I need to start out with an
apology. This week has been crazy and wonderful, but I have not been able to
prepare class notes as I have in the past. Here is an outline of 7 things I
would like to talk about. There are notes below for each of these items. Hope
you can figure it out.
Gary
1. We will
continue our discussion on the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum.
2. We will
take a look at D&C 135- The tribute to Joseph by John Taylor and look a
little at the life of John Taylor.
3. We will
discuss succession in the Presidency of the Church. (See notes below) and
attachment (succession- It is a 56 page book written by BH Roberts in 1894)
4. We will
take a look at D&C 138- the vision of the redemption of the dead by
President Joseph F. Smith.
5. We will
look at Official Declaration #1 - The Manifesto on Plural Marriage.
6. We will
look at Official Declaration #2 - The revelation of on the Priesthood being extended
to all worthy males.
7. We will
discuss our plans for 2014.
8. Thanks
for your patience with your flaky teacher.
1. The Martyrdom
Reasons; 1. Polygamy leaked out 2. Economics-over
$100,000 in land debt. Lower Nauvoo had to sell before upper. Some revolted 3. Lawlessness
of frontier-LDS blamed for all. Brigham charged with counterfeiting. 4. Council
of 50 5. Church Doctrine- Book of Mormon and Indians, King Follett Sermon
(April) 6. Former saints, Fosters, Higbees, Laws, John C. Bennett- Ohio wife,
1841, Mayor of Nauvoo, attempted murder of Joseph, Ex’d 1842, preached and wrote vs. Joseph 7. Politics,
Whigs vs. Democrats 8. Thomas Sharp from Warsaw
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1840-41
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Governor Reynolds of Mo. Obtains permission from Governor Carlin of
Ill to have Joseph arrested to protect image of Mo. Joseph hides.
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1842
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Joseph and Porter Rockwell blamed for attempted assassination of Gov.
Boggs. By Bennett. They hide. Porter Rockwell in Jail.
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1843
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John C. Bennett, after being ex’d, stirred up sentiment vs. Joseph
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1844-June
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June 7th – Nauvoo Expositor Published June 10th-
Press destroyed
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1844-
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June 13th- Mob-mass meetings held-Warsaw Signal response-
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June 17th – Joseph &
Hyram arrested for 2nd time-released by Judge Daniel Wells-Martial
Law
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June 19th & 20- City organized for defense
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June 21& 22
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John Taylor & Dr. Bernhisel to Carthage as reps for Church. Laws,
Higbees & Fosters & Ford
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June 22nd – Joseph crosses river
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Sunday, June 23rd - Joseph gets letter from Emma, Reynolds
Cahoon, and Hiram Kimball
If my life is of
no value to my friends.
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Monday June 24th -6:00 AM leaves for Carthage & stops
at temple
10:00 AM
Meets Captain Dunn and returns to Nauvoo (arrives 2:30 PM)
Lamb
to Slaughter
6:00 PM – All arms collected, leaves
again-Midnight – arrives in Carthage
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Tuesday, June 25th - Surrendered for Riot arrested for
Arrested for treason. (No bail)
Evening in Carthage Jail with 8 others (Joseph, Hyram, John, Willard, John P.
Green, Stephen Markham, Dan Jones, John Fullmer, Lorenzo Wasson, Dr.
Southwick)
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Wednesday 26th -Upstairs bedroom. In and out of court most
of day, lengthy discussion with Gov. Ford
9:30 AM (promise), retired to prison 9 PM.-Dan Jones prophecy
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Thursday 27th 5:30
AM Dan Jones ask s Frank Worrell a guard at the jail, why a shot during the
night. Response “too much trouble getting him here to let him go alive. Jones tells Ford, I hope I live to tell
this story. 11:00 AM – Ford leaves for Nauvoo (breaks promise), left Carthage
Greys to guard jail.1:15 AM Stephen Markham went for medicine, not allowed to
return, run out of town. 3:15 PM –
John Taylor sings. 4 PM – all guards leave jail except 8-led by Frank
Worrell. 5:15 PM –
Martyrdom, Citizens of Carthage flee.
