Solemn Assembly in the Tabernacle

Make Your Educational Investment at L D S

LDS, the Church College

If the teaching of business knowledge and skills were the only criteria for success, any business college might do. But development of the whole person is vital in respect to morals, character, and integrity; for this reason LDS makes religion a vital part of each student's life. An Institute Department which covers subject's from Courtship and Marriage to Religious Philosophy and New Testament to Current Religious Problems, not only promotes Christian living and ethics, but widens the student's scope of understanding and development. LDS provides the type of atmosphere appreciated by active LDS students.

Facilities

LDS, the Lead*

In any group of people, organizations or institutions, some always stand out from the crowd; these are the leaders. They do the unusual, the unexpected, the daring. This has been the case with the LDS Business College. LDS was the first private college in Utah to install an IBM Computer and teach a full course in Computer Technology. LDS was also the first Utah Business College with Fashion Merchandising and Marketing. LDS paved the way for multi-channel electronic dictating labs. When new subjects, teaching methods and equipment are available, you'll see them first at LDS.

Over $1,200,000 in plant and equipment, featuring a sparkling, modern girl's dormitory, an electronic steno-lab, a third generation computer for student's use, a large air-conditioned classroom building, and the very latest in specialized office machines, including such famous names as IBM, Dictaphone, Ditto, Dura, Victor Comptometer, Burroughs, Friden, Marchant, Olivetti, Royal and Honeywell.

Faculty

In addition to twelve full-time, resident faculty members, nine of whom hold master's degrees, LDS also retains as part-time instructors many specialists from the business community including attorneys, CPAs, data processing and marketing specialists. This assures variety and a functional point of view.

Service

You get the personal attention available only at a small school. You learn in an atmosphere where academic achievement and high standards of personal conduct are stressed. Our comprehensive training gets you on the job sooner at a greater saving in time and money. Job opportunities for our graduates have never been better. All these advantages are yours and lower tuition, too! Choose from the following courses: Accounting and Business Administration, Secretarial Science, Computer Technology, Marketing, Fashion Merchandising, Office Machines and Court Reporting. ACCREDITED BY THE ACCREDITING COMMISSION FOR BUSINESS SCHOOLS, WASH., D.C.

LDS, the People Builder

A complete education must include training for a profession, social devel- opment, spiritual growth and physical improvement. At LDS the professional faculty teaches current, vital classes which provide saleable skills. The Student council, staff advisor and LDSSA make social activities available on a regular basis. The three man Institute Department and College Ward insure spiritual gains. The ath- letic teams and special rates at the Deseret Gym make physical activities a vital part of a student's life. LDS graduates have the confidence, know- ledge and poise which make them self assured and ready for success.

Registration

Fall quarter begins September 17. Applications should be submitted by July 31 .

Free Catalog

Find out more about your Church Business College now, write the Dean of Students for a free catalog.

41 1 East South Temple

Salt Lake City, Utah 84117

Phone 363-2765

On the Cover

An illustration designed to help ex- plain the voting procedures of the solemn assembly held at April general conference (see page 20) was so well done that it is featured on this month's cover. Illustrated by Gerreld L. Pulsipher, this exploded view of the Tabernacle on Temple Square is ac- curate in proportion, number of benches, seats, columns of pillars, and details in general.

f r> Genera	1 Conference
	Index
Speakers
Ashton, Marvin J.	41	Eternal life		43
Benson, Ezra Taft	95	Example		90
Brown, Hugh B.	76	Expo '70		39, 95
Brown, Victor L.	46	Faith 39, 41	Wi	, 73, 76
Burton, Theodore M.	84	False doctrine		63
Cullimore, James A.	88	Family		98
Dunn, Loren C.	48	Far East		95
Dunn, Paul H.	70	First Presidency		28, 92
Dyer, Alvin R.	49	God		33, 67
Evans, Richard L.	37	Good and evil		44
Hanks, Marion D.	98	Home		98
Hinckley, Gordon B.	39	Home evening		80
Hunter, Howard W.	33	Home teaching		51
Hunter, Milton R.	100	Honesty		84
Kimball, Spencer W.	92	Humility		35
Lee, Harold B.	28, 63	Japan		39, 95
McConkie, Bruce R.	43	Joseph Smith	48,	70, 106
Monson, Thomas S.	90	Justice		35
Packer, Boyd K.	51	Keys		92
Petersen, Mark E.	78	Last days		49
Rector, Hartman, Jr.	102	Love		98, 110
Richards, Franktin D	35	Mercy		35
Richards, LeGrand	106	Military service		51
Romney, Marion G.	67	Missionary work 5*	, 86, 95
Sill, Sterling W.	44	Obedience	2	30, 44,
Simpson, Robert L.	82			46, 88
Smith, Eldred G.	104	Peace	2,	67, 110
Smith, Joseph Fieldir	g 2.	Pornography		46
26, 65, 1	Power		61
Sonne, Alma	86	Prayer 2,	26	80, 82
Stapley, Delbert L.	73	Priesthood 54	61	, 63, 65
Tanner, N. Eldon	30, 61	Principles		80
Taylor, Henry D.	60	Promises		80
Turtle, A. Theodore	80	Prophets	78,	92, 106
Vandenberg, John H	57	Repentance		73, 102
Young, S. Dilworth	54	Restoration	48	49, 86
		Revelation	37	, 63, 78
		Righteousness		1Q4
Subjects		Salvation Satan		43 104
Authority	78	Seventy		54
Book of Mormon	100	Standards		39
Church of Christ	26	Teachers		90
Church membership	88	Temples		65
Church organization	28, 92	Temptation		44
Church welfare	60	Tithing		80
Commandments	37	Truth		57, 76
Courage	41	Virtue		46
Covenants	88	Weakness		102
Elders	63	Witnesses		33, 100
Endurance	39	Word of Wisdom	80
Note: Not speaking	at this	conference: Elders	EIRay L.
Christiansen, Thorpe	B. Isaacson, Bernard P.	Brockbank,
Joseph Anderson, David B.	Haight, and Willi	am	H. Ben-
nett, all Assistants to the Twelve.

The Voice of the Church June 1970 Volume 73, Number 6

Special Features

2 Editor's Page: Our Concern for All Our Father's Children, President Joseph Fielding Smith

4 Our Religion and Mental Health, Dr. Joe J. Christensen

9 The Visitation of John the Baptist, Richard J. Marshall

16 Zion's Ten Acres, Carter E. Grant

20 The Solemn Assembly, Jay M. Todd

111 Statistical Report, 1969

26 110 General Conference Addresses

112 114 116

118

Regular Features

The Church Moves On The LDS Scene

Research & Review: What About Attendance at Non-Church Colleges?

Dr. Elliott D. Landau

Today's Family: Sara M. Tanner: Dedication to Home, Family, and Church, Eleanor Knowles

122 Buffs and Rebuffs

127 These Times: Worship at Lahaina-Kaanapali, Dr. G. Homer Durham

130 End of an Era

142 Presiding Bishop's Page: The Presiding Bishop Talks to Youth About Tithing, Bishop John H. Vandenberg

113, 115, 123, 126

The Spoken Word, Richard L. Evans

Era of Youth Marion D. Hanks and Elaine Cannon, Editors 132 Winners of Era of Youth Writing Contest 134 True Living, Elayna Louise Barber 136 Brent in Bed, Paul B. Dixon

140 Marba C. Josephson Award

141 My First High Dive, Paul R. Adams

133, 139, 140

Prize-winning Poetry by Youth

Fiction, Poetry

12 Reflection, Kathleen Fellows

19, 110

Poetry

Joseph Fielding Smith, Richard L. Evans, Editors; Doyle L. Green, Managing Editor; Jay M. Todd, Assistant Managing Editor; Eleanor Knowles, Copy Editor; Mabel Jones Gabbott, Manuscript Editor; Albert L. Zobell, Jr., Research Editor; William T. Sykes, Editorial Associate; G. Homer Durham, Hugh Nibley, Albert L. Payne, Truman G. Madsen, Elliott Landau, Leonard Arrington, Contributing Editors; Marion D. Hanks, Era of Youth Editor; Elaine Cannon, Era of Youth Associate Editor; Ralph Reynolds, Art Director; Norman Price, Staff Artist.

W. Jay Eldredge, General Manager; Florence S. Jacobsen, Associate General Manager; Verl F. Scott, Business Manager; A. Glen Snarr, Circulation Manager; S. Glenn Smith, Advertising Representative.

©General Superintendent, Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1970; published by the Mutual Improvement Associations. All rights reserved.

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Official organ of the Priesthood Quorums, Mutual Improvement Associations, Home Teaching Committee, Music Committee, Church School System, and other agencies of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Improvement Era, 79 South State, Salt Lake City, Utah 84111

Era, June 1970 1

The Editor's fttge

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Our Concern for All

Our Father's

Children

President Joseph Fielding Smith

• My beloved brethren and sisters: I am grateful beyond any measure of expression for the blessings the Lord has given to me, and to the faithful members of his church in the various nations of the earth, and to all his children everywhere.

I thank him every day of my life that he has restored in these last days his everlasting gospel for the salva- tion of all who will believe and obey its laws.

I thank him for the life and ministry of each of the good and great men whom he has called to govern and direct the affairs of his latter-day kingdom.

May I say in particular how much we miss President David O. McKay. As we all know, he was a man of great spiritual strength, a natural-born leader of men, and a man beloved by his people and honored by the world. For all time to come men shall rise up and call his name blessed.

President McKay reminded us often that our mis- sion is to all the world— for the peace, and hope, and happiness, and temporal and eternal salvation of all of our Father's children.

He extended educational opportunities to many peoples in many countries— to Hawaii, the South Pacific, Latin America, and widely among the Ameri- can Indians. In his remarkable and wide-ranging ad- ministration, he sought to bless the people of all the world, so far as possible.

And I say to you, my beloved brethren and sisters, that I know the Lord was pleased with the broad, far-seeing administration of President McKay, and with all my powers of persuasion I urge this people to continue to reach out and bless the lives of all our Father's children everywhere.

May I say how pleased we are as a people for the increased understanding and for the kindly relation- ship which we enjoy with other faiths, and I trust and pray that this wholesome relationship of goodwill and Christian fellowship will increase and will bless the lives of all who are touched by it.

I think if all men knew and understood who they are, and were aware of the divine source from whence they came, and of the infinite potential that is part of their inheritance, they would have feelings of kindness and kinship for each other that would change

their whole way of living and bring peace on earth.

We believe in the dignity and divine origin of man. Our faith is founded on the fact that God is our Father, and that we arc his children, and that all men are brothers and sisters in the same eternal family.

As members of his family, we dwelt with him before the foundations of this earth were laid, and he ordained and established the plan of salvation whereby wc gained the privilege of advancing and progressing as we are endeavoring to do.

The God we worship is a glorified Being in whom all power and perfection dwell, and he has created man in his own image and likeness, with those char- acteristics and attributes which he himself possesses.

And so our belief in the dignity and destiny of man is an essential part both of our theology and of our way of life. It is the very basis of our Lord's teaching that "the first and great commandment" is: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind"; and that the second great commandment is: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." (See Matt. 22:37-39.)

Because God is our Father, wc have a natural desire to love and serve him and to be worthy members of his family. We feci an obligation to do what he would have us do, to keep his commandments and live in harmony with the standards of his gospel— all of which arc essential parts of true worship.

And because all men are our brothers, we have a desire to love and bless and fellowship them— and this too we accept as an essential part of true worship.

Thus everything wc do in the Church centers around the divine law that we are to love and worship God and serve our fellowmen.

It is no wonder, then, that as a church and as a people we have deep and abiding concern for the welfare of all our Father's children. We seek their temporal and spiritual well-being along with our own. We pray for them as wc do for ourselves, and we try to live so that they, seeing our good works, may be led to glorify our Father who is in heaven.

As a church, we arc pleased to commend and en- courage every civic and cultural project or undertak- ing that is edifying and wholesome and that is for the blessing and betterment of mankind.

One of our Articles of Faith declares: "We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men. ... If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." (Article 13.)

And one of the revelations the Lord has given counsels that "men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free

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will, and bring to pass much righteousness." (D&C 58:27.)

We look with firm disfavor upon some of the social and cultural trends that have existed and do exist in our society, and firmly believe that all decisions on moral issues should be in harmony with the standards found in the Holy Scriptures, beginning with the Old Testa- ment and including the other volumes of revealed writ that God has given in succeeding dispensations.

One of these divine standards states: "And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness." (D&C 50:23.) As a people we seek for ourselves and for all mankind only those things which are edifying, enlightening, uplifting, and ennobling.

We believe it is essential that our young people gain sufficient education to care for themselves in this highly specialized age, and also to serve their fellowmen, and we have in the past and shall continue in the future to support education at all levels.

We have little sympathy, however, with the spirit of disruption and dissidence that is sometimes found on the campuses of the land. We urge our youth to avoid these displays of intemperate conduct and rather to be found on the side of law and order and circumspect action.

It is our hope and prayer that in all nations men may live in peace, respecting each other's beliefs and forms of worship, and that the spirit of unity and brotherhood may abound on every side.

We know there are many people who seek to live upright lives and who desire to maintain substantially the same standards to which we adhere. We welcome their encouragement and hope they will feel to accept the hand of Christian fellowship from us, as all of us seek those great goals so basic to true worship and unity.

