole: " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
"This is the first and great commandment.
"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
Again Jesus had turned a question full of venom and envy and technical deceit into an answer of love, compassion, and lofty vision.
As the final hours of his earthly mission came upon him, Jesus turned away from the multitudes and sought only to strengthen his disciples. He warned them of what lay ahead. He spoke of Jerusalem's destruction and of the distress and apostasy that would precede his latter-day return to the earth. He spoke of a master who would, after a long time in a distant country, come and make a reckoning with his servants, each according to his ability and the talents given him for investment in a worthy cause. He spoke of a shepherd who would separate his sheep from the goats, the former being those followers who gave meat to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothing to the naked, and attention to the afflicted. He spoke of virgins attending a wedding, some of whom had sufficient oil for trimming their lamps while others saw their meager supply depleted because the bridegroom tarried longer than they supposed. Thus Jesus taught his disciples to watch and pray; however, he taught them that prayerful watching does not require sleepless anxiety and preoccupation with the future, but rather the quiet, steady attention to present duties.
As the hour of sacrifice approached, Jesus retreated with his twelve apostles to the peace and privacy of an upper chamber. There the Master sought to fortify his special witnesses against the snares of the evil one by laying aside his outer garment, girding himself with a towel, and washing the apostles' feet.
This magnificent gesture of love and unity was a fitting prelude to the paschal meal that followed. From the time the firstborn of the faithful children of Israel had been "passed over" in the destruction brought on Egypt by Pharaoh's intransigence, the Passover meal, with all its symbolic emblems and gestures, had been faithfully observed by Israel's families. How fitting it was during the observance of this ancient covenant of protection that Jesus should institute the emblems of the new covenant of safety-the emblems of his own body and blood. As he took the bread and broke it, and took the cup and blessed it, he was presenting himself as the Lamb of God who would provide spiritual nourishment and eternal salvation.
With the new covenant came a new commandment. Jesus said his disciples must "love one another; as I have loved you.
"By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."
To the very end of his mortal life Jesus was demonstrating the grandeur of his spirit and the magnitude of his strength. He was not, even at this late hour, selfishly engrossed with his own sorrows or contemplating the impending pain. He was anxiously attending to the present and future needs of his beloved followers. He knew their own safety, individually and as a church, lay only in their unconditional love one for another. His entire energies seem to have been directed toward their needs, thus teaching by example what he was teaching by precept. He gave them words of comfort and commandment and caution.
"Let not your heart be troubled," he said, for he sensed their fear and sorrow. "In my father's house are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you. I am the way, the truth, and the life. Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do. I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. These things I command you, that ye love one another."
On this night of nights, as the little group approached the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus might have asked his apostles to pray for him, to strengthen him for the unutterable task ahead. But instead Jesus prayed for them and for those like them:
"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world," records John, who was there to hear it, "but that thou shouldest keep them from evil. They are not of this world. Sanctify them through thy truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word: that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me."
Having offered that magnificent intercessory prayer, Jesus went on to face alone his anguish of body and spirit. A modern apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ has written:
"Christ's agony in the garden is unfathomable by the finite mind, both as to intensity and cause. In that hour of anguish Christ met and overcame all the horrors that Satan could inflict.
"In some manner, actual and terribly real though to man incomprehensible, the Savior took upon Himself the burden of the sins of mankind from Adam to the end of the world."
From there it was only a matter of hours until he was falsely accused, illegally tried, and unjustly crucified. He did what no other has ever done-he arose the third day from his own tomb, a tomb once again filled with the light and the life of the world, and he ascended to his Father. Jesus of Nazareth was now Jesus the Christ; he had conquered death.
In contrast to the haste and busy affairs of our day, his life was one of simplicity. He lived in humble circumstances. He had not surrounded himself with the proud and mighty of the earth, but with the poor, the humble, and those of modest circumstances. There was nothing complicated about his life or teaching. The words he spoke relate to people of all walks of life-to all those who listened in his day and to all those who will listen today.
History bears well the burden of providing ample evidence of his death. As surely as I know he died, I have the quiet yet positive assurance that he lives today-the Savior of every person who has been born or will be born upon this earth. As we now enter the Passover week of old, may we think on the resurrected Christ, the living Son of the living God. May we, in his name, unite our hearts, love one another, and keep his commandments is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brethren and sisters, I am grateful for the invocation offered by Brother Kan Watanabe, my friend and associate with whom I have traveled many thousands of miles up and down Japan in the ministry of the Lord. And I have been inspired by the music of this chorus of priesthood holders of Brigham Young University students.
There is something stirring and beautiful about their voices. If the Holy Spirit will direct me, I think I should like to address my remarks to them, even though they are seated behind me. In so doing, I also speak to youth across the entire Church.
It is springtime in this part of the world, the season when "a young man's fancy turns to thoughts of love." It is April when young men and women dream of June weddings.
As an introduction may I tell of two experiences.
The first happened not long ago when I was at the new Washington, D.C., Temple. A number of newsmen were present on that occasion. They were curious concerning this beautiful building, different from other church buildings-different in concept, different in purpose, different concerning those who will be permitted within its sacred precincts.
I explained that, after the building is dedicated as the house of the Lord, only members of the Church in good standing will be authorized to enter, but that prior to its dedication, for a period of from a month to six weeks, visitors will be made welcome to tour the entire structure; that we are not disposed to hide it from the world, but that, following the dedication, we shall regard it as being of so sacred a nature that purity of life and strict adherence to standards of the Church become qualifications for admittance.
We talked of the purposes for which temples are built. I explained those purposes, particularly emphasizing that purpose which appeals to all thoughtful men and women, namely, marriage for eternity. As I did so, I reflected on an experience at the time of the prededication showing of the London Temple in 1958.
On that occasion thousands of curious but earnest people stood in long lines to gain entry to the building. A policeman stationed to direct traffic observed that it was the first time he had ever seen the English eager to get into a church.
Those who inspected the building were asked to defer any questions until they had completed the tour. In the evenings I joined the missionaries in talking with those who had questions. As a young couple came down the front steps of the temple, I inquired whether I could help them in any way. The young woman spoke up and said, "Yes. What about this 'marriage for eternity' to which reference was made in one of the rooms?" We sat on a bench under the ancient oak that stood near the gate. The wedding band on her finger indicated that they were married, and the manner in which she gripped her husband's hand evidenced their affection one for another.
"Now to your question," I said. "I suppose you were married by the vicar."
"Yes," she responded, "just three months ago."
"Did you realize that when the vicar pronounced your marriage he also decreed your separation?"
"What do you mean?" she quickly retorted.
"You believe that life is eternal, don't you?"
"Of course," she replied.
I continued, "Can you conceive of eternal life without eternal love? Can either of you envision eternal happiness without the companionship of one another?"
"Of course not," came the ready response.
"But what did the vicar say when he pronounced your marriage? If I remember the language correctly, he said, among other things, 'in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, till death do ye part.' He went as far as he felt his authority would permit him and that was till death separates you. In fact, I think that if you were to question him, he would emphatically deny the existence of marriage and family beyond the grave."
"But," I continued, "the Father of us all, who loves his children and wants the best for them, has provided for a continuation, under proper circumstances, of this most sacred and ennobling of all human relationships, the relationships of marriage and family.
"In that great and moving conversation between the Savior and his apostles, wherein Peter declared, 'Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,' and the Lord responded, 'Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.' The Lord then went on to say to Peter and his associates, 'And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.'
"In that marvelous bestowal of authority the Lord gave to his apostles the keys of the holy priesthood, whose power reaches beyond life and death into eternity. This same authority has been restored to the earth by those same apostles who held it anciently, even Peter, James, and John." I continued by saying that following the dedication of the temple on the following Sunday, those same keys of the holy priesthood would be exercised in behalf of the men and women who come into this sacred house to solemnize their marriage. They will be joined in a union which death cannot dissolve and time cannot destroy.
Such was my testimony to this young couple in England. Such it is to you today, my dear young friends, and such it is to all the world. Our Father in heaven, who loves his children, desires for them that which will bring them happiness now and in the eternities to come, and there is no greater happiness than is found in the most meaningful of all human relationships-the companionships of husband and wife and parents and children.
A few days ago I was called to the hospital bedside of a mother in the terminal stages of a serious illness. She passed away a short time later, leaving her husband and four children, including a little boy of six. There was sorrow, deep and poignant and tragic. But shining through their tears was a faith beautiful and certain that as surely as there was now a sorrowful separation, there would someday be a glad reunion, for that marriage had begun with a sealing for time and eternity in the house of the Lord under the authority of the holy priesthood.
Every man who truly loves a woman, and every woman who truly loves a man, hopes and dreams that their companionship will last forever. But marriage is a covenant sealed by authority. If that authority is of the state alone, it will endure only while the state has jurisdiction, and that jurisdiction ends with death. But add to the authority of the state the power of the endowment given by Him who overcame death, and that companionship will endure beyond life if the parties to the marriage live worthy of the promise.
When I was much younger and less brittle, we danced to a song whose words went something like this:
It was only a dance ballad, but it was a question that has been asked through the centuries by men and women who loved one another and looked beyond today into the future of eternity.
To that question we answer no, and reaffirm that love and marriage under the revealed plan of the Lord are not like the rose that withers with the passing of summer. Rather, they are eternal, as surely as the God of heaven is eternal.
But this gift, precious beyond all others, comes only with a price-with self-discipline, with virtue, with obedience to the commandments of God. These may be difficult, but they are possible under the motivation that comes of an understanding of truth.
Brigham Young once declared: "There is not a young man in our community who would not be willing to travel from here to England to be married right, if he understood things as they are; there is not a young woman in our community, who loves the Gospel and wishes its blessings, that would be married in any other way."
Many have traveled that far and even farther to receive the blessings of temple marriage. I have seen a group of Latter-day Saints from Japan who had denied themselves food to make possible the long journey to the Hawaii Temple. In London we met those who had gone without necessities to afford the 7,000 mile flight from South Africa to the temple in Surrey, England. There was a light in their eyes and smiles on their faces and testimonies from their lips that it was worth infinitely more than all it had cost.
And I remember hearing in New Zealand the testimony of a man from the far side of Australia who, having been previously sealed by civil authority and then joined the Church with his wife and children, had traveled all the way across that wide continent, then across the Tasman Sea to Auckland, and down to the temple in the beautiful valley of the Waikata. As I remember his words, he said, "We could not afford to come. Our worldly possessions consisted of an old car, our furniture, and our dishes. I said to my family, 'We cannot afford to go.' Then I looked into the faces of my beautiful wife and our beautiful children, and I said, 'We cannot afford not to go. If the Lord will give me strength, I can work and earn enough for another car and furniture and dishes, but if I should lose these my loved ones, I would be poor indeed in both life and in eternity.'"
How shortsighted so many of us are, how prone to look only at today without thought for the morrow. But the morrow will surely come, as will also come death and separation. How sweet is the assurance, how comforting is the peace that come from the knowledge that if we marry right and live right, our relationship will continue, notwithstanding the certainty of death and the passage of time. Men may write love songs and sing them. They may yearn and hope and dream. But all of this will be only a romantic longing unless there is an exercise of authority that transcends the powers of time and death.
Speaking from this pulpit many years ago, President Joseph F. Smith said, "The house of the Lord is a house of order and not a house of confusion; and that means that there is no union for time and eternity that can be perfected outside of the law of God and the order of His house. Men may desire it, they may go through the form of it in this life, but it will be of no effect except it be done and sanctioned by divine authority, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost."
In conclusion may I leave you a story. It is fiction, but in principle it is true. Can you imagine two young people at a time when the moon is full and the roses are in bloom and a sacred love has matured between them? Johnny says to Mary, "Mary, I love you. I want you for my wife and the mother of our children. But I don't want you or them forever. Just for a season and then goodbye." And she, looking at him through tears in the moonlight, says, "Johnny, you're wonderful. There's nobody else in all the world like you. I love you, and I want you for my husband and the father of our children, but only for a time, and then farewell."
That sounds foolish, doesn't it? And yet isn't that in effect what a boy says to a girl and a girl says to a boy in a proposal of marriage when given the opportunity of eternal union under "the new and everlasting covenant," but, rather, they choose to set it aside for a substitute that can last only until death comes.
Life is eternal. The God of heaven has also made possible eternal love and eternal family relationships.
God bless you, my dear young friends, that as you look forward to marriage, you may look not only for rewarding companionship and rich and fruitful family relationships through all of your mortal days, but to an even better estate where love and treasured associations may be felt and known under a promise given of God.
I bear witness of the living reality of the Lord Jesus Christ through whom this authority has come. I bear witness that his power, his priesthood, is among us and is exercised in his holy houses. Do not spurn that which he has offered. Live worthy of it and partake of it, and let the sanctifying power of his holy priesthood seal your companionship. For these blessings I humbly pray in your behalf, as I bear testimony and witness of these truths in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I'm grateful, my brothers and sisters, for the much-needed down-to-earth counsel given us this morning by the Lord's spokesman, President Spencer W. Kimball, as well as for the timely and helpful remarks of the other speakers who have preceded me. Timely, because the Lord has said, "For I will raise up unto myself a pure people, that will serve me in righteousness." "Purge ye out the iniquity which is among you; sanctify yourselves before me, and ye shall be endowed with power."
Brothers and sisters, you will soon see that our subjects are not assigned. All I can say, since I will talk about the same things Elder Hinckley has talked about, is somebody here needs a double dose. On that premise, I shall proceed. And in what I shall say I also have in mind those of you particularly who have yet to answer and resolve three important questions:
Whom shall I marry?
Where shall I marry?
By whom shall I be married?
There are different ways of doing things, but surely, in anything we do, there's no better way than the right way-and the Lord's way is the right way. Fortunately, his way has been made plain and is plainly revealed. Seldom is the problem one of knowing what to do; it's a matter rather of having the wisdom and the will to do what we know is right.
Probably the most consequential event in your lives takes place when you are united in marriage. It will have a far-reaching effect upon your future. Like the ripples caused by a pebble cast upon a placid pool, the decision you make in regard to where, with whom, and by whom this event will take place will affect not only you, but the lives of many others, especially your children. In fact, it will likely affect generations to come!
In a matter of such vast importance, it is imperative that sober thought be given to marriage long before it takes place.
We must realize that marriage is designed by the Lord for a divine purpose, whereby a servant and handmaiden of the Lord may prepare themselves in righteousness to receive chosen spirits coming from our Eternal Father, and give them bodies of flesh for their mortal probation, and then undertake with all the power at their command to lead these spirit children entrusted into their care back into the presence of God from whence they came. Such " children are legal heirs to the Kingdom and to all its blessings and promises. "
True love is not earthbound. It is as eternal as our spirits, which never die. A continuing association in this life, as well as in the next, with those we love, should be the great desire of every person. It is the ultimate. It is the great purpose of mortality.
Persons who are satisfied with a temporary legal arrangement which terminates at death, when it could be an everlasting contract, are basing their marriage on shallow and fleeting love. Such a marriage looks to the moment, not to the future. Under the stress of life, it is more likely to crumble and fall. True love pleads for endless association of those we love.
But an eternal relationship of families does not come about automatically, as some suppose. It must not only be planned for; it must be earned. We must realize that only when we have lived in complete harmony with all the laws and ordinances of the priesthood, including those received in holy temples, should we expect to find ourselves prepared to dwell in what I sometimes refer to as the "kingdom of families"-the celestial world.
In a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord has said:
"And they who are not sanctified through the law which I have given unto you, even the law of Christ, must inherit another kingdom, even that of a terrestrial kingdom, or that of a telestial kingdom.
"For he who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory." He would just not feel at home.
Surely then our desire and our goal should be to prepare ourselves, not for a fragment of joy but for the fulness thereof, which is to be found only in the celestial world.
How fortunate it is that, after its absence from the earth for hundreds of years, the Lord has revealed anew the principle of eternal marriage and has restored the divine authority to administer it. It is here. It is ours to embrace. And it is disappointing to see that in too many instances those who live close to these holy places pass them by and go the way of the world when it comes to the most momentous event in their lives. With the knowledge that it is the Lord's way and, therefore, the right way, no Latter-day Saint with a concordant spirit would deviate from it. Some may say, "Why not try a civil marriage first, and then if it works out, we will go to the temple later?"
Well, in my opinion, the time to be married right is when you're married. Can we consign the Lord's prescribed way to a secondary position? We cannot! When you consider the incomparable blessings and promises that may be realized in a marriage that may be perpetuated through the eternities ahead of you, as compared with a temporary association, your desire, your determination, should be to take hold of and ensure these blessings and promises. If ever there is a time to be realistic and to act in the light of things as they really are, if ever there is a time to use your heads, so to speak, and plan wisely, it is when the thought of marriage first enters your minds.
When two souls have a true love for each other, a genuine, tender affection, when they are really united in spirit, having the same lofty ideals, the same beliefs and standards, trusting each other, confiding in each other; when there is sincere respect one for the other along with virtue and purity of life; when such people are joined together through the sealing ordinances, their marriage should give them the assurance and comfort in the thought that even though death may separate them, yet in the resurrection shall they come forth and live in the family relationship forever.
It is your earthly life that you are now living, my young friends. You will live it but once. There will be no reruns, no repeat performances. What you are in this life determines where you will be throughout eternity.
It is your future, your destiny that you are now molding.
You made good in that pre-earth life. You were valiant there. You must not now "fumble the ball" on the 20-year line. When you do take the wrong course, you are undoing the work of your prior existence, for there you struggled for ages to prepare for mortality where you now are.
I urge you to carefully consider these things as you make preparations for the future.
You who stand on the threshold of marriage, you who have been taught the eternity of life should strive with all your might to be worthy of entering a temple of the Lord there to be sealed to your companion for endless time in the right way, in the right place, by the right authority. I testify to the truths and the reality that these powers to seal on earth and to have them binding in heaven are with us. They have been restored by heavenly messengers and we have the power amongst us. Let us not pass it by. I testify to my knowledge that God lives, that he is our Father, that Jesus is the Savior of the world, and that the gospel has been restored in the fulfillment of prophecy, both of the Old and the New Testament prophets. And I do it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I should like to spend the few minutes I stand before you today to salute a group of people who have developed what I believe to be a Christlike characteristic, and that is the ability to "hang on." At this very moment, there is a man, a good member of the Church, who hovers between life and death in a nearby hospital. In the last few weeks he has withstood crisis after crisis; and yet to the amazement of all, he still hangs on. I know not whether the Lord will ordain that he should ultimately live or die at this time, but I do know there is something noble about his tenacious fight for life and the desire to hang on. In the lives of each of us come these trials-trials of all kinds which shake us to the very core and cause us to explore to the very depths our ability to hang on.
I think of the person who, in the quiet of night, could not be persuaded to compromise virtue and decides instead to hang on, though the temptation is great.
I think of those who have withstood the test of many years, some of whom are confined and bedridden and who, in spite of the infirmities that age brings, will not give up. I see etched in the faces of these wonderful older people something of our pioneer heritage-lives so filled with determination and faith, lives so filled with the overcoming of adversity and trial that by their nature they simply can't let go.
It reminds me of two trees that were close to my home when I was growing up. The one was a Russian olive and grew right in our yard. It was watered every time the lawn was watered, and in that kind of protected environment it grew to be a beautiful tree. Yet one night a tremendous wind came up. Trees all over town were blown down, and with them went our Russian olive. We had watered it so well that the roots did not have to reach down into the soil; and because they were so close to the surface, the tree toppled over.
The second tree withstood the gale. It was a tremendous cottonwood, which still stands in the lane just half a block from where I was born. This tree was in the fullness of its growth when I was a child. It has always stood by itself, completely exposed to the elements, with nothing but a ditch running by, which most of the time is dry. It is gnarled and tough, and its roots have had to sink deep in order to drink of the water of life; but because its roots were forced downward, it lives. I was out home the other day and noticed that most of the trees around this cottonwood are gone. But in all of its power and majesty, it still hangs on.
I see in many people this same kind of beauty. Adversity and trial have driven the roots of faith and testimony deep in order to tap the reservoir of spiritual strength that comes from such experiences. By nature they know how to stand and fight and hang on.
One person who has sunken deep the roots of faith and testimony because of the trials and affliction of years is the man whom we will sustain tomorrow as prophet, seer, and revelator. His branches can offer shade because his roots are deep.
My own mother and mother-in-law are characteristic of these kinds of people. One suffered a broken hip and the other underwent a severe sickness. But they have both fought back and, like so many others, are enjoying active, useful lives. When we as a family are with them, we draw strength from them and their ability to hang on in severe crises.
A few years ago, while on a mission tour in Europe, I was asked to interview a young man who was recently out and wanted to go home. He had not been away from home before in his life and he was homesick and in despair in a strange country. He had actually run away once, but had come back.
I had quite a conversation with this young man, and from my own missionary experience I knew something of the despair that can come into the life of a missionary when he first goes into the field and begins to make that initial adjustment. If he can just hang on through those early trials, then gradually he will get into the spirit of his mission and find the peace and joy that every missionary has a right to experience.
At first he was adamant in his desire to return home, but gradually the spirit of the conversation began to change. We talked about his call from a prophet. We talked about the love of his parents and their desire for him to stay and succeed. We talked about those he had been called among to teach, and finally I asked, "Elder, do your father and mother want you home?"
His answer was, "No."
"Well, do your brothers and sisters want you home?"
And he said, "No."
Then I said, "Does your girl friend really want you home?"
And he said, "I guess not."
I then said, "Elder, does anyone want you home right now?"
He said, "I guess not," and then he said with a new determination, "Brother Dunn, I think maybe I better try to stay." He had made a vitally important decision in his life-he had decided to hang on.
The months passed and one day my secretary asked if I could take a minute to see a recently returned missionary. As I walked out of my office, there was this same missionary. I didn't recognize him at first, he seemed taller because he was standing straight. Unlike the first time, he looked me right in the eye, and his whole countenance was smiling. I can't remember what we talked about, but I shall never forget his image. He was going home now, a servant of the Lord, having completed an honorable mission. His roots were reaching downward; and although there will be the usual trials ahead, he knows something of what it means to hang on for a while longer when everything looks its darkest.
I don't know all the reasons the Lord tries us in this life, but there are two or three that come to mind. First, I think he wants to know whom he can trust. The Lord found he could trust Abraham because he was willing to offer his own son as a sacrifice if that was what the Lord wanted. Many thought that Zion's Camp was a tragic waste of time, until it was later demonstrated that the Lord used this ordeal to find whom he could trust. He wanted to know who had roots of faith and testimony that reached deep into the ground and who had such shallow roots that the first wind of adversity would blow them over.
Secondly, the Lord tells us in the Doctrine and Covenants section 122 that adversity came to Joseph Smith to give him experience. There is something about the eternal purpose of life that requires us to meet and experience trial and sorrow as we seek to overcome, for the Lord has told us also, " for if they never should have bitter they could not know the sweet. "
Thirdly, I believe that only through such experiences can a person develop true charity. And I mean by charity the pure love of Christ.
Let me read the following from Moroni in the Book of Mormon: " if a man be meek and lowly in heart, and confesses by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Christ, he must needs have charity; for if he have not charity he is nothing; wherefore he must needs have charity.
"And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail-
"But charity is the pure love of Christ. "
May I say then to those who are now or will be facing deep trials: May the Lord bless you that you may continue to hang on. There is purpose in it all, and he has promised us that the severity of it all will not be greater than we can endure, for as the words of the song tell us:
And finally this promise from the Master: "And again, be patient in tribulation until I come; and, behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, and they who have sought me early shall find rest to their souls. " In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I would like to direct your attention, my brethren and sisters, to the principles of mercy and justice. I have taken my text today from the Proverbs of Solomon: "My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction:
"For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth."
The Lord found it necessary to call to the attention of some of the brethren in the early days of the Church their negligence in doing all that they should. To the Prophet Joseph, he said: " I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth.
"But verily I say unto you, my servant Frederick G. Williams, You have not taught your children light and truth, according to the commandments; and that wicked one hath power over you.
"Verily, I say unto my servant Sidney Rigdon, that in some things he hath not kept the commandments concerning his children; therefore, first set in order thy house.
"My servant Newel K. Whitney also hath need to be chastened, and set in order his family, and see that they are more diligent and concerned at home, and pray always, or they shall be removed out of their place."
When the Prophet Joseph reluctantly permitted Martin Harris to take part of the manuscript of the Book of Mormon, and they were lost, the Lord reproved the Prophet for his disobedience. He said, "The works, and the designs, and the purposes of God cannot be frustrated, neither can they come to naught.
"For God doth not walk in crooked paths, neither doth he turn to the right hand nor to the left, neither doth he vary from that which he hath said, therefore his paths are straight, and his course is one eternal round.
"Remember, remember that it is not the work of God that is frustrated, but the work of men;
"For although a man may have many revelations, and have power to do many mighty works, yet if he boasts in his own strength, and sets at naught the counsels of God, and follows after the dictates of his own will and carnal desires, he must fall and incur the vengeance of a just God upon him.
"For, behold, you should not have feared man more than God. Although men set at naught the counsels of God, and despise his words-
"Yet you should have been faithful; and he would have extended his arm and supported you against all the fiery darts of the adversary; and he would have been with you in every time of trouble.
"But remember, God is merciful; therefore, repent of that which thou hast done which is contrary to the commandment which I gave you, and thou art still chosen, and art again called to the work."
One of the basic concepts of forgiveness is that one must be truly repentant, having satisfied justice before forgiveness can take place. The Prophet Joseph said: "There should be no license for sin, but mercy should go hand in hand with reproof."
President Kimball has said: "There are many people who seem to rely solely on the Lord's mercy rather than on accomplishing their own repentance. The Lord may temper justice with mercy, but he will never supplant it. Mercy can never replace justice. God is merciful, but he is also just."
An eternal aspect of justice has been decreed by divine law, that " God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."
The gospel of Jesus Christ is founded on law for the salvation and blessing of its people. For every law the Lord gives us, there is also a penalty for its violation. The prophet Alma explained this very plainly: "Now," he said, "how could a man repent except he should sin? How could he sin if there was no law? How could there be a law save there was a punishment?"
President Stephen L Richards said: "The Savior himself declared that he came to fulfill the law, not to do away with it, but with the law he brought the principle of mercy to temper its enforcement, and to bring hope and encouragement to offenders for forgiveness through repentance."
God's laws, as given for the government of the Church, must be supported and endorsed to win salvation and respect of those within the Church and without. The bishops of the Church have been designated as common judges and, together with their counselors, are authorized to deal with cases of serious transgression coming under their jurisdiction. Other cases go before the high council court under the direction of the stake president. These judges are expected to deal with all cases of infraction against the laws of the Church mercifully and justly.
I'm sure the most difficult problem for the priesthood leaders to determine and for the transgressor to understand is: When does repentance become effective? When are the demands of justice satisfied? When does the principle of mercy take over? I suppose there is no answer as clear as that given by Alma:
"For behold, justice exerciseth all his demands, and also mercy claimeth all which is her own; and thus, none but the truly penitent are saved.
"What, do ye suppose that mercy can rob justice? I say unto you, Nay; not one whit. If so, God would cease to be God."
How plain, then, is the logic as to the necessity of taking appropriate action in case of serious transgression. The need is to cleanse the Church and to help to bring about full repentance to the individual.
President Lee said as he spoke to the Brethren in 1972: "Now, this doesn't mean when we have to take action that we turn our backs on him who has sinned, we don't do -we should try not to do it. But we have to be like fathers-sometimes we have to discipline , we have to spank them, then we have to love them. It is the doctrine of the Lord, and we should do that in kindness. It seems to me, that there comes a time in the lives of those who have sinned so seriously that, short of disciplinary action, I think some men can't repent until they are turned over to the buffetings of Satan by the loss of the Spirit of the Lord."
President Stephen L Richards has said: "What good to the Church, what real benefit to erring members, can come from ignoring this obligation, and as we sometimes say, winking at and 'white-washing' the offenders? Can the judges thus help in setting people on the way to repentance and forgiveness?"
Many who have violated the laws of the Lord feel unjustly dealt with if they are called before proper Church courts and appropriate action is taken in reference to their transgressions. Many priesthood leaders, whose responsibility it is to watch over the Church and take action in cases of serious transgression, are remiss in convening courts and taking action that one might be put in a position where he can be forgiven. What might be thought to be a kindness in not taking proper action may really be the most unkind thing that could have been done.
President Lee has said: "Never must we allow supposed mercy to the unrepentant sinner to rob the justice by which the true repentance from sinful practices is predicated."
How then, does forgiveness become operative? When is repentance recognized?
True godly sorrow, which the scriptures tell us "worketh repentance to salvation ," is the first step in repentance. Confession of sins logically follows godly sorrow, prompted by an earnest desire for relief from the suffering brought about by positive realization of wrongdoing. Confession should be made to demonstrate one's humility and his determination to make restitution for the transgressions.
To whom should confession be made? To quote President Richards, "To the Lord, of course, whose law has been violated. To the aggrieved person or persons, as an essential in making due retribution if that is necessary. And then certainly to the Lord's representative, his appointed judge in Israel, under whose ecclesiastical jurisdiction the offender lives and holds membership in the Kingdom."
Closely associated with confession is the matter of probation-of demonstration. The Lord said: "By this may ye know if a man repenteth of his sins-behold, he will confess them and forsake them."
How may the judge know when repentance is adequate? The individual might become impatient as he demonstrates his repentance. But it has been said that "sufficient time elapse to permit a period of probation for the one seeking forgiveness. This probation serves a double purpose: First, it enables the offender to determine for himself whether he has been able to so master himself as to trust himself in the face of ever-recurring temptation; and secondly, to enable the judges to make a more reliable appraisement of the genuineness of repentance and worthiness for restored confidence."
Yes, "for whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth."
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Were it not for the atonement of Jesus Christ, in which he assumed our sins on condition of our repentance, man could not be forgiven. Even though we were offered mercy, yet justice must be satisfied for he cannot save us in our sins.
Alma explained to his son Corianton God's role in the principle of mercy and justice:
"But there is a law given," he said, "and a punishment affixed, and a repentance granted; which repentance mercy claimeth; otherwise, justice claimeth the creature and executeth the law, and the law inflicteth the punishment; and if not so, the works of justice would be destroyed, and God would cease to be God.
"But God ceaseth not to be God, and mercy claimeth the penitent, and mercy cometh because of the atonement; and the atonement bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead; and the resurrection of the dead bringeth back men into the presence of God; and thus they are restored into his presence, to be judged according to their works, according to the law and justice.
"For behold, justice exerciseth all his demands, and also mercy claimeth all which is her own; and thus, none but the truly penitent are saved.
"What, do ye suppose that mercy can rob justice? I say unto you, Nay; not one whit. If so, God would cease to be God."
The prophet Alma said, in recounting the words of Amulek, " If ye will repent, and harden not your hearts, then will I have mercy upon you, through mine Only Begotten Son;
"Therefore, whosoever repenteth, and hardeneth not his heart, he shall have claim on mercy through mine Only Begotten Son, unto a remission of his sins; and these shall enter into my rest."
May we so enjoy the blessings of the gospel. I leave you my testimony of the divinity of this great work in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop H. Burke Peterson
First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
A few years ago there appeared in a large city newspaper a true story of a young boy, then fourteen years old. The story was titled "The Evolution of a Delinquent." After rehearsing the many serious involvements the boy had had with the law, the reporter posed the question, "What twisted paths of childhood lead to the tortuous road of delinquency?" Interviews with the boy's neighbors began to supply at least part of the answer.
One neighbor lady said, "I try not to think of him the way he is now, but how he was when he came to our home and played with our children years ago." Tears filled her eyes as she recalled one afternoon when the young boy, then a small child, rushed to her home after his father had picked him up at a day nursery. As the little boy held on to her hand, she asked, "Why do you always come running to our house when you come home from the nursery?" The tot replied sorrowfully, "Because there is no mommy at my house."
The woman said that this answer almost broke her heart. There was a mommy at his house and a father also, but many times the children were left at home alone to care for themselves. Often the children would go to the neighbors' homes because there was not light and companionship at their own home. They were afraid of the dark. This was not just a darkness that fades with the morning sunlight. You see, there is a darkness that comes when there is no mother there.
Throughout my life I have seen the influence for good which dedicated mothers have had in their homes. Because of this, I should like to present my thoughts today in hopes of giving encouragement, strength, and guidance to those of your number who are confused and wondering about the importance of their call in the Lord's eternal plan.
President David O. McKay put it beautifully when he said, speaking of mothers, "This ability and willingness properly to rear children, the gift to love, and eagerness, yes, longing to express it in soul development, make motherhood the noblest office or calling in the world. She who can paint a masterpiece or write a book that will influence millions deserves the admiration and the plaudits of mankind; but she who rears successfully a family of healthy, beautiful sons and daughters, whose influence will be felt through generations to come, whose immortal souls will exert an influence throughout the ages long after paintings shall have faded, and books and statues shall have decayed or shall have been destroyed, deserves the highest honor that man can give, and the choicest blessings of God. In her high duty and service to humanity, endowing with immortality eternal spirits, she is co-partner with the Creator himself."
One of the great tragedies of our day is the confusion in the minds of some which would cause mothers to go to work in the marketplace. Satan, that master of deceit, would have us believe that when we have problems with our children, the answer may be a nicer home in a finer neighborhood, that they might have their own bedroom, or better quality clothes, and maybe their own car. Satan would have us believe that money or the things money can buy are more important in the home than mother.
Now there are some mothers with school-age children who are the breadwinners of their family and they must work; they are the exception. Fathers and mothers, before you decide you need a second income and that mother must go to work out of the home, may I plead with you: first go to the Lord in prayer and receive his divine approbation. Be sure he says yes. Mothers with children and teenagers at home, before you go out of your homes to work, please count the cost as carefully as you count the profit. Earning a few dollars more for luxuries cloaked in the masquerade of necessity-or a so-called opportunity for self-development of talents in the business world, a chance to get away from the mundane responsibilities of the home-these are all satanic substitutes for clear thinking. They are counterfeit thoughts that subvert the responsibilities of motherhood. As you count the costs of mother working out of the home, please consider the following:
-A mother gone when her children need her most or one who is too tired from a day spent in employment. Far better for a boy or girl to go to school in last year's shirts or hand-me-down dresses that are clean even though not in the height of fashion and come home to find mother there, than for a boy or girl to go to school in finer and newer clothes and come home to a new TV or a baby-sitter because Mother is away working.
I like the poem of Esther H. Doolittle:
Count as the cost:
-A mother whose daily thoughts have been tinted gray by some whose morals are not as high as hers.
-A mother whose time is so filled that she can't give full measure to the most respected profession of all-motherhood.
-A mother whose energy is so sapped that she is sometimes neglecting her call from the Lord, a call that will one day prepare her to become an eternal mother-a cocreator of spiritual offspring.
-A mother who, in a moment of confusion, has forgotten that you learn to do by doing, you learn to be by being, that motherhood is an art to be developed through practice. This art isn't easy to learn, but learn you can because as you strive, the Lord will bless you with growth, patience, wider understanding, and loving warmth for your family's special needs.
Count as the cost:
-A home where the heart has been weakened, ofttimes destroyed because of the wish for so-called material comforts at the expense of spiritual necessities.
Remember, a loving Father in heaven sent some of his own for you to care for. As in the song "To a Child," children are not a gift to us, but a precious loan, a priceless loan to be returned-returned more valuable than when we received them, understanding more, better prepared to return to him who lent them to us. The charge is ours to increase their worth.
Our Father in heaven would rather have you comfort the scratched arm of a little boy in patched trousers than have a baby-sitter or older sister or brother do the same because you are away working. He would rather have you read stories in the afternoon to a little girl in a faded blue hand-me-down dress than have her entertained by a color TV because you are away working to make the payments. He would rather have a child come home from school to a mother ironing clothes or baking cookies, than to come home to a hired housekeeper because mother is away learning typing or shorthand to improve her job qualifications.
Brothers and sisters, do without if you need to, but don't do without mother. Mother is more important in the home than money or the things money can buy. Our Father in heaven wants you to be in your home to guide these spirits as no one else can, in spite of material sacrifices that may result. He created you to learn to be a good mother-an eternal mother. It is your first and foremost calling. No baby-sitter, no grandmother, no neighbor, no friend, no Relief Society sister, older brother or sister, or even a loving dad can take your place.
Again we say, unless the Holy Ghost has given you a confirmation that it is all right, don't go out of your home for hire.
Now, to those of us who are husbands and children, let us help our mothers and wives be happy in our homes. Let us love them, honor them, respect them, revere them. Let us help them fulfill their call from the Lord. Let us be sure we do our part to make our homes pleasant. Let us help them have time for mental improvement, for educational growth, for cultural pursuits, and for developing talents. A home will be blessed and enriched when a mother is encouraged in these paths.
I know a young mother who has a great talent in music. She sings beautifully and plays the piano with great feeling and ability. Every week she gives a lesson to each of her four little children. Every day she spends a few minutes alone with each child, sometimes sharing with them her love for art or music. Besides blessing her children and her husband with great talents, she leads a choir and gives joy to many with her singing. When women develop their talents, it is a blessing to themselves and their families.
Remember too, brethren, a cheery "please," "thank you," or "I'm sorry, dear" will go a long way to heal the wounds of a sometimes frustrating day. It's amazing what a two-minute phone call to your wife at midday can do for her spirits. You sons and daughters and husbands, it is important for our exaltation that our wives and mothers enjoy and learn their profession well. Let us do our part to help them.
May the Lord bless mothers everywhere. You who stay home to tend and care for the little spirits that bless your home, may you feel that sweet spirit of peace, contentment, and satisfaction. To you mothers who are the breadwinners in your family and must be gone from your home, may you be blessed with an abundance of the spirit of heaven to strengthen and sustain you as you direct the lives of these beautiful little ones that lighten and enliven your home.
To you mothers who haven't yet caught the vision of your eternal call, may you especially be enlightened by the spirit of truth as you weigh carefully in the balance the things of real value in this life. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder William H. Bennett
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, there is a property of matter, universally displayed in the heavens and in and on the earth, by which things and individuals remain at rest, or in uniform motion unless acted upon by some force that alters the course. We call this property of matter inertia. Inertia is evidenced in various ways: in the things we work with and through; in our personal lives and in our homes; in our relations with our fellowmen, and with our Father in heaven and his Son Jesus Christ; and in the way we do or do not honor or magnify the priesthood and the offices and callings we hold in the Church.
Inertia can work against us or for us depending on our starting point and our attitude. It works against us if we are at rest and are content to remain that way rather than getting into action. Procrastination, which is the practice of putting off, intentionally and habitually, those things that should be done in a timely manner, not only wastes time; but it leaves our lives empty, unfulfilled, and unhappy. Inertia works for us if we are in action and are moving forward and upward in meaningful ways toward all-important goals based on a clear understanding of who we are, where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going.
As we think about these things, perhaps it would be well to remind ourselves that, no matter who we are, we pass through life but once, and whatever record we make is made forever. Time keeps marching on. We live our lives, of course, in the present-one moment at a time. But with each tick of the clock the present becomes the past, and the past cannot be changed. It is also true, however, that with each tick of the clock a part of the future becomes the present. Thus, the key to a successful and happy life is to strive diligently always to make the most of the present-to make the most of each moment as it arrives. If we can just practice the self-discipline necessary to do this, our past can become glorious to behold and our future will be assured.
The greatest loss of power that there is, is the loss that results from the failure of individuals to reach their potential. There are many reasons for this. But if we reduce them to a few common denominators, we can say that some of the more important ones are failure to do adequate realistic planning; lack of desire, commitment, and dedication; failure to use time effectively; and failure to correct one's mistakes. Let us think for a moment about the 26 letters in our English alphabet. We can repeat them frontwards or backwards, but when we do, they have little meaning because they have not been put together with purpose and direction. But when they are given purposeful direction, the end product is great poetry, prose, heartwarming songs, sacred hymns, scripture, scientific writings, etc. Such results do not come without effort. Ernest Hemingway, a best-seller author, is reported to have said that he found it necessary to rewrite the opening chapters to his books 45 to 50 times before he felt they were ready for public consumption. When he put forth that kind of effort, he was able to produce what many people consider to be easy reading.
As it is in using the letters of the alphabet in writing, so it is in putting things together in our lives; action is all-important, but action alone is not enough. We need the right kind of action, purposeful action-the things we do should add up in meaningful ways and contribute to rich, purposeful living here and bring eternal joy hereafter. The wrong kind of action can destroy.
Many poets, philosophers, and others have written about these things in meaningful ways, but today I should like to put the spotlight on some of the inspired utterances of our beloved Richard L. Evans as given in his "Sunday Morning from Temple Square" presentations:
"The past has its place and is valuable for lessons learned. The present also has its place, and what we cannot change should not needlessly keep us from looking and moving forward. Nothing lost or left behind should keep us from now becoming what we can become, from learning what we now can learn.
"There are new decisions every day, every hour, and reasons to improve and to repent. Whatever we are, wherever we've been, each day we have some opportunity to determine direction.
"Whatever the past or its meaning, or its length, or its losses, or its lessons learned or left unlearned, we go on from where we are-wherever it is-and become what we can become; with work, repentance, improvement; with faith in the future."
"Some things we inherit. Some things are passed to us from others. But this doesn't make of us anything we aren't. We may enjoy the talents of others, but this doesn't develop our own. We do not suddenly become what we do not cooperate in becoming. We do not learn well what we are not willing to learn.
"In indifference, some things may remain in our minds, some things may attach themselves to us. But generally what we are, what we do, what we become is because we were willing to put in for what we want to get out.
"Basically we always were. And what we shall be is what we are, plus what we add to it-always and forever. And there would be no better time than now to decide to learn, to do, to develop, to work, to improve, to produce, to increase our competence, to extend ourselves in service.
"'The darkest day in life,' said Allen Shawn, 'is the one in which we expect something for nothing.' 'Nothing comes from nothing. Nothing ever could.'"
My brothers and sisters, if we are to make the most of our lives we must have a desire to do so and must work at it. We must recognize that we are spiritual children of our Father in heaven, that we are here on earth to be tested and to prove ourselves. We must heed the counsel given in the New Testament in James, chapter one, verses 22 through 24 as follows:
"But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
"For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
"For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was."
One of the great challenges we face in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today is that we have too many priesthood holders who are at rest. Because they are, oftentimes their wives and children are not as active in the Church as they could be and should be. I challenge all of you who are in this category to awaken, arise, and advance, so that the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ can be experienced in your personal lives and in the lives of your loved ones. Do not be content to just go through life and put in your time. Resolve that you will make the most of your life, live the gospel, keep the commandments, and set the proper example before your loved ones and before all with whom you come in contact. Do not shortchange yourselves and others by being too easy with yourselves. There is just too much at stake to take this matter lightly. Those of us who have leadership responsibilities for building the kingdom and for saving the souls of our Father's children-which is the main objective of all that we do in the Church-should be imaginative and ingenious in seeking ways and means for getting through to the minds and the hearts of those for whom we have responsibility, and for getting them involved in meaningful ways. The key to activity is meaningful involvement. Truly we do learn to do by doing. Seamann A. Knapp, who is considered to be the father of the demonstration method of teaching, once said that a man may doubt what he hears, and possibly what he sees, but he cannot doubt what he does himself. How true that is.
In conclusion let me suggest that each of us conduct a personal interview with ourselves periodically to see how well we are doing. To make this most meaningful we need to have challenging goals for ourselves that require us to stretch ourselves in order to attain them. Let us be truly objective with ourselves as we conduct these personal interviews. Some of the best planning and supervision that any of us can take part in is the planning and supervision that we do for ourselves as we take definite steps to chart a meaningful course in life by establishing goals and methods for reaching them and then checking up on ourselves. In doing so we should let the gospel of Jesus Christ be our guide, and use the measuring sticks that the Lord himself, and his prophets-including our living prophets today-have given for our guidance.
My brothers and sisters, I pay tribute today to President Kimball as a great man and prophet of God, and I pledge my loyalty and full support to him, his counselors, the members of the Quorum of the Twelve, and all the other General Authorities. I know that God lives, and that his Son lives, and I am so grateful to be associated with the other Brethren in helping to build the kingdom here on earth. There is much important work to be done, and every one of us is needed. May we be diligent in keeping the commandments and being faithful Latter-day Saints, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Of the Council of the Twelve
With you, I have been thinking over the past months about the fuel crisis, the energy crisis, and what it has meant to us. We have been through a few inconveniences. Fortunately the crisis has been relieved somewhat. But today my thoughts are with a crisis that has not been relieved, one that is with us, one that I feel needs our attention.
Picture with me in your mind's eye, if you will, a church building with a recently-placed sign reading, "Spiritual Fuel Available-No Rationing-No Stamps-No Quotas-Come and Prepare." Picture with me further a home with a welcome mat bearing the inscription, "Welcome Neighbor-Spiritual Oil Available-Come In As You Are." Picture with me still further an individual whose very countenance radiates, "I know God lives-my cup runneth over."
Brethren and sisters, we are living in a time of urgency. We are living in a time of spiritual crisis. We are living in a time close to midnight. There is an urgency to meet the worldwide spiritual crisis through action now. It can only be accomplished by performance. Procrastination is a deadly weapon of human progress. Thank God there is no need of a shortage in the oil of preparedness. It is accumulated at will, drop by drop, in righteous living.
Jesus, our Redeemer, has given to us for our use in this day a powerful parable to stress the importance of constant personal preparedness. It is known as the parable of the Ten Virgins, a warning to all mankind everywhere.
"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
"And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
"They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
"But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
"While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
"And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
"Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
"And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
"But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
"And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
"Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
"But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
"Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh."
It can be properly and appropriately concluded that the ten virgins represent the people of the Church of Jesus Christ, and not alone the rank and file of the world. The wise and foolish virgins, all of them, had been invited to the wedding supper; they had knowledge of the importance of the occasion. They were not pagans, heathens, or gentiles, nor were they known as corrupt or lost, but rather they were informed people who had the saving, exalting gospel in their possession, but had not made it the center of their lives. They knew the way, but were foolishly unprepared for the coming of the bridegroom. All, even the foolish ones, trimmed their lamps at his coming, but their oil was used up. In the most needed moment there was none available to refill their lamps. All had been warned their entire lives.
Today thousands of us are in a similar position. Through lack of patience and confidence, preparation has ceased. Others have lulled themselves to sleep to a complacency with the rationalization that midnight will never come. The responsibility for having oil in our personal lamps is an individual requirement and opportunity. The oil of spiritual preparedness cannot be shared. The wise were not unkind or selfish when they refused oil to the foolish in the moment of truth. The kind of oil needed by all of us to light up the darkness and illuminate the way is not shareable. The oil could have been purchased at the market in the parable, but in our lives it is accumulated by righteous living, a drop at a time.
How can one share the blessings that come through visiting the sick? How can one share in the blessings that come from assisting the widow or the fatherless? How can one share a personal testimony? How can one share the blessings of conference attendance? How can one share the lesson of obedience learned in living the principle of tithing? Certainly each must accumulate this kind of oil for himself. Let us not procrastinate. Midnight is so far and yet so close to those who have procrastinated. "But behold, your days of probation are past; ye have procrastinated the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure. "
There is an urgency in this day for us to prepare for the coming of the Lord. For you who have heeded the warning and continue in your preparations to accumulate the oil of righteousness in your lamps, great blessings are yours.
Now go back again with me in your thoughts to the church building about which we spoke earlier with its sign of "Spiritual Fuel Available-No Rationing-No Stamps-No Quotas-Come and Prepare." Each one of us undoubtedly has a different building in mind. Perhaps yours is the one you attend most frequently-your own ward or branch.
The one I have in mind today is the Masterton Ward in the Wellington New Zealand Stake. We had the opportunity of dedicating this choice house of worship in February. Never have I been in a building so immaculately clean. It looked new. It smelled new. It was beautiful in its appropriate simplicity. It was worthy in appearance to be dedicated to the Lord. It was built by our people.
It was paid for by our people. It was polished to a fine finish by hands that took pride. It was tastefully landscaped and structurally sound. According to the town mayor, a nonmember, it was built by people who are happy. Three weeks before our arrival it was predicted by some that it couldn't possibly be ready for dedication. Those so inclined to doubt didn't know this good bishop and his ward family-people of humble circumstances but powerfully committed. Walls were painted, floors waxed, and so on by parents when their children had been put to sleep for the night. Young boys, appropriately encouraged, carried buckets of water to make the lawns green and the flowers bloom around the chapel, because New Zealand had been long without rain. It was not only completed, it was shining! Here was a group of people accumulating oil for their lamps a drop at a time through sacrifice, preparation, cooperation, faith, and works. As these ward members worked together to meet the midnight hour, their love for each other was nurtured. They, too, shined in their triumph.
In all of our ward and stake buildings spiritual oil is available. Come and prepare. Join the ward members. Be involved. Don't simply give-give of yourself. Don't take without taking part. One who is thinking of others and serving others is filling his lamp with oil. While our worldwide fuel energy crisis is relieved by conservation, quite to the contrary, the spiritual crisis is corrected through use and preparation. I declare to you today that the more you give, the more drops of spiritual oil you will accumulate for yourself.
I am thinking now of a certain home, the home of a neighbor-your friend and mine. He certainly is one whose home is appropriately identified as one carrying the greeting, "Welcome Neighbor-Spiritual Oil Available-Come In As You Are." I refer to the home of our beloved President Spencer W. Kimball. Wherever you are, wherever you have been, he is your friend. His is a home of prayer. When he prays, we feel the Lord's power near. Faith precedes his prayers. Those of us who have the great blessing of daily, intimate association with President Kimball have heard him observe in the very recent past that with each passing day, prayer in his life has a new dimension. Prayer is a learning experience. Prayer is a power experience. Prayer is a humbling experience. Prayer is a resource for spiritual fuel. To pray with President Kimball is a spiritual refreshment.
May we not appropriately conclude that though he, Spencer W. Kimball, is a prophet of God, yet learns he to pray by praying. He has wisely told us, "Attendance at sacrament meetings adds oil to our lamps, drop by drop over the years. Fasting, family prayer, home teaching, control of bodily appetites, preaching the gospel, studying the scriptures-each act of dedication and obedience is a drop added to our store. Deeds of kindness, payments of offerings and tithes, chaste thoughts and actions, marriage in the covenant for eternity-these, too, contribute importantly to the oil with which we can at midnight refuel our exhausted lamps."
I bear witness to you that God listens to humble prayer. If he didn't, he wouldn't ask us to pray. Part of our worthwhile, urgency prayers today can be a reverent, quiet, listening period. Can we not appropriately say that he that goes to the well of prayer with faith unwavering is daily drawing oil for his lamp? It is also possible to help accumulate our supply in meaningful meditation.
Once more, think with me of those individuals of your acquaintance who radiate active dedication in God's kingdom. It is a thrill to associate with them. It is a lift to feel of their enthusiasm and preparation in being about His business. I am thinking now of a beautiful 22-year-old young lady, a convert of two years, Sister Ashton and I met recently in California. She is so excited about her recently discovered, priceless possession-the gospel of Jesus Christ-it is thrilling to be around her. There is a sincere urgency on her part to share the gospel with her associates, particularly her wonderful parents and family. As she prepares and performs, she accumulates oil for her lamp. There is no doubt in our minds she knows that God lives and Jesus is the Christ. Her cup truly runneth over with the blessed knowledge and conviction that she has.
When she so sweetly and yet so earnestly asked us if we couldn't find a few moments to come and visit with her parents in their lovely home, we felt an urgency at once to be there. There was good fellowship in the home. There was peace, unity, and love within its walls. "How wonderful my 22 years have been," she said, "so challenging and rewarding. My blessings have been countless and I am very thankful to my Heavenly Father. He blessed me with parents I love dearly and opportunities that I have received with them. The Church and the gospel inspire me to work very hard in everything I do-especially in living a good life and sharing my many blessings with others."
Here is one of God's choicest daughters aware of the importance now, right now, and the truths as recorded in Alma 34:32, "For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors."
Brothers and sisters, we are living in a time of urgency. We are living in a time of spiritual crisis. We are living in a time close to midnight. "Wherefore, stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly, saith the Lord."
I pray our Heavenly Father to daily assist us in our preparations that we may accumulate the oil of spirituality drop by drop, thought by thought, and act by act as we walk forward. The signs are available to us if we will but look. Thanks to the mercy and kindness of God we can say, "Spiritual Fuel Available-No Rationing-No Stamps-No Quotas-Come and Prepare." Through proper preparing and performing from within the walls of our homes, we can appropriately indicate, "Welcome Neighbor-Spiritual Oil Available-Come In As You Are."
Finally, I leave with you my witness: your lamp too can runneth over with spiritual fuel if you will but let it accumulate day by day, drop by drop, in righteous service to God and man.
God lives. Jesus is the Christ. He is our Redeemer, and this is His kingdom here on the earth. To this I bear humble testimony in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
Beloved brethren and sisters, all you who are near and you who are afar, today we have participated in a solemn assembly. Solemn assemblies have been known among the Saints since the days of Israel. They have been of various kinds but generally have been associated with the dedication of a temple or a special meeting appointed for the sustaining of a new First Presidency or a meeting for the priesthood to sustain a revelation, such as the tithing revelation to President Lorenzo Snow.
The Prophet Joseph Smith spoke concerning the solemn assembly:
"Tarry ye, tarry ye in this place, and call a solemn assembly, even of those who are the first laborers in this last kingdom."
Joseph Smith and Brigham Young were first sustained by a congregation, including a fully organized priesthood. Brigham Young was sustained on March 27, 1846, and was "unanimously elected president over the whole Camp of Israel " by the council. Later he was sustained, and the Hosanna Shout was given.
Each of the presidents of the Church has been sustained by the priesthood of the Church in solemn assembly down to and including President Harold B. Lee, who was sustained October 6, 1972.
Joseph Smith led the first solemn assembly, and after closing his discourse, he called upon the several quorums, commencing with the presidency, to manifest by rising, their willingness to acknowledge him as the prophet and seer and uphold him as such by their prayers and faith. All the quorums in turn cheerfully complied with this request. He then called upon all the congregation of Saints also to give their assent by rising to their feet.
He then proceeded to have the quorums of the priesthood and then the Saints in general stand to signify their sustaining; the leaders of the Church and the councils of the Church were similarly approved.
Joseph Smith said:
"The vote was unanimous in every instance, and I prophesied to all, that inasmuch as they would uphold these men in their several stations,, the Lord would bless them in the name of Jesus Christ, the blessings of heaven should be theirs; and when the Lord's anointed go forth to proclaim the word, bearing testimony to this generation, if they receive it they shall be blessed, but if not, the judgments of God will follow close upon them until that city or that house which rejects them shall be left desolate." Then the Hosanna Shout was given.
Today you have seen the Church in action. You have seen the mighty works of the Lord, how that everything is done by common consent, and those who are led sustain those who lead them. This is a constituent assembly, and all members of the Church were invited to attend.
Those of us who have this day been sustained by you enter into our duties with full purpose of heart. We are grateful, deeply grateful, for your sustaining vote. Our only interest now is to advise and counsel the people aright and in total line with the counsels of the Lord as they have come through the generations and dispensations. We love you people and wish for you total progress and joy and happiness, which we know can come only through following the admonitions of God as proclaimed through his prophets and leaders.
As we incline our hearts to our Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus Christ, we hear a symphony of sweet music sung by heavenly voices proclaiming the gospel of peace.
As representatives of the people, we follow the suggestion of Paul, the apostle of long ago, as he urged the Colossian saints to " Seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
"Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord."
And so with this melody of love in our hearts, unitedly we move forward to advance the work of the Lord, knowing that it is not for a century or a millennium but forever.
Now as we listen to the sweet melody of eternity, what do we hear?
We hear the voice of God calling on our father Adam, person to person, saying:
"I am God; I made the world, and men before they were in the flesh. "
And our father Adam gave unto us truths which have been basic since the foundation of the world. The gospel is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It is eternal. He proclaimed to us: " the Son of God hath atoned for original guilt, wherein the sins of the parents cannot be answered upon the heads of the children, for they are whole from the foundation of the world."
Adam was baptized and received the Holy Ghost.
And from Adam we learned of the ultimate coming of the Son, Jehovah. We learned of the redemption of fallen man from the grave. We hear Adam say, " In this life I shall have joy, and again in the flesh I shall see God."
Mortality made it possible for them to have seed, and as a result, the families of the earth have eternity in their grasp. This prophet and his wife " ceased not to call upon God."
"And thus all things were confirmed unto Adam, by an holy ordinance, and the Gospel preached, and a decree sent forth, that it should be in the world, until the end thereof; and thus it was. "
And thus it is eternal.
Adam received the priesthood and kept his genealogies in a book of remembrance.
And we thank thee, O God, for this prophet who gave us this firm beginning.
Again, we thank thee, O God, for another prophet who helped to set the lines straight for us-Enoch, who had communion with God, who said to him as he prophesied and taught the ways of God:
"Behold my Spirit is upon you, wherefore all thy words will I justify; and the mountains shall flee before you, and the rivers shall turn from their course; and thou shalt abide in me, and I in you; therefore walk with me."
This holy prophet did walk with God and beheld his creations back to the beginning and forward to the resurrection of Christ and of all men, and the scripture says:
"And Enoch and all his people walked with God, and he dwelt in the midst of Zion; and it came to pass that Zion was not, for God received it up into his own bosom. "
Again, what do we hear as we listen? The voice of righteous Abraham, the father of a race. We thank thee, O God, for this prophet Abraham, a holy and righteous man. He was our ancestor. He had close communion with our Lord, Jehovah.
He became an astronomer and was entrusted with numerous of the secrets of the heavens and the universe and conversed with the leading scientists of Egypt, the center of astronomy in those days. To Abraham was entrusted the history of the preexistent life which antedated the creation of this earth, and the peopling of this earth became a well-known story to this prophet-patriarch. He taught us pure trust in God.
When asked to sacrifice his son Isaac, with a superhuman faith, he offered the son, even though he had been promised that Isaac would live and would have an immense posterity, for Abraham had the unshakable faith to assure him that even if Isaac's life were taken, " God was able to raise him up, even from the dead. " So we thank thee, O God, for this great prophet.
Again we listen and what do we hear?
We hear the voice of Moses, the prophet. We hear him plead for the freedom of Israel from cursed bondage. We see Moses' acceptance by his Lord when the voice from the burning bush arrested his attention and commanded: " put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
" I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. "
And we sing again, "We thank thee, O God,"-for the prophet, the great Moses, who lighted the lamps before the Lord.
Again as we listen, what do we hear?
We hear the voice of Jehovah addressing Peter, the president of his church, and when asked: " Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?", we hear the great prophet Peter saying with a conviction that knew no doubt: " Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." And we hear him again giving his never waning testimony, recalling his experience on the Mount of Transfiguration, and he said:
"For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
"For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
"And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount."
There followed an apostasy after the crucifixion, and centuries were to pass when gross spiritual darkness covered the earth. And then when the time was ripe, there came a great awakening, with visions and revelations as in early days.
We listen again and what do we hear?
We hear the voice of a kneeling boy in a forest asking vital questions: What is the truth? Which church shall I join? And another great prophet opens another final dispensation. We hear the voice of almighty God, the Father, saying of the one beside him in perhaps the most spectacular vision of the ages: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
Then listening further, we hear the voice of another who says, "I am Jesus Christ, the son of God the first and the last."
The young prophet was advised that he would be an instrument in the hands of the Lord in restoring the eternal gospel with all that was lost in early centuries. Then these visions and revelations continued on through years in which the voice of Jehovah was heard again and again, restoring to the earth through this young prophet the truths of the gospel, the priesthood of God, the apostleship, the authorities and powers, the organization of the Church, so that again the revelations and the everlasting truths are upon the earth and available to all men who will accept them. The program of God has been restored that man may have its full power and glory.
Again we listen and hear the voice of the Prophet Joseph Smith, proclaiming: "Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing. Let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison; for the prisoners shall go free.
"Let the mountains shout for joy, and all ye valleys cry aloud; and all ye seas and dry lands tell the wonders of your Eternal King! And ye rivers, and brooks, and rills, flow down with gladness. Let the woods and all the trees of the field praise the Lord; and ye solid rocks weep for joy! And let the sun, moon, and the morning stars sing together, and let all the sons of God shout for joy! And let the eternal creations declare his name forever and ever! And again I say, how glorious is the voice we hear from heaven, proclaiming in our ears, glory, and salvation, and honor, and immortality, and eternal life; kingdoms, principalities, and powers!"
These voices have been heard. These prophets have spoken. This is the day of the Lord. We are in his hands. The restored gospel is here.
We shall serve you, our people, and love you and do our utmost to guide you to your righteous, glorious destiny, with our hearts overflowing with love and appreciation for you.
With our hands to the plow, looking forward; with our eyes to the light, looking upward; we enter into our "Father's business" with fear and trembling and love. We know our Heavenly Father lives. We know his glorified Son Jesus Christ lives. And we know his work is divine. And we bear this solemn testimony to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, my heart is full to overflowing. You and I, this memorable day, have been partakers of the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is his church. It bears his name. His prophet has lifted each of us beyond the shackles of this earth to the lofty heavens above. Our raised hands are supported by our pledged hearts. The kingdom of God moves forward in its undeviating and eternal course.
On a chill day last December, we gathered into this historic Tabernacle to pay honor and tribute to a man whom we loved, honored, and followed-even President Harold B. Lee. Prophetic in his utterance, powerful in his leadership, devoted in his service, President Lee inspired in all of us a desire to achieve perfection. He counseled us, "Keep the commandments of God. Follow the pathway of the Lord."
One day later, in a very sacred room on an upper floor of the Salt Lake Temple, his successor was chosen, sustained, and set apart to his sacred calling. Untiring in his labor, humble in his manner, inspiring in his testimony, President Spencer W. Kimball invited us to continue the course charted by President Lee. He spoke the same penetrating words, "Keep the commandments of God. Follow the pathway of the Lord. Walk in his footsteps."
Later that same evening, I happened to glance at a travel brochure which had arrived at my home several days earlier. It was printed in breathtaking color and written with persuasive skill. The reader was invited to visit the fjords of Norway and the Alps of Switzerland, all in one package tour. Yet another offering beckoned the reader to Bethlehem-even the Holy Land-cradle of Christianity. The closing lines of the brochure's message contained the simple yet powerful appeal, "Come and walk where Jesus walked."
My thoughts returned to the counsel God's prophets-even President Lee and President Kimball-had provided: "Follow the pathway of the Lord. Walk in his footsteps." I reflected on the words penned by the poet:
-Daniel S. Twohig
We need not visit the Holy Land to feel him close to us. We need not walk by the shores of Galilee or among the Judean hills to walk where Jesus walked.
In a very real sense, all can walk where Jesus walked when, with his words on our lips, his spirit in our hearts, and his teachings in our lives, we journey through mortality.
I would hope that we would walk as he walked-with confidence in the future, with an abiding faith in his Father, and a genuine love for others.
Jesus walked the path of disappointment.
Can one appreciate his lament over the Holy City? "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!"
Jesus walked the path of temptation.
That evil one, amassing his greatest strength, his most inviting sophistry, tempted him who had fasted for forty days and forty nights and was an hungred. Came the taunt: " If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread." The reply: "Man shall not live by bread alone. " Again, " If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee. " The answer: " Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." Still again: " the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. " The Master replied: "Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."
Jesus walked the path of pain.
Consider the agony of Gethsemane: " Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground."
And who among us can forget the cruelty of the cross. His words: " I thirst. It is finished. "
Yes, each of us will walk the path of disappointment, perhaps due to an opportunity lost, a power misused, or a loved one not taught. The path of temptation, too, will be the path of each. "And it must needs be that the devil should tempt the children of men, or they could not be agents unto themselves. "
Likewise shall we walk the path of pain. We cannot go to heaven in a feather bed. The Savior of the world entered after great pain and suffering. We, as servants, can expect no more than the Master. Before Easter there must be a cross.
While we walk these paths which bring forth bitter sorrow, we can also walk those paths which yield eternal joy.
We, with Jesus, can walk the path of obedience.
It will not be easy. "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered." Let our watchword be the heritage bequeathed us by Samuel: " Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." Let us remember that the end result of disobedience is captivity and death, while the reward for obedience is liberty and eternal life.
We, like Jesus, can walk the path of service.
Like a glowing searchlight of goodness is the life of Jesus as he ministered among men. He brought strength to the limbs of the cripple, sight to the eyes of the blind, hearing to the ears of the deaf, and life to the body of the dead.
His parables preach power. With the good Samaritan he taught: " love thy neighbour. " Through his kindness to the woman taken in adultery, he taught compassionate understanding. In his parable of the talents, he taught each of us to improve himself and to strive for perfection. Well could he have been preparing us for our journey along his pathway. Why else would he counsel: " Go, and do thou likewise."
Finally, he walked the path of prayer.
Three great lessons from three timeless prayers. First, from his ministry: " When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. "
Second, from Gethsemane: " not my will, but thine, be done."
Third, from the cross: " Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. "
It is by walking the path of prayer that we commune with the Father and become partakers of his power.
Shall we have the faith, even the desire, to walk these pathways which Jesus walked? God's prophet, seer, and revelator has this day invited us to do so. All we need do is follow him, for this is the pathway he walks.
My first acquaintance with this prophet leader was 24 years ago when I served as a young bishop here in Salt Lake City. One morning, upon answering my telephone, a voice said, "This is Elder Spencer W. Kimball. I have a favor to ask of you. In your ward, hidden away behind a large building on Fifth South Street, is a tiny trailer home. Living there is Margaret Bird, a Navajo widow. She feels unwanted, unneeded, and lost. Could you and the Relief Society presidency seek her out, extend to her the hand of fellowship, and provide for her a special welcome?" This we did.
A miracle resulted. Margaret Bird blossomed in her newly found environment. Despair disappeared. The widow in her affliction had been visited. The lost sheep had been found. Each who participated in the simple human drama emerged a better person.
In reality, the true shepherd was the concerned apostle who, leaving the ninety and nine of his ministry, went in search of the precious soul who was lost. Spencer W. Kimball had walked the pathway Jesus walked. He did so then. He does so now.
As you and I walk the pathway Jesus walked, let us listen for the sound of sandaled feet. Let us reach out for the Carpenter's hand. Then we shall come to know him. He may come to us as one unknown, without a name, as of old, by the lakeside he came to those men who knew him not. He speaks to us the same words, " follow thou me ", and sets us to the task which he has to fulfill for our time. He commands, and to those who obey him, whether they be wise or simple, he will reveal himself in the toils, the conflicts, the sufferings which they shall pass through in his fellowship; and they shall learn in their own experience who he is.
We discover he is more than the babe in Bethlehem, more than the carpenter's son, more than the greatest teacher ever to live. We come to know him as the Son of God. He never fashioned a statue, painted a picture, wrote a poem, or led an army. He never wore a crown or held a scepter or threw around his shoulder a purple robe. His forgiveness was unbounded, his patience inexhaustible, his courage without limit. Jesus changed men. He changed their habits, their opinions, their ambitions. He changed their tempers, their dispositions, their natures. He changed men's hearts.
One thinks of the fisherman called Simon, better known to you and to me as Peter, chief among the apostles. Doubting, disbelieving, impetuous Peter was to remember the night that Jesus was led away to the high priest. Present were the priests whose greed and selfishness the Master had reproved, the elders whose hypocrisy he had branded, the scribes whose ignorance he had exposed. And then there were the Sadducees, considered the most cruel and dangerous opponents. This was the night that the throng "began to spit on, and to cover his face, to buffet him, and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands."
Where was Peter, who had promised to die with him and never to deny him? The sacred record reveals, "And Peter followed him afar off, even into the palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed himself at the fire." This was the night that Peter, in fulfillment of the Master's prophecy, indeed did deny him thrice. Amidst the pushing, the jeers, and the blows, the Lord, in the agony of his humiliation, in the majesty of his silence, turned and looked upon Peter.
As one chronologer described the change, "It was enough. Peter knew no more danger, he feared no more death. He rushed into the night to meet the morning dawn. This broken-hearted penitent stood before the tribunal of his own conscience, and there his old life, his old shame, his old weakness, his old self was doomed to that death of godly sorrow which was to issue in a new and a nobler birth."
Then there was Saul of Tarsus, a scholar, familiar with the rabbinical writings in which certain modern scholars find such stores of treasure. For some reason, these writings did not reach Paul's need, and he kept on crying, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" And then one day he met Jesus, and behold, all things became new. From that day to the day of his death, Paul urged men to "put off the old man " and to "put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness."
The passage of time has not altered the capacity of the Redeemer to change men's lives. As he said to the dead Lazarus, so he says to you and me: " come forth." Come forth from the despair of doubt. Come forth from the sorrow of sin. Come forth from the death of disbelief. Come forth to a newness of life. Come forth.
As we do, and direct our footsteps along the paths which Jesus walked, let us remember the testimony Jesus gave: "Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world. I am the light and life of the world. " "I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father."
To his testimony I add my witness: He lives. His prophet this day has been sustained-even President Spencer W. Kimball. I so testify, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
Just a year and a half ago in our solemn assembly, I was asked to present for the sustaining vote of the members a new president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a prophet, seer, and revelator-President Harold B. Lee-together with the other General Authorities and general Church officers.
President Lee was an outstanding, dynamic leader, loved and respected by all, and much was accomplished in the short time he presided over the Church. We were all shocked and saddened indeed at his passing. We realize, however, that the Lord has called him home to his great reward and to a different service. Following his passing, our beloved President Spencer W. Kimball was called, set apart, and ordained as prophet, seer, and revelator, and as president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
I should like to bear my witness that President Kimball was chosen by the Lord and foreordained to preside over the Church at this particular time. Miracles have been performed in his behalf in order to make it possible for him to be here in good health to receive this high honor and to assume the heavy responsibility placed upon him. He has been enthusiastically sustained by the stakes in their stake conferences and in the solemn assembly this morning. It is truly an honor, privilege, and blessing for me to be called as his counselor, and I do hope and pray that the Lord will give me the wisdom, judgment, inspiration, and ability, together with my determination, to serve under his direction in an acceptable manner to him and to the Lord in helping to build the kingdom of God here upon the earth.
I call upon all members of the Church everywhere to close ranks and to accept and support him as one called of God as a prophet, seer, and revelator, an apostle of Jesus Christ and president of His church and kingdom, and to assume their individual responsibilities in helping to further the cause of righteousness and in working out their own salvation and exaltation.
Further, as the Lord said:
"Wherefore, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
"For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
"For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory."
It was just 144 years ago that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized under the direction of the Lord, and the Prophet Joseph Smith was called by him as the first president of his Church in these, the latter days, and the members were given the instructions I have just quoted. We all have the responsibility of going forward and helping to build the kingdom of God and furthering the cause of truth and righteousness, bringing souls unto Christ.
Also, we are reminded that next week we celebrate the day on which our Lord and Savior, by that great miracle of the resurrection, broke the bonds of death and was raised from the tomb as a resurrected being. It is natural, right, and proper that Christians everywhere should turn their minds and hearts in gratitude to the great sacrifice made by Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, who gave his life for you and me and all mankind that our sins may be forgiven and that we might be resurrected and enjoy immortality and eternal life, for he said, " This is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
He also said, " this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
Then as recorded in John, "Jesus said I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
"And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. "
Much has been said in this conference, and more will be said, I am sure, about the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the great miracle of the resurrection and his message to the world. It is by him and through him only that we have hope of resurrection and life after death. Through his prophets and by his own teachings, he gave us the plan of life and salvation, which if accepted and lived will give us the greatest joy and success and happiness while we sojourn here upon the earth, and eternal life hereafter. While here he taught us the importance of prayer and how to pray, and it is on this subject that I should like to address you for just a few moments.
He said:
" When thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men.