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June 28th-Bodies returned to Nauvoo, (Willard, Samuel)
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June 29th – Viewing 8 am-5 pm. Secret Burial in basement
of Nauvoo House.
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2. D&C 135 - JOHN
TAYLOR
Conversion - Prophecy
by Heber C. Kimball to PPP So Parley left his poor and ill family
Baptized
May 9, 1836-within two years an apostle
John
Taylor born Nov. 1, 1808 in Milnthorpe, just north of Preston learned trade of cooper (barrel
maker) and turner (lathe) as
a small boy he had seen in vision an angel holding a trumpet to his mouth and
sounding a note of comfort or warning to the world.
Joined
Methodist church 16. At 24 he left England for America, stayed in New York,
Brooklyn, and Albany and then Toronto where he set up a wood turning business.
Also
a Methodist exhorter-Leonora Cannon, a member of congregation - 12 years his
senior- turned down marriage proposal until she saw she and him in a dream -
married January 28, 1833.
John
defended Joseph from Parley in Kirland in 1837- "If the work was true six
months ago, it is true today. If Joseph Smith was then a prophet, his is now a
prophet.
Soon
after return to Toronto Sampson Avard came to town-Danites
Faithful
John took the place of John F. Boynton as a member of the 12 after Boynton was
ex'ed.
Fall
1837 - advised by prophet of his call to the 12
Oct.
6, 1838 - sustained in conference
Dec.
18, 1838 - ordained to 12 by Brigham and Heber
April
26, 1839 left from Far West on Mission to Britain with 12 1st missionary to Ireland John baptized George
Q. Cannon on his mission to England, George was he wife's nephew and later
became his counselor in the 1st presidency
John
served as campaign manager for Joseph-He was with Joseph at the martyrdom
Unable
to attend the meeting held on Aug. 8, 1844 where the 12 were sustained to lead
the church, he was still bedridden because of his June 27 injuries
When
the battalion left Iowa to go South, John and Parley and Orson were sent to
England to settle the Reuben Hedlock affair from mismanagement of immigration
monies.
Returned
as Brigham and the pioneer company were leaving Winter Qtrs. with scientific instruments
and tithing money from the British Saints.
John
was often used to be the writer of in behalf of the church ie; Mo. persecution
response Joseph's campaign, appeal for statehood, newspaper defending plural
marriage
Within
two years of arriving in the valley John was sent on a mission to France and
Germany. He oversaw the translation of the BOM into French and German and baptized
apparently at least 400.
On
the results of the Utah War John said, "I do not remember having read in any history, or had
related to me any circumstance where an army has been subjugated so easily, and
their power wasted away so effectually without bloodshed, as this in our
borders. If this is not the manifestation of the power of God to us, I do not
know what is. Has any man's life been lost in it? No-not one. It is true our
brethren have been fired upon; but their balls failed of doing the injury that
was expected. Our brethren were told not to retaliate, and they did not do it.
Where is there such a manifestation of the power of God?" And as far as
Elder Taylor was concerned, the affair also magnified the leadership genius of
Brigham Young. "Suppose you or I had the dictation of this matter, we
should have been firing clear away on the Sweetwater, and killed a lot of them
before thy got here. It was not we, then, that directed this matter. No. Who
was it? Why, it was those who are placed over us: and those very things that
seemed hard for us to do at that time have really accomplished one of the
greatest things that history has yet developed." P. 158
John
served 5 full terms as speaker of the House in Utah
In
June 1875, in Sanpete County President Young affirmed that seniority in the 12
was based on the date of induction into the quorum, not on age. This placed
Elder Taylor ahead of Wilford Woodruff, Orson Hyde & Orson Pratt.
Oct.
10 1880, sustained as Pres. of Church "The Mediation and Atonement"
was his most enduring literary work.
Farewell
sermon Feb. 1885, farewell sermon-rest of life in hiding. 2 1/2 years of exile
Ended up in West Kaysville at home of Thomas F.
Roueche, who gave up his home for the prophet from Nov. 22, 1886 until July 25,
1887.
3.