We have great concern for the spiritual and moral welfare of all youth everywhere. Morality, chastity, virtue, freedom from sin— these are and must be basic to our way of life, if we are to realize its full purpose.

We plead with fathers and mothers to teach per- sonal purity by precept and example and to counsel with their children in all such things.

We ask parents to set an example of righteousness in their own lives and to gather their children around them and teach them the gospel, in their home evenings and at other times.

We have confidence in the young and rising genera- tion in the Church and plead with them not to follow the fashions and customs of the world, not to partake of a spirit of rebellion, not to forsake the paths of truth and virtue. We believe in their fundamental goodness and expect them to become pillars of

righteousness and to carry on the work of the Church with increasing faith and effectiveness.

Our young people are among the most blessed and favored of our Father's children. They are the nobility of heaven, a choice and chosen generation who have a divine destiny. Their spirits have been reserved to come forth in this day when the gospel is on earth, and when the Lord needs valiant servants to carry on his great latter-day work.

May the Lord bless you, the youth of Zion, and keep you true to every covenant and obligation, cause you to walk in paths of light and truth, and preserve you for the great labors ahead.

There has never been a time, in this age of the earth's history, at least, when the blessings of a gra- cious and loving Father were as much needed by all men as they are now.

And so now I pray that God our Heavenly Father will open the windows of heaven and pour out upon his children in all the earth those great and eternal blessings which will better their lot temporally and spiritually.

O that men might forsake the ways of the world and turn to that God who made them!

O that they might open their hearts and receive the words of truth and light found in the gospel of his Son!

0 that there might be peace on earth, brotherhood among nations, and love in the hearts of men!

1 pray that God our Eternal Father will look down in love and mercy upon his people everywhere, and upon all those who have chosen him as their God and who seek to serve him in the name of his Son.

I pray that parents everywhere may be a light unto their children; that they may guide them in paths of truth and righteousness; and that children may respond to parental teaching and be preserved from the evils of the world.

I pray for the weak and the weary, for those who are burdened with cares and sorrows, for those who need comfort and assurance amid the storms of life.

May the Lord grant unto them peace according to the promise of his Son, who said to the saints in olden times: "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." (John 14:27.)

May the Lord grant unto us and to all men the fullness of those blessings which we are able to re- ceive in this life and then accept us into his kingdom in the eternities that lie ahead— all of which I pray in humility and in thanksgiving and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. O

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Era, June 1970 3

• Few readers would question the value of mental health in one's life. Often, one's happiness may be greatly reduced because of inadequate mental health. Many who could financially well afford time to rest take sleeping pills in order to sleep at all; other persons who could well afford sumptuous meals must be con- tent with milk and crackers because of ulcerated stomachs caused by emotional strain. Recently, a friend of our family said that her life was not enjoyable any more because she felt that emotionally she was coming "unglued."

Statistics indicate that approximately one out of four people in the general population will undergo hospitalization or intensve mental treatment at some time during their lifetime. It is estimated that emo- tional disturbances cause 50 percent of industry's absenteeism— a loss of about five billion dollars an- nually. Some medical doctors estimate that from 50 to 70 percent of all their patients suffer from maladies that have a psychological rather than physiological origin.

The pressures of our time do not help this situation.

We merely need to review in our minds such stark- facts of war, the rapidly rising crime rates, delinquency, immorality, drug abuse, riots and violence of all kinds, civil strife and hatred displayed among the races, a devaluation of religion and its concepts, inflation, immense pressures to success, and so on. It's no wonder that some have referred to our era not as the Nuclear Age, but as the Age of the Tranquilizer. We live in an age when mental health is challenged as never before.

Naturally, we would like to do all in our power to preserve our own mental stability and health. A pressing question is, What shall we do? And, spe- cifically, What is the relationship between our religion and mental health?

Many people claim that since religions teach about sin and its effects, large numbers of believers are led to suffer from overwhelming burdens of guilt and thus become mentally upset and ill. In fact, one of the most prevalent theories of psychoanalysis (Freudian) has rested on the idea that neurosis stems from a "too severe superego," which is the product of "too strenu-

Dr. Joe J. Christensen

'Illustrated fay Jerry Thompson, Maurice Scanlon

ous socialization at the hands of harsh, unloving parents, a demanding religion, and/or society."1

As Latter-day Saints, we recognize that we belong to a church that has a definite system of values and doctrines. Contained within this system are specific standards of conduct relative to morals, clean living, and health. Some persons have charged that these high standards and prohibitions tend to cause undue guilt feelings and thus lead to mental breakdowns, or mental illness. If true, this is a serious indictment. In light of this, let us consider the relationship of our religion to mental health.

Is there evidence to indicate that the incidence of mental problems is higher among members of the Church than the population at large? Undoubtedly, more research ought to be done in this area. A hy- pothesis that ought to be tested is that the gospel of Jesus Christ is essentially therapeutic from a mental health standpoint in the lives of those willing to apply its principles in their lives. In other words, if true, there should be fewer incidents of mental illness, proportionately, among Latter-day Saints who are

active than among the population as a whole.

A few shreds of data bear to some extent on this question of the relationship of our religion and mental health. During World War II, thousands of American men were rejected as unfit for military duty on medical grounds. Of those rejected throughout the nation as a whole, 17.7 percent failed to qualify due to what was termed "mental illness." During the same con- flict, those rejected in Utah for the same reason constituted 12.0 percent of the total.2 In other words, a ratio of almost half again as many were rejected nationally for mental illness as in the state of Utah. It is understood that Latter-day Saints cannot be given total credit or blame for all that occurs within the state; but since members of the Church constitute a majority of the population in Utah, certainly the

Dr. Joe J. Christensen, high councilor of the University First Stake, has been director of the Salt Lake Institute of Religion adjacent to the University of Utah. He was recently called by the First Presidency to serve as a mission president.

Era, June 1970 5

"Th6f*G C3PI bG QfGat Teach me all that I must do To live with him some day."

If you will analyze those lyrics from a philosophical,

thGrapGUtiC ValUG in COnfGSSiOn theological, and even a mental-health standpoint, the

concepts can be effective in adding a new dimension

and repentanCG" of meaning and joy to life. What is man? He is a child

of God. His life is purposeful. Family relationships

are important. Learning and practicing the principles

of the gospel can bring us back across the chasm of

Church has some direct influence on such data. death into the presence of God the Father again.

It is interesting to note how the average number of Anyone who believes these lines does not experience

daily resident patients in state mental hospitals the feelings of estrangement, alienation, and aimless-

throughout the country compares with that of the ness that plague many people in our generation,

state of Utah, where members of the Church consti- 2. The gospel can help us gain or retain mental

tute the majority. One study, prepared by the Joint health by encouraging us to be honest with ourselves,

Information Service of the American Psychiatric Asso- or in other words, to avoid hypocrisy.

ciation and the National Association for Mental Health, The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches that we should

indicated that the number of average daily resident avoid the duplicity of attempting to be something

patients in public mental hospitals per 100,000 civilian that we really are not. Jesus suggested to the woman

population was 61.0 in 1964 and 54.8 in 1966 in Utah, taken in adultery that she go her way and sin no more,

compared with a national average of 262.3 in 1964 and However, he did this after challenging the hypocrisy

237.9 in 1966. Utah has consistently been ranked 51st of her accusers by suggesting that he who was without

in comparison with all other states and the District of sin should be the first to cast a stone. The Savior's

Columbia for many years. Thus, one could be led to attitude toward practically any type of sinner was

question the charges that a demanding religion de- compassionate. Repentance can heal so much. How-

stroys mental health. ever, he spoke most emphatically of the scribes and

The statistical data, limited as it is, does not indicate Pharisees— hypocrites!

that Mormons are being driven wholesale into mental "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

institutions. I believe that potentially the teaching for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed

and practices of the Church are more therapeutic than appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead

destructive when it comes to the believer's mental men's bones, and of all un cleanness.

health, for the following reasons : "Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto

1. The gospel helps us find meaningful answers to men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity."

life's most pressing problems. (Matt. 23:27-28. )

The philosopher Immanuel Kant, in his Critique of One of the basic concepts of the message of Christ

Pure Reason, indicates that "the whole interest of is that at some future time nothing will be hidden,

reason, speculative as well as practical, is centered in Luke says: "Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees,

the three following questions: 1. What can I know? which is hypocrisy.

2. What ought I to do? 3. What may I hope?" Later, "For there is nothing covered, that shall not be

writing on logic, he mentioned that these three ques- revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known,

tions could be unified into one : "What is man?" "Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness

Anyone who has come to know and believe the shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have

gospel has found some meaningful answers to each spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon

of these fundamental questions. For me, as a believ- housetops." (Luke 12:1-3.)

ing parent, it's a thrill to know that early in my child's And James says that "a double minded man is un-

life he is taught these concepts in Primary and Sunday stable in all his ways." ( Jas. 1:8. )

School. The gospel teaches us to be genuinely one by making

Do you recall the words of "I Am a Child of God"? our lives as clean and transparent as possible. A

great amount of emotional stress comes from being

"I am a child of God, And he has sent me here, one thing and attempting to convince others that we

Has given me an earthly home With parents kind and are something else.

dear. 3. We should become aware of the blessing of the

Lead me, guide me, walk beside me, Help me find great principle of repentance.

the way. Were we willing to take advantage of it fully, each

week as we participate in the simple elements of the sacrament, we would find a meaningful, and I sug- gest therapeutic, opportunity for introspection, self- analysis, and renewal. Unfortunately, there are probably many who do not take full advantage of this opportunity to buttress their own self-image and mental stability.

The Lord has promised us that "he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, re- member them no more." (D&C 58:42.)

There can be great therapeutic value in confession and repentance. To illustrate this point: while serving as a bishop and an institute director, I became ac- quainted with a young freshman student, a member of my ward. Several times during the first two months of school I noticed that he was having difficulty with his studies. He just didn't seem able to settle down to the rigors of successful scholarship. He always seemed perplexed and aloof. Several times I saw him loitering just outside the classroom door. Finally he mustered courage and asked if he could talk to me privately.

During that interview he told me a story regarding his past immoral sexual behavior. His feelings of sinfulness and guilt weighed so heavily upon his mind that he was almost immobilized academically and, for that matter, socially and spiritually. He had carried this mental burden for about 12 months. His guilt feelings finally caused him to seek counseling, and in it, apparently, he found the release that made his repentance meaningful. I remember of no single example of change that caused such a remarkable transformation in a person's life. He became more successful in school and began to exert the leadership in his church that his talents suggested he could exert. He is now a happier, less dependent, and more suc- cessful human being than he would have been had not his conscience prodded him to repentance, catharsis, and transformation.

4. There is value from a mental health standpoint in "losing" oneself in a good cause and thus "finding" oneself.

To my knowledge, no religion provides as many opportunities for service as does ours, with its con- cept of lay leadership. This experience is meaningful for anyone who has a conviction that this faith is what it claims to be— divinely established. Our scriptures tell us that "men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness." (D&C 58:27.)

A feeling that one is accepted as a respected part of a most important movement helps build one's self-

image and assists in making life a meaningful and purposeful experience. This feeling and opportunity can come to anyone who is willing and able to serve.

This same blessing can extend throughout life. In my opinion, one of the pressing mental health prob- lems of the future will be found in the area of geriatrics and among that increasing proportion of our population that will live long after age 65 and mandatory retirement. Those who reach the golden years with good mental and physical health and who suddenly find themselves without the time and interest- consuming daily work they had known for so long have a real challenge in maintaining a mental balance and adjusting to what for many is a traumatic ex- perience.

In this area, the Church offers opportunity to lose oneself and thus find oneself in service, leadership, genealogy, and temple work. We can be grateful that the Church does not espouse the concept of superannuation (or retirement) of its leaders at age 65. Had this been our policy, we would have totally missed the administration of such men as Joseph Fielding Smith, David O. McKay, George Albert Smith, Lorenzo Snow, and Wilford Woodruff. There is an important place for almost everyone to lose himself in the great cause of the Church of Jesus Christ and thus find himself throughout his entire life.

5. The structure of the Church has provided a means for sharing one's problems with others in a counseling or cathartic setting.

As in the early Church in apostolic times, the intent of the Church today is to remain essentially a small- group movement. For this reason, action is taken to divide a ward after it reaches a proportion that would enable two smaller wards to function in its place. At least one of the reasons for this kind of mitosis is to provide a community of saints small enough that most active people can become acquainted personally with a majority of the members of the ward. In this setting we are given the social and spiritual environment in which we may feel free to confess our sins one to another and receive the therapeutic strength that can come from such catharsis. Our testimony meetings can provide this kind of unstructured situa- tion. The function seems to be indicated in the Doc- trine and Covenants: "But 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." (D&C 59:12. Italics added.)

Teachers, leaders, and particularly bishops are available for this kind of sharing also. Whether one shoulders a burden of guilt, grief, or mental anguish,

Era, June 1970 7

bishops are specially called, authorized, willing, and capable of sharing their time and effort in assisting one to find a solution to his problems. The bishop is a key person when moral transgression and fellow- ship in the Church are involved. Many other teachers and leaders spend a good share of their time listening and helping. The Church organization provides the structure and teaches concepts of right and wrong- sin and righteousness. A member of the Church can know when he has done wrong and how he should live. To have a concept that there is such a thing as sin and thus wrongdoing can be genuine strength to a person's mental well-being.