"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
" Use not vain repetitions.
"After this manner therefore pray ye Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
"Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
"Give us this day our daily bread.
"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."
This is often referred to as the Lord's Prayer, with the thought that it should be repeated regularly and verbatim, where in reality he said: "After this manner therefore pray ye," suggesting that the things he referred to should be in our minds and in our hearts, but prayer is a direct personal relationship in which we acknowledge our Father in heaven, and must be sincere, expressing simply in our own words our feelings of gratitude and asking for the guidance and blessings of which we stand in need.
First, as the Lord said, the door must be shut against the distractions of the world so that we may concentrate on what we are saying to our Father in heaven. Let us analyze the meaning of the words in the sample prayer which our Lord has given us.
He said, "Our Father which art in heaven." By these words we acknowledge God as our Father, the Father of all mankind; and all men, whoever they are and wherever they may be, are invited to call upon him as their Father which art in heaven. What a glorious thing it is to realize and to know that we can go to our Heavenly Father without appointment, pour out our souls to him in all simplicity and faith, knowing that he is there and can and will hear and answer our prayers. We know that he is a living God who dwells in heaven, that we are his spirit children, and that his Son Jesus Christ has instructed us, regardless of who we are, to call upon God and to acknowledge him as our Father.
Next he said, "Hallowed be thy name." How important it is that God's name should be hallowed in our daily conduct, and particularly in our worship. We can best hallow the name of God by sanctifying his name and helping others to sanctify it. We should sanctify his name by showing love and reverence and in calling upon him in worship, doing all these things that would redound to his glory.
As we think, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven," we must realize there is only one way by which this can be accomplished, and that is by our accepting him as our God and by living his commandments and helping to build his kingdom here upon the earth. His church and kingdom has been established here upon the earth today, and it can be built up only as we accept his teachings, live them, and teach them to the world.
The Lord, speaking to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1831, said:
"The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth.
"Call upon the Lord, that his kingdom may go forth upon the earth, that the inhabitants thereof may receive it, and be prepared for the days to come, in the which the Son of Man shall come down in heaven, clothed in the brightness of his glory, to meet the kingdom of God which is set up on the earth.
"Wherefore, may the kingdom of God go forth, that the kingdom of heaven may come, that thou, O God, mayest be glorified in heaven so on earth, that thine enemies may be subdued; for thine is the honor, power and glory, forever and ever. Amen."
If we pray that his will be done, we must be prepared to do our part. My father said to me when I was a boy, "If you want your prayers to be answered, you'd better get on your feet and go to work." There is no use praying for the kingdom to come and his will to be done unless we are prepared to do something about it.
As we consider the words "Give us this day our daily bread," we might well say "our daily needs," as we should recognize that we are entirely dependent upon the Lord for all that we have. He is our Creator and the Giver of all things. He has given us a brain by which we can think and reason and learn, and he expects us to use our knowledge and the skills we develop to produce abundantly that we may supply our own needs and share with our neighbors. We are admonished to pray regarding all our personal needs and over everything that pertains to our welfare. How important it is to be worthy to call upon our Heavenly Father and ask for his help and express our gratitude for the bounties of life and all his wonderful blessings. As we pray, we should determine to use these blessings wisely for the benefit of ourselves and others, for furthering the Lord's work, and for the glorification of his name. Only as we do the will of God do we acknowledge his sovereignty.
As we analyze the words "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil," we should realize that he has given us scripture and sent us prophets to teach us, and as we accept these teachings, we will be led away from and not into temptation. Keeping the commandments and following the teachings of Jesus Christ will give us the strength to resist temptation, and we will be delivered from evil because we will not be associating ourselves with evil or putting ourselves in a position where we will be tempted to do that which is wrong.
In the gospel of Mark we read, "Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak." We must pray for courage and strength, desire, determination, and ability to be honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and to do unto others as we would have others do unto us. As we prayerfully and continually search for truth, we should seek after anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy. By so living we will be helping the Lord answer our plea, "Lead us not into temptation," and we will be delivered from evil.
Let us consider "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." It is interesting to compare this version as recorded by Matthew with those of Luke and Mark. Luke says, "And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. "
Mark expresses it this way:
"And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
"But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses."
The Lord has said, "I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men." We are further admonished to forgive many times, even seventy times seven. We should stop and ask ourselves if we are prepared to ask the Lord to forgive us of our sins and trespasses only as we forgive our friends and neighbors. How wonderful it would be if we would all forgive and love our neighbors. Then it would be much easier for us to call upon the Lord to forgive us of any of our wrongdoings, and as we repent and bring forth fruits meet for repentance, we can expect God's forgiveness and mercy to be extended in our behalf.
The scriptures are clear concerning such forgiveness. We read: "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
"But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."
Further: "Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin."
Our Lord gave us an example of the true spirit of forgiveness when he said from the cross, " Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." We read also of that faithful disciple, Stephen, who was persecuted and stoned, "And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep."
How important it is for us to apply in our lives those great principles of repentance and forgiveness. Let us always remember that the one who carries a grudge or ill feelings toward a neighbor and does not forgive is the one who is uncomfortable and unhappy and ill at ease, and continuing in this course will canker his soul, and in him will remain the greater sin. There are numerous stories with beautiful endings where persons who have carried grudges or harbored ill feelings toward others have had the courage and strength to, later on, go and apologize, showing love and making reconciliation, resulting in a beautiful new relationship where both are greatly relieved and happy together.
Now let us ponder the words "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen." Again we are reminded that God is our Father, and acknowledge that the kingdom we seek is his, and that all good is accomplished not in and of ourselves, but by his power and to his glory. We must give thanks to him for all that we receive, realizing the importance of expressing our gratitude by the way we live and serve him and our fellowmen.
May we always remember and acknowledge that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, came and gave his life for you and me, and accept his teachings as the way of life and salvation, and be prepared to so live that we may be found worthy of his sacrifice as we prepare ourselves to enjoy immortality and eternal life. As we do this, we will bring glory to his name and salvation to ourselves.
"Amen" is a word used in closing to express solemn ratification or hearty approval of what has been said. Let us truly mean it and show it by our words and deeds.
As we pray, let us remember the prayer offered by Jesus Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane:
"Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
"And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
"Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
"And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."
How important it is that we are prepared to say, "Not as I will, but as thou wilt."
Let us listen to the word of the Lord in more recent times:
"Hearken, O ye people of my church, to whom the kingdom has been given; hearken ye and give ear to him who laid the foundation of the earth, who made the heavens and all the hosts thereof, and by whom all things were made which live, and move, and have a being.
"And again I say, hearken unto my voice, lest death shall overtake you; in an hour when ye think not the summer shall be past, and the harvest ended, and your souls not saved.
"Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him."
I bear witness that God does live, that he stands ready to hear and answer our prayers through Jesus Christ, our Savior. We can glorify his name and help to build his kingdom which is established upon the earth only as we live his teachings and keep his commandments. May we do this, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
During this conference we have formally installed a new president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was a momentous occasion.
Only 12 times in the 144 years of our history has this been done. In the solemn assembly held this morning in the Tabernacle, President Spencer W. Kimball was accepted by the vote of the people as the President of the Church, but also as the prophet, seer, and revelator of the Lord.
The voting was unanimous. The positive and affirmative confirmation of the Holy Spirit was here also. Everyone in the great Tabernacle felt the presence of that divine influence. It was experienced also by those who listened on the radio and witnessed the proceedings by television. And as was the case in the days of Moses, "All the people say, Amen."
And what a wonderful man has been chosen. Having directed the Council of the Twelve for several years, and having served as President of the Church by action of the Council of the Twelve in the interim period from President Harold B. Lee's death until this conference, he now is sustained by the vote of the membership as their divinely appointed spiritual guide and the interpreter of the word and will of the Lord.
He has accepted this high position in deep humility. But although humble and unassuming, he is nevertheless a tower of strength, a man of great initiative and foresight, a doer in every sense.
Through the more than 30 years of his apostolic ministry, he has been known throughout the Church for his almost incredible energy, his boundless enthusiasm for the work, his selflessness, his full determination to place his all upon the altar as his contribution in the building of the kingdom of God.
His dedication is without bounds. He is a fully consecrated servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. His health has been restored miraculously to permit him to fulfill this great ministry. His healing is one of the tangible evidences of the divinity of his call. It was an act of God.
In the exercise of the unusual strength with which the Lord has endowed him, he never forgets its source and seeks constantly to know and to do the will of the Master.
With all of his energy and enthusiasm, he nevertheless is completely Christlike in his kindness and compassion, in his meekness, in the depth of his understanding of other people and their problems, and in his desire to help them.
Literally and individually he has taken the hands of thousands of wayward ones and brought them back to the path of salvation, showing them a new light, giving them new hope, making possible their return to the way of the Lord.
When correction has been needed, as he has seen that need, it has been given, but always in love and kindness, with a hand soft and sympathetic, yet firm in righteousness.
When difficult tasks confront him-and the present one is his greatest-he never flinches from duty but approaches it in faith and prayer and in the full strength of his noble personality. As a result, the work is always done and done very well.
Constantly aware of his own personal limitations, he nevertheless knows that this is God's work and that the Lord uses humble people to accomplish his purposes.
President Kimball is a firm believer in the words of Nephi who said, " I know that the Lord giveth no commandment unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." This is part and parcel of his faith. It is the secret of his success.
The program of the Lord will go forward now as it always has done, for the Almighty will work through, and daily direct, President Spencer W. Kimball. The work will never fail, nor will it be given to another people.
As the Church members today by unanimous vote sustained our new President, they not only took upon themselves a great responsibility in pledging to follow him, but they also preserved a vital principle of the restored gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Their vote was a covenant, made with uplifted hands before God and witnesses who were numbered in the hundreds of thousands in the Tabernacle, on the radio, and by television.
When we sustain our President, we agree to follow his direction. He is the mouthpiece of the Lord for today, and that has great and significant meaning. When this matter came up in the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord, speaking of his leaders, said:
" They shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost.
"And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
As members of the Church, by voting to sustain our new President, we have placed ourselves under a solemn covenant to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life as he gives them to us.
The modern word of the Lord says, " You shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
And how are we to receive that word? Through his prophet!
That has been the divine pattern from the beginning. Through Amos came the revelation saying, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
This was the Lord's pattern throughout the Old Testament. It was true in New Testament times, and it is true today.
When the Church was organized 144 years ago, the Lord made this clear by restoring the principle that the leader of his Church on earth shall also be His spokesman and not any self-appointed individual seeking to build up a following of his own.
On April 6, 1830, speaking of the newly appointed President of the Church, the Lord declared that his President shall also be his mouthpiece.
Having done so, the Lord designated him also as prophet, seer, and revelator. And then the Lord commanded the membership as follows:
"Wherefore, meaning the church, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
"For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith."
Then followed this great promise if we will thus obey:
"For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory."
What more can we ask?
This points up a great principle-an added lesson-that we must learn from today's voting. It is that there can be only one head of Christ's church on earth at one time, and he must be chosen and sustained just as President Kimball was today. No man can take it unto himself. He must be called of God as was Aaron.
Neither does the Lord allow for any secret ordinations in his work. To be valid, everything is done publicly and by the vote of the people. Said the Savior, " It shall not be given to any one to go forth to preach my gospel, or to build up my church, except he be ordained by some one who has authority, and it is known to the church that he has authority and has been regularly ordained by the heads of the church."
And then the Lord said, " All things shall be done by common consent in the church, " which means by public knowledge and public vote.
And he said further, "No person is to be ordained to any office in this church, where there is a regularly organized branch of the same, without the vote of that church."
And again, "And a commandment I give unto you, that you should fill all these offices and approve of those names which I have mentioned, or else disapprove of them at my general conference."
This rules out cultists of all kinds, false teachers and false leaders of every description, and puts the Lord's people on notice that there is but one clear directing voice in the Church, and that is the voice of the prophet, seer, and revelator duly chosen by revelation and accepted by the vote of the people in the general conference of the Church.
For today that man is Spencer W. Kimball.
President John Taylor, in speaking of the process of voting by which our President is sustained and which process we have followed today, said, "This is the order that the Lord has instituted in Zion, as it was in former times among Israel. This is emphatically the voice of God, and the voice of the people."
When President Brigham Young discussed this subject, he said, " has but one mouth through which to make known his will to his people. When the Lord wishes to give a revelation to his people, when he wishes to reveal new items of doctrine to them, or administer chastisement, he will do it through the man whom he has appointed to that office and calling." And that man is the President of the Church!
Brigham Young further said, "The Lord Almighty leads this Church, and he will never suffer you to be led astray if you are found doing your duty."
It was President Heber J. Grant who added, "You have no need to fear that any man will ever stand at the head of the Church of Jesus Christ unless our Heavenly Father wants him there."
Now what authority does President Kimball have? As President of the Church, he holds all of the keys and powers ever given by the angels to the Prophet Joseph Smith in the restoration of the gospel in this last dispensation. He has received these powers by the laying on of hands of those in authority. I repeat, he has received all these powers by the laying on of hands of those previously possessing them and holding the authority to give them to President Kimball.
Every President of the Church has possessed these keys and powers. No President of the Church could function without them. The Church itself could not function without them.
If the Prophet Joseph Smith had taken these keys of authority with him into the grave, could we do our work today? This work cannot be done without those keys. It was necessary that they be held in perpetuity by the leaders of the Church.
If Joseph had taken with him to the grave the keys of saving the dead, could we do our temple work?
Could we preach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people without the authority to do so?
If Joseph had taken with him into eternity the keys of the gathering of Israel, could Israel be gathered?
Would our pioneers have come to the tops of the mountains in fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah and here established the headquarters of the Church unless they held the divine right to do so?
And there will yet be a worldwide gathering of the Lord's people before the second coming of the Savior. Could this be done without the keys of gathering delivered to us by the prophet Moses, who held those keys and delivered them to Joseph Smith?
Could organized stakes of the Church be established in the far-flung areas of the world without the divine right to do so?
We readily see then that the powers given by the angels to the Prophet Joseph Smith remained with the Church, and they still remain with the Church. They are centered always in one man, the President of the Church, the prophet, seer, and revelator.
It could not be any other way. This is the Lord's pattern. This is the way he directs and conducts his work.
Surely Amos spoke truly when he said, " the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
In the words of President Wilford Woodruff, "Let me exhort all elders of Israel and Saints of God to rise up in the majesty and dignity of their calling, and make full proof of their ministry and covenant. Sustain by your works the authorities, keys, and priesthood; the eyes of God, angels and men are over you, and when the work is finished, you will receive your just recompense."
I know that my Redeemer lives. He has made known to me personally that what I have said here today is true. God our Heavenly Father lives. This Church is his church. Jesus our Savior directs the work. And President Kimball is his prophet! This I solemnly testify by all that I hold sacred and in the holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, I have truly been inspired by the words of our beloved prophet as well as my brethren. The beautiful prayer and music have likewise contributed to making this conference another remarkable spiritual experience.
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints members frequently use words that have a special meaning to them-one of which is testimony.
Members bear, or relate, their testimonies to other members at special testimony meetings and at times avail themselves of the opportunity to bear their testimonies to nonmembers. In bearing their testimonies, members generally testify that they know that God lives and that his Son Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is the divine plan of life that brings happiness and growth to those who accept it and make it a part of their daily lives.
President Harold B. Lee expressed it this way: "Within the Gospel of Jesus Christ may be found the solution of every problem confronting us, which will enable us to find happiness here and eternal life in the world to come."
It has been stated that the purpose of the gospel is to change peoples' lives, to make bad people good and good people better, to change human nature; and how true this is!
President Brigham Young said, "You cannot find a compass on the earth, that points, so directly, as the Gospel plan of salvation. It has a place for every thing, and puts everything in its place."
Some members of the Church possess powerful and unfaltering testimonies, while others possess less forceful testimonies. It should be recognized that testimonies can be acquired, testimonies can be kept, and testimonies can be lost.
It is not uncommon to hear Church members declare that their testimony is their most prized possession.
A convert from Seattle, in answering the question "What has the Church done for you?" replied, "Everything! My life now has purpose and meaning. Now what can I do for the Lord? I owe him my all."
Another convert living in Arizona had this to say:
"One brother was extremely instrumental in our becoming members of the Church. We will ever be indebted to him and thankful to him for asking us what we knew about the Mormon Church and would we like to know more. Through the missionary discussions we were thoroughly convinced that this was the true church. And the thing that has changed my life the most is that I have found a purpose in life and a certain peace of mind I have never felt before. I know with all my heart that this is the true church and that Christ lives and God lives."
These converts' testimonies are truly inspiring and emphasize the value of the gospel to them and to their families.
I have borne my testimony many times to people who were interested in knowing more about the Church, and they have asked me, "How can I obtain a conviction of the truthfulness of the restored gospel-yes, a testimony to this effect?" My answer has been, "Study the gospel, pray and attend church."
This formula when followed will bring a conviction or testimony that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is true, and when one accepts the gospel plan and lives its principles, it will bring him peace, happiness, growth, and development. However, to obtain a testimony one must have a real desire to know the truth and must be willing to exert considerable effort.
The interested person must study the gospel, and the gospel is to be found primarily in the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price, the four standard works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In this dispensation the Lord has counseled us to "seek out of the best books words of wisdom: seek learning, even by study. "
Jesus said, " know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
I feel sure that part of this freedom Jesus refers to must be freedom from ignorance, as ignorance is a deterrent to happiness, growth, and development.
Through study of the scriptures we can understand our relationship to God and how the basic gospel principles apply to our daily lives. Our study, however, should be constant and intensive, for the gospel of Jesus Christ embraces all truth.
Now regarding the second step to acquire a testimony-prayer-the Prophet Joseph Smith observed that "it is the first principle of the gospel to know for a certainty the character of God, and to know that we may converse with Him as one man converses with another. "
Near the end of the Book of Mormon, Moroni, a great leader, gave this promise:
"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
Although this promise specifically refers to the Book of Mormon, I am sure as you study the Bible, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price you will find that the promise is likewise applicable to these scriptures.
Prayer plays a vital part in our religious thinking and in our daily lives. One of my convert friends told me, "Because the elders emphasized that we should pray, I did. I barely had asked the questions when this beautiful answer came. Yes, that was the start of my new life."
Another convert said, "I used to pray, not often, but I did pray before we became members. I prayed that someday my husband and I would grow closer together. I never thought it would come to be, but the Church was my answer. We found the power of prayer. I'm so thankful for the Church."
Prayer then must accompany study for one to obtain a testimony of the truthfulness of the restored gospel.
The third part of the formula to obtain a testimony is to attend church and become involved in church activities. My Arizona convert friend also had this to say: "The first time we visited a ward meeting, I felt such a warm, loving feeling. All the people seemed to have smiles on their faces and hearty handshakes for us. We felt so welcome, and we knew we wanted to be a part of all this. This was the only way.
She continued: "Another aspect of the Church I love is its constant learning, developing, and growing power. I'm grateful for the opportunity to work in the Church because this constant contact is helping us to grow and develop in the gospel."
Another convert expressed it this way: "As my husband and I were baptized, I had no idea just how involved we would become. My first calling was that of chorister in sacrament meeting.
"Then I was asked to be a Mia Maid leader. I asked the question, 'What is a Mia Maid?' I learned from experience. That is a girl at the delightful age of 14. The girls have so much enthusiasm and energy. I am thrilled with my calling in MIA. It keeps me feeling young and needed and busy.
"My husband, too, has held many positions in the ward, and his determination and dedication have been a strength to me."
After listening to these converts' testimonies, it is easy to see why so many members of the Church declare that their testimony is their most prized possession.
Many thousands have received a testimony, a conviction of the truthfulness of the restored gospel, by following the formula: study, pray, and attend church. They have thus been able to better interpret the scriptures and find their place in the eternal scheme of things.
To those of you who feel that you have a firm testimony, remember: a testimony is never static; a testimony can be lost. To keep it alive, it must be fed. Continue to study, pray, attend church, and be involved. This will not only keep your testimony alive, but it will expand and become more meaningful in your life.
I bear my testimony to you that the Holy Ghost has borne witness to me that God lives and is the Father of our spirits, that Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and Savior, and that Joseph Smith was a great prophet chosen by God to restore the gospel in its fullness and the power to act in his name in this dispensation.
The Holy Ghost has also borne witness to me that President Spencer W. Kimball is a modern-day prophet who leads and directs The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today. May the Lord bless and sustain him in his great calling, and may we sustain him and have the courage and foresight to follow his counsel.
This testimony has a beneficial influence in every phase of my life, and I can readily understand why so many Church members bear witness that their testimony is their most prized possession.
I bear this witness to you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
One who reads through the books of Matthew and John finds in them not only the account of the life of the Lord Jesus Christ and the story of the establishment of his kingdom on earth, but the evidences that he fulfilled the prophecies concerning the promised Messiah. These two apostles seemed to have been concerned with the fact that the Lord fulfilled the prophecies, as well as doing wonderful and awe-inspiring works before people.
The people were well acquainted with the scriptural basis of prophecy. "Surely," said Amos, "the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." And so if this man who did such mighty works was truly the Messiah promised for nearly 2,000 years, he must fulfill all the prophecies which have been inspired of the Holy Ghost concerning him. There are numerous such prophecies in the Old Testament I shall enumerate those called to our attention by Matthew and John. You will have no trouble affirming that they attest Jesus Christ, the only one whom they fit.
He was to be born of a virgin; he was to be named Immanuel, which means "God with us." He was to come out of Egypt, and yet be born in Bethlehem of Judea. His enemies would cause great mourning for children in Bethlehem. And he would finally be called a Nazarene; the Nazarenes were despised, and so people could call him a Nazarene, meaning "despised." He was to do many marvelous acts which their recipients were not to make known in the streets. He would cast out devils and heal the sick. He was to teach in parables. When he was proclaimed king, he would come lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt, the foal of an ass.
He would make the temple a house of prayer, driving the moneychangers from it in the process. He would suffer an ignominious death; his executioners would part his raiment among them and cast lots for his garment. And from the death price of thirty pieces of silver, a potter's field would be purchased. In the process of dying he would cry out, "I thirst."
In spite of the Roman custom of breaking the bones of those they crucified, the prophets proclaimed that not one of his bones would be broken. He was to make his grave with the rich. And after all this he would be called by Isaiah, "Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
As the two apostles wrote about the Lord, they pointed out that the Savior of mankind had fulfilled to the minutest detail those events foretold by the prophets. Luke summarized the Savior's life in these words, " that all things which are written may be fulfilled."
While not in so much detail, other great events of importance to the progress of the Lord's work have been prophesied. Isaiah outlined the fact that some of his people would be brought down and that they should speak out of the dust and that this voice would be as a familiar spirit, speaking out of the ground. Ezekiel spoke of the sticks of Judah and Ephraim which, having been written on, should become one in the hand of the Lord.
The Lord said unto Enoch, as though to confirm what would be said by Isaiah, that "righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood. "
Lehi quotes Joseph, the son of Jacob, as speaking of a great prophet of the latter days who would be his descendant and be named after Joseph himself, and that the father of this great prophet would be named Joseph also.
The only event that has welded all of these separate prophecies into a coherent whole has been the appearance of Moroni, an ancient Nephite prophet, to Joseph Smith, and his subsequent guidance of the young prophet as he literally brought forth out of the ground the Book of Mormon, which has indeed a familiar spirit, as one speaking out of the dust for a remnant of Israel long since dead. The later joining of this Book of Mormon, the history of the dealings of Christ with a people who were, as Ezekiel said, of Ephraim, with the account of Christ's dealings with Judah, the Bible, is a literal fulfillment of the prophecies I have just mentioned by Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Enoch.
While the choosing of Joseph Smith, a son of Joseph Smith, is a fulfillment of the prophecy of Joseph, son of Jacob, recorded in 2 Nephi, the connection of these two histories with the Prophet Joseph Smith is miraculous. No man could have brought it about nor have foreseen the events by which it was restored to the earth. Nothing like it has ever been done before; and yet after its accomplishment, we know that it could have taken place in no other way.
We can take comfort that the great events of the future have been prophesied in considerable detail, and that when they are fulfilled, the events of that fulfillment will occur as naturally and as surely as have those of the distant past. There will be scoffers and disbelievers in that day also, who will, up until the very moment of the appearance of the Son of Man, declare that the believers are fools for believing.
As though a great musical oratorio was being performed, there have been minor themes to accompany the greater prophecies. These have pointed to the local events which guided the way to those magnificent chords of the main theme. Jacob blessed Joseph to have his heritage extend to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills; an angel visited Zacharias and informed him of the coming birth of John the Baptist; Samuel, called by the voice of the Lord to be his prophet instead of Eli, constantly raised his voice in prophecy over Israel.
The prophecy of Joseph Smith that the Saints would be driven to the Rocky Mountains, there to become a mighty people, was in confirmation of an earlier prophecy of Isaiah "that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains." This prophecy was fulfilled and further confirmed by Brigham Young, who, when entering the valley, rose from his sick bed in Wilford Woodruff's carriage and said, "This is the right place!"
There have been prophecies about men in these latter days of equal import. Given by pure inspiration to loyal and pure people, they are as prophetic as if they were made by the major prophets.
Eliza R. Snow, seeing the small son of Rachel Ivins Grant playing on the floor in the home of William C. Staines, prophesied in tongues that he would grow up to become an apostle. Zina D. Young interpreted the prophecy. That small boy was President Heber J. Grant.
In 1887 Patriarch John Smith said to a young man, age 13, "For the eye of the Lord is upon thee-the Lord has a work for thee to do, in which thou shalt see much of the world. It shall be thy lot to sit in council with thy brethren, and preside among the people, and exhort the saints to faithfulness." A confirmation of this took place in far-off Scotland, in a meeting high in spiritual manifestation, when a Latter-day Saint of Scotch ancestry spoke. Those who were there heard President James L. McMurrin address one of those present and prophesy that he would sit in the highest councils of the Church. That one sat in the highest councils of the Church in the person of President David O. McKay.
About 65 years ago, Sister Mary Kimball, wife of Crozier Kimball, watched a small boy climb into a buggy driven by his father, Andrew. As they drove away, she turned to her husband and was inspired to say, "That boy will some day be the prophet of the Lord." That boy sits here today, presiding over this conference as the President of the Church, President Spencer W. Kimball.
Constantly in the lives of the members, prophetic statements have been made. Is a person who is ill given a blessing? Inspired promises are often made by the elder pronouncing it. Is a baby given a name? The blessing following may be and is often prophetic. Does a father give what we call a "father's blessing"? Then in his patriarchal position, he may be as prophetic as was Jacob in blessing his twelve sons. Promises made when inspired of the Holy Ghost will be fulfilled if the persons to whom they are given keep in harmony with divine principles.
There have been many occasions when people have had direct revelation to themselves as to important events to take place in their own lives about which they had no previous warning. Many men and women in this audience can testify that they knew beforehand of the call to be made upon them and the requirements of the call. As with Enos, "the voice of the Lord came into mind. " In each case, the words were sure and clear to the recipient.
And finally unto many of the faithful comes the inspiration as to callings and positions to be given to people who are important to the Church. Men and women have known by the power of the Holy Ghost who would fill an apostolic vacancy or one of stake or ward importance. They do not voice these inspirations, but have the deep satisfaction of recognizing the source and the joy of having the Lord share with them, in advance, the foretold action.
All of these variations of the gift of prophecy come to those whose lives merit the presence of the Holy Ghost. Was it not the Prophet Joseph who said that the spirit of the Holy Ghost is the spirit of prophecy? All of us should court it and be enveloped in its beneficent influence.
All of these prophecies, great and small, bear witness that the Lord has known the end from the beginning and has warned and forewarned those who would listen of the solemn and sure march of the work of Christ to its certain and ultimate conclusion. We who sit here today are a part of that great movement. If we play our part well and sustain the Lord Jesus Christ and his living prophet, all will be well with us.
I desire to include a prayer for President Spencer W. Kimball as I close these remarks.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters, that which has transpired here today has my wholehearted approval. To these men who have been appointed of God as prophets, I give my wholehearted support and loyalty.
The Old Testament speaks of many great prophets. The last of the prophets in old Israel who held a fullness of divine authority was Elijah the Tishbite. A famine came in the land when Elijah, as commanded of God, sealed the heavens shut that it did not rain. During this famine, he was miraculously fed by ravens at the brook Cherith, which flowed into the Jordan River.
Then God sent Elijah to the city of Zarephath and told him he had appointed a widow there who would feed him. Elijah met this widow at the outskirts of the city and asked her to give him food to eat.
"And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die."
Elijah then promised her in the name of the Lord that if she would feed him, she would never lack for food. I have pondered on the faith of that woman, who, on the promise of a humble man of God, put her life and the life of her son in the balance. Obediently she baked food and fed Elijah, and then followed the miracle of the fulfillment of the prophet's promise: "And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah."
I have tried to compare her spirit of obedience with our willingness to obey the word of God as spoken by modern prophets. These prophets hold the same fullness of authority given to Elijah. They have told us to keep at least a year's supply of food on hand for any future emergency. We have only their word of prophecy to rely on, just as the widow relied on that of Elijah. We should obey as she did. By so doing, we will be able to save ourselves and our families from want.
Some members of the Church have said to me, "Why should we keep a store of food on hand? If a real emergency came in this lawless world, a neighbor would simply come with his gun and take it from us. What would you do if a person came and demanded your food?" I replied that I would share whatever I had with him, and he wouldn't have to use a gun to obtain that assistance either.
"I wouldn't," replied one man. "I have a gun, and I wouldn't hesitate to use it to defend my family. Anyone would have to kill me first in order to get food away from me! After all, they bring their own misery on themselves by not being prepared!"
Well, one way to solve this problem is to convert your neighbors to become obedient Latter-day Saints with their own supply of food. If every family were provided for, our stores would be safe for the use of our families. But not all people have sufficient faith to share with others as did the widow who shared with Elijah. I remember the words of another prophet who loved the poor and the unfortunate. He said:
"And also, ye yourselves will succor those that stand in need of your succor; ye will administer of your substance unto him that standeth in need; and ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain, and turn him out to perish.
"Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just-
"But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God.
"For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?"
I sincerely believe if we do everything in our power to be obedient to the will of God, we and our families will never lack. If we are obedient as true followers of Christ and share what we have with those less fortunate than we, the Lord will keep his promise to watch over us and care for us. I will then be glad that I have stores of food on hand so I can be of assistance to others. Perhaps like the widow who fed Elijah, the meal will then never fail in our barrels nor the oil ever fail in our cruses until prosperity comes again.
If the power of Elijah is so important in temporal affairs, think of the spiritual power he possessed. You remember, he could bind or seal on earth and have it bound in heaven, or he could loose on earth and have it loosed in heaven. In his day, because of the wickedness of the people, he bound the heavens that it did not rain, and no rain fell until after he had shown the people the impotence and lack of power of the 450 priests of Baal. After they were destroyed and the people humbled, Elijah, by the power of God, opened the heavens again that rain fell to break the famine. This sealing power is characteristic of the prophets of God who hold full divine authority.
Jesus promised this sealing power to Peter and said: "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
However, this power did not come to Peter until one week later, when Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him to the top of a high mountain. As they were there transfigured, Moses and Elias appeared to them and gave these apostles, under the direction of Jesus Christ, a fullness of divine priesthood authority. Remember that Elias is the Greek name for Elijah. Elijah, who was the last prophet of the Old Testament to hold the keys of that sealing power, passed this power on to the prophets of the New Testament. There is great order in the priesthood, and the transfer of keys of authority is carried out carefully in the Lord's own way, under his direction. Once this power was restored, it was possible to pass it on to all the apostles, as recorded in the scriptures. Jesus told the Twelve: "Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
There is considerable confusion in the minds of students concerning the power of Elias and the power of Elijah. There was a prophet by the name of Elias whom we know more familiarly as Noah. This office of Elias is that of a precursor or forerunner. Those who have this power are forerunners, who prepare for greater things to follow. Such prophets carry the title of an Elias.
The Twelve, after they heard that Moses and Elijah had come, told Jesus they understood that Elias was to come first and asked for an explanation. Jesus told them the scriptures did teach that Elias must first come and this doctrine was true and correct. Then he explained that John the Baptist was that Elias, who was to prepare the way before him, but the people had not recognized him as such. Following this forerunner comes Elijah with the power to place the seals of the Melchizedek Priesthood upon the house of Israel. Then comes the culmination of the Messiah or Anointed One, who is the Savior or Redeemer with the greatest power of all.
So it has been done in our day also. The forerunner of priesthood restoration was the return of John the Baptist as an Elias to restore the power of the Aaronic Priesthood. Then came Peter, James, and John, who restored the greater or Melchizedek Priesthood. But our generation is that generation of the fullness of times spoken of by Peter to be established in the last days. In this generation, therefore, there must be a "restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
Therefore, before Jesus comes in all his power and glory, all things must be prepared beforehand, including the restoration of the sealing power of Elijah.
Thus, that prophecy given by Malachi must be fulfilled. I quote this promise as it was given by Moroni when he was sent to teach Joseph Smith at the beginning of this dispensation:
"Behold, I will reveal unto you the Priesthood, by the hand of Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
"And he shall plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers.
"If it were not so, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at his coming."
So important was this scripture, that it is the only one I know of which is quoted almost word for word in all four standard works. The prophet Elijah, with the keys of this sealing power, did come just as predicted. Those keys of the priesthood were restored in perfect order and harmony, as was done on the Mount of Transfiguration. Each prophet holding special keys of the priesthood appeared and restored them to prophets on the earth. Moses appeared. Elias came. Then Elijah appeared and said:
"Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi-testifying that he should be sent, before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come-
"To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse-
"Therefore, the keys of this dispensation are committed into your hands; and by this ye may know that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the doors."
With this fulfillment of prophecy, all former priesthood powers were restored again to earth. Temples have been erected in which a fullness of these priesthood ordinances is made available for those who qualify themselves to receive them through faith and righteous living. Before the Savior comes again, power has been given us to proceed with a great priesthood work. We are to bind together the families of men in true patriarchal order, so that through worthiness we may have the privilege to live in the celestial kingdom as children of God, with resurrected bodies of flesh and bone, to dwell eternally in the very presence of God the Eternal Father.
Through this priesthood power which has been again restored to prophets of God, we can be sealed as families on earth and have that sealing be effective in heaven. As authorized disciples of Jesus Christ, we can become in turn saviors not only for our own living families, but also for our deceased progenitors. All it requires is the exercise of that simple faith to carry out this promise as the widow did for Elijah. She gave the last food she had as a token of her faith in God. Surely, out of the great abundance God has given us, we can share some of our time and our means to do this spiritual work for the living and for the dead under the direction of modern prophets who hold the same fullness of priesthood power as did Elijah the Tishbite. President Kimball holds the keys of this sealing power to bind on earth and to have it bound in heaven. He is a true prophet of God, of which I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Rex D. Pinegar
Of the First Council of the Seventy
It is a great privilege to be here today to address you. My heart is filled with wonderful feelings as I contemplate the great blessings we enjoy as a result of the reestablishment by the Lord of his church 144 years ago today.
His church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, exists for the perfecting of the Saints and for the unifying and exalting of the family of our Father in heaven.
"To the members of our Church," President Stephen L Richards has said, "the home has an enlarged significance that is subordinate to nothing else in life, for it constitutes not only the source of our greatest happiness here in this life, but also the foundation of our exaltation and glory in the life to come. After all, it is essentially a religious institution. It has its origin in religious ceremony. It is the fulfillment of divine command. Its government is of a religious nature and the finest of its products are spiritual."
The Lord has said that in the ordinances of the Melchizedek Priesthood "the power of godliness is manifest." Thus, clothed with the holy priesthood of God and commissioned by the Lord, a man takes his place at the head of his family. Through his righteous leadership, the power of godliness may be manifest in his home. This sacred obligation and stewardship he shares with his wife, his helpmate. In partnership with our Heavenly Father, they experience the joy of creation as children bless their home and enlarge their family circle.
A wife and mother will be an inspiration to her family and to her husband and will honor him in his divine appointment as head of their family.
President Hugh B. Brown has said to the women of the Church:
"There is no better way to worship and glorify God than by assisting his sons on the upward and difficult climb. This takes patience, tolerance, forbearance and other typically feminine virtues."
A husband and father will endeavor to be noble and faithful in carrying forth his sacred responsibility to teach correct principles to his children by precept and by example.
Recently I heard a father tell of the powerful influence his own testimony and example had in the life of his daughter. His lovely daughter was being pursued by an ardent admirer-one who had unfortunately turned away from the Church and who, through his wrongdoings, had been cut off from the blessings of the priesthood and Church membership. This girl thought she loved him and believed she might be happy with him.
Her concerned parents invited the young man into their home and tried to convince him of the need to put his life in order and to follow Christ. The father bore a fervent testimony of the reality of the Savior and of the joy that comes through obedience to his gospel. However, his words were rejected by the young man. In fact, the boy scoffed at such ideas and afterward tried to convince the girl that her father was old-fashioned and a hypocrite.
This accusation, the father said, was the young man's undoing. That daughter defended her father and his beliefs. She knew him. She knew the validity of his testimony. She knew her father lived as he believed-his sincere love of the gospel and his example of living its teachings she could not doubt nor deny.
Her love she would save for another whose testimony was like that of her father, whose life would be blessed with the joy and peace that comes from living the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Today she is the wife of such a man, a happy mother of a lovely family born in the covenant of an eternal marriage. Oh, how blessed is the influence of a righteous father!
The scriptures tell us that "nevertheless neither is the man without the woman in the Lord."
It was said of the great General Robert E. Lee that if he was early trained in the way he should go, his mother trained him. If he was "always good" as his father wrote of him, she labored to keep him so. If his principles were sound and his life a success, to her, more than to any other, should the praise be given. A family member wrote of him:
"As Robert grew in years he grew in grace; he was like the young tree whose roots firmly imbedded in the earth, hold it straight from the hour it was first planted till it develops into majestic proportions. With the fostering care of such a mother the son must go straight, for she had planted him in the soil of truth, morality, and religion, so that his boyhood was marked by everything that produces nobility of character in manhood."
Following a 13-year-old girl's successful completion of a difficult and challenging assignment, she wrote this to her mother:
-Suzanne Pinegar, "Secret Strength"
A mother's inherent qualities of trust, courage, and faith lend strength to every member of the family.
Children also provide strength to the lives of family members. As we celebrate the Easter season, we reverence the most significant demonstration of brotherly love ever shown. The atoning sacrifice of Christ was the supreme example of unselfish love. While Jesus was our only brother who could make such a sacrifice for us, each of us can and should make Christlike sacrifices daily for one another through unselfish actions and willing service. It is in the home that we experience many opportunities to do this.
One day my older brother, Lynn, came hurrying home from high school basketball practice, bringing a teammate with him. Upon entering the house, both made a dash for the kitchen to satisfy their hungry appetites. My brother's friend loudly described his feeling of hunger by using a few vulgar and profane words to accent his anxious mood. Lynn quickly, quietly, but firmly said, "Hey, don't talk like that. My little brothers might hear you. I don't want them to learn words like that. Besides, they might think less of you than they ought to."
Unknown to my brother, my friend and I did hear that conversation, but the profane words were quickly erased from my mind by the thoughtful concern and courage shown by my older brother. That experience made a positive, lasting impression on my young mind. At the risk of sacrificing a friendship, his kindly chastisement of his friend taught me a lesson of love and concern for others and of courage to uphold the right.
So important are our relationships with our family members as we learn these lessons of life that family home evening has been revealed by the Lord as a prescribed means for the enduring development of all family members.
Each Monday evening families will gather together, with father presiding, to experience one of the highlights of the week's activities. During this special time together, the family, regardless of size or circumstances, may receive instruction and inspiration. Here in the sacredness of home father and mother teach correct gospel principles to their children. The children also have opportunities to teach and to share their thoughts and talents. Often the most effective learning takes place as family members help each other prepare for family home evening. Parents and children increase in their love and appreciation for one another as they participate in family home evening and strive to apply the principles learned there throughout the following weeks and years.
President Kimball, whom we have sustained as president and prophet today and of whom I testify is a living prophet of the Lord Jesus Christ, has indicated that heaven was in his home when home evening was held. He has also said:
"While one objective is reached by merely being together, yet the additional and greater value can come from the lessons of life. The father will teach the children. Here they can learn integrity, honor, dependability, sacrifice, and faith in God. Life's experiences and the scriptures are the basis of the teaching, and this, wrapped up in filial and parental love, makes an impact nothing else can make. Thus, reservoirs of righteousness are filled to carry children through the dark days of temptation and desire, of drought and skepticism. As they grow up, the children cooperate in building this storage for themselves and the family. And so we have as a basic part of the Lord's programs the home evening and the family prayers and the teaching of gospel principles in our homes."
The Lord has blessed us with families that we might maintain our eternal relationship with him. May we recognize the importance of this divine blessing and do all in our power to fulfill this sacred responsibility. May the Spirit of the Lord be with us in our homes, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder David B. Haight
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
This has been a glorious and inspiring day, and I ask for an interest in your faith and prayers that my remarks may be in harmony with the teachings of our Savior.
I have felt the Spirit of the Lord during this conference, particularly this morning in the solemn assembly.
One of the great privileges we have as members of the Church is the opportunity to sustain our leaders. It was a great blessing to me to be able to raise my hand and sustain President Spencer W. Kimball as the mouthpiece of God on earth and as the presiding high priest over the priesthood of the Church. The Lord says that he is "to be like unto Moses- a seer, a revelator, a translator, and a prophet, having all the gifts of God which he bestows upon the head of the church."
I know that he has been prepared and raised up at this particular time, and I sustain him with all of my heart and with all of the faith that I have, and I will enthusiastically follow his direction. I also sustain the calling of Elder L. Tom Perry this day and Elder Fyans and Elder Maxwell. I know that these callings have been inspired of the Lord.
Recently a new book was published with the rather startling title Jesus Now. The reviewers announced that this is a brilliant book. The writer states, "Jesus is disappearing from the minds of men, and it is just as well that He is, for the Jesus that we are losing is the Jesus that we have created." The author asks the question "What does Jesus mean to modern man?"
Responses to this question will vary when Easter is celebrated next Sunday throughout the so-called Christian world. Services of various types will be held by some people paying their honor to the man known as Jesus of Nazareth. Some will think of Jesus as a prophet; some will think of him as a teacher; some will think of him as just an ordinary man. Unfortunately, not many will think of him as our Savior and Redeemer, and fewer still will believe the Father's words, " This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
What does Jesus mean to you and to me?
The Jesus I know and believe in is Jesus the Christ, the Son of God. This witness has been revealed to me by the blessing and influence of the Holy Ghost. I know that he is the Author of the plan of salvation and exaltation, the Creator of the world and all that is in it, that he is our Savior who loves each of us and who died on the cross for us, who teaches us compassion and forgiveness, the friend of all, healer of the sick, the giver of peace to all who will listen and believe.
Modern man must not be led astray from ancient and latter-day truths-truths and spiritual experiences that occurred when prophets walked and talked with Jesus. What did Jesus mean to the ancient apostles? What did he mean to Peter?
Mark, writing of the events on the morning of the resurrection, states that Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James were directed by the young man they encountered as they entered the sepulcher, "Go tell his disciples and Peter. " They were directed specifically to inform Peter. Peter and John hurried to the sepulcher. Peter entered, saw the neatly folded linen cloths and the handkerchief that had been about his head. Peter was now a personal witness of this great event.
On the day of Pentecost, Peter witnessed the "rushing mighty wind" and the pouring out of the Holy Ghost. He preached of the glorious gospel and testified of Jesus of Nazareth. People were pricked in their hearts and asked, " Men and brethren, what shall we do?" And Peter, with that newly developed depth of conviction, replied, " Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Three thousand souls believed and were baptized. They felt of the spirit and power of our Lord's senior apostle. Could we ever doubt what Jesus meant to Peter?
I am always strengthened by the fervor and magnitude of John's conviction. There was never any doubt. He testified, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made by him. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not."
The apostle Paul knew, understood, and testified of Jesus. The manifestation to Paul on the road to Damascus changed the course of his life as indicated by his own words: " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? " And later testifying to the Corinthian saints he said, " Christ died for our sins was buried rose again the third day was seen of above five hundred. And last of all he was seen of me also. "
It may be beyond our own comprehension to realize what Jesus meant to Nephi when the resurrected Christ appeared on the western continent, saying, "Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.
" I am the light and the life of the world; and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world. Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world."
Then Nephi writes, " the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet;
"And when they had all gone forth and had witnessed for themselves, they did cry out with one accord, saying: Hosanna! Blessed be the name of the Most High God! And they did fall down at the feet of Jesus, and did worship him." They had been in his presence and they could testify.
What did Jesus mean to the boy Joseph Smith? The appearance of God the Father and Jesus Christ to the boy prophet in modern times is described in his own words: " I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
President Joseph F. Smith declared, "The greatest event that has ever occurred in the world since the resurrection of the Son of God from the tomb and his ascension on high, was the coming of the Father and of the Son to that boy Joseph Smith. "
During the Prophet's life he told but one story. In a little schoolhouse in Michigan in 1834, Edward Stevenson heard him testify: "I am a witness that there is a God, for I saw Him in open day. " Stevenson then recorded, "Oh how these words filled me with joy unspeakable, to behold one who, like Paul the Apostle could with boldness testify, that he had been in the presence of Jesus Christ."
Spiritual knowledge and spiritual experiences must not and need not disappear from the mind of modern man, because the testimonies of ancient and modern prophets have been recorded for man's own benefit, and today believers testify of these truths. Modern man must replace uncertainties and doubt with a desire to know more of Jesus.
It is our responsibility and glorious opportunity to bear constant testimony of Jesus the Christ. We must testify to the world of his godship, the actuality of his birth in the flesh of both divine and mortal parentage. He was selected to perform the essential mission of the restoration and redemption. This he did-he was crucified and rose from the grave, thus making it possible for every human being to be resurrected through this marvelous atonement of Jesus, saint and sinner alike.
All can be placed on the pathway to eternal progression. Everyone who accepts him and is repentant receives forgiveness of his past sins and the opportunity to gain exaltation. " I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. " Could the mind of man possibly develop a more noble concept for the destiny of man? Jesus Christ is the central figure.
To the question "What does Jesus mean to modern man?" I testify that he means everything. To this statement I bear solemn witness in his name. Amen.
Elder Bruce R. McConkie
Of the Council of the Twelve
I believe that Spencer W. Kimball was foreordained to be the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; to be the prophet, seer, and revelator to the Lord's people; and to be the mouthpiece of God on earth for the time and season that lies ahead.
I know he was called and chosen and ordained to this ministry by the spirit of prophecy and revelation and was present when the Spirit of the Lord testified to each member of the Council of the Twelve that it was the mind and will of him whose witnesses we are, and on whose errand we serve, that President Kimball should now step forward and lead his people.
It was as though the Lord by his own voice said: "My servant President Harold B. Lee was true and faithful in all things that I appointed him to do; his ministry among you is completed; and I have called him to other and greater labors in my eternal vineyard. And I, the Lord, now call my servant President Spencer W. Kimball to lead my people and to continue the work of preparing them for that great day when I shall come to reign personally upon the earth. And I now say of him as I said of my servant Joseph Smith: ' thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
"'For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
"'For thus saith the Lord God: Him have I inspired to move the cause of Zion in mighty power for good, and his diligence I know, and his prayers I have heard.'"
It seems easy to believe in the prophets who have passed on and to suppose that we believe and follow the counsel they gave under different circumstances and to other people. But the great test that confronts us, as in every age when the Lord has a people on earth, is whether we will give heed to the words of his living oracles and follow the counsel and direction they give for our day and time.
-Bruce R. McConkie
Accordingly it is my desire to lay before us the plain fact that these humble men who preside over the church and kingdom of God on earth in our day are like unto the prophets and apostles of old and are the ones whom God hath chosen to lead and direct his earthly kingdom in these last days. Those of us who sit almost daily at the feet of Presidents Spencer W. Kimball, N. Eldon Tanner, and Marion G. Romney marvel at the wisdom and judgment that attend their decisions and recognize them as preachers of righteousness of the same stature as Peter, James, and John, who were the First Presidency of the church in their day.
May I say that there is no chance in the call of these brethren to direct the Lord's work on earth. His hand is in it. He knows the end from the beginning. He ordained and established the plan of salvation and decreed that his everlasting gospel should be revealed to man in a series of dispensations commencing with Adam and continuing to Joseph Smith. And he-the Almighty-chooses the prophets and apostles who minister in his name and present his message to the world in every age and dispensation. He selects and foreordains his ministers; he sends them to earth at the times before appointed; he guides and directs their continuing mortal preparations; and he then calls them to those positions they were foreordained to receive from before the foundations of the earth.
May I take President Spencer W. Kimball as an illustration and pattern of one who was prepared, foreordained, and called to leadership among the Lord's people. He was, it is true, born in the household of faith. Like Jacob, who inherited spiritual talents from Isaac and Abraham, so is he endowed by natural inheritance with those talents and abilities that prepare him for his present position of apostolic presidency.
But more than mortal birth, more than mortal preparation are involved. He was born in the household of faith for a reason, and it was not this life alone that prepared him to stand as a minister of light and truth and salvation to his fellow mortals. The fact is, he is a spirit son of God who was called and chosen and foreordained before the foundations of the earth were laid, and he is now fulfilling the destiny designed for him from the preexistence, and promised him, in our presence, as we sat with him in the grand council when God himself was there.
Joseph Smith said, "Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the grand council of heaven before this world was." Then the Prophet said of himself, "I suppose that I was ordained to this very office in that grand council." President Kimball now wears the mantle of Joseph Smith and was a participant in the operation of the same law of foreordination.
Abraham, our father, who also was present in this council, was privileged to see in vision the hosts of preexistent spirits. "Among all these," he said, " were many of the noble and great ones," whom he described as being "good." Abraham saw that God the Eternal Father "stood in the midst" of those mighty ones and said, "These I will make my rulers; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born."
And as with Abraham, so with all the prophets, and for that matter so, to one degree or another, with the whole house of Israel and with all the members of the Lord's earthly church-all are participants in the blessings of foreordination.
To Jeremiah the Lord said: "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations."
All those who receive the Melchizedek Priesthood in this life were, as Alma teaches, "called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God," because they were among the noble and great in that premortal sphere.
And Paul says that through this law of foreordination, which he calls the doctrine of election, there came to the whole house of Israel "the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises." He says that the faithful members of the Church, those "that love God" and "are called according to his purpose," are foreordained "to be conformed to the image of his Son," to be "joint-heirs with Christ," and to have eternal life in our Father's kingdom.
He says also of members of the Church that God "hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love," and that we were foreordained to become the children of Jesus Christ by adoption, thus gaining a "forgiveness of sins" in this life and an inheritance of eternal glory in the life to come.
Our revelations, ancient and modern, abound in pronouncements relative to the law of foreordination, both as it applies to specific individuals called according to the foreknowledge of God to special labors in mortality and as it applies to the blessings promised that host of valiant souls who are born in the lineage of Israel and who hear the voice of the Good Shepherd and come into his sheepfold on earth.
Christ himself is the great prototype of all foreordained prophets. He was chosen in the councils of eternity to be the Savior and Redeemer. Of him Peter said he was "a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world", as the one who should come in the meridian of time to work out the infinite and eternal atonement. For 4,000 years all the prophets testified of his coming and proclaimed his goodness and grace.
Mary, the mother of our Lord "after the manner of the flesh"; Moses, the greatest prophet ever to minister in Israel; John the Revelator, whose mission it was to see the visions of the end of the world; and Joseph Smith, the prophet and seer of the restoration, were all designated by name hundreds or thousands of years before their mortal ministries, because their foreordained work was known and envisioned in advance.
The work to be done by John the Baptist, by the ancient Twelve, by Columbus, by the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and by the framers of the Constitution of the United States was all known and arranged for in advance. And all these are but illustrations and patterns, for all of the Lord's work is planned and prepared in advance, and those who are called and chosen to do the work receive their commission and ordination from him, first in the preexistence and then, if they remain true and faithful, again here in mortality.
What then of our President, the man whom the Lord has chosen to represent him and preside in his kingdom for the time and season ahead? Truly he is more than the offspring of faithful fathers. He is in fact a son of God, a spirit offspring of the Almighty. He dwelt with the Eternal Father, saw his face, heard his voice, and what is more important than all else, he believed his word and kept his law.
By obedience, by conformity, by personal righteousness, because he elected to follow in the path of the Chosen and Beloved Son, Spencer W. Kimball was noble and great in the preexistence. Above all his other talents, he developed the talent for spirituality-the talent to believe and accept the truth, the talent to desire righteousness.
He knew and worshiped the Lord Jehovah, who was "like unto God." He was a friend of Adam and Enoch. He took counsel from Noah and Abraham. He sat in meetings with Isaiah and Nephi. He served in the heavenly kingdom with Joseph Smith and Brigham Young.
Preexistence is not some remote and mysterious place. All of us are but a few years removed from the Eternal Presence, from him whose children we are and in whose house we dwelt. All of us are separated by a thin veil only from the friends and fellow laborers with whom we served on the Lord's errand before our eternal spirits took up their abodes in tabernacles of clay.
True, a curtain has been drawn so we do not recall our associations there. But we do know that our Eternal Father has all power, all might, all dominion, and all truth and that he lives in the family unit. We do know that we are his children, created in his image, endowed with power and ability to become like him. We know he gave us our agency and ordained the laws by obedience to which we can obtain eternal life. We know we had friends and associates there. We know we were schooled and trained and taught in the most perfect educational system ever devised, and that by obedience to his eternal laws we developed infinite varieties and degrees of talents.
And hence comes the doctrine of foreordination. When we come into mortality, we bring the talents, capacities, and abilities acquired by obedience to law in our prior existence. Mozart composed and published sonatas when but eight years of age because he was born with musical talent. Melchizedek came into this world with such faith and spiritual capacity that "when a child he feared God, and stopped the mouths of lions, and quenched the violence of fire." Cain, on the other hand, like Lucifer, was a liar from the beginning and was told in this life: " thou shalt be called Perdition; for thou wast also before the world."
Now this is the doctrine of foreordination; this is the doctrine of election. This is the reason why the Lord has a chosen and favored and peculiar people on earth; and this is the reason he said: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
"And I give unto them eternal life. "
A knowledge of these wondrous truths places upon us a greater burden than rests upon any other people to follow Christ-to take his yoke upon us, to keep his commandments, to do ever those things that please him. And if we love and serve him, we will give heed to the words of the apostles and prophets whom he sends to reveal and teach his word among us.
The great need in the world today is not for the Lord to send a prophet to reveal his mind and will. He has done that; we have a prophet; we are guided by many men who have the spirit of inspiration. The great need today is for men to have a listening ear and to give heed to the words that fall from the lips of those who wear the prophetic mantle.
God be praised that there is a prophet in Israel!
God be implored that we may have a listening ear and give heed to the voice of his prophet!
God be thanked that he has poured out his Spirit upon us so that we know of the truth and divinity of the great latter-day work, and to its eternal verity I testify in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Presiding Bishop
My dear brethren, I am deeply grateful to President Kimball for the opportunity to speak with you tonight. I think I would not be far wrong in estimating that approximately 90 percent of the bishops of the Church are present somewhere in this meeting tonight. I would hope that about the same percentage of Aaronic Priesthood quorum presidencies are present with their bishops. It is to the bishops and quorum presidencies I wish to direct my remarks.
At a meeting in the Salt Lake Temple, called by the First Presidency and attended by the Quorum of the Twelve and some of the other General Authorities on April 9, 1972, President Harold B. Lee charged the Presiding Bishopric with our responsibility in the following words:
"Now to the Presiding Bishopric, there are two great divisions of the priesthood as spelled out in the 107th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Melchizedek Priesthood and the Aaronic Priesthood. The ecclesiastical title of those who head the Melchizedek Priesthood is the First Presidency, but their priesthood title is the Presidency of the High Priesthood of the Church. The title Presiding Bishopric is your ecclesiastical title, but your priesthood title is the Presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood of the whole Church. Having that in mind then, you must have clearly in mind that first and foremost of all responsibilities you have is to look after the Aaronic Priesthood. You will help to bring the focus of the time to young men of these critical ages; and when we refer to the young men, we mean the girls also. We can't save the boys without the girls. So all through your ministry remember, nothing should be secondary to placing great emphasis on the work of the Aaronic Priesthood, to work with the auxiliaries to see to it that they function in an auxiliary capacity, but always with the thought in mind of magnifying the priesthood and of making certain that no auxiliary takes ascendancy over the priesthood."
In response to this injunction and through revelation given to a prophet, the Aaronic Priesthood MIA program was given birth. It was announced to the Church one year ago now at April Conference, 1973. It was inaugurated in September of the same year. In effect it brought two auxiliaries, the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association and the Young Women's Mutual Improvement Association, directly under the umbrella of the Aaronic Priesthood. They then became priesthood oriented and priesthood directed.
Evidence that this change was divine is just now beginning to break over the horizon. In just over seven months of operation, we see miracles taking place in the lives of our youth. These wonderful things are happening in every ward and branch of the Church where the adult leaders have caught the vision of the program and understand its source. As to its source, may I quote from President Lee's address at June Conference:
"One or two thoughts have impressed themselves upon me as we have witnessed and have listened. During the year that has passed, we have pondered, we have prayed, we have searched, and now we come with a declaration to all of you that you may know with a certainty that defies all doubt that this which you have witnessed, this which you have heard has been divinely inspired.
"I have occasion to recall again and again what the Lord said: 'And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments.
"'But learn that he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come.'
"I choose not to offend God by claiming that all of this has come by the will of men. I confess with all my soul that these things are of the Lord, and they have come through righteousness, through prayer, and through great needs."
In my remarks tonight, I have nothing new to introduce, but if the Lord will bless me, I will attempt to discuss some of the basic principles of the program.
The guiding principle upon which we base all our efforts was given us by the Prophet Joseph Smith in response to a question of how he governed his people. As you know, he said, "I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves." In all we and our associates, the general presidencies and their boards, are doing, we are merely trying to teach correct principles, adding a few suggestions and letting you stake presidencies, bishoprics, branch presidencies, and Aaronic Priesthood quorum presidencies govern yourselves.
A moment ago I quoted President Lee's charge to the Presiding Bishopric. Except for scope, that same charge applies to every bishopric in the Church. As you bishops were ordained and set apart, in addition to being set apart as the bishop of your ward, you were set apart as the president of the priests quorum of your ward and, with your counselors, as the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood of your ward. As President Lee said, this is your priesthood title, and it is "first and foremost of all responsibilities." He further stated, "When we refer to the young men, we mean the girls also." In other words, the youth of your wards are your first and foremost responsibility.
Although the principles we shall discuss would apply to almost any leadership setting, tonight I would like to point them directly at you bishops and you presidencies of Aaronic Priesthood quorums. One of the most stimulating influences being felt in this program today is resulting from peer leadership. You presidents and counselors in Aaronic Priesthood quorums are the file leaders of all members of your quorums, active and inactive. You have a responsibility for the total well-being and activity of each of your quorum members. This means that you not only conduct the quorum meeting Sunday morning or make assignments at the sacrament table, but you provide leadership in all services and activities. This is why you have been appointed to positions of leadership in the Scouting organization. You see, Scouting is a part of priesthood responsibility. As you gain an understanding of your stewardship, you will recognize your responsibility to your members as clearly as elders quorum presidents recognize theirs for the elders and prospective elders in their quorums. The Lord revealed in section 107 of the Doctrine and Covenants:
"And again, verily I say unto you, the duty of a president over the office of a deacon is to preside over twelve deacons, to sit in council with them, and to teach them their duty, edifying one another, as it is given according to the covenants." And, of course, the same applies to the teachers quorum president.
The bishop is president of the priests quorum. He is aided by a group leader. If these young men are to fulfill their stewardship and responsibilities, they must be taught correct principles. You bishops have a paramount role in seeing that they are taught properly. You have assistance, of course, from counselors and advisers, but your role is vital.
The most important and impressive lesson these young men will learn will be from you when you call them to these positions. If the call is casual, they will approach their responsibilities in a casual manner. If it is dignified and spiritual and you have by appointment invited the young man to your office for an interview, explaining to him as you call him that he is the one the Lord wants to fill this important office and that you have called him only after prayerful consideration, then he will understand the sacred nature of this important position and will make greater effort than ever to honor his priesthood. That first interview will have a lasting effect on his attitude toward his responsibility.
Another very important teaching opportunity that you personally will have with him is the personal, private worthiness interview. Of course, this is not all. He will need to be taught the principles of leadership from other wise and understanding adult leaders. Here again, the adult leaders' responsibility is not just Sunday morning. It carries over into all church participation. As the boys participate in Scouting, they find the same adult and peer leaders as they saw in priesthood meeting Sunday morning. In other words, they find that priesthood responsibility goes far beyond the Sunday morning priesthood meeting.
It is important that adult leaders create an environment that will permit these young men to learn and grow through experience. All too often we adults are impatient to get things done; so rather than letting these young men do them, we do them ourselves. At the same time, it is important that we do not leave them to their own resources. The wise adult leader will be where he should be when he should be there so he can take advantage of teaching opportunities. This, of course, will require great patience, and much of the time he will be in the background. As President Lee used to counsel, he should be a coach and not a quarterback. There needs to be sensitive and wise balance between the youth peer leadership and the adult leadership.
Bishops, one of the most essential and important resources you have in the Aaronic Priesthood area of responsibility is the bishop's youth committee. The degree to which you organize and properly use this committee will in large measure determine your success as the president of the Aaronic Priesthood in your ward. This is where you can make these youth leaders feel that they are a vital part of this great Church. If you will listen to them carefully, you will learn of their needs. This is where, by your example, you can teach them correct principles of leadership in a most receptive setting.
In all that we do, regardless of the programs and activities, the center of our interest must be the boy. Programs are useful only to the degree that they affect each individual boy's life for good. As bishops, you and I have been given responsibility in perhaps one of the most unusual periods of time in the history of mankind. The spirits of this generation of youth are some of the most valiant to ever come forth. The fact that the Lord would give a revelation pertaining specifically to their generation would indicate this. I have the utmost confidence that if we, the presidents of the Aaronic Priesthood, will carry the mantle of our offices, we will be blessed to provide a stewardship that will enable these young men to rise above the things of the world and be young men of character, integrity, virtue, and faith. Recently I learned of a group of young people in whose lives a miracle is taking place. They are setting an example for the world to follow. About 3 percent of the students in a particular high school are members of the Church. A few months ago the school principal and superintendent, neither of whom are members, granted permission for these young people to have released time during the school day for seminary. This is the first high school in the entire state in which it is located that has given this permission. Just a few weeks ago, the stake president and bishop reported that the school officials are most impressed with and grateful for the good influence the Latter-day Saint students are having on the entire student body.
The lives and influences of these young people justify the faith the Lord has in this generation. With the proper guidance from you bishops, your counselors, the advisers, and quorum presidencies, a new high in leadership and devotion of the young men of the Church will be assured. This then will surely further prepare the world for the second coming of the Savior and ultimately assist him in bringing "to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
There is another responsibility you bishops have that transcends all others that I feel impelled to mention, and that is the responsibility to your families. A bishop's wife carries an unusual responsibility in the home. May I caution you to be extra sensitive to her needs. Remember President McKay's counsel, "No success can compensate for failure in the home."
The bishops' responsibilities are heavy. However, with proper delegation and careful organization of your time, it is possible to successfully discharge your responsibilities to your family, as well as to the Lord. May your wives and your children and all of the youth over whom you preside be blessed with your wise and sound stewardship, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Marion D. Hanks
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I wonder how many of you young men and men who are a little older have heard the story of the man in the brown leather jacket. A famous surgeon received a phone call one night from a doctor friend who said he had a young child on the operating table and needed the surgeon's help in order to save the child. It was a long drive across town to the hospital and the surgeon drove as fast as he could with safety. As he pulled up to a stop sign, a man wearing a brown leather jacket opened the door and slid in beside him with his hand in his pocket as though he had a gun. The man was excited, demanded the surgeon's car, and obviously was in no mood to discuss it. The surgeon stood helplessly on the highway as the man in the brown leather jacket sped away in his car.
By the time the surgeon finally arrived at the hospital, it was too late. The child had died only moments before. The other doctor asked the surgeon to come with him to meet the child's father in the hope that together they might offer him words of comfort. As they entered the waiting room, the father came forward-he was the man in the brown leather jacket.
It occurs to me to wonder whether any of us here tonight are, in a different sense, men in brown leather jackets, who, through our lack of wisdom, perhaps not knowing it, certainly not wishing it, keep spiritual help from reaching our children when they need it. Or if we are young, we are tempted to follow a course that could damage the children that we will one day have.
This great meeting tonight is not only exciting and encouraging in its evidence of the tremendous priesthood potential in the kingdom of God, it also manifests the capacity of the Church to exercise a powerful influence in helping to meet one of the most vital needs in the world today, and that is supplying models of true manhood for boys who are on their way to becoming men.
The absence of fathers from their homes, for one reason or another, and the lack of father-image and influence in the lives of boys are obvious factors in the large troubles that face our society. My firmly-held conviction is that in the homes of the Church, and through priesthood leadership in the Church, the problem is correctable; the challenge can be met, if we will.
Only God knows the worth of a boy, but we too are fathers, and we have an inkling. A boy is priceless not only for himself, but every individual is a kind of an omnibus carrying with him all the past that has gone into his making, all the potential in him for influencing the present, and he has, in addition, the sobering reality to face that he carries within himself the seeds of the future. Under every normal circumstance there will be one day those who call him father, and to them and their future he has a great and solemn responsibility.
Boys need men to learn from, men to be with who understand their need for activities that are challenging and socially and spiritually constructive and that stretch them and give them a chance to learn manly skills, men to love and who love them, men who are models of what a man ought to be. The father should be the first line of strength, and a boy blessed with such a father is fortunate indeed. But of course even such a family can use all the supportive influence they can get from good men who genuinely care. But what of the boy who has no father, or whose father is not presently supplying what a father uniquely can give? To help him, the Lord has provided what I believe to be the finest program the world has ever known-a program of bishops and counselors, advisers, teachers, Scoutmasters, leaders, home teachers, coaches-strong men who really care. If the Lord's program is effectively operating, literally no boy in the whole Church should be without the blessing of choice men in his life, and every boy will, in fact, have several good men actively concerned for his well-being. I rejoice in the wonderful ward in which we live and in the great men who are interested in my son and the other lads they lead.
Now, it should be said that we have no lack of appreciation for the wonderful influence of mothers and other noble women in guiding boys-and no one in all the world is better qualified than I to understand that-but it takes men to make men. Even mothers cannot do it by themselves, and certainly none should have to undertake the effort alone; nor can schools or other institutions supply the need. Boys need men!
The implications of this for fathers and for men who hold the priesthood are clear indeed. In many homes, in every neighborhood, in every community, in every ward and branch of the Church, there are boys who need the help of men, mothers who need men to help their boys.
Is it fair to ask what will happen if boys don't get what they need from good fathers or conscientious men whose blessing it is to help them? The answer is that they must improvise or learn from other youth as ignorant and inexperienced as themselves. They will learn on street corners or in school corridors where success may be measured in terms of physical, sexual, or economic prowess instead of in terms of character and quality relationships.
Now, brethren, if we need to do better than we are doing, and wish to do better, what program shall we follow? There is time here tonight to consider only the beginning of one answer among many, but that is a vital answer, and it needs to be understood.
In chapter 36 of the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon is a remarkable lesson for every father, or for those who stand in place of a father. To his son Helaman, Alma bore a strong testimony of faith and repentance. Remember that Alma, in youthful rebelliousness, had made some serious mistakes. He wanted his sons to avoid those mistakes and to find what he, Alma, had discovered of the tender mercies of God, without the terrible, painful experiences through which he had gone. In this deeply honest account Alma bore record of the torment through which he had passed and shared with Helaman three great messages which every father would want to deliver to his own son. I deliver them tonight to my son and invite you to join me:
"And now, O my son Helaman, behold, thou art in thy youth, and therefore, I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words and learn of me; for I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day.
"And I would not that ye think that I know of myself-not of the temporal but of the spiritual, not of the carnal mind but of God."
Then Alma added something, and so do I:
"Yea, and I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.
" And now behold, O my son, the Lord doth give me exceeding great joy in the fruit of my labors;
"For because of the word which he has imparted unto me, behold, many have been born of God, and have tasted as I have tasted, and have seen eye to eye as I have seen; therefore they do know of these things of which I have spoken, as I do know; and the knowledge which I have is of God."
But these messages were not enough. There is a third:
"But behold, my son, this is not all; for ye ought to know as I do know, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall prosper in the land; and ye ought to know also, that inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God ye shall be cut off from his presence. "
So a father testified to his son.
How foolish we are if we reserve to ourselves, or for others than our own children, the knowledge and testimony of the gospel we have gained. They, no less than others, need and deserve this from us.
Is it possible that some of us are in some measure men in brown leather jackets in this matter?
Do you remember that many of the most powerful teachings in the Book of Mormon are from fathers directly to their beloved sons? Lehi, Jacob, Benjamin, Alma, Helaman, Mormon, and others all taught wonderful lessons to their own sons.
Do you recall Alma's son Corianton and the sad mistake he made? He was proud, stubborn, willing to excuse himself because many others had also sinned. Alma plainly identified the seriousness of his son's actions, called him to repentance, taught him the meaning of Christ's atonement, gave him a path to follow, and spoke the message of his heart:
"And now the Spirit of the Lord doth say unto me: Command thy children to do good, lest they lead away the hearts of many people to destruction; therefore I command you, my son, in the fear of God, that ye refrain from your iniquities."
In this marvelous lesson for sinners-and those who seek to help sinners-are some of the saddest and most moving words that I know from a faithful father who had tried to do missionary work in the very area where his son had been immoral: " when they saw your conduct, they would not believe in my words."
There are other accounts in the Book of Mormon, of course, like that of the boy who heeded his father's teachings and who made up his mind early in his life about what he really wanted. He wrote these words:
"I Nephi, being exceeding young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father. "
Nephi performed many great tasks, and one I remember best was his help to his father who had murmured when the company lost its hunting equipment and faced starvation. Nephi, you will remember, had himself been blessed with marvelous spiritual experiences, but he loved his father so much that, instead of criticizing or taking over, he helped him regain his self-respect and confidence by going to his father and asking Lehi to inquire of God where he, Nephi, should hunt. With that support, the older man found his faith and was again able to lead his people. The story itself is a minor incident in the Book of Mormon, but the lesson is not minor. It is no small thing to reestablish confidence and faith in a man at a critical point in his life when he has failed and is full of self-doubt.
So the scriptures are one remarkable and perhaps largely untapped source of strength for choice young men on their way to adult influence and responsibility, and for those who are now charged to guide them. How well are we using the source?
Fiorello LaGuardia, an Italian immigrant to the United States, became one of the most respected and influential mayors in the history of New York. Early in his life, while he was a magistrate, a man was convicted of theft in his courtroom. The young judge felt compelled to impose a sentence of imprisonment. But when the man explained that he had stolen food to feed his impoverished family, the judge suspended the sentence and then levied a fine on every person in the courtroom for living in a city where a man had to steal bread to feed his family.
One wonders if some such liability may not, in justice, one day be imposed upon parents and teachers and other adults in the Church who have failed to feed our young the bread of life for whatever reason.
Perhaps both boys and men will understand the analogy of an automobile which a young man desperately wanted and which his father promised him on his birthday if he merited it. "Just go with sensible people and do sensible things," said the father, "and on your birthday I'll see that you get the kind of car you want." The automobile was described in detail, with all the equipment a boy could imagine. So he went with sensible people, and did sensible things, and prepared himself, hoping almost beyond hope for the big day. It arrived. He looked out the window of the house and saw the car of his dreams sitting there. It had everything on it which he in his imagination had conceived. He could scarcely contain himself with love and appreciation. He ran from the house, looked it over, and then went back to his dad for the key.