A. Millennial Star November 20,
1846, p. 136
The next day was the one appointed by Sidney Rigdon for the church
to assemble and choose a “Guardian.” The attendance was large, as intense
interest had been awakened upon the subject to be considered. Sidney Rigdon
addressed the assembly, setting forth his claim to the “Guardianship” of the
church. He had full opportunity to present his case, and for an hour and a half
spoke without interruption; but despite his reputation as an orator, he failed
to convince the saints that he was sent of God. As soon as Sidney Rigdon closed
his speech, Elder Brigham Young arose and made a few remarks. It was on that
occasion that he was transfigured before the people, so that through him the
saints heard the voice and felt the presence of their departed leader. George
Q. Cannon, who was present on that occasion, says: If Joseph had risen from the
dead and again spoken in their hearing, the effect could not have been more
startling than it was to many present at that meeting; it was the voice of
Joseph himself; and not only was it the voice of Joseph whlch was heard, but it
seemed in the eyes of the people as if it were the very person of Joseph which
stood before them. A more wonderful and miraculous event than was wrought that
day in the presence of that congregation we never heard of.[i]6
In
the journal of Elder Wm. C. Staines, of that date, the following statement is
recorded: Brigham Young said— “I will tell you who your leaders or guardians
will be. The Twelve—I at their head!’ This was with a voice like the voice of
the prophet Joseph. I thought it was he, and so did thousands who heard it.
This was very satisfactory to the people, and a vote was taken to sustain the
Twelve in their office, which, with a few dissenting voices, was
passed.”
Elder Young was then about to put the question to the assembled
quorums as to whether they wanted Elder Rigdon for a leader, when, at the
request of the latter, the question on supporting the Twelve as the presiding
quorum in the church was first put in the following manner: “Do the Church want
and is it their only desire to sustain the Twelve as the First Presidency of
this people ? If the Church want the Twelve to stand as the head, the First
Presidency of the Church, and at the head of this kingdom in all the world,
stand next to Joseph, walk up into their calling, and hold the keys of this
kingdom—every man, every woman, [10] every quorum is now put in order, and you
are now the sole controllers of it—all that are in favor of this in all the
congregation of the Saints, manifest it by holding up the right hand. (There
was a universal vote.) If there are any of the contrary mind—every man and
every woman who does not want the Twelve to preside, lift up your hands in like
manner. (No hands up.) This supersedes the other question,[ii]12 and trying it by quorums.[iii]13
After his excommunication he made an attempt at organizing a
church, choosing twelve apostles, etc., but his efforts amounted to but little.
He soon retired from Nauvoo to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, which he established as
his head quarters. He sent missionaries to many branches of the church to
represent his claims to the Presidency, but they succeeded in getting only
slight support and that for the most part from among those weak in the faith.
His church, never strong either in numbers or prominent men, soon crumbled into
decay; Sidney Rigdon himself sank out of sight and in 1876 he died in obscurity
in Alleghany county, state of New York.
FOLLOWING the attempt of Sidney Rigdon to become the “Guardian of
the Church,” we will consider the efforts of William Smith, brother to the
prophet Joseph, to become its President. He was a member of the quorum of the
Twelve at the death of the prophet, though for some time his conduct had been
such as to bring him into disrepute among the Saints. He was of a turbulent,
ungovernable disposition; a man of fierce passions and violent temper. When the
saints were driven from Missouri, in 1838, and his brother Joseph cast into
prison, such was his vindictiveness against the prophet that at a general
conference of the church held near Quincy, Illinois, May 4th, 1839, he was
suspended from fellowship; but was afterwards restored, mainly through the
pleadings of that same brother against ‘whom he railed with such bitterness of
speech.
William Smith, however,
based his claim to the position of president, mainly upon the fact that he was
the brother of the Prophet,
the only surviving brother, and therefore he should succeed to his brother’s
position.
William Smith, however, did
not command much of a following in this first attempt to make himself a leader.