Recently, Dr. O. Hobart Mowrer spoke on the subject "Sin and Psychiatry." In a sense, he acted as the spokesman for a relatively recent trend in psycho-therapy that, for the first time in almost half a century, recognizes the validity of a concept of sin and the therapeutic value of sincere repentance. No person who has internalized a standard of conduct can willfully violate it and carry guilt internally with- out doing some psychic damage. The unloading of these feelings through confession and then one's making restitution where possible can contribute greatly to mental health.

Dr. Mowrer discusses this problem in his book The Crisis in Psychiatry and Religion. He states:

"For several decades we psychologists looked upon the whole matter of sin and moral accountability as a great incubus and acclaimed our liberation from it as epoch-making. But at length we have discovered that to be 'free' in this sense, i.e., to have the excuse of being 'sick' rather than sinful, is to court the danger of also becoming lost. This danger is, I believe, be- tokened by the widespread interest in Existentialism which we are presently witnessing. In becoming amoral, ethically neutral, and 'free,' we have cut the very roots of our being; lost our deepest sense of self- hood and identity; and, with neurotics themselves, find ourselves asking: Who am I? What is my destiny? What does living ( existence ) mean? . . .

"But what is here generally overlooked, it seems, is that recovery (constructive change, redemption) is most assuredly attained, not by helping a person reject and rise above his sins, but by helping him accept them. This is the paradox which we have not at all understood and which is the very crux of the. problem. Just so long as a person lives under the shadow of real, acknowledged, and unexpiated guilt, he cannot ( if he has any character at all) 'accept himself; and all our efforts to reassure and accept him will avail nothing. He will continue to hate himself and to suffer the in- evitable consequences of self-hatred. But the moment

he (with or without 'assistance') begins to accept his guilt and his sinfulness, the possibility of radical reformation opens up; and with this, the individual may legitimately, though not without pain and effort, pass from deep, pervasive self -rejection and self-torture to a new freedom of self-respect and peace."3

6. Finally, the Lord promised us peace "not as the world giveth." In the Gospel of John ( 14:27 ), the Lord 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." I believe he speaks of an inner mental and spiritual peace that can strengthen one whether he faces the trauma of physical suffering in a miserable foxhole in Vietnam or that of a guilt-ridden life in the environs of one's home.

Recently I received an interesting letter from a young man, a member of the Church, who is serving a sentence in the Utah State Penitentiary. I believe he indicated rather effectively the therapeutic value of the religious principle of repentance to which the concept of sin and feelings of guilt lead one. He wrote:

"As you can see, the Latter-day Saints, even in prison are becoming closer to God and Jesus Christ, than ever before. Most of these men are like myself, whom [sic] have lead [sic] every type of miserable life known, and when the turning point comes, more and more of us are turning to God and Jesus Christ for forgiveness of our sins . . . one of the greatest single factors in rehabilitating the men here is the returning to and accepting of God and Jesus Christ.

"I myself, through The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have found the only peace of mind by living the gospel, and many of the men feel as

I do, that prison is the place to start and not wait until we are outside." There is a therapeutic value in having a system of values based on law with which our lives conform.

Maslow has written that the "ultimate disease of our time is valuelessness. It is a state variously described as amorality, restlessness, emptiness, alienation, hope- lessness, the lack, in short, of something to believe in and be devoted to. 'We need a validated, usable system of human values that we can believe in and devote ourselves to because they are true rather than because we are exhorted to believe and have faith.' " '

We have that system of values in our religion, and these values can help us have and enjoy greater mental health. O

FOOTNOTES

1 O. Hobart Mowrer, The Crisis in Psychiatnj and Religion (Princeton: Van Nostrand Co., 1961), p. 49.

2 H Arnold Rich, "Selective Service System, State of Utah, World War

II (1940-47)" Report of State Director, 1946, p. 150. ■i Mowrer, op. cit., pp. 52-54."

4 New Knowledge in Human Values (New York: Harper and Row,

1959), p. vii.

8

Artist Tom Love// at work

• "These were days never to be forgotten." Thus wrote Oliver Cow- dery pertaining to the spring of 1829, when he and the Prophet Joseph were witnesses to sacred things. Together they heard the voice of the Lord, handled the gold plates, had the hands of John the Baptist placed upon their heads. This last scene jolts the mind with its portent: heaven and earth merged through physical contact with an angel.

Joseph Smith recorded little regarding the grandeur of this astonishing experience. Indeed, his writing regarding this hallowed occasion was so simple and cir- cumspect as to provoke comment by the editor of the footnotes in The [Documentary] History of the Church, who years later wrote: "He [Joseph] may never have heard the

maxim, 'A true tale speeds best being plainly told,' but had he heard of it and adopted it as his motto, he could not have followed it more closely than unconsciously he has done in his narrative. He seems to have put one object in view, and that is to get on record the plain truth pertaining to the coming forth of the work of God."1 A painting of this scene of John the Baptist conferring the Aaronic Priesthood upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery has been com- pleted and is to be included with other graphic displays in the new visitors center at Independence, Missouri. In gathering background

material for the painting, one of the nation's more scholarly illus- trators, Tom Lovell of Norwalk, Connecticut, has evaluated care- fully the historic references to this great moment in the history of the Church.

While Joseph Smith's narrative is "plainly told," Oliver Cowdery's writings seem to burst forth with marvelous exclamations: "What joy! What wonder! What amaze- ment!"2 And his poignant pen moves on to say: "On a sudden, as from the midst of eternity, the voice of the Redeemer spake peace to us, while the veil was parted and the angel of God came down

Richard J. Marshall, who serves in a liaison capacity with the Church Informa- tion Service Committee, is first counselor in the University First Stake, a stake for University of Utah students.

Era, June 1970 9

"Our eyes beheld — our ears heard. We listened, we gazed, we admired!"

clothed with glory and delivered the anxiously looked-for message, and the keys of the Gospel of re- pentance."5 The visualization of this is a monumental challenge to an artist, as it has been to both Joseph and Oliver. One said it simply and profoundly. The other was swept away by the mag- nificence of the moment. The artist's challenge has been to blend both moods.

In selecting a setting for such an experience, the artist procured historic photographs of the banks of the Susquehanna River from glass negatives photographed over eighty years ago. Other examples of the rich flora found along the slow-moving Susquehanna were reviewed. Few students of Church history, reading from afar, can realize what a pleasant river this is — stretching over four hundred miles from Otsego Lake in central New York to Chesapeake Bay. It is a wide, shallow stream, with deep pools and pockets that become murky with depth as they reflect back the dull gold-green of the bedrock bottom. It was beside this slowly flowing river that two young men knelt on May 15, 1829, re- solved to "inquire of the Lord respecting baptism for the remis- sion of sins, that we found men- tioned in the translation of the plates."4

They were secluded and sur- rounded. Each had spiritually pre- pared himself. But who can say if even Joseph, with his overwhelm- ing faith, was really prepared for this astounding ministration by a resurrected man? Of this moment Oliver wrote: "Our eyes beheld — our ears heard. As in a 'blaze of

day'; yes, more — above the glitter of the May sunbeam, which then shed its brilliancy over the face of nature! Then his voice, though mild, pierced to the center, and his words, 'I am thy fellow-servant,' dispelled every fear. We listened, we gazed, we admired! 'Twas the voice of an angel from glory — 'twas a messenger from the Most High, and as we heard we rejoiced, while His love enkindled upon our souls, and we were rapt in the vision of the Almighty! Where was room for doubt? Nowhere; uncer- tainty had fled, doubt had sunk, no more to rise, while fiction and deception had fled forever. . . ."5

Upon reading these things and with the enormity of the project before him, the artist (who has proved himself a master of re- creating history, including a series of paintings for National Geo- graphic magazine) began to sketch the woods and water. He confessed that he had reached an ultimate challenge: to paint an angel with an "inner light, dressed in white, standing in broad day."

But why all this effort to por- tray a scene that might have even more meaning in the mind's eye if it were merely read about? Why paint it if, upon reading the testi- mony of Joseph Smith or Oliver Cowdery, a mental theater could be stirred awake, or if, upon hear- ing such a scene described by mis- sionaries, the investigator could easily grasp a mental image, re- inforced by ringing words? The answer is simple: the scene is stunning. It presents a bold and uncompromising claim. How much better to lay it out to view and scrutiny, knowing that it will stand

under the study of honest eyes.

Perhaps an additional answer lies in the typical exclamation of a stranger who, in completing a tour of the visitors center on Tem- ple Square in Salt Lake City re- cently, turned to her guide and exclaimed: "You Mormons rea//y believe all this, don't you? You've made all these wonderful paintings and statues and created these great scenes because you really believe it!"

When a missionary holds up a picture of Joseph Smith in the Sacred Grove or a photograph of the Salt Lake Tabernacle interior overflowing with conference-goers, something wonderful happens. He has a greater conviction himself, for he is dealing with something he can see. He intertwines the power of his words and the depth of his feelings with the striking impression of the visualization he has received. Not a crutch, but an aid, these great illustrations of Christ, of the prophets, of things divine, forge powerful mental images. They are the artist's sen- sitive portrayal of true incidents as they may have been.

This new painting of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery under the hands of John the Baptist can- not help but thrust a sharp image that must linger deep in the mind of the beholder. It did happen! And Latter-day Saints 141 years later can view this grand scene and testify that God continues to re- veal himself and his works to men in these latter days. O

FOOTNOTES

1 Documentary History of the Church, Vol. 1, note, p. 42.

2 DHC, Vol. 1, p. 43.

3 Ibid.

-l Joseph Smith 2:68.

5 DHC, Vol. 1, note p. 43.

10 Era, June 1970

\\f Wfm

&t

(Reflection

By Kathleen Fellows

Illustration by Richard Hull

• Once the school doors opened and the halls had freed their contents, his pace became steady, not interrupted by a slow-walking chum or the need to stop and exchange good-byes with a buddy. His pace hadn't been interrupted for a long time and wasn't even now. He simply reversed his direction and returned, backtracking his steps. He reentered the schoolyard and continued on into the building for the forgotten spelling book.

The halls were empty, sounding only of his tennis shoes on wooden floors. He passed through the halls to room 12, where the sound of his footsteps met with the sound of voices; on hearing his name from behind the door, he removed his hand from the knob and listened.

"But Marge, what do you do with a child like that? I've been teaching sixth grade for 12 years, and in all that time I've never encountered a problem like the Conway boy. He's just more trouble than he's worth."

The voices faded as he turned and went out the back way and through the schoolyard. His pace was set again, steady but more intense. A dog, white and very small, bounded up, yapping at his heels. He glared down at it, sneering, and his pace was broken. He pulled his foot back, aimed for the dog's stomach, and kicked. The pup doubled up on the pavement, whining, and watched as the boy continued down the sidewalk and around the corner.

"And just exactly where have you been, young man? How many times has mother told you to come straight home after school? Huh? How many times?"

"Just leave me alone, will you! Where's mom?"

"Don't be smart, and what about football practice? Are you going to miss that because you can't be bothered to come home after school?"

"Wow, you think you're so big, don't you! Well, you're only my sister, not the queen of the world, and besides, I started straight home but I had to go back for my spelling book."

"Your spelling book, huh! Well, where is it then? Where is it? You never do anything you're told!"

"What's going on here?"

"Mother, Jeff's late again, and you've told him and told him to come straight home after school. Doesn't he have to mind like the rest of us?"

"That's right, Jeff, and your behavior had better change, little boy, and fast, or your father will see that it does."

A bedroom door slammed, and a battered pair of tennis shoes was dashed against the closet. His face was void of all expression. Searching the floor for rubber cleats, Jeff caught sight of his reflection in the full-length mirror on the closet door. His eyes moved up the length of the reflected body. It wasn't an unusually slight or unusually large body. It was that of a boy with yellow hair, blue eyes, and a hole in his sock. His hair was mussed, his face smudged, and that's about all. The eyes of the boy and his reflection finally met. They met and locked. There was no expression on either face. (I've been teaching sixth grade for 12 years, and in all that time I never en- countered a problem like the Conway boy. ) The eyes bore into each other. The lower lip began to quiver (He's just more trouble than he's worth) but was checked between clenched teeth. (You never do any- thing you re told.) His jaw pushed out and became

Kathleen Fellows, an English major at the University of Utah and Sunday School teacher in the Monument Park Eighth Ward, wrote this story after discovering that "self-concept is often the governing factor in human behavior."

set. (He's more trouble than he's worth . . . more trouble than he's worth . . . more trouble . . . ) The skin pulled tight over a blue vein protruding at his temple, and a child, only 12, took on the countenance of a man old with hatred.

That reflection of Jeff Conway was the sum total of everything he had ever seen, heard, said, and done, all processed by the subconscious and fed to the self- concept. "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Jeff Conway didn't have a chance. Like every man, he was what his self-concept said he was. And in Jeff's case it was no good.

It hadn't always been that bad, although he might be considered an over-active boy— and his associates responded to his over-activity by informing him of it, either in word or action. Their words and actions showed disapproval, and disapproval was translated into the word bad. They said he was bad, and the information was filed under self-concept. He complied with his image, and his associates responded further. He responded even further, they complied, he re- sponded, and one day his mirror shouted, "You're no good, and you just get worse and worse," and Jeff Conway believed it.

His eyes bore into the eyes of his accuser, and with set jaw and clenched teeth, Jeff Conway turned his back on himself and walked away. . . .