"The key?" said the father. "Oh, the key. Well, I'll tell you. The car is yours. I've been preparing you for it for a long time. It is very valuable and very important, and I know you'll make very good use of it, but for now I'll keep the key. I'll let you know when you can use it. You can tell everybody it's yours, but don't use it."
Boys need more than a promise and more than a name; they need to be permitted to test their strength, to use their abilities, to use their priesthood.
You young men, of course, have a very great responsibility in these matters also. Many of you have been wonderfully blessed with gifts from the Lord and with opportunities to enjoy and use them. Your sense of appreciation, your respect for the blessings of God, your mature acceptance of responsibility, and your wonderful service, your sense of humor-they all strengthen and encourage us and make us very proud.
It was only a few days ago that a great stake president told of his distress when his son got a C- on his report card. He took the boy into the study and showed him the card. "What do you see on this card?" he said sternly. "Well, Dad, I see three A's," the boy said. I suppose a father has to be aware of the C's and that it is in the nature of the boy to see the A's. In understanding this, both will be additionally blessed.
Now let me finish, if I may, with two very brief accounts of two great fathers.
A young lad stood at the pulpit in Sunday School trying to give an assigned talk, but he could not get the words out. His giant of a father walked from the congregation to stand beside his son, put his arm around him, and said, "I know Larry has prepared his talk and that he'll be able to give it. He is a little frightened, so I'll just speak to you for a moment and then I know he'll be ready." The father stood by his boy with his arm around him, and in a moment the lad gave his talk. And many wept.
A while ago I met a special boy, and this week I had the privilege of spending some time with him and his family. This boy has muscular atrophy. He is a remarkable young man, loved by everyone in the ward. He has always wanted to do the things the other fellows do. He has succeeded in Cub Scouting. He is now a First Class Scout and is progressing.
While Jay was a deacon, he passed the sacrament with the others. He can't walk or stand on his feet, so his dad lined up with the other boys, holding Jay with his strong arm around his waist and helping him hold the tray, since his hands are not strong enough to support it. Jay's father thus assisted his son from row to row as he passed the sacrament. Jay did a great job as a deacon collecting fast offerings too. His dad carried him from door to door. Can you imagine that scene on the doorstep?
Jay bears a strong testimony; his attitude and outlook are amazing. He gives talks and does well. He has sung in Church, and always when he does these things, his dad is there to hold him in his arms and stand by him and support him.
In all my life I never heard a sweeter story nor a more moving one. God bless such a father, and God bless such a son, and God bless us who have so much and who have yet a little time, that we may take another look at our boy or at the boy who needs some additional help outside his home. God bless you boys to appreciate your dads, to be patient and gracious and forgiving. God bless us all, boys and men, now and in the future, always to act in a way that will help others enjoy the special blessings God wants them to have.
Fathers, priesthood leaders, young men need models. The unspoken sermon is heard most clearly and learned most strongly by those near at hand. It is not through definition or diatribe that young men acquire values. "They do not learn ethical principles; they emulate ethical people. They do not analyze or list attributes they wish to develop; they identify with people who seem to have them." What boys need is not lectures about notions of love, human relationships, or God-but to be exposed to unconditional love, unselfish service, to the reality of God in reverence, and worship, and humble prayer. And that is why they need models of what a man at his best can be. Will you young men, as I sit down, hear these words of Moroni:
"Condemn not because of imperfection but rather give thanks unto God that he hath made manifest unto you our imperfections, that ye may learn to be more wise than we have been."
And to those a little older, these words from ancient times:
"For how shall I go up to my father and the lad not with me. "
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brethren, my theme for these remarks is " Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord." It might just as appropriately be, magnify your calling in the priesthood. To begin with, I bear witness to you that I know by the power of the Spirit that President Kimball is a prophet, called by the Lord to be his mouthpiece, and that President Tanner was called by revelation to be his first counselor. I sustain them both with full purpose of heart.
As to you brethren, I feel as Peter expressed himself to the brethren of his day: " ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood. " Of all men in the earth, we are the most honored.
As spirit sons of God, we stood in the great council in the preexistent world and heard the Father present the gospel plan. We heard him say that those who kept their first estate would be added upon, and those who kept their second estate should "have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."
Now we know that we kept our first estate because we are here with our spirits "added upon" with these bodies.
If we are to have glory added upon our heads for ever and ever, we must, while we are here, do two things. One of them is to receive the priesthood. The other is to magnify our calling in the priesthood. The Lord said that no one could receive this glory without the priesthood: "And wo unto all those who come not unto this priesthood ," he said.
We, having received the priesthood, shall receive the added glory if we magnify our callings in the priesthood. Now I want you to listen to the words the Lord used in giving us the covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
He said, "For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
"They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.
"And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;
"For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
"And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
"And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
"And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
"Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant which he cannot break
"But whoso breaketh this covenant after he hath received it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness in this world nor in the world to come.
"And I now give unto you a commandment to beware concerning yourselves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life.
"For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
This charge brought to my mind the Lord's statement concerning "the Camp of Israel near Council Bluffs, Iowa, January 14, 1847," in the great revelation given to Brigham Young.
" ye are not yet pure; ye can not yet bear my glory; but ye shall behold it if ye are faithful in keeping all my words that I have given you, from the days of Adam to Abraham, from Abraham to Moses, from Moses to Jesus and his apostles, and from Jesus and his apostles to Joseph Smith. "
As I ponder the terms of the "oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood," which each one of us has entered into, I am awed by the superlative promised blessings. At the same time I am subdued as I consider the requirements upon which the receipt of those blessings is conditioned.
It seems to me that there are many "words of eternal life" that have proceeded "forth from the mouth of God" to which we must give more "diligent heed" if we are to receive the promised blessings. Among them is the commandment, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy."
In this, our day, the Lord has put great emphasis on observance of the Sabbath day. When the Saints first went to Independence, Missouri, he gave them a list of standards which must be observed by those who are to build up and live in that Zion. One of them upon which he put great emphasis was observance of the Sabbath day. He said:
"And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day;
"For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High;
" remember that on this, the Lord's day, thou shalt offer thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High, confessing thy sins unto thy brethren, and before the Lord.
"And on this day thou shalt do none other thing, only let thy food be prepared with singleness of heart that thy fasting may be perfect, or, in other words, that thy joy may be full."
Because we live in a Sabbath-breaking society, we must-if we would magnify our callings in the priesthood-live in the world but not be of the world, for the Lord has said, " the inhabitants of Zion shall observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy."
We need not shop on the Sabbath day. There will be no shopping in the city of Zion on the Sabbath.
We need not attend recreational events, nor hunt or fish on the Sabbath.
If we are really intent on magnifying our callings in the priesthood, we will on the Sabbath day live within the framework of the instructions given by the Lord in that section of the Doctrine and Covenants.
Now other "words of eternal life" that have proceeded "forth from the mouth of God" to which we must give more "diligent heed" if we would "have glory added upon heads for ever and ever" are these:
" Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord."
" remember, O man, for all thy doings thou shalt be brought into judgment.
"Wherefore, if ye have sought to do wickedly in the days of your probation, then ye are found unclean before the judgment-seat of God; and no unclean thing can dwell with God; wherefore, ye must be cast off forever." Those are the words of Nephi.
" behold, I say unto you, the kingdom of God is not filthy, and there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God. "
Six hundred years later the resurrected Jesus told his Nephite disciples that "no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end."
At the very beginning of this last dispensation, Jesus said to the brethren in conference assembled, " go ye out from among the wicked. Save yourselves. Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord. "
Within the same year he repeated, "Go ye out from Babylon. Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord."
These words call to mind Paul's declaration to the Corinthians: "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
"If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."
There are many filthy practices rife in our present society which we must constantly be on guard against if we would live clean enough to magnify our callings in the priesthood.
The Lord warned us of some of them in the Word of Wisdom:
" inasmuch as any man drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold," said he, "it is not good, neither meet in the sight of your Father.
" tobacco is not for the body.
"And again, hot drinks are not for the body. "
The use of a habit-forming drug of any kind violates the spirit of the Word of Wisdom and defiles both body and spirit.
Priesthood bearers intent on magnifying their callings will shun as the plague the filth in our permissive society wherever it is-in literature, on the stage or screen, in recreational centers, or elsewhere. God will not countenance an unclean priesthood.
One of the most corrupting and debasing vices rampant in our society today is unchastity. Let us be ever mindful that from Sinai the Lord thundered, "Thou shalt not commit adultery."
The penalty for so doing under the Mosaic law was death. Notwithstanding the fact that in this generation's corrupt permissiveness its violation is tolerated with impunity, under God's divine law it is as it has always been, a soul-destroying sin. Its self-executing penalty is spiritual death. No unforgiven adulterer is magnifying his calling in the priesthood; and, as President Clark used to say, the Lord has made no "fine distinctions between fornication and adultery". Nor, may I add, between adultery and sex perversion.
Jesus set the standard for us to follow when he said:
"Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
"But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."
And then to emphasize the enormity of this sin, he continued, " if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell."
Certainly we priesthood bearers who would so magnify our callings in the priesthood as to obtain eternal life and "have glory added upon heads for ever and ever" will diligently strive to keep the Lord's commandment, " Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord."
May it be so, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brethren, holders of the priesthood of God-so many assembled in so many places -this is a royal army, the greatest brotherhood and the greatest power in all the world. How fortunate and blessed we are to be holders of the priesthood and members of this great brotherhood in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
This evening we have been instructed, inspired, and built up in our faith and testimony and have enjoyed this lovely chorus. Now in a few minutes we will have the special privilege of listening to a prophet of God, who is the president of the Church of Jesus Christ and is his mouthpiece here upon the earth today. When he speaks, may we listen and have ears to hear and determination to follow this great leader, Spencer W. Kimball.
Having had the signal privilege and blessing of serving as a counselor to four of the Lord's chosen prophets, I bear witness that they are truly prophets of God, and I should like to review with you how the Lord has chosen, ordained, and set apart the leaders of his church, and how smoothly the succession takes place.
When Jesus was upon the earth, he entered into his ministry and organized his church, and "he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles." And he said to his apostles, "Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
From this it is evident that he conferred upon each the fullness of the apostleship with its keys and authorities so that, should the time come, each could serve as senior apostle or the president of the Church in his turn. Peter, James, and John were set apart as the head of the Church to act as the First Presidency after Christ's departure.
The Church in these latter days is based on that same principle. After Joseph Smith was chosen by the Lord, Peter, James, and John appeared and conferred upon him and Oliver Cowdery the Melchizedek Priesthood and ordained them apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In the Doctrine and Covenants we read that Joseph Smith, Jr., was called to be the first elder of the Church. The Lord said, " Thou shalt be called a seer, a translator, a prophet, an apostle of Jesus Christ, an elder of the church through the will of God the Father, and the grace of your Lord Jesus Christ.
"Being inspired of the Holy Ghost to lay the foundation thereof, and to build it up unto the most holy faith."
Though it was made known to the Prophet and Oliver Cowdery in June of 1829, before the Church was organized, that there would be twelve apostles and how they were to be chosen, it was not until 1835 that the first Council of the Twelve was appointed. Then under the direction of the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon were directed to select the twelve who were to be ordained apostles.
These men were chosen and ordained as apostles under the direction of Joseph the Prophet and were given the same authority as was given to Paul and other apostles during the time of Jesus Christ. It is recorded, "And they form a quorum, equal in authority and power to the three presidents previously mentioned", meaning the Presidency of the Church.
Also we read in the Documentary History of the Church: "President Smith next proceeded to explain the duty of the Twelve, and their authority, which is next to the present Presidency, also the Twelve are not subject to any other than the first Presidency, viz., myself, Sidney Rigdon, and Frederick G. Williams, who are now my Counselors; and where I am not there is no First Presidency over the Twelve."
President Wilford Woodruff said: "I say to the Latter-day Saints, the keys of the kingdom of God are here, and they are going to stay here, too, until the coming of the Son of Man. Let all Israel understand that. No man who has ever breathed the breath of life can hold these keys of the kingdom of God and lead the people astray."
Following the death of the Prophet Joseph, Brigham Young called a meeting in these words: "I want to see this people, with the various quorums of the priesthood, assembled together in special conference. " And at this meeting he said: " I step forth to act in my calling in connection with the Quorum of the Twelve, as Apostles of Jesus Christ unto this generation-Apostles whom God has called by revelation through the Prophet Joseph, who are ordained and anointed to bear off the keys of the kingdom of God in all the world."
He then asked, "Does the church want, and is it their only desire to sustain the Twelve as the First Presidency of this people?" It was recorded that there was a universal vote. Then he asked for a contrary vote and no hands went up.
It is evident that Brigham Young intended to have the vote of the quorums of the priesthood in order, as we did in our solemn assembly this morning, for he said: "This supersedes the other question, and trying it by quorums." He then explained that the Twelve would remain and act in their place and that the keys of the kingdom were with them and that they would manage the affairs of the Church and direct all things aright until the organization of a new First Presidency. This procedure has been followed ever since the death of Joseph Smith. In this case the Twelve continued to direct the Church for three and a half years before the First Presidency was organized and Brigham Young was then made President of the Church.
When President Wilford Woodruff was asked if he knew of any reason why some person other than the president of the Twelve should not be called to preside over the Church, he said he knew of several reasons. "First, when the President of the Church dies, who has the presiding authority of the Church? It is the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, ordained and organized by the revelation of God and none else. Then while these Twelve Apostles preside over the Church, who is the President of the Church? It is the President of the Twelve Apostles, and he is virtually as much the President of the Church while presiding over the Twelve as he is when organized as the Presidency of the Church and presiding over two men." This information is taken from a letter which was written to Elder Heber J. Grant on March 28, 1887, and signed by Wilford Woodruff. This principle has been carried out now for over a hundred years.
Throughout the history of the Church, it has been most evident that the man who is chosen as the president of the Church was foreordained and was the man for the hour. It is reported that Joseph the Prophet at his first meeting with Brigham Young said that Brigham Young would one day be president of the Church. When we reflect on the remarkable combination of events which caused Brigham Young to be president of the Twelve and then president of the Church, it is plain that long before he was born he was foreordained and chosen, just as Jeremiah and others were.
When Joseph the Prophet died, it seemed to all that there was no one ready and prepared to assume the responsibility as president of the Church. Joseph had been especially endowed to receive revelation for the Church and inspired beyond many of the prophets. He was especially fitted for the performance of his great mission. However, following his death, Brigham Young, who was made president of the Church, proved to be the man of the hour. He too had peculiar gifts and endowments to do the things which needed to be done at that time. Brigham Young was a great leader, colonizer, and organizer. He was certainly the man to lead the Church and establish it in the Rocky Mountains, as previously predicted by Joseph the Prophet.
It is also most reassuring to see how President John Taylor was preserved. He was a man who had been a martyr, you might say, in that he bore to his grave wounds received when the Prophet Joseph was killed. Throughout his administration, there was great evidence that he was certainly the man needed at that time. The same can be said of others who followed as presidents of the Church.
We must realize that though President Lee presided over the Church for such a very short time, great progress was made under his direction, and much accomplished, and the foundation laid for further development and growth of the Church.
Now we have a new president of the Church who was chosen by the Lord and foreordained-one who as an apostle has been tried, tested, trained for over 30 years, and who has been miraculously saved on three different occasions for this high and holy position.
As we read in the Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, "Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven before this world was"
We must always remember, as has been said so many times, the Lord calls his prophets and the Lord releases his prophets. They cannot be called or released by any other power. As I have pointed out previously, at the passing of the president of the Church, the Quorum of the Twelve takes over and the senior member, or the president of the Twelve, becomes the presiding officer.
It is significant to note just what took place at the time of the passing of President Harold B. Lee. President Romney had been called to the hospital and as they talked, President Lee, realizing that he might be incapacitated for some time, said to President Romney: "President Tanner is away, and I want you to take over and carry on the affairs of the Church." President Kimball, who came in later, offered his services to President Romney. However, immediately upon the announcement of President Lee's passing, President Romney turned to President Kimball and said: "You, as the president of the Quorum of the Twelve, are now in charge. I am at your disposal and prepared to do anything I can to help."
This was entirely in keeping with the order of the Church and is a great example of how the Church is never left without a presidency and how smoothly it passes from one to another. Immediately President Kimball, as president of the Twelve, became the presiding authority of the Church.
I should like to outline the procedures followed at the time of his appointment and ordination as president of the Church. Before doing so, however, let me quote from President Kimball's conference address of April 4, 1960-14 years ago:
"What mother, looking down with tenderness upon her chubby infant does not envision her child as the President of the Church or the leader of her nation! As he is nestled in her arms, she sees him a statesman, a leader, a prophet. Some dreams do come true! One mother gives us a Shakespeare, another a Michelangelo, and another an Abraham Lincoln, and still another a Joseph Smith!
"When theologians are reeling and stumbling, when lips are pretending and hearts are wandering, and people are 'running to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord and cannot find it'-when clouds of error need dissipating and spiritual darkness needs penetrating and heavens need opening, a little infant is born." How prophetic!
Just such an infant was born in Salt Lake City on March 28, 1895, and was named Spencer Woolley Kimball. You will find a most interesting account of the life of this great man from his birth until the present, as recorded in the Ensign, March 1974, pp. 8–24, written most beautifully by Elder Boyd K. Packer.
When Wilford Woodruff was the president of the Church, he said that it was the will of the Lord that no amount of time be allowed to pass between the death of the president of the Church and the time that the First Presidency was reorganized. Therefore, on December 30, 1973, just four days after President Lee's death, President Kimball, the president of the Twelve, called the members of the Twelve together in the upper room of the temple for the purpose of discussing the reorganization of the First Presidency and to take whatever action was decided upon. Those who had been counselors to the President-that is, President Romney and myself-took their respective places in the Quorum of the Twelve.
President Kimball, upon expressing his great sorrow at the passing of President Lee and his feeling of inadequacy, called upon the members of the Twelve in order of seniority to express themselves individually as to how they felt about reorganizing the presidency of the Church.
As each member of the Twelve spoke, he expressed himself as feeling that now was the time to reorganize the First Presidency and that President Spencer W. Kimball was the one whom the Lord wanted to preside at this time. The sweet Spirit of the Lord was present in rich abundance and there was complete unity and harmony in the minds and spoken words of the Brethren. The only purpose and desire was to do the will of the Lord, and there was no question in anyone's mind but what the will of the Lord had been expressed.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson then made the formal motion that the First Presidency of the Church be reorganized and that Spencer W. Kimball be sustained, ordained, and set apart as the president, prophet, seer, revelator, and as trustee-in-trust of the Church. This motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
In all humility, President Kimball stepped forward and made his speech of acceptance, praying that the Spirit and blessings of the Lord would attend him that he might be made able to carry out the will of the Lord. He said he had always prayed for President Lee's health and strength and vigor and for the blessings of the Lord to attend him as he carried on as the president of the Church. He emphasized the fact that he had prayed sincerely with his lovely wife, Camilla, that this position would never come to him and that he felt sure that President Lee would certainly outlive him.
On this occasion I thought of the Savior in the Garden of Gethsemane as he prayed: " O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." And he so accepted.
He then chose and nominated as his first counselor N. Eldon Tanner and as his second counselor Marion G. Romney, each of whom expressed himself in all humility and pledged himself to support and sustain President Kimball as the president of the Church and to fill his office to the best of his ability, and prayed for the blessings of the Lord to attend him.
Following this, President Benson was sustained as president of the Council of the Twelve. President Kimball then took his seat in the middle of the room, and as all those present placed their hands upon his head, we felt the Spirit of the Lord was truly with us, and this sweet Spirit filled our hearts. Then, with President Benson being mouth, in a beautiful prayer and blessing, Spencer Woolley Kimball was ordained and set apart as prophet, seer, and revelator and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
It is my testimony to you and to the world that the plan and order of the Church has been followed, that the will of the Lord has been done, and that Spencer W. Kimball is his prophet and president of his church and kingdom here upon the earth. In the stake conferences since his appointment and in the solemn assembly today, the people have enthusiastically sustained him. It is the great privilege, honor, and responsibility of each and every one of us to accept and support President Kimball as a prophet of God and under his direction do all in our power to help build the kingdom, to further the cause of righteousness, and prepare the world for the second coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
However, as in the past, there are still some who question the procedure and the choice of the president, and one in particular has written expressing his feeling that he himself should be the president of the Church, but let me remind you that the procedures of the Church and the teachings of Jesus Christ are not on trial. We as individuals are on trial, and have the great privilege and responsibility and blessing of being members of his church and kingdom, and of approving and sustaining the prophet, and it is up to us to prove ourselves worthy of the membership and priesthood which we hold.
Let us always remember that leaders of the Church are responsible to the Lord, and it is for him to straighten them out if they go wrong and to release them when they have finished their mission. We have been warned and forewarned that if we raise ourselves against the authority which God has placed in the Church for its government, unless we repent, he will withdraw his Spirit from us.
Brethren, if we wish to be guided by the Spirit of the Lord and enjoy his blessings, we must be true to the one who has been chosen as our leader and never murmur, complain, or find fault, or feel that someone else should be in his position. Men in high places, even one of the Three Witnesses, Oliver Cowdery, who had also received the priesthood under the hands of heavenly beings, and then Sidney Rigdon, a counselor in the First Presidency, fell away from the Church because they criticized and questioned the prophet of God.
I pray that we may all remain true to the faith, support, sustain, and follow the one who has been chosen by God as our leader. As we do this, we will be blessed and the Spirit of the Lord will linger with us and with our families as we teach and encourage them to be faithful and active. God's work will be accomplished and his will will be done. As the Lord has said of his prophet:
"For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
"For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory.
"For thus saith the Lord God: Him have I inspired to move the cause of Zion in mighty power for good. "
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
I am happy to be with you here tonight in this priesthood meeting. It is a particular delight to us to see the fathers and their sons coming early to the Saturday night priesthood meeting-many of them an hour or two early to be sure of a good seat, and thousands of others, fathers and sons, hurrying to the Tabernacle and to the numerous stake and ward buildings all over the country. This is a delightful extension of our family life which we celebrate and love and which the world is beginning to recognize as a basic family pattern-to have fathers and sons together.
We are grateful to have you present, and our appreciation for you is great and our affection sincere.
First, may we commend you for your devotion and faithfulness. The temples are generally full. The chapels are filling, and there is an increase in attendance and devotion. The families holding home evening are increasing, and we are happy with the display of faith and love which is manifested throughout the Church. We are particularly happy with the growth in numbers and effective activity in the stakes and missions overseas. It is a world Church; we believe we are getting nearer and nearer the universal church standing.
Now, brethren, may I announce to you some matters which I discussed with other leaders on Thursday. The First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve have approved the organization of an elders quorum in every ward and independent branch. The elders, regardless of number, up to 96, residing in a particular ward or independent branch, may be constituted as an elders quorum, with a presidency. Where there are more than 96 elders, the quorum should be divided. It is felt by the Brethren that this great reservoir of power and strength can best be used to its greatest value to have strong, active quorums of elders in the more local jurisdictions.
Another priesthood item: Effective immediately, stake presidents may ordain seventies and set apart presidents of seventy in their stakes when such men have been properly processed and approved by the First Council of the Seventy. This should eliminate many long delays and create a good working relationship between the stake leaders and their seventies, and we hope that new emphasis may come to missionary work.
Brethren in leadership, you could save many, many letters if you would read your handbook and bulletins. May we call your attention especially to the matter of temple interviews. And will you urge your people to take their problems to their bishops.
We commend you men for your steadfastness in training your sons. We love you all. We prize your faith; we glory in your growth and worthiness. Many of you older sons have filled your missions, but numerous of you younger ones are still prospective missionaries.
To be sure your life will be full and abundant, you must plan your life. What you plan now when you are deacons can assure you an abundant life. Have you already been saving money dedicated to your missions?
You may not yet have chosen your business or profession or life's work, but there are many generalities which you can already set up in your lives, even though you may not yet know whether you will be a lawyer or a doctor or a teacher or an engineer. There are decisions you should already have made or now be making. What are you going to do in the years between now and your marriage? And what will you do about your marriage?
You can determine now that you will be the most faithful deacon and teacher and priest. You can decide that now with an irrevocable covenant. You can be a good student; you can use your time properly and efficiently. All the balance of your life you can be happy if you use your time well.
You can make up your mind this early that you will fill an honorable mission when you reach mission age, and to that end that you will now earn money and save it and invest it for your mission, that you will study and serve and use every opportunity to properly prepare your mind and heart and soul for that glorious period of your life.
The question has been often asked, Is the mission program one of compulsion? And the answer, of course, is no. Everyone is given his free agency. The question is asked: Should every young man fill a mission? And the answer of the Church is yes, and the answer of the Lord is yes. Enlarging this answer we say: Certainly every male member of the Church should fill a mission, like he should pay his tithing, like he should attend his meetings, like he should keep his life clean and free from the ugliness of the world and plan a celestial marriage in the temple of the Lord.
While there is no compulsion for him to do any of these things, he should do them for his own good. We have often sung:
-LDS Hymns, no. 90
There is no compulsion in any part of the gospel. The Lord said in 1833, "Behold, here is the agency of man, and here is the condemnation of man; because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light."
This means that since Adam the Lord has taught us correct doctrines and we may accept or reject them, but the responsibility is ours. It means that, having the Holy Ghost which we received at baptism time, we all know good from evil. The conscience whispers to us what is right and what is wrong. We cannot blame others or circumstances. We know what is right.
Every person has his free agency. He may steal or curse or drink; he may defile himself with pornographic material; he may lazy away his life, fail to do his duty, commit sexual sins, or even take life. There is no force, but he must know that sin brings its proper punishment, sooner or later and in total, so that one is stupid indeed to choose to do the wrong things.
Every person can fail to attend his meetings, fail to pay his tithing, fail to fill a mission, ignore his temple obligations and privileges, but if he is smart, he must know that he is the deprived one.
Again the Lord answers the question: "And that every man should take righteousness in his hands and faithfulness upon his loins, and lift a warning voice unto the inhabitants of the earth; and declare both by word and by flight that desolation shall come upon the wicked." Did you note that he said "every man,"-and every boy that is becoming a man? Of course, we do not send young men steeped in uncleanness and sexual or other sins. Certainly such an one would need to be cleansed by deep repentance before he could be considered. And so we repeat it: Every LDS male who is worthy and able should fill a mission.
Then in order to have a full and abundant life that is clean and open, every lad needs to plan his course, and covenant with himself and his Heavenly Father what his life will be and what he will do to glorify it.
Someone has given us this thought on time:
"And in my dreams I came to a beautiful building, somehow like a bank, and yet not a bank because the brass marker said, 'Time for Sale.'
"I saw a man, breathless and pale, painfully pull himself up the stairs like a sick man. I heard him say: 'The doctor told me I was five years too late in going to see him. I will buy those five years now-and then he can save my life.'
"Then came another man; also who said to the clerk: 'When it was too late, I discovered that God had given me great capacities and endowments, and I failed to develop them. Sell me ten years so that I can be the man I would have been.'
"Then came a younger man to say: 'The company has told me that starting next month I can have a big job if I am prepared to take it. But I am not prepared. Give me two years of time so that I will be prepared to take the job next month.'
"So they came, ill, hopeless, despondent, worried, unhappy-and they left smiling, each man with a look of unutterable pleasure on his face, for he had what he so desperately needed and wanted-time.
"Then I awakened, glad that I had what these men had not, and what they could never buy-time. Time to do so many things I wanted to do, that I must do. If that morning I whistled at my work, it was because a great happiness filled my heart. For I still had time, if I used it well."
Let me tell you of one of the goals that I made when I was still but a lad. When I heard a Church leader from Salt Lake City tell us at conference that we should read the scriptures, and I recognized that I had never read the Bible, that very night at the conclusion of that very sermon I walked to my home a block away and climbed up in my little attic room in the top of the house and lighted a little coal-oil lamp that was on the little table, and I read the first chapters of Genesis. A year later I closed the Bible, having read every chapter in that big and glorious book.
I found that this Bible that I was reading had in it 66 books, and then I was nearly dissuaded when I found that it had in it 1,189 chapters, and then I also found that it had 1,519 pages. It was formidable, but I knew if others did it that I could do it.
I found that there were certain parts that were hard for a 14-year-old boy to understand. There were some pages that were not especially interesting to me, but when I had read the 66 books and 1,189 chapters and 1,519 pages, I had a glowing satisfaction that I had made a goal and that I had achieved it.
Now I am not telling you this story to boast; I am merely using this as an example to say that if I could do it by coal-oil light, you can do it by electric light. I have always been glad I read the Bible from cover to cover.
May I tell you another goal that I set when I was still a youngster.
I had heard all of my life about the Word of Wisdom and the blessings that could come into my life through living it. I had seen people chewing tobacco, and it was repulsive to me. I had seen men waste much time in "rolling their own" cigarettes. They would buy a sack of "Bull Durham" tobacco or some other brand and then some papers, and then they would stop numerous times in a day to fill the paper with tobacco and then roll it and then bend over the little end of it and then smoke it. It seemed foolish to me and seemed such a waste of time and energy. Later when the practice became more sophisticated, they bought their cigarettes readymade. I remember how repulsive it was to me when women began to smoke.
I remember as a boy going to the Fourth of July celebration on the streets of my little town and seeing some of the men as they took part in the horse racing as participator or as gambler, betting on the horses, and I noted that many of them had cigarettes in their lips and bottles in their pockets and some were ugly drunk and with their bleary eyes and coarse talk and cursing.
It took a little time to match the ponies and arrange the races, and almost invariably during this time there would be someone call out, "Fight! Fight!" and all the men and boys would gravitate to the fight area which was attended with blows and blood and curses and hatreds.
Again I was nauseated to think that men would so disgrace themselves, and again I made up my mind that while I would drink the pink lemonade on the Fourth of July and watch the horses run, that I never would drink liquor or swear or curse as did many of these fellows of this little town.
And I remember that without being pressured by anyone, I made up my mind while still a little boy that I would never break the Word of Wisdom. I knew where it was written and I knew in a general way what the Lord had said, and I knew that when the Lord said it, it was pleasing unto him for men to abstain from all these destructive elements and that the thing I wanted to do was to please my Heavenly Father. And so I made up my mind firmly and solidly that I would never touch those harmful things. Having made up my mind fully and unequivocably, I found it not too difficult to keep the promise to myself and to my Heavenly Father.
I remember once in later years when I was district governor of the Rotary Clubs of Arizona that I went to Nice, France, to the international convention. As a part of that celebration there was a sumptuous banquet for the district governors, and the large building was set for an elegant meal. When we came to our places, I noted that at every place there were seven goblets, along with numerous items of silverware and dishes; and everything was the best that Europe could furnish.
As the meal got underway, an army of waiters came to wait on us, seven waiters at each place, and they poured wine and liquor. Seven glass goblets were filled at every plate. The drinks were colorful. I was a long way from home; I knew many of the district governors; they knew me. But they probably did not know my religion nor of my stand on the Word of Wisdom. At any rate, the evil one seemed to whisper to me, "This is your chance. You are thousands of miles from home. There is no one here to watch you. No one will ever know if you drink the contents of those goblets. This is your chance!" And then a sweeter spirit seemed to whisper, "You have a covenant with yourself; you promised yourself you would never do it; and with your Heavenly Father you made a covenant, and you have gone these years without breaking it, and you would be stupid to break this covenant after all these years." Suffice it to say that when I got up from the table an hour later, the seven goblets were still full of colorful material that had been poured into them but never touched an hour earlier.
Again, my young brethren, in my boyhood I remember one time when the sheriff startled us when he came and announced that under the floorboards of the porch of the home just up the street from where we lived they had found a considerable cache of stolen articles. The young man who lived in that home was termed a kleptomaniac. He seemed to have a mania for stealing things, even items he had no use for himself. Numerous people in the town had been reporting that their buggy whips and their buggy robes were taken. Here they were under the porch, and this boy finally admitted to having stolen them. I remember how shocked we fellows were-how we pitied him because he had developed this terrible weakness!
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Every man takes care that his neighbor shall not cheat him. But a day comes when he begins to care that he not cheat his neighbor. Then all goes well. He has changed his market-cart into a chariot of the sun."
This boy did not know how our acts follow us and how that which we sow we are sure to reap. And every experience we have adds to or draws from our lives. We cannot think ugly thoughts or do ugly things without retribution.
Recently in a paper was an account of a girl who found a very large check in excess of two million dollars. She immediately began spending it in her own mind, she said. But finally she returned the check to its owner, and the newspaper account revealed the reward was very much smaller than her dreams. Why should she want a reward for doing right? Why should she be disappointed in the amount offered? Must people be rewarded for doing right? Would you expect a reward if you returned a lost article? All of you boys are learning or have learned the Thirteenth Article of Faith: "We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men. "
I wish to say a few words about shoplifting, but time will not permit. It is a terrible disgrace that in our communities firms must set aside a rather distressing percentage of their profits to take care of the shoplifting. It is a horrible thing that in a Latter-day Saint community, where part of us at least are Latter-day Saints, this should be the case.
Now I would like to conclude with one other little experience. I was down in Toquepala, Peru. We were dedicating a chapel. Many of the men who were employed in that mining town were Americans. After the dedication they had a dinner at one of the homes. As we moved around in the home, a young boy came to me and said, "Brother Kimball, I'm thinking about a mission. Would you give me a blessing?"
I said, "Why, of course. I'd be very happy to give you a blessing, but isn't that your father I met in the other room?"
He said, "Yes, that's Dad."
I said, "Well, why don't you ask him to give you your blessing?"
"Oh," he said, "Dad wouldn't want to give a blessing to me."
So I excused myself. In time I ran into the father, and I said, "You have a wonderful boy there. I think he would like to have a blessing from his father. Wouldn't you like to give him a blessing?"
He said, "Oh, I don't think my boy would want me to give him a blessing."
But as I mingled among these people and saw the father and the son a little later, close together, I could understand that they had come together in their thoughts and that the boy was proud to have his father bless him, and the father was delighted to be asked.
I hope you boys in this audience will keep that in mind. You have the best dad in the world, you know. He holds the priesthood; he would be delighted to give you a blessing. He would like you to indicate it, and we would like you fathers to remember that your boys are a little timid maybe. They know you are the best men in the world, but probably if you just made the advance, there would be some glorious moments for you.
Brethren, it is wonderful to be with you here tonight. And may peace be with you, and as has been said so many times in these days, only righteousness pays dividends. God bless you, and I bear my testimony to you boys, to you men, that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ. It is a great program of salvation and exaltation, and it is the only way, and there never was found happiness in unrighteousness. I bear my testimony to you in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brothers and sisters, wherever you are and whoever you are, I invite you to join in the request made in the opening prayer that the Spirit of the Lord will be with us during this meeting. Because of the subject I have chosen to speak about, it must be with us while I speak or my words will be but an exercise in futility.
The first Article of Faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reads: "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost."
A year ago we spoke of God, the Eternal Father. Six months later our theme was Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Today we shall call attention to some divinely revealed truths concerning the Holy Ghost.
The scriptures all teach about the Holy Ghost. They frequently refer to him as the Comforter, the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, or the Spirit of the Lord.
According to these scriptures the Holy Ghost is a person.
"The Father," said the Prophet Joseph Smith, "has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. "
Jesus referred to the Holy Ghost as a male person. Speaking to his disciples, he said:
" It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you."
And further,
" when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
"He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you."
"That the is capable of manifesting Himself in the form and figure of man," wrote Dr. James E. Talmage, "is indicated by the wonderful interview between the Spirit and Nephi, in which He revealed Himself to the prophet, questioned him concerning his desires and belief, instructed him in the things of God, speaking face to face with the man. 'I spake unto him,' says Nephi, 'as a man speaketh; for I beheld that he was in the form of a man; yet nevertheless, I knew that it was the Spirit of the Lord; and he spake unto me as a man speaketh with another.'"
" there are three," says John the Beloved, "that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one", signifying, of course, they are one in understanding and purpose. Of them the Prophet Joseph said:
" these three are one; or, in other words, these three constitute the great, matchless, governing and supreme power over all things; by whom all things were created and made and these three constitute the Godhead, and are one."
As a member of the Godhead, and being one with the Father and the Son, the Holy Ghost is, as are the Father and the Son, omniscient. He comprehends all truth having a "knowledge of things."
As the light of Christ "proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space", so the influence, power, and gifts of the Holy Ghost may be manifest everywhere at the same time.
Statements in the scriptures such as "the Holy Ghost fell on ", "filled with the Holy Ghost", "the gift of the Holy Ghost", "receive the Holy Ghost", baptized by "fire and the Holy Ghost" do not always refer to his person, but to his power, influence, and gifts.
One of the most important functions of the Holy Ghost is to testify of the Father and the Son. In the very day that the angel told Adam that the sacrifice he was offering was "a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam" testifying to him of the Father and the Son.
At the baptism of Jesus, the Holy Ghost bore witness to his divinity by "descending like a dove, and lighting upon him."
Every person who knows or has ever known that Jesus is the Christ has received that witness from the Holy Ghost.
"Wherefore I give you to understand," wrote Paul to the Corinthians, "that no man speaking by the Spirit of God can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost."
Jesus implied this when responding to Peter's declaration, " Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." He said:
" Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven."
The Holy Ghost not only bears witness to the divinity of the Father and the Son; he also bears witness to truth, particularly to gospel truths.
" when ye shall read these things, I would exhort you," wrote Moroni, "that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost."
And then he adds this great promise:
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
Hundreds and thousands of people have accepted and acted upon this challenge and thereafter borne witness, by the power of the Holy Ghost, to its truth.
The Holy Ghost is not only a witness to the truth; he is also a great revealer and teacher of truth.
"If ye love me, keep my commandments", said the Savior to his disciples.
"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
"And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say:
"For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say."
"Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God," wrote Paul to the Corinthians, "that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
"Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual."
To the Holy Ghost we are indebted for our scriptures. Not only did he reveal the gospel truths they contain; he it was who gave the prophets the spirit of prophecy.
" no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation", said Peter.
"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
The record says that in the very beginning "the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam,
" blessed God and was filled, and began to prophesy concerning all the families of the earth, "
So it has ever been. Luke notes that Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, "was filled with the Holy Ghost and prophesied, "
The promise of the Lord in this last dispensation that "God shall give unto you knowledge by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost" poses the question as to the manner in which one may receive this unspeakable gift.
The prescribed manner is by the laying on of hands following faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance from sin, and baptism by immersion for the remission of sins.
This was the way the Holy Ghost was bestowed in the apostolic church.
" when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:
"Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:
"
"Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost."
When Paul came to Ephesus and found certain disciples there, "He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.
"And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism.
"Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
"When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
"And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied."
In prescribing the duties of elders in his latter-day church, the Lord said, among other things, that they were "to confirm those who are baptized into the church, by the laying on of hands for the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost, according to the scriptures."
In calling several of the brethren to do missionary service, he said:
" I give unto you a commandment that ye go among this people, and say unto them, like unto mine apostle of old, whose name was Peter:
"Believe on the name of the Lord Jesus.
"Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, according to the holy commandment, for the remission of sins;
"And whoso doeth this shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of the hands of the elders of the church."
The gift of the Holy Ghost is an endowment which gives one the right to enjoy the enlightenment, companionship, and guidance of the Spirit and the influence of the Holy Spirit as long as he complies with the commandments of God.
The importance of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost is beyond expression. It is the baptism of fire referred to by John. It is the "spirit" birth of which Jesus spoke to Nicodemus:
" Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
Receiving the Holy Ghost is the therapy which effects forgiveness and heals the sin-sick soul.
The hallmark of the church of Christ, distinguishing it from all other churches and forms of worship, has ever been the receiving of the gift of the Holy Ghost by the membership of the Church.
This is what distinguishes The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from all other organizations.
Following an interview with President Van Buren, the Prophet Joseph Smith and Elias Higbee wrote in 1839 from Washington, D.C., a letter to Hyrum Smith, in which they said:
"In our interview with the President, he interrogated us wherein we differed in our religion from the other religions of the day. Brother Joseph said we differed in mode of baptism, and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. We considered that all other considerations were contained in the gift of the Holy Ghost. "
And so it is, because the Holy Ghost is a revelator. The gift of the Holy Ghost "is the spirit of revelation; is," said the Lord, "the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground."
It is the witness given by the Holy Ghost to the individual members of the Church that God lives; that Jesus Christ his son, is our Savior and Redeemer; that his gospel is the plan of salvation and the way to eternal life; and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is his church, possessing authority to preach the gospel and administer the saving ordinances thereof, which give vitality, strength, and power to the Church.
I bear to you, my brothers and sisters and friends, whoever you are and wherever you are, my personal witness to the truth of all these things to which I have called your attention.
The Holy Ghost has revealed to me that they are true. By his power I know that God lives; that we are his offspring; that Christ lives; that his gospel is true; that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is his church; that President Spencer W. Kimball is a prophet called by the Lord to preside over his church; that the Holy Ghost is a revealer of and a witness to these things; and that by his power each of us may, as Moroni declared, "know the truth of all things."
I humbly and sincerely invite all of you to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, to repent and be baptized in his name, and receive the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of the hands of the elders of His Church; and I invite you to thereafter follow his guidance.
All who do this shall be prepared to meet the Savior when he comes, for he has said:
" at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins.
"For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived-verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day.
"And the earth shall be given unto them for an inheritance; and they shall multiply and wax strong, and their children shall grow up without sin unto salvation.
"For the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver."
That we may all, through following the guidance of the Holy Spirit, be prepared to "abide" that great day, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
I have been inspired, as you have I am sure, by the words of our beloved President Romney as he opened the revelations to us this morning on the subject of the Holy Ghost.
In a world that is unsteady, I thank God for the constant flow of revelation to the Church. We have, in this conference, sustained a new prophet, seer, and revelator. I am so grateful that we have a prophet authorized to receive revelation from God.
I am grateful, too, that revelation is not confined to the prophet. It is shared by the General Authorities. And across the world, local leaders constantly report of the guidance that they receive when they have decisions to make or when needing further light and knowledge.
Fathers and mothers also may receive inspiration, revelation, indeed, through that agency that Brother Romney has reported, to help guide their families. And of course each of us, if we will live for it, may be the recipient of spiritual communications for our own personal guidance.
The prophets of the past have recorded their revelations. And together with the sacred history that surrounds their being given they constitute the scripture. The Bible is, of course, the best known example. In the Church we do something that very few do any more: We read the Bible.
And we are blessed with other scriptures, also books of revelation: the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.
When we announce that we have scripture other than the Bible, we are asked of course, "Well, where did you get these revelations? Where did these books come from?"
In response to these questions, we immediately speak of translation through the use of the urim and thummim of records prepared by ancient prophets; we speak of visions; we speak of visitations of angelic messengers from the presence of God; and we speak without hesitation of interviews with the Lord himself.
Many consider these explanations to be strange stories and hesitate even to appear to take them seriously. They reject the idea that processes of revelation, which were matter-of-fact in Biblical times, operate today.
We have, nonetheless, these scriptures. We got them from somewhere. We say, "Handle them; read them; test them. See for yourself." Unfortunately, most men are reluctant even to examine them.
They remind me of the characters in a parable written a few years ago by Dr. Hugh Nibley. And I would like to quote part of his parable:
"A young man once long ago claimed he had found a large diamond in his field as he was ploughing. He put the stone on display to the public free of charge, and everyone took sides. A psychologist showed, by citing some famous case studies, that the young man was suffering from a well-known form of delusion. An historian showed that other men have also claimed to have found diamonds in fields and have been deceived. A geologist proved that there were no diamonds in the area but only quartz: The young man had been fooled by a quartz. When asked to inspect the stone itself, the geologist declined with a weary, tolerant smile, and a kindly shake of the head. An English professor showed that the young man in describing his stone used the very same language that others had used in describing uncut diamonds: He was, therefore, simply speaking the common language of his time. A sociologist showed that only three out of 177 florists' assistants in four major cities believed the stone was genuine. A clergyman wrote a book to show that it was not the young man but someone else who had found the stone.
"Finally an indigent jeweler pointed out that since the stone was still available for examination the answer to the question of whether it was a diamond or not had absolutely nothing to do with who found it, or whether the finder was honest or sane, or who believed him, or whether he would know a diamond from a brick, or whether diamonds had ever been found in fields, or whether people had ever been fooled by quartz or glass, but was to be answered simply and solely by putting the stone to certain well-known tests for diamonds. Experts on diamonds were called in. Some of them declared it genuine. The others made nervous jokes about it and declared that they could not very well jeopardize their dignity and reputations by appearing to take the thing too seriously. To hide the bad impression thus made, someone came out with the theory that the stone was really a synthetic diamond, very skillfully made, but a fake just the same. The objection to this is that the production of a good synthetic diamond, for the farm boy, would have been an even more remarkable feat than the finding of a real one."
The fact is that we have these books of scripture. We got them, I repeat, from somewhere.
Over the years, there have been many explanations and theories as to where they came from. These theories, which have been advanced, for the most part, by people who have never so much as read the books, generally group themselves under the idea that Joseph Smith produced them; that Joseph Smith authored them himself. He, then, deserves the blame.
This, however, lays far too much credit to him and makes all too much of him. This I cannot accept, for this would make him a genius beyond all measurements. I do not believe he was that. To assume that he produced them without help and without inspiration is preposterous.
The truth is, simply, that he was a prophet of God-nothing more and not one whit less!
The scriptures did not come so much from Joseph Smith as they did through him. He was a conduit through which the revelations were given. He was otherwise an ordinary man, as were the prophets in ancient times and as are the prophets in our day.
Some have alleged that these books of revelation are false, and they place in evidence changes that have occurred in the texts of these scriptures since their original publication. They cite these changes, of which there are many examples, as though they themselves were announcing revelation. As though they were the only ones that knew of them.
Of course there have been changes and corrections. Anyone who has done even limited research knows that. When properly reviewed, such corrections become a testimony for, not against, the truth of the books.
The Prophet Joseph Smith was an unschooled farm boy. To read some of his early letters in the original shows him to be somewhat unpolished in spelling and grammar and in expression.
That the revelations came through him in any form of literary refinement is nothing short of a miracle. That some perfecting should continue strengthens my respect for them.
Now, I add with emphasis that such changes have been basically minor refinements in grammar, expression, punctuation, clarification. Nothing fundamental has been altered.
Why are they not spoken of over the pulpit? Simply because by comparison they are so insignificant, and unimportant as literally to be not worth talking about. After all, they have absolutely nothing to do with whether the books are true.
After compiling some of the revelations, the ancient prophet Moroni said, " if there be faults they be the faults of a man. But behold, we know no fault; nevertheless God knoweth all things; therefore, he that condemneth, let him be aware lest he shall be in danger of hell fire." "And whoso receiveth this record, and shall not condemn it because of the imperfections which are in it, the same shall know of greater things than these. "
A man might take a stone and, in order to verify precisely what it is, subject it to a test to identify slate or sandstone. After conducting these tests, he may conclude his research with the statement: "I did not discover that it was a diamond."
His conclusion, though accurate, has nothing to do with whether or not it is a diamond. Nor will it ever be verified by using the wrong formula. There may be a thousand tests he can apply and come to the same conclusion.
After, and only after, he subjects the stone to the correct formula can he know for sure. Until then, his conclusion, "I did not discover it to be a diamond," is relatively useless information.
There has, over the years, been an endless procession of those who would examine these revelations by every formula save the right one. Each becomes evidence, as Paul said, "the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
These scriptural diamonds, as we have described them, will stand the test. As surely as a man may determine whether a purported diamond is genuine by subjecting it to well-known tests for diamonds, the scriptures may be subjected to well-known tests for scriptures.
There is a very precise formula. To apply it, one must, of necessity, move from criticism to spiritual inquiry.
There are those who have made a casual, even an insincere effort to test the scriptures and have come away having received nothing, which is precisely what they have earned and what they deserve. If you think it will yield to a casual inquiry, to idle curiosity, or even to well-intentioned but temporary searching, you are mistaken. It likewise will not yield to the overzealous or to the fanatic.
It is when a lifetime is quietly committed with sincerity and humility that one can know for sure. Many elements of truth come only after a lifetime of preparation.
A testimony of them, however, can come very quickly. Do not belittle the possibility that many humble folk, young and old, possess such a testimony. Many possess a testimony that transcends the knowledge to be gained in academic and scientific fields. When a humble man bears testimony based on spiritual inquiry and righteous living, be careful before you repudiate his witness because he is otherwise unlearned.
Many an academic giant is at once a spiritual pygmy and, if so, he is usually a moral weakling as well. Such a man may easily become a self-appointed member of a wrecking crew determined to destroy the works of God.
Beware of the testimony of one who is intemperate, or irreverent, or immoral, who tears down and has nothing to put in its place.
The prophet Nephi said, " wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center."
This ancient prophet said that he was not "mighty in writing, like unto speaking; for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men.
"But behold, there are many that harden their hearts against the Holy Spirit, that it hath no place in them; wherefore, they cast many things away which are written and esteem them as things of naught."
He further said that the words that he had written were to persuade men to do good and "speaketh of Jesus, and persuadeth them to believe in him, and to endure to the end, which is life eternal.
"And it speaketh harshly against sin, according to the plainness of the truth; wherefore, no man will be angry at the words which I have written save he shall be of the spirit of the devil."
There is a warning in the New Testament worthy of our attention. Peter and the other apostles were imprisoned by the Sanhedrin. They were released by an angel, but came a second time before that council. They bore testimony that, " We are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him."
Some of the Sanhedrin sought to kill the apostles, but Gamaliel, a doctor of law, wisely said, "Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men." He then cited two examples of preachers who "also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed, were dispersed.
" Refrain from these men, and let them alone," Gamaliel cautioned, " for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:
"But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God."
Revelation continues in the Church: the prophet receiving it for the Church; the president for his stake, his mission, or his quorum; the bishop for his ward; the father for his family; the individual for himself.
Many revelations have been received and are found in evidence in the onrolling work of the Lord. Perhaps one day other revelations which have been received and have been recorded will be published, and we stand in expectation that " He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God."
I conclude with a verse in the Doctrine and Covenants which has within it a formula and a promise:
"Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am."
I do not invite anyone to become a seeker after a sign, but to prepare a mind and a heart and a body that is clean.
"Therefore," the Lord has said, "sanctify yourselves that your minds become single to God, and the days will come that you shall see him; for he will unveil his face unto you, and it shall be in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will."
I bear witness that the revelations are true. I have tested them. There sit before us in this conference the General Authorities of the Church, fifteen men among them called and ordained as apostles, as special witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ. I bear witness that he lives. I have that witness, and testify that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the power unto salvation, and that each of us through seeking can know that these diamonds are genuine, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church
Last spring my wife and I had the wonderful privilege of visiting the Holy Land. On the last day of our stay in Jerusalem, we left the hotel early in the morning and walked to the Garden Tomb. To our great delight, we were alone in the garden. A feeling of awesome reverence filled our hearts. We gazed at the hill Golgotha, the place of the skull. We could imagine the three crosses there and the sign "This is Jesus-the King of the Jews" over the agonized figure of Christ. The thought comes, "Are we worth all his suffering for us?"
Then we turned to the tomb-historically the property of Joseph of Arimathaea. Here Joseph and Nicodemus placed him, assisted by the women. His disciples had left him. The stone was rolled to cover the door, and everyone departed-all but Mary Magdalene and the other Mary. They sat huddled next to the sepulcher. Then a watch was placed at the tomb.
We are told there was great destruction in Jerusalem; the veil of the temple was "rent in twain." The destruction was much greater, however, on this continent. There were great convulsions of the earth. In three hours cities were destroyed, some buried, some burnt. Mountains appeared where cities had been. There was storm, then tempest, and a great dense darkness covered the entire land. At the conclusion of three hours of destruction, yet during the darkness, which lasted three days, a voice, only a voice, came to them. The voice identified itself as that of Jesus Christ, saying:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified his name.
"I came unto my own, and my own received me not. And the scriptures concerning my coming are fulfilled."
He told them the destruction had been because of their wickedness, and that only the more righteous had been spared. Possibly preparing them for his visit after his resurrection, he told them to repent and he would receive them.
The voice told them that the Law of Moses had been fulfilled by him. "And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings.
"And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. "
On two separate occasions during his ministry he had said, " I will have mercy, and not sacrifice. "
Another main activity, while his body lay in the tomb, was to visit the spirits of those who had died. He said on one occasion, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live."
While on the cross, to the condemned, believing thief, he said, " Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise."
Peter tells us, "For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
"By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
"Which sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water."
This is a great principle of the gospel. This gives all mankind an opportunity to hear and receive the gospel, and to make further progress after death.
Peter also tells us that, "for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit."
So two great and marvelous things transpired while the body of Christ lay in the tomb. One, his voice was heard by the people on this continent preaching to them, declaring that sacrifices are no longer accepted. Remember, he was not yet resurrected. He returned after his resurrection and showed himself and taught the people. Two, he preached to the spirits in prison.
On the third day, an angel came and rolled away the stone that closed the tomb. While walking in the garden that morning, my wife and I could easily visualize the stone that was placed there. The entrance to the tomb was cut into a perpendicular face of the hill. There was a small door, in front of which was a trough in which the stone would fit to be rolled into position to close or cover the door.
We remembered how Mary Magdalene and the other women had come early in the morning of the first day of the week with spices to prepare the body and found the stone rolled away. As they looked in, an angel told them He had risen. He told them to go to the disciples and tell them He had risen.
Mary found and told Peter and John. They came running. John, the younger, arrived first, looked into the tomb, but did not enter until after Peter had entered. The body was gone, but the linens were there, neatly folded. John and Peter then returned to their home. "For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead."
"But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,
"And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
"And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.
"And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.
"Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away." In a voice so familiar to her she could not mistake it, "Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.
"Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God."
The other women who had come to the sepulcher had been told by the angel to go tell the disciples that He had risen. Jesus met them on their way, "saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him."
They, too, were instructed to go tell his brethren.
He appeared to all the disciples except Thomas and Judas, who had hanged himself. Later he appeared to all the disciples including Thomas.
"Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."
He not only appeared to his disciples on several occasions and to 500 in Galilee, he also appeared to those on this continent. The Book of Mormon gives us this account.
As we wandered in the garden, Jeanne and I were alone. We walked into the tomb. There we witnessed a spirit of peace, as he had said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
We received a witness there, and then, as he said to Martha, " I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live."
Through his resurrection, eternal progress for all mankind has been made possible. He opened the way that we may go on and on and on forever.
I had the same feeling come over me when I first visited the Sacred Grove in western New York. As I walked into that grove early one morning all alone, the witness came to me that truly the Father and the Son did appear to the boy Joseph Smith just as Christ had appeared to Mary in the garden.
Truly he lives and has again established his kingdom upon the earth to prepare for his coming in glory to reign upon the earth.
May God give us knowledge and understanding to know his will and give us the desire and strength to abide by his teachings, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder L. Tom Perry
Of the Council of the Twelve
Thank you, President. This is a general conference in which I find my emotions very close to the surface. I have just been sustained by a vote of the membership of the Church to a position which is overwhelming. I hope under the circumstances it is permissible to be a little personal as I speak this morning.
I was reared in a home in which the children were taught great love and respect for the General Authorities of the Church. I remember as I was learning the names of the members of the Council of the Twelve as a Primary graduation requirement, my father spent time and patience to teach me about the lives of each, as well as the required memory work.
To this day, I think you can ask me at any time to recite the names of those great men from Rudger Clawson to Charles A. Callis; and I can repeat them rapidly and remember events in their lives.
As I was thinking about this assignment, I thought, what if there is some father in the Church who would like to spend some time in family home evening telling about the current members of the Council of the Twelve. This thought startled me. What could he ever tell about me?
As I thought and searched, I realized there is a theme to my life which is worthy of being repeated and I think would be of value to those young children in your homes. It is this: He was reared in a home in which his parents loved and appreciated the gospel of Jesus Christ. They understood the admonition of Paul to the Ephesian saints when he wrote, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
"Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
"And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
"Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked."
We were dressed in our home each morning, not only with hats and raincoats and boots to protect us from physical storm, but even more carefully our parents dressed us each day in the armor of God. As we would kneel in family prayer and listen to our father, a bearer of the priesthood, pour out his soul to the Lord for the protection of his family against the fiery darts of the wicked, one more layer was added to our shield of faith. While our shield was being made strong, theirs was always available, for they were available and we knew it.
What a protection it was to travel through the journey of life knowing that a shield of faith is being carefully constructed for you by loving parents from our first moments on earth.
Let me just give you a small example of how that shield would work. One day I was made an attractive offer by a group of marines, buddies of mine, as we were about to go on liberty. It wasn't until after we were on our way that I discovered this was not the best of company to be in. It was then that I found out the reason they had invited me. It was because they knew of my standards. They knew that I would be sober when it was time to return to the base, and I could guide them back.
We found ourselves in Los Angeles on a streetcar headed toward a dance hall. They had already started to drink a little, and I was ready to part their company. It was here that that protective shield took over and I knew of the prayers of my parents for my welfare. The streetcar stopped and allowed new passengers to come aboard. The new passengers separated me from my buddies and pushed me to the back of the car. It was there that I discovered a nice group of young people standing and seated. Immediately upon finding me in their company, one spoke up and said, "Hi, Marine! We're Mormons. What do you know about our Church?"
I answered, "Plenty," and got off the streetcar with them and went to a ward social.
You see, the shield of faith was there. It was protecting me from the fiery darts of the wicked in order that in a proper time in my life I would be worthy to take an angel into the temple of the Lord and there at its altar be sealed together for time and all eternity.
I know by personal experience the value of having noble parents to build around their children a protective shield of faith of our Lord and our Savior Jesus Christ. I give you my witness that it works. Should not every child of God be given that opportunity in their lives-to start each day having their fathers blessing their home and giving them that protective shield of faith as they depart from the home to go about their every activity.
President Kimball, I publicly accept the call that you have conveyed to me to serve the Lord. I know of your divine call. I know within you there is the same attribute which distinguished Joseph of old to the Pharaoh of Egypt who declared to his servants that in Joseph was "a man in whom the Spirit of God is."
I hope and pray that in some way I may be capable of helping you lift the great burden that you carry by my service in this quorum.
President Benson, I love and appreciate you and your great leadership. I am devoted to service in our Father in heaven's kingdom. Use me in any way that I am capable.
And to my two great colleagues whom I have worked so closely with, Elder Hanks and Elder Faust, there has been a special brotherhood develop between us. How patient they have been in helping to train me in the things that I should do in these great callings. I express to you my gratitude and thanks.
And to all who hear my voice today, I declare my witness that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, and that Spencer W. Kimball is truly a prophet of the Lord. Come and join with us. Let us help you build your shield of faith that you may live with the peaceful assurance that you have a strong line of defense between you and the powers of the wicked one, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder J. Thomas Fyans
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I was born of goodly parents, and while they are on the other side, I have an assurance that my angel mother and my saintly father rejoice in this call. I love my family.
In the past few months, for some reason I have had an insatiable desire to read the scriptures. Reflecting on the personal events of this conference, it could be that the Holy Spirit, referred to by President Romney, felt that this kind of spiritual preparation would be appropriate.
Through the Old Testament and the Pearl of Great Price, I shared a prophetic vision of the coming of the Savior. The blessings, responsibility, and challenge of Abraham and his posterity have become more clearly implanted in my heart.
Through the New Testament, I returned to Bethlehem to the site of the manger, saw in my mind's eye a reflection from the waters of the Sea of Galilee of past holy events, bowed my head in gratitude at the empty tomb, and all that intervened lifted me a little more heavenward.
Through the Book of Mormon, I saw the blessings of obedience and the suffering of disobedience in the lives of the eternal spirit posterity of Lehi and others who were led to this promised land, giving me a panorama of our Heavenly Father's desire to nurture and perfect-even by adversity-his children.
From the pages of modern scripture revealed in the tender years of the establishment of the Lord's kingdom in our day, the following truths seem most appropriate: " three Presiding High Priests form a quorum of the Presidency of the Church"; and the Twelve, "under the direction of the Presidency , to build up the church, and regulate all the affairs of the same in all nations. " " Whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture. "
When these words distill upon my soul, I stand in reverential awe in the presence of these appointed brethren. Particularly am I indebted to the four members of the Council of the Twelve who serve as advisers to Internal Communications.
Because of dedicated associates, these scriptures of today-the sermons of this conference-will be within the covers of the Ensign and in your homes as April matures and May is born. We can know the will of the Lord, the mind of the Lord, and the word of the Lord as we ponder these modern scriptures.
At this moment, another area of Internal Communications is interpreting simultaneously these proceedings into a dozen languages.
I hope this detail will not seem inappropriate, but in the spirit of recognizing other wonderful associates, I am pleased to report that 93 percent of the materials you will use in the curriculum year beginning this coming September are already available. The remainder of the items will be ready this coming week. I love my associates.
The first commandment instructs us to love the Lord with all our heart, might, mind, and strength, "And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." We love our neighbors. We think they love us. I submit as evidence homemade lemon cream pies and salads that were brought to our home yesterday.
As food moves from their home to ours and from our home to theirs, my eternal companion is responding to her desire to be in the service of her fellow beings. This outward action is but an indication of what flows deeply inside her. She stands on higher ground and constantly extends her hand to lift me and her children by her exemplary action. Our five daughters, four of whom are married, and their loved ones have been most responsive to her. As she beneficially influences these eternal spirits, she is showing her love for the Lord. In my lifetime of Church service, she has always smiled approbation and encouragement. No man could have a more congenial, supportive companion.
President Kimball and your inspired counselors, President Benson and the special witnesses who form your quorum, as we assist you we place on the altar before you our hearts, our might, our minds, and our strength. In unity, my companion and I commit whatever we are to His service. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Delbert L. Stapley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends, the Savior announced, "Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world." "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."
There is much written and many sermons given concerning Christ-his ministry, teachings, miracles, atoning sacrifice, resurrection, and ascension to eternal glory. He is truly our Lord and Savior, our Redeemer and God. He said, " I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me." "I am come that they might have life, and have it more abundantly." "And I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."
This is the purpose of our Savior's ministry on earth: that we might have life eternal and dwell in the heavens with him and our Heavenly Father.
His teachings were given that we might know the way to life eternal. The many miracles he performed were given as a witness and testimony that he is indeed the Son of God. His atoning sacrifice, the giving of his life, shows his great love for all mankind. He said, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." He has proven he is a friend to us. Yet, have we taken the time through prayer and study to know our Savior and to make ourselves a friend to him? J. G. Small penned these words:
Picture yourselves, if you will, among the multitudes to whom Jesus spoke-a lame child, a deaf man, a blind woman. Such an outpouring of love they felt for the Savior, and he for them. They shed tears of joy as he touched their hearts with his comforting words. He likewise felt of their spirit and was filled with compassion and mercy toward them. As he looked over the multitude, he said, "Have ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither. Have ye any that are lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or that are withered, or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them hither and I will heal them,
" for I see that your faith is sufficient that I should heal you."
So they brought their afflicted, their lame, their blind, and their dumb, and he healed them, every one. And all who were there, those who were healed and those who were whole, bowed down in gratitude and praise.
Then Christ called the children around him and commanded the multitude to kneel down upon the ground. He likewise knelt and prayed to the Father. The record reads: "And no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.
" when Jesus had made an end of praying unto the Father, he arose; but so great was the joy of the multitude that they were overcome.
"And Jesus bade them arise.
" and he said unto them: Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, my joy is full.
"And when he had said these words, he wept, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them.
"And when he had done this he wept again."
Do we feel the sweet spirit of those gathered and the great love Christ expressed to these good faithful people? Here was the great Master Teacher himself giving a lesson in prayer. He was setting the example of being concerned enough about others to pray for them, to pray for their specific and individual needs. He admonished them, "Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name;
"Pray in your families unto the Father, that your wives and your children may be blessed."
Do we understand what Christ is saying? He is telling us that as he prayed to the Father and healed the sick and blessed the children, that we also have the right to pray for those in need and to bless our own families. This is not only a blessing to us, but a safeguard to family life, to bring us closer together in love and harmony through such a spiritual influence.
Let me repeat one scripture: "Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, my joy is full."
Christ's joy is made full when we are repentant, faithful, and keep God's commandments.
"Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved." And "whoso repenteth of his sins and desireth to be baptized in my name, on this wise shall ye baptize them. "
Herein lies the beauty of the gospel: the opportunity for repentance, forgiveness, and life eternal, thus giving meaning to our Savior's atoning sacrifice.
"And thus God bringeth about his great and eternal purposes, which were prepared from the foundation of the world. And thus cometh about the salvation and the redemption of men, and also their destruction and misery.
"Therefore, whosoever will come may come and partake of the waters of life freely; and whosoever will not come the same is not compelled to come; but in the last day it shall be restored unto him according to his deeds."
In other words, the choice is ours: If we do good, good will be restored; if we do evil, misery will be our reward. The Lord is desirous of saving us all, yet knows some will not heed his plea. His anguish is shown when he says, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!"
Other prophets have also cried repentance to the people, telling them to hearken unto the voice of the Lord:
"O ye workers of iniquity; ye that are puffed up in the vain things of the world, ye that have professed to have known the ways of righteousness nevertheless have gone astray, as sheep having no shepherd, notwithstanding a shepherd hath called after you and is still calling after you, but ye will not hearken unto his voice!"
Through his love and mercy, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, has called to each of us. To those who have sinned, he grants pardon. He rejoices in the salvation of man.
We can never fully repay our Savior for his sacrifice made to help us achieve salvation and exaltation. It would behoove each of us to search our hearts and lives and consider how good and gracious our Lord has been. George Herbert said, "Thou that has given so much to us, give us one thing more a grateful heart."
This past week I received a letter wherein a woman wrote, "We love our Heavenly Father with all our hearts. If I were to work every minute for the rest of my life I could not repay the Lord for his precious gift of the gospel."
In an address to his people, King Benjamin said: "And again I say unto you that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, and have received a remission of your sins, ye should remember the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, and humble yourselves calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come
" I say that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you,
"And ye will not have a mind to injure one another, but to live peaceably, and to render to every man according to that which is his due.
"And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God,
"But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another."
In our striving to do right, we are beset at times with trials and testing, but the Lord gives us this comforting assurance: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."
"I am the light and the life of the world. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.
"Behold, I have come unto the world to bring redemption unto the world, to save the world from sin."
"And I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."
Now is the time for us to prepare and be worthy for the fulfillment of this great promise. Many people have lost their proper sense of values and have sought wealth at the expense of spiritual growth. Every task, every duty, every assignment may well be first met by considering how the Son of God would have fulfilled it. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has shown the way for us to gain eternal happiness through the way we live. All of us must rely upon his merits for our salvation and glory.
As one who has the responsibility of witnessing the reality of Christ in God's great plan of life and salvation, I bear solemn witness to these truths; also that the spirit of man never dies and that life continues beyond this mortal existence. I humbly testify that God lives; Jesus, his Son, lives; and the gospel as we teach it is true. I also bear witness to the divine calling of our beloved President Spencer W. Kimball. I have a great love, respect, and admiration for him. I will sustain him; I will uphold him; I will follow him, for I know that he is the Lord's anointed to His people today. God bless us all to be faithful and true to the covenants we have made with our Lord, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Ezra Taft Benson
President of the Council of the Twelve
Humbly and gratefully I stand before you this glorious Sabbath day. I'm sure, President Kimball, that in addition to these lovely sisters of the Tabernacle Choir, we all join in praying for you, our prophet dear, as the song says. May I say to Elder L. Tom Perry, the new member of the Twelve, you are entering one of the sweetest associations among men this side of heaven. We welcome you into the Council of the Twelve and welcome in the same spirit also Elders J. Thomas Fyans and Neal A. Maxwell as Assistants to the Twelve.
My brothers and sisters, my feelings have been made tender as have many thousands, through the passing of our beloved leader, President Harold B. Lee. For 55 years in mortal life we have been associated, and prior to that, I feel sure, in premortal life. I have received the sweet assurance also and the comforting assurance that there is no untimely passing of a prophet of God. President Lee's impressive earthly service is finished. He has been called to further important work in the great program of the Lord, which moves forward on both sides of the veil. He was a man with deep spiritual insight, with Christlike attributes.
His great objective has been to help save the souls of the children of men. The Lord said to the Prophet Joseph Smith:
"Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God."
This is our first interest as a church-to save and exalt the souls of the children of men. President Lee was interested in this great project above all others. I am grateful for the inspiration that he brought to the youth of Zion, to our Father's children everywhere, and to the great cause of truth throughout the world.
For 30 years I have sat at the side of President Spencer W. Kimball. We came into the Council of the Twelve together. I know this great man. I love him. I honor him. I respect him. He is truly one of God's noblemen-a humble, inspired prophet of God. With all my heart I sustain him. And with him I love all of our Father's children-of every race, creed, nationality, or political persuasion.
I rejoice in the program which President Kimball and his counselors have had a major part in developing under the leadership of President Lee. There is no richer program anywhere in the world for the building of men and women and providing the answers to the problems that face parents, families, and individuals. Through President Kimball's inspired leadership we will continue to strengthen and build on that program. It is a program that is needed today as never before.
The message of Mormonism, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, has now been before the world for over 140 years.
In June 1830, Samuel Harrison Smith trudged down a country road in New York State on the first official missionary journey of the restored church. He had been set apart by his brother, the Prophet Joseph. This great missionary traveled 25 miles that first day without disposing of a single copy of the new and strange book which he carried on his back. Seeking lodging for the night, faint and hungry, he was turned away, after briefly explaining his mission, with the words: "You liar, get out of my house. You shan't stay one minute with your books." Continuing his journey, discouraged and with heavy heart, he slept that first night under an apple tree.
So began, in the most inauspicious way, the missionary work of this dispensation through the restored church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
One hundred and forty-four years have come and gone since that first humble missionary set out to carry the message of salvation to a confused world. In fulfillment of the all-important, God-given mandate, this great work has gone forward through the years unabated. It is a dramatic chapter in the history of a "peculiar people." But in all the annals of Christendom there is no greater evidence of courage, willingness to sacrifice, and unbounded devotion to duty. Men, women, and children all have joined in this heroic effort with no hope of material reward.
These ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ, as they firmly believe themselves to be, have trudged through mud and snow, swum rivers, and gone without the common necessities of food, shelter, and clothing in response to a call. Voluntarily fathers and sons have left homes, families, and jobs to go to all parts of the world, enduring great physical hardship and unrelenting persecution. Families have been left behind, often in dire straits, willingly laboring the harder to provide means for "their missionary." And through it all there has been a joy and satisfaction which has caused families at home to express gratitude for special blessings received and missionaries to refer to this period as "the happiest time of my life."
It has been conservatively estimated that between 140,000 and 150,000 full-time missionaries have served the Church since 1830, to say nothing of the thousands of local men and women who have performed valiant missionary services at home, numbering currently more than 20,000. These faithful emissaries, who have gone abroad, have expended from 98 to 105 million days of missionary effort at a cost, through loss of personal income and expense for living, of more than $420 to $450 million, and this does not include any costs of transportation to and from, or in the field, costs of administration at home or abroad, or expense of local missionary service.
Probably no group of people of comparable size in all the world has made such a free-will offering to the spreading of righteousness, and this from people who are not wealthy and who, in addition, are expected to contribute one-tenth of their interest annually to "the work of the Lord," according to the ancient-modern law of the tithe.
Why? What is it that brings forth such sacrifice of time, means, and comforts and sweet associations of home?