His profligate life was too notorious in Nauvoo to make it possible for him to
wield much influence even as a schismatic. His efforts at leadership on this
occasion resulted only in violent denunciations of those who would not receive
him, and his final expulsion from the church. At the general conference held on
the 6th of October, 1845, he was disfellowshipped from the quorum of the
Twelve, and on the 12th of the same month, more of his wickedness having come
to light, he was excommunicated from the church. He shortly afterwards became
associated with James J. Strang and other apostates in an attempt to establish
a church in the state of Wisconsin,
After his failure in Nauvoo,
and in Wisconsin in connection with Mr. Strang, we next hear of William Smith
in the winter and spring of 1850, visiting those who had been members of the
church in Illinois and Kentucky, teaching ‘‘lineal priesthood as applied to the
Presidency of the church.” That is, he taught that his brother Joseph’s eldest
son had a right by virtue of lineage to succeed to the Presidency of the
church; but also taught in connection with this that it was his right as the
only surviving brother of the former President, uncle and natural guardian of the
“seed” of Joseph the prophet, to stand, in the interim, as president pro
tern of the church.
This was the last effort of William Smith at
organizing a church; subsequently, when an organization was effected with
Joseph Smith, eldest son of the prophet, as its President, he became nominally
connected with that movement, but he was never prominent or influential. In the
summer of 188o, the writer, then on a mission in the state of Iowa, in company
with Hyrum Jensen, called at the home of William Smith, near Elkader, and found
him living in poverty and obscurity.
Lyman Wight was a strong, bold man; fixed in his friend ship for
the prophet Joseph, and true to him under many trying circumstances; but withal
rather difficult to control, and after the death of Joseph soon manifested a
disposition of insubordination to authority. As far back as February, 1844, he
had expressed a desire to go to Texas, and after the death of the prophet
seemed determined that the church should be removed there. For some time a
number of persons had worked under his and Bishop George Miller’s direction in
the pineries of Wisconsin, getting out lumber for the Temple. In the latter
part of August, President Young desired him to return to the pineries and
continue his labors; but he refused and expressed a determination to carry out
his own views, and be the controller of his own conduct regardless of the
counsel of the presiding quorum. He therefore went to Texas instead of to Wisconsin,
taking a small company of saints with him and settling in Texas, not far from
the present site of Austin.
For his insubordination
Lyman Wight was excommunicated from the church, the action being taken in Salt
Lake City, 1848, The company of saints that followed him were soon scattered as
sheep that have wandered from the fold and the care of the shepherd; but some
few of them finally found their way back into the church. Lyman Wight lived in
obscurity in Texas, unknown by the world, unhonored, without a following, and
died outside the church of Christ, with which he had suffered so much during
the persecutions it passed through in Missouri.
Bishop George Miller was closely associated with Lyman Wight in
his rebellion against the authority of President Young. As already stated they
had been associated in directing the labors of the brethren working in the
pineries, and on returning to Nauvoo both had manifested a spirit of
insubordination to authority. Bishop Miller, however, did not immediately follow
Lyman Wight to Texas, but remained with the church some two years longer, and
was among the first to cross the Mississippi in the great exodus from Nauvoo.
During the subsequent journey through what was then the wilderness of Iowa, he
manifested a disposition to draw off with his company from the main camp; and
when the great body of the exiled saints went into Winter Quarters, near
Council Bluffs, Bishop Miller and his company were more than a hundred and
fifty miles north at the junction of the Running Water and the Missouri River,
where they remained during the winter of 1846-47.
In the spring of 1847, when the saints were making ready for their
journey to the west, Bishop Miller urged the advisability of changing their
destination, and going to Texas, where Lyman Wight had already settled. The
bishop’s views being rejected, he withdrew from the camp, followed by a few
over whom he had influence, and with them he joined Lyman Wight in Texas. The
union, however, was of short duration. The spirit which led them to rebel
against President Young would not permit them to live in peace together. They
soon quarrelled [sic] and separated, Miller making his way to Wisconsin where
hejoined James J. Strang.
BUT little is heard of James J. Strang in the church until after
the death of the prophet Joseph; but that he was a man of considerable
intellectual ability there can be no question. Mr. Strang claimed that about
ten days before his death the prophet Joseph gave to him a letter containing a
revelation appointing him [James J. Strang] to be his successor as President
and Prophet of the church. The letter also appointed Mr. Strang’s counselor, and
commanded the Twelve Apostles to proclaim Voree, Wisconsin, as the gathering
place of the saints. Mr. Strang attempted to strengthen his claim to the
position of President and Prophet of the church by reference to the revelation
which says:
This
question as to his ordination presented a serious difficulty to Mr. Strang, a
difficulty which he tried to surmount by announcing soon afterwards that
immediately after the martyrdom of the prophet Joseph, an angel appeared to him
and ordained him to be a prophet to the church, and the successor to Joseph as the
President thereof.