It was a pass. Jeff Conway opened his arms and reached. (Don't forget, Conway, you're no good and you just get worse and worse . . . ) , and the ball passed between the fingers of a self-image. But it was Conway that the Little League coach was yelling at:

"Of all the stupid things, Conway! What's the matter with you? How can you ever expect to play football if you don't reach for that ball? That was a stupid thing and don't forget it!" And he didn't.

Practice was over, and as always, the boys grouped together to pass the distance to home in rapid chatter about tomorrow's big game. A lone Jeff Conway fol- lowed behind, his eyes watching, his mind listening.

"Jeff! Wait for me! Can I walk with you as far as Maple?" Little Tony Davis came puffing up from behind with his offer of friendship. It was offered and met by a reflected image of "you're no good, Con- way," and after a quick, unkind remark, Tony Davis dropped behind Jeff and the crowd of boys. . . .

"Okay, Jensen, get in there and take Downes' place."

Jensen went into the game and Downes came out, and Conway watched. Dixon made a touchdown and the coach praised him. Johnson fumbled and the coach humiliated him so that he couldn't play for beans for the rest of the game, and Conway watched.

Era, June 1970 13

The score didn't change very of^en, but when it did, it was in their favor— now 14-0. Less than five minutes remained, and even the worst player couldn't lose the game for them— and after all, the coach boasted of being a fair man. Conway was given Jordan's place as right end.

The other team had the ball and forged ahead— 11' yards in four downs, 10 to go; 13 yards, 10 to go. They decided to move for a pass. The opposing fullback reached and touched the ball— 1, 2, 3 seconds— and dropped it. The ball bounced and Conway auto- matically jumped on it. Five other players reacted similarly, but Conway was first.

The only thing stronger than the pain was the sound of gong and the chimes and the sledge ham- mers. One by one, the blanket of bodies removed themselves. Slowly, legs and arms managed to prop the body up far enough to maintain balance. Then Jeff was up, and for eight and a half seconds, they cheered. Jeff looked up at the crowd, and to his total amaze- ment, they were looking at him.

"Way to go, Conway! Way to recover!"

The gun had sounded, though, and now the mothers and fathers patted each other on the backs. The re- covery and the boy were forgotten, but Jeff Conway gulped in the center of an empty field. An insignificant recovery had resulted in eight and a half seconds of insignificant cheering, but the reflection had heard, and every second was replayed often between the field and home.

"How was the game, Jeff?" But he had shut the bedroom door silently. Searching the floor for battered tennis shoes, he caught his reflection in the full-length mirror on the closet door. His eyes very slowly moved up the body until two pairs of very blue eyes met. They met and locked, just staring, not saying anything —but there was the faint urge of questioning in their silence, and for the first time in a very long while, the self-image of a 12-year-old boy with very blue eyes had the chance to question. Maybe there was still a chance after all. The subconscious was scarred with grooves, made deep with repetition of You're more trouble than you're worth. You're no good, and you just get worse and worse. This new addition, eight and a half seconds of cheering, was very short and made only a slight indentation, but it was there, the most recent, the newest, and the freshest, and it couldn't be ignored.

A week followed that Saturday, and another Satur- day followed the week.

"Get him, Jensen, get him!" Jensen got him and the ball was theirs. "Go, Dixon, go!" And Dixon went. Now, well into the fourth quarter, they were 19-0,

and even the worst player couldn't lose it for them. And after all, the coach boasted of being a fair man. Conway was given Jordan's place as right end. There was the usual running, jumping, and squashing, and it was Conway's turn to run. (Don't forget, Conway, you're no good . . . no good . . . no good . . . )

He didn't go far, almost five yards, but they cheered —and cheers equaled approval. The gun sounded and the field was cleared. Each team did its cheers, the winners with a bit more enthusiasm, and groups formed to pass the distance home. The coach gathered up his debris at the sideline. One lone Jeff Conway re- mained on a very deserted field.

"That was a great five yards you took out there, Conway. You're a good boy to have around. See you at practice Monday afternoon." The coach walked to his car, leaving a little boy in the middle of a very deserted field.

Jeff watched as the car moved out. There was no screaming, ordering, coaching, calling out, or cheering now. Just silence. A young boy stood in the middle of a deserted field and slowly turned to see the silent surroundings.

Looking up into the empty bleachers, he heard the cheers, faint at first, growing louder. Soon faces began to materialize, and they were all looking at him. Jeff looked back to the field, and a football team appeared. A scoreboard with no numbers suddenly showed an 18-18 score, and its broken clock ticked off the remaining seconds in a dreamer's game.

Then 9,12,3,7,2-hut, and a boy in a silver suit clutched the ball and ran. The crowd cheered as the giant left his attackers dropping along the wayside. 19 yards, 20, 25. The crowd roared. Who was this wonder boy soaring down the field untouched? 60 yards, 65, 70, 75, and 80. The crowd went wild. They jumped and screamed, and the confetti fell like snow. The ghost players lifted the hero in the silver suit to their shoulders amid hysterical cries of "Con- way, Conway, we love you!"

But the confetti all fell, and the faces, one by one, taking their exultations with them, slowly faded, and a small boy stood in a very large field. Jeff looked from row to row, empty except for a gum wrapper shuffling in the breeze. He turned to a scoreboard that had no numbers and a clock that was broken. He was alone. He stood and listened to the silence, while a never- stopping subconscious did some processing. (You're a good boy ... a good boy . . . you're a good boy . . . a good hoy. ) Then Jeff Conway walked across a deserted field and out the gate.

A week followed that Saturday, and the second day was Monday. Jeff got up, grabbed his books, and ran.

14

An unkempt figure dashed across the full-length mirror on the closet door and caught his attention. Two blue eyes slowly moved up the length of the reflected body, and the eyes of a boy and his reflection finally met. They met and locked. (You're more trouble than you're worth . . . you're stupid . . . cheers = approval . . . you're a good hoy.) The reflection combed his hair and washed his face. . . .

"Class, put everything away now, and number your papers from 1 to 10." Monday mornings meant a test.

After each question was asked, Jeff wrote, and the teacher was surprised. He hadn't so much as made the pretense of trying before, and now he was writing. Maybe he wasn't answering the questions, but he was at least doing an excellent job of faking it. The papers were collected. Jeff's paper was numbered from 1 to 10 with 10 answers, and the teacher was surprised.

Monday lunch periods for a teacher meant correct- ing the tests, and Monday afternoons meant passing them back. A bell declared the end of a rough day, with milk money collection, lunch money collection, supply requisitions, and all. Classwork ended. As the students' names were called, they got up and received their papers on their way out the door. Jeff was last. Red pencil marked his test "60%."

"You did very well on your test, Jeff. See, you can do it if you try. You can do it." And a subconscious processed the data as a boy with blue eyes walked out the door, through the schoolyard, and straight home.

A 12-year-old boy, for the first time, knew what it was to be a someone— not anyone important, perhaps, but a someone. On Saturday the coach's pats on the back and the cheers from the bleachers again said, "You're a someone."

"Boys, you've all seen how well Conway's been playing lately. Well, his progress has been so excellent that starting next week, he'll play offense on the first string."

Wow! The sky spun, the trees danced, and two very blue eyes were almost full. Full of water partly, full of happiness partly, but mostly full of life. The ex- pressionless glare had slowly moved to the background over the weeks, and now it faded beyond detection- still there, but undetectable.

Jeff bypassed the three blocks between the field and home, making the distance almost immediately. His whole body tightened with the excitement. "Wow! Wait till mom hears about this!" His fingernails cut into soft palms. "Wow! Just wait till she hears!" His fists tightened with the excitement until his fingernails bit into his skin, but he didn't know it. He had to get home.

"Mom, mom, where are you? Wait till you hear!"

"Stop screaming like an idiot and don't slam that door!"

And a small boy silently turned back toward the front door.

The eyes wore pain, but they were not vacant, as he sat on the front porch and watched a cloudless sky. A cold stone, huge and heavy, formed in the pit of his stomach and sat there.

For a long time he sat and watched a cloudless sky. Suddenly he stood up, walked to the lawn, bent down, and pulled with everything he had. His fingers worked, and weed after weed was thrown on an ever- growing pile. Two hours passed, and he pulled with- out breaking pace. The lawn was finally cleared of the strangled leaves. Then it was mowed, and the driveway and walks were swept. It was dark, and a small boy with hands green and raw silently entered through the front door, closing it behind him with care, and two very blue eyes looked pleadingly at a mother.

Finally it came. "Thank you, Jeff."

Suddenly the pain was gone, and the expressionless glare faded away. And a 12-year-old boy went in to eat his supper. O

Era, June 1970 15

Zion's

Ten cAcres

By Carter E. Grant

Illustration by Jerry Pulsipher

• Temple Square in Salt Lake City is a place of beauty as well as his- torical and spiritual significance. Members are often asked how particular buildings and monuments past and present fit into the rich history of the Church.

The numbers on the accompany- ing illustration indicate the approxi- mate location and chronological order in which these edifices and monuments were placed on "the Crossroads of the West."

(1) Shortly before sundown,

Wednesday, July 28, 1847, President Brigham Young led several of the twelve apostles northward from their camp to a certain spot be- tween the two forks of City Creek. There, planting his cane firmly in the sagebrush-covered ground, he declared, "Here will be the temple of our God!"

Fifty-one years later, on July 24, 1898, while delivering an address at the dedicatory services of Pio- neer Park, President Wilford Wood- ruff declared with emphasis that

Carter E. Grant, patriarch of the Sandy (Utah) Stake, is a retired seminary teacher and former editorial associate of the Era.

he was with the apostles on that important occasion and both saw and heard President Young select the exact place where the temple was to stand. "I put a stake there," he said, "and the temple is there, a monument to President Young's foresite [sic] and prophetic ac- curacy." (Matthias F. Cowley, Wil- ford Woodruff, Bookcraft, 1964, p. 620. )

(2) On Saturday, July 31, 1847, President Young directed that the tall sagebrush be cleared from the southeast corner of the chosen Temple Square. Here a bowery, 28 by 40 feet, was built. Rows of poles were set upright in the ground; then horizontal poles were fastened

16

to these poles and covered over with leafy boughs, giving protection against the hot sun (but not the coming fall storms). Logs were dragged from City Creek canyon to be used for seats. At one end of this community center— the first of its kind in the Rocky Mountains— a stage and speaker's platform was prepared from the top beds of pioneer wagons.

The next day being their second Sabbath in their new settlement, the pioneers, who now numbered more than 400, held their second sacra- mental service in the Salt Lake Valley.

On Monday, August 2, beginning in or near this bowery, Orson Pratt,

a member of the Twelve, began laying out Great Salt Lake City ( as it was known until January 1868) with its ten-acre blocks and eight- rod streets. He gave the elevation of the southeast corner of the block as 4,300 feet, its latitude as 40 de- grees, 45 minutes, and 44 seconds north of the equator, and seven hours, 25 minutes, 46 seconds west of Greenwich.

(3) By the time the winter storms of 1847 closed the pioneer trails eastward, more than 2,000 Saints had reached the Great Salt Lake Valley. In the spring of 1848 the sagebrush was cleared from the southwest corner of Temple Square and a much larger bowery erected,

having boards and planks for seats. At one end of the bowery was a large stage with curtains.

"To this open-sided, low-roofed community center, flocked the Saints on the Sabbath day for worship; to it also; they gathered to attend amusements and celebra- tions. The Triumph of Innocents and other plays were presented as early as 1848, accompanied by Pitt's Brass Band— an organization that had won acclaim both in Nauvoo and upon the plains." (See Carter E. Grant, The Kingdom of God Re- stored, pp. 511-16. )

(4) Construction began May 21, 1851, on what is now known as the Old Tabernacle. This structure, 62 by 100 feet, had adobe walls and a gable roof covered with white pine shingles. This was an all- weather structure, contrasted to the open-air boweries. It ran north and south and seated 2,500 people. On April 6, 1852, during the spring conference, it was dedicated by President Young's second counselor, President Willard Richards. The building was overcrowded, and many Saints stood by the open doors and windows. This building was torn down in 1870 to make way for the Assembly Hall.

(5) Between August 3, 1852, and May 23, 1857, a 13-foot-high protective wall of masonry was built around Temple Square. The stone base was three feet thick, and the upper part was constructed of adobe, glazed over with lime plas- ter. It was capped with sandstone blocks three feet three inches long, two and a half feet wide, and eight inches thick. This high wall, most of which has been painstakingly reconstructed as the need has arisen, stands in the very heart of Salt Lake City, and still lends an atmosphere of seclusion to many thousands of Temple Square vis- itors.

Returning to the grand building

Era, June 1970 17

Tourists— about 2.5 million yearly— view Temple Square as focal point of the Church

of Temple Square, the Salt Lake Temple: At the semiannual general conference of the Church, held in the Old Tabernacle in October 1852, the Saints voted to begin building the Salt Lake Temple as soon as weather conditions would permit. Accordingly, on February 14, 1853, although the ground was still frozen to a depth of six or eight inches and covered with an inch or two of snow, one of the Church leaders broke through the frost with a pick and President Young shoveled aside a frozen block of earth, about a foot square, officially beginning the work of excavation. The Deseret News commented: "The day being pleasant many re- mained to work on the excavation, and much earth was removed that afternoon." ( February 19, 1853. )

Several thousand Saints witnessed as Brigham Young and his two counselors laid the southeast cor- nerstone of the temple at the bottom of a 16-foot trench on April 6, 1853. Heber C. Kimball, first counselor in the First Presidency, dedicated the cornerstone, follow- ing which President Young directed the dedication of the other three corners.