Is it not the burning conviction that God has again revealed himself to man on the earth, reestablished his church with all the gifts and blessings enjoyed in former days, and committed again to men his holy priesthood, with authority to exercise it for the blessings of his children? Yes, without doubt, it is the personal testimony of the divinity of this great latter-day work, faith in the commands of the Almighty, and our responsibility as his covenant children, the knowledge that God lives and loves his children, and the conviction that it is our mission to build and save men everywhere.
From the days of Father Adam to the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his successors, whenever the priesthood has been on the earth, a major responsibility has been the preaching of the saving, eternal principles of the gospel-the plan of salvation. Father Adam taught these things to his own children. Consider Noah's long years of missionary effort and the preachings of all the ancient prophets. Each in his day was commanded to carry the gospel message to the children of men and call them to repentance as the only means of escaping the pending judgments. The Master made crystal clear the great mission of his ancient apostles to "go ye therefore, and teach all nations. "
In the early visits of the resurrected Moroni to the Prophet Joseph Smith it was emphasized that the Prophet's name would be known for good or evil throughout the world and that the new volume of scripture and the restored gospel, which it contained, would have to be carried to the entire world "by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days."
More than a year before the Church was organized, the Lord revealed through the Prophet that "a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men" and that the field was "white already to harvest. " The early converts were charged with the burden of the responsibility as follows: "Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day."
Great promises were made to these early missionaries. They were told that "the worth of souls is great in the sight of God," and that if they "should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!"
All these and many other glorious promises were made even before the Church was formally organized on April 6, 1830.
Following the organization, men and women were baptized and worthy brethren ordained to the priesthood and set apart to cry repentance and to deliver the message of the restored gospel. Even greater promises were embodied in the revelations which followed, many of which referred in no uncertain terms to the solemn responsibility resting upon the restored church to preach the word. In the fall of that same year came the word of the Lord through the Prophet as follows:
"For verily, verily, I say unto you that ye are called to lift up your voices as with the sound of a trump, to declare my gospel unto a crooked and perverse generation.
"For behold, the field is white already to harvest; and it is the eleventh hour, and the last time that I shall call laborers into my vineyard."
The Lord made it plain to these humble ambassadors that they were "preparing the way of the Lord for his second coming." They were promised that their words would be prompted by the power of the Holy Ghost and would be the will of the Lord and scripture unto the people, inasmuch as they were faithful. They were told in no uncertain terms that they were being sent "out to prove the world," that they should "not be weary in mind, neither darkened," and a hair of their head should "not fall to the ground unnoticed."
Is it any wonder, then, that with their personal testimonies that a new dispensation of the gospel was being opened; coupled with these stirring promises of the Lord, that they went forth in power and at great personal sacrifice, without monetary reward, even though their numbers were few and their circumstances poor. Add to this the fact that the heavenly pronouncements emphasized that this was the last time the gospel should be given to men as a witness in preparation for Christ's second coming and the end of the world-the end of wickedness. Theirs was the responsibility of warning the world of impending judgments, as it is ours today. They knew, as do we, that the Lord has said:
"For a desolating scourge shall go forth among the inhabitants of the earth, and shall continue to be poured out from time to time, if they repent not, until the earth is empty, and the inhabitants thereof are consumed away and utterly destroyed by the brightness of my coming.
"Behold, I tell you these things, even as I also told the people of the destruction of Jerusalem; and my word shall be verified at this time as it hath hitherto been verified."
The time came, in late 1831, to consider the publication of the revelations that the Lord had given to his church. By this time many revelations had been received and the Church had shown considerable growth in spite of persecution and drivings from the powers of evil. At the conference of elders the Lord revealed through the Prophet Joseph a great revelation addressed to the people of his church and "unto all men, and there is none to escape. " No message heretofore given set forth in such clarity and power the worldwide nature of the message of the restored gospel. If there had been any question before, this left no room for doubt. Our message is a world message.
No person can read Section One of the Doctrine and Covenants, realizing that the Church accepts it as the word of the Lord, and ask why we send missionaries into all parts of the world. The responsibility, and a major one it is, falls squarely upon the membership of the Church, for "the voice of warning," says the Lord, "shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days." Then the Lord adds this great promise: "And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them." The revelation further states that all these things he has given unto his disciple-missionaries "to publish unto you, O inhabitants of the earth." After declaring that his voice is unto the ends of the earth, the Lord points out that he, "knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven. " The same as in all other dispensations, a means of escape, revealed through a prophet, is provided. Then the Lord emphasizes that he is "willing to make these things known unto all flesh" for he is "no respecter of persons."
As a closing admonition he invites all his children to "search these commandments," which have been revealed for the blessing of all mankind, because "they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled." Though heaven and earth pass away, his word he says, "shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." Two days after receiving this great revelation from which I have quoted, the Lord said this to his church: "Send forth the elders of my church unto the nations which are afar off; unto the islands of the sea; send forth unto foreign lands; call upon all nations. "
And so, as Latter-day Saints everywhere, with personal testimonies of these great events, we accept humbly, gratefully, this major responsibility placed upon the Church. We are happy to be engaged in a partnership with our Heavenly Father in the great work of the salvation and exaltation of his children. Willingly we give of our time and our means with which he may bless us to the establishment of his kingdom in the earth. This we know is our first duty and our great opportunity. This spirit has characterized the missionary work of the church of Jesus Christ in all ages. It has been an outstanding mark of the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness of times-our time. Wherever faithful Latter-day Saints are to be found, this spirit of unselfish sacrifice for the greatest cause in all the earth exists. In a statement published to the world during the last world war, the First Presidency of the Church declared: "No act of ours or of the Church must ever interfere with this God-given mandate."
In a word, we dedicate our all to the work of the Lord-the establishment and growth of his kingdom and the spread of righteousness. This is a major responsibility. President Kimball emphasized this great responsibility in an inspired address to Regional Representatives last Thursday. We accept gratefully the challenge and pray ever for the Lord's sustaining power as we go forward.
This great work is divine-directed by the Lord Jesus Christ through his church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To this I bear humble and grateful testimony in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
With the rising cost of goods and services, inflation marches steadily onward. These increases result in hardships for many but especially upon individuals and families with fixed incomes. There are so many demands on each available dollar that constant adjustments are necessary to make ends meet. One frustrated person remarked: "I just get my affairs to the point where I think that I can make ends meet when something breaks loose in the middle."
Centuries ago the Lord through a prophet gave a formula that gives a solution for these problems, when he said to Malachi: "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."
Frequently we hear the expression "I can't afford to pay tithing." Persons who make such statements have not yet learned that they can't afford not to pay tithing. There are many members who from experience can and do testify that nine-tenths carefully planned, budgeted, and spent wisely, with the blessings of the Lord, will go much farther than ten-tenths spent haphazardly without planning and without the Lord's blessings.
The payment of tithing is a test of our faithfulness and loyalty. President Joseph F. Smith, many years ago, counseled: "By this principle the loyalty of the people of this Church shall be put to the test. By this principle it shall be known who is for the kingdom of God and who is against it."
Often the question is asked, "What is a tithe?" Joseph L. Wirthlin, a former Presiding Bishop of the Church, gave a clear definition when he explained: "The very word itself denotes one-tenth. A tithe is one-tenth of the wage earner's full income. A tithe is one-tenth of the professional man's net income. A tithe is one-tenth of the farmer's net income, and also one-tenth of the produce used by the farmer to sustain his family which is a just and equitable requirement, as others purchase out of their income such food as is needed to provide for their families. A tithe is one-tenth of the dividends derived from investments. A tithe is one-tenth of net insurance income less premiums if tithing has been paid on the premiums."
Several presidents of the Church have explained that the payment of tithing is an individual and a personal matter and that it is a voluntary contribution. Brigham Young in the early days of the Church taught the Saints, saying: "We do not ask anybody to pay tithing unless they are disposed to do so; but if you pretend to pay tithing, pay it like honest men."
Years later President Grant advised the people in these words: "The Lord, you know, does not send collectors around once a month to collect bills; He does not send us our account once a month; we are trusted by the Lord; we are agents; we have our free will. "
There is merit in paying tithing when one receives the income or increase, although farmers and others operating their own businesses usually find it necessary to calculate their increase on an annual basis. Again, President Grant, speaking from years of experience and observation, suggested: "The payment of our tithing in the season thereof-when we get our income-makes it come easy. I find that those who pay tithing every month have very much less difficulty in paying it than those who postpone payment to the end of the year. "
The law of tithing has come from the Lord as a commandment, and when we keep that law and commandment we are entitled to the blessings that are promised, for the Lord has said: "I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."
In the early days of the Church there was a good and faithful woman, Mary Smith, widow of the martyred patriarch Hyrum Smith. She firmly believed in the promises of the Lord. Her son, Joseph F., and her grandson, Joseph Fielding, lived to become presidents of the Church. President Joseph F. Smith related an incident that occurred when he was a 10-year-old boy:
"I recollect most vividly," he said, "a circumstance that occurred in the days of my childhood. My mother was a widow with a large family to provide for. One spring when we opened our potato pits she had her boys get a load of the best potatoes, and she took them to the tithing office; potatoes were scarce that season. I was a little boy at the time, and drove the team. When we drove up to the steps of the tithing office, ready to unload the potatoes, one of the clerks came out and said to my mother, 'Widow Smith, it's a shame that you should have to pay tithing'. he chided my mother for paying her tithing, called her anything but wise or prudent; and said there were others who were strong and able to work that were supported from the tithing office. My mother turned upon him and said: ' you ought to be ashamed of yourself. Would you deny me a blessing? If I did not pay my tithing, I should expect the Lord to withhold His blessings from me. I pay my tithing, not only because it is a law of God, but because I expect a blessing by doing it. By keeping this and other laws, I expect to prosper and to be able to provide for my family.'"
I recall sitting in this historical Tabernacle back on October 1948 when the semi-annual conference of the Church was in session. Elder Matthew Cowley of the Council of the Twelve was speaking. He related an incident that made a deep and lasting impression on me. While serving as president of the New Zealand Mission he visited a good Maori sister who sincerely believed and observed the principle of tithing. Brother Cowley told of this experience in these words:
"Now, on one occasion I called in as I always did when I visited that vicinity, to see this grand little woman, then in her eighties, and blind. She did not live in an organized branch, had no contact with the priesthood except as the missionaries visited there. We had no missionaries in those days. They were away at war.
"I went in and greeted her in the Maori fashion. She was out in the back yard by her little fire. I reached forth my hand to shake hands with her, and I was going to rub noses with her and she said: 'Do not shake hands with me. '
"I said: "Oh, that is clean dirt on your hands. I am willing to shake hands with you. I am glad to. I want to.
"She said: 'Not yet.' Then she got on her hands and knees and crawled over to her little house. At the corner of the house there was a spade. She lifted up that spade and crawled off in another direction, measuring the distance she went. She finally arrived at a spot and started digging down into the soil with that spade. It finally struck something hard. She took out the soil with her hands and lifted out a fruit jar. She opened that fruit jar and reached down in it, took something out and handed it to me, and it turned out to be New Zealand money. In American money it would have been equivalent to one hundred dollars.
"She said: 'There is my tithing. Now I can shake hands with the priesthood of God.'
"I said: 'You do not owe that much tithing.'
"She said: 'I know it. I do not owe it now, but I am paying some in advance, for I do not know when the priesthood of God will get around this way again.'"
Then after a brief pause and with considerable emotion Brother Cowley continued: "And then I leaned over and pressed my nose and forehead against hers, and the tears from my eyes ran down her cheeks. "
My beloved brothers and sisters, the Lord does keep his promises. He truly opens the windows of heaven and pours out his blessings upon those who are faithful and who obey his commandments but it will be done in his own way. These blessings may come in a financial or temporal way or may be realized by a spiritual outpouring, bringing strength, peace, and comfort. His blessings may come in unusual and unexpected ways so that at the time we may not even recognize them as blessings; but the promises of the Lord will be kept.
And to this I testify in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Hartman Rector, Jr.
Of the First Council of the Seventy
We have sustained a new prophet at this conference, which is wonderful and inspiring. It's necessary, for it is a commandment of God, but of course, the work is yet to do. We must follow him.
The response of the Prophet Joseph Smith to the question "What are the fundamental principles of your religion?" contains a succinct statement about the importance of testimony. He said:
"The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it."
Testimony is a sure knowledge of the truth of the gospel received by revelation from the Holy Ghost, as President Romney outlined this morning. As such, it is vital to the soul who would have communion with the Creator. Testimony is vitally important, but men are not saved by virtue of their testimony alone, although it is the beginning of real spiritual progress.
It is a common error to feel that testimony means full conversion. We many times equate testimony with a man's faith. We say, "He has great faith," meaning that he has a strong testimony, or we say, "He has a strong testimony," meaning that he has great faith. However, I don't believe the two are always synonymous. Faith is based on knowledge; it is a hope in that which is not seen which is true. Testimony is revealed knowledge.
Bearing testimony has to do with bearing witness to that which we know to be true. Much of what we call testimony bearing is not really testimony at all-it is a statement or expression of public thanks. It is good to be thankful, but public thanks is not testimony. Testimony comes from the Holy Ghost. The Spirit of Christ, which John testifies is "the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world", will lead a man to Christ and help him get a testimony, and if followed will lead to baptism in Jesus Christ's church.
Many people feel they receive a witness that Jesus is the Christ, and they think this alone saves them. They say they are "saved." Of course, it does not. It didn't save a third of the hosts of heaven. James records, " the devils also believe, and tremble." What do they believe? That Jesus is the Christ; in fact, they know it.
Peter had a testimony that Jesus is the Christ, which he bore, and it surely came from the Lord, for the Master said, " flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven." It is very doubtful that Peter was at that time converted, because he could not admit that he knew the Lord Jesus Christ when he felt his own life was in danger. Later the Master confirmed that Peter lacked conversion when, just before going to his agony and death on the cross, he said to Peter, " when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." Peter's testimony or knowledge that Jesus was the Christ did not "save" him from denying the Master-probably because he was not converted. He did not follow the Lord at the peril of his own life.
When we are converted, we sustain and follow the Lord's anointed servants; we find ourselves in agreement with them. This is one of the real marks of conversion. Many men with testimonies have been unable to do this. In this dispensation, to name a few, Martin Harris, David Whitmer, and Oliver Cowdery and Thomas B. Marsh had this very problem. They refused to sustain the Lord's anointed servant, and it led to their expulsion from his church.
Conversion implies a change; as King Benjamin says, it means putting "off the natural man," which is selfish, conceited, impatient, intemperate, disobedient, and rebellious, so that a person becomes "a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord." This would mean becoming even "as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father."
In order to emphasize this particular point, Jesus said, "Not that saith Lord, Lord, but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
Jesus was committed completely to doing the will of his Father, and he was unequivocal in his counsel to us that we follow him in doing the will of the Father. Those who are truly converted desire to do the will of the Father. How are we to know his will? Surely it can come direct from the Father by revelation, but it seldom does. When he has authorized servants to act for him, generally we get it through his servants-the president of the Church, the General Authorities, the stake president, the bishop, the branch president, or in other words, the Lord's anointed servants. Thus the clear necessity of sustaining the Lord's anointed servants in righteousness. If we are truly converted, we will find ourselves in harmony with them. This is a sign of true conversion; this is doing the will of the Father.
There are few times in the recorded history of the world when God the Father has spoken to man directly. Generally it is the Lord Jesus Christ who speaks. He is Jehovah of the Old Testament. He has authority to speak for his Father. There are, however, some recorded instances where there is no doubt who is speaking-it is the Father. His voice was heard at the baptism of Jesus by John in the River Jordan. It was heard again at the Mount of Transfiguration. It was heard again in 1820 in the grove near Palmyra, New York, by the Prophet Joseph Smith-always either introducing his Son Jesus Christ or bearing testimony of him.
However, there are recorded instances in which the words of the Father are given to us by the prophets. Some of these are in the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon is that book about which the Prophet Joseph Smith bore his testimony: it is "the most correct of any book on earth, and a man get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book."
In the particular passage to which I refer, the prophet Nephi explained why it was necessary for Jesus to be baptized by John to "fulfil all righteousness." He taught that Christ "humbleth himself before the Father, and witnesseth unto the Father that he would be obedient unto him in keeping his commandments.
" Again, it showeth unto the children of men the straightness of the path, and the narrowness of the gate, by which they should enter, he having set the example before them." Then he said, " Follow thou me. "
Nephi asked, " Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep the commandments of the Father?" Nephi then records the doctrine of the Father: " Repent ye, repent ye, and be baptized in the name of my Beloved Son."
"And also, the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do."
Further, Nephi records that the voice of the Son came unto him, saying:
" After ye have repented of your sins, and witnessed unto the Father that ye are willing to keep my commandments, by the baptism of water, and have received the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, and can speak with a new tongue, yea, even with the tongue of angels, and after this should deny me, it would have been better for you that ye had not known me."
Then Nephi records this testimony of the Father concerning the Son:
"And I heard a voice from the Father, saying: Yea, the words of my Beloved are true and faithful. He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved."
Now this is obviously the most important message that God the Father could possibly give to his children: Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ and then endure to the end. This is the will of the Father. This is what he wants for his children. The mark of real conversion is endurance. Only unto him who endures to the end will be brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption.
The statement of the Prophet Joseph Smith concerning the danger of faultfinding or rebelling against the Lord's anointed is very significant:
"I will give you one of the of the mysteries of the kingdom," said the Prophet. "It is an eternal principle, that has existed with God from all eternity: That man who rises up to condemn others, finding fault with the Church, saying that they are out of the way, while he himself is righteous, then know assuredly, that that man is in the high road to apostasy; and if he does not repent will apostatize, as God lives."
Then refusal on our part to sustain or follow the Lord's anointed servants is a form of rebellion, which is open or willful resistance to and defiance of God's authority. This is extremely serious. Rebellion is the opposite of obedience and leads to expulsion from the kingdom. This is what happened to Lucifer. He refused to sustain the Lord in that he would not follow and do the things which he had seen the Father do before him.
When we fail to do what we know we should, having the light before us but refusing to obey, notwithstanding the covenants made in the waters of baptism, we become rebels. Some even seem to delight in their rebellion. They brag about it; if they only knew that the Lord's anger is kindled against all the rebellious, and they shall be pierced with much sorrow and they shall fail.
In this earth-life probation those who are converted will succeed. The kingdom isn't going to fail. It is the stone which the prophet Daniel saw was cut out of the mountain without hands, and it rolled forth down the mountain side, gaining momentum as it went. It broke down all other kingdoms; it filled the whole earth and stood forever.
The kingdom of God is a winner. Isn't it great to be part of a winner? Don't you love a winner? I do. I confess I hate to lose. I think I'm the worst loser in all the world. I don't believe in it. Some say it matters not whether you win or lose but how you play the game. Don't you believe it; it makes a lot of difference whether you win or not. We came to this earth to win, and we will win if we stick with the Lord, because the Lord is not going to lose. He can't lose. The kingdom is a winner, and when we do it his way, we will win with him. The promise is sure: " He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved."
Testimony won't save us, but testimony coupled with faith and conversion, which includes, staying power, which is endurance, will exalt us.
Listen to the words of the Master:
"Wherefore, as ye are agents, ye are on the Lord's errand; and whatsoever ye do according to the will of the Lord is the Lord's business.
"Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.
"Behold, the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and obedient shall eat the good of the land of Zion in these last days.
"And the rebellious shall be cut off out of the land of Zion and shall be sent away, and shall not inherit the land.
"For, verily I say that the rebellious are not of the blood of Ephraim, wherefore they shall be plucked out.
"Behold, I, the Lord, have made my church in these last days like unto a judge sitting on a hill, or in a high place, to judge the nations.
"For it shall come to pass that the inhabitants of Zion shall judge all things pertaining to Zion.
"And liars and hypocrites shall be proved by them, and they who are not apostles and prophets shall be known.
"And even the bishop, who is a judge, and his counselors, if they are not faithful in their stewardships shall be condemned, and others shall be planted in their stead.
"For, behold, I say unto you that Zion shall flourish, and the glory of the Lord shall be upon her;
"And she shall be an ensign unto the people, and there shall come unto her out of every nation under heaven.
"And the day shall come when the nations of the earth shall tremble because of her, and shall fear because of her terrible ones. The Lord hath spoken it. Amen.
Does that sound like a loser to you? I tell you it doesn't. And those who are converted, who can follow the Lord and his anointed servants, these are they who will bring to pass the purposes of God. Before you can be a great leader in the kingdom of God, you must first be a great follower. Obedience is still better than sacrifice and to hearken than the fat of rams.
May the Lord bless us to hold fast and remain faithful as we follow the Lord's anointed servants, and may we feel good about it. I pray that we will, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Brothers and sisters, my verbal moment is not for sermons but for appreciation, not for doctrine but for testimony.
Appreciation for the Lord's call through President Kimball.
Appreciation for your sustaining vote which was not vindication but an invitation-an invitation for me to be and to do better.
Appreciation for humble parents who both told and showed me that the gospel and Church are true.
Appreciation for a splendid woman, Colleen, a wife for all seasons, who has made our home a haven.
Appreciation for a missionary son in Germany and three daughters and a son-in-law in whose behalf, as a father, I deeply wish to succeed and whose vote to sustain me must count double in the days that lie ahead.
Appreciation to President Kimball for his example not only as a bold prophet but for his and Sister Kimball's tireless practicing of "pure religion, undefiled." The President's greatness is the kind which is not conscious of itself. He truly desires not our adulation but our affirmation by how we live.
Appreciation for the tender tutoring of President Harold B. Lee.
Appreciation for Presidents Tanner and Romney and Benson and the Twelve, whom I hope to assist, and each of whose lives reflects divine design that prepared them for their appointed place, for God is never surprised.
Appreciation to all the General Authorities who travel so tirelessly to teach us all, leaving their families without complaint. This reality was summarized well by the wit that was also wisdom of Richard L. Evans; who, one day on the way to another plane and another weekend of conferences, said gently, "Have you ever gotten homesick on the way to the airport?"
Appreciation to the members of the Church who have helped me in the Tremonton, Ogden, and Reno regions, and to my sweet colleagues, the Regional Representatives of the Twelve, especially those whom the Lord has raised up in other nations of the world.
Appreciation to the devoted colleagues and students in the Church Educational System in 50 countries who number one-third million.
Endless appreciation to Jesus Christ for his atonement, realizing that included in the awful arithmetic of that atonement are my sins, and for the eloquence of his example, and for the witness he has given me which I have happily borne in about 35 countries, for when one sees life and people through the lens of His gospel, then one can see forever.
Endless appreciation to my Father in heaven whose blessings depend upon our obedience, but whose ratio of blessings to obedience makes him a generous God!
I know the celestial criteria measure service, not status; the use of our talents, not the relative size of our talent inventories. I know that Church membership is not passive security but continuing opportunity.
Finally I testify that what a wise man wrote is true: "If you have not chosen the kingdom of God first, it will in the end make no difference what you have chosen instead." Having so chosen, may God bless us all to move the kingdom along, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
The Lord said, " Hearken, O ye nations of the earth, and hear the words of that God who made you." Godliness in man goes undeveloped without the words of God and his program.
The Lord has commanded and warned man to obey and hearken unto his voice or to be subject to the power and dominion of the devil. The Lord said: "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;
That is a warning to all mankind. It is very important to know that Satan has power to deceive men and to blind men and to lead men captive at his will, even as many as will not hearken unto the voice of the Lord. Sin and evil come from Satan, and godliness and eternal life in the kingdom of God are from the Lord.
"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."
The apostle John said, "He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. "
Satan with his evil, deceitful, destructive plans was able to turn one-third of the spirits in heaven away from the voice of God and to influence them to follow his satanic voice. The Lord said of Satan: " a third part of the hosts of heaven turned he away from me because of their agency;
"And they were thrust down, and thus came the devil and his angels."
They were cast out of the kingdom of God because they had free agency to choose for themselves, and they chose to ignore and disrespect the voice of God and listened and followed the voice of the devil.
Satan and his angels and their God-destroying plan are on earth today, and the Lord said of Satan, " he goeth up and down, to and fro in the earth, seeking to destroy the souls of men."
The devil tempted Adam and Eve. We are well acquainted with that story. They listened to his deceitful voice, and they were cast out of the Garden of Eden. Because of failure to hearken unto the voice of God, they were subject to the influence of the devil and were cast out.
When the Lord restored his church, he warned man about the power of Satan. This came in the latter days. He said: " the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion.
"And also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon the world."
President Harold B. Lee said, "Today you are witnessing the fulfillment. Today is the day when the devil has power over his own dominion." That is a prophetic statement from a prophet of God. He also said, " is the master of deceit, adulteration and counterfeit. There is hardly a human appetite that he has not prostituted to his own evil designs; virtue he betrays into vice; and things invented and designed as benefactors to mankind he diverts to his own ends. No palace of art or temple of music was ever more glamorously decorated," the prophet continued, "than the hell-holes of Satan that are labeled saloons, bars, road houses and gambling clubs. With blazing neon signs and lighted 'white ways' the cheap and the tawdry are dressed in tinseled garb, and with sensuous music from the nether regions issuing forth from such places, the passersby are enticed to partake."
Yes, it is true; the devil continues to deceive and to blind men. It is true; the devil continues to use the children of God to degenerate and destroy their own godliness. He entices them to sell their divine birthright for a pot of porridge. He deceives and lures men to improperly use their passions and appetites to degenerate and weaken their godlike minds. Their minds, then, become subject to the uncontrolled, improper use of the passions and appetites.
Jesus showed us the way to overpower and defeat the devil. He is the example. This has been repeated in this conference twice before. It bears a lot of repetition. An account of the Lord's encounter and the temptations with Satan is recorded in the holy scriptures:
"And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
"Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered.
"And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.
"And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written,"-here is the message; it is the written word of the Lord-"That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God."
The devil was rebuked and overpowered by the word of God, as recorded in his holy scriptures.
"And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.
"And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it.
"If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine," the devil promised. Many have that same temptation today. Hear the answer of the Lord:
"And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." He quoted again from the word of God.
"And brought him to Jerusalem and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence." And the devil contorted and twisted the scriptures.
"For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee:
"And in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
"And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said," and he quoted the scriptures again, "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God."
Satan was rebuked and defeated by Jesus because Jesus knew and used the word of God-the commandments of God as recorded in his holy scriptures. Jesus hearkened unto the voice of the Lord.
We can also overcome the buffetings and temptations of Satan with the word of God.
The devil deceitfully and dishonestly continues to offer man the world and the power of the world if man will but fall down and worship him. The devil wants us to love the world more than we love God. He wants us to be so foolish that we will love the creations of this earth more than the Creator.
The apostle John said, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him."
Jesus said, "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" The devil would like man to accept the ways of the world in place of eternal life in the kingdom of God.
Jesus commanded that we protect ourselves from the power and dominion of the devil. He said, "Wherefore, lift up your hearts and rejoice, and gird up your loins, and take upon you my whole armor. " This has been quoted in this conference several times. But Jesus gave these words in these latter days, repeating words of the scriptures.
Take on the whole armor of God. The full armor of God is the full gospel of Jesus Christ. If we put on the full armor we will be able, in these troubled times, to "run and not be weary, and walk and not faint." And the destroying angel will pass us by and not be able to destroy our godliness.
Jesus counseled, "Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work."
In our individual prayers we should sincerely ask our Father in heaven to help us meet and conquer the temptations of this life, and ask him to deliver us from evil. We have been commanded to ask.
Proper sincere prayer to a living Father in heaven, through a living Savior and Mediator, is essential for protection from the power and evil influence of the devil. It is very important for the Saints to know that during today's perilous times when peace has been taken from the earth, and Satan has power over his own dominion and over all that will not hearken unto the voice of God, that the Lord gave these comforting words, " The Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon the world."
Today the Lord has power over his Saints and is reigning in their midst and will soon come down in judgment upon the world. Through and by Jesus Christ man has the power and the opportunity if he keeps God's commandments to become saintly and godlike.
I am thankful to be on earth when the Lord has power over his Saints and is reigning in their midst. The voice of the Lord is recorded in his scriptures and the voice of his prophets and his apostles. His prophets and apostles give the voice of the Lord today.
It is a glorifying experience to mingle with the Saints. President Kimball is truly a prophet of God. He speaks for the Lord and all should hearken to his voice. He is full of dedicated love for the Lord and for his children. And he knows the refining power of repentance and the miracle of forgiveness. He is not only sustained by the Saints, but also by the priesthood and power of God.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
Brothers and sisters, I am very grateful to my Heavenly Father for the opportunity of attending this history-making conference with you and for the wonderful outpouring of the Spirit of the Lord. I think of the words of Nephi of old. He saw our day; he saw the coming forth of the Book of Mormon; he saw the Saints of God gathered upon the face of the whole earth and the power of God resting upon them in great glory.
Is there anything else like this in all the world as we have gathered here in this building, full to overflowing, and the adjoining buildings? And our priesthood meeting last night was broadcast all over the world. The power of God is in this work; it is his kingdom established in the earth for the last time, never to be thrown down nor given to another people. We have his decree that it shall roll forth until it shall become as a great mountain and fill the whole earth.
I thank the Lord for the testimonies of these, my associates, to whom we have listened, and I am sure that each one of us who is living in tune with the Spirit has received a witness in our soul to the effect that they are true servants of our Father in heaven.
Brother Benson referred to a statement made by President Kimball in our meeting with the Regional Representatives of the Twelve last Thursday. I thought President Kimball did a magnificent job in reminding us of the commandments of the Lord through His servants, and the responsibility that is ours to share this gospel with every nation under heaven. Sometimes I think we get a little too satisfied with our own membership and our own surroundings, and we are not as eager to share with others as we ought to be.
Then we have had presented to us in this conference the ministry of the Master. I particularly enjoyed Elder Hunter's narration of His life and labors, and then Elder Ashton followed, reminding us of the parable of the five wise and five foolish virgins, and called attention to the fact that we should not be among the foolish ones but that we should be prepared when the Master comes to meet him.
Then I had this thought that I would like to say a few words to you about today, and that is that I am a great believer in the prophecies. I thank the Lord for the holy scriptures. What would we know about our Father in heaven and his great plan for us, his children here upon this earth, and what awaits us after we have finished our life's work here in mortality if we didn't have the scriptures?
Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." We have had testimony here in this conference of how they did testify of him, even to the minutest detail of casting lots for his clothing at the time of his crucifixion.
Following his resurrection, as he walked along the way by two of his disciples as they were on their way to Emmaus, we are told that "their eyes were holden that they should not know him", and when he heard what they had to say about him and his ministry and his resurrection, he realized that they didn't understand what he had been trying to teach them.
And he said: " O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken." Then, commencing with Moses and the prophets, he showed them how that in all things the prophets had testified of him. Then Peter tells us that he opened their understandings that they might understand the scriptures. We have thousands of different churches in the world today because they do not understand the scriptures and they are teaching for doctrine the precepts of men, and therefore it was necessary for a restoration to take place.
I like the words of the apostle Peter. He said:
"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
That being true, we have a more sure word of prophecy that makes the Bible to me like a blueprint where the Lord has outlined everything from the war in heaven up till the final winding-up scenes when we will have a new heaven and a new earth. I think that is what Isaiah meant when he said that the Lord has declared the end from the beginning.
Peter must have also had in his mind the glorious experience that he had just previously had with the other apostles when the Savior ascended into heaven and two men in white apparel stood and said: " Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven."
Then I have this thought that I would like to say a few words about, and that is, not only should we prepare our own lives to be ready when the Savior comes, like the five wise virgins, but think of what the prophets have foretold that should precede his second coming, so that we will not be in the dark and so that we can understand.
I give you the words of Peter following the day of Pentecost when he spoke to those who had put to death the Christ. He said:
"Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
"And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
"Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
I don't know where you can go anywhere in this world, outside of this Church, and find a declaration of a restitution of all things and not just a reformation. Until there is that restitution of all things spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets, we just can't believe that Peter was a prophet of God and look for the coming of the Savior. It makes one wonder why the world doesn't understand and why they are not willing to listen when we declare a restitution of all things.
I like the statement in Malachi. It seems to me that Malachi's whole book was written almost entirely regarding our day and time: about the law of tithing that Elder Taylor just mentioned; about the coming of Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers. In the third chapter, he starts out by saying,
"Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple.
"But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap."
Now I don't think that was referring to his first coming. He didn't come swiftly to his temple, and all men were able to abide the day of his first coming; and he didn't come cleansing and purifying as refiner's fire and fullers' soap, but we are told that when he comes in the latter days that the wicked shall cry out to the mountains, and rocks "fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb."
Then I say to you, and to all the world, where is that messenger that the Lord, speaking through Malachi, said he would send to prepare the way for his coming? To us Latter-day Saints, we know that messenger was none other than the Prophet Joseph Smith. He didn't choose himself. He went out into the woods after reading the words of James, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." He didn't know which church to join, and when he prayed, the heavens were opened unto him.
President Kimball has outlined in one of his talks in this conference how the Lord communed with the prophets of old. God isn't dead. He reigns in the heavens above and in the earth beneath. This is his work and his glory. This is the dispensation when, as Paul said, " he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth. " In other words, it is the time when he shall finish his work upon this earth preparatory to his second coming. And so if he was to send a messenger to prepare the way for his coming, where in all the world can you find that messenger?
I remind you that messengers sent of God are never self-sent. Paul said: " faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
" and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
"And how shall they preach, except they be sent? "
And so the call of Joseph Smith as the Lord's promised messenger was the natural first step the Lord would take to prepare the way for his second coming. A messenger called by God can be none other than a prophet. That is what Amos said: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." And so when he called this messenger, he would be a prophet.
We often sing the hymn:
-LDS Hymns, no. 147.
That is how we feel toward that prophet because he wasn't sent of himself.
As far as my experience goes in studying the scriptures, Joseph Smith has given us more revealed truth than any prophet who has ever lived upon the face of this earth except the Savior of the world. I thank the Lord for this marvelous truth. This helps us to understand the words of Isaiah when he said:
"Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men." And where do you find those precepts of men? In all these thousands of churches all over this world.
"Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder. " And anything that is marvelous and wonderful in the eyes of the Lord must be something that every lover of truth would like to know about and like to clasp to his bosom. Then he added that it would cause that "the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid." That is what we have. I have talked to ministers for hours and only received one question from them, because I was explaining things to them out of God's holy book, the Bible, that they had never understood before in their lives. I tell you, brothers and sisters, we have that marvelous work and a wonder!
You would think that if the Lord raised up a prophet and a messenger to prepare the way for his coming, the first thing he would want that messenger to do would be to correct the false impressions in the world with regard to the personality of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ. For at that time all churches taught that they were three in one, without body, without parts, and without passions.
Moses knew that such a condition would prevail, for when he led the children of Israel into the promised land, he told them that "there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell." Just think how literally the very words of Moses spoken over 3,000 years ago are fulfilled in the doctrine that was proclaimed in all the Christian churches all over this world at the time that Joseph Smith had his marvelous vision. But Moses didn't leave it at that. He said:
"But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
"When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice." And we live in the latter days. Thank God we have found him through the raising up of this prophet.
When the Father and his Son Jesus Christ revealed themselves unto him so that he understood what the Godhead really was, the next question that Joseph had was to know which of all the churches he should join. And who in the heavens above and on the earth beneath had a better right to pronounce judgment upon the churches of the world than the Savior of the world? He answered him that he should join none of them for they all taught for doctrine the precepts of men.
There isn't going to be time to outline very much more, but just think of Moroni's coming, think of the plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated. Where in all the world does anybody know about that other record that the Lord commanded Ezekiel should be written, that the Lord would bring forth and put with the record of Judah and make them one in his hand? We are the only people in the world that know where that record is. Just think what it contains of the knowledge that the Lord preserved for the convincing of the Jew and the gentile that Jesus is the Christ. The Jew today doesn't need to search any further than the Book of Mormon because that book gives the signs of his birth and of his crucifixion, and then of his visit to this land of America, and then the vision given to Nephi when he saw Mary with child, and saw that child grow to manhood, and saw him crucified for the sins of the world. All we need to do is to look to the blueprint that the Lord has prepared through his prophets.
Then if you take the next step-the coming of John the Baptist with the Aaronic Priesthood, the power to baptize by immersion for the remission of sins-there wasn't anybody in this world holding that power when John the Baptist restored it to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery and taught them how to baptize each other. Then Peter, James, and John brought the Melchizedek Priesthood, the power of the holy apostleship, the power to organize the church and kingdom of God on the earth for the last time, never to be thrown down nor given to another people. Then the coming of Moses that caused the gathering of Latter-day Israel.
I like the statement of Jeremiah. He said:
"Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:
"And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." Where could you go in all the world and listen to pastors after His own heart like you have heard here in this conference? They are called of God and ordained by God. They are the pastors that he spoke of.
Through Jeremiah the Lord said:
"Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks." That is what we have been doing. He saw the day when "it shall no more be said, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
"But, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them ", and, as he said, " one of a city, and two of a family. " That accounts for many of you being at this great conference that is being held here today.
God bless you, brothers and sisters. I don't know why we should hesitate to raise our voices in testimony. To me it is the marvelous work and a wonder spoken of, it is the greatest movement in all this world. When everything else passes away like the dream of a night's vision, this church, this kingdom, will go on to its decreed destiny, and that is my witness and testimony to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
Now, beloved brethren and sisters, we come to the close of this glorious conference. We have heard from most of the Brethren. Their sermons and testimonies have been deep-rooted and sincere and stimulating. They have been inspired and have spoken to you the word of the Lord.
As you return to your homes and your businesses and your professions and your spiritual jurisdictions, we hope that you have stored up much that will be of value to you and your families. The ways of doing the work are important indeed, but the purpose for doing it is of the greatest consequence.
We have a commitment to serve our Lord. We have an assurance that the cause is just and worthy. But, above all, we have a knowledge that God lives and is in his heavens and that his Son Jesus Christ has laid out a plan for us which will bring us and our loved ones eternal life if we are faithful. That life will be a busy, purposeful life with accomplishments and joys and development.
If you can think of the greatest real joys that have ever come to you in this life, then think of the next life as a projection of this one with all the purposeful things multiplied, enlarged, and even more desirable. All in these associations of our lives here have brought to you development and joy and growth and happiness. Now when life ends, we shall return to a situation patterned after our life here, only less limited, more glorious, more increased joys.
"Anyone can build an altar," said John Henry Jowett; "it requires a God to produce the flame. Anyone can build a house; we need the Lord for the creation of a home."
In this conference you have heard much about this basic program of the Church, to make the homes really function, to bring inspiration and revelation to their families. Those who make their conclusions entirely according to their own ingenuity, their own brains, could make some very terrible and costly mistakes.
Someone said, "Many people are willing to plod along for 16 to 20 years, from grade one to a Ph.D., to learn medicine or engineering or psychology or mathematics or sociology or biology-to study, research, attend classes, pay tuitions, accept help from teachers and professors-and yet to learn about God, the maker of all, the author of it all, in a few intermittent prayers and some very limited hours of research, they feel they can find the truths about God."
That's why the Lord strictly sent us to the scriptures and prayer. "Search the scriptures," he said; "for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." And then he said, " O, fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?"
Paul, in his impressive way as he spoke to the Corinthians, said, "And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
"For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
"And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
"And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
"That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
"Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought.
"For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God."
"Now," he says, "we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
"But there is a spirit in man": said Job, "and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding."
"Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God."
At one time two men sat in a railway car discussing Christ's wonderful life. One of them said, "I think an interesting romance could be written about him."
And the other replied, "And you are just the man to write it. Set forth the correct view of his life and character. Tear down the prevailing sentiment as to his divineness and paint him as he was-a man among men."
The suggestion was acted on and the romance was written. The man who made the suggestion was Colonel Ingersoll, the author was General Lew Wallace, and the book was Ben Hur.
In the process of constructing it, he found himself facing an unaccountable man. The more he studied his life and character, the more profoundly he was convinced that he was more than a man among men, until at length, like the centurion under the cross, he was constrained to cry, "Verily this was the Son of God."
The Lord has revealed to men by dreams something more than I ever understood or felt before. I heard this more than once in quorum meetings of the Council of the Twelve when George F. Richards was president. He was the venerable father of Brother LeGrand Richards who has just spoken to us. He said, "I believe in dreams, brethren. The Lord has given me dreams which to me are just as real and as much from God as was the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar, which was the means of saving a nation from starvation, or the dream of Lehi who through a dream led his colony out of the old country across the mighty deep to this promised land, or any other dreams that we might read in the scriptures.
"It is not out of place for us to have important dreams," he said. "And then more than 40 years ago I had a dream which I am sure was from the Lord. In this dream I was in the presence of my Savior as he stood mid-air. He spoke no word to me, but my love for him was such that I have not words to explain. I know that no mortal man can love the Lord as I experienced that love for the Savior unless God reveals it to him. I would have remained in his presence, but there was a power drawing me away from him.
"As a result of that dream, I had this feeling that no matter what might be required of my hands, what the gospel might entail unto me, I would do what I should be asked to do even to the laying down of my life.
"And so when we read in the scriptures what the Savior said to his disciples, 'In my Father's house are many mansions: I go to prepare a place for you that where I am, there ye may be also.' I think that is where I want to be.
"If only I can be with my Savior and have that same sense of love that I had in that dream, it will be the goal of my existence, the desire of my life."
Elder George Q. Cannon, who was in the presidency of the Church at one time, said this: "I know that God lives. I know that Jesus lives; for I have seen Him. I know that this is the Church of God, and that it is founded on Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. I testify to you of these things as one who knows-as one of the Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ that can bear witness to you today in the presence of the Lord that He lives and that He will live, and will come to reign on the earth, to sway an undisputed sceptre."
Brethren and sisters, we come now to the close of this great conference. You have heard from most of the Brethren, as I have said, and their testimonies have been inspiring. What they have told you is true. It has come from their hearts. They have this same testimony, and they know it is true. They are true servants sent to you from our Heavenly Father. I pray that you will be listening, that you will be remembering, that you will take these many truths with you to your homes and in your lives and to your families.
Brethren and sisters, I want to add to these testimonies of these prophets my testimony that I know that He lives. And I know that we may see him, and that we may be with him, and that we may enjoy his presence always if we will live the commandments of the Lord and do the things which we have been commanded by him to do and reminded by the Brethren to do.
And so I leave this testimony with you. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
My brothers and sisters and friends, how happy we are to see you here at this conference, the leaders and the members. We hope that you will be inspired by proceedings of this conference.
In press conferences which we attend, we are frequently asked: "Well, what is the condition of the Church?" We answer, "The Church is well and growing and is strong and healthy. Thank you."
As we approach the conference, we have 661 stakes. There were but 148 when I came to the headquarters of the Church in 1943. There were no stakes abroad, and we were to wait for many years before the Church began to cross the oceans and the great land masses. Already, since President Romney organized the Auckland, New Zealand, Stake in May 1958-there are 86 stakes overseas. We now have 112 missions, plus the 661 stake missions, and we now have approximately 18,000 missionaries, whereas in 1943 there was a very small group, relatively. We are happy with the growth, which is consistent and continues to be stable.
And when we are asked why we are such a happy people, our answer is: "Because we have everything-life with all its opportunities, death without fear, eternal life with endless growth and development."
With 3.3 million members of many races and numerous lands in the north, the south, east, and west, we will soon close another year of development and growth.
The people are attending their meetings and looking after their personal responsibilities. The temples are increasing in numbers, and the work at the temples indicates great spirituality. The educational program is pleasing, with the university and the colleges, the institutes and seminaries, and the ecclesiastical organizations of the Church all teaching. And knowledge is expanding and testimonies are deepening.
The construction program continues to expand throughout the land so that whereas many church buildings throughout the world are turned into bars or are boarded up and abandoned, we are building almost daily new chapels throughout the world, and they are filled with happy, faithful people.
We are not satisfied or boastful, but keep in mind constantly what the Savior has said to us:
"If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
We must remember the Lord's great prayer:
"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
"They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
"Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth."
Now, brothers and sisters, we have launched a cleanup campaign. We are a throw-away people. Trash piles grow faster than population by far. Now we ask you to clean up your homes and your farms. "Man is the keeper of the land, and not its possessor."
Broken fences should be mended or removed. Unused barns should be repaired, roofed, painted, or removed. Sheds and corrals should be repaired and painted, or removed. Weedy ditch banks should be cleared. Abandoned homes could probably be razed. We look forward to the day when, in all of our communities, urban and rural, there would be a universal, continued movement to clean and repair and paint barns and sheds, build sidewalks, clean ditch banks, and make our properties a thing of beauty to behold.
We have asked leaders of youth groups, auxiliary organizations, and priesthood quorums to give power to this concentrated action for beautification.
The Lord said:
"The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof."
"And I the Lord God, took the man, and put him into the Garden of Eden, to dress it, and to keep it."
Therefore, we urge each of you to dress and keep in a beautiful state the property that is in your hands.
Again we are approaching an election. This is most important to us. We urge you to study the platforms and acquaint yourself with the candidates. Then pray to the Lord for guidance, and go to the polls and vote.
We warn you against the so-called polygamy cults which would lead you astray. Remember the Lord brought an end to this program many decades ago through a prophet who proclaimed the revelation to the world. People are abroad who will deceive you and bring you much sorrow and remorse. Have nothing to do with those who would lead you astray. It is wrong and sinful to ignore the Lord when he speaks. He has spoken-strongly and conclusively.
We urge you to teach your children honor and integrity and honesty. Is it possible that some of our children do not know how sinful it is to steal? It is unbelievable-the extent of vandalism, thievery, robbery, stealing. Protect your family against it by proper teaching.
Brothers and sisters, we teach all of our people to be loyal. "We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law." Be loyal and true.
Perhaps one of the most distinguishing features of the Church is the fact that its people abstain from liquor, tea, coffee, and tobacco. Of course, there are some who apparently have not the courage nor the testimony to follow this program, but numerous thousands observe it strictly.
One of the many revelations of God through a living prophet was the 89th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, giving what is known as the Word of Wisdom. For 141 years now we have been practicing this great truth embodied in that revelation that we would abstain from wine and strong drinks, that tea and coffee are not for the body, and that we should not use tobacco in any form, that it is good only for bruises and all sick cattle.
We noted recently of a community in Minnesota which set up a "D-Day" in which, through all their agencies, they persuaded people to give up smoking. In their January 7 "D-Day," they reported 271 smokers who gave up that habit. We commend such an awake community and its leaders.
Now after all these years, we find that many of the medical profession and others agree that numerous diseases are the result of the use of these things. I remember standing by a hospital bed of a good friend of mine, and I watched him die of cancer. His physicians said it was caused by the use of tobacco. I have helped bury people who have been killed by the demon alcohol, and many other innocent people died because someone was driving who had been drinking.
The use of liquor has brought much sorrow, pain, suffering, death to innocent bystanders. Some social drinkers claim they will never become alcoholic, but how sure can they be?
Those who break the Word of Wisdom have strange and spurious excuses for the using of these obnoxious things. How can anyone ignore the revelations given through a living prophet? The Lord reiterated it through another prophet and made it a definite commandment.
We deplore the practice of many business and professional firms and others who serve liquor as a part of the entertainment in their special parties. We are especially concerned that at Christmas time many celebrate this holy birth of Jesus Christ our Lord with a so-called social hour which surely must be an affront to him. Is it not a sad reflection upon people to have to drink to have a good time, or to take a stimulant to give them energy or self-assurance?
We hope our people will eliminate from their lives all kinds of drugs so far as possible. Too many depend upon drugs as tranquilizers and sleep helps, which is not always necessary.
Certainly numerous young people have been damaged or destroyed by the use of marijuana and other deadly drugs. We deplore such.
We call attention also to the habit in which many buy their commodities on the Sabbath. Many employed people would be released for rest and worship on the Sabbath if we did not shop on that day. Numerous excuses and rationalizations are presented to justify the Sunday buying. We call upon all of you to keep the Sabbath holy and make no Sunday purchases.
We hope faithful Latter-day Saints will not use the playing cards which are used for gambling, either with or without the gambling. As for the gambling, in connection with horse racing or games or sports, we firmly discourage such things.
In the welfare meeting tomorrow morning much will be said regarding that program. We regret that there are so many people who are shifting the responsibilities of parents to institutions.
Some have become casual about keeping up their year's supply of commodities. We hope that there may be sufficient funds and commodities in the Church program to take care of the people for their emergency necessities, and we urge the people to do something constructive by way of reciprocating for that which they receive. We urge our bishops to be wise in their providing help, neither stingy nor overgenerous, and that the people who need the temporary assistance will be honest and fair and wise.
Should evil times come, many might wish they had filled all their fruit bottles and cultivated a garden in their backyards and planted a few fruit trees and berry bushes and provided for their own commodity needs.
The Lord planned that we would be independent of every creature, but we note even many farmers buy their milk from dairies and home owners buy their garden vegetables from the store. And should the trucks fail to fill the shelves of the stores, many would go hungry.
We believe in work. We remember the fourth of the Ten Commandments says, "Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work", and we are not sure that the rapidly decreasing work week is beneficial to mankind. We think the Lord knew what he was talking about. It would seem that we are play-conscious, travel-conscious, and our economy seems to be providing for the traveling public and the gaming public and the drinking public.
We are also concerned with the great waste from our homes and stores and restaurants and otherwise. After the usual banquet, enough is carried out in the garbage to feed numerous mouths that have been drooling for a bite to eat in less-favored countries. Many are starving, and we throw away much and waste much.
We have always encouraged the members to own their own homes. We seem to see a different brand of stability among those who own their homes. Analysts claim that hard times could come again. And we wonder what our people will do who have been spending their all and more. If employment and income should reduce, what then? Are you living beyond your means? Do you owe what you cannot pay if times became perilous? Are your shock absorbers in condition to take a shock?
Food costs are high, we know, but how much better off you are than if your employment were to terminate or incomes be greatly reduced.
When we go to places of entertainment and mingle among people, we are shocked at the blasphemy that seems to be acceptable among them. The commandment says, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain." Except in prayers and proper sermons, we must not use the name of the Lord. Blasphemy used to be a crime punishable by heavy fines. Profanity is the effort of a feeble brain to express itself forcibly.
We hope that our parents and leaders will not tolerate pornography. It is really garbage, but today is peddled as normal and satisfactory food. Many writers seem to take delight in polluting the atmosphere with it. Seemingly, it cannot be stopped by legislation. There is a link between pornography and the low, sexual drives and perversions. We live in a culture which venerates the orgasm, streaking, trading wives, and similar crazes. How low can humans plunge! We pray with our Lord that we may be kept from being in the world. It is sad that decent people are thrown into a filthy area of mental and spiritual pollution. We call upon all of our people to do all in their power to offset this ugly revolution.
It is ridiculous to imply that pornography has no effect. There is a definite relationship to crime. Murder, robbery, rape, prostitution, and commercialized vice are fed on this immorality. Sex statistics seem to reflect a relationship between crime and pornography.
It is utterly without redeeming social value. We urge our families to protect their children in every way possible. We live in a permissive world, but we must make certain we do not become a part of that permissive world, that degenerate world. We are shocked at the depths to which many people of this world go to assert their freedom. We fear that the trends of permissiveness toward immorality are destroying the moral fabric of our generation.
Governor Reagan of California stated: "In our humanitarian society we have safeguarded the rights of the accused. Nothing horrifies us so much as the possibility of punishing the nonguilty. But now we have carried this to an excessive concern for the guilty. We do not call him a criminal. He is a patient. He may be ill, but a failure of society; and since society cannot be tried for its crime, why should he take the blame?"
We seem to shrink away from punishing of criminals or the disciplining even of children. Crime in the United States is said to be increasing nearly nine times as fast as the population. One-third of our firstborn children in the United States in two tabulated years were said to be conceived out of wedlock. In one year there were an estimated 400,000 illegitimate births in the United States; and many other countries have like records. About half of the female dropouts from high school were pregnant. The ugly estimates continue: More than a million American women each year resort to illegitimate abortions. This is one of the most despicable of all sins-to destroy an unborn child to save one from embarrassment or to save one's face or comfort. An estimated 8,000 women die every year from such consequences. It is reported that suicide is said to be the number one cause of death among the U.S. college students.
One popular writer said: "Jesus Christ is not making a universal appeal today because of His moral austerity. Right down the line Christ gives offense by His moral austerity." He rebukes our acquisitive society. He rebukes our comfort-loving, take-it-easy philosophy. He rebukes our moral laxity. He rebukes our reliance on force and our rejection of love and of the royal way of life. Ours is a comfort-loving society. We equate comfort with civilization. Thanks to our Heavenly Father and his Son that the program is austere.
Paul identified it:
"Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
"They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate."
The home is the teaching situation. Every father should talk to his son, every mother to her daughter. Then it would leave them totally without excuse should they ignore the counsel they have received.
The number of parents who go astray astounds us. The numbers of divorces that were the result, in whole or part, of the infidelity bring us back to our basic theme as quoted in the Doctrine and Covenants:
"Thou shalt not commit adultery, nor do anything like unto it."
We say to all: Stay clean in mind and body, and let nothing lead you into the bypaths which will bring ruin and great distress to you. As the Lord said:
"Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
"But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."
Now the lust of the heart and the lust of the eyes and the lust of the body bring us to the major sin. Let every man remain at home with his affections. Let every woman sustain her husband and keep her heart where it belongs-at home with her family. Let every youth keep himself from the compromising approaches and then with great control save himself from the degrading and life-damaging experience of sexual impurity. There must be an early and total and continuing repentance.
Every form of homosexuality is sin. Pornography is one of the approaches to that transgression. There is no halfway.
Some people are ignorant or vicious and apparently attempting to destroy the concept of masculinity and femininity. More and more girls dress, groom, and act like men. More and more men dress, groom, and act like women. The high purposes of life are damaged and destroyed by the growing unisex theory. God made man in his own image, male and female made he them. With relatively few accidents of nature, we are born male or female. The Lord knew best. Certainly, men and women who would change their sex status will answer to their Maker.
We hope this is another trumpet call. President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., said: "Our very civilization itself is based upon chastity, the sanctity of marriage, and the holiness of the home. Destroy these and Christian man becomes a brute."
Beloved brothers and sisters, you are facing a trial of your faith. Will you listen to your leaders?
Not all sins of this permissive world are with the youth. I was shocked recently when I read a movie magazine. The man spoke of marriage as a legalistic, paper-signing institution, and said: "It should be abolished. Without the social pressures in the state, it could be utopia." He asked the woman. She said: "Marriage should be done away with. I already know people who are living quietly together without marriage, but I haven't yet seen the effect of this on children as they grow up in such a society."
These are not the only ones who are advocating living together without marriage. We call this to the attention of our people with all the strength we possess.
We say again: We members of the Church marry. All normal people should marry. All normal married couples should become parents. We remember the scripture which says:
"Whoso forbiddeth to marry is not ordained of God, for marriage is ordained of God unto man.
"Wherefore, it is lawful that he should have one wife, and they twain shall be one flesh, and all this that the earth might answer the end of its creation."
The earth cannot justify nor continue its life without marriage and the family. Sex without marriage, for all people, young or older, is an abomination to the Lord, and it is most unfortunate that many people have blinded their eyes to these great truths.
We have discoursed many times about these worldly and pernicious things. May we quickly and firmly mention other things which we must avoid if we hope for the Lord to bless us.
Husbands and wives should love and cherish their spouses. They must not break up their homes with divorce, and especially through infidelity and immorality.
A higher and higher percentage of children grow up with only one parent. This is certainly not the way of the Lord. He expected for a father and a mother to rear their children. Certainly any who deprive their children of a parent will have some very stiff questions to answer. The Lord used parents in the plural and said if children were not properly trained "the sin be upon the heads of the parents." That makes it a bit hard to justify broken homes. Numerous of the divorces are the result of selfishness. The day of judgment is approaching, and parents who abandon their families will find that excuses and rationalizations will hardly satisfy the Great Judge.
May we repeat: Sex perversions of men and women can never replenish the earth and are definitely sin without excuse, and rationalizations are very weak; God will not tolerate it.
As to abortions, we deplore the reported million unborn children who will lose their lives in this country this year. Certainly the women who yield to this ugly sin and the sin which often generated it, and those who assist them, should remember that retribution is sure. It is sure.
We marry for eternity. We are serious about this. We become parents and bring wanted children into the world and rear and train them to righteousness.
We are aghast at the reports of young people going to surgery to limit their families and the reputed number of parents who encourage this vasectomy. Remember that the coming of the Lord approaches, and some difficult-to-answer questions will be asked by a divine Judge who will be hard to satisfy with silly explanations and rationalizations. He will judge justly, you may be sure.
Why do we take our destiny in our own hands? From the building of the first colonial cabin, the home and family have been the center of true civilization. Any distortion of the God-given program will bring dire consequences. The families worked together, played together, and worshiped God together.
Could it be possible that many of us, like a cork in a stream, have been swept off our destiny line by false concepts, perilous ways, and doctrines of devils? By whom are we enticed? Have we accepted the easy way and veered off from the "strait and narrow" way to the easy and comfortable way and the broad way which leads to sorrowful ends? We know better than we do. Will you listen? Will you follow the advice and counsel of your leaders, local and general? Or will you choose your own paths though they lead you into the dark wilderness?
God bless you, our beloved people. Listen to the words of heaven. God is true. He is just. He is a righteous judge, but justice must come before sympathy and forgiveness and mercy.
Remember, God is in his heavens. He knew what he was doing when he organized the earth. He knows what he is doing now. Those of us who break his commandments will regret and suffer in remorse and pain. God will not be mocked. Man has his free agency, it is sure, but remember, GOD WILL NOT BE MOCKED.
Our counsel then to you is to live strictly the laws of your Heavenly Father. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Loren C. Dunn
Of the First Council of the Seventy
What a beautiful spirit of peace this Tabernacle Choir has established for us in that last song. It is an honor to be at this conference this morning, my brothers and sisters, and to receive the instructions and direction from the prophet of God. I bear testimony to the fact that President Kimball is a prophet of God, that he is the Lord's legal administrator upon the earth today, that those who will follow the instructions and advice that he has given us this morning will come to know, by practical experience, that what he has told us is true and is good for the strengthening and uplifting of mankind. President Spencer W. Kimball is a prophet of God.
I would like to use as the key to my remarks a quote that President Kimball made on a previous occasion and a theme that he returned to this morning. He said, "The nation is built upon the foundation of its homes and the home upon its families."
The family-mother and father and the children-is the oldest of all our institutions and stands at the very foundation of our civilization. There can be nothing more precious or enduring than the family. It is obvious that the need exists, however, for the upgrading of the role of parents in the family setting.
I remember a few years ago going on a business trip to eastern Canada in company with a broad range of business and community leaders. After the business of the day, we had dinner together; and during the course of the evening, as everyone began to relax and get better acquainted, one of those present, for no apparent reason, began to tell about his son, a boy whom obviously he loved very much. Yet there was conflict and even some alienation and he wasn't quite sure what to do, if indeed he should do anything.
That comment prompted a similar response from the others seated around the table. You could tell it was something they were not used to talking about, but each was personally concerned about some aspect of his family life, and this was primarily associated with his children.
Although we live in an era of transition and change, I believe parents are as anxious and concerned about their children as they have ever been. If the family, then, is the foundation unit in society, perhaps there is need to reaffirm some basic principles.
First is that parents recognize they have the right to structure the attitudes and conduct of their children-not only the right but the responsibility.
Second, that the principle of work, the work ethic if you please, be taught by the parents in the family setting. Where else is the dignity of work to be taught if not in the home?
And, third, parents have a right to establish the moral and spiritual tone in the family to help family members to realize the importance of living divine principles as a means of accomplishment and of peace of mind.
First, then, the right of parents to structure the attitudes and conduct of their children. Fundamentally this is divine right. God says of Abraham that he "shall surely become a great and mighty nation, for I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment." God could make Abraham head of a numerous posterity because of his faithfulness in teaching his children.
There are some in the world who might say that such parental influence is repressive and robs the child of its freedom, but quite the opposite is true. A group of young girls was overheard talking about the parents of one of their friends. Showing maturity beyond her years, one of the girls said, "Her parents don't love her; they let her do anything she wants." The others agreed.
In a New York Times Magazine article, later condensed in Reader's Digest, William V. Shannon makes the following points: "American children are suffering from widespread parent failure. By their words and actions many fathers and mothers make it clear that they are almost paralyzed by uncertainty. Many parents are in conflict as to what their own values are. Others think they know, but lack the confidence to impose discipline in behalf of their values. "
What is lacking, he says, is not more information on child development, but conviction. Although heredity plays some role in the development of a child, the greater influence "depends on whether parents care enough about their children to assert and defend the necessary values." The author also says that both mother and father need to put family and home responsibilities first. "Rearing our children is by far the most important task that most of us will ever undertake."
He also states that "parents who do not persevere in rearing their children according to their own convictions are not leaving them 'free' to develop on their own. Instead, they are letting other children and the media, principally television and the movies, do the job."
The greatest principle to be learned in the family setting is love. If parents will influence and direct and persevere with love, then members of the family will also make that principle a part of all they do. The principle of love can overcome many parental mistakes in the raising of their children. But love should not be confused with lack of conviction.
Secondly, that the principle of work be taught in the family and home setting. There is evidence to support that at least in the United States the problems of stress and tension might be linked to a gradually decreasing average number of hours worked by the labor force. The suggestion is that free time, not work, might be a major cause of stress and tension in individuals.
While we were growing up in a small community, my father saw the need for my brother and me to learn the principle of work. As a result, he put us to work on a small farm on the edge of town where he had been raised. He ran the local newspaper, so he could not spend much time with us except early in the morning and in the evening. That was quite a responsibility for two young teenagers, and sometimes we made mistakes. Our small farm was surrounded by other farms, and one of the farmers went in to see my father one day to tell him the things he thought we were doing wrong. My father listened to him carefully and then said, "Jim, you don't understand. You see, I'm raising boys and not cows." After my father's death, Jim told us his story. How grateful I was for a father who decided to raise boys, and not cows. In spite of the mistakes, we learned how to work on that little farm, and I guess, although they didn't say it in so many words, we always knew we were more important to Mother and Father than the cows or, for that matter, anything else.
Certainly in every home all family members can be given responsibilities that will fall within their ability to accomplish and, at the same time, teach them the satisfaction and dignity of work.
The third point is that parents have the right to teach moral and spiritual principles to their children. In that regard let me quote the following from modern scripture:
"And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents."
In his first address to the United States Congress, President Gerald Ford stated this universal truth: "If we can make effective use of the moral and ethical wisdom of the centuries in today's complex society, we will prevent more crime and corruption than all the policemen and prosecutors can ever deter." And he added: "This is a job that must begin at home, not in Washington."
In the article previously mentioned, Mr. Shannon says, "Nothing has invalidated the hard-earned moral wisdom that mankind has accumulated since Biblical times. To kill, to steal, to lie, or to covet another person's possessions still leads to varying degrees of misery for the victim and the perpetrator. 'Thou shalt not commit adultery' may sound old-fashioned, but restated in contemporary terms-'Do not smash up another person's family life'-still carries a worthwhile message."
He also points out the virtues of self-denial and anticipation. As older teenagers learn the facts about sex, it would do no harm, he says, to use self-control.
"A certain amount of frustration and tension can be endured-and with good effect. Only modern Americans," he says, "regard frustration as ranking higher than cholera in the scale of human afflictions."
These are but three of many principles that should be emphasized in the setting of family and home.
The next question is, How do parents get this accomplished? For members of the Church, the point at which training and communication begin in the family is family home evening. Monday night is set aside for the family and nothing interferes. The father takes the lead but also has other members of the family make preparation and participate. What is said and done depends on the needs of that particular family. The Church publishes some guidelines to help parents teach moral and religious principles to the family and to make them apply in everyday life.
To the nonmember parent who is interested in establishing some kind of similar activity the Church also offers some special help. Living near you are both full-time and part-time missionaries who have been trained in how to hold a family home evening. They will be happy to demonstrate this program in your home at no obligation. This is a service of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which it is prepared to offer families everywhere. The only thing we ask is that the whole family is present, especially the father or head of the home, since he is the key to the program.
Of course, these young missionaries are also prepared to teach your family the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ in subsequent visits. But if you do not want to continue, that will be your decision. At least you will be left with a program that many outside this Church have already adopted as being beneficial for the family and the home.
Some business leaders have also looked at the family home evening program and recommended it to their employees. Employees do better work when things are going well at home.
May the Lord bless us as parents to realize our right to help formulate the lives of our children, to teach the dignity of work, and to establish moral and religious principles in our homes, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My brothers and sisters, I should like to speak of and to a particular group of important individuals. These are they who fully intend, someday, to begin to believe and/or to be active in the Church. But not yet! These are not bad individuals, but good individuals who simply do not know how much better they could be. Such individuals often stay proximate to-but do not participate fully in-the Church. They will not come inside the chapel, but neither do they leave its porch. These are they who need and are needed by the Church, but who, in part, "live without God in the world."
To such individuals, in the brief, imploring invitation which follows, be assured there is a real craving for your companionship and a genuine need for your unique strengths.
There are reasons for your commitment to be made now, for as the rush of hours, days, and months grows stronger, the will to commit grows weaker. Events to transpire soon on this planet will dry up the options for the lukewarm, for the issues raised by Jesus are irrepressible issues!
If, however, you really do not wish to commit now, then let me warn of the following:
Do not look too deeply into the eyes of the pleasure-seekers about you, for if you do, you will see a certain sadness in sensuality, and you will hear artificiality in the laughter of licentiousness.
Do not look too deeply, either, into the motives of those who deny God, for you may notice their doubts of doubt.
Do not risk thinking the unthinkable, lest you find yourself drawn with a deep and powerful pull toward the reality that God does exist, that he loves you, and that finally there is no escaping him or his love!
Do not think too much about what you are teaching your family, for what in you is merely casualness about Christianity may, in your children, become hostility; for what you have not defended, your children may reject angrily.
Do not reflect on the practicality of gospel standards such as abstaining from alcohol; for if you do, a surf of statistics will wash over you, confirming that abstinence is ultimately the only cure for alcoholism that is both preventive and redemptive. You will also see that the living of one protective principle of the gospel is better than a thousand compensatory governmental programs-which programs are, so often, like "straightening deck chairs on the Titanic."
Do not think too much, either, about other doctrines, such as the importance of love at home; because if you think about them very long-in a world full of orphans with parents-you will be grasped by a reality that will make your teeth chatter.
Do not think, either, about the doctrine that you are a child of God, for if you do, it will be the beginning of belonging.
Do not dare to read the Book of Mormon seriously, or you may suddenly realize that it is inlaid with incredibly important insights from a millennium of sacred history.
Do not overpack the luggage you plan to take with you when you leave this world, for we simply cannot get most mortal things by celestial customs; only the eternal things are portable.
Do not pray, for you will get answers from a listening and loving Father.
Do not think too much, either, about the possibility that there are living prophets in the world today. Think instead about how those who are so sustained seem quite ordinary in many ways. Forget that other prophets were fishermen and tentmakers-ordinary enough to scarcely be noticed-except for what they said and what they did! For the winds of tribulation, which blow out some men's candles of commitment, only fan the fires of faith of these special men.
Do not let yourself reflect too much on the social, political, and economic indicators that suggest the gathering storm, lest you realize that there is an inseparable connection between the keeping of the commandments and the well-being of society.
Do not read what the holiest inhabitant ever to live on this planet said about the necessity of certain ordinances, or you will see that he allowed for no exceptions, including himself.
Do not search the scriptures to see if good people still need the Church, for the best being who ever lived organized the Church-because random, individual goodness is not enough in the fight against evil.
Do not, if you have been offended, recall that while you may have been bumped by an ecclesiastical elbow, the chip was on your shoulder long before the elbow appeared.
Do not be fully honest about the hypocrisy of those in the Church who may pretend to be better than they are, or you will soon realize that there is also another form of hypocrisy-appearing to be less committed than one really is!
Yes, brothers and sisters, it is best to avoid all such things as these if you wish to continue to delay deciding about Christ and his church.
However, Joshua didn't say choose you next year whom you will serve; he spoke of "this day," while there is still daylight and before the darkness becomes more and more normal.
When Jesus called his first disciples, the scriptures record that they left their ships and nets "straightway." They didn't ask to join Jesus after the fishing season; they didn't even delay their response in order to make just one more catch. They left "straightway"!
Act, my brothers and sisters, for once the soul is tilted toward belief, and once there is even a desire to believe, then marvelous things begin to happen! Once one leaves the porch and comes inside the Church, then one not only hears the music more clearly-he becomes a part of it.
Act now, so that a thousand years from now, when you look back at this moment, you can say this was a moment that mattered-this was a day of determination.
Never mind, therefore, that you have made an investment of self and time in inactivity. Never mind that there is an accumulation of pride that will make it difficult to acknowledge that you have been wrong, for it will never be easier to do than it is now.
All must know that feeling which is associated with a broken heart and a contrite spirit-by which we are cleansed by the hot, holy fire of a special shame, so that we might, thereafter, have a more pure love and a greater capacity to serve both God and man. Hearts "set so much upon the things of this world" are hearts so set they must first be broken.
Indeed, one of the most cruel games anyone can play with self is the "not yet" game-hoping to sin just a bit more before ceasing; to enjoy the praise of the world a little longer before turning away from the applause; to win just once more in the wearying sweepstakes of materialism; to be chaste, but not yet; to be good neighbors, but not now. One can play upon the harpstrings of hesitations and reservations just so long, and then one faces that special moment-a moment when what has been sensed, mutely, suddenly finds voice and cries out with tears, "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief."
The truth is that "not yet" usually means "never." Trying to run away from the responsibility to decide about Christ is childish. Pilate sought to refuse responsibility for deciding about Christ, but Pilate's hands were never dirtier than just after he had washed them.
The past of each of us is now inflexible. We need to concentrate on what has been called "the holy present," for now is sacred; we never really live in the future. The holy gift of life always takes the form of now. Besides, God asks us now to give up only those things which, if clung to, will destroy us!
And when we tear ourselves free from the entanglements of the world, are we promised a religion of repose or an Eden of ease? No! We are promised tears and trials and toil! But we are also promised final triumph, the mere contemplation of which tingles one's soul.
My friends, there are footprints to follow where we must go-made not by a leader who said, safely from the sidelines, "Go thither," but by a leader who said, "Come, follow me." And our mortal leader is a prophet who is showing us how to lengthen our stride.
Yes, for those in the Church's courtyard or on its porch, ask not "for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee."
And, if you sense that one day every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord, why not do so now? For in the coming of that collective confession, it will mean much less to kneel down when it is no longer possible to stand up!
Meanwhile, may we be different in order to make a difference in the world. And may God hasten that time for all our sakes, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Henry D. Taylor
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
In a recent meeting, President Marion G. Romney gave a message which impressed me greatly. First he said, "It has been, and now is, the desire and the objective of the Church to obtain from fast offerings the necessary funds to meet the cash needs of the welfare program." And he said, "We can, we ought, and we must do better." Then from Brother Romney came this comforting assurance: "If we will double our fast offerings we shall increase our prosperity, both spiritually and temporally. This the Lord has promised, this has been the record."
Many years ago a day was chosen and designated upon which to observe the law of the fast. A very important feature in this observance was, and now is, a liberal contribution to the fast offering fund. The policy of the Church today has been stated as follows:
"The first Sunday of each month is usually designated as a day of fasting and prayer on which a special testimony meeting is held. Adequate time should be allowed for testimony bearing.
"A proper fast day observance consists of abstaining from food and drink for two consecutive meals, attending the fast and testimony meeting, and making a generous offering to the bishop for the care of those in need. A minimum fast offering is defined as the equivalent of the value of two meals."