Not many followed him from
Nauvoo, however, for there his influence amounted to little; but in the
scattered branches, especially in those in Wisconsin, he succeeded in deceiving
many. Among those who accepted and sustained his claims were William Smith, the
only surviving brother of the prophet Joseph; the notorious John C. Bennett,
who had been excommunicated from the church for his crimes, and afterward
plotted with the enemies of Joseph to bring to pass his destruction; and also
John E. Page, one of the Twelve, who for several years previous to Joseph’s
death had been in bad repute with the church. John C. Bennett had first
supported Sidney Rigdon, claiming to have received a sealed document from the
prophet Joseph—when as yet he was in full fellowship with the church—with a
strict charge not to open [32] it until after the prophet’s death. When he
opened it, lo! it contained what purported to, be a revelation from the
deceased prophet appointing Sidney Rigdon to be his successor. John C. Bennett
averred that this was as it should be, and so eagerly was this purported
revelation accepted by the supporters of Mr. Rigdon, that they had it published
and widely circulated among the branches of the church. But when Mr. Strang
came forward with his claims, John C. Bennett turned from Sidney Rigdon and
supported Mr. Strang—having forgot, apparently, the “revelation” contained in
the sealed document which appointed Mr. Rigdon President of the church![iv]
Mr. Strang in a short time changed his gathering place from Voree,
Wisconsin, to Beaver Island, in the north end of Lake Michigan. He organized a
township on Beaver Island, went to the state legislature and succeeded in
having the whole group of islands in north Lake Michigan organized into a
county, under the name of Manitou County, which for some years Mr. Strang
represented in the Michigan state legislature.
Mr. Strang was not satisfied
with being Prophet and President [33] of the church, he must also be a king;
and accordingly was crowned and given a scepter.
It is enough to say that Mr. Strang and his followers were held in
great abhorrence by the other inhabitants of the Manitou group of islands and
the [34] people on the neighboring main-land; and in the summer of 1856, there
was a general uprising of the people in those parts which resulted in the
killing of Mr. Strang—some accounts say, by two men of his own party, and the
breaking up of his organization.
Messrs. Briggs and Gurley, in 1856; the coldness and independence
of Messrs. Marks, Rogers and Blair must have been a still greater source of
annoyance.
Mr. Smith Went to the
conference at Amboy, and in the afternoon of the 6th of April, i86o, made a
speech, at the conclusion of which it was moved that he be received as a
prophet, —the successor of his father. The motion was carried by a unanimous vote,
after which Mr. Gurley who, assisted by Mr. William Marks, presided at the
conference, arose and said:
Brother Joseph, I present this
Church to you in the name of Jesus Christ!
And of course Mr. Smith accepted it.
The Community of Christ
today considers the period from 1830 to 1844 to be a part of its early
history and from 1844, the year of the death of the founder, to
1860, to be a period of disorganization. Since 1844 the doctrines and practices
of the Community of Christ have evolved separately from the other denominations
of the Latter Day Saint movement.[19] Since the 1960s the church’s
proselytizing with other world cultures in countries outside North America
forced a re-assessment and a gradual evolution of its denominational practices
and beliefs. Some changes included the ordination of women to the priesthood,
open communion, and changing the church's
commonly used name from the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day
Saints to the current name in April 2001
Historical Background
President Joseph F. Smith was ill
during the last six months of his life and spent much of his time confined to
his room. His son, Elder Joseph Fielding Smith, spent many days with him taking
dictation, tending to chores for him, and taking him for rides. At the October conference of 1918, six weeks
before his death, President Smith said: “As most of you, I suppose, are aware,
I have been undergoing a siege of very serious illness for the last five
months. It would be impossible for me, on this occasion, to occupy sufficient
time to express the desires of my heart and my feelings, as I would desire to
express them to you, but I felt that it was my duty, if possible, to be
present. …“… Although somewhat weakened in body, my mind is clear with
reference to my duty, and with reference to the duties and responsibilities
that rest upon the Latter-day Saints; and I am ever anxious for the progress of
the work of the Lord, for the prosperity of the people of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout the
world. …“I will not, I dare not, attempt to enter upon many things that
are resting upon my mind this morning, and I shall postpone until some future
time, the Lord being willing, my attempt to tell you some of the things that
are in my mind, and that dwell in my heart. I have not lived alone these five
months. I have dwelt in the spirit of prayer, of supplication, of faith and of
determination; and I have had my communication with the Spirit of the Lord
continuously.” (In Conference Report, Oct. 1918, p. 2.)