Thirty -nine years later, on April 6, 1892, President Wilford Woodruff dedicated the capstone, the round granite ball upon which stands the statue of Moroni.

On April 6, 1893, 40 years to the day after the cornerstones were laid, President Woodruff dedicated the completed temple. The temple rises 222 feet to the top of the 12- foot figure of Moroni. It cost four million dollars in days when a gallon of molasses would be pay for a full day's labor. Its architects

were Truman O. Angell and Joseph Don Carlos Young. Sculptor of the majestic figure of Moroni was Cyrus E. Dallin. The size of the temple is 118M feet wide and I86J2 feet long.

(6) Now let us return to Tem- ple Square in the spring of 1854. In the northwest corner a group of men are digging trenches and laying the foundation for the En- dowment House, built of adobe. This was dedicated May 5, 1855, by President Heber C. Kimball. This "House of the Lord," as it was often called, was razed in 1889 after three temples had been dedi- cated in Utah— St. George, Logan. and Manti.

(7) During the winter of 1854- 55, at the same time the Endow- ment House was under construction, the pioneers built what is known as "the Huge Bowery" north of the Old Tabernacle. At general con- ference, April 6, 1855, it was stated that 10,000 Saints were present. This great bowery later became a mammoth workshop for the build- ers of the Salt Lake Tabernacle.

(8) In the early spring of 1863, under the direction of three divinely inspired architects— Brigham Young, William Folsom, and Henry Grow— the Mormon Tabernacle, a huge dome-shaped house of worship, had its beginning. Its outside measure- ments are 80 feet high, 150 feet wide, and 250 feet long.

The October conference of 1867 was held in the building, although it wasn't quite finished at that time. The great pipe organ, which was still under construction, was used to accompany the singing, includ- ing special numbers by the first Tabernacle Choir. The organ was completed in 1870, as was the large

gallery, 30 feet wide and 450 feet long, that extended around three sides of the building and rested upon 72 columns. On October 9. 1875, at the fall conference, Presi- dent John Taylor of the Council of the Twelve dedicated the Taber- nacle.

The massive arch framework of the great dome room of the Taber- nacle, ten feet thick and constructed almost entirely without nails or metal braces, was wedged together securely with wooden pegs; the numerous joints were then bound firmly with fresh rawhide, which contracted as it dried, giving a drum-like tightness that lends sub- stantially to the building's cele- brated acoustical properties. Today, the dropping of a pin a few inches at the pulpit is heard distinctly at the farthermost end of the audi- torium.

(9) The Assembly Hall, with its four gables and ornamented spires, is 68 by 120 feet and 130 feet to the tallest spire. The building, which seats 2,000, was begun in 1877 and completed in 1880. President Joseph F. Smith, second counselor to Presi- dent Wilford Woodruff, dedicated it on January 8, 1882.

(10) The first bureau of in- formation on Temple Square was a small octagonal building, measur- ing 20 feet across, and costing less than $600 to build. Opened on August 4, 1902, it stood some 50 feet directly north of the south gate.

The west part of the present bureau, standing east of the south gate, was built in 1919. Spacious exhibit additions, however, have been added since that time.

(11 and 12) In 1911 two bronze statues, one of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the other of his brother Hyrum, were placed on granite bases on Temple Square southward from the temple. The sculptor was Mahonri M. Young, grandson of Brigham Young.

18

(13) Honoring the "heaven-sent sea gulls"— the birds that aided the pioneers in a miraculous manner in 1848 to preserve their crops— the Latter-day Saints unveiled this mon- ument on October 1, 1913. Sculp- tured by Mahonri M. Young, it stands directly in front of the As- sembly Hall. At the top of a 15- foot Doric column of granite is a granite globe on which rest two sea gulls, weighing 500 pounds and having a wingspread of eight feet. Four bronze plaques at the base of the shaft portray a fitting repre- sentation of the mercy of God to the Mormon pioneers.

(14) Standing in the southeast corner of Temple Square today is one of the oldest log homes in Utah, erected in the Old Fort in 1847 by two brothers, Osmyn M. and Wil- liam H. Duel. In 1915 the Daugh- ters of the Utah Pioneers placed it upon its present site near the spot where the pioneers built their first bowery.

(15) South of the temple is a monument to honor the three wit- nesses to the Book of Mormon golden records. Their testimony, just as it is printed in the front of each copy of the Book of Mormon, is engraved on this monument, which was sculptured by Avard Fairbanks and placed on Temple Square in 1926.

(16) A life-size bronze monu- ment, portraying a struggling hand- cart family— father, mother, and two children— pushing and pulling a well-filled handcart, was placed north of the Tabernacle in 1926. However, in September 1960, to make way for the new visitors cen- ter, the monument was moved to the south side of Temple Square near the sea gull monument. It was sculptured by Torlif S. Knaphus.

(17) Honoring the Beehive girls on their Silver Jubilee in 1940, the YWMIA placed on Temple Square, north of the Bureau of Information, a small granite and bronze sundial.

(18) On October 10, 1958, President David O. McKay dedi- cated the stately bronze monument representing, the restoration of the Aaronic Priesthood on May 15, 1829. The statue depicts John the Baptist with his hands upon the heads of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. The monument's sculp- tor was Avard Fairbanks.

(19 and 20) President David O. McKay dedicated the visitors center buildingMarch7, 1963,setting it apart as a temporary annex to the Salt Lake Temple. It was so used until the large granite annex on the north side of the temple was completed on March 21, 1966.

Here at the visitors center mil- lions come each year to hear the

thrilling story of the restoration of the gospel. The visitors center, with its all-important message, is one of the focal points on this im- portant ten acres.

(21) In the open-air dedicatory service south of the Tabernacle on September 29, 1966, members of the Relief Society met to com- memorate the completion of the Relief Society Memorial Campanile —a 35-foot open tower erected to preserve in full view the Nauvoo Temple bell, which had hung in the center tower of the Nauvoo Temple. This bell was brought across the plains in 1847 by ox team to the old stockade, now Pioneer Park, in Salt Lake City. Above the granite base are four bronze plaques in bas-relief, paying honor to the Relief Society women of the Church. The upper part of the monument is of grilled bronze to harmonize with the bronze bell.

(22) The 100-foot flagpole, in the center of the block (south of the temple), is flanked by four plaques (The Law, Government, Liberty, and The Way), each bearing both ancient and modern scripture. The American flag and the Utah State flag are flown from the flagpole. This addition to Temple Square was dedicated on September 17, 1968, by President N. Eldon Tanner. O

Of the Five

By Virginia Maughan Kammeyer

Consider then, if, eager in the right, I faithfully aivait my Master's call And keep my lantern burning through the Before the doorway of the banquet hall —

Then with the gentle daivn I snuff the glow, Lie down, to rest, and dream of blessings near: The pastures green, the sins made white as snow- Until there comes a drumming in my ear.

I sta?^t, and wake, and hurry to the gate; night, Beat with my fists to be admitted in. It cannot be that I have come too late! I waited long! Oh, Lord, where ivas my sin1?

Master, I did not ever hear thee say

That thou wouldst come unto the feast by day.

Era, June 1970 19

The

Solemn

cAssembly

By Jay M. Todd

Assistant Managing Editor

Photos by Ralph Reynolds, Eldon Linschoten, and Norman Price

First Presidency

• On April 6, 1970-the 140th an- niversary since the organization of the Church in 1830-President Joseph Fielding Smith was sus- tained in solemn assembly as the tenth Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, and President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Assembled in the Tabernacle on Temple Square in the 10 a.m. ses- sion of the 140th Annual General Conference were representatives from nearly every stake, ward, and mission in the Church. They had gathered to participate in one of the most thrilling, inspiring, and humbling experiences in Church government, the sustaining in solemn assembly of a new President of the Church, and members of the First Presidency, Council of the Twelve, and the Patriarch to the Church as prophets, seers, and revelators.

In several revelations to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord in- structed him to "call your solemn assembly" (D&C 95:7; see also Sec- tions 88 and 109). This voting pattern has been used since the sustaining of President John Taylor in the 1880 general conference. Such assemblies are times of com- mitment and dedication, times identified with an outpouring of the Spirit upon those who participate, whether in person or through radio and television.

In the sustaining of the General Authorities of the Church, the solemn assembly has become identi- fied with a pattern of voting in which the major councils of priest- hood government and the various quorums of the priesthood (as- signed to different areas in the Tabernacle) stand and vote inde- pendently with uplifted hands for each proposition, after which the congregation stands and votes.

Pictures of segments of the vot- ing pattern are shown on these pages. The actual voting procedure took about 35 minutes.

20

1 — Genera/ Authorities, 2 — Patriarchs,

3 — High Priests, 4 — Seventies, 5— Elders,

6 — Aaronic Priesthood, 7 — Genera/ membership

Hikk^*A& ■tofcJvMRnwMm&tiln *mKL* aMKli^ljl JhMR-sBmbv 3n.«m11-.S.

Voting on the First Presidency:

1. The First Presidency arose and voted to sustain President Joseph Fielding Smith as Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, and President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; voted to sustain President Harold Bingham Lee as first counselor in the First Presi- dency; and voted to sustain Presi- dent Nathan Eldon Tanner as second counselor in the First Presi- dency. They were then seated.

2. The Council of the Twelve rose, voted on the above three pro- posals, and then was seated.

3. The patriarchs of the Church,

including the Patriarch to the Church, rose, voted on the three proposals, and then were seated.

4. The high priests of the Church, including the Assistants to the Council of the Twelve, Regional Representatives of the Council of the Twelve, presidents of stakes and their counselors, high coun- cilors, Presiding Bishopric, and ward bishoprics rose, voted on the three proposals, and then were seated.

5. The seventies of the Church, including the Presidents of the First Council of the Seventy, rose, voted on the three proposals, and then were seated.

Illustration by Jerry Pulsipher

6. The elders of the Church rose, voted on the three proposals, and then were seated.

7. The Lesser Priesthood of the Church rose, voted on the three proposals, and then were seated.

8. The entire congregation, in- cluding all those who had previous- lv voted, rose, voted on the three proposals, and then were seated.

Voting on the President of the Council of the Twelve, the Acting President of the Council of the Twelve, and members of the Coun- cil of the Twelve:

1. The First Presidency rose, voted to sustain President Harold

Era, June 1970 21

Bingham Lee as President of the Council of the Twelve and Presi- dent Spencer Woolley Kimball as acting President of the Council of the Twelve; voted to sustain as members of the Council of the Twelve Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, Mark E. Petersen, Delbert L. Stapley, Marion G. Romney, LeGrand Richards, Rich- ard L. Evans, Hugh B. Brown, Howard W. Hunter, Gordon B. Hinckley, Thomas S. Monson, and Boyd K. Packer.

Members of the First Presi- dency were then seated.

2. The Council of the Twelve rose, voted on the above two pro-

£:JW8"

posals, and then was seated. In the manner similar to that followed for the voting of the First Presidency, the patriarchs, high priests, seven- ties, elders, Lesser Priesthood, and entire congregation then voted, in turn, on these proposals.

Voting on the Patriarch to the Church:

1, The First Presidency rose, voted to sustain Eldred G. Smith as Patriarch to the Church, and was seated.

2. In a manner similar to that followed for the voting of the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve, the Council of the Twelve,

22 Era, June 1970

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June 1970 Era

patriarchs, high priests, seventies, elders, Lesser Priesthood, and en- tire congregation then voted, in turn, on this proposal.

Voting on Prophets, Seers, and Revelators:

1. The First Presidency rose and voted to sustain the counselors in the First Presidency, the Twelve Apostles, and the Patriarch to the Church as prophets, seers, and revelators. They were then seated.

2. As they were called, follow- ing the order above, the Council of the Twelve, patriarchs, high priests, seventies, elders, Lesser Priesthood, and entire congregation then voted, in turn, on the proposi- tion.

Following this voting procedure, all other voting proceeded in the usual pattern, with all members re- maining seated and all voting on each proposition at the same time with uplifted hands. This pro- cedure, similar to that used in other general conferences of the Church, was followed for voting on the Assistants to the Council of the Twelve; Joseph Fielding Smith as trustee-in-trust for the Church; the First Council of the Seventy; the Presiding Bishopric; the Regional Representatives of the Council of the Twelve; the Church Historian and Assistant Church Historians; membership of the four general priesthood committees — welfare, home teaching, missionary, and genealogy work; Church Board of Education; Church Finance Committee; officers of the Taber- nacle Choir; general auxiliary offi- cers and board members as presently constituted of the Relief Society, Deseret Sunday School Union, Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association, Young Women's Mutual Improvement As- sociation, and Primary Association.

The annual statistical report and the Church Finance Committee's report were then read. O

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Addresses delivered at

The One Hundred General Conference

Jesus Christ of

Salt Lake Tabernacle

Address delivered Monday morning, April 6, 1970

The Reins of Responsibility

and Leadership

• My beloved brethren and sisters:

I stand before you today in humility and in thanksgiving, grateful for the blessings which the Lord has poured out upon me, upon my family, upon you, and upon all his people.

I know we are engaged in the work of the Lord and that he raises up men to do his work in every time and age of the earth's history.