Sunday, however, has not always been the day when fasting and testimony bearing has been observed in the Church. President Joseph Fielding Smith has furnished us with a very interesting account of the development of this law and principle. He said:
"Fasting and prayer in the present dispensation have been carried over from primitive times. From the organization of the Church the principle of fasting in the spirit of prayer has been a commandment of the Lord. In regard to the choosing of a set day of the month, we have this testimony coming from President Brigham Young in a discourse in the old tabernacle, Salt Lake City, December 8, 1867.
"President Young said, ' You know that the first Thursday in each month we hold fast day. How many here know the origin of this day? Before tithing was paid, the poor were supported by donations. They came to Joseph and wanted help, in Kirtland, and he said there should be a fast day, which was decided upon. It was to be held once a month, as it is now, and all that would have been eaten that day, of flour, or meat, or butter, or fruit, or anything else, was to be carried to the fast meeting and put in the hands of a person selected for the purpose of taking care of the poor. If we were to do this now faithfully, do you think the poor would lack for flour, or butter, or cheese, or meat, or sugar, or anything they needed to eat? No! there would be more than could be used by all the poor among us. '"
President Smith then explained:
"This custom of holding fast meetings on Thursday was continued in Nauvoo and also after the coming of the members of the Church to the Rocky Mountains. I can remember the time when certain business houses closed their doors each fast day and placed on the doors, 'Closed for fast meeting.'
"The change from the first Thursday to the first Sunday of the month came about in this manner. Hyrum M. Smith, who later became a member of the Council of the Twelve, was a missionary in Newcastle, England, in the year 1896. On the Thursday of the fast meeting, members of the Church in that land had to get excused from their employment with a loss of pay. Some of them were workers in the coal mines. When these came from the pits, they had to go home, bathe, and change their clothes. This was a loss both of time and compensation. Hyrum wrote to his father, President Joseph F. Smith, and asked why, under such circumstances, the fast day had to be a Thursday and not a Sunday. President Smith took the letter to the meeting of the First Presidency and the apostles and presented it there. The following is an excerpt from the minutes of the meeting held November 5, 1896:
"'President Joseph F. Smith introduced the subject of fast meetings, suggesting that a change of the time from the first Thursday to the first Sunday in each month would probably be beneficial. This was endorsed by President George Q. Cannon, and after other brethren had spoken on the subject, it was decided that the Tabernacle services would be dispensed with on the first Sunday of each month, and that the saints in this city as well as in the country wards, should have the privilege of meeting in their meeting houses at 2 o'clock P.M. to observe fast day.'"
In addition to there being a change in the day of holding fast meeting and observing the law of the fast, one other development should be noted. When the Prophet Joseph set up the program in Kirtland in the early days of the Church, the Saints were counseled to bring to the fast meeting the items of food from which they had abstained. Subsequently this method has been modified so that currently the deacons of the Church call monthly on their assigned homes and the fast offering contribution is made in cash.
Miracles are brought about through fasting and sincere prayer. In 1850 Lorenzo Snow, who later became president of the Church, labored in Italy as a missionary, trying to open that country to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was somewhat shy and self-conscious, but spiritually, he was a giant. One family who had befriended him had a critically ill child. In fact, Elder Snow realized that only through sincere fasting, mighty prayer, unswerving faith, and through the power of the priesthood could that three-year-old child be saved. He knew how much the healing of this boy would mean to the people in this small Italian village.
Climbing with his companion to a place of seclusion on the foothills of the Alps just above the village, in the spirit of fasting and prayer, he earnestly petitioned and pleaded with the Lord for six long, anxious hours for the privilege of using divine power to heal that little boy. Finally, the answer came; the reply was yes, he would be granted the privilege.
As a humble servant of the Lord, he walked down the mountainside with perfect faith that the dying child's life would be spared. The boy was then given a blessing and a promise that he would live. A few hours later when Elder Snow and his companion returned to the home, they found that the child was greatly improved and was well on the way to recovery. Elder Snow realized that his fasting and prayer had reached the throne of a benevolent Heavenly Father. He remarked to the grateful parents: "The God of heaven has done this for you."
Surely the law of the fast is an inspired program and its observance has many virtues. President David O. McKay summed them up in these words:
"The word fast is used to signify a self-imposed restraint with respect to the eating of food. Historians tell us that the custom of fasting dates back to the early history of the human race.
"Whatever its origin, it is significant to note that several virtues are attached to the observance of the custom. All the principles associated with fasting seem to point to the fact that it produces, first, physical well-being; spiritual strength.
"But the greatest of all benefits the spiritual strength derived by the subjection of physical appetite to the will of the individual."
An extremely important factor of the fast day observance is attending the fast and testimony meeting and acknowledging and expressing gratitude to our Heavenly Father for his many blessings.
It seems to me that there are four factors involved in a proper observance of the fast day, namely: first, abstaining; then, praying; next, testifying; and finally, contributing.
I am confident that each of us has a continual need for additional blessings. A devoted servant of the Lord, a member of the First Presidency, has given us the formula, which, if followed, will increase our blessings. Again may I repeat his inspired promise: "If we will double our fast offerings we shall increase our prosperity, both spiritually and temporally."
I firmly believe that the paying of fast offerings does result in rich blessings. And to this I testify in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder L. Tom Perry
Of the Council of the Twelve
I have recently had the opportunity of returning to school, at least for a five-day period. I was invited to attend a data processing school. After the usual adjustments of trying to condition myself again to a classroom situation, I was captivated by the latest marvels that mankind has developed. I was intrigued by an instructor who would key into a keyboard a few symbols and access a file 3,000 miles away. In only five seconds, there on a visual display was the answer.
We were introduced to a new, small console printer, not the large, high-speed type. This was very similar in normal appearance to printers on the market today, except for the fact that this one was far more efficient than any I had had the opportunity of coming in contact with before. As the printer started to operate, it functioned normally, printing from left to right; but then, to save the time of the carriage return, it just spaced down one line and printed backward the next line, right to left. I was amazed by its speed, its accuracy, and the notable advances this machine had made over previous models.
As I examined this latest technology of mankind, my thoughts went back to my first introduction to an office machine as a child of five or six. This introduction was to an old, hand-operated adding machine my father used with his clerical functions as a bishop. I thought of what a marvelous evolution has occurred in my lifetime in just the business machine field alone.
For that brief minute, as my mind reviewed our progress, I also had a compelling urge to look forward, realizing how many more technological developments are yet to come. I found myself awed once again with the architecture of the Lord as I contemplated his creative processes. Here he has supplied us with all of the raw materials to take care of our needs from the beginning, the creation, until the end, the celestializing of the earth.
It is in moments like this that I think of that great scripture our prophet quoted to us this morning:
"The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein."
It has always interested me to note that in the scriptures when the Lord talks about righteousness, we hear him declare abundance, fullness, and plenty. Shortage and scarcity are not from him, but are man-made because of our failure to follow his original instructions to "be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over."
Now to maximize our potential, he has given us direction from the beginning on our behavior while we sojourn here as mortals on earth. He has asked us first to love him by believing on his words, and secondly to love our fellowmen enough to help bring them to a realization and a testimony of him. Christ, when confronted by the lawyer with the question "Master, which is the great commandment in the law?" gave this answer:
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
"This is the first and great commandment.
"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
"On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
From this reply by our Savior, we gain a knowledge of the two great fundamental commandments. I would like to reaffirm these to you in an effort to have us greater appreciate and understand them.
The first can be illustrated by an experience which occurred between a father and his son as recorded in the Book of Mormon. Alma was a high priest of the people and lived on this continent less than 150 years before the time of the Savior. He must have been a father who had great love for his son because he called him by his own name. But as Alma the Younger grew into manhood, he departed from the teachings of his father. The scriptures record:
"He became a very wicked and an idolatrous man. And he was a man of many words, and did speak much flattery to the people; therefore he led many of the people to do after the manner of his iniquities."
After his father had tried diligently to change the ways of Alma the Younger and to no avail, he went to the Lord and asked that Alma would be given a sign that he might know of the wrongness of his actions and be shown the right way to follow. A most remarkable event occurred in the life of Alma the Younger, for an angel stood before him and called him to repentance.
After this great vision was over, Alma fell to the earth, so great was his astonishment. He became dumb and could not speak and weak and could not stand. Those that were with him carried him and laid him helpless before his father. And his father rejoiced over what had happened because he knew it was of the power of the Lord. And he called the priests together and asked that they fast and pray with him two days and two nights in order that Alma would again receive his strength. Their prayers were answered; Alma recovered and stood before them and began to speak unto them, bidding them to be of good comfort and saying:
"I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.
"And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;
"And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God."
Alma's words became a witness to each of us of what must occur in our lives if we are to find the rewarding, fulfilling experience of being converted to the ways of the Lord.
Now conversion is not an end, but a beginning of a new way of life. Let me again use the example of another strong character from the scriptures to illustrate the second great commandment of what must follow conversion. The New Testament tells us of one who was among the first to follow the Savior in his earthly ministry. The scriptures record:
"And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishers.
"And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
"And they straightway left their nets, and followed him."
Now fishing, to Peter, represented his wealth or his ability to gain the things of the world. You will note that right from the beginning Peter was asked to make a choice between the things of the world and the requirements of God. Peter had an opportunity of becoming converted as few men who have lived on the earth have had because of his associations with the Savior. The scriptures record the great witness that was given to him when he, with James and John, was taken to a high mountain apart from the rest of the world: "And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light."
Even after such a remarkable witness, we find the Savior continually reminding Peter of his commitments and responsibilities:
"And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
"But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren."
Peter was then privileged to witness the greatest of all manifestations given by the Savior to mankind, for he witnessed the sorrow of the crucifixion and then was privileged to see the resurrected Lord. But even after witnessing the resurrection, it seemed as if Peter had still failed to catch the real significance of his conversion. After the glorious experience of seeing the resurrected Savior, when the disciples were again alone as the Savior had ascended from them, Peter's first thoughts were to return again to the things of the world.
And he said to those with him, "I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing.
"But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was
"Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No.
"And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes."
Here the Savior teaches Peter a great lesson. The things of God are above those of man. The Lord has power to supply the fishes, the things of the world, but they are secondary to his work.
Then finally the great lesson of the Savior's mission is taught to Peter as they dine together:
"Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs."
Then the question a second and third time. And finally, Peter, being grieved, replied to the Lord, "Thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep."
Finally Peter understood: "when thou art converted"-a condition carries with it a responsibility to do something with that conversion, to feed the sheep of the Savior. The real value of our commitment through our conversion is when it is interpreted into action, when something results from that which has occurred from knowing the Lord.
In the lives of many of our great Church leaders of this dispensation we've seen this process of conversion interpreted into a powerful desire to strengthen the lives of the brethren. One example that has always impressed me is the story of John Taylor.
The gospel was first introduced to Brother Taylor and his family in Toronto, Canada, by Elder Parley P. Pratt in April of 1836. At that time John Taylor was engaged as a minister and investigated very carefully the teachings of Elder Pratt. He wrote down eight sermons which Elder Pratt preached and compared them to the Bible to see if he could find anything that was contrary to the scriptures. He made his investigation of the Church a regular business for three weeks and then was satisfied and was baptized.
About a year later John Taylor visited Kirtland, Ohio. The gloom of apostasy was hanging over the city and, sadly, this dissension had affected Parley P. Pratt as he returned from his mission to Canada. Elder Pratt tried to show Brother Taylor why he thought the Prophet Joseph was in error. To this John Taylor steadfastly replied:
"I am surprised to hear you speak so Brother Parley. Before you left Canada you bore a strong testimony to Joseph Smith being a Prophet of God, and to the truth of the work he has inaugurated: and you said you knew those things by revelation, and the gift of the Holy Ghost. You gave me a strict charge to the effect that though you or an angel from Heaven was to declare anything else, I was not to believe it.
Now, Brother Parley, it is not man I am following but the Lord. The principles you taught me led me to Him; and I now have the same testimony that you then rejoiced in. If the work was true six months ago, it is true today; if Joseph was then a prophet, he is now a prophet."
Parley P. Pratt saw the error of his ways and was strengthened and went to the Prophet Joseph with tears in his eyes and asked for forgiveness and reaffirmed his allegiance to the prophet-leader of the Church. Truly the words of a converted John Taylor had an inspirational effect in the life of Brother Parley P. Pratt.
"When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren."
All of the abundance, fullness, and plenty of this earth was given to us by God to be enjoyed in righteousness. We in turn are expected to love him; to be converted to him and his ways and to feed his sheep; to multiply, replenish, and strengthen our brethren. I pray that we may all catch the vision of what conversion means and focus our service on the effort to build the kingdom of God here on earth; that we may be likened unto Alma, Peter, or President John Taylor and the other great prophets and leaders of the Church throughout the dispensations of time who caught sight of his marvelous work and proceeded to dedicate their lives for its purposes.
May I add my witness to this conference that God lives, that Jesus is the Savior of this world, that Spencer W. Kimball, who conducts this conference session here today, is a prophet. Think of it-a prophet of the Lord on the earth today! May I give this witness as I know it, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Delbert L. Stapley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers, sisters, and friends, in the recent June Conference President Spencer W. Kimball counseled young people, leaders of youth, and all Church members to take a careful inventory of their habits. "Change," he said, "comes by substituting good habits for less desirable ones." Then he added, "You mold your character and future by good thoughts and acts."
I will discuss the importance of good habits in building good character.
A favorite saying often quoted by the late President David O. McKay was "We sow our thoughts, and we reap our actions; we sow our actions, and we reap our habits; we sow our habits, and we reap our characters; we sow our characters, and we reap our destiny."
The future we seek as Latter-day Saints is a life motivated by good thoughts, expressed in good works, and sustained by an inner peace and determination of righteous doing. The destiny we desire is an inheritance in the celestial mansions prepared by our Savior for the faithful of God's children.
We are not born into this world with fixed habits. Neither do we inherit a noble character. Instead, as children of God, we are given the privilege and opportunity of choosing which way of life we will follow-which habits we will form.
Confucius said that the nature of men is always the same. It is their habits that separate them.
Good habits are not acquired simply by making good resolves, though the thought must precede the action. Good habits are developed in the workshop of our daily lives. It is not in the great moments of test and trial that character is built. That is only when it is displayed. The habits that direct our lives and form our character are fashioned in the often uneventful, commonplace routine of life. They are acquired by practice.
Solomon the wise taught, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
The good habits of a child's early training form the foundation for his future and sustain him in his later life. Parents, remember the Lord by revelation has given assurance that little children are incapable of committing sin, that they are alive in Christ, and that the devil has no power over them until they reach the age of accountability. The first eight years of a child's life are golden years the Lord has given parents to teach and train their children to form good habits and develop noble characters.
This instruction was given by Brigham Young: "I say to our young men, be faithful, for you do not know what is before you, and abstain from bad habits." This admonition can apply to both youth and adults.
We do not always know what lies ahead, but there is strength and safety in righteous conduct. We need to organize our lives according to gospel principles and chart a right course as we journey toward eternal life.
In the conduct of our lives we learn that good character-building habits mean everything. It is by such behavior that we harvest the real substance and value of life. The way we live outweighs any words we may profess to follow.
Mahatma Gandhi said, "Man's destined purpose is to conquer all habits, to overcome the evil in him and to restore good to its rightful place."
The ways of life acceptable to the people of the world are not always acceptable to God. His standards, however, are for all people. They do not change but resolutely and continually point the true way of life for his children.
We should conduct ourselves wisely before God and sin not. We should not yield to the persuasion of men with evil intent.
Bad habits are a reflection of our thoughts and personalities, our behavior and conduct. They are degrading to the choice qualities which are our God-given spiritual endowments of faith, honesty, integrity, and uprightness.
Someone has observed, "When a man boasts of his bad habits, you may rest assured they are the best he has."
Lehi, an early American prophet, speaking to his people said, "Men are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil."
In this mortal life we have two choices: the good, which is the desire of our Heavenly Father; or the evil, which is Satan's plan and constant persuasion.
Evil tendencies destroy character and ruin lives. When first yielding to sin, one's resistance, self-control, and character are weakened and further transgressions usually result. With violation of spiritual laws and rejection of spiritual qualities, our powers of resistance are reduced. Eventually we seem to lose complete control of our ability to resist evil. Imagine the great misery suffered by a person who has practiced a vice for so long that he curses it, yet at the same time holds on to it.
Our great challenge is to learn how to control ourselves. We must learn for ourselves and act for ourselves, being careful not to follow those who are not divinely led. We have a responsibility to thwart the work of the evil one-not to aid or perpetuate his cause by yielding to his enticements to sin.
Habits are subject to change and improvement, for the Lord has said, "For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves."
One cannot truthfully say he is confirmed in his bad habits, sins, or weaknesses to the point that they cannot be thrown off and repented of. The human will is naturally inclined toward the right. We are spirit children of God and have born within us the power to overcome all evil practices.
An ancient proverb states that good habits result from resisting temptation. Such resistance often takes the form of a persevering struggle. When bad habits become a part of our lives and we desire to overcome them, we must seek spiritual help.
The Lord can and will make us equal to the task if we earnestly call upon him. A sacred hymn gives this thought:
Hymns, no. 79
We draw ourselves close to the Savior when we faithfully keep his laws and commandments.
We have a gracious, kind, and loving Father in heaven who stands ready to help us. Self-mastery, self-control, and self-discipline are required strengths that enable us to set aside temptations to do wrong. It is a wonderful feeling to conquer wrong practices and to be free and unencumbered from their detrimental effects, both physically and spiritually. When we have conquered our bad habits and replaced them with good ones, living as we should, obedient and faithful, then we are on our way to the presence of God.
We should become so involved in acquiring good quality traits and participating in character-building activities that there is no time to engage in anything worthless or harmful. Our habits should be those that make us susceptible to faith and testimony.
One of the best habits to be cultivated is that of reading the scriptures to become knowledgeable of our responsibilities. By learning God's commandments and keeping them, we develop the ways of righteousness that are an expression of our faith. With good habits we prepare ourselves for excellence.
We need to ask ourselves, "Are my usual thoughts and present actions worthy of eternal life? Am I setting my sights on eternal goals and working to obtain them?" Anything short of our best isn't good enough, especially in the service of the Lord.
The Lord has counseled us to repent and walk uprightly before him. Uprightly implies a strict adherence to moral principles and honesty of purpose. We are instructed to make our home an abode of righteousness and honor. Honor is almost an old-fashioned word in today's world. It encompasses duty, responsibility, and respect for the eternal values. It also suggests a firm holding to codes of right behavior and the guidance of a high sense of stewardship.
Let us dare to be different from the ways of the world when its ways are not the ways of God. In a world troubled with selfish greed, dishonesty, and dishonor, let us set ourselves on a higher path, striving to develop and strengthen the qualities of unselfish service with wholehearted effort, dependability, honesty, morality, and every other good attribute that would lead us to integrity of character. We begin, then, with our thoughts and end with our eternal destiny. Our destiny is determined by our character, and our character is the sum and expression of our habits. Character is won by hard work.
Ernest L. Wilkinson, speaking to the students of Brigham Young University, said: "Character is not something to be obtained by ease and indolence or being socially agreeable. It cannot be acquired by absorption or by proxy or on the auction block. It is a reward derived from honest toil in overcoming difficulties. We grow by mastering tasks which others consider impossible."
Yes, the character required to attain eternal life must be formed in this life with good habits supplying the building material. When the qualities that are desirable in individuals become universal in the people of a nation, that nation also will have character. Goodness either in a person or in a nation is not simply the absence of wrongdoing. It is a love of and practice of all things that are true, honest, lovely, and of good report.
Let us set high goals for ourselves and work to achieve those goals by making God the center of our lives. He is the fountainhead of all truth, justice, and peace. Let us remember that God's laws are eternal. They do not change. There is no moral or spiritual code that grants permissiveness of conduct nor condones selection of evil or bad habits as a way to joyful living. Man may assume the right to revise the ways of God, but the Lord remains the same yesterday, today, and forever. God's standards and truths for his people will ever point the true way of life for all of his children.
Maintaining good personal habits which are pleasing to our Heavenly Father will strengthen our character, increase our influence for good, improve our example, bless our loved ones and friends, enrich our lives, and enable us to accomplish those things that yield true personal satisfaction and build peace and happiness in our hearts. We will have joy eternally, possessing a treasure to be much desired and sought after, for the Lord gives this assurance: "Inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
It all starts with a single step-we decide that we can do it.
May we forsake all evil and take that first step to shape our lives for eternity through good habits and righteous standards of good character.
I bear solemn witness to the value of good habits and praiseworthy character in the lives of people. The counsel quoted earlier given by our beloved prophet-leader, President Spencer W. Kimball, is very wise, timely, and needful for us to follow. This I testify to in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Elder ElRay L. Christiansen
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
I am thankful, my brothers and sisters, for the truth that has been revealed through prophets of God, both in the past dispensations and in the present. We are blessed with ample truth regarding our origin, our mortal lives, and our destiny.
The scriptures teach us that we lived in the spirit world before we were born into mortality. That is, we lived in the presence of God who is literally the Father of our spirits.
When the great council was held in heaven, in which all of us were involved, the Father presented his plan for peopling the earth, and for the salvation of man. Lucifer wanted to amend the plan. He proposed to destroy the agency of man and to save all mankind, that not one soul would be lost. This he would accomplish through outright force and coercion, denying all persons the right of choice.
Satan's proposal of compulsion was rejected by the Father, and Lucifer "was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, many followed after him."
We must have witnessed that tragic scene when Lucifer-brilliant, capable, yet lacking in intelligence to properly apply his knowledge -rose in hateful rebellion against God. And they were expelled from heaven, retaining the malignant powers to tempt and to persuade men to disobey God.
The Father's plan, accepted by Jehovah, provided man the right of choice, that through its exercise he might become strong and advance in learning, wisdom, and righteousness by conquering weaknesses and by resisting the temptations to do wrong. Then God said: "We will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell:
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them."
Now, God said also:
"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; I caused that he should be cast down;
"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."
Now, the truth is that Satan lives! Indeed, some have seen his satanic majesty in spirit form.
President Harold B. Lee warned us to "make no mistake about his reality as a personality, even though he does not possess a physical body. Since the beginning of time, he, with his hosts have waged relentless war to destroy the free agency of man." Those who teach that there is no devil or who declare him to be a figment of the imagination used only to frighten people are either ignorant of the facts or they themselves are deceived.
How does Satan operate? What are his tactics? Using his superior knowledge, his unique powers of persuasion, half-truths, and complete lies, the evil one uses the spirit children who followed him, plus mortal beings who have yielded to his evil ways, to wage war against Jehovah and his followers; and they will, if they can, influence us to become critical and to rebel against God and his work. Thus he destroys the souls of men.
The scriptures tell us: "Satan stirreth them up, that he may lead their souls to destruction."
"Yea, he saith unto them: Deceive and lie in wait to catch, that ye may destroy; behold, this is no harm.
"And thus he flattereth them, and leadeth them along until he draggeth their souls down to hell; and thus he causeth them to catch themselves in their own snare.
"And thus he goeth up and down, to and fro in the earth, seeking to destroy the souls of men."
Now, the adversary knows that a little sin will not stay little, and he welcomes any and all into his kingdom by first trying to get us to lie a little, then helping us to try to justify ourselves in so doing or to cheat or to steal. Some folks are indeed induced to desecrate the Sabbath day until it becomes habitual with them. Some people begin with the use of liquor just to "relax a bit." Also, drug abuse, evil speaking, disobedience to parents, or deceiving one's own companions-these are means he has of getting us to digress from the proper course. He knows full well that, if continued, such diversions soon result in regrets, sorrows, and losses, because they lead us into greater sinfulness.
No doubt one of the most infamous snares set out by the adversary is that of unchastity. The power to bring children into the world is God-given, and if that power is guarded and held sacred, it will result in happiness and blessings beyond measure. But if it is desecrated and polluted through illicit use, it will bring sorrow, misery, and self-condemnation.
The First Presidency of the Church a few years ago issued a warning to the Latter-day Saints and to all people generally against the dreaded sins of unchastity. Among other things, they said: "The doctrine of this Church is that sexual sin-the illicit relations of men and women-stands, in its enormity, next to murder. you cannot escape the punishments and judgments which the Lord has declared against this sin. The day of reckoning will come as surely as night follows day."
How, then, may we resist the evil one? In all his evil doings, the adversary can go no further than the transgressor permits him to go, and we can gain complete power to resist the evils caused by Satan through adherence to the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Members of the Church may have the blessing of the Holy Ghost, the prompter, as a companion as well, and when the Holy Ghost is really within us, Satan must remain without. Study of the scriptures, prayer, faithful living of the commandments of the Lord, the discharge of church obligations and duties, being a considerate neighbor, and using the heaven-sent program of family home evenings can provide a basis for having the Holy Ghost as a constant companion and protector, which will result in peace and happiness.
I tremble when I realize how the children of God are being tempted today, especially the youth; yet we have confidence in them. They are choice spirits. But they must realize that Jesus, not Satan, is their best friend; that happiness can come only through obedience to the commandments of God. We must help them prepare for and achieve their divine destiny. Nevertheless, if they fall into the snares of Satan, parents, priesthood leaders, and teachers must lead them out of the pitfalls and on to higher ground through the process of repentance.
Recently our beloved president, Spencer W. Kimball, speaking to a multitude of youth, assured them that an awareness of the existence, the power, and the plans of Satan-together with a compelling and vibrant testimony of God and of the gospel and of the plans of our Father given through Jesus Christ, his Son, and the living prophets-can help them achieve unprecedented accomplishments, which may affect their lives eternally.
Yes, brothers and sisters, Satan lives. He is real. He is cunning. But you may be assured that God, our Heavenly Father, reigns over all and is merciful and forgiving to those who truly seek him.
And every man receiveth wages of him whom he listeth to obey. To this I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church
A young man just under 18 years of age was visited by a heavenly messenger who stated that he was sent from the presence of God. This messenger, Moroni, was the last prophet in the Book of Mormon. The young man was Joseph Smith.
Moroni quoted many passages of scripture, most of which declared that the time had come to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus Christ in his glory. He quoted Malachi: "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts."
This emphasizes the fact that when the Lord comes again, he will come "to his temple," which means there must be a temple on earth for him to come to.
Moroni also quoted the fifth and sixth verses of chapter 4, which are slightly different from the Bible:
"Behold, I will reveal unto you the Priesthood, by the hand of Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
" and he shall plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers. If it were not so, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at his coming."
It seems very significant to me that, among the first instructions to the Prophet in the process of the restoration of the gospel, this work, which has to do with temples and the ordinances performed therein, was given. This must be very fundamental to the essentials of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
To fulfill the requirements in this message, there must be a temple. Elijah must come with the authority of the priesthood, and there must be living members of the Church gathering the records of their ancestors and getting the work done to fulfill the promise made to them that their sealings would also be done.
God himself established the first family-Adam and Eve. The family is not an institution developed by man to be outgrown and cast aside in the course of human progress. All that is nearest and dearest in our lives is associated with our families. Love has its center here, and where love is, there we find happiness also. Truly it is not good for man to be alone. The Lord in his wisdom has provided a way for man to be happy on this earth and to carry that joy on through all eternity. The greatest joy and happiness come through the family unit. It has been so through all mortality, so why will it not be so in the next life?
This family unit is so important that the Lord has made it known to us that by the time of the end of the Millennium all of Adam's posterity who accept the gospel must be sealed together as one family by the power of the priesthood, which is the power to seal on earth and it shall be sealed in heaven, and to bind on earth and it shall be bound in heaven.
Every person who comes on this earth must have an opportunity to receive all the blessings of these sealings, if he will accept, sometime before the end of the Millennium. There could not be a just God if it were otherwise.
These sealing blessings are obtained first through the ordinance of baptism into the church of Jesus Christ. Then the wife is sealed to her husband for time and all eternity, and those children who are not born under the marriage covenant must be sealed to their parents, that they may receive all the blessings as though they were born under the new and everlasting covenant.
Those who have died without this law may have the privilege of receiving these blessings by proxy. That is where our responsibility comes in. We must first teach the gospel to the living. Then we must gather the records of those of our families who died without this law and get this great and important work done for them.
The promise was given to our forefathers that when the gospel is restored in the last days, "the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers." This means we must fulfill the promise to our ancestors to do the ordinance work for them. If we do not, then our own salvation may be in jeopardy.
Not only the ordinance of baptism, but also the sealing of families together as an eternal unit must be done on the earth. Hence, we must perform these ordinances ourselves first, then by proxy for our ancestors who have passed on to the spirit world. These most sacred ordinances must be performed in a holy temple erected and dedicated to the Lord for this very purpose.
In modern revelation the Lord commanded the Prophet Joseph Smith to "build a house to my name, for the Most High to dwell therein.
"For there is not a place found on earth that he may come to and restore again that which was lost unto you, or which he hath taken away, even the fulness of the priesthood."
These temples are built for a special and most important purpose-where the living may receive their most holy ordinances, where families may be sealed together for all eternity. The family unit is the only eternal organization. The temples are beautiful buildings, and rightly should be, but are not just monuments for show alone. They are the only way whereby all the righteous, living and dead, can have the blessings of exaltation. The living come first. Then after they have performed these holy sealings, they should turn to their fathers and vicariously open the way for their ancestors to receive these same blessings.
For this purpose family research must be done. Many choice spirits have been held in reserve to come to earth at this time so they could accept the gospel and do the temple work for their ancestors. Over and over again, I find among converts husband or wife, or husband and wife, who are the only ones in the family who are members of the Church. In most cases they, or someone in their family, have a good record of their family genealogy. Some eagerly send these records to the temple for the work to be done. Many, however, have many names in their possession which are not being sent in. We must not delay! The time is getting shorter all the time. With more temples being built, more work can be done. With each new temple, approximately 3,000 more names each day can be done. Do not hold these records. Fill out the regular forms and send them in to the temple.
Even if the Lord has inspired people to preserve these records over the centuries, if the devil can persuade us to procrastinate and not get the temple work done, he will succeed in frustrating the Lord's work. The story is told that Satan called a council of his agents and asked how they would combat the forces of righteousness. One said, "I'll go and tell them it isn't true." Satan said, "No, that wouldn't do." The second said, "I'll tell them it's only half true." "No," Satan said, "that's not enough." The third said, "I'll go and tell them it's all true, but there is no need to hurry." "Go," Satan said. "That will get them every time." Lucifer cannot win. We must do the Lord's work for our ancestors or the earth would be "wasted at his coming." It seems that the destiny of this earth depends on whether or not we get this temple work done.
The gospel has been restored in these the last days never to be taken from the earth again, to bring the blessings of salvation and exaltation to all God's children who prove their worthiness through their faithfulness. The purpose of this earth and our life here is to give each and every one of Adam's posterity the opportunity to end this life as a family unit for all eternity.
I testify that this is the gospel of Jesus Christ, restored in these the latter days with all the authority and power of his priesthood to bring about the eternity of the family unit for each of us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James A. Cullimore
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Among the sure signs of the true church of Christ are the accompanying spiritual gifts. This has always been from the beginning. When the authority of the priesthood has been found on the earth, it is accompanied by the manifestations of spiritual gifts.
During the earthly ministry of the Savior, it is recorded that he "went about all Galilee, healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people." "And great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all." Before the Savior departed from his apostles after his resurrection, "he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
"And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
"They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover."
"And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people.
"Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets,
" and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one."
The apostle Paul said to the Corinthian saints:
"Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
"Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.
"Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
"And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
"And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.
"But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
"For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit." And he stated the many gifts of the Spirit.
And unto his church in this dispensation the Savior promised these same gifts. He said:
"Therefore, as I said unto mine apostles I say unto you again, that every soul who believeth on your words; and is baptized by water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost.
"And these signs shall follow them that believe-
"In my name they shall do many wonderful works;
"In my name they shall cast out devils;
"In my name they shall heal the sick;
"In my name they shall open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf;
"And the tongue of the dumb shall speak." And so on.
I bear my solemn witness that these gifts are with the Church today. The sick are healed, the eyes of the blind are opened, the ears of the deaf are unstopped, the lame are made to walk. The gift of tongues blesses our missionaries and others the world over. The gifts of wisdom and knowledge are evidenced by the leadership of our people everywhere. Devils are cast out, spirits are discerned, the gift of faith is demonstrated on every side. Many mighty miracles give evidence that this is indeed his church, the church of Jesus Christ. All the gifts and powers and blessings that have always identified Christ's church are with the Church today.
As members of the Church, is our faith sufficiently strong? Are we in tune with the Spirit that we might be blessed by these great gifts? Do we believe a miracle can be performed or a blessing given? Do we call upon the priesthood as often as we should to administer to the sick? Do we believe we can be healed? Do we have faith to heal? Is the priesthood always prepared to give a blessing? How strong is your faith?
President George Q. Cannon said:
"I have felt deeply impressed that the members of our Church do not value as they should the means which God has placed within their reach for the relief and healing of the sick.
"There is too great a disposition, when sickness enters a household, to send for a doctor.
"Instances are very common among the faithful Saints of the gift of healing being manifested in a very wonderful manner.
"God has not forgotten His promises, and He has not withdrawn Himself from His people. But the Latter-day Saints should make use of these means more frequently than they do, and put more trust in God and less in man's skill."
We have been instructed as to the administration of the sick:
"Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
"Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed."
"And the elders of the church, two or more, shall be called, and shall pray for and lay their hands upon them in my name; and if they die they shall die unto me, and if they live they shall live unto me."
The accounts of miraculous healings in the Church are numerous. They warm one's soul and give great strength of testimony as to the divinity of this great work. But the Lord has instructed us that we are not to boast of these great blessings. He said, "But a commandment I give unto them, that they shall not boast themselves of these things, neither speak them before the world; for these things are given unto you for your profit and for salvation."
It was not intended that we make merchandise out of the gifts of God and shout to the world the result of these most wonderful gifts. They are given to us for our salvation, to strengthen our testimony and the testimonies of others as we bear humble witness of them in our meetings, quietly, by the Spirit but not before the world.
"Behold, faith cometh not by signs, but signs follow those that believe.
"Yea, signs come by faith, not by the will of men, nor as they please, but by the will of God."
Faith to heal the sick is one of the most desirable gifts of the gospel and should be sought after by all Melchizedek Priesthood holders. They should always be ready to exercise this power in behalf of those who need a blessing. They should seek to have and develop the gift of faith, faith to heal and faith to be healed. "And whoso shall ask it in my name in faith," the Lord has said, "they shall cast out devils; they shall heal the sick; they shall cause the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak, and the lame to walk."
Administration to the sick should be done at the request of the sick persons or someone close to them who is concerned about them, that it might be done through their faith. The Lord said, "And these things ye shall not do, except it be required of you by them who desire it, that the scriptures might be fulfilled; for ye shall do according to that which is written."
Both the one receiving the blessing and the one giving it should be in tune with the Spirit through their worthy lives, and then the Lord has promised, "Whatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is good, in faith believing that ye shall receive, behold, it shall be done unto you."
After one has demonstrated his worthiness through good works and manifested his faith through prayer or proper administration to the sick, it must be left in the hands of the Lord those who will be healed and those who will not. We may not always understand why someone is healed and why another for whom we have also exercised great faith is not.
The Lord said that when the elders administer to the sick, if they die, they die unto him, and if they live, they live unto him. He said:
"Thou shalt weep for the loss of them that die, and more especially for those that have not hope of a glorious resurrection.
"And it shall come to pass that those that die in me shall not taste of death, for it shall be sweet unto them.
"And again, it shall come to pass that he that hath faith in me to be healed, and is not appointed unto death, shall be healed."
President Kimball has said:
"If all the sick for whom we pray were healed, if all the righteous were protected and the wicked destroyed, the whole program of the Father would be annulled and the basic principle of the gospel, free agency, would be ended. No man would have to live by faith.
"Should all prayers be immediately answered according to our selfish desires and our limited understanding, then there would be little or no suffering, sorrow, disappointment, or even death, and if these were not, there would also be no joy, success, resurrection, nor eternal life and godhood.
"Being human, we would expel from our lives physical pain and mental anguish and assure ourselves of continual ease and comfort, but if we were to close the doors upon sorrow and distress, we might be excluding our greatest friends and benefactors. Suffering can make saints of people as they learn patience, long-suffering, and self-mastery."
Even though the Lord has prescribed proper procedures in administration to the sick, this does not mean that humble prayers by faithful individuals would not be answered. James has said, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
The Savior said during his administration on earth that in the last days, men not authorized of God would, in Christ's name, perform wondrous works. This is evidenced by his words:
"Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
"And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
He gave the same warning to the Prophet Joseph Smith:
" uprightly before me, that ye may not be seduced by evil spirits, or doctrines of devils, or the commandments of men; and that ye may not be deceived seek ye earnestly the best gifts, always remembering for what they are given;
" they are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep all my commandments, and him that seeketh so to do."
May we so live that we may always have the companionship of the Holy Spirit and be blessed by these beautiful spiritual gifts that are a part of the gospel, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Vaughn J. Featherstone
Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
To be old and poor is to be alone, afraid, and ill-fed, and unknown. In a series of articles the Wall Street Journal discusses the problems related to the care of the aged. Following are some of the quotes taken from these articles:
"Many of the aged are gnawed by the fear not that they will die, but that they will die unnoticed by anyone."
"The poor never saved for rainy days because it rained every day of their lives."
Shabby apartments attract the elderly due to their meager incomes.
Most of these people live alone "as do five million of the total U.S. population over 65. Coupled with their sense of uselessness, their solitude breeds despair."
"So, many of the elderly eat what they can get, or afford, not what is good for them.
"Some live mainly on what they can buy from the vending machines in their hotel or apartment lobbies.
"Others eat dog food. 'They can get two meals out of a can,' says Robert Forst."
It may be interesting to note there are over 300 organizations representing the interests of the aged.
I believe the Savior had great insight into problems such as this, for as he describes in his parable of the rich man and Lazarus, Lazarus was laid daily at the gate, "desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs licked his sores." Both examples are pitiful plights of humanity.
Beset by problems, the elderly poor still cling fiercely to their pride; many will not ask relatives for extra help. They don't want to be a burden.
A popular song says:
Paul Simon, "Old Friends"
The Church is not without its fault in the care of the aged. This is not due to the principles or the teachings of the Church, but rather to the shortcomings of its members. I sat in a conference some years ago when Elder Matthew Cowley said, "A mother can take care of seven children, but seven children will not later take care of that same mother." The Church has the solution to all of life's problems. The Savior did not leave us without direction in caring for our wonderful senior Saints. He was our model. You recall his beautiful, compassionate experience with the widow in the city of Nain.
Several years ago we lived in Garden Grove, California. I was a produce supervisor for a large grocery chain. I dropped by home and picked up my young son Lawrence, who was three at the time. We went out to visit a farm to see if we could procure produce for that company. I went into the sheds, examined the produce; then I was told that Jack, the farmer, was in the house. I went to the front door and rang the bell. A little lady, probably 85 years old, white-haired, frail, stood in the doorway.
I said, "Is Jack here?"
"No, he isn't. His father just passed away, and he went to the hospital." And then she began to weep, and I said, "Are you Jack's mother?" She said, "Yes."
"I'm terribly sorry about your husband." And then I was no longer a produce buyer; I was a high priest in the Church, and I said to her, "Do you believe in the resurrection?"
"I guess so."
And then I said, "The Savior said, 'I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.' And 'In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you.'" And I went on with several scriptures about the resurrection.
Then finally as I concluded I said, "Your husband will live again. He will be resurrected." I said, "Do you believe that?" I couldn't tell whether she did or not; I just knew she wasn't comforted. So I said to her, "Do you believe in prayer?"
She said, "I used to pray, but lately if I get down on my knees I can't get back up again. When I do pray, I forget what I'm supposed to pray about. And then when I'm down on my knees and no one comes, I just have to wait until someone does come."
I said, "Would you like Lawrence and me to pray for you?"
She said, "Yes," and opened the door and we went in.
I helped this sweet soul down onto her knees, and then we began to pray. I poured out my soul to the Lord to let a sweet blessing of comfort come to this spirit, to this little soul. About halfway through the prayer I felt a warmth and a peace come into my heart that I knew our prayers were answered.
At the close of the prayer, I stood up and lifted this soul again from her knees. Peace radiated from her face. I held her hands for a moment and looked into her eyes. There was peace there.
Lawrence and I left. She came over and stood in the doorway as we went out and climbed into the car.
Lawrence turned around and looked at her and then he said to me, "Dad, she sure was a sweet old grandma."
Well, there are many sweet old grandmas in the Church, and they love us and they need our love.
Not too long ago I left a Committee of Expenditures meeting, went up to the hospital to administer to a sweet little soul who had been there. As I finished, for some reason I felt impressed and so I said, "I want you to know this hand shook hands with the prophet 15 minutes ago." And she began to weep. And then a little lady across the room said, "Would you mind administering to me with that hand that shook hands with the prophet 15 minutes ago?" And I administered to her, and then a lady in the bed next to her said, "Would you mind administering to me with that hand that shook hands with the prophet a few minutes ago?" And I administered to her.
Let us review the program, the Lord's program, for the care of our senior Saints. First, the responsibility rests with the individual to do all he or she can to be a contributing member of society and of the Church, and give service to friends and children and loved ones. All these give soul satisfaction so needed. When health is sufficient to warrant, the Church provides many blessed opportunities for great service. The rich experience of these loved ones can be of such importance to the Church.
Many can accept calls as couples to fill full-time missions. Others may be called upon to officiate in the temples. Some may visit the temple regularly to do endowment work. Genealogical research is fascinating, stimulating, and fulfilling. Many can and should be called to teach Primary, Sunday School, and Relief Society. Our youth love mature Saints as teachers because they have time to care. Bishops may call the brethren to be home teachers and the sisters to do Relief Society visiting teaching.
Inasmuch as home teaching is never finished, many long-living men may help truly teach us by example what home teachers really should be. The Lord said, "He that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." Our senior Saints may well be called upon to bake and cook or render compassionate service during funerals or other times of stress and need.
Now, second, the family should do all they can do. Those who have mothers and fathers who are confined should care for them by furnishing those soul needs such as love, care, and tenderness. If you recall the words of the epitaph:
So we might also declare to you, try to understand them, try to anticipate their needs. Before you turn the financial responsibility of them over to the Church, state, or government, use every resource you or any member of your family has. Nursing home care provided by the Church was up 411 percent last year.
I believe the Savior would be pleased if we would bring these souls back into our homes, if possible, and if not, to pay the expenses from members of the family. I don't know of any mother or father in the Church who turned their children over to society during those prolonged sicknesses or during those first years of life when it took 24 hours a day to care for the infant child.
Now, third, after the individual and family have used all their resources, then the Church is called in to assist. Let me go back to one thought that came to me. I just talked to a young man the other day, and he said that in his family a grandfather had been very critically ill, had been bedfast and the family tended him during those long hours and, as it were, the man had to wear a diaper. The family changed the diaper regularly. Is that more than he would have done for them? No. We must not forget our family members.
Now to the Church. Welfare services reach into every life in the Church. We are interested in the physical health and emotional welfare of every member. Our beloved aged are a vital segment of the Church. They contribute more to our lives than we would dare to suppose.
For example, I have a sweet Aunt Beryl Hollindrake. She told me that when she was just three or four years old that my great-grandmother, her Grandmother Featherstone, would hold her on her lap and tell her about the Savior, all the beautiful stories. Then she would recall how my great-grandmother would tell her about the Savior's trial and how they beat him and cursed him and spit upon him-how they dragged him and forced him against the cross and drove huge spikes into his hands cruelly. She said, "As my grandmother would tell me these stories, tears would stream down her cheeks." And she said, "It was on the lap of my grandmother that I learned to love the Savior with all my heart and soul."
What a wonderful contribution our grandmothers and grandfathers can make if they will share some of the rich experiences and their testimonies with their children and grandchildren.
When I was stake president, we wanted the lonely, the heartsick, the despairing, even the inactive, young or old, to move into our stake so we would have a greater opportunity to serve.
I have a great friend who, when he was called to be a stake president, canceled the high council Christmas party and had a special Christmas party for the senior Saints in the stake. And then on Christmas morning he would call all of the widows in his stake who had no one who cared.
Edgar A. Guest, in a great understanding of life, wrote many verses about home. Let me just extract a few from his great poem on home:
They may be pleasant memories, and they may not, depending on our care for them.
Stephen Horn, the president of California State University at Long Beach, said, "It is time we revised our concept of the 'old' to 'long-living' and accented not the declining powers of aging but the rising knowledge and experience that results from a long life."
Life can be so full and rich for our beloved senior Saints with snowy crowns. We love you and care for you. You make life so rich and meaningful for us. We pledge to be what we should be in our relationship to you. In James we read:
"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction."
"To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction." It is my prayer that we may be filled with pure love of Christ toward our beloved senior Saints. This is his church. I believe if he were here he would spend much time with them. May we follow in his footsteps. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder O. Leslie Stone
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
We think of the Savior in the early part of his Ministry, high up in the hills overlooking the Sea of Galilee, where in company with his 12 disciples and a multitude of eager listeners, he gave his Sermon on the Mount. An important part of that sermon is known as the Beatitudes. In the few moments assigned to me, I would like to discuss them briefly with you.
The Beatitudes contain the heart of the Master's teachings and show his spirit and way of life. It was his aim to teach his disciples and give them a better understanding of the gospel, because a real disciple of Christ should have a character made up of these traits.
Now, the first of the Beatitudes we find in Matthew 5, verse 3: "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
What is meant by "poor in spirit"? Is it not humility, which renders us teachable and eager to learn? They who feel themselves spiritually poor approach God, asking him to supply their needs. They who have faith in him, learn his laws and try diligently to obey him. They thus become eligible for the great blessings he has promised, including salvation, exaltation, and eternal life, which are the greatest of all the gifts of God.
"Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted."
The mourner shall be comforted when he sees the divine purpose in his grief. The Lord has told us: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
We should always remember the Lord intended that we should have problems to meet and solve as a part of our training in this life to help us prepare for the next phase of our eternal existence.
An unknown author made this statement: "If all suffering and unhappiness could be removed from our lives, what kind of people would we be? I believe it would be impossible to produce strong, noble, generous, compassionate human beings if suffering were eliminated from their lives."
We must not allow ourselves to become embittered in times of mourning and sorrow. We must keep faith and seek comfort from the Lord through prayer. We have his promise that we shall be blessed. Those who are burdened shall be made happy when they learn the real comfort of the gospel through their faith and through their works.
"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."
Meekness is a virtue that can be exercised toward both God and man. The meek are those who are gentle, kind, patient, tolerant; not proud, mighty, or conceited. In Proverbs we read, "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty."
Meekness must not, however, be confused with self-depreciation. Because it involves self-control, it is not a weak, but a heroic quality. Our Savior at all times was willing to submit to the will of God. Even in his moment of agony, he could say, "Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."
"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled."
Those who seek after truth shall be fed in rich abundance. In our modern scripture, the Doctrine and Covenants, section 88, we find this promise: "Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."
We can prove our love of God by radiating righteousness. If we really hunger and thirst after righteousness, then it is our duty to know and to do the will of him who sent us here. By keeping his commandments, we will receive great blessings. Remember, the Lord has told us: "I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."
"Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy."
They that show mercy shall receive mercy.
Someone made this compassionate statement: "There is no better exercise for the heart than to reach down and lift someone up."
The Savior always showed forgiveness and mercy in every situation with which he was confronted. He taught, "Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.
"Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven."
Even on the cross when he was near death, he said, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."
"Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God."
Christ tells us that purity of heart leads to love and knowledge of God. A love of God and of our fellow beings brings purity of character.
In Proverbs we read: "As thinketh in his heart, so is he."
The Prophet Joseph said: "If you wish to go where God is, you must be like God, or possess the principles which God possesses, for if we are not drawing towards God in principle, we are going from him and drawing towards the devil.
"Search your hearts, and see if you are like God. I have searched mine, and I feel to repent of all my sins.
"Is not God good? Then you be good; if He is faithful, then you be faithful. Add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, and seek for every good thing."
He later said: "Be virtuous and pure; be men of integrity and truth; keep the commandments of God; and then you will be able to more perfectly understand the difference between right and wrong-between the things of God and the things of men; and your path will be like that of the just, which shineth brighter and brighter unto the perfect day."
If we strive to be like God, then we will do all we possibly can to cast from our minds and actions all unholy and ungodly things, that our motives will be honorable and our hearts pure.
"Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
Peacemakers are those who try to save themselves and their fellows from strife. Our Heavenly Father delights in peace, and all who seek to bring about peace shall be like God in that respect and shall be called the children of God.
Was not Christ the great peacemaker? He encouraged men to love and understand each other so that they could live together in peace.
The Lord has commanded us to love all men, including our enemies. He expects us to be peacemakers. He asks us to work out a reconciliation in a Christlike manner with those with whom we have difficulties or misunderstandings. It is his will that we should tolerate abuse rather than retaliate in a spirit of anger. It is better to turn the other cheek, to go the extra mile, to give our coat and our cloak also, than to offend.
And the last of the Beatitudes: "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
To the disciples of the Lord, the Lord spoke directly, saying:
"Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
"Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."
Today members of the Church do not often face persecution in the form of physical violence or harm, but perhaps some application can be made to the pressures we may feel from society, particularly the peer group pressures that our young people feel when they live up to the standards of dress and morality set by our present-day leaders. If these young people are prayerful and live the commandments, they will feel good about these high standards and will be able to stand up to criticism.
Our youth should always remember that when they were baptized they took upon themselves the name of Jesus Christ; they can be proud to stand up for his principles and those of our present-day leaders. By so doing they will receive rich rewards in this life and in the eternities to come, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Whenever we live up to the best that is in us, we live up to the principles and the ideals the Savior gave us. To follow him brings peace to the soul.
On one occasion Christ said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." How long? For a day? Should we keep the commandments of the Lord for a week? Should we observe and do his will for a month or a year? To my knowledge, there is no promise to any individual that he shall receive the reward of the just, unless he is faithful to the end. If we fully understand and faithfully carry out in our lives the principles that Jesus taught, we shall be prepared to go back and dwell in the presence of the Father and the Son.
We are most happy when we conform to the teachings Christ gave us. They should be the signals along the road we should follow. In these troubled times we need all the help we can get. It is available to us if we do our part. Great blessings are in store for us if we follow the teachings of our Lord and Savior.
In establishing goals and charting our future course, let us remember the teachings found in the Beatitudes and the commandments the Lord has given us to live by.
May his blessings be with all of us, according to our needs, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bruce R. McConkie
Of the Council of the Twelve
From the pen of Paul, we take this challenge:
"O man of God, follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life."
So wrote our fellow apostle to those who had accepted the Son of God as their Savior, who had taken upon themselves the yoke of Christ, who had covenanted in the waters of baptism to serve him and keep his commandments. And so say we to all those today who have in like manner taken upon themselves the name of Christ and enlisted in the cause of truth and righteousness: Be valiant. Fight a good fight. Stand true. Keep the commandments. Overcome the world.
Speaking of himself and the great warfare with the world which he had won, Paul said:
"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing."
As members of the Church, we are engaged in a mighty conflict. We are at war. We have enlisted in the cause of Christ to fight against Lucifer and all that is lustful and carnal and evil in the world. We have sworn to fight alongside our friends and against our enemies, and we must not be confused in distinguishing friends from foes. As another of our ancient fellow apostles wrote: "Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God."
The great war that rages on every side and which unfortunately is resulting in many casualties, some fatal, is no new thing. There was war even in heaven, when the forces of evil sought to destroy the agency of man, and when Lucifer sought to lead us away from the path of progression and advancement established by an all-wise Father.
That war is continuing on earth, and the devil is still wroth with the Church and goes forth "to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ."
And it is now as it has always been. The Saints can only overcome him and his forces "by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony," and if they love "not their lives unto the death."
Now there neither are nor can be any neutrals in this war. Every member of the Church is on one side or the other. The soldiers who fight in its battles will either, with Paul, come off victorious and win "a crown of righteousness," or they shall, in Paul's language, "be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power" in that day when he comes to take "vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ."
In this war all who do not stand forth courageously and valiantly are by that fact alone aiding the cause of the enemy. "They who are not for me are against me, saith our God."
We are either for the Church or we are against it. We either take its part or we take the consequences. We cannot survive spiritually with one foot in the Church and the other in the world. We must make the choice. It is either the Church or the world. There is no middle ground. And the Lord loves a courageous man who fights openly and boldly in his army.
To certain members of his ancient church, he said:
"I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
"So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." The summer patriot and the sunshine saint retreat when the battle wages fiercely around them. Theirs is not the conqueror's crown. They are overcome by the world.
Members of the Church who have testimonies and who live clean and upright lives, but who are not courageous and valiant, do not gain the celestial kingdom. Theirs is a terrestrial inheritance. Of them the revelation says, "These are they who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown over the kingdom of our God."
As Jesus said, "No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
What is the testimony of Jesus? And what must we do to be valiant therein?
"Be not ashamed of the testimony of our Lord," Paul wrote to Timothy, " but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel." And to the Beloved John came this divine message: "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
The testimony of our Lord! The testimony of Jesus! What a glorious and wondrous concept! It opens the door to glory and honor with the Father and the Son forever! The testimony of Jesus is to believe in Christ, to receive his gospel, and to live his law.
Jesus is the Lord. He is God's own Son who came into the world to ransom us men from the temporal and spiritual death brought upon us by the fall of Adam. Jesus has bought us with his blood. He is the resurrection and the life. He "hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." He is our Savior, our Redeemer, our Advocate with the Father. "There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."
Salvation is in Christ. His is the only name given under heaven whereby this priceless gift may be won. Without him there would be no resurrection and all men would be forever lost. Without him there would be no eternal life, no return to the presence of a gracious Father, no celestial thrones for the saints.
No tongue can tell, no mind can envision, no heart can conceive of all that comes to us because of him. "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing."
Now there can be no perfect testimony of the divine Sonship of Christ and his saving goodness unless and until we receive the fulness of his everlasting gospel. A testimony of the gospel comes by revelation from the Holy Ghost. When the Holy Spirit speaks to the spirit within us, we then know with an absolute conviction of the verity of the revealed message.
A testimony is to know by revelation that Jesus is the Christ; that Joseph Smith and his successors are the revealers of the knowledge of Christ and of salvation for our day; and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kingdom of God on earth, the one place where salvation may be found.
The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. It is a gift of the Spirit. It comes in full measure only to faithful members of the Church. It is reserved for those whose right it is to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. It is the spiritual endowment which sets a man apart as a prophet in fulfillment of the prayer of Moses: "Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!"
Now what does it mean to be valiant in the testimony of Jesus?
It is to be courageous and bold; to use all our strength, energy, and ability in the warfare with the world; to fight the good fight of faith. "Be strong and of a good courage," the Lord commanded Joshua, and then specified that this strength and courage consisted of meditating upon and observing to do all that is written in the law of the Lord. The great cornerstone of valiance in the cause of righteousness is obedience to the whole law of the whole gospel.
To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to "come unto Christ, and be perfected in him"; it is to deny ourselves "of all ungodliness," and "love God" with all our "might, mind and strength."
To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to believe in Christ and his gospel with unshakable conviction. It is to know of the verity and divinity of the Lord's work on earth.
But this is not all. It is more than believing and knowing. We must be doers of the word and not hearers only. It is more than lip service; it is not simply confessing with the mouth the divine Sonship of the Savior. It is obedience and conformity and personal righteousness. "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men." It is to "endure to the end." It is to live our religion, to practice what we preach, to keep the commandments. It is the manifestation of "pure religion" in the lives of men; it is visiting "the fatherless and widows in their affliction" and keeping ourselves "unspotted from the world."
To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to bridle our passions, control our appetites, and rise above carnal and evil things. It is to overcome the world as did he who is our prototype and who himself was the most valiant of all our Father's children. It is to be morally clean, to pay our tithes and offerings, to honor the Sabbath day, to pray with full purpose of heart, to lay our all upon the altar if called upon to do so.
To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to take the Lord's side on every issue. It is to vote as he would vote. It is to think what he thinks, to believe what he believes, to say what he would say and do what he would do in the same situation. It is to have the mind of Christ and be one with him as he is one with his Father.
Our doctrine is clear; its application sometimes seems to be more difficult. Perhaps some personal introspection might be helpful. For instance:
Am I valiant in the testimony of Jesus if my chief interest and concern in life is laying up in store the treasures of the earth, rather than the building up of the kingdom?
Am I valiant if I have more of this world's goods than my just needs and wants require and I do not draw from my surplus to support missionary work, build temples, and care for the needy?
Am I valiant if my approach to the Church and its doctrines is intellectual only, if I am more concerned with having a religious dialogue on this or that point than I am on gaining a personal spiritual experience?
Am I valiant if I am deeply concerned about the Church's stand on who can or who cannot receive the priesthood and think it is time for a new revelation on this doctrine?
Am I valiant if I use a boat, live in a country home, or engage in some other recreational pursuit on weekends that takes me away from my spiritual responsibilities?
Am I valiant if I engage in gambling, play cards, go to pornographic movies, shop on Sunday, wear immodest clothes, or do any of the things that are the accepted way of life among worldly people?
If we are to gain salvation, we must put first in our lives the things of God's kingdom. With us it must be the kingdom of God or nothing. We have come out of darkness; ours is the marvelous light of Christ. We must walk in the light.
Now I don't pretend to be able to read the future, but I have a very strong feeling that conditions in the world are not going to get better. They are going to get worse until the coming of the Son of Man, which is the end of the world, when the wicked will be destroyed.
I think the world is going to get worse, and the faithful portion of the Church, at least, is going to get better. The day is coming, more than ever has been the case in the past, when we will be under the obligation of making a choice, of standing up for the Church, of adhering to its precepts and teachings and principles, of taking the counsel that comes from the apostles and prophets whom God has placed to teach the doctrine and bear witness to the world. The day is coming when this will be more necessary than has ever been the case in our day or at any time in our dispensation.
Now this is the Lord's work. It is God's work. It is our Father's business. His hand is in it. There is nothing in this world that compares in any way in importance with the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the power of God unto salvation, and if we will walk and live and be and move and breathe and think the gospel and its cause, always and everlastingly, then we can have peace and joy and happiness in this life and we can go on to eternal glory in the life to come.
We teach and we testify. We have here this day taught eternal principles of truth; and whenever we teach by the power of the Holy Spirit, it becomes our prerogative to bear witness and testimony that the doctrines we have proclaimed are true and that if men will abide by and conform to them, all the blessings that a gracious Father desires to confer upon them will be theirs.
I bear witness of the truth of the doctrines that have been proclaimed and testify anew that Jesus is the Lord, that salvation is in him, that his is the only name under heaven whereby we may be saved in God's kingdom.
God grant us the wisdom and vision and determination, the valiance and courage, to fight manfully in his army and to be, as President George Albert Smith so graphically expressed it, "on the Lord's side of the line." In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brothers and sisters and friends, I invite you to join with me in a prayer that I may enjoy the Spirit of the Lord while I speak and that you may enjoy it while you listen. I am going to talk about some of the very fundamentals of the gospel of Jesus Christ of great importance, and I will use considerable scripture which we'll have to have the Spirit to help us appreciate.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints affirms as its Third Article of Faith:
"We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel."
In these remarks I shall set forth some views of the church of Jesus Christ on this subject.
Saved as here used means resurrected and returned as a sanctified, celestialized, immortal soul to the presence and society of God, there to pursue an endless course of eternal progress.
To get a glimpse of what this means requires a knowledge of the form and nature of God and of man and their relationship to each other.
Man is a soul, that is, a dual being, a spirit person clothed in a tangible body of flesh and bones. God is a perfected, saved soul enjoying eternal life. He is both immortal and exalted to the highest glory. He is enjoying that blessed condition which men may attain to by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.
The Almighty is not alone in his eternal glory. Myriads of saved souls enjoy his society. Family relationships prevail there; spirit offspring are born there; our spirits were born there. Modern revelation affirms the fact that all the inhabitants of the worlds are the "begotten sons and daughters unto God." God our Heavenly Father is in fact and reality the father of our spirits. We are "his offspring" as Paul declared in his great speech on Mars' hill.
God the Father is an immortal soul. Man is not yet an immortal soul. He is a human mortal soul subject to death. Man's body will upon death return to the earth from whence it sprang, and the spirit of man-what happens to it? Many people have pondered this all-important question. Shakespeare raised and commented upon it when he put into the mouth of Hamlet his famous "To be, or not to be" speech.
Hamlet, 3, i, 56, 60–82
Shakespeare in these lines dramatically poses the question as to what happens to man's spirit after death, but he leaves it unanswered. He did not know that the Lord had given a direct answer to the question.
About 75 years B.C. there lived in America a prophet of God by the name of Alma who was so concerned about what happens to the souls of men after death that he sought the Lord in prayer with such mighty faith that the Lord sent an angel who revealed to him that "the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, are taken home to that God who gave them life.
"And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.
"And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked shall be cast out into outer darkness;
" this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them; thus they remain in this state, as well as the righteous in paradise, until the time of their resurrection."
The Church accepts this scripture as a statement of fact.
These words of Alma presume a literal, universal resurrection such as declared by Paul when he wrote to the Corinthians:
"As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."
The Church believes the scriptural doctrine that Jesus Christ through his victory over death opened the grave for himself not only but for all mankind. It believes that the resurrection is an indispensable step on the way to salvation.
The Church also accepts the scriptural doctrine that following the resurrection each person-then an immortal soul-will be arraigned before the bar of God's justice and receive a final judgment based on his performance during his mortal probation, that the verdict will turn on obedience or disobedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel. If these laws and ordinances have been complied with during mortal life, the candidate will be cleansed from the stain of sin by the atoning blood of Jesus Christ and be saved in the celestial kingdom of God, there to enjoy with God eternal life. Those who have not complied with the laws and ordinances of the gospel will receive a lesser reward.
Alma speaks of this final judgment as follows:
"And then shall the righteous shine forth in the kingdom of God.
"But behold, an awful death cometh upon the wicked; and they drink the dregs of a bitter cup."
In about 550 B.C. an earlier American prophet treated this whole subject of how "through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel" in such a masterful fashion that I have chosen to conclude these remarks with a rather long quotation from his record. It will take about six minutes to listen to it, but it will be well worth our time.
The reward for understanding and implementing what I will read will be eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God. Addressing his brethren, he said:
"I know that ye have searched much, many of you, to know of things to come; wherefore I know that ye know that our flesh must waste away and die; nevertheless, in our bodies we shall see God.
"Yea, I know that ye know that in the body he shall show himself unto those at Jerusalem from whence we came; for it is expedient that it should be among them; for it behooveth the great Creator that he suffereth himself to become subject unto man in the flesh, and die for all men, that all men might become subject unto him.
"For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfil the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of transgression; and because man became fallen they were cut off from the presence of the Lord.
"Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement-save it should be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more.
"O the wisdom of God, his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no more our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the Eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more.
"And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself;
"And because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, death, which is temporal, shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave.
"And death which is spiritual shall deliver up its dead; which spiritual death is hell; wherefore, death and hell must deliver up their dead, and hell must deliver up its captive spirits, and the grave must deliver up its captive bodies, and the bodies and the spirits of men will be restored one to the other; and it is by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel.
"O how great the plan of our God! For the spirit and the body is restored to itself again, and all men become incorruptible, and immortal, and they are living souls, having a perfect knowledge like unto us in the flesh, save it be that our knowledge shall be perfect.
"Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.
"And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God.
"And assuredly, as the Lord liveth, they who are righteous shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy shall be filthy still; and their torment is as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever and has no end.
"But, behold, the righteous, the saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it, they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever.
"O the greatness of the mercy of our God, the Holy One of Israel! For he delivereth his saints from that awful monster the devil, and death, and hell, and that lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment.
"O how great the holiness of our God!
"And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam.
"And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day.
"And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God."
On the other hand, those who will "repent and believe in his name, and be baptized in his name, and endure to the end" shall be saved.
Such, my beloved brothers and sisters and friends, is the way prescribed by the Lord in which all may obey the laws and ordinances of the gospel and thereby be saved through the atonement of Christ.
I bear you my personal witness to the truth of these teachings and to the further fact that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ's church established, endowed with the authority, and commissioned by him to teach and administer the saving principles and ordinances of his gospel to all mankind.
In all humility, kindness, love, and sincerity, we invite you to carefully listen to and prayerfully investigate our message. If you will do so, you shall receive a like witness and be on your way to salvation, to being saved in the kingdom of God. That it may be so with all of us, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton
Of the Council of the Twelve
One warm evening during the past summer months Sister Ashton and I enjoyed a professional baseball game. During the early part of the competition our attention was diverted from the action by a late arriver. As he walked by, he spotted me and asked, "Who's losing?" I responded with, "Neither one." Following my answer, I noticed that he glanced at the right-field scoreboard, saw the game wasn't tied, and walked on, undoubtedly wondering about me.
Seconds after he made his way to a distant seat, Sister Ashton said, "He doesn't know you very well, does he?" "What makes you say that?" I replied. She responded with, "If he did, he would know you don't believe anyone is losing. Some are ahead and some are behind, but no one is losing. Isn't that right?" I smiled in approval with a warm feeling inside.
All of us, young and old, will do well to realize that attitude is more important than the score. Desire is more important than the score. Momentum is more important than the score. The direction in which we are moving is more important than position or place.
The truth "For as thinketh in his heart, so is he" is as applicable today as any time in history. I remember years ago meeting a young man who had tattooed on his body the words "A BORN LOSER." I don't think you will be surprised to learn that I met him in a state prison.
I also remember once asking two young boys if they could swim. One said, "No." The other, "I don't know. I've never tried." Unknowingly, perhaps, their attitudes were showing.
Proper attitude in this crisis-dominated world is a priceless possession. Never before is it more important for all of us to move forward with conviction. We may be behind, but we are not losing if we are moving in the right direction. God will not score our performances until the end of the journey. He who made us expects us to be victorious. He stands by anxious to answer our call for help. Sad but true, many today are behind in their contacts with God and encouraging destructive attitudes toward self and fellowmen. We need to lead with good cheer, optimism, and courage if we are to move onward and upward.
The truths "And in everything give thanks" and "Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things" and "He who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious" are not only recommended tools of appreciation, but are powerful attitude guidelines prescribing rewarding patterns. Think of the personal challenge to thank God in all things. If we thank God in all things, we will not permit ourselves to get behind. We must work each day to beat yesterday's record, not someone else's. With His help we can accomplish all things and be winners indeed in the processes of eternity.
We must strive for an ingrained attitude of self-confidence that will make us believers in self. How important it is in all our lives to develop an appropriate balance of confidence and humility. Proper self-confidence lets every man know there is a spark of divinity within waiting to be nurtured in meaningful growth. Proper attitude enables us to live in harmony with our potentials.
We must beware of pride. An egotist will never get anywhere in this world because he thinks he's already there. Someone has said egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity. Egotism can be cancerous to the soul.
The attitude with which we approach each day controls the outcome. We must be more concerned with what we do with what happens to us than what happens to us. Proper attitude toward self is an eternal pursuit. Positive personal attitude will insist that we deliver our best, even though less might seem adequate for the moment. Proper attitude demands we be realistic-even tough with ourselves and self-disciplining.
Let me share with you a verse from a 19th-century writer, Josiah Gilbert Holland. The bust of Dr. Holland is in the Hall of Fame and beneath is this powerful verse which he wrote entitled "Wanted."
Proper attitude is a prerequisite to quality performance. We need men with the courage to put proper attitudes into action. We need more men today with patience and purposeful endurance. We need more men with the fearless conviction of a Joseph Smith, a Harold B. Lee, a Spencer W. Kimball, as he so courageously and fearlessly declared and exhibited in his keynote address. Joseph Smith-we may thrill in his attitude as I share these lines with you. His majesty and his attitude ring through.
"So it was with me. I had actually seen a light, and in the midst of that light I saw two Personages, and they did in reality speak to me; and though I was hated and persecuted for saying that I had seen a vision, yet it was true; and while they were persecuting me, reviling me, and speaking all manner of evil against me falsely for so saying, I was led to say in my heart: Why persecute me for telling the truth? I have actually seen a vision; and who am I that I can withstand God, or why does the world think to make me deny what I have actually seen? For I had seen a vision; I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it, neither dared I do it; at least I knew that by so doing I would offend God, and come under condemnation."
Another important ingredient of proper attitude is resilience, the ability to cope with change. Adaptability cushions the impact of change or disappointment. Love can be a great shock absorber as we adjust in trials and tragedy.
We constantly need to build hope in ourselves and those about us. We need to personally make dark days bright ones. Isn't it a joy, a lift, a light to see someone with heavy challenges and burdens moving forward to victory in the only contest that really matters. Hope makes it possible for us to know that even in temporary failure or setback there is always a next time, even a tomorrow.
One of the greatest tragedies of our time is children of God-you and I-living and performing below our capabilities. Strength and courage come when we realize "come and follow me" was given by a loving Savior of hope and trust who extended the invitation to us without regard as to where we are or have been. His was the perfect example. His was the perfect attitude. His was the perfect life. He would be true to his calling at whatever the cost. His labors, his life, and his teachings are cherished possessions. Our pathways are clearly marked, thanks to his steps. His experiences are our strengths. I have said many times to our missionaries, "It is not so important whether a young man has been through the experience of a mission as it is whether the mission experience has been through him."
Though he, Jesus, were a Son busily engaged in his Father's business, he was never too busy to assist a troubled mother, a sick man, a friend, a little child. These attitudes, these services were but outward evidence of inward greatness. As we too learn to serve as did he, we learn to live abundantly. A proper attitude helps us find God through service to his children.
Nazareth was little and looked down upon. It bore the brunt of ridicule. It had not been the scene of historic achievement. It had produced no winners: "Can any good come out of Nazareth?" His attitude, his works, his life had lifted the little village out of obscurity. "Jesus of Nazareth" the world later called him, bringing honor to a once-despised town.
Once rejected by his own, the will, the way, and the work would yet identify him as King of kings and Lord of lords. He experienced scorn, ridicule, and abuse, but victory and triumph were his because he was busily engaged in good works. To those who would destroy, defeat, discourage, he taught truth shall triumph. To those who would desecrate his temples, he fearlessly declared, "It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves." His words and actions in this circumstance were yet but another evidence of character, conviction, courage, and proper attitude.
Every person in the world who loves courageous performance and appreciates proper attitude should read and reread the final chapters of his life. He lived, this Prince of Peace, in true majesty. His home town scorned his achievements. Some of his disciples had turned away. His enemies were about to triumph. What was his attitude? Was it complaint, faultfinding, retaliation, defeat? Never! His majestic words were, "Let not your heart be troubled"; "I have overcome the world."
In the final week of his life cries turned from "Hosanna" to "Crucify." Unwavering courage carried him onward and upward triumphantly. The honest in heart would yet know what he stood for and why he must die. Final scenes from the last week of his earthly life unfold before us lessons in attitude greatness. Learn with me more of his courage and divinity as we see him continue faithfully to the end in those trying days. Recall with me the Last Supper with his disciples, a visit to the Garden for high communion with his Father, a victory signal following the battle, and the crucifixion sight with soldiers appearing on the scene. When they boldly confronted him, prepared for resistance and rebellion, they were greeted with, "Whom seek ye? I am he", he answered proudly. On a barren hill not far beyond the city wall he was nailed to a cross. As he suffered his cruel crucifixion, no doubt there were witnesses and spectators who observed with their limited perspective, "He is losing. He is confined. He is defeated." How wrong they were and how wrong they are. Jesus of Nazareth a loser? Never! He is our Savior, our Redeemer, a winner, a Son of God.