Two weeks after the general conference
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith wrote down the vision as his father dictated it to
him. After it was endorsed by the counselors in the First Presidency and by the
Quorum of the Twelve, it was published in the Improvement Era (Dec. 1918,
pp. 166–70). During April conference of 1976 it was accepted as scripture
and approved for publication in the Pearl of Great Price. In June 1979 the
First Presidency announced that it would become section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants.
Vs. 1–11. Pondering the Scriptures: Frequently a
Prerequisite to Revelation
Revelations come to those who are
prepared spiritually and mentally. Elder Harold B. Lee said:
“A few weeks ago, President McKay related
to the Twelve an interesting experience, and I asked him yesterday if I might
repeat it to you this morning. He said it is a great thing to be responsive to
the whisperings of the Spirit, and we know that when these whisperings come it
is a gift and our privilege to have them. They come when we are relaxed and not
under pressure of appointments. The President then took occasion to relate an
experience in the life of Bishop John Wells, former member of the Presiding
Bishopric. (Prayer [address to CES religious educators, 6 July 1956],
pp. 14–16.)
Vs. 7–10. The Writings of Peter
See the changes Joseph Smith made to 1 Peter 3:18–20 and 1 Peter 4:6 in the Joseph Smith
Translation of the Bible [JST, 1 Peter 3:20a; JST, 1 Peter
4:6].
Vs. 12–17. Will Many People Be Saved in the Celestial
Kingdom?
Vs. 14–17. Can a Person Know Before He Dies That He Will Be
Exalted?
Elder Bruce R. McConkie said: All
the faithful Saints, all of those who have endured to the end, depart this life
with the absolute guarantee of eternal life. (Ensign, Nov. 1976, p. 107)
Vs. 15–19, 50. How Is the Absence of the Spirit from the Body a
Bondage? Why Is Redemption from Death Necessary for a Fulness of Joy? The
Prophet Joseph Smith taught: “We came to this earth that we might have a body
and present it pure before God in the celestial kingdom. The great principle of
happiness consists of having a body. The devil has no body, and herein is his
punishment. He is pleased when he can obtain the tabernacle of man, and when
cast out by the Savior he asked to go into the herd of swine, showing that he
would prefer a swine’s body to having none.
“All beings who have bodies have power
over those who have not.” (Teachings, p. 181.)
Vs. 27–37, 57. Missionary Work in the Spirit World President Wilford
Woodruff said that “every Apostle, every Seventy, every Elder, etc., who has
died in the faith, as soon as he passes to the other side of the veil, enters
into the work of the ministry, and there is a thousand times more to preach to
there than there is here. … They have work on the other side of the veil; and
they want men, and they call them.” (In Journal of Discourses, 22:334.)
Vs. 32. What Is the Status of Those Who Receive the Gospel
in the Spirit World? D&C 137:7-9; 76:72-74
Vs. 33–34, 58–59. Vicarious Ordinance Work Alone Does Not Guarantee
Salvation for Those in the Spirit World.