As a church and as a people, we have been greatly blessed for many years by the inspired leadership, the great spiritual insight, and the firm hand of President David O. McKay. Now that his valiant work here is finished and he has been called home to serve in other ways, the Lord has given the reigns of responsibility and leadership in his earthly kingdom to others of us who remain.

And since we know 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"

President Joseph Fielding Smith

(1 Ne. 3:7), we are most humbly confident that under his guidance and direction this work will continue to prosper.

I desire to say that no man of him- self 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 ac- complish 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 ail- that his servants accomplish is and should be ascribed unto him forever.

II 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 accomplish- ment of all his purposes.

Our faith is centered in the Lord Jesus Christ, and through him in the Father. We believe in Christ, accept him as the Son of Cod, and have taken his name upon us in the waters of bap- tism, and are his sons and his daugh- ters by adoption.

I rejoice in the work of the Lord and glory in the sure knowledge I have in my soul of its truth and divinity!

With all my heart I bear witness that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God; that he called the Prophet Joseph Smith to stand at the head of this dispensation and to organize again on earth the Church and kingdom ol God; and that the work in which we are engaged is true.

When my father, President Joseph F. Smith? was called to serve as the sixth President of the Church, he ex- pressed gratitude for his devoted coun- selors and declared his intention to

26

Fortieth Annual of The Church of Latter-day Saints

April 4,5,6, 1970

counsel with them in all matters per- taining to the Church, that there might be a oneness and unity among the brethren and before the Lord.

Now may I say that I have complete confidence in my counselors. They are men of God who are guided by the inspiration of heaven. They enjoy the gift and power of the Holy Ghost and have no desires other than to further the interests of the Church and to bless all our Father's children, and perfect the work of the Lord on earth.

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 knowl- edge and understanding of the Church and its needs is not surpassed by any man.

President N. Eldon Tanner is a man of like caliber, of perfect integrity, of devotion to the truth, who is endowed with that administrative ability and spiritual capacity which enables him to lead and counsel and direct aright.

And what I say about President Lee and President Tanner applies also to the Quorum of the Twelve and the other General Authorities. They are men of God. I am grateful that the Lord raises up men with the strength and power these brethren possess, and he calls and prepares them to stand in places of leadership in his Church.

There is no work on earth as im- portant as the work of the Lord, and there are no positions of service and responsibility as far-reaching in their effect upon our Father's children; and it is my prayer that all of us, working together as true brothers and sisters in the Lord's kingdom, may so labor as to accomplish the great work that lies ahead.

We live in a time when the spirit of love and harmony is increasing among people of many faiths, and we join with men of good will in all churches in expressing love and concern for the temporal and spiritual well-being of all our Father's children.

We are pleased to cooperate with sincere and good men and women everywhere in all matters for the ad- vancement and betterment of our fellowmen, for we acknowledge all men as children of God and as broth- ers and sisters in the family of man- kind. May our Eternal Father pour out his blessings upon all the works of his hands;

And bless parents with insight and inspiration in teaching their children;

And bless our children, and young people, to seek and accept counsel and keep the commandments;

And bless all the officers and teach- ers and members of our Father's church so they may serve him in righ- teousness, faithfully, and effectively;

And bless the world and all men everywhere that they may turn to him in righteousness, and find peace, hap- piness, and purpose in life — all of which I ask, humbly and gratefully, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. O

Era, June 1970 27

Address delivered Monday morning, April 6, 1970

The Day in Which We live

President Harold B. Lee

First Counselor in the First Presidencij and President of the Council of the Twelve

• I echo the sentiments of my beloved colleague, President Kimball, in wel- coming into our circle of General Authorities our beloved associates, Brother Boyd K. Packer, Brother Joseph Anderson, Brother David B. Haight and Brother William H. Bennett. As you brethren and sisters come to know them as we know them, you will feel a great strength in their leadership.

We cannot pass this moment without remembering our beloved President McKay, and likewise to you, Sister McKay, if you are listening in, and to the remarkable family that Presi- dent McKay has, we extend our love and blessings as we pass now to an- other era in the history of the Church.

Today The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints opens a new chap- ter in its 140 years' history since its organization in this, the dispensation of the fulness of times, as it is spoken of in the scriptures.

Another prophet, our noble President David O. McKay, has been called home to make a report of his stewardship as the earthly head of the Church. Always with the passing of a prophet- leader, there have been great happenings fol- lowing thereafter, both in the Church and in the world. I have wondered il it could be that the report of the prophet to our Maker has had great significance in the affairs of men here on the earth.

The transition, in making the change of administration of the Church, is by a procedure unique and by an ordained plan that avoids, as Elder Kimball has said, the possibility of using political devices or revolutionary methods that could cause much confusion and frus- tration in the work of the Lord.

President David O. McKay and all of his predecessors as Presidents of the Church have bequeathed to us rich treasures of wisdom and knowledge. In the passing of each President, the hearts of a grateful people were in a figura- tive sense taken up with each of them. The records of their lives and their works, their words, and their ministries are fortunately lesson books, docu- mented in the written history of the

Church and in the memories of those who have followed after them. May God bless that legacy to the faithful everywhere. After all, their greatest records will be written in the hearts of those whom they sought diligently to serve.

It may be instructive and enlighten- ing to many of the Church members and others who may be listening to these services to say something as it pertains to the reorganization of the Church following the death of the President.

To those who ask the question: How is the President of the Church chosen or elected? the correct and simple an- swer should be a quotation of the fifth Article of Faith: uWe believe that a man must be called of God, by proph- ecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof."

The beginning of the call of one to he President of the Church actually begins when he is called, ordained, and set apart to become a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Such a call by prophecy, or in other words, by the inspiration of the Lord to the one holding the keys of presidency, and the subsequent ordination and setting apart by the laying on of hands ^by that same authority, places each apostle in a priesthood quorum of twelve men holding the apostleship.

Each apostle so ordained under the hands of the President of the Church, who holds the keys of the kingdom of God in concert with all other ordained apostles, has given to him the priest- hood authority necessary to hold every position in the Church, even to a posi- tion of presidency over the Church if he were called by the presiding author- ity and sustained by a vote of a con- stituent assembly of the membership of the Church.

The Prophet Joseph Smith declared that "where the president is not, there is no First Presidency." Immediately following the death of a President, the next ranking body, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, becomes the presiding

authority, with the President of the Twelve automatically becoming the acting President of the Church until a President of the Church is officially ordained and sustained in his office.

Early in this dispensation, because of certain conditions, the Council of Twelve continued to preside as a body for as long as three years before the reorganization was effected. As con- ditions in the Church became more stabilized, the reorganization was ef- fected promptly following the passing of the President of the Church.

All members of the First Presidency and the Twelve are regularly sus- tained as "prophets, seers, and revela- tors," as you have done today. This means that any one of the apostles, so chosen and ordained, could preside over the Church if he were "chosen by the body [which has been interpreted to mean, the entire Quorum of the Twelve], appointed and ordained to that office, and upheld by the confi- dence, faith, and prayer of the church," to quote from a revelation on this subject, on one condition, and that being that he was the senior member, or the president, of that body. (See D&C 107:22.)

Occasionally the question is asked as to whether or not one other than the senior member of the Twelve could become President. Some thought on this matter would suggest that any other than the senior member could become President of the Church only if the Lord reveals to that President of the Twelve that someone other than himself could be selected.

The Lord revealed to the first prophet of this dispensation the orderly plan from the Church leadership by a predetermined organization of the earthly kingdom of God. He gave these specific guidelines, as we might speak of them:

"Of the Melchizedek Priesthood, three Presiding High Priests, chosen by the body, appointed and ordained to that office, and upheld by the con- fidence, faith, and prayer of the church, form a quorum of the [First] Presi- dency of the Church.

28

"The twelve traveling councilors are called to be the Twelve Apostles, or special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world — thus differing from other officers in the Church in the duties of their calling.

"And they form a quorum, equal in authority and power to the three presi- dents previously mentioned." (D&C 107:22-24.)

With reference to this subject, the fourth President of the Church, Wil- ford Woodruff, made a few observations in a letter to President Heber J. Grant, then a member of the Twelve, under date of March 28, 1887. I quote from that letter: ". . . when the President of the Church dies, who then is the Pre- siding Authority of the Church? It is the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (ordained and organized by the revela- tions 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 virtu- ally as much the President of the Church while presiding over Twelve men as he is when organized as the Presidency of the Church, and pre- siding over two men." And this prin- ciple has been carried out now for 140 years — ever since the organization of the Church. Then President Wood- ruff continued:

"As far as I am concerned it would require ... a revelation from the same God who had organized the church and guided it by inspiration in the channel in which it has travelled for 57 years, before I could give my vote or influence to depart from the paths followed by the Apostles since the organization of the Church and fol- lowed by the inspiration of Almighty- God, for the past 57 years, by the apostles, as recorded in the history of the Church."

This calling of Joseph Fielding Smith to become President of the Church has a special significance: In a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith in reference to Hyrum Smith, the grand- father of Joseph Fielding Smith, the Lord said this:

"And again, verily I say unto you . . . that my servant Hyrum may take the office of Priesthood and Patriarch, which was appointed unto him by his father, by blessing and also by right;

"That from henceforth he shall hold the keys of the patriarchal blessings upon the heads of all my people.

"That whoever he blesses shall be blessed, and whoever he curses shall be cursed; that whatsoever he shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever he shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (D&C 124:91-93.)

But in addition to this office, he was given another endowment which has never been given to any other patri- arch to the Church who has succeeded him in this additional calling:

"And from this time forth I appoint unto him that he may be a prophet, and a seer, and a revelator unto my church, as well as my servant Joseph;

"That he may act in concert also with my servant Joseph; and that he shall receive counsel from my servant Joseph, who shall show unto him the keys whereby he may ask and receive, and be crowned with the same bless- ing, and glory, and honor, and priesthood, and gifts of the priesthood, that once were put upon him that was my servant Oliver Cowdery;

"That my servant Hyrum may bear record of the things which I shall show unto him, that his name may be had in honorable remembrance from gen- eration to generation, forever and ever." (D&C 124:94-96.)

His son Joseph F. Smith served as the sixth President of the Church from 1901 to 1918. President Joseph F. Smith, as a child, passed through the trying scenes of Missouri and Illinois. After his father, Hyrum Smith, was martyred by a mob at Carthage along with his uncle, Joseph Smith the Prophet, young Joseph F., although but a boy of nine years of age, drove an ox team across the plains from Mis- souri River, arriving in Salt Lake Val- ley in 1848. In 1852 his mother died, and two years thereafter he left for a mission to the Hawaiian Islands when hut 15 years of age.

This is the fibre of the Hyrum Smith ancestry from which our President Joseph Fielding Smith has come. I am confident that heaven is pleased today, and I doubt not but during the min- istry of this noble son and grandson, those who have gone on before will be permitted to draw near to their descendant, whom the Lord has now honored with this challenging responsi- bility, despite his great age. I would not at all be surprised if they were with us on this occasion.

I have said to members of Hyrum Smith's posterity, after I have quoted the prophecy to which I have made reference, that it is for them to strive with all their souls to be loyal to the royal blood of the prophets of this dispensation that flows through their veins.

Today's happenings have brought to me some of the most sobering re- flections of my whole life. During the last ten weeks that have elapsed since the momentous spiritual experience, in company with 13 of my brethren hold- ing the holy apostleship, in an upper room of the temple, where members of

the new Presidency of the Church were chosen and ordained, I have lived my whole life in restrospect and the days ahead in prospect, to some extent.

Throughout these weeks, I have recognized my limitations and have realized more than ever before my utter dependence upon Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, for strength be- yond my natural strength and wisdom beyond man's wisdom and spiritual insight into problems that might be my responsibilities now. Only with God's help can I begin to fill the position to which I have been chosen by the President of the Church and the Quo- rum of the Twelve, and now sustained by the vast body of the priesthood of the Church and by the membership of the Church in this Tabernacle and by the many faithful beyond our sight, who have participated in the proceed ings of this solemn assembly.

I find myself almost trembling with a sense of my own inadequacy when I recall the great leaders of this dispen- sation who have preceded us in leader- ship positions. As I have thought of this, through long hours of meditation and prayer, I sense the reality of the fact that one, such as I, does not take the place of those who have gone on before.

We who are called to occupy these positions merely fill the vacancies created by the passing of time. Those who have gone on before still hold their places in the eternal worlds and in the hearts of the hundreds of thou- sands whom they have served.

More than ever before, I understand what the ancient prophet Nephi felt when he had been given the seemingly insurmountable task by his father, Lehi, to gain possession of the brass plates in which were contained the scriptures of the prophets of the Old Testament, as we now know them.

Nephi had written of this experi- ence: ". . . 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." (INe. 4:5-6.)

I understand now more than ever before the poignant prayer of the sup- pliant:

"Lead, kindly Light, amid the en- circling gloom;

Lead thou me on!

The night is dark, and I am far from home;

Lead thou me on!

Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see

The distant scene — one step enough for me."

—Hymns, No. 112

Era, June 1970 29

That, I too now sense very deeply.

I must go on many occasions, as did Nephi of old, being "led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do." Yes, though the night be dark, "I do not ask to see the distant scene — one step [is] enough for me."

With all my soul I pledge to you faithful saints all my strength of body and mind and spirit, realizing full well, as the faithful King Benjamin taught, that though I spend my days in your service, "I do not desire to boast, for I have only been in the service of God." (Mosiah 2:16.)