He this day would have us permanently adopt the attitude of conviction and commitment so movingly expressed in verse seven of our hymn, "How Firm a Foundation":
Hymns, no. 66
What a pleasure it is for me, brothers and sisters, to bear special witness to his reality, his strength, his divinity, and his earthly purposes. This is his church. This is his gospel. This is his plan for those who would conquer self, continue faithfully, and be victorious. I bear testimony to these truths in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Rex D. Pinegar
Of the First Council of the Seventy
My beloved brothers and sisters, I'm sure we all echoed with the choir "Thanks Be to God" for the opportunity we have to be gathered today under the direction of a prophet, Spencer W. Kimball.
My family and I have recently returned from Virginia, where it has been my great privilege to preside over a mission of the Church for the past three years. Observing the diligence and faith of the missionaries has brought to me a greater realization of the blessings that accompany those who continue to serve the Lord in righteousness. I'm grateful to the Lord for the calling I now have which permits me to continue to serve in missionary service.
This privilege was even more keenly felt when one of my recently returned missionaries confided in me a dilemma at returning home. This fine young man had served well his entire mission. He had demonstrated faith and courage under difficult circumstances. Now he faces the challenge of maintaining his missionary zeal and spirit in the surroundings of home where more subtle opposition may exist.
After telling me what a great family he had and how well they had supported him during his missionary service, he posed a problem. He said, "The only big thing that is really bothering me about being home and being around the family is that my family is one that likes to do a lot of hunting. Now that used to be a great thing for me, but now it is a lot different, mainly because it means the family will be expecting me to go hunting with them on Sundays. So I am faced with a big decision right off the bat. I really don't want to go hunting on Sunday, but I don't want to upset my family because of it. Any counsel would surely be appreciated." He went on to assure me that he knew his family did not desire nor intend to ask him to do wrong. Hunting was just a longstanding activity.
The counsel I would give to my missionary, and to others who may be faced with the decision to continue or not to continue a righteous course, is to recall the experience of Oliver Cowdery. Oliver had begun his labors in the kingdom with a faithful and humble service. The Lord rewarded him by giving him the gift of translation. He told Oliver of marvelous contributions he could make toward enlightening the people if he would continue faithfully in his efforts. Later when Oliver attempted to translate, he failed. The Lord told Oliver it was "because that you did not continue as you commenced." Oliver had not continued in his righteous efforts, and the gift was taken from him.
Simply stated, the Lord's counsel to one who has "commenced" properly and faithfully is, "Continue as you have commenced." We could follow the example of Nephi, a son of Helaman, who after laboring diligently to teach and live righteously, had decided to give up and return home because the people refused to accept his counsel and to repent. As he approached his home, the voice of the Lord came to him. The Lord reminded Nephi of the blessings that would result from the unwearyingness with which he had labored and taught the people and with which he had kept the commandments of God. With renewed vigor and determination, Nephi turned from his home and returned to his labors to continue as he had commenced.
There is also the enlightening experience which Enos had. He helps us to understand the blessing of building upon and following the teachings of righteous parents. Enos described his father as a "just man-for he taught me in his language, and also in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart." The continual teachings of a just father caused Enos' soul to hunger, and he went before the Lord in mighty prayer and supplication for his own soul.
Enos had also learned the value of continuing in righteousness, for he tells us that he prayed all day long, "and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens." His continuous and fervent humble prayer resulted in a marvelous declaration from on high: "And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed."
Enos had built upon the righteous teachings of his father as the base for his own search for the Lord. He had continued as he commenced.
To continue means more than to endure or to tolerate something. It means to maintain a steady course of action with unshaken faith in Christ. It means to be a true follower of Christ.
"Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed.
"And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free."
To continue means to press forward.
"And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this straight and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.
"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."
To continue in righteousness takes personal courage and strength of commitment. We must recognize that there is an opposing force to that which is right. Sometimes hardships come our way or fatigue dims our vision in decision making. It may be a selfish motive or a carnal desire that needs to be overcome before we can continue. In every situation, however, the answer which leads to happiness is to press forward. President Kimball has assured us that when we have done all we can do in a situation, the Lord "will find a way to open doors."
A pair of lady missionaries spent an entire week striving to open the doors of people's hearts in a small town. They met rejection and ridicule at almost every door. After a particularly difficult day, they returned to their apartment dejected and tired. They were not sure they could continue in the face of such opposition. After much discussion and prayer, they retired for the night, determined that on the morrow they would return once more to their area to continue their labors. The next morning they pleaded again with the Lord for strength to face the challenges of the day. That day nearly every family they called on welcomed their message. The Lord blessed their continued efforts and faith and opened the doors of homes and hearts to the message of restoration.
A home teacher continued faithfully to visit a certain family for seven years before the father in that home responded to the invitation to become actively involved in the Church.
One young husband decided to find out for himself if the Church were true. He had observed the uplifting changes brought into the lives of his wife and children, who had joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints six years previously. He obtained a copy of the Book of Mormon and began reading. At first he felt nothing, but he continued to read. He remembered that he should pray as he read-that was the counsel the missionaries had given. For the next six evenings he continued to read and to pray. He continued to plead with the Lord to let him know the truths contained in these scriptures.
Two more evenings he continued, and then a deeply spiritual experience began to unfold. He found himself listening as he read. It was as though he were hearing the characters in the story speak rather than verbalizing the printed word himself. He continued to pray and to study. At the close of the tenth evening, he stated that he was now hearing the voices of the characters and feeling the spirit of their messages.
His continued effort brought him near to the Lord in his search for truth; he then received a testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon.
A noble wife continued for 37 years to teach her children to honor their father, for she promised that he would one day honor his priesthood. This promise was realized, and he became a diligent and faithful follower of the Lord.
Our faithful pioneers sang, "Press on, press on" as they continued their difficult and trying journey to Utah. The youth of the Church today sing, "Carry on, carry on" in the face of modern trials.
There are many, many examples of those who have received blessings through continuing in righteousness. There are also numberless examples of those who have been denied the Lord's blessings because they turn from righteous paths and do that which is wrong.
May the Lord bless each of us with the strength, courage, and faith to continue what we commence in righteousness. I testify to you that God lives. May we each follow the counsel of the Lord to continue in righteousness ourselves, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Robert L. Simpson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, I am grateful for this opportunity and for the spirit of the testimonies that have been borne here this morning.
Just a couple of weeks ago I was passing through the Salt Lake airport and had a less-than-five-minute contact with a young man that impressed me very much. During our brief contact he found out about my affiliation with the Church. He found out that the yellow pad that I had in my hand was in preparation for some thoughts to give at the Saturday morning session of general conference.
I observed a tenderness between him and his wife and his three children. And I knew that he was a man with deep spiritual sensitivity. But having only three or four minutes to chat, as I boarded my aircraft, I discovered that I didn't know his name, I didn't have his address. But I want you to know that much of what I say this morning is because I know he is listening to this particular session of conference.
We are met here this morning hopefully that we might communicate well about the Lord Jesus Christ, because incorporated in his precious teachings are the most urgent, the most important, and the most vital of all information pertaining to the ultimate happiness and eternal destiny of man.
I earnestly seek his divine help and guidance that the intent of my heart will not be misunderstood, and perhaps our communication can be like the prophet Isaiah when he said, "Come now, and let us reason together"; and this for one purpose only, that we might all be blessed more abundantly.
As I proceed now to share these few thoughts with you, I declare with the apostle Paul as he taught the saints of Rome:
"I am ready to preach the gospel to you.
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation."
Then he concluded, "It is the power of God to every one that believeth."
And I promise you that the Holy Ghost stands ever ready to bear witness to all who earnestly seek the truth that they might recognize that truth.
A Protestant minister who was somewhat perturbed about losing some of his parishioners to the Mormon Church asked one of our missionaries: "Why do you proselyte amongst my people? They are all good Christians. You should be spending your time with the heathen nations." And the reply came: "If you, sir, knew for certain that God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ had shown themselves and spoken again in this time of the world's history, restoring vital information and also restoring true priesthood authority to man, would you be able to remain silent?"
No man could, and so it is with some 18,000 young men and young women throughout the world today who seek the singular privilege of sharing with as many as will pause to listen, that in very deed God the Father and his Son did appear to a young lad in this day and age, all of which was preliminary to the second coming of the Lord and Savior as foretold by the prophets.
These same missionaries proclaim to the world that, following this remarkable visitation by two members of the Godhead, priesthood authority was restored to the earth through special heavenly messengers. Who else but John the Baptist would be better qualified for the honor of restoring the Aaronic Priesthood, the authority to baptize by immersion? For it was he whom the Savior sought out when the Savior felt the need to establish the example of baptism by immersion and by proper authority.
Who else but the apostles Peter, James, and John would be more appropriate or better qualified to restore the Melchizedek Priesthood just a few weeks later? Yes, those same great apostles who walked and talked with the Savior during his brief ministry, returned to earth for a specific purpose in our time.
Yes, with all of the soberness of my soul, I declare that God's house is a house of order. His holy purposes are not carried out by man's whim or fancy but, rather, in this church which bears his name, sacred ordinances can only be performed by proper authority. We agree with Paul that "no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron." Priesthood authority of the Lord Jesus Christ was restored by John the Baptist, by Peter, James, and John in the spring of 1829.
Since the reestablishment of the Lord's true church 144 years ago, there has been a driving compulsion among the members of the Church to share their good feeling with their neighbors, with their friends, and abroad. "Every member a missionary" has become a byword in this Church, as thousands can be found throughout the free world bearing witness, explaining the restoration, and radiating the Spirit of Christ unto all who will listen.
Words can hardly convey the joy and the fulfillment that accompany conversion to the truth, all made possible by the miracle of forgiveness, as repentance paves the way for baptism.
May I invite you to participate on a rapid world tour as we glimpse quickly at just a sample or two of what is happening everywhere as this great latter-day missionary momentum rolls forth.
I am thinking, first of all, of a South Pacific family of 14 whose family unit had been so badly broken through parental indifference and irresponsible acts that four of the older children were in reform school and three youngsters were in foster-home custody. Today you will find a solid family unit headed by parents who have goals, proper discipline, and great love for their children, who have been sealed to them for eternity in the temple of God. The two oldest boys are full-time missionaries, striving to bring the same hope to many others. All of this because a desperate father, contemplating suicide, listened to two young men-one 19 and the other 20-and he believed what they told him.
Not long ago I listened to this testimony from a black man nearing the end of a long prison sentence: "I found the truth behind these prison bars," he said. "There has been plenty of time to study and to think. My one ambition now is to qualify for baptism, after my debt to society has been paid, and then go back home to Mississippi to tell my people about this great church."
While winging across the South Pacific, an airline stewardess asked me and my wife if we were Mormons after our third serving of milk. Receiving a positive answer, she said with a radiance we shall never forget: "I can hardly wait to get back to California after this trip because I am scheduled for the third discussion from the missionaries, and I already know that it is true." Yes, she was baptized. She found a young man to match her faith. They have a beautiful little family. They're on their way.
May I introduce you to a successful young executive who writes: "Our family had it made. My wife and I were close, the three children were well adjusted, and then it happened. Jeff and Angela started to attend Primary with the neighbor's children. From then on each Primary day our dinner hour became an instant replay of Primary. As parents, we couldn't believe the great thoughts and attitudes-yes, and 'a little child shall lead them.' Well, that was the beginning,, and now after two years as members of the Lord's true church, we really do have it made. Our family didn't really know what family unity and true happiness were all about until Mormonism came into our family circle."
One woman in a South American country, intrigued by the sincerity of the Mormon missionaries, invited them back to meet the family that evening. But unfortunately her husband did not share her feelings, and the young men were greeted by a note on the door turning them away. She fasted and prayed that the Lord might intercede. And you know, it was just about six weeks later that the husband told her about two fine young men he had met on the bus coming home. He arranged for them to share their message with the family, and all six were baptized. It was not until then that the wife explained that these were the same two young men whom she had tried to introduce him to earlier. "God moves in a mysterious way his wonders to perform."
Most people agree that Mormons are happy people, Mormons are stable people, and Mormons are dedicated people. Mormons are trustworthy people, and Mormons are healthy people. And yet I hear you saying, "Ah, but I know a Mormon who does thus and so." My testimony to you today is that if you know a Mormon who is doing wrong, it is not because of his religious teachings. It is in spite of his religious teachings, and we sincerely hope that he will repent soon, for where much is given, much is expected.
"Try me and see," says the Lord. Whether your life be racked with profound problems or whether you think you have it made, I declare with total confidence that your life can only find genuine and lasting fulfillment in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
Why not use the same formula suggested by the Savior to test the truth of his church? My witness to you here today is the same as his declaration to a group of well-meaning critics 2,000 years ago, when he said:
"My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
I declare in all kindness and sincerity that your eternal life and the salvation of your family depend upon what happened in the life of Joseph Smith, a prophet of God. May you find out soon is my humble prayer in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Of the Council of the Twelve
I would like at this time to express the deep appreciation I feel, and I am sure all of you feel, for the magnificent leadership of President Kimball. He thrills us; he thrills me and I am sure he thrills you. He is a mighty man of God, and yet he is so humble. He has the common touch; we all love him very much. And I am sure that I may speak for everyone of you in saying to him this day how grateful we are for his leadership and that we uphold and sustain him with all our hearts and all our souls. President Kimball, we are grateful for your leadership.
I have a friend whose name is Kenneth. He has a lovely wife and four young children and is a good citizen and a generous provider.
His family is united. They do things together, go places together, have fun together. Some people may wonder what more they possibly could have. But they do lack one thing-and it is a serious deficiency. They do not have that something which could make their happiness and togetherness permanent.
They are so satisfied with the present that they never have considered the possibility that someday it may all stop and that they won't have this happiness, this togetherness, any longer and that their present enjoyment may become but a pleasant memory.
Kenneth and his wife, Lucille, are good people, honest and upright. They don't go to church, though, and they feel they can be good enough without it. They teach their children honesty and virtue and they tell themselves that is about all the Church would do for them.
And, anyway, they insist that they need their weekends for family recreation. Saturdays and Sundays are the only days Kenneth has free from his work, so church-going would really get in their way and would be an obstacle to their plans for each weekend-so they tell themselves.
I would like now to talk to Kenneth and his family, and to all other families in similar circumstances. So, Kenneth, let us counsel together for a few moments.
We know that your love for your family is truly great. But it can be even greater. You know that life is uncertain and that the good things you enjoy now might not and probably cannot go on forever.
Do you recall Ralph Stewart who worked at the same place where you are employed? Do you remember the accident that left him a cripple and that eventually took his life? What became of the togetherness of his family? Where is their weekend recreation now?
Oh, I know that you don't like to bring up unpleasant things. And yet you are a realist and usually you do look things squarely in the face. Why not look at your family situation that way?
Recently I passed a beautiful stone church. In front of it was a neat little bulletin board announcing the pastor's sermon topic for the next Sunday and asking the question "Where are you going to spend eternity?"
It made me stop and think and reminded me of a few years back when I was in the Dulles airport near Washington, D.C., with Elder Richard L. Evans. We watched the people hurrying by, some running for planes, others looking for taxis or friends to take them somewhere else.
Brother Evans looked at them and then at me and asked, "Where do they think they are really going?"
But like you, Kenneth, they weren't giving that subject any attention. Now I ask you: Where are you really going? Where is your family going? Are you always going to have fun? Are you always going to be together like you are now? Do you ever think of eternity?
We used to sing in Sunday School a hymn with words that went like this:
Another verse reads:
Hymns, no. 194
It is a good old song, and it kept our attention on the very thing that you seem now to have forgotten.
Kenneth, there is an eternity. I'm sure you already believe that. And there is a God in heaven who is our eternal Father. You believe that too. But what are we doing to assure a proper place for ourselves in that eternity?
I think that we must all accept the fact that whereas God is a most merciful Father-infinitely so-he also is a just God. And do you recall what he wants of us?
He hopes that we will all become like him, just as the Savior commanded in his Sermon on the Mount. As the children of God, we have within us the full capability of becoming like him. Isn't it natural for children to become like their parents? But we can't become like him merely through wishful thinking, nor even by being what we ourselves may call good.
He has his own plan for us to follow, and it alone will assure us the desired results. It is a formula for success both in this life and the life to come. Unless we follow it, we restrict ourselves. It is that way in everything else, isn't it? Do you remember when you studied chemistry in school? What happened if you didn't follow the formula in a laboratory experiment? Do you remember also in school that you were required to follow the curriculum or you couldn't graduate? It is the same with eternity. We have to follow the Lord's formula, which is his gospel.
If we do, we may always have this togetherness which you now enjoy in your family, and neither death nor the resurrection will prevent it. Wouldn't you like that?
But the Lord knows that perfection cannot come by imperfect means, and therefore he gives us his perfect formula, with the warning-such as we also were given in school-that unless we follow it, unless we fully accept his plan, we cannot receive the blessing.
Let us note just a few things which he has said, keeping in mind that he cannot violate his own rules. Obedience is a part of greatness. It is only good sense to comply with divine law.
Let us read a few of the things he has told us about obedience. Said the Savior to the Nephites:
"Come unto me and be ye saved; for verily I say unto you, that except ye shall keep my commandments, which I have commanded you at this time, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."
Stop and think what those words can mean to you and your family. Study them. Ponder over them. They are most serious-"except ye shall keep my commandments, which I have commanded you at this time, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."
In the early history of our church the Savior gave a revelation in which he said essentially the same thing: "Keep my commandments continually. And except thou do this, where I am you cannot come."
Kenneth, you have received the priesthood. To those who are thus ordained the Lord gives great promises for the future, but he sets up a condition in these words: "You shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."
Don't you see that if we are going to spend eternity with the Lord, we have to earn that privilege by doing what he asks of us? If we are going to spend eternity with him, we must become like him and so must our wives and our children. But we only become like him by keeping his commandments, by being in his church and following his program. Don't you see that the program of the Church is really the plan of salvation, the way by which we develop those Christlike traits that make us like him?
If we were not like him and if it were possible under those circumstances to be in his presence, we would feel completely out of place, wouldn't we? But, of course, to come to him in that way is impossible.
To develop traits of character like his is not without effort. We must realize that it is a process of growth and comes only by making his gospel a way of life.
We cannot be halfhearted about it either. We must serve him with all our heart, might, mind, and soul. And we must remember too that being active in the Church is a part of his gospel. The Lord said emphatically: "Every person who belongeth to this church of Christ, shall observe to keep all the commandments and covenants of the church."
We are told that we shall reap as we sow. This is the law of the harvest. If we sow wheat on our farms here on earth, we grow wheat. If, in our character building, we sow the seeds of righteousness, we shall reap that kind of harvest. So as the Lord himself said: "Whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap; therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward."
It works out like this, for example: The Lord said, "If ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you." And he added: "With what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again."
In other words, if we here and now plan for family togetherness in the hereafter, when we arrive there we shall have it. But if we make no effort in that direction, we forfeit the blessing.
Let me ask you, Kenneth: Where do you want your wife to spend eternity? Where your children? Do you want to keep them together with you forever? Or do you plan on a separation sometime?
Do you want your wife to spend eternity bereft of husband and children because you held back in mortality?
Do you want your children to spend eternity as orphans, without family ties to father and mother, because you held back in mortality?
Don't you realize that what you do affects the eternal life of both your wife and your children? You recall that generally children follow the examples of their parents. The pattern you set may determine whether they shall believe in God, whether they shall serve him, and whether they shall have clean or unclean habits. Then, in turn, they will similarly influence their own children-your grandchildren. So you see that what you do now can affect your descendants for generations to come.
What is it you want for them? The best, or something less?
Isn't it time now for you to solidify your relationship with God-for your own sake, for your wife's sake, and for the sake of your children and grandchildren?
We all want family happiness, but there is no happiness in disobedience nor in ignoring God. Why follow worldly ways? They never bring soul satisfaction. And they are costly too. We can never forget that-
James Russell Lowell, The Vision of Sir Launfal
To obtain the eternal togetherness of which we speak, a temple marriage is required. It is frightening to think of the alternative, for if we reject it the Lord says we cannot be enlarged in the world to come, but rather we shall remain separately and singly, without our togetherness, through all eternity.
President Spencer W. Kimball discussed this matter one day and among other things said:
"Are you willing to jeopardize your eternities, your great continuing happiness, your privilege to see God and dwell in his presence? For the want of investigation and study and contemplation; or because of prejudice, misunderstanding, or lack of knowledge, are you willing to forego these great blessings and privileges?
"Are you willing to make yourself a widow for eternity or a widower for endless ages, a single, separate individual to live alone and to serve others? Are you willing to give up your children when they die or when you expire, and make them orphans? Are you willing to go through eternity alone and solitary when all of the greatest joys you have ever experienced in life could be 'added upon' and accentuated, multiplied, and eternalized? Are you willing to ignore and reject these truths?"
And then our great President said: "Our friends, please do not ignore this call. I beg of you, open your eyes and see; unstop your ears and hear."
So now, Kenneth, I ask you one other question: Does the parable of the Ten Virgins mean anything to you? Half were wise and half were foolish. The wise ones prepared for the future; the foolish did not and were shut out of the Lord's presence, while the wise ones who had prepared were received by him.
With President Kimball, I appeal to you, Kenneth, and to all the Kenneths everywhere, and to their families, to accept the Lord's bidding, serve him, and earn your place with him in eternity.
The Savior's promise is great if we do, for he said:
"He that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
"And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him."
And that this may be our happy privilege, I earnestly pray in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder LeGrand Richards
Of the Council of the Twelve
I am very happy, brothers and sisters, to be privileged to share this wonderful conference with you and I have enjoyed the music immensely at all sessions and the talks of my brethren. In your presence this day I would like to humbly express my love for my Father in heaven and for his Son, Jesus Christ, who gave his life as an atoning sacrifice for us, and also for his restored gospel which gives us such a wonderful pattern of life to live by and such hope for the eternities that are to come when our work here upon this earth is completed.
I would like to express my love for the Saints as I travel through the Church and in the missions and see those at the Mission Home, and as I feel the faith of the people. We thank God for the great outpouring of his Spirit that is causing the great growth and development of the Church throughout the world today. I thank him for our noble leadership, for President Kimball and his counselors. I love them, and the people love them because they are truly our Father's servants.
I thought today that I would like to direct what I have to say to those parents who have lost children in death before they reached maturity and could enter into the covenant of marriage and have their own children here upon this earth. I reckon that there aren't many families who haven't had that experience.
I think of the thousands of our boys who have lost their lives on the battlefields of their various countries. I think of our boys who have died in the mission field. While I was president of the Netherlands Mission, I held one of those wonderful missionaries in my arms as he passed on to eternal glory.
I think of the many wonderful, faithful women who never have an opportunity to marry here in mortality because they are not willing to throw their lives away on men who are not worthy to take them to the celestial kingdom. Many of them have filled missions and work diligently for the upbuilding of our Father's kingdom, for the raising of the youth of Zion, and they are wonderful.
I would like to use my own family as an illustration of what I have in mind. Mother and I were filling a mission together over in Holland when we had a little girl born to us, and after we had been home a few years she passed away. When she was born, my wife has told me over and over again that she felt she saw an angel bring that spirit to her. And yet she is gone. Then I think of her four sisters. You voted here today to sustain one of them as a counselor in the general presidency of the Relief Society. Her other three sisters are just as noble and wonderful, although their talents may be just a little different.
When I think of this little one that we laid away when she was three-and-a-half years old, I thank God I have the faith to believe that God reigns in the heavens above and in the earth beneath and that this little one will ultimately enter into her glory and be equal to any of her four sisters who have tarried here upon this earth and raised their families. I thank God for the statement of the apostle Paul when he said that "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." In this brief period of mortality, it would not be possible for God to accomplish for all of his children all that he has in mind for them, the ones that are true and faithful.
I think of the statement of Moses as recorded in the Pearl of Great Price: "For behold, this is my work and my glory-to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." I wonder sometimes if we ever stop to analyze that statement. I think we can understand what "to bring to pass immortality" is, that we will never die after we come forth in the resurrection, as President Romney pointed out this morning. But what about eternal life? As I interpret this, I find in it the feeling that all that God has ultimately planned for his children who are faithful and true shall come to them in his own due time.
We read in the Book of Mormon that we are not all born at the same time and that we don't all die at the same time. I think of the words of Abraham when he saw the placing of the spirits here upon this earth, that the Lord would prove them to see if they would do all things whatsoever he had commanded them. Then he adds: "And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon." That was in the spirit life before we came to mortality. "They who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever." This little girl of ours kept her second estate as far as she could at her age.
Then I think of the statement of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith when he said: "The works, and the designs, and the purposes of God cannot be frustrated, neither can they come to naught." In other words, no one can stand in the way of God achieving what he has decreed for his children. Then a further statement in the Doctrine & Covenants where the Lord said: "His purposes fail not, neither are there any who can stay his hand. From eternity to eternity he is the same."
Then there are the words of the Lord to the prophet Nephi when he said: "For my work is not yet finished; neither shall it be until the end of man, neither from that time henceforth and forever." Now that should enable us to comprehend and realize that there will never be a time when God will cease to do his work to bring to pass, as we read in the Pearl of Great Price, the glory that will be added upon their heads forever and ever.
Coming back to our family, we had four daughters before we got a boy and he grew into beautiful young manhood; we lost him in an accident down at the beach in California while I was the president of the stake there. He was just turning 16 and he stood as tall as his father, and to think now of his own brothers who are here: they have their families, and one of them has just been serving as one of the Regional Representatives of the Twelve. I can't believe that boy will come out any less exalted in the eternities that are to come than his brothers who have lived here in mortality. When he died, the principal of the high school came to our home and told Sister Richards that our son was the best boy he had ever had in his school, and we felt that, too, as he grew into manhood.
Then I think of our little granddaughter who died at the same age; her father and mother are here today and her brothers and sisters. After just a few days of sickness, she passed away at the age of 16, a beautiful little woman. To think that God's plan would not ultimately bring to her everything our other children received who tarried here in mortality would lessen my appreciation of my Father in heaven and the perfectness of his plan.
I think of the parable Jesus gave when he said:
"For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
"Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him."
If God started to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man and did not provide an opportunity to complete the program, he would be like the builder who starts to build and then is not able to finish.
Coming back, then, to the family, I think of my wife's sister who died here a short time ago. She filled a mission for the Church; she worked in the auxiliaries and she was a noble character. But she never married, and I can't believe that the Lord's plan is imperfect, that she will not ultimately enjoy all that her sister with our wonderful family has enjoyed. "His purposes fail not, neither are there any who can stay his hand."
So I thank God for the thousand years of the millennial reign. My, what a lot of work needs to be done during that period! I can't take time to tell you much about that, but I think of the words of Isaiah. He had a glimpse of it. He saw the day when we would have a new heaven and a new earth, when the wolf and the lion would lie down together, and the lion would eat straw like the ox. His people should build houses and inhabit them, and should plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof. They should not build and another inhabit. They should not plant and another eat, for every man would enjoy the work of his own hands. Then he adds: "For they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them." That sounds like a continuation of the family, doesn't it?
Then I thank God for the statement of the apostle Paul when he said: "Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord." That being true, the Lord must have a plan so that these children can ultimately enjoy that great blessing.
I will now read you a statement from the Lord regarding this millennial reign. He said:
"And there shall be no sorrow because there shall be no death.
"In that day an infant shall not die until he is old; and his life shall be as the age of a tree;
"And when he dies he shall not sleep, that is to say in the earth, but shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and shall be caught up, and his rest shall be glorious."
So he is to live to the age of a tree, and then he is to be changed in the twinkling of an eye.
I want to read you one more statement of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph:
"And the earth shall be given unto them for an inheritance; and they shall multiply and wax strong, and their children shall grow up without sin unto salvation.
"For the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver."
Then I think of the revelation concerning those who will inherit the celestial kingdom, and the Lord said: " which glory shall be a fulness and a continuation of the seeds forever and ever."
And so I expect some day to see the bride that my son has selected over there in the spirit world. If he can find one as noble as his little niece I have mentioned, just think what a glorious day that will be. In order to properly understand this, I would like to read a couple of statements: one from President Brigham Young about what will happen during the Millennium, and one from President Wilford Woodruff.
President Young said: "To accomplish this work there will have to be not only one temple, but thousands of them, and thousands and tens of thousands of men and women will go into those temples and officiate for people who have lived as far back as the Lord shall reveal." Just think-if there are going to be thousands of temples and tens of thousands of people going to them, it will give you a little idea of what the Lord has in store for these spirits who have to have their temple work done.
Then the Prophet Wilford Woodruff said: "When the Savior comes, a thousand years will be devoted to this work of redemption and temples will appear all over this land of Joseph-North and South America-and also in Europe and elsewhere."
I close my remarks today with my faith that the Lord knows what he is doing and he has prepared a plan so that those who have gone before will not suffer. I therefore conclude with the words of the apostle Paul, who was caught up into the third heaven and paradise of God, and he saw things he was not permitted to write. But he did say: "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." That is my faith in my God, and I leave you my blessing in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
One of the most important teachings of Jesus Christ is his statement: "Blessed are all the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God."
It is impossible to pick up a newspaper or listen to a news broadcast without learning of some new quarrel among nations, some new argument among politicians, some new expression of prejudice against a race or a people, or some new outburst against a person or an idea. When I read or hear of these continuing disputes, I am aware of their negative nature. People nowadays seem to be continually against something or somebody. We appear to live in a negative era. What could have brought all this about?
The answer appears to me to be that each person today wants to "do his own thing," to demonstrate his complete independence of everything and everyone. We forget that we are not, and cannot be, totally independent of one another either in thought or action. We are part of a total community. We are all members of one family, as Paul reminded the Greeks at Athens when he explained that God "hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth."
It is small wonder then that people everywhere yearn for peace, even when quarreling one with another.
One of our problems is that we read only the first part of that verse and do not read the complete thought. Paul goes on to state that God "hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation:
"That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and he be not far from every one of us."
We live under these universal laws of truth. If we violate them, it will be to our own destruction. We have to pay a penalty for disobedience whether we do so knowingly or unknowingly.
Our world was not created by accident, but was thoroughly planned and carefully executed. There were times and places appointed for our individual entry into this world. Races, families, and times were appointed for us according to a divine plan. It is to our personal advantage then to learn who we are so we can prepare ourselves to receive the blessings reserved for us and achieve that peace and freedom for which we all yearn.
Paul, in teaching the Ephesian saints of the plan of God, wrote:
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love."
In citing this verse, I am reminded of a concept President Lee taught the General Authorities. He warned us not to place our trust nor build our sermons on one single verse of scripture. He said that God is the greatest of all teachers and understands the value of repetition. If an idea is true, we will find that concept repeated again and again throughout the scriptures. Instructions are not confined to any one generation, but are given repeatedly, often in other words so we will not miss their true meaning. However, we must not take ideas out of context. The truth that persons were chosen for certain work before this earth was formed is found in many places in the scriptures.
When Moses taught the children of Israel, he made this remarkable statement:
"When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel."
This tells me that approximately 2,500 years before there were any children of Israel, God had divided Adam's sons into families to reflect the coming destiny of those same children of Israel. Jesus Christ himself came through definite lineage lines. Thus there was, and is, planning for the preservation of priesthood lineage. Alma made this clear when he said of men holding the high priesthood that they were "called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God, on account of their exceeding faith and good works."
In our own day we have been told that the priesthood was given us so that we could be of service to others, and that this priesthood "hath continued through the lineage of your fathers-
"For ye are lawful heirs, according to the flesh, and have been hid from the world with Christ in God." In other words, reserved for a special time and place.
"Therefore your life and the priesthood have remained, and must needs remain through you and your lineage until the restoration of all things spoken by the mouths of all the holy prophets since the world began."
It is a sobering and humbling thought then to realize that we have been chosen beforehand and reserved for a special purpose-to use that priesthood for the benefit of others and not for our own aggrandizement.
I have spoken of personal lineage and priesthood heritage for a special reason. That priesthood is the priesthood after the holy order of the Son of God. I remind you that Jesus Christ is the God of love. He came to bring peace to the world, but said himself that his word was really a sword, because men would fail to understand it and use it properly. He taught that because people would not comprehend his message, quarrels and misunderstandings would divide them. For this reason there is a great need for peacemakers in the world who know and understand Jesus Christ and who comprehend that the purpose of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was to make it possible to restore all persons, if they would follow him, into the very presence of God, the Eternal Father.
Can there be discord, hate, envy, and dissension in God's presence? No! Such things make a hell and not a heaven. That is why we must learn to get rid of dissension, envy, hate, and discord in this life on earth. It is here we must learn how to turn our hearts to serve one another with love. Here we must learn how to live with one another in peace and harmony so that we can be prepared to live in the presence of that perfect God we claim to worship.
The reason Jesus Christ achieved perfection was that, instead of following his own desires and "doing his own thing," he followed the desires and the will of God, his perfect Father. Jesus said:
"For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
"And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak."
That is a perfect way to achieve peace and harmony in our lives. If we would only follow the instructions of a perfect God, instead of following the instructions of men or blindly responding to our own selfish desires, we would have peace. When Jesus came to the Western Hemisphere, he found the people quarreling even about his doctrines, and he said to them:
"There shall be no disputations among you, as there have hitherto been; neither shall there be disputations among you concerning the points of my doctrine, as there have hitherto been.
"For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
"But this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away."
God, who knows all things from the beginning, knew that in the last days Satan would exert every effort to destroy the work of God. The closer we approach the second coming of Jesus Christ, the greater will be Satan's efforts. He will try to influence men as never before to destroy one another by dissension, opposition, selfishness, wars, riots, and destructions. If he can get people to quarrel with one another, they will inevitably destroy themselves.
God, who knows all things, knew from the very beginning that this would happen. It is for this reason that God reserved you and the holy priesthood against that time, so that you can exert this divine power to hold Satan in check. God reserved some of his choicest sons and daughters for this present day and age. These special children were to be leaders who would recognize the negative, self-destructive efforts of Satan and thwart them by the righteous use of divinely authorized priesthood power. That is the reason we need peacemakers today as never before.
Since we live in a quarrelsome world, we face the dangers of that world. Unless we live very close to God and listen carefully to the whisperings of the Holy Spirit, we will find dissension creeping into our own lives, into our homes, and into the Church. We must be alert at all times in our homes, in our daily work, in our private lives, and in our branches, wards, and stakes to see that this does not happen.
Whenever you get red in the face, whenever you raise your voice, whenever you get "hot under the collar," or angry, rebellious, or negative in spirit, then know that the Spirit of God is leaving you and the spirit of Satan is beginning to take over. At times we may feel justified in arguing or fighting for truth by contentious words and actions. Do not be deceived. Satan would rather have you contend for evil if he could, but he rejoices when we contend with one another even when we think we are doing it in the cause of righteousness. He knows and recognizes the self-destructive nature of contention under any guise. You can recognize the Spirit of Christ within you when you speak to one another or speak of another person with a warm smile instead of with a frown or scowl.
Thus, from the beginning of creation, God planned to have leaders available in the last days holding the power of the holy priesthood. With this power we can help bring peace to the world by practicing peace. It must begin in our homes, in our quorums, in our auxiliaries, and within every single Church unit. People are so hungry for peace today that if we truly demonstrate peace among ourselves and to others, they will flock to the Church in great numbers. The greatest missionary tool we have is that of demonstrating friendliness, brotherly kindness, harmony, love, and peace in our homes and in all our Church meetings. If we follow the example of Jesus Christ and become true peacemakers, that flood of love will cover the earth as with a blanket. The only way Satan can ever be bound will be through the love of man for God and for one another.
"Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
May God bless us to follow the instructions and examples of the holy prophet he has sent to live among us, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bernard P. Brockbank
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, the first uttered words of the Prince of Peace, as recorded in the New Testament, are "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Repentance is a divine principle and is required for man's salvation into the kingdom of heaven.
President David O. McKay, when speaking on the importance of repentance, said, "Every principle and ordinance of the gospel of Jesus Christ is significant and important in contributing to the progress, happiness, and eternal life of man, but there is none more essential to the salvation of the human family than the divine and eternally operative principle, repentance. Without it, no one can be saved. Without it, no one can progress."
The atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Savior, made it possible for each individual to receive forgiveness of his sins. His atonement and teachings made it possible for me and for you to repent and to be prepared to enter into the kingdom of heaven.
President Spencer W. Kimball said, "When we think of the great sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ and the suffering he endured for us, we would be ingrates if we did not appreciate it so far as our power made it possible. He suffered and died for us, yet if we do not repent, all his anguish and pain on our account are futile."
Jesus taught, "For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;
"But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I." I repeat, "But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I."
The great prophet Abinadi gave this warning: "But remember that he that persists in his own carnal nature, and goes on in the ways of sin and rebellion against God, remaineth in his fallen state and the devil hath all power over him. Therefore, he is as though there was no redemption made, being an enemy to God; and also is the devil an enemy to God."
The devil is strongly against man's repenting and preparing himself for the kingdom of heaven. The devil's mission and goal is to destroy man's potential godliness and his preparation to be again with his Heavenly Father. Repentance will stop the devil and keep him from entering the hearts of men.
Jesus Christ lived his life and gave his life so that man might have the gospel and repent and prepare himself to live with God in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus said, "No unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end."
It is written in the scriptures, "All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out." "For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance."
President Harold B. Lee gave this counsel: "The heaviest burden that one has to bear in this life is the burden of sin." The apostle Paul taught, "The wages of sin is death." The wages of sins that are not repented of is death-death to man's potential godliness, death to man's opportunity for eternal life with his Heavenly Father.
The prophet Alma counseled the people, "Except ye repent ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of heaven."
The apostle Peter said, "The Lord is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." What is repentance? Repentance is sorrow for sin, with self-condemnation, and complete turning away from sin. It is, therefore, more than regret and remorse; it brings about changes and makes room for the Christ-like life in preparation for entering into the kingdom of heaven. Repentance is turning away from that which is not according to God's commandments and striving and knowing and living according to his commandments.
King Benjamin counseled his people on how to repent. "Ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things, see that you do them.
"And behold, I say unto you that as you do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you."
Jesus taught the people, "I, the Lord, forgive sins, and am merciful unto those who confess their sins with humble hearts." "He who has repented of his sins," the Lord said, "the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more."
The prophet Moses said that through repentance "ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory."
Jesus warned that only a few would confess and forsake their sins and pay the price to find the Lord's way to the kingdom of heaven. Many will take and follow the course that leads to destruction, destruction of the divine privilege of living with God. The Savior commanded, "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
"Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
And why are there few that will find the Lord's straight and narrow way which leadeth unto life and salvation into the kingdom of God? Because they will not repent. Because they will not learn and keep all of God's commandments. They will not follow Jesus Christ. They will not find and follow the Lord's living prophet and apostles.
What is God's most important and greatest blessing for his obedient children? He commanded and promised, "Trifle not with sacred things. If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God."
"Trifle not with sacred things." Many trifle with the sacred commandment "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." Some disrespect God and love his worldly creations more than they love God. They love the creature more than they love the Creator. Some love pleasure more than they love God.
Many of the Lord's children trifle with the sacred privilege of eternal marriage by the Lord's priesthood in his temples. The Lord said that through his priesthood male and female should be "one flesh" when married. Many settle for "until death do you part." They trifle with sacred things.
Many trifle with the sacred commandment "Thou shalt not commit adultery" and indulge their minds and bodies in illicit, promiscuous sex acts. From the teachings of the scriptures we find that those that are guilty of illicit sex acts, unless they repent, cannot inherit the kingdom of God.
Some trifle with the Lord's sacred, hallowed Sabbath day and spend the day in sports, pleasure, and other worldly interests when they should have been resting from worldly interests and devoting time to the spiritual side of life in reading the scriptures, attending religious meetings, in developing greater love for God, self, neighbor, and family.
Some trifle with the sacred scriptures. Jesus commanded, "Search the scriptures." They ignore the scriptures and fail to search them. Some trifle with the Lord's divine law of tithing and choose to rob God of his tithing, and as a result, the Lord said they are cursed with a curse, and unless they repent they cannot inherit the kingdom of God.
Some trifle with the sacred responsibility of doing their genealogy research and temple work for both the living and the dead. Some trifle with their sacred godlike minds and bodies and use drugs and stimulants to receive a lift when they should receive their lift from repentance and from knowing and loving God and living his commandments.
Some trifle with the priesthood of God and destroy and make mockery out of its power. The Lord said they do this because they become so engrossed in worldly interests.
Some trifle with the sacred right to have children. Some trifle with the sacred right to love their neighbors as themselves. Some trifle with their sacred right to pray to their Father in heaven. They make up excuses and philosophies that make prayers look unwise and foolish.
Some trifle with the sacred commandment, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." Perfection is the divine way and comes through repentance and following Jesus Christ. Each of us should make a list using God's commandments of what we need to do to attain salvation in the kingdom of God.
There is no progress toward the kingdom of God without repentance. Our president, Spencer W. Kimball, said, "Repentance is ever the key to a better, happier life." All of us need it, whether our sins be minor or grievous ones.
We all have need of the progress that comes from the purifying power of repentance. We need to comprehend more fully the potential godliness that we possess and the glorious opportunity to repent and to prepare to live some day in the kingdom of God. When did you last use the divine cleansing power of repentance?
"Remember," Jesus said, "the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;
"And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!"
Every day in our prayers we should thank God for the divine principle of repentance, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder James E. Faust
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
It has recently been my privilege, along with the other General Authorities assigned to attend the great area conference in Stockholm, to travel to a limited extent in the great Scandinavian countries and on other assignments in England.
For many centuries these countries have been considered to be among the most enlightened and advanced in the history of the world. Their peoples have made great contributions to the comfort, well-being, and culture of society. But, as in America and so many other countries, there is in these countries evidence of a sickening plague which is sapping, if not destroying, the life blood of humanity. The plague about which I speak seems most obvious among many of the young people, of youth and young adult age, although it is by no means limited to them. I refer to the steady, creeping moral dry rot which is manifested in the obscenity of their behavior and dress and in the debasing entertainment and the centers of pornography which they frequent. Many of these young people appear not only as vulgar, but dirty and repulsive. They have "freaked out." Many seem to have forsaken all that is decent and possess a moral sickness and cynicism which is crippling and strangling to the enlightened human soul. They are eager participants in all of the repulsive and degrading practices which God has warned humanity against throughout the ages.
There seem to be few countries in this world whose people have escaped this plague, for it is epidemic in proportion.
In great contrast to the low scenes in some of the streets, when we assembled in St. Erik's Fair Center in Stockholm where 4,000 members of this Church had assembled, there was a completely different spirit and appearance. The youth and young adults at this great conference, along with the others participating, sang, danced, and demonstrated the best of themselves and their culture in a most delightful and uplifting manner. As we looked into their happy, clean, and appealing countenances and felt their enlightened presence, they radiated great moral strength and beauty. They reflected an inner light, even like the quartz prisms their Viking forefathers used to refract the rays of the sun when it was below the horizon to enable them to get their bearings. These youth and young adults are part of an almost worldwide new aristocracy-as the elect of God-who know that the source of all light is divine.
The message I wish to speak today is one of hope. It concerns a conviction as well as a challenge that the youth, young adults, and young marrieds of this Church who believe in and follow its lofty purposes as a part of this new aristocracy will, by their influence and example, begin to reverse this spreading moral dry rot the world over.
In a letter to John Quincy Adams in 1813, Thomas Jefferson said: "There is a natural aristocracy among men. The grounds of this are virtue and talents. There is also an artificial aristocracy founded on wealth and birth, without either virtue or talents."
How is this new aristocracy distinguished? First, that no one need be excluded. It is formed from those who seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit of God. President Romney teaches us that there are three things we should know about such guidance: He says, "They are: that it is very real, that it is available to every person, and that to follow it is the sure and only way to the solution of our problems."
This new aristocracy seeks not only to clean up the physical environment, the air we breathe, and the planet on which we live, but by example and persuasion, the moral environment as well. The new aristocracy will not be seeking to eliminate thoughtful inquiry, or be a board of censors as it were, but rather seek to teach right concepts and to replace bad ideas with enlightened thought. They will be involved in noble and selfless activities.
About a month ago four of the Young Adults gathered in Loughborough for a Young Adults conference, along with others from all over England. This group of four went to perform, as did the others, some unsolicited Christian service. Their intended activity, through no fault of their own, could not be performed, so they were left with some time on their hands. While walking along the street, they decided to stop at a pay telephone and call the local public hospital to see if they could be of help. A nurse in one of the wards answered the telephone and was asked by the one calling if four young people could come over to the hospital and scrub floors or walls, wash dishes, or do any other similar needed task without pay. Apparently this was an uncommon request, because the young man calling said, "After the nurse picked herself up from the floor, she said, 'Are you kidding?'"
During a morning of helping to scrub and of visiting patients, these four Young Adults had an unforgettable experience. They seek, as Aristotle said, to be those "who have at heart the best interests of the state and of its citizens."
This new aristocracy will follow the counsel of President Spencer W. Kimball and set styles of their own, no matter how great the peer pressure is. They will not be moved in their inner strength by the cynics, bereft of spirituality, who portray those who believe in God as being stupid, misguided, uninformed, and unsophisticated. This new aristocracy is not led astray or intimidated by the sophistries of the insincere, the hypocritical, or the self-righteous. They will remember the counsel of Brigham Young, who said: "I would put you on your guard against those who wear a long face, and pretend to be so holy, and so much better than every body else-they cannot look pleasant because they are full of the devil. Those who have got the forgiveness of their sins have countenances that look bright, and they will shine with the intelligence of heaven." The words of the Prophet Joseph Smith will be remembered, "I love that man better who swears a stream as long as my arm yet deals justice to his neighbors and mercifully deals his substance to the poor, than the long, smooth-faced hypocrite."
This is not an aristocracy of the haughty, the snobbish, and the arrogant, but of the humble and strong. They live lives of productivity and usefulness. Approximately 18,000 of them presently perform a matchless service as missionaries at considerable monetary sacrifice to themselves and/or their loved ones. In the last fortnight I have been privileged to meet with some 200 of them laboring in a foreign country. One of them, a tall, smiling young American with his plastic raincoat folded in his coat pocket, approached.
"Elder," I queried, "how long have you been on your mission?"
"Since March," he responded.
For no apparent reason I asked, "How long since you heard from your mother?"
He smiled broadly. "I got my second letter from her last week," he said.
"How long since you've heard from your father?" I inquired.
He said, "I have not heard from him. I don't know where he is. My parents are not members of this Church, and I come from a broken home. I had a paper route in my home town in the Midwest, and a family on my paper route, whom I hardly knew, felt sorry for me and invited me to live with them. The missionaries found this family, and they joined the Church and I joined with them. I began to save my money so that if called on a mission, I might be able to go. I worked hard and was able to save much faster than I thought I could. Two years after my conversion, I am serving as a missionary."
These choice young people are not an aristocracy of the rich, but of those who are rich in the Spirit of God. It is not an aristocracy of the politically or socially powerful, but of those who have great moral influence. It is and would be of those who are the elect of God. It is an aristocracy of the young Saints of God, even as those who are on the stand this afternoon and who will be on the stand singing for us this evening.
Jesus spoke of them when he said: "He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds."
Listen to the counsel of Paul to the Colossians: "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering."
How can the young elect of God, as well as those who are older, begin this herculean task?
First, by their example of obedience to the commandments of God, thus enjoying the personal guidance of his Holy Spirit.
Second, by sharing their special knowledge as missionaries.
Third, by responding to the high level of expectancy of their parents and Church leaders.
Fourth, through the giving of themselves. A very special young friend of mine served as a missionary of this Church in Japan. His dedication to missionary work and the Japanese people was so complete and full that, rather than spend all of the money his parents sent to him, he unselfishly made a regular contribution of part of his money to help another local Japanese missionary. His parents sent him extra money so that he could buy some camera equipment available in Japan to record in pictures a few of the great experiences he was having. Rather than buy the camera equipment, which would have served him well for a lifetime, he chose rather to send the money back to his parents. In time, as with most missionaries, the clothes of my young friend became threadbare and thin. In order for him to be able to come home, it was necessary for him to buy a second-hand suit from one of the other elders. His regular denial of himself, in order to share his substance with the local Japanese missionary, was a very closely guarded secret. He is a good example of the young elect of God of this Church, as are hundreds of thousands of others.
I desire to leave my witness of the divinity of this great and ever-advancing cause made possible by the obedience, sacrifice, and faithfulness of the elect of God.
I know that God lives. I know that this is his work. I know that he inspires his great prophet President Spencer W. Kimball. I know his path is the only way to peace and happiness here and hereafter, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Sterling W. Sill
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
A number of years ago a friend of mine called me on the telephone and asked me if I would come to the hospital and give him a blood transfusion. Then as I lay there and watched the blood run out of my arm, I asked the nurse how many blood transfusions I could safely give in the course of a year, and she said that it would be perfectly all right if I gave four. That is, if it were necessary, I could save the lives of four people each year by a transfusion of my blood.
A few years later I found myself on the other end of this great miracle of transfusion. During and after some major surgery, I was given nine blood transfusions wherein a majority of my total blood supply was exchanged. One afternoon when the intern wasn't very busy, he figured out for me that in this process I had received 27 billion white corpuscles, and as he described their function, I thought of these 27 billion little medical men dressed in white uniforms going throughout my system killing the disease and fighting the infection that otherwise might have terminated my life. But then, in addition to that, he pointed out that I had also received 18 trillion red corpuscles. These were the little engineers that carried oxygen and nutrition to every one of my locations to keep me in business. And all of this came for just the few dollars that I had previously put into the blood bank.
Since that time I have thought a great deal about the wonderful men and women that I have met along life's way who have given me another kind of transfusion. I have had some transfusions of faith, some transfusions of courage, some transfusions of industry. In fact, if you were to take away from me that which properly belonged to somebody else, there wouldn't be very much of me left.
But from this experience I have made a great discovery that everybody ought to make for himself, and that is that from the holy scriptures and the great literature and the uplifting philosophies and from our own personal meditations and experience we can extract those little segments of success; and if they are properly packaged by writing them down and memorizing them, we can use them at our will to infuse righteousness and success into our own lives. I think it must have been this that the great apostle Paul had in mind when he said, "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."
And Oscar Hammerstein must have been thinking about something like this when in his song "Stouthearted Men" he said, "Hearts can inspire other hearts with its fire." And then he said:
New Moon, Harms, Inc., 1928
The Church was organized with just six people, and then this inspiration and revelation and the great doctrines of the restoration have been spread around, and they've bubbled up and trickled down until they have inspired the lives and helped to save the souls of a great many millions of other people. To facilitate this operation in my own case, I have written in my literary notebooks the names of over one hundred of my personal donors, and then in my best language I have tried to describe to myself the contributions that they have made to me. And I thought this afternoon that I would like to try to take a leaf from Mr. Hammerstein's book and start you with ten.
Transfusion number one comes from Grantland Rice. For over 50 years this great sportswriter and commentator went around the country following the great champions of sport, trying to isolate those traits in human personality and character which made men and women champions. And then he wrote over 700 poems about these qualities which might serve us as instruments of transfusion. One of these he entitled "Courage." He said:
But, said he:
Transfusion number two is entitled "Integrity." Its donor is the little Indian patriot Mohandas Gandhi, who won the independence of India from England. When Gandhi was very young, he took a pledge to his mother that he would remain a vegetarian throughout his life. Many years after Gandhi's mother had died, Gandhi became very ill, and the doctors tried to persuade him that if he would drink a little beef broth it might save his life. But Gandhi said, "Even for life itself, we may not do certain things. There is only one course open to me, to die, but never to break my pledge." Now just think for a minute what kind of a world this would be if each one of us could manifest that kind of integrity before his family and among his friends and before the world generally.
Transfusion number three, "Truth," comes from our great Civil War president, Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln said, "I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the best light that I have. I will stand with anyone when he stands right and I will part from him when he goes wrong."
Number four comes from a contemporary of Abraham Lincoln, and this picture is entitled "Honesty." During American slave days a little black girl was placed upon the auction block to be sold to the highest bidder. A prospective purchaser approached and said to this little girl, "If I buy you and give you a good home and treat you kindly and feed you well, will you promise me that you will be honest?" This wonderful little black girl said, "I will promise you that I will be honest whether you buy me and treat me kindly or feed me well or not."
Transfusion number five, "Stand up to your difficulties," comes from our great epic prizefight champion, Jack Dempsey. In Dempsey's early career he had a fight contract which paid him two dollars for each of the fights he won, nothing for those he lost. Dempsey said that he used to be knocked down many times back in those days and each time he was knocked down he wanted to stay down because he knew that no one would ever try to hit him again until he started to get up. But he had to get up because he was hungry and he needed the two dollars. On one occasion he was knocked down 11 times, and 11 times he got up to win a two-dollar prizefight. Then Dempsey gave his famous formula: Anyone seeking success in athletics or in life must have two qualities. Number one, he must have the ability to give a big punch, and number two, he must have the ability to take a big punch.
Now sometimes in our lives we take great pride in how we can hand it out, but then we go down in a miserable heap because we can't take it. That is, we fall down before the slightest, most trifling temptations and problems. Grantland Rice supports this doctrine of Mr. Dempsey that we ought to stand up to our problems, we ought to overcome our difficulties, we ought not to fall too easily before our temptations, when he said,
Transfusion number six is entitled "Perseverance" and comes from a Polish girl, Marie Sklodowska, who married the French physicist Pierre Curie. For many years they worked together in an old abandoned leaky shed without funds and without outside encouragement or help, trying to isolate radium from a low-grade uranium ore called pitchblende. And after their 487th experiment had failed, Pierre threw up his hands in despair and said, "It will never be done. Maybe in a hundred years, but never in my day." Marie confronted him with a resolute face and said, "If it takes a hundred years, it will be a pity, but I will not cease to work for it as long as I live."
Transfusion number seven, "Faith," comes from Maxwell Anderson's play The Masque of Kings, in which his leading character, Rudolph, says, "If you'll go stop three tradesmen on the street, and ask the three what it is they live by, they'll reply at once, 'bread, meat, and drink' and they'll be certain of it; victuals and drink, like the rhyme in Mother Goose, makes up their diet; nothing will be said of faith in things unseen, or of following the gleam, just bread and meat and a can of wine to wash it down. But if you know them well, behind the fish-eyes and the bellies, if you know them better than they do, each one burns candles at some altar of his mind in secret; secret often from himself each is a priest to some dim mystery by which he lives. Strip him of that, and bread and meat and wine won't nourish him. Without his chuckle-headed hidden faith, he dies and goes to dust."
Transfusion number eight, "Testimony," comes from our great Old Testament prophet Job, whose testimony comes ringing down across the ages to us, in which he said: "Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book!
"That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever!
"For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:
"And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
"Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me."
And transfusion number nine, "Revelation," comes from the great first prophet of this last dispensation, who said: "And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!
"For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father-
"That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
And finally, number ten, "Success," comes to us from the greatest man who ever lived, who gave us in just two words our most magnificent success formula when he said, "Follow me." And may God help us that we may follow him. We can follow him in his faith, we can follow him in his doctrines, we can follow him in his godliness. And we may eventually become even as he is.
And may God help us so to do and so to become, I sincerely pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder J. Thomas Fyans
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My beloved brothers and sisters, the conference spirit is upon us. With you, I thank our Heavenly Father for it and for a prophet who leads us and for his inspired co-workers who have lifted us in this session and the preceding sessions. And I, with you, earnestly pray that this conference may be both a milestone for the Church and a turning point in our own lives.
During the past four years, a great and marvelous miracle has occurred in the Church in the form of area general conferences-in Manchester, England, in 1971; in Mexico City in 1972; in Munich, Germany, in 1973; and only a few weeks ago, the conference in Stockholm, Sweden. Perhaps you've already heard that the First Presidency has called four area general conferences for next year-in Sao Paulo, Brazil; in Buenos Aires, Argentina; in Tokyo, Japan; and in Seoul, Korea-a quadrupling of effort in 1975. And we're learning that this is typical of the administration of President Spencer W. Kimball.
As I have observed the unfolding of these area conferences, it has been evident how the Spirit of the Lord has been poured out upon the Saints in the various nations of the world. The assignments of preparation for these conferences are carried by local Church leadership-the acquisition and preparation of the facilities and equipment, communications and media relations, transportation to and from the conferences, lodging, food, music, cultural programs. And I can tell you that, after four years of intimate association with these Saints, the Lord has inspired leaders throughout the world.
Saints attending the area conferences have made such statements as these: "I did not know our people could do such things. We have more leadership than we know." Another: "It is all more than any of us would have imagined-so well organized, so well planned. And to think we did it ourselves!" And another: "These weeks of preparation have been the greatest weeks of my Church membership. I did not know we had so much talent, so great a capacity."
I have learned of the love of these Saints for the Lord. I have seen their great desires to attend these conferences. I remember the ten Saints from Tijuana, Mexico, who, after four months of working and saving, finally obtained enough money to purchase their tickets for the 48-hour bus ride to Mexico City. When they were told there were no seats available for the long trip, they replied, "It does not matter. We will be happy to stand in the aisles for a chance to hear the prophet." As you would expect, in the spirit of the gospel, everyone on the bus rotated seats so that all could sit some of the time.
I remember other Mexican Saints who, because floods had destroyed their crops, were fearful that they would not be able to attend the conference but who, after fasting and prayer, sold some of their belongings and pooled their money for transportation. For many there was no money left for food, but it did not matter. They decided they could fast for the three or four days of the conference. As you would expect, other loving Saints filled their plates as the Lord had filled their souls.
The response of the Saints in Scandinavia and Finland is typical. Said one of their leaders, "I have heard many of our people say, 'I want to be ready spiritually to receive the message of the prophet.'" They put their desires into action. One gauge was their temple attendance before conference. Many areas doubled in total numbers of those who saved and prayed that they might journey from their northern homelands across Europe to the temple in Switzerland to renew their covenants with the Lord.
In Italy there lives a Brother Luigi Pittino, who, with other European Saints, attended the Munich conference. For 17 years Brother Pittino had met on Sunday with one or two other Saints. They would have an opening prayer, read and discuss the scriptures, and partake of the sacrament. In these last few years they were all in their 70s and 80s. There was loneliness and a feeling of isolation. Imagine the thrill for Brother Pittino to sit with 14,000 other Saints at the Munich conference!
After the Manchester conference, one British Saint said, "When I saw 2,000 other British men in priesthood meeting, all holding the same holy priesthood that I possess, I cannot explain to you what it did for me." Said another, "We have come together because we want to come to Him."
I have learned of the Lord's great love for the Saints. There are countless testimonies, stories of his goodness to them, of miracles that have occurred as the Saints have given their all in service to the Lord. There are stories of answered prayers, of healings, of changing hearts, of opening doors, and of giving time, talent, money, and self.
At the Munich conference, President Harold B. Lee paraphrased the words of the apostle Paul when he said, "We are neither English, nor German, nor French, nor Dutch, nor Spanish, nor Italian, but we are all one as baptized members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
At the Stockholm conference, I remember the Danes, the Swedes, and the Finns singing with the Norwegians a great Norwegian anthem, "Discovery," by Edvard Grieg. The conductor's comment was very enlightening. He said: "Sometimes we have national jealousies, even in the Church. But this singing has brought us together. There is now a real spirit of unity, a spirit of knowing that we can work together and accomplish whatever we want to." That spirit of unity captured everyone present that night. Thousands stood in a standing ovation to the more-than-300-voice choir from four nations.
But above all else, brothers and sisters, through these conferences I have learned that we are always led by a prophet of God. Who at the Stockholm conference will ever forget President Spencer W. Kimball's counsel and his challenge. He said, "From this day on we have a new order of things in these lands." President Kimball, they are different now than they were before. We've received reports that sacrament meeting attendance has increased tremendously. Spiritual roots are now deep in inviting soil.
And so now we come to this conference, brothers and sisters. What do we want to accomplish as a result of it? Do we want it to affect our lives? Better our families? Change our wards and branches?
The question is: Do we really want "a new order of things" in our lives? If so, that is why we have gathered in this conference-to begin "a new order of things" for each of us.
How might we do this? May we suggest one way? Three thousand miles from this pulpit lives a family who will again do a very special thing following this conference. When the Ensign arrives with the conference addresses at their home, the family will immediately read the messages, with the older children reporting on selected addresses.
But they will do more than read. In family home evenings they will select family and personal goals based upon the conference messages. Their goals are practical: "Remember grandmother in our daily prayers, memorize a Church hymn, review our family preparedness, do the Lord's thing in his way-not ours, bring a nonmember to church." They will discuss their goals, pray about them, and review them frequently. Is there any wonder why the father says: "Our family regards general conference as the Lord's list of things we should be concentrating on. It has meant more to us and our children than words can say."
Brothers and sisters, how much are the instructions of this conference going to mean to us? How much will they mean to us as parents? As officers and teachers? As home teachers and visiting teachers?
From my experiences with conferences, I testify that what is spoken under the influence of the Holy Ghost is "scripture" and, as the Lord has said, "shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."
That we may select goals from this conference that will bring salvation to us and our families, our neighbors, our wards and branches, I earnestly pray and bear you my witness that from every fiber of my being I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is our Savior. I know from very personal, wonderful experiences that President Spencer W. Kimball is a prophet of God, and that witness I bear to you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Ezra Taft Benson
President of the Council of the Twelve
Humbly and gratefully I approach this sacred responsibility.
It is my hope and prayer that what I am about to say will be helpful, both physically and spiritually, in the difficult days ahead.
We live in an age when, as the Lord foretold, men's hearts are failing them, not only physically but in spirit. Many are giving up heart for the battle of life. Suicide ranks as a major cause of the deaths to college students. As the showdown between good and evil approaches with its accompanying trials and tribulations, Satan is increasingly striving to overcome the Saints with despair, discouragement, despondency, and depression.
Yet, of all people, we as Latter-day Saints should be the most optimistic and the least pessimistic. For while we know that "peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion," we are also assured that "the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst."
With the assurance that the Church shall remain intact with God directing it through the troubled times ahead, it then becomes our individual responsibility to see that each of us remains faithful to the Church and its teachings. "He that remaineth steadfast and is not overcome, the same shall be saved." To help us from being overcome by the devil's designs of despair, discouragement, depression, and despondency, the Lord has provided at least a dozen ways which, if followed, will lift our spirits and send us on our way rejoicing.
First, repentance. In the Book of Mormon we read that "despair cometh because of iniquity." "When I do good I feel good," said Abraham Lincoln, "and when I do bad I feel bad." Sin pulls a man down into despondency and despair. While a man may take some temporary pleasure in sin, the end result is unhappiness. "Wickedness never was happiness." Sin creates disharmony with God and is depressing to the spirit. Therefore, a man would do well to examine himself to see that he is in harmony with all of God's laws. Every law kept brings a particular blessing. Every law broken brings a particular blight. Those who are heavy laden with despair should come unto the Lord, for his yoke is easy and his burden is light.
Second, prayer. Prayer in the hour of need is a great boon. From simple trials to our Gethsemanes, prayer can put us in touch with God, our greatest source of comfort and counsel. "Pray always, that you may come off conqueror" -persistent prayer. "Exerting all my powers to call upon God to deliver me" is how the young Joseph Smith describes the method which he used in the Sacred Grove to keep the adversary from destroying him. This is also a key to use in keeping depression from destroying us.
Third, service. To lose yourself in righteous service to others can lift your sights and get your mind off personal problems, or at least put them in proper focus. "When you find yourselves a little gloomy," said President Lorenzo Snow, "look around you and find somebody that is in a worse plight than yourself; go to him and find out what the trouble is, then try to remove it with the wisdom which the Lord bestows upon you; and the first thing you know, your gloom is gone, you feel light, the Spirit of the Lord is upon you, and everything seems illuminated."
A woman whose life is involved in the righteous rearing of her children has a better chance of keeping up her spirits than the woman whose total concern is centered in her own personal problems.
Fourth, work. The earth was cursed for Adam's sake. Work is our blessing, not our doom. God has a work to do, and so should we. Retirement from work has depressed many a man and hastened his death. It has been said that even the very fiends weave ropes of sand rather than to face the pure hell of idleness. We should work at taking care of the spiritual, mental, social, and physical needs of ourselves and those whom we are charged to help. In the church of Jesus Christ there is plenty of work to do to move forward the kingdom of God. Every member a missionary, family genealogy and temple work, home evenings, receiving a Church assignment and magnifying it are but a few of our required labors.
Fifth, health. The condition of the physical body can affect the spirit. That's why the Lord gave us the Word of Wisdom. He also said that we should retire to our beds early and arise early, that we should not run faster than we have strength, and that we should use moderation in all good things. In general, the more food we eat in its natural state and the less it is refined without additives, the healthier it will be for us. Food can affect the mind, and deficiencies in certain elements in the body can promote mental depression. A good physical examination periodically is a safeguard and may spot problems that can be remedied. Rest and physical exercise are essential, and a walk in the fresh air can refresh the spirit. Wholesome recreation is part of our religion, and a change of pace is necessary, and even its anticipation can lift the spirit.
Sixth, reading. Many a man in his hour of trial has turned to the Book of Mormon and been enlightened, enlivened, and comforted.
The psalms in the Old Testament have a special food for the soul of one in distress. In our day we are blessed with the Doctrine and Covenants, modern revelation. The words of the prophets, particularly the living president of the Church, are crucial reading and can give direction and comfort in an hour when one is down.
Seventh, blessing. In a particularly stressful time, or in the anticipation of a critical event, one can seek for a blessing under the hands of the priesthood. Even the Prophet Joseph Smith sought and received a blessing under the hands of Brigham Young and received solace and direction for his soul. Fathers, so live that you can bless your own wives and children. To receive, and then consistently and prayerfully ponder, one's patriarchal blessing can give helpful insight, particularly in an hour of need. The sacrament will "bless the souls" of all those who worthily partake of it, and as such it should be taken often, even by the bedfast.
Eighth, fasting. A certain kind of devil goes not out except by fasting and prayer, the scripture tells us. Periodic fasting can help clear up the mind and strengthen the body and the spirit. The usual fast, the one we are asked to participate in for fast Sunday, is for 24 hours without food or drink. Some people, feeling the need, have gone on longer fasts of abstaining from food but have taken the needed liquids. Wisdom should be used, and the fast should be broken with light eating. To make a fast most fruitful, it should be coupled with prayer and meditation; physical work should be held to a minimum, and it's a blessing if one can ponder on the scriptures and the reason for the fast.
Ninth, friends. The fellowship of true friends who can hear you out, share your joys, help carry your burdens, and correctly counsel you is priceless. For one who has been in the prison of depression, the words of the Prophet Joseph Smith have special meaning when he said, "How sweet the voice of a friend is; one token of friendship from any source whatever awakens and calls into action every sympathetic feeling."
Ideally, your family ought to be your closest friends. Most important, we should seek to become the friend of our Father in heaven and our brother Jesus the Christ. What a boon to be in the company of those who edify you. To have friends, one should be friendly. Friendship should begin at home and then be extended to encompass the home teacher, quorum leader, bishop, and other Church teachers and leaders. To meet often with the Saints and enjoy their companionship can buoy up the heart.
Tenth, music. Inspiring music may fill the soul with heavenly thoughts, move one to righteous action, or speak peace to the soul. When Saul was troubled with an evil spirit, David played for him with his harp and Saul was refreshed and the evil spirit departed. Elder Boyd K. Packer has wisely suggested memorizing some of the inspiring songs of Zion and then, when the mind is afflicted with temptations, to sing aloud, to keep before your mind the inspiring words and thus crowd out the evil thoughts. This could also be done to crowd out debilitating, depressive thoughts.
Eleventh, endurance. When George A. Smith was very ill, he was visited by his cousin, the Prophet Joseph Smith. The afflicted man reported: "He told me I should never get discouraged, whatever difficulties might surround me. If I were sunk into the lowest pit of Nova Scotia and all the Rocky Mountains piled on top of me, I ought not to be discouraged, but hang on, exercise faith, and keep up good courage, and I should come out on the top of the heap."
There are times when you simply have to righteously hang on and outlast the devil until his depressive spirit leaves you. As the Lord told the Prophet Joseph Smith: "Thine adversity and thine afflictions, shall be but a small moment;
"And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high."
"To press on in noble endeavors, even while surrounded by a cloud of depression, will eventually bring you out on top into the sunshine. Even our master Jesus the Christ, while facing that supreme test of being temporarily left alone by our Father during the crucifixion, continued performing his labors for the children of men, and then shortly thereafter he was glorified and received a fullness of joy. While you are going through your trial, you can recall your past victories and count the blessings that you do have with a sure hope of greater ones to follow if you are faithful. And you can have that certain knowledge that in due time God will wipe away all tears and that "eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."
And twelfth, goals. Every accountable child of God needs to set goals, short- and long-range goals. A man who is pressing forward to accomplish worthy goals can soon put despondency under his feet, and once a goal is accomplished, others can be set up. Some will be continuing goals. Each week when we partake of the sacrament we commit ourselves to the goals of taking upon ourselves the name of Christ, of always remembering him and keeping his commandments. Of Jesus' preparation for his mission, the scripture states that he "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." This encompasses four main areas for goals: spiritual, mental, physical, and social. "Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be?" asked the Master, and he answered, "Verily I say unto you, even as I am." Now there is a lifetime goal-to walk in his steps, to perfect ourselves in every virtue as he has done, to seek his face, and to work to make our calling and election sure.
"Brethren," said Paul, " but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
"I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."
Let your minds be filled with the goal of being like the Lord, and you will crowd out depressing thoughts as you anxiously seek to know him and do his will. "Let this mind be in you," said Paul. "Look unto me in every thought," said Jesus. And what will follow if we do? "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee."
"Salvation," said the Prophet Joseph Smith, "is nothing more nor less than to triumph over all our enemies and put them under our feet." We can rise above the enemies of despair, depression, discouragement, and despondency by remembering that God provides righteous alternatives, some of which I have mentioned. As it states in the Bible, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."
Yes, life is a test; it is a probation; and perhaps being away from our heavenly home we feel sometimes, as holy men in the past have felt, that "they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth."
Some of you will recall in that great book Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan that the main character known as Christian was trying to press forward to gain entrance to the celestial city. He made it to his goal, but in order to do so, he had to overcome many obstacles, one of which was to escape from the Giant Despair. To lift our spirit and send us on our way rejoicing, the devil's designs of despair, discouragement, depression, and despondency can be defeated in a dozen ways, namely: repentance, prayer, service, work, health, reading, blessings, fasting, friends, music, endurance, and goals.
May we use them all in the difficult days ahead so that we Christian pilgrims will have greater happiness here and go on to a fullness of joy in the highest realms of the celestial kingdom is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop H. Burke Peterson
First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
I've been impressed and amazed as I have met with and observed the Aaronic Priesthood young men throughout the Church. I've noticed there are always those of your number who have an unusual sense of dedication, who will do whatever is necessary in order to be true to the trust placed in them as sons of God, who will do whatever they need to do to bear his name in honor and dignity, to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to be the example he would be, to act as he would act.
I met one such young man not long ago while I was attending a stake conference in another country. We were about to conclude a Saturday afternoon meeting with the stake presidency when a knock came at the office door. The president opened it, and I saw a hand give an envelope to him. It had my name on it. The letter inside introduced me to a young man who needed an interview in order to be accepted as a missionary.
As soon as our meeting with the stake presidency was concluded, I excused them and invited the young man in. His initial appearance shocked me. I couldn't believe he was being recommended to go out and serve as a missionary. His clothes were somewhat wrinkled; he needed a shave; he reeked with tobacco smoke; he even had some sort of paperback book rolled up in his hands. What could he offer in the service of the Master, I thought.
And then it happened-he walked over and shook hands with me. As I looked into his eyes, I was electrified. He was different. He was special, in spite of his outward appearance. As we sat down he told me his story. He first excused himself for appearing to be untidy and in a hurry. He said he had just gotten off the bus after a 13-hour ride from his home and, if I didn't mind, he hoped he would be able to be back on the bus in another hour for another 13-hour ride to his home.