Vs. 53–56. The Leaders of the Lord’s Latter-day Kingdom Were
Held in Reserve to Come Forth in the Final Dispensation
5. Polygamy (Plural Marriage) This
page was published about a year ago, but since the topic of polygamy can also
pose a challenging question for members, we include reference to it here. The
page contains one subheading in the article itself ("Additional
Information"). Here's an excerpt from the entry: "The family is
ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal
plan. At certain times and for His specific purposes, God, through His prophets,
has directed the practice of plural marriage (sometimes called polygamy), which
means one man having more than one living wife at the same time. In obedience
to direction from God, Latter-day Saints followed this practice for about 50
years during the 1800s but officially ceased the practice of such marriages
after the Manifesto was issued by President Woodruff in 1890. Since that time,
plural marriage has not been approved by The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints and any member adopting this practice is subject to losing
his or her membership in the Church."
6. LDS.org-teachings-Race and the Priesthood Contains
three subheadings: (1) The Church in an American Racial Culture, (2) Removing
the Restriction, and (3) The Church Today. Discusses Church history and American
cultural history at length. This is the longest entry of the three new topics
discussed here and has a lengthy "resources" section. Here's an
excerpt from the entry: In 1852, President Brigham Young publicly announced
that men of black African descent could no longer be ordained to the
priesthood, though thereafter blacks continued to join the Church through
baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. Following the death of
Brigham Young, subsequent Church presidents restricted blacks from receiving
the temple endowment or being married in the temple. Over time, Church leaders
and members advanced many theories to explain the priesthood and temple
restrictions. None of these explanations is accepted today as the official
doctrine of the Church. . . . Today, the Church disavows the theories advanced
in the past that black skin is a sign of divine disfavor or curse, or that it
reflects actions in a premortal life; that mixed-race marriages are a sin; or
that blacks or people of any other race or ethnicity are inferior in any way to
anyone else. Church leaders today unequivocally condemn all racism, past and
present, in any form. . . . The teachings of the Church in relation to
God’s children are epitomized by a verse in the second book of Nephi: “[The
Lord] denieth none that cometh unto him, black and white, bond and free, male
and female; . . . all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.”
[i] 6 Life of Brigham Young (Tullidge) p. 115. Continuing the
subject President Cannon says: “The Lord gave his people a testimony that left
no room for doubt as to who was the man chosen to lead them. They both saw and
heard with their natural eyes and ears, and then the words which were uttered
came, accompanied by the convincing power of God, to their hearts, and they
were filled with the Spirit and with great joy. There had been gloom, and in
some hearts probably, doubt and unceztainty; but now it was plain to all that
here was the man upon whom the Lord had bestowed the necessary authority to act
in their midst in Joseph’s stead. On that occasion Brigham Young seemed to be
transformed, and a change such as that we read of in the Scriptures as
happening to the Prophet Elisha, when Elijah was translated in his presence,
seemed to have taken place with him. The mantle of the Prophet Joseph had been
left for Brigham Young The
people said one to another: ‘The Spirit of Joseph rests on Brigham; they knew
that he was the man chosen to lead them. and they honored him accordingly As far as our observation went (we
were only a boy at the time), the people were divided into three classes from
the time of the death of Joseph up to this meeting of which we speak. One class
felt clearly and understandingly that President Brigham Young was the man whose
right it was to preside, he being the President of the Twelve Apostles, and
that body being, through the death of Joseph and Hyrum, the presiding quorum of
the Church. Another class were not quite clear as to who would be called to
preside; but they felt very certain that Sidney Rigdon was not the man. They
did not believe that God would choose a coward and traitor to lead his people,
to both of which characters they believed Rigdon had a claim. The third class,
and we think its members were few, was composed of those who had no clear views
one way or the other. They were undecided in their feelings With very few exceptions, then, the
people returned to their homes from that meeting filled with great reloicing.
All uncertainty and anxiety were removed. They had heard the voice of the
Shepherd and they knew it.
[ii] 12 That is, whether the church wanted to have Sidney Rigdon
for a “guardian” or leader.
[iii] 13 The quorums had been arranged to vote separately and in
their order, but when Elder Young put the question on accepting the Twelve to
preside over the church, the question was put to all the quorums and the whole
congregation at once. And since the vote to sustain the Twelve was unanimous,
there was no need of putting the question on the acceptance of Sidney Rigdon
either to the quorums or the people.—The facts in the text are quoted from the
history of the prophet Joseph, Mill. Star, Vol. XXV., p. 264.