I pray fervently that I too may learn that when I am in the service of you, my faithful brothers and sisters, saints of the most high God, I am "only in the service of your God," and my God.

I bear you my witness, as the Spirit has before, and does now bear witness to my soul, that there has been en- trusted to this, the true Church of Jesus Christ in these latter days the true doctrines of salvation by which mankind may be redeemed, through the atonement of our Lord and Mas- ter, the Savior of the world. The Lord Jesus Christ does live and presides from his holy dwelling place, over this, his

kingdom of God on this earth, through him who has been sustained this day as your President, a prophet, seer, and revelator.

I bear this testimony humbly and beseech of you your faith, your loyal support to put to flight all the condi- tions in the Church that could cause disturbance. May we continue to have the support of your faith and your prayers. And we pledge ourselves, anew, to sustain you as faithful saints to the most high God. This I do hum- bly, and bear solemn witness this day, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Q

Address delivered Sunday morning, April 5, 1970

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The Blessings of Obedience

President N. Eldon Tanner

Second Counselor in the First Presidency

• On this beautiful Sabbath morning it is a privilege and pleasure for me to bring greetings on behalf of the First Presidency and my colleagues to all who are here assembled and to all who are listening in.

Last week we commemorated the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, which brings hope and promise to all who accept him and are prepared to keep his commandments. He said:

"... I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10.)

"I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

"And whosoever liveth and be- lieveth in me shall never die." (John 11:25-26.)

And then he gave us great assurance in these words:

". . . this is my work and my glory — to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39.)

He gave his life for us, and the plan which, if followed, will make it pos- sible for us to enjoy every blessing- promised to those who will keep his commandments. In these latter days

he explained in these words:

"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." (D&C 130:20-21.)

We are all concerned about condi- tions in the world today, and are searching for answers to the many problems that are affecting our per- sonal lives, our communities, and coun- tries throughout the world. Though it is true that the trend in the world today is toward lawlessness, rioting, and re- bellion, we are sick and tired of having it played up so much both in conver- sation and in news media. We, with a positive approach, need to center our efforts on living and teaching the gospel, thereby eliminating the cause and improving conditions. Every man, including the rebellious, who is honest with himself must admit that what he is ultimately seeking is happiness and a better way of life.

With this in mind, I wish to address my remarks to the subject: The Bless-

ings of Obedience. While I speak, I pray that the Spirit of the Lord will attend and guide us. Let us remember the words of Samuel to Saul: ". . . to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." (1 Sam. 15:22.) And let us also remember that "through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel." (Article of Faith 3.)

Just the other day I was talking to a young man who said, in effect, "I am fed up and tired of being told, 'You have to do this,' or 'You have to do that.' I want to be free to decide for myself what I want to do."

My response was: "You are free to choose exactly what you want to do, as long as it does not restrict or impose on the rights or liberties of others, but you must be responsible for your acts and prepared to take the consequences."

I explained that the Lord's greatest gift to mortal man is threefold: first, the right to immortality and eternal life; second, the plan by which he can gain it; third, his free agency to choose what he will do. The Lord gave us the plan which will bring us the greatest

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joy and happiness while on this earth, and which will prepare us for eternal life. All we have to do to enjoy this is to obey the law and keep his com- mandments.

I suggested to this young man that he consider with me the physical or natural laws, which arc fixed and immutable, and which apply to all, regardless of their station or learning or intention. If a person, whether knowingly, ignorantly, intentionally, or accidentally, touches a hot stove or a hare high-voltage wire, he will he burned to the extent of the exposure. If for any reason he steps in front of a rapidly moving vehicle, even to save another life, he will he injured and possibly killed. Numerous examples could be given to show that we are subject to these laws regardless of who we are or what our intention might be. We cannot change the laws of nature.

As we understand natural laws and respect them, we can apply them to our good. If we violate law, we suffer; and if we obey it, we are blessed. How fortunate we are to know that -we can depend on these natural laws: that the sun will rise at a certain time every morning; that electricity, though we don't know exactly what it is, will respond always the same under the same conditions; that the sun will be eclipsed by the moon at a certain time on a certain day in a certain year, all because the laws of nature never vary. Imagine an engineer, doctor, or scien- tist in any field not being able to depend on the laws of nature, or dis- regarding them. Man can never ignore the natural laws affecting his opera- tions and be successful. In fact, to ignore them could be disastrous.

All the laws of God and the laws of nature and the laws of the land are made for the benefit of man, for his comfort, enjoyment, safety, and well- being; and it is up to the individual to learn these laws and to determine whether or not he will enjoy these benefits by obeying the law and by keeping the commandments. My whole purpose today is to show that laws exist for our benefit and that to be happy and successful we must obey the laws and regulations pertaining to our activ- ities; and these laws will function either to our joy and well-being or to our detriment and sorrow, according to our actions.

To accomplish the great flight of Apollo 11, which resulted in the land- ing on the moon, every lawr of nature affecting this endeavor had to be kept in the most minute detail: the law of physics, the law of chemistry, the law of gravity, and every other lawr per- taining to the flight had to be under- stood and applied by those who were

concerned and engaged in the prepara- tions. They did not think of these laws as being a restriction or impediment to them in any way, but rather as a means by which they could carry out their program; and they were determined to learn all they could about the laws on which their success was dependent, and to obey or apply them so they might be successful in their mission.

This is so true in life. To be a musician, to be an athlete, to get a degree, to accomplish anything worth- while, we must set our goals, determine what we want to do and wish to accom- plish, and set about to find out which laws if obeyed will make this possible, and then discipline ourselves in order to accomplish it. When we do this, we are on our way to success, while those who continually fight the laws and refuse to obey, and complain about things that are required, become frus- trated, begin to rebel, and fail to accomplish.

As someone has said, you do not break the law, but actually break your- self by refusing to respect it as it applies to your condition. The law applies, and our actions determine the result. Too often we are not prepared to discipline ourselves and do that which is neces- sary to accomplish the things which we desire most.

It is a fact that the laws of the land are made by the governing body in the interest of the safety and well-being of the citizens. Consider, for example, the laws pertaining to drunken driving and other regulations pertaining to highway traffic control, health, zoning restric- tions, building codes, etc. Even taxes make it possible for us to have better roads, better schools, and other pub- lic services, all of which are for our comfort and convenience and self- improvement.

If all people were to recognize law as a benefit to man and then honor and obey it, it would contribute greatly to our health, well-being, and happiness. Laws are essential. Imagine a city, community, state, or country without law and regulations. To the extent we disregard, disobey, and flaunt the law, we are losing our freedom, depriving others of theirs, and leading to an- archy. If a bad law exists, then the people should take proper legal meas- ures through their governing bodies to improve or change the law, but while it is law, it should be obeyed.

In life generally we have to deter- mine the kind of life or environment of which we want to be a part. We still have in the human race today people in the jungles who practice cannibalism, where the animal instincts in man rule, and where the laws of the jungle apply. If that is the kind of life

we wish, it is available to us. Part of the purpose of our existence, however, is to rise above these animal instincts, and to reach the highest plane of hu- man behavior in our social relations.

In order that we may accomplish this, God, our Father and our Creator, and his Son Jesus Christ, who want us to be happy and successful, have given us the laws which, if applied in our lives, will improve our social condi- tions and our relationship to one another. Yes, if all of us would obey these laws, we would have none of the disturbing conditions so prevalent today, and our young people would have no reason, need, nor desire to demonstrate against a society that today does not practice what it preaches.

Let us refer to some of the Ten Commandments, which are as appli- cable today as they were in the time of Moses, and which later were taught by Christ. If everyone would obey the commandments, "Thou shalt not steal, kill, covet, commit adultery, or bear false witness," we could leave our homes or properties unattended, walk down the street any place at any time, or feel secure in our homes, without fear of thieves or robbers, or that some- one might be trying to take our lives.

Imagine too the joy of living in a community in which there were no covetousness, backbiting, or adultery; where everyone was living according to the law. In addition to the peaceful and happy existence we would lead, and the strength and help we could be to one another, just think of the money we would save on law enforce- ment and the effects of crime, all of which money could be diverted to fighting poverty, or improving health and educational facilities, and for other worthwhile purposes. We cannot begin to number the temporal blessings we would receive from obedience to these commandments.

Another commandment that is so important in the lives of all of us is the Lord's law of health, which is called the Word of Wisdom, and which should be taught in every home by example and by precept. In this Word of Wisdom we are warned against the use of tobacco and alcohoi and other things that are harmful to the body. I am sure we can include the use of drugs.

Though this law of health was given to us by the Lord over a hundred years ago, it was generally ignored until scientists and experience proved beyond doubt that these things are not only harmful to the body, but are a menace to society. Many still ignore and defy this law, and are prepared to take the risks. The use of these things results in broken homes, diseased and broken

Era, June 1970 31

bodies and spirits, destruction of property, misery, and death on the highway, and many other tragedies too numerous to mention, all of which are now causing society, lawmakers, law enforcement officers, and all of us serious concern. In just one evening I gleaned the following information from reading the newspaper:

One-car fatal accidents doubled in '69. Twenty-six percent of all fatal accidents occurred after the driver had been drinking.

A well-known television personality died of lung cancer at age 45. He had publicly stated he would rather smoke and take a chance than be a "fat neurotic." He quit when he learned he had cancer.

A hotel fire caused by a cigarette claimed 14 lives, and a burning cigarette in another building caused ten thousand dollars worth of damage.

Marijuana harm is very real, and drugs put blinders on youth.

We owe it to ourselves, to our youth, and to the future of our country to re- strict and if possible do away entirely with the use of these devilish and deleterious things that are causing so much tragedy in the world today. Listen to the great and glorious promise given by the Lord to all those who will keep this and other commandments:

"And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and mar- row 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." (D&C 89:18-21. Italics added.)

Can you think of a greater promise?

Let me refer to another very impor- tant commandment, which is: "Re- member 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." (Exod. 20:8-10.)

And the Lord has told us:

"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." (D&C 59:9.) .

In spite of what so many say to the contrary, this is a law of God, a re- ligious and therefore a moral law. If observed, it will bring many blessings not otherwise enjoyed; and, like any

other law, if not obeyed it will bring condemnation to the soul.

Keeping the Sabbath day holy gives us an opportunity to learn and under- stand the teachings of the gospel through worship and study, and to learn to know God, which is essential to our eternal destiny.

The Lord has said:

"And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3.)

Surely for one day in seven we can and need to turn our thoughts to our Maker and feed our spiritual selves, to learn obedience to God, and to teach reverence and obedience to our chil- dren. One of the greatest lessons we can learn in life is that "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." (Matt. 4:4.)

Someone has wisely said: "Woe unto those who consider the laws of God only as forces of convenience, to be ignored or employed at will. Woe unto those individuals, classes, and nations that believe in the might of their wealth, in the strength of their armor, in the invincibility of their positions."

No culture can last, no nation or union of nations can survive if they ignore God's laws. The Lord has ad- monished:

"... seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matt. 6:33), meaning everything that is for our good.

We cannot keep the Sabbath day holy, nor enjoy the blessings thereof, by seeking to satisfy our material wants and pleasures. It is truthfully said that "material things have no power to raise the sunken spirit. The wealth of the world cannot heal a broken heart, and the wisdom of all the universities cannot turn into righteousness a way- ward soul."

As important as it is that we attend the house of prayer and keep the Sab- bath day holy, teaching spirituality cannot be left to the churches alone. Parents have the first and great and important responsibility to teach the laws of God in the home. The Lord has told us:

"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." (D&C 68:25, 28.) This means to keep his commandments — to love, honor, and obey him.

Parents, if we are to teach our chil- dren to keep the commandments and walk uprightly before God, we must be their living example. We cannot break any law with impunity and ex- pect our children to honor and obey us or the law. We cannot question the teachings and commandments of the Lord without causing great doubts in the minds of our children as to why they should keep the commandents. We cannot be hypocrites. We cannot teach or profess a belief in one thing and live another, and expect our children to obey the commandment: "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." (Exod. 20:12.)

Children who are taught obedience, to honor and obey the law, to have faith in God and to keep his command- ments, will, as they grow up, honor their parents and be a credit to them; and they will be able to meet and solve their problems, find greater suc- cess and joy in life, and contribute greatly to the solution of the problems now causing the world such great con- cern. It is up to the parents to see to it that their children are prepared through obedience to law for the posi- tions of leadership they will occupy in the future, where their responsibility will be to bring peace and righteous- ness to the world.

The Lord's message may be summed up in his statement:

"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 com- mandment.

"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

"On these two comandments hang all the law and the prophets." (Matt. 22:37-40.)

Surely if we love the Lord we will keep his commandments, and if we will love our fellowmen we will enjoy Utopia here on earth.

As the Lord further has promised:

". . . he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come." (D&C 59:23.)

I bear witness to you this day that as we accept God as our Father, and his Son Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world, and keep the command- ments, we will have greater joy here on earth and eternal life in the world to come. May this be the blessing of all of us, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. O

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Saturday morning session, April 4, 1970

The Reality of God

Elder Howard W. Hunter

Of the Council of the Twelve

• What a glorious thing is life, sur- rounded by the beauties of the world in which we live. There is beauty in the mountains, the woods, and the lakes. There is beauty in the sea with its never-ceasing tides; beauty in the skies filled with fleecy clouds, in the sunshine and in the rain; beauty in the morning, the day, and the night. As the seasons come and go, we find beauty in the freshness of spring bringing new life to all nature, and beauty in the glory of the summer. Autumn ushers in an array of color before the silent winter brings its blanket of white. There is beauty everywhere if we look for the beautiful.