I then began to put two and two together. I knew now why his clothes were wrinkled and why he needed a shave. I knew the tobacco smoke was not of his choosing, but from the close confinement in the bus. I made another observation. That paperback book in his hand was the Book of Mormon-well read, well used, a priceless possession. He went on to say that three years ago he had joined the Church because of his association with our young people. He said they were different. His parents had given him permission if he wanted to, but warned that if he did, he would no longer have a bed in their home. He could no longer live with them as their son.
When he was baptized, his father kept his word and opened the back door, telling him never to return. The young man didn't. He moved in with friends. He told me that for the past three years he had been working and going to school. He said he had saved over $2,000 to keep himself on a mission. Please, could he go, he said; he wanted to more than anything in the world. The impression of the Spirit said yes, and he's now part of the army of 18,000 stalwarts who are out covering the earth as servants of the Master.
Yes, there are those of your number who will make no excuse for doing as a priesthood holder of God should do. There are those who will find ways to do what is right and expected of them, in spite of others around them who may try to turn them away from the straight path. There are those who are your friends who will find ways to go on missions because it's right.
School has started for almost all of you. Unfortunately, there are some of your number who, this school year, will find it easier to follow the crowd, even when the crowd is wrong. There are some who don't understand that there is no right way to do something wrong.
My young brethren, we are all a part of a great battle that is covering the face of the earth-a conflict between the brethren of the priesthood and the legions of Satan. It's a very real battle. Many are wounded or die spiritually every day. The casualty list of our own is most tragic. It's interesting to note in this battle the strong always survive.
You know it isn't hard to recognize a real warrior for the priesthood. You meet him at every turn. He is the one who says no when others say yes to movies on Sunday, to R- or X-rated shows at any time. He's the one who says no to immoral books or magazines or pictures or stories at any time. He says no to fishing or swimming or boating on Sunday. He's the one who says no when others say, "Just try it," to a beer or a cigarette-even if it's just one. This courageous warrior is also the one who says yes when others say no to priesthood meeting Sunday morning, to sacrament meeting, to tithe paying, to prayers each day, to seminary or institute classes. This stalwart young man is one who says yes when others say no to a mission.
It's too bad, but you will also meet at many turns each day those who are helping Satan in his grim work to destroy. And you can easily recognize them too: they will show lack of courage; they will show lack of backbone, if you please, when it comes time to say no to something that is not right.
Recently, in fact last spring at the end of the school year, there was a high school graduation in a community here in the West. Several appropriate parties were planned for the graduates. However, there was one party that sort of sneaked into the lineup that was wrong. It was bad. In this case several shows of an immoral nature had been planned at a local residence. Not knowing beforehand the nature of the movies, a group of unsuspecting Latter-day Saint young people went to the home for the party. As soon as the film started to run and its vulgar message came to the screen, part of the Latter-day Saint young people got up and left, while others of the same group stayed in the home.
When outside, the few who were leaving met some of their friends just arriving. They told them of the nature of the show and recommended that they not go in. Part of this group then turned and left also; however, a few of the weak went into the home, there to have their minds saturated and polluted by the power of Satan. Yes, there are those who will do whatever they need to do to be right with the Lord, to do right. There are those who really believe that holding the priesthood is special, important, something really worth honoring.
May I tell you, brethren, it's worth doing whatever we must to be approved by the Lord. And I say this, knowing it isn't easy to be made fun of and to be laughed at when you do what is right. Many times it isn't the popular thing to do to go against the crowd or to do differently than one or two friends. May the Lord bless and strengthen you young brethren as you meet this challenge.
May I also say to you who are members of ward bishoprics and branch presidencies, there are those of your number who really believe that, outside their own home, their greatest and most important priesthood responsibility is with the Aaronic Priesthood. Brethren, there are those among you who make no excuses for doing what they should, who find a way to spend their prime time in Church service with the young people of their ward or branch. You will notice as we do, because of their personal involvement, that their young people have a very special spirit about them, a spiritual alertness, and a strength that will easily compare to Helaman's 2,000 stripling Ammonite sons. We see them often in the many stakes of the Church each weekend.
You will see these great brethren of the bishoprics on every turn also, and you will recognize them as brethren who understand their stewardship because they will be the ones who are letting the Melchizedek Priesthood quorum leaders function in their callings as leaders, letting them take the lead in sending the priesthood brethren into every home. We call it home teaching-the priesthood in action.
You'll recognize them because they are letting the Lord select the Aaronic Priesthood quorum presidencies. These bishoprics have studied and understand the ninth section of the Doctrine and Covenants. After careful consideration, they present the names of the quorum officers to the Lord for his approval, before talking to the parents or to the young man.
These great brethren are the ones who make the quorum presidency call to the young man in a dignified manner: never on the phone or in the hall or on the front porch, but in the bishop's office by the presidency of the Aaronic Priesthood of the ward.
You see, this type of bishopric has the vision of what properly called and trained Aaronic Priesthood quorum presidencies can mean in the life of a boy and for the future of the Church. Think of it, brethren, a new generation of Melchizedek Priesthood leaders in ten or twenty years who are being taught proper priesthood principles now by their presiding officers, the ward bishopric.
You will recognize this bishopric with ease because they are the ones who are actually training these choice young men weekly in proper priesthood principles. They are always in the Aaronic Priesthood quorum meetings on Sunday with the young men. This bishopric will be found calling Aaronic Priesthood quorum presidents "president" during the priesthood meeting times.
Yes, you can spot right off the bishopric who know their chief responsibility from the Lord is with the Aaronic Priesthood-with no exceptions. They know that other things may not get done, but the work of the Aaronic Priesthood and the Young Women must not suffer, it must not fail. They know they will one day answer to the Lord for this sacred trust and stewardship.
Brethren, you can also recognize the stake president who knows what it is to be chairman of the Aaronic Priesthood committee of his stake. It's interesting to observe his actions too. He hasn't released his counselor or the high council brethren from their efforts as he assumes the chairmanship of this committee, but rather he now takes a more personal interest in the committee work. He becomes alive not only with interest but with involvement in the Aaronic Priesthood program of his stake as he joins hands with the other great brethren of the stake committee.
He is the stake president who knows that Melchizedek Priesthood quorum leaders and Aaronic Priesthood quorum leaders must join hands as they work together to help fathers with their sons. He knows that an elders quorum president and a deacons quorum president and a father, properly trained and motivated, can be an unbeatable combination in the battle with Satan for the life of a boy.
This stake president knows that young women are as important to save as the young men. For this reason and many others he lets the stake director for the Young Women know that she has direct access to him, as he is her file leader in the work with the Young Women.
Brethren, there are ways to do better what we're doing, to be better than we are. The priesthood we hold as young men and older men is the authority to perform our duties in the same way the Savior would if he had our individual responsibility. Our authority is limited to doing it the way he would-to be the kind of deacons president the Master would be; to be the kind of teacher the Master would be; as a priest, to prepare for a mission the way he would; to strive to be the kind of elders quorum president, bishop or counselor or stake president the Savior would be if he had that office and calling and responsibility.
Or, most important of all, our priesthood is the authority to be the kind of father, son, or brother the Savior would be if he were in our family.
Brethren, our success in the priesthood depends on the pattern of our life. When we learn to be led by the Spirit, then the priesthood authority we have will become priesthood power, the power to change lives for the better, to cause miracles to happen in the lives of boys and girls and fathers and mothers.
In a world of conflict and trouble there will be the giants among men. There will be the peacemakers. There will be those who can calm troubled waters. There will be those whose life's pattern will be as a beacon on a hill, as a lighthouse in a storm. There will be those who others will look to for strength and guidance. You can be that ray of hope to those around you, especially to your own.
Remember, the brightest light and the clearest signal come from the cleanest instrument. May the Lord guide us and strengthen us as we purify and cleanse our lives. I bear testimony to you, my brethren, that I know God lives. I know he's in the heavens. And I pray that he'll bless us to honor the priesthood he's given us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President A. Theodore Tuttle
Of the First Council of the Seventy
Young men, I want to counsel you about your future missions. I was once a boy like you. That may seem like a long time ago to you, but to me it's but a moment. I have passed through every day of every year that you have lived thus far-and much, much more. I am also a father and I have had much experience with young people during my lifetime.
When the prophet of God declares that now is the time to lengthen our stride and to increase our missionary force, now is the time!
I talked with a young man about a mission. He said, "I don't want to go." I asked, "What has that got to do with it? We need you."
President Kimball has said we don't have half enough missionaries. Can't you see that it doesn't matter whether you want to go or not? You're needed! Do you know what it means to be needed? The bonds of brotherhood are forged deep and strong in the mission field. You will develop a love for a companion with whom you kneel in daily prayer. You will learn to love the people where you serve, no matter what nationality or condition. And they will love you. They will love you because you brought them the gospel.
Converts always remember those who taught them. I've heard many converts speak almost reverently of "our missionaries." Imagine having people pray for you. Do you understand what that means? This will always be a purifying and refining influence in your life.
Many people out there are praying for the truth. You are the one who can bring it to them best. At present only 18,000 of you are serving. There are nearly 60,000, 19 through 25, who have not. We need more, many more. Missionary service is not preempted by any other thing. Marriage does not take precedence. Your work does not have priority. Your education is interrupted to fill this calling. College-related activities may be timed to satisfy both school and mission requirements. Some of you may be physically handicapped. There may yet be opportunity to serve in fitting ways locally.
Your moral worthiness is a prime consideration. We want no flabbiness of character when spiritual strength is required. Study! Get some colored pencils. Keep them with your Book of Mormon. Underline verses important to you. Another tool of missionary work is an additional language. Study one. We should "become acquainted with languages, tongues, and people."
Learn to pray constantly. Kneel down morning and evening. Get on good terms with the Lord. Like the young man who said: "Whenever I pass the church, I always stop to visit; so when I'm finally carried in, the Lord won't ask, 'Who is it?'"
Remember, young men get hungry whether they are missionaries or not, but especially if they are missionaries. Learn to fry an egg and cook spaghetti. Learn to wash a dish and sew on a button. This isn't only "girl's work." You don't have that kind of companion in the mission field. If you can't do it, your companion probably can't either, and, of course, we don't want to send your mother along.
Some missionary quarters are not too tidy. That's because you didn't learn early to pick up, hang up, fold up, and put away. You could start now, of course, but go slowly or you'll startle your mother. Shine your shoes. Press your pants. Learn how to wash and starch and iron the cuffs and collars on your shirts.
Fads come and go. Gratefully, we are moving out of the period of the sloppy, hippy-type attire. Take pride in your dress. You might just as well learn now to keep the dress and grooming standards of the Church. If you would cut your hair a little shorter now, it wouldn't be such a shock later. It not only improves your outward appearance; it actually does something to you inside. In your attempt to follow the styles and be casual, do not offend good taste. When we go to worship the Lord, we ought to be dressed in our finest, cleanest, and best. Some of your fathers could take a tip about this too, but that's another sermon.
Where will you go on your mission? If you are normal, and we hope you are-in fact that's one of the requirements-you'll want to go to some exotic place in a faraway land. Or you'll want to go where your father went. That's normal too. There are some young men in this Church who think there is only one true mission-that's where their fathers served. Have you ever noticed your father when his old mission field is mentioned? He always gets that wistful look, brightens up, and has to take his glasses off and wipe something out of his eye. Every man deserves that warm glow that comes from mere reflection on those marvelous missionary days. So, like others before, you will go where you are called.
Did you know that your bishop must send the president of the Church a report concerning your driving record? He notes any accidents or violations or suspension of your driver's license. Remember this and keep your record clean.
Young man, it now costs about $130 per month for a mission. By the time you are ready to go it may be even higher. That means you will need between three and four thousand dollars to complete your mission. Some of you don't have enough. You'll have to get it. The Lord will help you and your family. You must start early. Counsel with your father. Get a job. Work hard. Save your money. Too many boys play too much, watch TV, and are idle. Open an account where you save by mail. I caution you: Do not squander your missionary funds for a bike, then a scooter, then a car or stereo, and records, etc. Do not rationalize that this is an "investment" which can be transferred into ready cash just before you go. Self-denial and purposeful saving may well be the greatest blessing to come from your missionary service. After you have done everything possible, some of you may need to see your bishop. He may have some helpful suggestions.
You will be two years older when you return from your mission. Tonight you may think that won't matter much. I can assure you of one thing, however-there will be some significant changes. To delay courtship and marriage is wise. You might change partners in the process. Many do-both by his choice and hers.
While a mission does not guarantee a happy and successful marriage, it stabilizes many things in your life that affect your marriage. Growing to maturity in the mission field brings a better marriage partner to both sides of the altar.
Now, young man, I warn you. Beware of the girl who places a low premium on missionary service. Beware of the girl who teases and tempts, who discourages your mission. You had better be careful. Is this the kind of girl you want for your eternal companion? You would do well to end this relationship.
You are not too young to gain a testimony and bear it. In a stake conference we called on a young lady to speak. She had just returned from the Hill Cumorah pageant. She bore a fervent testimony. After she finished we called on 17-year-old Gary. He looked surprised when his name was called. He unwound his full six feet and came to the pulpit. His first words were, "I don't know why the president called on me; I don't even have a testimony". For several minutes he spoke about seminary, he expressed gratitude for his family, then said: "I know the gospel is true, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen."
Testimonies come through the gift and power of the Holy Ghost. We gain testimony as we bear testimony. Take opportunity to do so whenever it is appropriate. If you desire a testimony and seek for it, you will receive it. You will have opportunity to bear your witness to thousands. This will have more effect on people than any other thing you do. That's why you are called-to testify that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph was a prophet, that this Church is true-with a living prophet.
There are many thousands here who are not the captain of the football team, the valedictorian, and the student body president, all in one. Socially, you feel inept. Your grades are not all that good. You are wondering if you can qualify to serve a mission. Young man, fix firmly on your heart a desire to serve the Lord and to declare the gospel: "For I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life." I know this promise is true. The Lord loves you. He needs you. You may not have all of the qualities you would like to have. You have great potential. Some of you have made mistakes. Some have troublesome personal habits. Talk to the Lord about them tonight. If you are greatly troubled, talk to your father. You may even need to see your bishop. Get things straightened out now.
The greatest missionaries in the Church have been humble men-men who have paid the price of honest toil, men who lived close to the Lord and relied on him. You too can be numbered among the great. Decide tonight.
Imagine standing in the baptismal font with your convert, raising your right arm to the square, and saying these words: "Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
You may make the winning touchdown, cross the finish line first, swish down the mountain on perfect powder, drive "a beauty" to the left-field stands, or pitch a no-hitter. You may do and thrill to many things. But you will experience few feelings equal to the quiet, even tearful moment when you record in your diary: "Today we baptized Mr. and Mrs. Brown and all their children. They are a fantastic family!"
I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet. I know that President Spencer W. Kimball is the living prophet on the earth today, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Marion G. Romney
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
My beloved brethren of the priesthood, I consider this invitation to say a few words to you as a great honor and a great responsibility. I trust the Lord will bless us while I talk to you. I hope I have something to say that will be helpful to both the Aaronic Priesthood and the Melchizedek Priesthood.
I have decided to say a few words about integrity.
One of the definitions of integrity reads, "The quality or state of being of sound moral principle; uprightness, honesty, and sincerity."
In distinguishing between the synonyms of integrity, honesty, honor, probity, and veracity, Webster's New World Dictionary says that "integrity implies an incorruptible soundness of moral character, especially as displayed in fulfilling trusts."
I need not belabor the fact that the world is at the present time in desperate need of men of integrity. The proof of this statement may be read in every publication, heard on every radio, and both seen and heard in every visual and sound production.
"Give us the man of integrity," says A. P. Stanley, "on whom we know we can thoroughly depend; who will stand firm when others fail; the friend, faithful and true; the adviser, honest and fearless; the adversary, just and chivalrous; such an one is a fragment of the Rock of Ages."
Our very civilization is in jeopardy. If it is to be rescued, it must be done by men of integrity.
To accomplish this tremendous task, the Lord has called his priesthood. This means you and me and all our fellow priesthood-bearers, Aaronic and Melchizedek.
The Lord has reposed in us the most sacred trust given to men. We must not fail him. We must be boys and men of integrity. Our individual exaltation depends upon our proving to the Lord that we will at all hazards and under all circumstances faithfully discharge the trust he has placed in us.
The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that absolute integrity must precede the promise of eternal life. He said:
"After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost, then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted."
This promise is to come, however, only after "the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve him at all hazards."
We have among our leaders in the Church, in all callings of the priesthood from deacons to apostles, examples of brethren whose performance demonstrates this integrity.
President Kimball, for example. Throughout the years he has been a pattern of integrity. No one doubts that he would discharge the sacred trust the Lord has placed upon him at the peril of his life.
President Tanner likewise. As a matter of fact, his performance throughout distinguished careers of business and government has been so circumspect and courageous that his associates refer to him as "Mr. Integrity."
I shall now call attention to some circumstances in which this matter of integrity is involved. Here is an account that you bearers of the Aaronic Priesthood might think about:
"Four Latter-day Saint boys set out from a Utah city on a cross-country trip. They had saved all their money during the last year of high school for this purpose, and now that graduation was over, they packed their suitcases into the trunk of their car and said good-byes to worrying parents and envious friends. It was a matter of considerable celebration when they crossed the Utah State line and entered into another state. They pulled up alongside the highway and got out to see how it felt to be in new surroundings. A certain thrill of excitement was noted by each of the young travelers and a sense of adventure led them to great speculation.
"They had agreed to send their parents a postcard every other day to indicate their whereabouts, and had promised to send a collect telegram if they ran into any trouble. One of the boys commented that it felt real good to be on his own and not be under the necessity of getting advance approval from someone for every move he made. Another suggested that they must act like seasoned travelers and not impress others as country boys on their first junket away from home. As a follow-up, this same boy proposed to his friends that they forget all about being Mormons for the duration of their adventure. Asked why by the other three puzzled boys, he said that they could now afford to 'let their hair down' and sample some of the excitement enjoyed by other people, not of the Mormon Church. 'Anyway,' he argued, 'what difference will it make? Nobody out here in the world knows us or cares anything about our church connections.'
"The thrill of the new experience weighted their judgment, and the group made an agreement to give it a try. They decided to announce themselves to the world as students from the East who had been to school in Utah for a short time. Their Utah license plates made this necessary.
"Nightfall on the first day of the journey found them at a famous tourist attraction spot, and they made arrangements for camping near the resort. After the evening meal they gathered at the large hotel for the night's entertainment. No sooner had they arrived when the ringleader of the boys suggested that they begin here and now sampling the things they had so long been denied by strict parents and teachers. The first thing that caught their eyes was a large neon sign at the far end of the lounge. It read, 'Bar-beer, cocktails.' Thinking it a moderate nod in the direction of 'sinning just a little bit,' they agreed to go into the bar and order a glass of beer for each one. There was a nervous air about them as they entered the gaudily lighted bar and surveyed the counters loaded with intriguing bottles of liquor. The boy who had been delegated to give the order lost his voice on the first try and had to swallow hard to get out an understandable, 'Four glasses of beer, please.'
"What the beer lacked in palatability, the atmosphere and thrill more than made up. They grew bolder and began to talk of the next adventure they would undertake. The talk was growing racy when suddenly a well-dressed man entered the bar and walked straight toward their table. The look on the stranger's face and the determined pace at which he walked toward them left the boys completely unnerved.
"When the man reached the table at which the boys were sitting, he extended his hand to one of them and said, 'I beg your pardon, but aren't you George Redford's son from Utah?' The boy was speechless and terrified. His fingers froze around the base of the glass of beer and he answered in a wavering voice, 'Why, yes, sir, I am.' 'I thought I recognized you when you came in the lobby of the hotel,' the stranger continued. 'I am Henry Paulsen, vice-president of the company your dad works for, and I met you and your mother last winter at a company dinner at the Hotel Utah. I have never forgotten how you explained your Mormon priesthood to one of the other executives of our company who asked you what it meant to be a Mormon boy. I must say I was a little surprised to see you head for the bar, but I suppose that with Mormons as well as non-Mormons, boys will be boys when they're off the roost.'
"These boys had heard a sermon they would never hear duplicated in the pulpit. They were sick, ashamed, and crestfallen. As they left their half-filled glasses and walked out through the hotel lobby, they had the feeling that everyone was looking at them. The cover of darkness was kind as they made their way to their camp. 'You just can't win,' said the boy who had proposed their dropping their true identity, trying to ease the tension. 'I'm not so sure,' replied the boy to who the stranger had spoken. 'If we have any sense left, we can make this experience into the most winning lesson of our lives.'"
Here is another experience-an experience of President Joseph F. Smith reported by the late President Charles W. Nibley, which you young elders might ponder to your profit:
"Another incident which I have heard him relate," says Brother Nibley, speaking about President Joseph F. Smith, who was the president of the Church and father of our late president, Joseph Fielding Smith, "which shows his courage and integrity, occurred when he was returning from his mission to the Sandwich Islands, in the fall of 1857. He came home by way of Los Angeles, by what was called the Southern Route. In that year Johnston's Army was on the move for Utah, and naturally enough there was much excitement and bitterness of feeling concerning the 'Mormons.' In southern California, just after the little train of wagons had traveled only a short distance and made their camp, several anti-'Mormon' toughs rode into the camp on horseback, cursing and swearing and threatening what they would do to the 'Mormons.' Joseph F. was a little distance from the camp gathering wood for the fire, but he saw that the few members of his own party had cautiously gone into the brush down the creek, out of sight. When he saw that, he told me," says Brother Nibley, "the thought came into his mind, 'Shall I run from these fellows? Why should I fear them?' With that he marched up with his arm full of wood to the campfire where one of the ruffians, still with his pistol in his hand, shouting and cursing about the 'Mormons,' in a loud voice said to Joseph F.:
"'Are you a 'Mormon?'
"And the answer came straight, 'Yes, siree; dyed in the wool; true blue, through and through.'
"At that the ruffian grasped him by the hand and said:
"'Well, you are the ---- ---- pleasantest man I ever met! Shake, young fellow, I am glad to see a man that stands up for his convictions.'"
Abraham Lincoln demonstrated his great integrity in his famous house-divided speech. John Wesley Hill, in his book Abraham Lincoln-Man of God, says: "Lincoln showed his independence and tenacity of purpose when he wrote his address accepting the nomination for United States Senator. This is known as 'The House Divided Against Itself' speech. It embodied the historic declaration that the Union could not exist 'half slave and half free.' To his friend, Jesse K. Dubois, Lincoln said:
"'I refused to read the passage about the house divided against itself to you, because I knew you would ask me to change or modify it, and that I was determined not to do. I had willed it so and was willing, if necessary, to perish with it. I would rather be defeated with this expression in the speech than to be victorious without it.'"
Now it took real courage for Lincoln to leave that "half slave and half free" sentence in his speech. He was ambitious, and it seemed that through the Senate was the way to the presidency, but the political climate at the time was not ready for the stand he took on that issue. The probability was that the statement would mean defeat in his race for the Senate, and that's what it turned out to be. All this Lincoln well knew; nevertheless, he had the integrity to act in harmony with his convictions. Although his course did shut the door to the Senate, fortunately for the country, it later opened the door to the presidency.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., was a man of like integrity. As a young man he presided for a short time over the Southern Branch of the State Normal College in Cedar City, Utah. He developed a great interest in that institution.
"Two years later his help was solicited to give encouragement to members of the legislature to provide the funds which had been requested by the institution."
Responding by letter he "explained in utter frankness and candor that he could not support the request" for $100,000.
"' Frankly and freely,' he said, 'I believe you are asking too much.
"' I have thought the matter over very carefully, and have not been able to see my way clear to honestly recommend to your representatives the appropriation you ask.
"'If you would say that you will drop the $100,000 and work for the $54,000 you may count on my active cooperation to the very limit of my poor ability; but if you still reach after the larger amount, you will at once see it will be better if I keep quiet; and I promise you that I shall do that.'
"The frankness in this letter was to become a distinguishing characteristic of Clark's correspondence and dealings with men throughout his long career. Although his recommendations many times did not contain what others had hoped to receive, nonetheless his candor and complete honesty contributed greatly to men's confidence in him for they knew they could depend upon him to say what he really thought."
How glorious, men of the priesthood, it would be if all of us possessed the integrity of a President Kimball, a Nathan Eldon Tanner, a Joseph F. Smith, an Abraham Lincoln, or a J. Reuben Clark, Jr. The Lord expects that from us, his priesthood bearers.
God help us that we may think about this great quality of integrity and live lives of integrity, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
My dear brethren, I stand before you this evening in all humility and humbly pray that the Spirit and blessings of the Lord will continue to be with us as I speak to you. What a glorious privilege it is to hold the priesthood of God-from the newest deacon in the smallest and most distant branch of the Church, to the high priest holding the highest office in the Church. As such we have made certain covenants with the Lord and are entitled to his many promised blessings as we keep those covenants and walk uprightly before him.
The other day I was talking to an enthusiastic returned missionary who had been a member of the Church for only five years, and this is the story he told me, which I found most interesting.
He said he was raised in a good home by fine parents with high ideals; but he had never thought of, let alone been told, many of the things which the Church teaches, such as a prophet of God being on the earth today, of a literal resurrection where the body and soul will be reunited after death and continue on throughout eternity, and particularly of the beautiful and most important concept that he was literally a spirit child of God. He had never been taught of the restoration of the gospel, that there was a living personal God, and that Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, lives; that he was literally the Son of God in the flesh.
While working at a summer resort where a number of young people were employed, and where all seemed to be having a good time, this boy's attention was drawn to three young men who seemed to be living apart from the others and not participating in the smoking, drinking of alcoholic beverages, and using drugs, etc. They were living very high standards in every way and seemed to be morally clean.
He said, "I became attracted to them and engaged in conversation with them to find out why they were different. They told me they were Mormons, that they observed a Word of Wisdom, which they explained to me, and that the Lord had said, 'Thou shalt not commit adultery', and that sexual transgression was considered by the Church as one of the most grievous sins."
He said further, "I became very close to these young men and liked what they taught and the way they lived. They were very free in telling me about the Church. They seemed to be proud of it and were not ashamed of the fact that they were not living as other young men were living. They did point out, however, that some of the young men who were members of the Church and living in the camp were not living the principles of the gospel."
I thought how sad it was that these other members were not living as they should, had succumbed to temptation, and were not strong enough to stand up for what they knew was right. If they had been converted and not ashamed of the gospel of Christ and its teachings, they too could have been influencing some others for good and changing their lives in preparation for ultimate blessings promised to the faithful.
My friend continued, "One of the three young men was a returned missionary, and as I became more interested, he taught me the gospel as he had taught it in the mission field. I corresponded with my parents and told them what I had found. They were very disappointed and unhappy; but when I returned home and told them all about it, and they saw the good effect all this had on my life and the change in habits, they gave me permission to be baptized, for which I was most thankful."
He was just 19 when he joined the Church. He went on to say what a great privilege it was when he was given the Aaronic Priesthood and he was able to administer and pass the sacrament in remembrance of the Lord's crucifixion. He said it made him very humble as he felt the sacredness of this ordinance, and he always tried to be worthy and well-groomed and to act as the Lord would have him do were he standing by his side.
He felt greatly blessed when as a priest he was given the privilege of baptizing new members, realizing that this gave him the same privilege and authority that was given to John the Baptist who baptized the Savior. And as he talked, I wished that every young man could feel and realize just how important that is and what a great privilege it is to be able to perform these ordinances and know that the Lord depends on all of us to live worthy of and magnify the priesthood which we hold.
Then this young man said how pleased he was a year later as he was interviewed to go on a mission to be able to tell his bishop and stake president that he was keeping the Word of Wisdom strictly, keeping the Sabbath day holy, paying his tithes and offerings, and keeping himself morally clean in every way, and that he really honored womanhood and had never treated a girl friend differently from the way he would want a young man to treat his sister. He felt so good about this and was so very glad that he could go into the mission field as an ambassador of the Lord, feeling that the Lord would approve his going as his representative. He told of the glorious feeling he had as he baptized and confirmed his first convert.
These were humbling experiences for him, he said, as was also his being called upon to confer the Melchizedek Priesthood upon a man and ordain him an elder. He realized how important it is that a man be worthy of these privileges to act in the name of the Lord and that the man he ordained was just as much an elder as if the president of the Church had ordained him. He felt most humble and grateful to the Lord.
He concluded by telling me that he was going to be married soon, and his countenance beamed as he expressed his gratitude and happiness that he and his sweetheart were clean and worthy to go to the temple where they could be sealed for time and all eternity.
Then I said to him: "No greater privilege or responsibility can be placed upon any young man than for him to be given the priesthood of God, which is the power of God to act in his name. And now you will enjoy all the added blessings and privileges that will come from being sealed by the holy priesthood in the temple of God."
Too many young men today who have been raised in the Church seem to take the priesthood for granted and feel that it is a right rather than a privilege for them to hold the priesthood. Many seem to think it is smart to break the Word of Wisdom and be loose in their morals. I want to emphasize that the Lord is not pleased with this. It is most important that a young man live worthy of that priesthood and that he not be advanced until he is worthy.
He must also be prepared and worthy before receiving a call to go into the mission field. I cannot imagine an executive of any great corporation choosing and authorizing a person to represent the company and making any kind of contract unless that person has proven himself knowledgeable, capable, and worthy-one on whom the executive can depend entirely.
It is even more important that one representing the Lord, speaking in his name, be equally worthy. I am sure the Lord is greatly pleased with all those who are prepared to do the things that make them worthy and who are prepared to stand up and be counted and defend the Church and the gospel of Jesus Christ by bearing testimony of the truth and denouncing evil and unrighteousness. He is equally disappointed and grieved when those who have made covenants with him fail to keep them, just as he grieves for any of his children who fall by the wayside.
I want to assure every young man that as we keep our covenants we will be happy, more successful, loved, and respected even by those who do not believe as we do and who may ridicule us. They expect us to keep our covenants and our commitments, to stand up for our beliefs, and to be different. This fact has been evident so often when a member of the Church is found guilty of any crime. It is pointed out that he is a Mormon or a member of the Mormon Church while the religious affiliation of others who may be involved with him is never mentioned.
Let me emphasize to our leaders that it is our responsibility and privilege to work closely with these priesthood holders and with prospective priesthood holders. Through our teachings, worthy example, and testimony we must help them to understand the gospel and their responsibilities and the importance of living according to the teachings of the gospel.
Let the boys know that you love them and will do all in your power to help them succeed and be happy; but always remember that no young man should expect to be advanced in the priesthood or given a temple recommend or receive a call to go on a mission unless he is living worthily and is prepared to continue to live worthy of the gospel which he has embraced and magnify the priesthood which he holds. It is no kindness to advance anyone in the priesthood or give him a temple recommend if he is not worthy or to send him on a mission in order for him to repent and adjust. Rather, he should prove himself worthy before he is called. The Lord wants worthy representatives.
Now let me repeat to the young men that it is most important that they be honest in every way. Some have lied to their bishops and to their stake presidents in order to go into the mission field or to go to the temple. Such are certainly not worthy of these privileges. The Lord will not be mocked.
Leaders, find out from the prospective missionary what he thinks the Lord wants of him as a representative. Never hesitate to make a searching interview so that you will know if he is worthy or is guilty of any transgression and how he feels about a mission call. Then together consider how the Lord would feel about it and then act accordingly.
It is just not fair to anyone to send a young man into the mission field who is not qualified or worthy. He cannot get the spirit of his calling. And while he is in the mission field he is a burden to the mission president and a deterrent to the missionary work. I know how heartrending it is for a mission president to have to excommunicate and send a missionary home because of transgression.
If a young man is guilty of transgression, let him know that you love him and that you are prepared to help in every way possible to get him back on the track. Remember that Satan is on the loose and his cohorts are striving with all their might to lead these young men and women astray. Always be prepared to encourage, guide, and help direct these young people to live according to the principles of the gospel. Be determined that no boy or girl is going to be lost because of your neglect.
Now, regarding the transgressor: Every mission president, stake president, and bishop is directed and instructed how to investigate and handle all cases of transgression. A person who is guilty of a serious transgression cannot progress, and he is not happy while the guilt is upon him. Until he has confessed and repented he is in bondage. The transgressor who is dealt with as he should be, with love and with proper discipline, will later express his appreciation for your concern, your interest, and your leadership. As he is properly dealt with, he is in a position to repent and come back to full activity. But he must be dealt with.
Be aware of those who are not active in the Church, and if you feel that something is wrong or that someone is guilty of transgression, it is your responsibility to go to him with love and find out about it. He will appreciate it, and by moving promptly you may be able to prevent further transgression. Save the person who is having a problem and bring him back into the fold.
It has been reported to me that some bishops and even stake presidents have said that they never have excommunicated or disciplined anyone and that they do not intend to. This attitude is entirely wrong. Judges in Israel have the responsibility to sit in righteous judgment where it becomes necessary. Let me read from the twentieth section of the Doctrine and Covenants an important reminder to those who have the responsibility of judging: "Any member of the Church of Christ transgressing, or being overtaken in a fault, shall be dealt with as the scriptures direct."
Brethren, study the scriptures and the handbook and do as they direct and discipline the members of the Church when necessary. Remember that it is no kindness to a transgressor for his local authority to ignore or overlook or try to cover up his iniquity.
Let me read a quotation from President John Taylor wherein he discussed this subject: "Furthermore, I have heard of some Bishops who have been seeking to cover up the iniquities of men; I tell them, in the name of God, they will have to bear that iniquity, and if any of you want to partake of the sins of men, or uphold them, you will have to bear them. Do you hear it, you Bishops and you Presidents? God will require it at your hands. You are not placed in position to tamper with the principles of righteousness, nor to cover up the infamies and corruptions of men."
These are very strong words, brethren, and they were spoken by a president of the Church, a prophet of God. Also, George Q. Cannon makes this significant statement: "The Spirit of God would undoubtedly be so grieved that it would forsake not only those who are guilty of these acts, but it would withdraw itself from those who would suffer them to be done in our midst unchecked and unrebuked."
We must live in the world but we must not become a part of it. We are different from the world. We cannot accept their modes or standards of living. We have had revealed to us the gospel of Jesus Christ, which sets out clearly what our standards should be. We have had the priesthood restored and conferred upon us. We must be exemplary in every respect. There are many scriptures in the Doctrine and Covenants that tell us how to handle the transgressor and what our responsibilities as priesthood holders are. This one especially I call to your attention:
"Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence.
"He that is slothful shall not be counted worthy to stand, and he that learns not his duty and shows himself not approved shall not be counted worthy to stand."
In the scriptures it is abundantly clear that the cases which are to be handled by the Church include, but are not limited to, fornication, adultery, homosexual acts, abortion, or other infractions of the moral code; criminal acts involving moral turpitude such as burglary, dishonesty, theft, murder, apostasy; open opposition to and deliberate disobedience to the rules and regulations of the Church; cruelty to spouse or children; advocating or practicing so-called plural marriage; or any unchristianlike conduct in violation of the law and order of the Church.
If you leaders do as the Lord admonishes, he will bless you, strengthen you, and direct you, and you will find great joy in his service. It is most important, however, that when a person is disfellowshiped or excommunicated you show great love and concern and put forth every effort to help him clear up his life and return to full fellowship in the Church.
We read in the Doctrine and Covenants:
"Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.
"By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins-behold, he will confess them and forsake them."
Let me emphasize to all assembled, wherever you may be this evening, it is our responsibility to save souls. We as leaders must do all within our power to lead our members in the right paths, to keep them strong in the faith, to let them know that we love them, that every soul is great in the sight of God, that we are spirit children of our Heavenly Father, and he stands ready to bless us. We have the responsibility to work closely with parents and with their children to see that they keep themselves morally clean and worthy members of the kingdom of God and prepare themselves for the kingdom of heaven. But never become unnecessarily intimate with any of the opposite sex.
In a few minutes we will be instructed by the president of the Church, a prophet of God. I bear witness that he is a prophet of God, and that God actually lives, and that his Son Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world who came and gave his life that we might be resurrected and enjoy immortality and eternal life. We are led today by the Lord through a prophet of God, President Spencer W. Kimball, with whom it is a great privilege and honor and blessing to work. If we will follow him, we cannot go astray.
May we magnify our priesthood and enjoy the blessings of the Lord, and as President Romney said, "Prove our integrity," I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
President of the Church
My brethren, it is wonderful to be with you here tonight, with an estimated 195,000 of us. And we pay tribute to you and express our affection for you.
Long years ago when I was in the stake presidency in the St. Joseph Stake in Arizona, one Sabbath day I filled an assignment in the Eden Ward. The building was a small one, and most of the people were sitting close to us as we sat on the raised platform about a foot and a half above the floor of the building itself.
As the meeting proceeded, my eye was attracted to seven little boys on the front seat of the chapel. I was delighted with seven little boys in this ward conference. I made a mental note, then shifted my interest to other things. Soon my attention was focused on the seven little boys again.
It seemed strange to me that each of the seven little fellows raised his right leg and put it over the left knee, and then in a moment all would change at the same time and put the left leg over the right knee. I thought it was unusual, but I just ignored it.
In a moment or two, all in unison would brush their hair with their right hands, and then all seven little boys leaned lightly on their wrists and supported their faces by their hands, and then simultaneously they went back to the crossing of their legs again.
It all seemed so strange, and I wondered about it as I was trying to think of what I was going to say in the meeting. And then all at once it came to me like a bolt of lightning. These boys were mimicking me!
That day I learned the lesson of my life-that we who are in positions of authority must be careful indeed, because others watch us and find in us their examples.
Example is an important characteristic of a boy's life. Generally there are many people who will follow and few who will lead. It is therefore important that all you young men develop the power of leadership and then all be sure to give good examples.
This will be true in your lives. If you have little brothers, remember that they watch you and listen to you, and they are likely to do about what you did and say about what you said.
I hope you will keep this in mind as you come to teenage. Remember that, generally, if you attend your meetings and if you do your duty, it is quite likely that your little brothers will follow your course, and the opposite is also true.
This is also true as to your missionary work. If your little brothers see you faithful in seminary and institute and that you have the right attitudes and that you are preparing yourself to fill a mission, their thoughts will be along the same line.
It was Terence who said: "I bid him look into the lives of men as though into a mirror, and from others to take an example for himself."
And in Aesop's fables, Aesop said, "Do but set the example yourself, and I will follow you."
Example is the best precept, and Johnson said that "Example is more efficacious than precept."
I remind you young men that regardless of your present age, you are building your life; it will be cheap and shoddy or it will be valuable and beautiful; it will be full of constructive activities or it can be destructive; it can be full of joy and happiness, or it can be full of misery. It all depends upon you and your attitudes, for your altitude, or the height you climb, is dependent upon your attitude or your response to situations.
Remember that when you climb a mountain in Switzerland or at Banff or Mount Timpanogos, you travel with people that are interesting and challenging. They have surmounted the same difficulties that you have done.
Remember that those who climb to high places did not always have it easy. We are told that when Abraham Lincoln was a young man, he ran for the legislature in Illinois and was badly "swamped."
He next entered business, failed, and spent 17 years of his life paying up the debts of a worthless partner. He fell in love with a beautiful young woman, to whom he became engaged, then she died. Entering politics, he ran for congress and was badly defeated. He tried to get an appointment to the U.S. land office but failed. He became a candidate for the U.S. Senate and was badly defeated. Then in 1856 he became a candidate for vice-president and was again defeated. In 1858 he was defeated by Douglas, but in the face of all this defeat and failure, he eventually achieved the highest success attainable in life and undying fame to the end of time. This was the Abraham Lincoln who was president of the United States. This was the Abraham Lincoln about whom numerous books have been written. This was the Abraham Lincoln who carved his own success out of the mountains of difficulty.
Again we repeat that you will make your life what you want it to be.
An anonymous writer says this: "Be glad there are big hurdles in life and rejoice, too, that they are higher than most people care to surmount. Be happy they are numerous. It is those hurdles that give you a chance to work your way to the front of the crowd. They are your friends. For if it were not for high hurdles, many men might be able to outrun you."
May I tell you a story of long ago, of what one boy made of his early life.
About 3,000 years ago when the king of Israel was Saul, and he proved himself unworthy of his high position, the Lord sent the prophet Samuel to find a successor for him. The prophet went to the home of Jesse, the father of eight sons. He called Jesse's sons to him to interview them. When the proud father brought Eliab, the older son, he said to himself, "Surely this is the man."
"But the Lord said unto Samuel, look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."
Then the proud father called a second, and he was not accepted. Seven fine, handsome sons came one after the other before the prophet Samuel, who said to the father, Jesse, "Are these all thy children?" And then Jesse admitted, "Yes, except the youngest, David, and he is out with the sheep." And Samuel said, "Go fetch him."
Now when the youngest son came in, he was ruddy and handsome and a delightful personality, and perhaps sunburned, for he was the shepherd and spent much of his time out in the open with the sheep. The Lord inspired Samuel and he said, "This is he." And as the father and the sons gathered around him, Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David to become the king of Israel.
At this time the Philistines, a bitter enemy of Israel, had come up to conquer Israel, and they were lined up on one ridge and Israel was lined up on the other ridge, and a little valley was in between.
As the armies faced each other preliminary to the battle, a great giant named Goliath came out into the no-man's-land and challenged the Israelites, saying:
"Why have you come out to battle us? I am a Philistine, and you are the servants to Saul. Choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.
"If he be able to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall you be our servants, and serve us." He added: "I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together."
Now this man was a giant; he was fearsome. About nine feet tall, he stood high above them all; and he had a helmet of brass on his head and a heavy metal coat of mail. With the strips of brass on his legs and brass between his shoulders, his coat of mail was very, very heavy. His spear was long like a weaver's beam, and his sword sharp as a razor. He had a man to carry his shield.
He was certainly a formidable antagonist. Little wonder that the warriors on Israel's side feared him. None seemed to have the courage or the foolhardiness to accept his challenge, so it was quite understandable that all the Israelite soldiers fell back and trembled.
It happened at this pivotal time that the father, Jesse, was concerned with the welfare of his three eldest sons who had been inducted into the army of Saul. Apparently when these sons were defending Israel, it fell to the lot of David, the youngest, to herd the sheep.
The kindly father called David from the sheep and gave to him a quantity of parched corn and some loaves and sent him to the army camp to take these to his brothers, and ten cheeses to the captain.
David arose very early and started his journey to Elah. He made full arrangements for someone to look after his father's sheep so that they would not be driven away nor destroyed nor eaten by wild animals.
As David arrived at the scene of battle, the army was just going forth to the fight and were shouting for the battle.
David left his carriage in the hands of the keeper of the carriage and ran to the army and saluted his brethren.
Again the Philistine shouted his challenge, as he had done during 40 days of warfare.
As David came into the ranks, the men said to him, "Have you seen this giant that defies Israel? Do you realize that the man who kills him will be enriched by the king? To that man who can kill the great Goliath, freedom will come to his family."
David was not well received by his eldest brother either, who was angry with him and said, "Why did you come down here? with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know you were curious and proud and naughty in your heart, and you have come down out of curiosity to observe the battle."
David seemed to be disturbed at his brother's denunciation and said, "Now what have I done? Isn't there a reason why I came?" He knew that inspiration had brought him here for a good purpose to save Israel.
David's inspiration or revelation was repeated to King Saul, who called the young man to him, and David said, "Don't let this bully worry you and bring you fear. I will go and fight this Philistine." But Saul was shocked and said to David:
" art not able to fight this Philistine for you are but a youth, and he a man of war.
"And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:
"And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.
"Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God."
He then repeated: "The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, go, and the Lord be with thee."
Saul placed the king's armor upon David, but it was so heavy he couldn't bear it and threw it off.
"I cannot go with these; for I am not used to them," said David.
As he crossed the brook, David, the boy, stooped over and picked out five small stones and put them in his shepherd's bag; and his sling was in his hand, and he moved toward the giant Philistine.
The great giant apparently was shocked and angered at such an affront. He saw this young man, ruddy and of a youthful, fair countenance, and in his anger and disgust, the Philistine said:
"Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David and said to, Come to me, and I will give flesh the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field."
Then David rose in his majesty and said to the Philistine:
" to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom defied.
"This day will the Lord deliver into hand; and I will smite, and take head from, and I will give the carcases of the of the Philistines this day the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
"And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands."
The Philistine and the shepherd boy approached each other, both with confidence:
"And David put his hand in his bag, and took out a stone, put it in his sling, aimed it, and sent it at terrific speed, and smote the Philistine in his forehead; perhaps the only unprotected spot, and the stone sunk deep into the forehead of the great, bragging bully who fell upon his face to the earth."
I wonder how many of you young men have ever owned and used a sling. When I was a little boy, we made our own slings, and we found our own rocks and we discovered our own targets, and we became quite proficient in slinging the rocks. We would take a little piece of leather about the size you would use for a flipper, maybe two inches long and in an elliptical shape. And at each end a little hole was cut, and then a long thong of leather was fastened to each end, one of which had a knot in the end through which we put one finger. Then, with a rock in the sling, we would throw it around our head until we had great momentum, and then would turn loose one of the thongs and the rock would sail toward its destination.
We used to make all our own playthings: our slings, our whistles, our flippers, our play balls, and we learned to use them well.
"So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; there was no sword in the hand of David."
All he used was a little pebble and a sling and inspiration and revelation. He had courage, he had strength, he had faith in himself, but especially faith in his Heavenly Father, to whom he offered his prayers.
The 40 days of challenge and of egotism and boasting had ended for this Philistine in death!
Evidently to put fear in the minds of the enemy, David went to the prone body of his antagonist lying on the ground and cut off his head. This act seemed to have its desired effect. And the enemy fled, and thus one inspired boy defeated an entire army. Israel's army pursued the escaping Philistines and won the battle.
The king inquired as to who the lad was who had performed such a miraculous feat, and then Jonathan gave him his sword, his bow, and his girdle. And the scripture says: "And David behaved himself wisely in all ways; and the Lord was with him."
Now, my young brothers, remember that every David has a Goliath to defeat, and every Goliath can be defeated. He may not be a bully who fights with fists or sword or gun. He may not even be flesh and blood. He may not be nine feet tall; he may not be armor-protected, but every boy has his Goliaths. And every boy has his sling, and every boy has access to the brook with its smooth stones.
You will meet Goliaths who threaten you. Whether your Goliath is a town bully or is the temptation to steal or to destroy or the temptation to rob or the desire to curse and swear; if your Goliath is the desire to wantonly destroy or the temptation to lust and to sin, or the urge to avoid activity, whatever is your Goliath, he can be slain. But remember, to be the victor, one must follow the path that David followed:
"David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him."
David had integrity and kept his father's sheep. David did not leave his sheep without a caretaker when he filled another assignment from his father.
David was responsible. His sheep were in his hands; he killed the bear and he killed the lion to save his father's sheep, even at great danger to himself. He took the little lamb out of the mouth of the beast and restored it to its mother. David took five stones to kill Goliath. He needed only one. David was honorable and had faith in his Heavenly Father, and he feared no man so long as he had the confidence of his Lord. He taunted the Philistine giant, saying, "You come to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield, with a coat of mail, with an armor bearer: But I come to you in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied."
Sometime ago I tore an advertisement from a current magazine. This is what it said:
"One time or another we all face adversity's chilling wind. One man flees from it, and like an unresisting kite falls to the ground. Another yields no retreating inch, and the wind that would destroy him lifts him as readily to the heights. We are not measured by the trials we meet, only by those we overcome."
The pipeline ad read, "Neither rivers, mountains nor ocean waters stop our pipeline crews. What they can't go through, they go over, under, or around."
One obsession of this Church and all its members is missionary work, about which you have heard from Brother Tuttle this night. The Lord told his apostles, as you will see in the beautiful picture over in the Church Office Building, to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. May we remind you young men again, your responsibility is to respond to that call. And if you receive a call from the Lord through your bishop and stake presidency, it is your privilege, but also your obligation, to fill that calling expertly. And since you will now establish your goal to fill a mission, remember it costs money to go to the various parts of the world and preach the gospel. Remember, then, it is your privilege now to begin to save your money.
Every time money comes into your hands, through gifts or earnings, set at least a part of it away in a savings account to be used for your mission. Every boy would like to be independent and furnish his own funds for his mission, rather than to ask his parents to do that for him. Every boy in every country in all the world who has been baptized and received the Holy Ghost will have the responsibility of bearing the message of the gospel to the people of the world. And this is also your opportunity, and it will contribute greatly toward your greatness.
I like the lines of Edgar A. Guest, which he has titled "Equipment":
Collected Verse of Edgar A. Guest, Chicago: Reilly and Lee, 1934, p. 666
May I bring to your attention another of the giant Goliaths that may challenge you and stand in your way. His name this time is pornography or filthiness. Listen here:
These verses I read when I was a little boy, and they made a deep impression on me. I hope they will touch your hearts.
When I lived in Arizona as a boy, nearly all the farmers had melon patches, and some of the farmers raised them for the market. Sometimes some boys would gang up and in the darkness of the night, go to one of these melon patches, and with their jackknives go through the patch and slash all the melons they could reach. They did not want the melons to eat, merely an ugly, destructive urge to destroy. This I never could understand, and I could never understand setting fire to things or breaking windows or tearing rugs or any of the mean tricks that were destructive in nature.
David would not do such a thing. He killed a lion with his bare hands, but that was to protect his sheep. He killed a Goliath, but that was to save Israel. He killed a bear with his bare hands, but again that was to save his father's flocks.
I hope that if ever in your presence there are fellows with destructive ideas, that you will help to curb them and dissuade them, especially from doing those things which bring them no value and only leave blots upon their characters.
Will you remember the scripture from Mormon:
"Be wise in the days of your probation; strip yourselves of all uncleanness; ask not, that ye may consume it on your lusts, but ask with a firmness unshaken, that ye will yield to no temptation, but that ye will serve the true and living God."
Perhaps these lines from Henry Van Dyke may be of interest to you:
And you, my fine young men, must not be just average. Your lives must be clean and free from all kinds of evil thoughts or acts-no lying, no theft, no anger, no faithlessness, no failure to do that which is right, no sexual sins of any kind, at any time.
You know what is right and what is wrong. You have all received the Holy Ghost following your baptism. You need no one to brand the act or thought as wrong or right. You know by the Spirit. You are painting your own picture, carving your own statue. It is up to you to make it acceptable.
May God bless you, our beloved young men. I know your Heavenly Father is your true friend. Everything he asks you to do is right and will bring blessings to you and make you manly and strong. "And David behaved himself in all his ways; and the Lord was with him."
May God bless you, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President N. Eldon Tanner
First Counselor in the First Presidency
As I speak to you this beautiful Sabbath morning, I humbly pray that the Spirit and blessings of the Lord will attend us and be with us always.
I well remember, and some of you may also remember, singing the song "Where Is My Wandering Boy Tonight?" Our beloved president and prophet, Spencer W. Kimball, used to sing this song with such great feeling that many were moved to tears. Let me read the words:
Anonymous
This morning I should like to rephrase this question and ask, "Why is my boy wandering tonight?" and apply it to all who may be wandering.
According to the dictionary, wander means to speak, move, or travel about without fixed destination, plan, or purpose; to roam or to rove; go casually or by an indirect route; to deviate in conduct, or opinion; to go astray.
It is with these definitions in mind that I wish to discuss the question: "Why are so many wandering today?"
It seems that down through the ages people have wandered to and fro in the earth, and many never find their way out of the wilderness in which they are lost. The dictionary describes wilderness as an empty or pathless area or region, a pathless waste of any kind, a confusing multitude or mass. And thus those who aimlessly wander through life, confused and uncertain, waste the precious time that they have been given to prove themselves in this important stage of their existence.
I suppose that at some time or other in our lives each of us has felt a little lost, somewhat uncertain as to where we were going, or in a sense, wandering in a wilderness. Let us consider some of the reasons for wandering.
Satan and his cohorts, including evil and designing men, are determined to keep man wandering in the wilderness so that eventually he will be destroyed and the work of the Lord will be thwarted. Adam and Eve were the first wanderers of record when they listened to Satan rather than the Lord. They were cast out of the Garden of Eden and had a period of wandering until they committed themselves to keeping the commandments of God.
Cain chose to follow Satan and, as a result, killed his brother Abel. He too was cast out and forced to wander in the wilderness of his transgressions, as were many other individuals and even larger groups of people of whom we read in the scriptures. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because of the wickedness of the people, and there were not sufficient righteous to save those cities. You all know the story of Noah and the ark, wherein we find that all the people in the world, excepting eight souls, were destroyed because they refused to listen to or accept the teachings or warnings of the Lord.
Some wander because they do not understand and refuse to learn the teachings and the importance of keeping the commandments of God which will assure a safe passage through life and a return to the kingdom of our Father from whence we came. They are deceived and fail to realize, as Peter said:
"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
"And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of."
Some are wandering into forbidden paths because they are seeking popularity with their peers, even to the extent of doing things they know are wrong. They cannot stand criticism or ridicule and will not take a firm stand against wrongdoing. Then there are always great pressures by some peers and wandering adults, and also by evil and designing men who work full time promoting the cunning ways of Satan.
There were such wanderers in the days our Savior walked on the earth. John records:
"Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be out of the synagogue:
"For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."
They wander because of weakness of character. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. These wanderers are in the wilderness of frustration and discontent. They know the law, but they succumb to temptation for a fleeting moment of pleasure to satisfy their appetites and passions.
Then we have the wilderness of hypocrisy which claims many victims. Hypocrites, by professing one thing and doing another, are themselves wandering away from the straight and narrow path, and taking with them many young and innocent souls who, seeing such dishonesty and distrust rampant in the world, are inclined to lose their faith in mankind and wonder where to turn.
We should read often the 23rd chapter of Matthew, which is the Savior's denouncement of the scribes and Pharisees as hypocrites. We read in verse 13:
"But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in."
Many are in the wilderness because of following the poor example set by leaders in homes and communities. Traffic in this area is most congested and confusing. Pornography, fornication, adultery, and homosexuality are permitted and practiced in the world today to such an extent that we are truly following the ways of Sodom and Gomorrah. There is too much corruption in the world. We need strong leaders of good character in all places-leaders who are examples of integrity, dependability, and righteousness.
Breaking the Word of Wisdom, which we have been given by revelation, causes many to wander in other sad and forbidden paths. One sin leads to another, to more and more thrills and excitement, and on to destruction. When all of us know of the many ill effects of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs, I wonder why so many are led astray.
Improper parental example in the home is a leading cause of the wandering of youth from the principles as taught in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The use of alcohol and tobacco in the home gives license to their children to do the same, and to indulge in other drugs and narcotics, which result too often in their leaving home and wandering as hitchhikers with packs on their backs, with no purpose, no particular destination, except away from the straight and narrow path of truth and righteousness. They are really no longer free, but while claiming that they are seeking freedom, they become slaves of their own bad habits, and it is most difficult for them to come out of the wilderness and back into the light and the love which they need so badly.
Immorality, though rampant in the world, is denounced by the Lord and is a most sure way of becoming lost in the wilderness. The Lord said: "Thou shalt not commit adultery." Not only the one committing this sin and other transgressions, but the victim and many others are affected and will bear great burdens of sorrow and sadness.
Recently in the newspaper I read this account, which shows the grief and anxiety of one mother, who had undoubtedly spent many unhappy hours watching, waiting, and praying for her wandering boy.
"Police said the mother of a 16-year-old youth who was accused of raping a woman thanked officers after a policeman shot and killed her armed son.
"The youth was killed when he pointed a.38-caliber pistol at the officer's face Thursday, police said.
"His mother told officers after the shooting, 'I'm glad you all got him. I won't have to worry about him no more.'"
Yes, there are things worse than death.
Some are wandering because they are proud and haughty and trust in their own self-sufficiency. They have not yet learned their relationship to and dependence on God. We are admonished in the scriptures:
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
"In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."
Possibly the most lost of all is the wanderer who has failed through lack of desire or determination to discipline himself. His wilderness is dark and desolate indeed, and he will stumble and fall again and again until he emerges as master of himself.
Da Vinci once said: "You will never have a greater or lesser dominion than that over yourself. The height of man's success is gauged by his self-mastery, the depth of his failure by his self-abandonment and this law is the expression of eternal justice."
Quoting from Solomon, "He that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city."
Christ gave us probably the best answer as to how to keep from wandering when he said:
"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
"Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
It is so true that those who keep on the straight and narrow path and realize that detours are very dangerous are those who succeed in life and enjoy self-realization and achievement. Those who stray away and follow detours find themselves on paths leading to failure and destruction.
I recently heard two stories of wanderers which I should like to relate. The first was about a young man who came from a family of wealth and position in their community. He had a bright mind, did well in school, excelled in engineering, and had all the promise of a good career and the hope of a good life. Somewhere along the way, and in the manner of free thinkers of this day, he chose the companionship of some who were "doing their own thing," I suppose they called it.
Although warned of the dangers which lay ahead, he continued in the forbidden paths, experimenting with alcohol, drugs, and the gay life. Eventually he left his home and family, traveled across the country, took up residence in a community comprised of nomads, or wanderers, we might say. They were accountable to no one; they were free to come and go as they pleased; they had no responsibilities and seemingly were leading the kind of carefree lives that they thought they wanted.
There is a sad ending to nearly every story I have heard about those who drift away from the straight and narrow path. Such a tragedy ended the life of the young man to whom I refer. Under the influence of drugs and alcohol, and motorcycling with his companions late one night, he plunged through the rails of a bridge over a murky river and was killed. In agreement with some facetious pact he had supposedly made with his friends, they, without consulting his parents, conducted his funeral service, cremated the body, and strewed the ashes over the spot where he died.
Imagine the grief of his parents and his loved ones who were not able even to claim his body for proper burial. Just think of the many, many parents and family members who grieve daily over the absence of one of their number who has chosen to wander and waste his life in pursuit of he knows not what.
I watched a movie on television the other evening where a father was pleading with his daughter to return to the family circle and give up the association of those who were leading her down the evil path of eventual destruction. As she pulled away from his attempted embrace and said, "I have a right to live my own life," he answered, "You are hurting the whole family as well as yourself."
As Christ suffered and died once to save us from our sins, surely he suffers again out of his great love for us as we reject his teachings and his plan for our well-being both here and hereafter. Why can we not understand that he has promised us wealth untold if we will only choose his way, instead of following Satan, whose course will lead us to destruction?
The other story I should like to tell is about another prodigal son in similar circumstances who also became involved with companions who persuaded him to leave home and family for the so-called freedom from the shackles of what they call "the establishment." He too went the whole route-alcohol, tobacco, drugs, immorality.
The difference is between the endings of these stories. Something deep within kept the boy in touch with his family. Something stirred his memory of the teachings learned in his youth, and as his family strained to the breaking point to reach out and express their love on those occasions when he made contact with them, he eventually reluctantly consented to attend a family reunion, which was being held during one of his trips home. Unshaven, unkempt, long hair and all, he went.
Although disapproving, the family extended their welcome and their love. The boy felt their deep affection and knew that this was better than the superficial expressions of friendship from his other associates. He later accompanied his family to church and there met a sweet, young girl who showed an interest in him. Soon he was bathed, shaved, properly groomed, and living as he should.
It is honoring one's parents and conforming to the standards of decency of a well-ordered and God-fearing society that will keep one from wandering into some of the forbidden paths. Generally speaking, we behave in accordance with the way we look and speak. If we want to be a part of a clean, refined group or organization, then we must accept their rules and standards.
Punishment and remorse, one way or another, will come to all who wander from the path of truth and righteousness, while obedience to God's laws brings blessings and happiness. It is that simple: as we sow, so shall we reap.
How important it is that we do not wait until a child or other loved one wanders into forbidden paths before doing all possible to make those paths unattractive and uninviting and the path of righteousness irresistible. We must do this by love, precept, and proper example.
Knowing and understanding and keeping the commandments, and learning and living the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ will keep one walking in the straight and narrow path rather than wandering sad and lonely in the wilderness. We have been given a most glorious promise:
"And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;
"And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures:
"And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.
"And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them."
To all wanderers who are seeking to find their way out of the trackless wilderness and into the flowering, sunlit gardens, where the path is straight and the way leads to life eternal, I would plead that you look to the source of all light and knowledge, even God and his Son Jesus Christ; learn of them and keep their commandments which they have given; for I testify that they live, that their word is the truth, and there is no other way to happiness and eternal life than through them.
I also bear my solemn witness that Jesus Christ has reestablished his church with the gospel in its fullness here upon the earth today with a prophet of God as its president. It offers us a sure way out of the wilderness and into the light. We invite all men everywhere to investigate and join with others in his church, which offers eternal life. I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Boyd K. Packer
Of the Council of the Twelve
Today it is my hope to inform those who are not yet members of the Church, and at once to remind all of us who are members of the Church, of our responsibility to share the gospel.
Three weeks ago I was in New York City awaiting a flight to Europe. An employee of the airline left her place at the desk and came to where I was sitting.
"Two of my nephews have joined your Church," she told me. "I can hardly believe the change that it's made in their lives." In our brief conversation I asked how her sister felt about her sons joining the Church.
"She couldn't be happier," she said, and explained how the family had had real reason to be worried about the young men. They were two of the wanderers that President Tanner has spoken about. "You wouldn't believe how they've changed," she said. "They've cut their hair and the whole bit," as she put it.
Later, as I left to board the plane, she thanked me again and said, "I don't know how you do it."
In answer to her question, let me explain that for one thing we hold to high standards of conduct. The principles of the gospel are anchored and secure. Some of the programs and methods change from time to time, but there is no altering of the standards. There is a great sense of security and of protection in this.
We continually strive to share the gospel with others, but we cannot dilute it to suit their taste. We did not set the standards; the Lord did. It is his church.
We ask those of you who are not yet members of the Church to be patient if we seem too anxious to share what we have. If we do not share it, we may lose it. That is one of the requirements if we are to keep it. Therefore, missionary work is not casual; it is very determined.
You should know that of the more than 18,000 missionaries serving fulltime in the world right now, fewer than five percent of them are 21 years of age.
This accounts for both the vigor of the work and the great appeal that it has for young people. It takes a powerful conviction for a young person to give up two years of exciting, youthful activity and pay his own way to preach the gospel.
It should not be surprising that they succeed, for they teach the truth! It is His church. By His own declaration, "The only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth."
Notwithstanding our eager proselyting, this is not an easy church to join. For the average person it requires nearly a complete change in his way of life. This becomes a great challenge to some, even though every change would be a sensible improvement in anyone's life, whether they joined the Church or not.
For instance, to join the Church you must forsake every kind of immorality. Husbands are placed under covenant to be faithful to their wives, and wives to their husbands. Young people are persuaded to reserve those sacred life-giving powers for marriage.
Responsible family membership is a great ideal in the Church.
Temperance is required. Members of the Church abstain from alcoholic beverages-all of them, all of the time. The same is true with tobacco. And if that were not enough, habit-forming stimulants-tea and coffee-are not used. From this, of course, you could know our attitude on narcotics; that should be very clear.
And there are other improvements-in humility, in honesty, and reverence, keeping the Sabbath-all aimed at making each of us a decent person.
I repeat that in spite of our vigorous missionary activity, it is not very easy to qualify for membership in the Church. Nor is it easy once you have joined. If it is an easy church you are looking for, if that is important to you, this is not it.
Several years ago I presided over one of our missions. Two of our missionaries were teaching a fine family, and they had expressed a desire to be baptized, and then they suddenly cooled off. The father had learned about tithing and canceled all further meetings with the missionaries.
Two sad elders reported to the branch president, who himself was a recent convert, that he would not have this fine family in his branch.
A few days later the branch president persuaded the elders to join him in another visit to the family.
"I understand," he told the father, "that you have decided not to join the Church."
"That is correct," he answered.
"The elders tell me that you are disturbed about tithing."
"Yes," said the father. "They had not told us about it; and when I learned of it, I said, 'Now that's too much to ask. Our church has never asked anything like that.' We think that's just too much, and we will not join."
"Did they tell you about fast offering?" he asked.
"No," said the man. "What is that?"
"In the Church we fast for two meals each month and give the value of the meals for the help of the poor."
"They did not tell us that," the man said.
"Did they mention the building fund?"
"No, what is that?"
"In the Church we all contribute toward building chapels. If you joined the Church, you would want to participate both in labor and with money. Incidentally, we are building a new chapel here," he told him.
"Strange," he said, "that they didn't mention it."
"Did they explain the welfare program to you?"
"No," said the father. "What is that?"
"Well, we believe in helping one another. If someone is in need or ill or out of work or in trouble, we are organized to assist, and you would be expected to help."
"Did they also tell you that we have no professional clergy? All of us contribute our time, our talents, our means, and travel-all to help the work. And we're not paid for it in money."
"They didn't tell us any of that," said the father.
"Well," said the branch president, "If you are turned away by a little thing like tithing, it is obvious you're not ready for this Church. Perhaps you have made the right decision and you should not join."
As they departed, almost as an afterthought, he turned and said, "Have you ever wondered why people will do all of these things willingly? I have never received a bill for tithing. No one has ever called to collect it. But we pay it-and all of the rest-and count it a great privilege.
"If you could discover why, you would be within reach of the pearl of great price, which the Lord said the merchant man was willing to sell all that he had that he might obtain it.
"But," said the branch president, "It is your decision. I only hope you will pray about it."
A few days later the man appeared at the branch president's home. No, he did not want to reschedule the missionaries. That would not be necessary. He wanted to schedule the baptism of his family. They had been praying, fervently praying.
This happens every day with individuals and entire families attracted by the high standards, not repelled by them.
We have in our custody the greatest thing on this earth. And, should the question be asked, yes, we intend to keep the commandments of the Lord, all of them. The only real inconvenience these high standards have caused us is in the rapid and continual growth of the Church. This has us constantly concerned with keeping the Church organized in small, efficient units for the benefit of each individual.
Even members who have difficulty living the standards will generally defend those standards. Old members, as well as new members, need to be fellowshiped and trained so that when they come into the Church they at once come out of the world.
"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:
"Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had," that he might obtain it.
Now, lest some of you think all of this giving up of things and this rearranging of your habits is more painful than it really is, I should repeat a statement by Lady Astor.
She had dreaded old age. When it finally came, she commented philosophically, "I always dreaded growing old, because then you can't do all of the things you want to. But it isn't so bad-you don't want to!"
To nonmembers, I say that while you do not have to accept the gospel, we must offer it to you. There is something of great significance to you and to us in our having offered you a chance to accept it. The gospel stands as true for those who reject it as for those who accept it-both will be judged by it.
Now, as a reminder to members of our obligation to share the gospel I repeat an account from the history of the Church.
In the late 1850s many converts from Europe were struggling to reach the Great Salt Lake Valley. Many were too poor to afford the open and the covered wagons and had to walk, pushing their meager belongings in handcarts. Some of the most touching and tragic moments in the history of the Church accompanied these handcart pioneers.
One such company was commanded by a Brother McArthur. Archer Walters, an English convert who was with the company, recorded in his diary under July 2, 1856, this sentence:
"Brother Parker's little boy, age six, was lost, and the father went back to hunt him."
The boy, Arthur, was next youngest of four children of Robert and Ann Parker. Three days earlier the company had hurriedly made camp in the face of a sudden thunderstorm. It was then the boy was missed. The parents had thought him to be playing along the way with the other children.
Someone remembered earlier in the day, when they had stopped, that they had seen the little boy settle down to rest under the shade of some brush.
Now most of you have little children and you know how quickly a tired little six-year-old could fall asleep on a sultry summer day and how soundly he could sleep, so that even the noise of the camp moving on might not awaken him.
For two days the company remained, and all of the men searched for him. Then on July 2, with no alternative, the company was ordered west.
Robert Parker, as the diary records, went back alone to search once more for his little son. As he was leaving camp, his wife pinned a bright shawl about his shoulders with words such as these:
"If you find him dead, wrap him in the shawl to bury him. If you find him alive, you could use this as a flag to signal us."
She, with the other little children, took the handcart and struggled along with the company.
Out on the trail each night Ann Parker kept watch. At sundown on July 5, as they were watching, they saw a figure approaching from the east! Then, in the rays of the setting sun, she saw the glimmer of the bright red shawl.
One of the diaries records: "Ann Parker fell in a pitiful heap upon the sand, and that night, for the first time in six nights, she slept."
Under July 5, Brother Walters recorded:
"Brother Parker came into camp with a little boy that had been lost. Great joy through the camp. The mother's joy I cannot describe."
We do not know all of the details. A nameless woodsman-I've often wondered how unlikely it was that a woodsman should be there-found the little boy and described him as being sick with illness and with terror, and he cared for him until his father found him.
So here a story, commonplace in its day, ends-except for a question. How would you, in Ann Parker's place, feel toward the nameless woodsman had he saved your little son? Would there be any end to your gratitude?
To sense this is to feel something of the gratitude our Father must feel toward any of us who saves one of his children. Such gratitude is a prize dearly to be won, for the Lord has said, "If it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!" Even so, I might add, if that soul should be our own.
And so we appeal to all to come. We call you from the world, more for what you can give than for what you can get. You are needed here. Come by families if you can, or alone if you must.
Here all that the Father hath can be given unto you. But not without cost, "For unto whomsoever much is given," much shall be required.
This is His church. In it you will not stand approved of all men. Many, perhaps most, will consider you strange. Some of the doctrines are not easy to understand or to accept. The commandments are not easy to live. The standards, I repeat, are high, but you can start where you are.
Many of you are burdened with unhappiness and worry and with guilt. Many of you struggle under the bondage of degrading habits or wrestle with loneliness or disappointment and failure. Some of you suffer from broken homes, broken marriages, broken hearts.
We are not offended at all of these things. All of these things may be set aside-overcome. Whoever you are and whatever you are, we reach out to extend to you the hand of fellowship so that we can lift one another and lift others.
This is His church. I have that witness. Jesus is the Christ; he lives. It's commonly taught that he is but an influence in the world. I know him to be Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father. I testify that he has a body of flesh and bones. This is his church. Of that I bear witness, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I shall speak about boys who have just started into adolescence.
Historically, when the Lord God has wanted to train great leaders for his eternal purposes, he has not hesitated to choose boys, call them, anoint them, prepare them, and then when grown send them forth to their allotted destiny.
We all know the story of Joseph, of his enslavement, of his prophetic gift of interpretation, of his great temptation by the wife of Potiphar when he set the example for the youth of all future ages and "got him out." And we know of his success in saving his people from famine.
I have often wondered how he felt crouching in that pit and looking fearfully up at the leering faces of his blood brothers and at other strange faces as the caravan leaders bargained for his body. This peculiar circumstance, cruel and harsh, turned out to be for his good because he trusted in the Lord. That trust, through his obedience, has benefited all mankind through all generations. To Joseph went the promise of the birthright-and the promised land.
Perhaps you with me will transport yourselves back 1,000 years before Christ to that ancient land of Israel and enter the room in the temple where Samuel, a youth, lay sleeping. You will not hear the voice calling him, but you can see him arise and go to Eli, asking if he called. You will notice the impatience of Eli until he finally realized who was speaking to Samuel. After the third awakening, you will hear Eli say, "Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth." Remember, you are living ten hundred years before Christ when people knew that the Lord spoke intelligible words of instruction and reproof, as well as words of acceptance and praise. Of course, you will say to yourselves, "But Samuel was chosen to be a prophet."
As with me, it will thrill you that the Lord takes a pure boy and teaches him the truth before he can be taught what uninspired men conceive to be truth. Perhaps you will remember that the Lord puts into the minds and hearts of his prophets what he wants them to think and say rather than the thoughts of philosophical men. Remember what he said to Isaiah:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord."
In the case of Samuel, the Lord spoke His thoughts, not men's thoughts. Samuel heard the voice of the Lord. Would it have surprised you in that day to learn that sometime after hearing the voice of the Lord, Samuel saw the Lord.
What do you suppose would have happened to Samuel if he had declared in the streets that he had heard the Lord without having the protection of the sanctuary and of Eli? What would Eli himself have said to Samuel if he had come as an unknown lad and knocked on his door and announced that he had a message for Eli?
David was a boy tending his father's sheep when Samuel, spurning the other sons of Jesse, was led by the inspiration of the Lord to anoint David king of Israel. No one reading the account can doubt that the Lord had a deep love for David and that he was called of God.
Here then are three servants of the Lord, each chosen and called, in three different ways under three different circumstances. I mention these to remind us that boys in their adolescent years have been personally called by the Lord. They have learned by direct revelation that the Lord is God; that he is real, known, definable; and that he speaks to them in a language they can understand. Let us remember too that the Lord God does not change. He is the same yesterday-even if it be 3,600 years ago-today, and forever.
Joseph Smith was a boy in his fifteenth year when the Lord spoke to him. Conditions were different then than anciently. Nearly 1,800 years had passed since the Lord had spoken to anybody. In those days, what the Lord had revealed had been written on parchment and kept in rolls. Later as philosophical men read them and reproduced them, they interpreted them by reason and not by the Spirit of God to guide them.
The only way the rolls could be reproduced was by scribes who laboriously copied the written word. It is almost impossible to copy anything without some error in the doing. Multiply the number of times copies were made from copies, over a period of nearly 1,400 years, each copy increasing the errors in the previous copy, and one can understand that many errors were bound to creep in.
When printing became common and men learned to read the word, even with its errors, they were shocked to discover how far the practices in the church had departed from the principles in the word. Their protests were vigorous and determined. Many lost their lives refusing to conform. That protest still goes on with multiplied Protestant interpretations of what the Lord taught. Indeed, even today a man needs but to consider himself called, and he can and often does begin a church.
Some of the sects were vigorously protesting in Palmyra, New York, in the winter of 1819 and the spring of 1820. Efforts were made by the ministers to convince the people of the community that their varied interpretations were correct. And many confessed their acceptance of the word of these ministers.
Joseph Smith wanted to find the peace of salvation also, but he was confused as to which church was right. Even as a boy he knew that in such diversity of ideas and ordinances, not all could be the truth. He read the verse in James which says, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." The words stirred him as much as the voice of the Lord stirred Samuel.
Many have read that verse and received comfort. Many have followed the admonition and have asked for wisdom. As they have had faith, they have received wisdom. This time the inspiration was more powerful. He was to receive knowledge as well as wisdom.
There are times in the history of this earth when the moment for great events has arrived. Prescribed, ordered, and arranged by the power of God, they cannot be stayed. For example, when the time came for the children of Israel to leave Egypt, no one could stop them, and those who tried failed to their sorrow. When the meridian of time came, the promises made by the prophets were fulfilled and miraculous events took place. The angels came, and suddenly Mary was told that she was to be the mother of the Son of God, and Elisabeth was told of her own part in this great and sublime event. This first public revelation came by an angel to a few simple shepherds. They only heard the heavenly chorus sing praise to God.
And so it was in 1820. The time had come. These were the last days. The prophets had declared it. And so Joseph was impelled to walk across his father's newly cleared field, dodging the raw stumps en route, and climb over the worn fence, and enter the forest. Climbing a hill, he found a spot where he felt he could not be disturbed and began to pour out his soul to the Lord.
In a great burst of heavenly light, all of the errors concerning the nature of God for nearly 1,800 years were dispersed. There stood God, the Father of us all, glorious beyond description, and by his side the glorified resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. Joseph saw that each was a personage-that men are truly formed in the image and likeness of God. The Eternal Father spoke: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" Joseph heard.
He was told the true church was nowhere on the earth. He was told that all had gone astray, and that no man had the power to speak for the Lord, that all had been misled. Many important truths were told that spring day, and he learned that he was to be the instrument by which the true church would be restored to the earth.
After coming home that afternoon, he told his parents about the vision-and another miracle took place. His father and mother and his brothers and sisters believed him. To his surprise, when he told others, they not only did not believe, but heaped upon his youthful head ridicule-which is a most difficult form of persecution for a boy to endure. The kindly minister who had been advising him how to seek turned bitter, sarcastic, and critical. From then on as Joseph grew into manhood and as the time came to do the things required of a prophet, bitter words, ridicule, and some physical torture were his lot. But, like Samuel who knew he had heard the Lord speak, Joseph knew he had seen and heard the Father and the Son.
Like Joseph, the prophet of old whose name he bore, he pursued his course. With him as the instrument, the Lord brought forth his heavenly doctrine of the way, the truth, and the light-which pointed the way back into the heavenly home of God the Father-to become indeed his sons and his daughters and his children to inherit all that the father has, even eternal life.
Through him the Lord provided a miraculous witness which is a sure sign to anyone who will investigate it without prejudice. That witness is a record of Jesus Christ and his visit to the people of ancient America and is called the Book of Mormon. This is not man's witness. It is the Lord's. The existence of the golden plates from which it was translated was verified by 11 men who saw the plates and who bear witness to all men today. Three of them further testified that the voice of God declared unto them that these ancient records had been "translated by the gift and power of God."
We invite all people in the earth to put this witness to the test. Obtain a copy of the Book of Mormon; read it with a desire to know of its truth. If you do as one of the prophets said-ponder it in your heart, and then ask the Lord if it be true-the Lord will "manifest the truth of it" unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost. If you make that test, you will know that Joseph, the modern prophet, bearing a common surname-Smith-was indeed the prophet he proved to be. If you know that truth by the power of the Holy Ghost, you will not rest until you have come into the kingdom of God and into the rest of the great Jehovah, even the Lord Jesus Christ, and have joined with the Latter-day Saints.
The power and the authority of this kingdom on earth rest upon President Spencer W. Kimball. I bear you this, my solemn witness-Joseph Smith was a prophet. President Kimball is a prophet-in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President S. Dilworth Young
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I shall speak about boys who have just started into adolescence.
Historically, when the Lord God has wanted to train great leaders for his eternal purposes, he has not hesitated to choose boys, call them, anoint them, prepare them, and then when grown send them forth to their allotted destiny.
We all know the story of Joseph, of his enslavement, of his prophetic gift of interpretation, of his great temptation by the wife of Potiphar when he set the example for the youth of all future ages and "got him out." And we know of his success in saving his people from famine.
I have often wondered how he felt crouching in that pit and looking fearfully up at the leering faces of his blood brothers and at other strange faces as the caravan leaders bargained for his body. This peculiar circumstance, cruel and harsh, turned out to be for his good because he trusted in the Lord. That trust, through his obedience, has benefited all mankind through all generations. To Joseph went the promise of the birthright-and the promised land.
Perhaps you with me will transport yourselves back 1,000 years before Christ to that ancient land of Israel and enter the room in the temple where Samuel, a youth, lay sleeping. You will not hear the voice calling him, but you can see him arise and go to Eli, asking if he called. You will notice the impatience of Eli until he finally realized who was speaking to Samuel. After the third awakening, you will hear Eli say, "Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth." Remember, you are living ten hundred years before Christ when people knew that the Lord spoke intelligible words of instruction and reproof, as well as words of acceptance and praise. Of course, you will say to yourselves, "But Samuel was chosen to be a prophet."
As with me, it will thrill you that the Lord takes a pure boy and teaches him the truth before he can be taught what uninspired men conceive to be truth. Perhaps you will remember that the Lord puts into the minds and hearts of his prophets what he wants them to think and say rather than the thoughts of philosophical men. Remember what he said to Isaiah:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord."
In the case of Samuel, the Lord spoke His thoughts, not men's thoughts. Samuel heard the voice of the Lord. Would it have surprised you in that day to learn that sometime after hearing the voice of the Lord, Samuel saw the Lord.
What do you suppose would have happened to Samuel if he had declared in the streets that he had heard the Lord without having the protection of the sanctuary and of Eli? What would Eli himself have said to Samuel if he had come as an unknown lad and knocked on his door and announced that he had a message for Eli?
David was a boy tending his father's sheep when Samuel, spurning the other sons of Jesse, was led by the inspiration of the Lord to anoint David king of Israel. No one reading the account can doubt that the Lord had a deep love for David and that he was called of God.
Here then are three servants of the Lord, each chosen and called, in three different ways under three different circumstances. I mention these to remind us that boys in their adolescent years have been personally called by the Lord. They have learned by direct revelation that the Lord is God; that he is real, known, definable; and that he speaks to them in a language they can understand. Let us remember too that the Lord God does not change. He is the same yesterday-even if it be 3,600 years ago-today, and forever.
Joseph Smith was a boy in his fifteenth year when the Lord spoke to him. Conditions were different then than anciently. Nearly 1,800 years had passed since the Lord had spoken to anybody. In those days, what the Lord had revealed had been written on parchment and kept in rolls. Later as philosophical men read them and reproduced them, they interpreted them by reason and not by the Spirit of God to guide them.
The only way the rolls could be reproduced was by scribes who laboriously copied the written word. It is almost impossible to copy anything without some error in the doing. Multiply the number of times copies were made from copies, over a period of nearly 1,400 years, each copy increasing the errors in the previous copy, and one can understand that many errors were bound to creep in.
When printing became common and men learned to read the word, even with its errors, they were shocked to discover how far the practices in the church had departed from the principles in the word. Their protests were vigorous and determined. Many lost their lives refusing to conform. That protest still goes on with multiplied Protestant interpretations of what the Lord taught. Indeed, even today a man needs but to consider himself called, and he can and often does begin a church.
Some of the sects were vigorously protesting in Palmyra, New York, in the winter of 1819 and the spring of 1820. Efforts were made by the ministers to convince the people of the community that their varied interpretations were correct. And many confessed their acceptance of the word of these ministers.
Joseph Smith wanted to find the peace of salvation also, but he was confused as to which church was right. Even as a boy he knew that in such diversity of ideas and ordinances, not all could be the truth. He read the verse in James which says, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." The words stirred him as much as the voice of the Lord stirred Samuel.
Many have read that verse and received comfort. Many have followed the admonition and have asked for wisdom. As they have had faith, they have received wisdom. This time the inspiration was more powerful. He was to receive knowledge as well as wisdom.
There are times in the history of this earth when the moment for great events has arrived. Prescribed, ordered, and arranged by the power of God, they cannot be stayed. For example, when the time came for the children of Israel to leave Egypt, no one could stop them, and those who tried failed to their sorrow. When the meridian of time came, the promises made by the prophets were fulfilled and miraculous events took place. The angels came, and suddenly Mary was told that she was to be the mother of the Son of God, and Elisabeth was told of her own part in this great and sublime event. This first public revelation came by an angel to a few simple shepherds. They only heard the heavenly chorus sing praise to God.
And so it was in 1820. The time had come. These were the last days. The prophets had declared it. And so Joseph was impelled to walk across his father's newly cleared field, dodging the raw stumps en route, and climb over the worn fence, and enter the forest. Climbing a hill, he found a spot where he felt he could not be disturbed and began to pour out his soul to the Lord.
In a great burst of heavenly light, all of the errors concerning the nature of God for nearly 1,800 years were dispersed. There stood God, the Father of us all, glorious beyond description, and by his side the glorified resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. Joseph saw that each was a personage-that men are truly formed in the image and likeness of God. The Eternal Father spoke: "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" Joseph heard.
He was told the true church was nowhere on the earth. He was told that all had gone astray, and that no man had the power to speak for the Lord, that all had been misled. Many important truths were told that spring day, and he learned that he was to be the instrument by which the true church would be restored to the earth.
After coming home that afternoon, he told his parents about the vision-and another miracle took place. His father and mother and his brothers and sisters believed him. To his surprise, when he told others, they not only did not believe, but heaped upon his youthful head ridicule-which is a most difficult form of persecution for a boy to endure. The kindly minister who had been advising him how to seek turned bitter, sarcastic, and critical. From then on as Joseph grew into manhood and as the time came to do the things required of a prophet, bitter words, ridicule, and some physical torture were his lot. But, like Samuel who knew he had heard the Lord speak, Joseph knew he had seen and heard the Father and the Son.
Like Joseph, the prophet of old whose name he bore, he pursued his course. With him as the instrument, the Lord brought forth his heavenly doctrine of the way, the truth, and the light-which pointed the way back into the heavenly home of God the Father-to become indeed his sons and his daughters and his children to inherit all that the father has, even eternal life.
Through him the Lord provided a miraculous witness which is a sure sign to anyone who will investigate it without prejudice. That witness is a record of Jesus Christ and his visit to the people of ancient America and is called the Book of Mormon. This is not man's witness. It is the Lord's. The existence of the golden plates from which it was translated was verified by 11 men who saw the plates and who bear witness to all men today. Three of them further testified that the voice of God declared unto them that these ancient records had been "translated by the gift and power of God."
We invite all people in the earth to put this witness to the test. Obtain a copy of the Book of Mormon; read it with a desire to know of its truth. If you do as one of the prophets said-ponder it in your heart, and then ask the Lord if it be true-the Lord will "manifest the truth of it" unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost. If you make that test, you will know that Joseph, the modern prophet, bearing a common surname-Smith-was indeed the prophet he proved to be. If you know that truth by the power of the Holy Ghost, you will not rest until you have come into the kingdom of God and into the rest of the great Jehovah, even the Lord Jesus Christ, and have joined with the Latter-day Saints.
The power and the authority of this kingdom on earth rest upon President Spencer W. Kimball. I bear you this, my solemn witness-Joseph Smith was a prophet. President Kimball is a prophet-in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder John H. Vandenberg
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
A few weeks ago while driving north along the Wasatch Front here in Utah on an early Sunday morning, I was conscious of the sun just rising over the mountains to the east. The valley to the west, was flooded by the rays of the sun, and inspirational music was flowing from the radio. A feeling of well-being prevailed within me. My thoughts dwelt on the goodness of being alive. The music ended in the usual way. It was time for the news. During the next several minutes the announcer commented, as I remember, on a burglary, a shooting, an accident, a hijacking, people being held hostage, and worry over the economic conditions. The news brought to my attention that the world could be full of peace, but that it was not.
Naturally, one fond of peace wonders why this is so, recognizing that if there were no people on earth, all would be quiet and peaceful. But then there would be no purpose in the earth. We know that its purpose is to receive God's children where they may dwell in mortality and prove themselves in the test against the forces of good and evil. In this process there will be strife as well as peace.
There is concern among society for the mounting trouble, the violation, and the turning away from the long-established moral codes. As one has said, "The living faith of the dead has become the dead faith of the living."
Fortunately, there are many who know the value of faith in God and testify to its power to direct their lives, although it is recognized that "truth is forever on the scaffold and wrong is on the throne." We join in that knowledge, and it is our purpose to constantly labor for the cause of truth with the assurance and promise that it will emerge victorious in the end.
God has revealed to his prophets his laws and commandments as they are now spread on the pages of religious history. From them we may learn the course which people and nations have followed when those laws and commandments have been violated, and we should not in this day think we can circumvent them. On the contrary, they will help us solve any dilemma in which we personally or nationally may find ourselves.
Jesus rebuked the Jews, who in their dilemma sought to kill him, saying: "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." He gave us the keys to the fulfillment of life-search and think. Search for ideas. Search for examples. Search for testimony. Then apply the results and implant them into our intellects that they may generate within us a living faith in God, our Eternal Father.
This thought comes to mind and I quote: "Faith is a belief in testimony. It is not a leap in the dark. God does not ask any man to believe without giving him something to believe in. You might as well ask a man to see without eyes, as bid him believe without giving him something to believe."
Where do we find those testimonies? Our Father in heaven has brought down through the ages the Holy Bible, and in this dispensation of the fulness of times, he has caused other scriptures to be brought forth. One such scripture is the volume known as the Book of Mormon. Its origin begins with the establishment of a new nation spun off from Israel 600 years before Christ, just before the impending destruction of Jerusalem. In the introductory pages of that scripture, the importance of the exercise of faith is highlighted.
Lehi, a religious leader, being warned in a dream of the coming destruction of Jerusalem because of the wickedness of the people, was directed to take his family into the wilderness. This he did, and while there, received further instruction from the Lord to direct his four sons to return to Jerusalem to obtain a record from one known as Laban. Two attempts to obtain the record were thwarted. Then Nephi, the more spiritual and faithful of the sons, under the power and conviction of his commitment to his Heavenly Father, which was, "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them", proceeded to venture again, alone, into the night to obtain the record.
The scriptures state, "I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban. And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do. And as I came near unto the house of Laban I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine. And I found that it was Laban.
"I beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof. And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; and I shrunk and would that I might not slay him. And the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands; behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief.
"I remembered the words of the Lord unto me Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise. And I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law.
"I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause." Nephi obtained the records and in due course brought them to his father, Lehi.
Lehi and his wife Sariah rejoiced at the return of their sons and gave thanks unto God. Then "Lehi, took the records and he did search them from the beginning. They did contain the five books of Moses, also a record of the Jews from the beginning, even down to the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah; prophecies of the holy prophets, from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah; a genealogy of his fathers; wherefore he knew that he was a descendant of that Joseph who was the son of Jacob."
Perhaps Lehi read the blessing of Joseph, received under the hand of Jacob. "Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall", and he knew that he was in the process of fulfilling that blessing in establishing a new nation which would "run over the wall" to a new promised land and would bring them to the continents now known as America.
The obtained records were the foundation records they carried with them, to which was added continuous revelation received by Lehi and his posterity.
All scriptures set the moral code for mankind to live by. They are available to all, having been translated into many languages. Those who choose not to use them, not to give heed to the prophets, and cast aside the spiritual benefits, will surely dwindle in unbelief and perish. It has been said, "If we strike from mankind the principle of faith men would have no more history than a flock of sheep." On the contrary, those who choose them and live by them will live. "The just shall live by his faith," so Habakkuk tells us.
A confirmation testimony is presented to us in the lives of the twins, Esau and Jacob, born to Isaac and Rebekah. Esau, the elder, despised his birthright and sold it for a mess of pottage, married among the Canaanites, contrary to the desires of his parents, and sought to kill his brother Jacob, and turned from God's teachings. As one writer put it, "Esau is a profane person, with no conscience of a birthright, no faith in the future, no capacity for vision; dead to the unseen, and clamoring only for the satisfaction of his appetites."
Jacob, the younger, honored the birthright which he obtained by bargaining, sought the blessing of God, and desired to serve him. He became the progenitor of the 12 tribes of Israel, and his name is honored to this day. From Jacob came Joseph, from Joseph came Ephraim and Manasseh, and through the lineage of Manasseh came Lehi. And from Lehi came the great posterity and civilization accounted for in the Book of Mormon.
This record coincides with the plan of the Lord concerning another prophet, Daniel. Daniel was one who excelled in the use of the power of faith and gives us this testimony:
"In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled." Then the king called all who might recall and interpret the dream with the charge, "If ye will not make known unto me the dream, ye shall be cut in pieces."
Since none could give answer, when Daniel heard of the decree, he "went to his house, and made the thing known to his companions: That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision."
Then he went to the king and made the dream known, reciting in detail what the king had dreamed concerning the great image, ending with these words: "Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.
"Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.
"This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. Thou art this head of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.
"And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron; forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.
"And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided;
"So the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.
"They shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.
"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
"The dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure."
It was not a figment of the imagination of Daniel. The king testified, "Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret."
The recalling of this dream and the interpretation thereof were made possible through the exercise of Daniel's faith. A careful study of history confirms that it is prophecy come to pass.
By faith, a young man in the year 1820 became an instrument in the hands of the Lord in establishing the kingdom proclaimed by Daniel. Joseph Smith searching scriptures found this truth written by the apostle James:
"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
"But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed."
After reading that passage of scripture Joseph Smith sought a grove of trees in which to make inquiry. In response to his supplication to God, a marvelous vision opened up to him wherein he saw and conversed with two personages, God the Father, and his Son Jesus Christ. From this personal visitation and ensuing instruction, which included the translation and publication of the Book of Mormon as the keystone, the kingdom as proclaimed by Daniel was established. It is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It began in obscurity, but it is now rolling forth throughout the free world, inviting all to come unto Christ. I bear this witness to this truth in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Howard W. Hunter
Of the Council of the Twelve
This is the season of the year when we come together for the general conference of the Church in this great historic Tabernacle, built by the early pioneers and settlers in what was then a wilderness valley of the unexplored mountains of the West. To this conference have come people from around the world-from many, many countries. It is glorious to look out over this large assembly. Some are wearing headsets, listening to the proceedings in their own language. Although we are speaking in English, what is said is being translated simultaneously for those who speak other languages, giving us a community of understanding.
A few years ago it would not have been possible for simultaneous communication for such a multi-language assembly, nor would it have been possible to travel from the distant places of the world in the few hours it has taken us to come here. We marvel at such modern conveniences and at the advance of science in our day. Man, in his quest to achieve, is reaching out into what was unknown in former years and is becoming the master of the elements of the earth and the forces of nature.
The accelerating advance of science, bringing into common use the achievements of our modern world, is staggering to the human mind, yet we know it is the result of the application of natural law-God's law. Many modern scientific developments appear miraculous and amazing to us, even surpassing many of the miracles recalled in the pages of the Old and New Testaments. As marvelous as some of these modern discoveries may appear, they quickly fall into daily use and become accepted as commonplace.
Man's knowledge has rapidly increased and scientific research accelerated at proportions never known before in the history of the world. This has come about through concentrated effort on the part of business, industry, government, and educational institutions. A large portion of the world's wealth and income is devoted to this pursuit, and hundreds of thousands of men and women around the world are devoting time and effort to the extension of man's knowledge and understanding of science through research. The pursuit of knowledge of the laws of the universe, which we know have always been in existence, has reached new heights, and investigation continues to increase in this search for truth.
Science is providing marvelous things to give ease and comfort to man in this modern world and is creating the highest standard of living ever known. Because we are provided with all our needs and the luxuries of life, can we turn from God, the teachings of religion, or the gospel of Jesus Christ? With the advance of knowledge has come a reliance upon scientific principles of proof, and as a consequence, there are some who do not believe in God because his existence cannot be substantiated by such proof. In reality, scientific research is an endeavor to ascertain truth, and the same principles which are applied to that pursuit are used in the quest to establish the truth of religion as well.
When Jesus spoke to the multitude gathered on the Mount, he said to them:
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
"For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."
This seems to be an admonition to search with determination and make earnest inquiry for truth. It is as applicable to religion as it is to science-the process is the same in either case. The search may require a lifetime to examine the necessary materials, discard that which proves to be false, and isolate the truth when it is found.
As important as scientific research may be, the greatest quest is a search for God-to determine his reality, his personal attributes, and to secure a knowledge of the gospel of his Son Jesus Christ. It is not easy to find a perfect understanding of God. The search requires persistent effort, and there are some who never move themselves to pursue this knowledge. In place of making the struggle and effort to understand, they follow the opposite course, which requires no effort, and deny his existence. One writer has stated it this way:
"There are musicians but most of us are not musicians, some lacking musical talent, but the majority probably lacking inclination. But of those who are musically talented none ever becomes a great musician without years of persistent, continuous work. Great performers continue long hours of practice even though their reputations may be international. No athlete becomes outstanding, no mechanic becomes skilled, no physician becomes an expert, no orator becomes great, no lawyer becomes renowned, except by persistent practice and many, many hours of hard work. How foolish it would be for me to close my eyes and ears and say there are no musicians because I am not talented to become a musician; that there are no Edisons because I cannot become an inventor; that there are no artists because I do not have the talents and inclinations to become an artist. Does not reason tell us it is equally foolish for a man to declare there is no God simply because he has not discovered him?
"He who makes no effort to learn of the existence of Deity will, in this life, likely not learn there is a Deity. But his ignorance does not warrant him in declaring there is no God."
Whether seeking for knowledge of scientific truths or to discover God, one must have faith. This becomes the starting point. Faith has been defined in many ways, but the most classic definition was given by the author of the letter to the Hebrews in these meaningful words: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." In other words, faith makes us confident of what we hope for and convinced of what we do not see. The scientist does not see molecules, atoms, or electrons, yet he knows they exist. He does not see electricity, radiation, or magnetism, but he knows these are unseen realities. In like manner, those who earnestly seek for God do not see him, but they know of his reality by faith. It is more than hope. Faith makes it a conviction-an evidence of things not seen.
The author of the letter to the Hebrews continues: "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." Faith is here described as believing or having the conviction that the world was created by the word of God. Witnesses cannot be produced to prove this fact, but faith gives the knowledge that what we see in the wonders of the earth and in all nature was created by God. It is just as reasonable to believe in an unseen God, in a literal resurrection, or in the miracles of the things pertaining to the spiritual as it is to believe in some of the discoveries in the field of the physical sciences. Faith is the primary tool in the realm of religion, and it is also the tool of the scientist.
Christ, during his ministry, explained the manner in which one could know the truth about God. He said, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." The Master also explained the will of the Father and the great commandment in this manner: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." Those who will strive to do God's will and keep his commandments will receive personal revelation as to the divinity of the Lord's work in bearing testimony of the Father.
To those who desire understanding, the words of James explain how it may be obtained: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." It doesn't appear that James was referring to factual knowledge in the sense of science, but rather to the revelation that comes from on high which answers men's questions as the result of following this admonition to pray.
Listen carefully to these words of the Lord: "I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end." Then follows the promise he makes to those who serve him in righteousness and in truth to the end:
"Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory.
"And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come, will I make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom.
"Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come will I show them, even the things of many generations.
"And their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to heaven; and before them the wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the understanding of the prudent shall come to naught.
"For by my Spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I make known unto them the secrets of my will-yea, even those things which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the heart of man."
Thus we have the formula for the search for God and the tools to accomplish the quest-faith, love, and prayer. Science has done marvelous things for man, but it cannot accomplish the things he must do for himself, the greatest of which is to find the reality of God. The task is not easy; the labor is not light; but as stated by the Master, "Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory."
I have a positive conviction that God is a reality-that he lives. He is our Heavenly Father, and we are his spiritual children. He created the heaven and the earth and all things upon the earth and is the author of the eternal laws by which the universe is governed. These laws are discovered bit by bit as man continues his search, but they have existed always and will remain unchanged forever. I bear this witness that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, our Savior and Redeemer by reason of his atoning sacrifice to give life everlasting to all men. May the Lord bless us with the desire for an upward reach to the spiritual-to know God, to find him, and to have the determination to serve him and keep his commandments. This is my humble prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Of the Council of the Twelve
My brethren and sisters, I seek the direction of the Holy Spirit that I may say something that will add to your faith. I've recently had a great experience. For the better part of a week, with others, I stood in the entrance to the Washington Temple as a host to special guests. These included the wife of the president of the United States, justices of the Supreme Court, senators and congressmen, ambassadors from various nations, clergymen, educators, and business leaders. Since that week of special invitations, other visitors, more than 300,000 of them, have come to see this sacred edifice.
A vast amount of newspaper and magazine space has been given the temple, and radio and television have carried its story far and wide. It is doubtful that any building constructed in the East in recent years has attracted so much attention.
Almost without exception, those who have come have been appreciative and reverent. Many have been deeply touched in their hearts. Upon leaving the temple, Mrs. Ford commented: "This is a truly great experience for me. It's an inspiration to all."
As I, with others, stood in that sacred edifice day after day shaking hands with many of the honored and respected of this country and of the world, two trains of thought repeatedly crossed my mind. The first concerned the history of the past. The second was occupied with the present and the future.
Watching the First Lady having her photograph taken with President Spencer W. Kimball, my mind drifted back 135 years. Our people were then in Commerce, Illinois, homeless and destitute, facing the bitter winter that soon followed. They had been driven from Missouri and had fled across the Mississippi seeking asylum in Illinois. Where the river makes a wide bend, they had purchased a tract of land, beautiful in its location, but so swampy that a team could not cross it without becoming mired in mud. This site, with tremendous effort and great sacrifice, was to become Nauvoo the beautiful. But in 1839 it was Commerce, a rendezvous for thousands driven from their homes and now homeless. They had left behind the labors of years-houses and barns, churches and public buildings, and hundreds of productive farms. Moreover, buried beneath the Missouri sod, they had left loved ones who had been killed by the mob. Destitute now, and dispossessed, unable to get redress from Missouri, they determined to petition the president and Congress of the United States. Joseph Smith and Elias Higbee were assigned to go to Washington.
They left Commerce October 20, 1839, riding in a light horse-drawn buggy. They arrived in Washington five weeks later. Much of their first day was spent trying to find accommodations they could afford. They noted in a letter to Hyrum Smith: "We found as cheap boarding as can be had in this city."
Calling upon the president of the United States, Martin Van Buren, they stated their case. Responded he: "Gentlemen, your cause is just, but I can do nothing for you. If I take up for you, I shall lose the vote of Missouri."
They then appealed to Congress. In the frustrating weeks that followed, Joseph returned to Commerce, much of the way by horseback. Judge Higbee remained to plead their cause, only finally to be told that Congress would do nothing.
How far the Church has come in the respect and confidence of public officials between 1839 when Joseph Smith was repudiated in Washington and 1974 when President Spencer W. Kimball is welcomed and honored. Such, in essence, were the first and last chapters of my thoughts during these past, recent, beautiful days at the Washington Temple.
And between those two first and final chapters there ran the thread of a score of other chapters that spoke of the death of Joseph and Hyrum that sultry day of June 27, 1844; of the sacking of Nauvoo; of long trains of wagons crossing the river into Iowa Territory; of the camps in the snows and mud that fateful spring of 1846; of Winter Quarters on the Missouri, and the black canker, the fevers, and the plague that decimated the ranks; of the call for men to join the army, issued by the same government which earlier had been deaf to their pleas; of the grave-marked trail up the Elkhorn, the Platte, and the Sweetwater, over South Pass, and thence to this valley; of the tens of thousands who left the East and England to thread their way over that long trail, some pulling handcarts and dying in the Wyoming winter; of the endless grubbing of sagebrush in these valleys; of the digging of miles of ditches to lead water to the thirsty soil; of decades of hue and cry against us, born of bigotry; of the deprivation of rights of citizenship under laws enacted in this same Washington and enforced by marshals sent out from the seat of the federal government. These are among the chapters of that epic history.
Thanks be to God those harsh days are past. Thanks be to those who remained true while walking through those testing fires. What a price; what a terrible price they paid, of which we are the beneficiaries. We had better never forget it, my brethren and sisters. Thanks for those who through the virtue of their lives have since earned for this people a new measure of respect. Thanks for a better day, with greater understanding and with wide and generous appreciation extended The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
These were my thoughts as I shook hands with many of the thousands who came to the Washington Temple with curiosity and left with appreciation, some with tears in their eyes.
But those thoughts were largely of the past. There were others of the present and the future. One day while riding along the beltway in the traffic, I looked with wonder, as must all who travel that highway, at the gleaming spires of the Lord's house rising heavenward from a hill in the woods. Words of scripture came into my mind, words spoken by the Lord as he stood upon the mount and taught the people. Said he:
"A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
"Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."
Not alone the Washington Temple, but this entire people have become as a city upon a hill which cannot be hid.
Sometimes we take offense when one who is nominally a member of the Church is involved in a crime and the public press is quick to say that he is a Mormon. We comment among ourselves that if he had been a member of any other church, no mention would have been made of it.
Is not this very practice an indirect compliment to our people? The world expects something better of us, and when one of our number falters, the press is quick to note it. We have, indeed, become as a city upon a hill for the world to see. If we are to be that which the Lord would have us, we must indeed become "a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that should shew forth the praises of him who hath called out of darkness into his marvellous light."
Unless the world alters the course of its present trends; and if, on the other hand, we continue to follow the teachings of the prophets, we shall increasingly become a peculiar and distinctive people of whom the world will take note. For instance: As the integrity of the family crumbles under worldly pressures, our position on the sanctity of the family will become more obvious and even more peculiar in contrast, if we have the faith to maintain that position.
As the growing permissive attitude toward sex continues to spread, the doctrine of the Church, as consistently taught for more than a century, will become increasingly singular and even strange to many.
As the consumption of alcohol increases each year under the mores of our society and the allurements of advertising, our position, set forth by the Lord more than a century ago, will become more unusual before the world.
As government increasingly assumes the burden of caring for all human needs, the independence of our social services, and the doctrine which lies behind that position will become more and more unique.
As the Sabbath increasingly becomes a day of merchandising, those who obey the precept of the law written by the finger of the Lord on Sinai and reinforced by modern revelation will appear more unusual.
It is not always easy to live in the world and not be a part of it. We cannot live entirely with our own or unto ourselves, nor would we wish to. We must mingle with others. In so doing, we can be gracious. We can be inoffensive. We can avoid any spirit or attitude of self-righteousness. But we can maintain our standards. The natural tendency will be otherwise, and many have succumbed to it.
In 1856, when we were largely alone in these valleys, some thought we were safe from the ways of the world. To such talk, Heber C. Kimball, the grandfather of our beloved president, responded: "I want to say to you, my brethren, the time is coming when we will be mixed up in these now peaceful valleys to that extent that it will be difficult to tell the face of a Saint from the face of an enemy to the people of God. Then, brethren," he went on, "look out for the great sieve, for there will be a great sifting time, and many will fall; for I say unto you there is a test, a Test, a TEST coming, and who will be able to stand?"
I do not know precisely the nature of that test. But I am inclined to think the time is here and that the test lies in our capacity to live the gospel rather than adopt the ways of the world.
I do not advocate a retreat from society. On the contrary, we have a responsibility and a challenge to take our places in the world of business, science, government, medicine, education, and every other worthwhile and constructive vocation. We have an obligation to train our hands and minds to excel in the work of the world for the blessing of all mankind. In so doing we must work with others. But this does not require a surrender of standards.
We can maintain the integrity of our families if we will follow the counsel of our leaders. As we do so, those about us will observe with respect and be led to inquire how it is done.
We can oppose the tide of pornography and lasciviousness, which is destroying the very fiber of nations. We can avoid partaking of alcoholic beverages and stand solidly for legislation which will limit points of sale and exposure to its use. As we do so, we shall find others who feel as we do and will join hands in the battle.
We can more fully care for our own who may be in need rather than pass the burden to government and thereby preserve the independence and dignity of those who must have and are entitled to help.
We can refrain from buying on the Sabbath day. With six other days in the week none of us needs to buy furniture on Sunday. None of us needs to buy clothing on Sunday. With a little careful planning we can easily avoid the purchase of groceries on Sunday.
As we observe these and other standards taught by the Church, many in the world will respect us and find strength to follow that which they too know is right.
And, in the words of Isaiah, "Many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths."
We need not compromise. We must not compromise.
The candle which the Lord has lighted in this dispensation can become as a light unto the whole world, and others seeing our good works may be led to glorify our Father in heaven and emulate in their own lives the examples they may have observed in ours.
Said one of the leaders of our nation as he left the Washington Temple the other evening and looked up to its spires, "This beautiful structure is a symbol of those virtues which have made of us a great nation and a great people. We need such symbols."
There can be many more such symbols than the temple in Washington and even more impressive ones. Beginning with you and me, there can be an entire people who by the virtue of our lives in our homes, in our vocations, even in our amusements, can become as a city upon a hill to which men may look and learn, and an ensign to the nations from which the people of the earth may gather strength. I bear witness of him who is our living God. I bear testimony of him who is our Savior and Redeemer. I bear witness of the truth of this, their work, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Joseph Anderson
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
Mankind's greatest need today is a sincere conviction that Jesus Christ was and is in very deed the Savior and Redeemer of the world; that he is the Son of the Father, the firstborn in the spirit and the Only Begotten in the flesh; that it was necessary and a part of God's plan before the world was created, that he should come to earth and take upon himself mortality, mend the law broken by Adam and Eve, and provide for us the plan whereby we might resurrect from the grave and return into the presence of our Heavenly Father from whence we came.
We read in the first chapter of the gospel according to John: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God." This would indicate that Christ, Jehovah, the Great I Am, was with the Father in that early state of existence; he was the firstborn of his spirit children. He was taught by the Father during that incalculable time.
Before we came here we lived in the heavens in the spirit state as children of our Heavenly Father. The poet Wordsworth caught a flash from the eternal semaphore when he wrote:
"Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood"
We knew the Father of our spirits as well as we know our earthly father here. We knew our elder brother Jehovah and we also knew Lucifer, who too was a son of the morning. We lived by sight at that time. That visual knowledge, the remembrance of that estate, has been taken from our minds, and we are now required to live by faith. As stated in the hymn:
Hymns, no. 138
It is a glorious program and plan, instituted in the councils of heaven, whereby we might have the blessed privilege of taking upon us mortality, its challenges and its experiences.
In that previous existence we had our free agency. In the councils where consideration was given to the matter of the creation and the peopling of this earth, the Father presented an unselfish plan. It had been used in other worlds. Jehovah said: "Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever."
Lucifer, however, contended for an amendment to the plan whereby we would all be saved by compulsion. This was contrary to free agency. His was an ambitious proposal and one which involved granting to him, Lucifer, the honor that belongs to the Father. The scriptures tell us he said: "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." This would destroy the right to free agency and the opportunity for growth and development. It would be contrary to the Father's purpose in giving his children the opportunity to become like unto him through their own faithfulness and efforts. It was a selfish and presumptive proposal.
We are given to understand that whereas in the preexistence, in that spiritual estate, the spirits had their free agency, there were different degrees of obedience, various grades of righteousness. Lucifer exercised his free agency when he rebelled against the Father, but he had to pay the penalty for that rebellion and is still doing so, as are those spirits who followed him. They were denied the privilege of taking upon themselves mortality, and this has been a great curse and disappointment to them.
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!
"For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God:
"I will ascend above the heights of the clouds: I will be like the most High.
"Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit."
When those spirits who followed Jehovah were sent to earth to take upon themselves mortality, they were by no means of equal capacity nor similar in dispositions. There were different degrees of faithfulness among those who were given the opportunity and blessing of taking upon themselves mortal life. They were, however, considered sufficiently worthy to receive this earth-life experience in order that they might prove whether they would do all things whatsoever the Lord their God should command them. By so doing, by rendering obedience to the plan of life and salvation, they would receive life eternal, they would return into the presence of their Heavenly Father and receive his plaudit and the reward of the faithful.
God, with his foreknowledge and his acquaintance with his children in their premortal state, knew that some would succumb to the wiles and temptations of Lucifer, that many would fall by the wayside. It was also known by the Father before they came here that of their own free will and choice Adam and Eve would partake of the forbidden fruit, which would open the way for God's spirit children to take upon themselves mortality. Accordingly, the necessity for a Redeemer and a redemption was understood.
It was necessary that an atonement be made for the transgression of Adam, that mankind might not be required to suffer for Adam's transgression, for which they, Adam's posterity, were in no way responsible. Adam's disobedience was a transgression inasmuch as he had broken a law, but it became a great blessing in that it opened the way whereby man could be, could partake of earth-life privilege, and, in connection therewith, exercise his free agency and work out his salvation.
God was willing that his Beloved Son should take upon himself the responsibility of that mission, namely, to atone for the sin of Adam and Eve which brought about the fall, and, also, that mankind might receive forgiveness for their individual sins, provided they would keep the commandments upon which salvation and exaltation were based.
When Jesus was upon the earth in the meridian of time, very few recognized him as the Creator of heaven and earth and the Savior and Redeemer of mankind. Even his disciples did not fully appreciate his mission and-though he told them that he would lay down his life for the salvation of mankind, that he was and is the author of salvation unto all them that obey him, that he would come forth unto newness of life from the tomb, a resurrected being-it was difficult for them to grasp these things.
We are not dependent alone upon the account given by his apostles and others in the New Testament. We have other records and testimonies. We have the Book of Mormon, which, according to the foreword in that account, was given "to show unto the remnant of the House of Israel what great things the Lord hath done for their fathers; and that they may know the covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off forever-and also to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations."
An account is given in this record of the appearance of the Savior after his resurrection to his people upon this continent, at which time he taught them the gospel, the plan of life and salvation, similar to that which he gave to the people on the eastern continent. The Book of Mormon record also relates the conditions that existed upon this hemisphere at the time of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem and at the time of his death.
Upon his appearance to the Nephites, he stretched forth his hand and spoke unto the people saying:
"Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.
"And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning."
The Church has the further scripture about the Only Begotten and his mission as contained in the Pearl of Great Price. How fortunate we are that we have the biblical account, the Book of Mormon account, and the accounts given to Abraham and Enoch and Moses as related in the Pearl of Great Price regarding the birth and death of the Savior and his great mission.
This same Jesus, the resurrected Christ, has appeared to man in this dispensation on various occasions.
We have the further testimony of the truth of these manifestations and of the restored gospel in its fullness by virtue of the whisperings and promptings of the Holy Ghost, for the gift of the Holy Ghost has been conferred upon us by authority restored from heaven by those who held that power and authority in the meridian of time-namely, Peter, James, and John-and that knowledge is certain and cannot be successfully refuted.
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we worship the living Christ. We know that he came forth from the tomb, that he is a resurrected being, that he is our advocate with the Father, that only through him and by obedience to the gospel he has given us can we return into his presence and that of the Father.
Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and Savior. He was begotten of the Father in the spirit, the Firstborn of the Father, and is the Only Begotten of the Father in the flesh. He is our elder brother. He is the second member of the Godhead. He was the Creator of heaven and earth under the direction of the Father. He is the Jehovah of the Old Testament. He is Jesus of Nazareth.
He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is the Light of the world. He is the Author of our salvation. He was chosen before the foundation of the world to be the Lamb slain as an offering for our sins. Ultimately every knee must bow and every tongue confess that he is the Christ. He died on the cross to atone for the sin of Adam, that we might receive forgiveness for our sins if we would accept him and keep the commandments that he has given us, the plan of life and salvation. He arose from the tomb, the first fruits of the resurrection, thereby making possible that all mankind may live again in a resurrected state after mortal death. Yes, "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
It is his work and his glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man, which is salvation and exaltation in the presence of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ.
It is our mission and our responsibility to carry this message to the world. It is our work and our glory to assist our Savior in the accomplishment of the mission that he accepted in the council of the heavens before the earth was created.
He will come to earth again, as foretold by the prophets, this time in power and great glory, to reign and rule a thousand years in peace and righteousness.
I testify to the truth of these things. I know that our Redeemer lives, and I bear this testimony in faith and in all sincerity, in the name of our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bishop Victor L. Brown
Presiding Bishop
Recently some adult youth leaders were discussing problems our youth face today. One of them, a mother of 12, said, "It seems to me Satan has declared all-out war on our youth." How true this statement is!
As a matter of fact, he declared war on all that is good and righteous before this world was. In the spirit world before the creation of this earth, a great council was held in which God the Father presented his plan having to do with the eternal life of man. The plan was to teach the people righteousness and permit them to exercise their free agency, choosing for themselves which way they would go. Jesus Christ espoused the plan saying, "Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever." But Lucifer proposed to amend the plan of the Father saying, "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."
One-third of the hosts of heaven followed Satan. It was at this point that the greatest of all wars began. It has raged ever since with Satan as the commanding general of the forces opposed to that which is right.
In the writings of Moses the Lord further describes this occurrence:
"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;
"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."
From the multitudes who would not hearken to the voice of the Lord and have been led captive at Satan's will, it would seem that Satan has achieved some significant victories. It reminds one of another people in another age.
The Philistines and the Israelites were at war. We are told:
"The Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.
"And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span."
His armor and his weapons were in the same gigantic proportions to his unusual size. For forty days he taunted the Israelites: "Give me a man, that we may fight together.
"When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid."
It was at this time that a young shepherd boy named David came on the scene. He witnessed the brazenness of the giant and the fear of the Israelites. He approached his brothers in the ranks, inquiring as to what was happening. His eldest brother criticized him for leaving the sheep, whereupon David said, "What have I now done? Is there not a cause?"
A youth asking his wavering adult leaders, "Is there not a cause?" There are thousands of young men and women today who are asking the same question: "Is there not a cause?" Some hear no reply; others hear replies of little substance. And still others are led astray by causes which are counterfeit.
Having the stewardship under the direction of the First Presidency for the 12-to-18-year old youth in the Church throughout the world, I declare with all my soul-there is a cause! It is a cause worth giving one's life for. It is the cause of righteousness. It is a cause that every youth in this Church should rally to as he declares war on Satan and his legions. As David said to Goliath, so each youth should declare to Satan, "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied."
In all this I have the greatest of faith in the outcome. Never before in history has there lived a more valiant generation of youth. I am convinced the spirits of this generation were held to come forth at this important time in history. Their potential is unlimited.
In this optimism there is also realism. We are taught there must needs be opposition in all things, hence, the need for good and evil, the one led by the Savior and the other by Satan. Satan is just as real as is the Savior. He is clever. He is strongly motivated. In his battle to enslave he will resort to any lie, any trickery, any means to accomplish his end. Perhaps his most pernicious lie is in teaching that there is no God. It is at this point I again declare to the youth of the Church there is a cause, and that cause should motivate all youth to firmly grasp the banner of the gospel of Jesus Christ and carry it to all the world, declaring to all that he does live, that the heavens are open, that there is a prophet on the earth today.
I am suggesting that each individual put on the whole armor of God. He will then become an example to others, and many will follow in his footsteps. As each individual does this, he helps form the army that will win the great victory and ultimately prepare the world for the second coming of the Savior.
In putting on the whole armor of God, we must become acquainted with the Savior. At 14 Joseph Smith, in his quest for knowledge and wisdom, sought the Lord in prayer. God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ appeared to him in a vision. He saw two personages, one saying of the other, "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" This was the beginning of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth. If we have faith, we can prepare ourselves through prayer and study and gain the same assurance Joseph Smith had that God lives and that he and his Son are separate personages. Jesus of Nazareth then will become the center of our lives. With this assurance, our cause cannot be hindered. Without it, we have no cause.
Many battles have been lost because of difficulty in not always having a clearly defined battlefront. This is not the case in this war. There is but one real battlefront, and that is with each individual. The only real attack comes upon you and me individually; and, of course, that is where the only effective defense will be made.
If Satan could but capture our minds, he would have won the battle and the war. He can only do this if we let him. If we refuse to walk with him, he will have no power over us, for God gave us our free agency and Satan cannot take it away. So what I am suggesting is that we refuse to even walk on the same street with Satan. In other words, not only should we avoid evil, we should avoid the very appearance of evil.
Let us look at a few of the issues we are doing battle over. How about appearance? If we would appear as though the cause of righteousness is our cause, we would follow the wise admonition of President N. Eldon Tanner:
"Modesty in dress is a quality of mind and heart, born of respect for oneself, one's fellowmen, and the Creator of us all.
"Modesty reflects an attitude of humility, decency, and propriety. Consistent with these principles and guided by the Holy Spirit, let parents, teachers, and youth discuss the particulars of dress, grooming, and personal appearance, and with free agency accept responsibility and choose the right."
Based on the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, then, there is no question on which side we stand on honesty, integrity, and industry, nor where we stand with regard to moral cleanliness. Such conduct as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, abortion, or any other form or degree of improper, intimate, personal conduct should be as unacceptable to us as it is to our Heavenly Father. Our battle lines are clearly drawn on the question of drugs, liquor, tobacco, tea, coffee, or any other substance harmful to our bodies.
Through the lives we live there should be no question about our position with regard to the first and second great commandments:
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
"This is the first and great commandment.
"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
As we finally clothe ourselves with the whole armor of God, we will not be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ but will be proud to be counted among the valiant, even though we may be looked upon as a peculiar people.
I know there are some who desire to grasp this banner but feel unworthy to do so. May I plead with you to listen to the counsel of a prophet, President Spencer W. Kimball:
"The mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is to call people everywhere to repentance. Those who heed the call can be partakers of the miracle of forgiveness. God will wipe away from their eyes the tears of anguish, and remorse, and consternation, and fear, and guilt. Dry eyes will replace the wet ones, and smiles of satisfaction will replace the worried, anxious look.
"What relief! What comfort! What joy! Those laden with transgressions and sorrows and sin may be forgiven and cleansed and purified if they will return to their Lord, learn of him, and keep his commandments. And all of us needing to repent of day-to-day follies and weaknesses can likewise share in this miracle."
Is there a cause? Most assuredly there is. I challenge each young person in this church to grasp the banner and march shoulder to shoulder with his parents, his bishop, and other adult and youth leaders to a glorious victory in the kingdom of our Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Franklin D. Richards
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve
My dear brothers and sisters, I approach this responsibility with a humble heart, and pray the Spirit of the Lord will be with us while I speak to you.
From the Passover feast of 19 centuries ago came this great message of promise and exhortation from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." There is so much conflict and contention in the world today that the subject of peace seems most appropriate for me to discuss.
There can be no real happiness without peace, yet honest men and women in all parts of the world are seeking personal peace and know not where to find it.
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is called the Prince of Peace, and his message is a message of peace to the individual and to the world. It is the peace that makes us really appreciate mortal life and enables us to bear heartbreaking tribulations.
The mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is to establish this peace in the hearts and homes of the people. A recent letter from our grandson who is serving a mission in Brazil bears this out as he relates how a convert of one month spoke at a sacrament meeting. He said, "Just a month in the Church and he is in the pulpit expounding on the parable of the sower. The greatest joy of missionary work is to see the changes the gospel makes in the lives of people." This is so true.
I have listened to hundreds of converts bear their testimonies, and practically every one has related how the gospel has brought peace, joy, growth, and development into their lives.
Undoubtedly one of the greatest messages given by our Lord and Savior was the Sermon on the Mount. This message contained the Savior's plan for the abundant life. In it he admonished all to be peacemakers as he said, "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
Have you ever wondered how you can be a peacemaker? Really, our opportunities are unlimited.
Certainly in our homes we can all be peacemakers by exhibiting love and goodwill, thus offsetting the evil of contention, envy, and jealousy. Where misunderstandings exist between children and parents, we can encourage adjustments on the part of both. We can pray together for the spirit of peace.
We can be a peacemaker by avoiding criticism. Remember that Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount said, "Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged." Did you ever stop to think that every time you criticize you are judging?
We can be a peacemaker by practicing and teaching forgiveness. Jesus was asked how many times one should be forgiven, and he replied that we should forgive without limit. Forgive him "seventy times seven." An important part of forgiving is forgetting. In some ways, being able to forget is almost as valuable as being able to remember.
In dedicating the Hyde Park chapel in London, among other things, President David O. McKay said, "If you want peace, yours is the responsibility to obtain it. The Restored Gospel teaches that our homes should become warm nests where children may be protected and grow into noble men and women; where old age repose; where prayer will find an altar."
A very wise bishop called several young people into his office and said to them, "I would like you to help me in an experiment. I would like to prove the impact and influence of one member on the spirit of the family. For one month I would like each one of you to be the peacemaker in your home. Now don't say anything about this to your family, but be thoughtful, kind, and considerate. Be an example. Where there is quarreling or bickering among members of your family, do whatever you can to overcome these faults by creating an atmosphere of love, harmony, and happiness.
The bishop continued, "When you are irritated, and irritations arise in most every family, control yourself and help the others to control themselves. I would like to see every home in our ward be as President McKay counseled, 'a warm nest or a bit of heaven on earth.' At the end of the month I would like you to meet with me again and report."
It was a challenge for these young people, and they met the challenge in a wonderful way. When they reported back to the bishop, remarks such as these were made:
One young fellow said, "I had no idea I would have so much influence in my home. It's really been different this last month. I've been wondering if much of the turmoil and strife we used to have was caused by me and my attitudes."
A young lady said, "I guess we were just the normal family, with our selfishness causing little daily conflicts, but as I have worked with my brothers and sisters, a lot of this has been eliminated and there has been a much sweeter spirit in our home. I believe you really have to work at it to have the spirit of peace in your home."
Another young lady reported, "Yes, there has been a much sweeter, cooperative, and unselfish spirit in our home since I began this experiment, but the biggest difference of all has been in me. I've tried hard to be a good example and a peacemaker, and I feel better about myself than I have ever felt. A wonderful feeling of peace has come over me."
Yes, homes can be disrupted because of family strife. Husbands and wives in an atmosphere of contention destroy their own happiness as well as that of their children.
Are you shutting out of your life the peace and security you so much desire? Thousands of people are doing so because they are so filled with worries, doubts, and concerns. Many people are filled with fears about what will become of them as they grow older. I met a lovely lady in her 80s working in the temple. The spirit of peace and tranquillity radiated from her. She was so busy helping others that she had little concern for herself. Her needs were not great, and as she said, "The Lord is taking care of my needs."
The Lord tells us, "But learn that he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come."
Yes, the Lord will take care of our needs and help us overcome those things that worry us when we do our part, put our faith and trust in him, and concern ourselves with serving him by serving our fellowmen. I've seen this in my own life, in the lives of those close to me, and in the lives of hundreds of others all over the world. It is the only way to personal peace, that peace that is not of this world and is beyond our understanding and comprehension, but yet so sweet to us.
Possibly there is a greater need of peacemakers today than ever before. If this world had no need of peacemakers, our Savior never would have said, "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
The blessed part of being a peacemaker is that those who are peacemakers and who live the gospel principles receive a testimony borne of the Holy Ghost. They enjoy the peace that surpasseth all understanding, relief from inner tensions, joy and happiness, contentment, growth, and development. I personally know this to be true.
I bear you my witness that God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ live, and that through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the power to act in the name of God have been restored to this earth and, further, that President Spencer W. Kimball is a living prophet guiding and directing the affairs of the church of Jesus Christ on the earth today. May the Lord's choicest blessings be with him, and may we have the courage and good judgment to follow his counsel and advice.
May each of us in our daily lives assume the role of a peacemaker and enjoy the peace that surpasseth all understanding, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Thomas S. Monson
Of the Council of the Twelve
President Kimball, as this conference comes speedily to its close, the words of the apostle Peter seem to reflect the feelings of each person who has attended the conference or who has listened to or viewed the proceedings.
Following his experience on the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here." President Kimball, it is good for all of us to have been here.
I pray that the same sweet spirit which has prevailed will continue with me as I respond to this opportunity to address you.
On a clear winter day I was driving with a friend along the freeway which connects downtown Manhattan, New York, with suburban Westchester. He pointed out to me several of the historic sights which abound in this area where man has indiscriminately constructed his ribbon of highway through the pathway of history.
Suddenly, like an old friend, there came into view Yankee Stadium. Here it was-the stadium of champions, the home of my boyhood heroes. Indeed, what boy has not idolized those who, before cheering thousands, played superbly well the game of baseball.
Being winter, the parking lot surrounding the stadium was deserted. Gone were the crowds, the peanut vendors, the ticket clerks. Still present were the memories of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Joe DiMaggio. The record of their prowess and skill is forever safe-they have been elected to the prestigious Baseball Hall of Fame.
As with baseball, so with life. In the interior of our consciousness, each of us has a private hall of fame reserved exclusively for the real leaders who have influenced the direction of our lives. Relatively few of the many men who exercise authority over us from childhood through adult life meet our test for entry to this roll of honor. That test has very little to do with the outward trappings of power or an abundance of this world's goods. The leaders whom we admit into this private sanctuary of our reflective meditation are usually those who set our hearts afire with devotion to the truth, who make obedience to duty seem the essence of manhood, who transform some ordinary routine occurrence so that it becomes a vista whence we see the person we aspire to be.
For a moment, perhaps each of us could be the qualifying judge through whom each hall of fame entry must pass. Whom would you nominate for prominent position? Whom would I? Candidates are many-competition severe.
I nominate to the Hall of Fame the name of Adam, the first man to live upon the earth. His citation is from Moses: "And Adam was obedient unto the commandments of the Lord." Adam qualifies.
For patient endurance there must be nominated a perfect and upright man whose name was Job. Though afflicted as no other, he declared: "My witness is in heaven, and my record is on high.
"My friends scorn me: but mine eye poureth out tears unto God." "I know that my redeemer liveth." Job qualifies.
Every Christian would nominate the man Saul, better known as Paul the apostle. His sermons are as manna to the spirit, his life of service an example to all. This fearless missionary declared to the world: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation." Paul qualifies.
Then there is the man called Simon Peter. His testimony of the Christ stirs the heart:
"When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
"And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
"He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
"And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Peter qualifies.
Of another time and place we recall the testimony of Nephi:
"I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." Surely Nephi is worthy of a place in the Hall of Fame.
There is yet another I choose to nominate-even the Prophet Joseph Smith. His faith, his trust, his testimony are reflected by his own words, spoken as he went to Carthage Jail and martyrdom: "I am going like a lamb to the slaughter; but I am calm as a summer's morning; I have a conscience void of offense towards God, and towards all men." He sealed his testimony with his blood. Joseph Smith qualifies.
In our selection of heroes, let us nominate also heroines. First, that noble example of fidelity-even Ruth. Sensing the grief-stricken heart of her mother-in-law, who suffered the loss of each of her two fine sons, and feeling perhaps the pangs of despair and loneliness which plagued the very soul of Naomi, Ruth uttered what has become that classic statement of loyalty: "Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." Ruth's actions demonstrated the sincerity of her words. There is place for her name in the Hall of Fame.
Shall we not name yet another, a descendant of honored Ruth? I speak of Mary of Nazareth, espoused to Joseph, destined to become the mother of the only sinless man to walk the earth. Her acceptance of this sacred and historic role is a hallmark of humility. "And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word." Surely Mary qualifies.
Could we ask the question, "What makes of these men heroes and these women heroines?" I answer, unwavering trust in an all-wise Heavenly Father and an abiding testimony concerning the mission of a divine Savior. This knowledge is like a golden thread woven through the tapestry of their lives.
Who is that King of Glory, even the Redeemer, for whom such heroes and heroines faithfully served and valiantly died? He is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, even our Savior.
His birth was foretold by prophets; angels heralded the announcement of his earthly ministry. To shepherds abiding in their fields came the glorious proclamation:
"Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
This same Jesus "grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him." Baptized of John in the river known as Jordan, he commenced his official ministry to men. To the sophistry of Satan, Jesus turned his back. To the duty designated by his Father, he turned his face, pledged his heart, and gave his life. And what a sinless, selfless, noble, and divine life it was. Jesus labored. Jesus loved. Jesus served. Jesus wept. Jesus healed. Jesus taught. Jesus testified. On a cruel cross, Jesus died. From a borrowed sepulchre, Jesus came forth to eternal life.
The name-Jesus of Nazareth-the only name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved, has singular place and honored distinction in our Hall of Fame.
Some may question: "But what is the value of such an illustrious list of heroes, even a private Hall of Fame?" I answer. When we obey, as did Adam, endure as did Job, teach as did Paul, testify as did Peter, serve as did Nephi, give ourselves as did the prophet Joseph, respond as did Ruth, honor as did Mary, and live as did Christ, we are born anew. All power becomes ours. Cast off forever is the old self and with it defeat, despair, doubt, and disbelief. To a newness of life we come-a life of faith, hope, courage, and joy. No task looms too large. No responsibility weighs too heavily. No duty is a burden. All things become possible.
In our quest for an example, we need not necessarily look to years gone by or to lives lived long ago. Let me illustrate. Today Craig Sudbury presides over a ward here in Salt Lake City, but let me turn back the clock just a few years to the day he and his mother came to my office prior to Craig's departure for the Australia Melbourne Mission. Fred, Craig's father, was noticeably absent. Twenty-five years earlier, Craig's mother had married Fred, who did not share her love for the Church and indeed did not belong to the Church.
Craig confided to me his deep and abiding love for his parents. He shared his innermost hope that somehow, in some way, his father would be touched by the Spirit and open his heart to the gospel of Jesus Christ. He pleaded earnestly with me for a suggestion. I prayed for inspiration concerning how such a desire might be rewarded. Such inspiration came, and I said to Craig, "Serve the Lord with all your heart. Be obedient to your sacred calling. Each week write a letter to your parents and, on occasion, write to Dad personally and let him know that you love him, and tell him why you're grateful to be his son."
He thanked me and, with his mother, departed the office. I was not to see Craig's mother for some 18 months. She came to the office and, in sentences punctuated by tears, said to me, "It has been almost two years since Craig departed for his mission. His faithful service has qualified him for positions of responsibility in the mission field, and he has never failed in writing a letter to us each week. Recently my husband Fred stood for the first time in a testimony meeting and said, 'All of you know that I am not a member of the Church, but something has happened to me since Craig left for his mission. His letters have touched my soul. May I share one with you?
"'Dear Dad, Today we taught a choice family about the plan of salvation and the blessings of exaltation in the celestial kingdom. I thought of our family. More than anything in the world, I want to be with you and with Mother in that kingdom. For me it just wouldn't be a celestial kingdom if you were not there. I'm grateful to be your son, Dad, and want you to know that I love you. Your missionary son, Craig.'
"Fred then announced, 'My wife doesn't know what I plan to say. I love her and I love our son, Craig. After 26 years of marriage I have made my decision to become a member of the Church, for I know the gospel message is the word of God. I suppose I have known this truth for a long time, but my son's mission has moved me to action. I have made arrangements for my wife and me to meet Craig when he completes his mission. I will be his final baptism as a full-time missionary of the Lord.'"
A young missionary with unwavering faith had participated with God in a modern-day miracle. His challenge to communicate with one whom he loved had been made more difficult by the barrier of the thousands of miles which lay between him and his father. But the spirit of love spanned the vast expanse of the blue Pacific, and heart spoke to heart in divine dialogue.
No hero stood so tall as did Craig, when in far-off Australia he stood with his father in water waist deep and, raising his right arm to the square, repeated those sacred words: "Fred Sudbury, having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
The prayer of a mother, the faith of a father, the service of a son brought forth the miracle of God. Mother, father, son-each qualifies in a Hall of Fame.
May they and each of us so live as to merit the heavenly pronouncement:
"I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end.
"Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory."
Our place in an everlasting and eternal Hall of Fame will thereby be assured. This is my earnest plea as I leave with you my witness that Jesus of Nazareth is our Savior and Redeemer, even our Advocate with the Father. In the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Amen.
President Spencer W. Kimball
I remember vividly my first view of an iceberg. In 1937 Sister Kimball and I made our first crossing of the Atlantic by steamer from Montreal, out through the St. Lawrence River and into the North Atlantic.
One day when we were well out into the ocean, there was excitement on the ship. An iceberg had been sighted. Most of the passengers rushed to the deck to see this sight. We could see it in the distance-a great white object against the dark sea and the azure of the sky.
There it floated quietly in the water like a sharp peak of a high mountain range, a thing of beauty to behold. All my life I had heard about them, and now, for the first time, it was there before my eyes-a sharp mountain peak of ice.
This recalled to our minds the tragic sinking of the Titanic, steamship of the White Star Line, on its maiden trip across the ocean. The huge iceberg collided with this large, new ship late in the evening, April 14, 1912. Fifteen hundred and three persons, many of them eminent in Britain and in the United States, were drowned as the ship sank and only 703 were saved.
Then four years ago, flying from England to the United States, we passed over Greenland and saw them again. Much of our trip we had traveled above the blanket of clouds, but as we flew over Greenland, the sky was clear and free of clouds. The sun shone brightly. Seldom does the human eye ever see such beauty and grandeur. Stretching out in the distance was the mile-thick blanket of ice over the great, domed island. We saw the thick glaciers creeping slowly down the valleys to the sea, where they break off and become icebergs. The fjords were full of floating mountains of ice drifting on their way to the ocean. Here was the birthplace of countless such icebergs as we had seen 33 years earlier.
The icebergs spawned by the Greenland ice sheet followed a highly predictable course. As the silent Labrador Current ceaselessly moves to the south through Baffin Bay and Davis Strait, it takes with it these mountainous icebergs, even against the force of the winds and the waves and the tides. Currents have much more power to control its course than the surface winds.
And we compared this conflict of the earth's powers with the results in our own lives when the current of our life, as defined and developed in the lives of a family by the righteous teaching of parents, will often control the direction children will go, in spite of the waves and winds of numerous adverse influences of the world of error.
Out of our view, under the ocean waves, there are forces of tremendous power with which we must reckon, and there are such powerful forces in our own lives.
The mighty Mississippi River is a rivulet in comparison with the great ocean streams. One of the most spectacular of all is said to be the Labrador Current. The second most powerful is the Gulf Stream, which carries warm water from the eastern portion of the Gulf of Mexico parallel to the eastern coast of the United States and across the Atlantic to warm the shores of Europe. The Gulf Stream carries as much water as a thousand Mississippi Rivers combined. Though of lesser magnitude, the Labrador Current year after year carries thousands of icebergs down from their birthplace in Greenland, faithfully, steadily, until they disintegrate or melt in the warmer waters of the Gulf Stream. It is at this point, where the Labrador Current meets the Gulf Stream, that the Titanic met her fate.
It is true of us, as of icebergs, that our course is, in important measure, determined by forces we only partly perceive. It is true also, however, that we are more like ships than icebergs. We have our own motive power, and if we are aware of the currents, we can take advantage of them.
Accordingly, if we can create in our families a strong, steady current flowing toward our goal of righteous life, we and our children may be carried forward in spite of the contrary winds of hardship, disappointment, temptations, and fashion.
Youth and adults are subjected to so many swirling winds that we sometimes wonder if they can survive. The winds of fashion push those about who are insecure and who require the feeling that they are in step with the crowd. The winds of sexual temptation drive some to destroy their marriage or to dash bright prospects or to degrade themselves. Bad companions, addicting drugs, the arrogance of profanity, the slough of pornography-all these and more act as influences pushing us, if we are not being carried forward by a strong, steady current toward the righteous life. The current of our lives should be determined and made strong by our parental and family life.
In each of us is the potentiality to become a God-pure, holy, true, influential, powerful, independent of earthly forces. We learn from the scriptures that we each have eternal existence, that we were in the beginning with God. That understanding gives to us a unique sense of man's dignity.
I have sometimes seen children of good families rebel, resist, stray, sin, and even actually fight God. In this they bring sorrow to their parents, who have done their best to set in movement a current and to teach and live as examples. But I have repeatedly seen many of these same children, after years of wandering, mellow, realize what they have been missing, repent, and make great contribution to the spiritual life of their community. The reason I believe this can take place is that, despite all the adverse winds to which these people have been subjected, they have been influenced still more, and much more than they realized, by the current of life in the homes in which they were reared. When, in later years, they feel a longing to recreate in their own families the same atmosphere they enjoyed as children, they are likely to turn to the faith that gave meaning to their parents' lives.
There is no guarantee, of course, that righteous parents will succeed always in holding their children, and certainly they may lose them if they do not do all in their power. The children have their free agency.
But if we as parents fail to influence our families and set them on the "strait and narrow way," then certainly the waves, the winds of temptation and evil will carry the posterity away from the path.
"Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it." What we do know is that righteous parents who strive to develop wholesome influences for their children will be held blameless at the last day, and that they will succeed in saving most of their children, if not all.
The competition for our souls is described in Mosiah.
"For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father."
The "natural man" is the "earthy man" who has allowed rude animal passions to overshadow his spiritual inclinations.
Some years ago when we visited overseas, where the children are exposed in the public school to a constant barrage of propaganda against religion, I asked leaders of the Church how they were able to hold their children to the Church and keep them in the faith. They said, "We scrupulously train our children in our homes, so they know truth from error, and that when they go to school, the godless philosophies to which they are exposed simply run off without penetrating. Our children love and trust us and remain true to the faith." God bless such selfless, faithful parents.
A beginning is a secure marriage, where there is a commitment to make the personal adjustments to live together forever. With that sound base our children have a feeling of peace.
Analysts of our modern time point out that in a fast-changing world, people suffer a kind of shock from losing a sense of continuity. The very mobility of our society means that our children are often moved from place to place and lose close contact with the extended family of grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, and longtime neighbors. It is important for us also to cultivate in our own family a sense that we belong together eternally, that whatever changes outside our home, there are fundamental aspects of our relationship which will never change. We ought to encourage our children to know their relatives. We need to talk of them, make effort to correspond with them, visit them, join family organizations, etc.
How long has it been since you took your children, whatever their size, in your arms and told them that you love them and are glad that they can be yours forever? How long has it been since you husbands or wives purchased an inexpensive gift as a surprise for your spouse for no other reason than just to please? How long has it been since you brought home a rose or baked a pie with a heart carved in the crust or did some other thing to make life more aglow with warmth and affection?
If there is to be a contribution to the building fund or the Red Cross or a Saturday morning spent helping the elders quorum paint a widow's house, make sure the children are aware of it, and if it is feasible, let them have a share in the decision-making and in the implementation of the decision. All the family could attend the baptism, confirmation, and ordination of a member of the family. All of the family could root for a son who is on the ball team. All meet regularly in home evenings, at mealtime, at prayer time. Perhaps all of the family could pay tithing together, and each learns by precept and example the beautiful principle.
The home should be a place where reliance on the Lord is a matter of common experience, not reserved for special occasions. One way of establishing that is by regular, earnest prayer. It is not enough just to pray. It is essential that we really speak to the Lord, having faith that he will reveal to us as parents what we need to know and do for the welfare of our families. It has been said of some men that when they prayed, a child was likely to open his eyes to see if the Lord were really there, so personal and direct was the petition.
A child leaving to go away to school or on a mission, a wife suffering stress, a family member being married or desiring guidance in making an important decision-all these are situations in which the father, in exercise of his patriarchal responsibility, can bless his family.
And we should not overlook the fact that, particularly in the absence of the father, a mother may pray with her children and call down the Lord's blessings upon them. She does not act by virtue of priesthood conferred upon her, but by virtue of her God-given responsibility to govern her household in righteousness.
There is one important way in which we are different from icebergs. We have motive power and are therefore able, the same as with ships, to move ourselves as we want to go. If we are aware of the currents, we can take advantage of them. Many large oil tankers and ore carriers traveling from South America to harbors on the Atlantic seaboard are said to ride the Gulf Stream much as airliners ride the jetstream high above the earth.
Or, if we wish to fight the current, we may be able to do so; yet the current will inevitably have its effect. It is said that when Admiral Peary was traveling toward the North Pole, he found himself on a great ice floe as large as an island, and that as he moved northward toward the pole with his dogs, the floe was bearing him southward even faster by the current.
My brothers and sisters, the home is our peculiarity-the home, the family, is our base. And this we've heard much about through this conference-that is, family life, home life, children and parents loving each other and dependent upon each other. That's the way the Lord has planned for us to live.
Now in conclusion of this great conference, which has spread through three days and has brought us many thoughts, we bless these brethren who have contributed, all of them who have spoken, who have brought treasures of knowledge and much information and great inspiration to us here.
As we return to our homes, brothers and sisters, I hope we will not close the door on the conference. Take it with us. Take it home with us. Tell our families about it, perhaps some to report in sacrament meetings of it. But take it to your families and give them the benefit of any inspiration that might have come to you, any determinations to change your lives and make them more acceptable to your Heavenly Father.
As this conference concludes, we bless you, and we bring to you the blessings of the Lord of heaven. Brethren and sisters, I know that this is the work of the Lord. You haven't come these long distances for nothing. It is to feed your souls.
I know that the Lord lives-that God who was with Adam, that God who came to the banks of the Jordan River to say, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased", to introduce his Son to a world that was to depend so completely on him. I know that was the God that we worship, who came on the Mount of Transfiguration and said again to those servants, Peter, James, and John, who were to carry on the work of the Lord even in their imperfections: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased", the same God-we know he lives and exists-who came in the state of New York and said those same things that he had already said to the Nephites-and now said to a world that had been traveling in darkness for a long, long time-"This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
I know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. I know that. I know that the gospel which we teach is the gospel of Jesus Christ and the church to which we belong is the church of Jesus Christ; it teaches his doctrines and his policies and his programs. I know that if all of us will live the program as he has given it and will continue to give it, that all the blessings promised will be ours. Now God bless you, and we leave his blessings with you with our affection, our appreciation for you, in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.