There is an exactness of order in the universe of which we become conscious. The days come and the nights follow. The tides rise and fall with regularity, the recurring lunar cycle of the moon is exact; the seasons come and go in the sequence of nature. The stars in the sky follow exact repeated orders; the planets and their satellites perform precisely in their relation to their suns. The biologist sees the wonders and the beauty of plant and animal life, and the chemist discovers the mysteries of the elements of the earth; but with or without scientific training, every per- son becomes aware of a vast universe in which there is intricate exactness in all nature.

When we observe the phenomena of the heavens and the earth, we can come to only one conclusion: these are the effects of some great cause. There can be no design without a designer and nothing built without a builder. For every effect there is a cause. There must be a guiding hand to regulate the universe in its precise order. Are we compelled to admit the reality of a Supreme Being? Millions of people in the world have this deep and abiding conviction.

Is God a creation of man's mind, or is man a creation of God? Men struggle with many fundamental questions, but the question as to whether or not God is a reality should take precedence. The approach to the solution of this query differs from that given to scien- tific research. We are not dealing with a subject of the material realm, but rather of the spiritual.

In order to find God as a reality, we must follow the course which he pointed out for the quest. The path is one that leads upward; it takes faith and effort, and is not the easy course. For this reason many men will not devote themselves to the arduous task of proving to themselves the reality of God. On the contrary, some take the easy path and deny his existence or merely follow the doubter's course of uncertainty. These are the atheists, infidels, free thinkers, skeptics, and agnostics.

The approach to the study of most subjects consists of the research of its history and all of the known facts. If we start with history and turn to the commencement of the best known of the ancient records, we read these words: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." (Gen. 1:1.) This statement forms the basis of the Hebrew belief in the creation, that earth did not come about by chance; neither was it created by accident. It is the intentional creation of a Supreme Being for a definite and meaningful purpose.

Must we accept blindly this state- ment of creation? The writer of these words in the Pentateuch did not wit- ness the Creator at work but had, the same conviction of faith as expressed at a later time by the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews in these words: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not

seen." (Heb. 11:1.) Sometimes faith means believing a thing to be true where the evidence is not sufficient to establish knowledge. We must con- tinue the probe and follow the admoni- tion: "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." (Matt. 7:7-8.)

After announcing that God created the heaven and the earth, the Old Testament relates that God conversed with our first parents, Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden. He gave them commandments and he conversed with them. No doubt Adam instructed his descendants, through eight genera- tions to the father of Noah, in the things he had received from God by direct manifestations. Noah had direct communication with God and taught ten generations of his descendants. God appeared personally to Abraham, who followed, as well as to Isaac and Jacob. Moses became the leader of their de- scendants, and we remember the direct communion between God and Moses, the record of which has been preserved for all following generations.

The New Testament also has re- corded appearances of God. At the baptism of Jesus by John, there was a manifestation; "And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matt. 3:17.) And again at the trans- figuration on the high mountain: ". . . 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.

"And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid." (Matt. 17:5,6.)

These are only a few instances of

Era, June 1970 33

"The surest knowledge of God comes through his revelations"

the many appearances of God to his children as recorded in the Old and the New Testament. The scriptures of the western hemisphere also record com- munications of God. History amply documents the reality of God by his personal dealings with men from generation to generation from the beginning.

We need not rely upon history alone for evidence of the existence of a Su- preme Being; reasoning will also give us such evidence. One of the ancient arguments of the marketplace, put in syllogistic form, is this: Everything that is created has a creator. The earth was created; therefore, the earth has a creator. Referring again to the Epistle to the Hebrews, the writer states in these words that God is the creator of the earth: "For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God." (Heb. 3:4.) The mov- ing universe and all of its beauties and wonders are trying to teach us of the existence of God as the great creator.

A scholar has said, ". . . though sci- ence has done all these things for man it cannot do for him what he only can do for himself. Science can teach but the individual only can learn, that is, learning is an individual process that a person must apply to himself, no one can do it for him. No person can learn for another. Science generally teaches there is a God, does it not? but to discover him is a problem for the indi- vidual to solve. The declaration of the atheist that there is no God proves nothing. He may sincerely believe we have no Father in Heaven, but cer- tainly cannot prove there is none. Yes, we know that he does not know because there are individuals who posi- tively testify they do know." (Joseph F. Merrill, The Truth-Seeker and Mor- monism, pp. 104-105.)

It has been said that God cannot be found with the instruments of science or in modern-day electronics. The truth-seeker, however, cannot overlook an underlying power so overwhelming to the conscience that the existence of a Supreme Being becomes evident if he seeks for the cause of the effect.

Man has an innate urge to worship. In early times God spoke to Israel: "I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou

shalt have no other gods before me." (Exod. 20:2-3.) There is profound truth in the doctrine that runs all the way through sacred history that no man can worship more than one God. To worship one God is to have one supreme loyalty in one's life. If we had a consciousness of one God, the Eternal Father, we would have a consciousness of one world and one mankind under God, all being brothers.

What causes people to have the urge to worship? There seems to be some- thing inborn into the soul of man that causes him to seek communion with God. In the Book of Job it is put this way: "But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding." (Job 32:8.) This statement appears to be an allusion to man's creation. By this spirit he be- comes capable of understanding and reason, and consequently of discerning divine truth. By this spirit he comes to know God.

In addition to the historical evidences of God and the human reasoning of his existence, the surest knowledge of him comes through his revelations. From the beginning and throughout Old Testament and New Testament times, God manifested himself to men: first to Adam, then the patriarchs of his pos- terity to Noah, with whom he spoke and conversed. After Noah, he revealed himself to those who followed: Abra- ham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and the prophets down to the ministry of Christ. He spoke at the time of the baptism of Jesus and also at his transfiguration.

God revealed himself to the leader of the group of people who left the old world at the time of the Tower of Babel and came to the western hemisphere. Six hundred years before Christ, he spoke to Lehi, directing him and his family to journey to the Ameri- can continent. God has revealed him- self in the present dispensation to the youth, Joseph Smith, who was privi- leged to behold God the Eternal Father and his Son, Jesus Christ.

Thus there have been revealed to man through the ages the personages comprising the Godhead: God the Eternal Father, Jesus Christ, his Son, and the Holy Ghost. These three are referred to in Christendom as the Trinity, yet they are three distinct personages, as demonstrated on the

occasion of the baptism of Jesus, when the voice of the Father was heard and the Holy Ghost descended.

It is the general rule that we do not get things of value unless we are will- ing to pay a price. The scholar does not become learned unless he puts forth the work and effort to succeed. If he is not willing to do so, can he say there is no such thing as scholarship? Musi- cians, mathematicians, scientists, ath- letes, and skilled people in many fields spend years in study, practice, and hard work to acquire their ability. Can others who are not willing to make the effort say there are no such things as music, mathematics, science, or ath- letics? It is just as foolish for man to say there is no God simply because he has not had the inclination to seek him.

History tells us there is a God. Sci- ence confirms the fact there is a Supreme Being. Human reasoning persuades us that there is a God. His own revelations to man leave no doubt as to his existence. In order for an individual to obtain unwavering knowl- edge of the reality of God, he must live the commandments and the doctrines announced by the Savior during his personal ministry. "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." (John 7:16-17.) In other words, those who are willing to make the search, apply themselves, and do God's will, will have the knowledge come to them of the reality of God.

When a man has found God and understands his ways, he learns that nothing in the universe came by chance, but all things resulted from a divinely prearranged plan. What a rich meaning comes into his life! Un- derstanding which surpasses worldly learning is his. The beauties of the world become more beautiful, the order of the universe becomes more meaningful, and all of God's creations are more understandable as he wit- nesses God's days come and go and the seasons follow each in their order. If all men could find God and follow his ways, the hearts of men would be turned in love toward their brothers, and nations would be at peace.

I bear my witness that God lives, that he is our eternal Heavenly Father. I know that Jesus is the Christ, his Son, and Savior of the world. I know too that God reveals his will to his prophets today as he did in the dis- pensations of the past. May we seek God with a true desire to know him, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. O

34

Justice, Mercy, and Humility

Elder Franklin D. Richards

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

:^-:^:- ■ : I : ;^"':

• My dear brothers and sisters, I ap- preciate the opportunity of speaking to you and approach the responsibility with a humble heart, praying that the Lord will direct me in the things that I say.

I rejoice with you in the wonderful spirit of this conference and the in- spirational music and messages to which we have been listening.

We are living in a remarkable age — the dispensation of the fulness of times, when the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored in its fullness.

We are living in a new era of growth and development — an era when the Spirit of the Lord is working in the minds and hearts of men.

We are living in an age when prophecy is being fulfilled.

Despite the fact that we are living in a marvelous age, we are living in a troubled world. The powers of evil are visible in false doctrines, corrupt morals, strife, contention, and perse- cution. Fear abounds in the hearts of many.

However, one of the great purposes of life is to overcome fear and learn to successfully meet challenges and ob- stacles of every kind. Meeting obsta- cles and overcoming them give us experience, and each experience should build our faith and confidence and be for our good.

As we study history, we find peculiar situations, obstacles, and problems in each era.

I am certain that those who lived in these various periods felt that the prob- lems of their time were most difficult, and I have no doubt that they were.

Each period had its own tests, and as they were successfully met, a broad and solid foundation was laid for us to build upon.

We are living in a period of social

adjustments and constant changes and a time of unprecedented growth and development: the age of the jet air- plane, the computer, and the com- munications satellite.

As we look at the world situation today, I feel that a large percentage of the people are seeking a plan of life that will bring them peace, relief from inner tensions, happiness, and growth and development.

Our message is that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored in its fullness, that the principles of the gos- pel are eternal, and that as we apply them in our lives, they bring us peace, happiness, and eternal life.

I would like to refer to three of these gospel principles that I feel are par- ticularly applicable today: justice, mercy, and humility.

In the beautiful Sermon on the Mount, the Savior referred to the principle of mercy when he said: "Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy." (Matt. 5:7.)

And, a great Nephite prophet asked: ". . . do ye suppose that mercy can rob justice? I say unto you, Nay; not one whit. If so God would cease to be God." (Al. 42:25.)

In the scriptures justice and mercy are frequently mentioned together and the thought arises: Can one be just and merciful at the same time, and can justice and mercy be merged? If so, how can we incorporate these princi- ples in our lives to enrich them and qualify ourselves to better meet today's challenges?

The prophet Micah wisely asked: ". . . what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?" (Mic. 6:8.)

Let us examine the prophet Micah's words regarding justice, mercy, and

walking humbly before God, as it should make it easier for us to deter- mine if the principles of justice and mercy can be merged and used effec- tively in our lives.

In order to do justly, honesty, fair- ness, and patience must characterize one's dealings with others. Jesus ex- pressed it this way:

"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." (Matt. 7:12.)

The Golden Rule is in reality the basic principle of dealing justly with your fellowmen.

To do justly becomes a matter of attitude, a desire to go beyond tolerat- ing others and making an effort to love and appreciate people by serving them. Justice is deeply affected by the princi- ple of love.

Jesus also taught:

"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 con- siderest not the beam that 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." (Matt. 7:1-3, 5.)

In being just, one will not condemn, find fault, or gossip, as there is no salvation in being critical of another.

We should recognize that generally we cannot judge the motives that prompt others' actions, and usually the more we understand their motives, the less we are prone to condemn.

The Savior has urged us to desist from evil; he has also told us to ag-

Era, June 1970 35

gressively go forward and do good.

Today there are many frustrated, confused, and discouraged people in the world. To do justly, we are chal- lenged to give them courage, hope, and strength; praise them and help them to understand that God loves them and has provided a way for them to be happy and successful; share with them the things we are blessed with in order to make their loads lighter.

Too often fear rules over the lives of many people, depriving them of blessings. Fear must be overcome, for the Lord has said: ". . . if ye are pre- pared ye shall not fear." (D&C 38:30.)

I bear you my witness that as we live the gospel principles, we will build faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, confi- dence in ourselves, and overcome fear.

Now, let us consider the second thing the Lord requires of us, according to the prophet Micah — namely, that we have mercy.

Again recalling the words of the Savior: "Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy." (Matt. 5:7.)

We should also be aware that the reverse is true — that if we are not merciful, we shall not obtain mercy.

Here we should recognize another great eternal principle, that of for- giveness. Many times true mercy in- corporates forgiveness. Mercy and forgiveness, to be effective, require

great patience and understanding on the part of the one forgiving.

The apostle Peter asked Jesus how many times should he forgive one who would sin against him. The Savior's reply was to forgive an indefi- nite number of times. Then Jesus clarified the matter by giving the parable of the unmerciful servant, in which a certain king forgave a debt one of his servants owed him, amount- ing to 10,000 talents, because the servant asked for patience in the pay- ment of the debt.

Then the same servant found one who owed him a hundred pence, and took him by the throat, saying, "Pay me that thou owest." (Matt. 18:28.)

Although the servant's debtor asked for leniency, the servant cast him into prison.

When the king heard of this, he re- called the unmerciful servant and said to him:

"O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou de- siredst me:

"Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?

"And his lord was wroth, and de- livered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.

"So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from

your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses." (Matt. 18:32- 35.)

Thus, the great truth is taught that anyone receiving mercy is under obli- gation to the one extending it, whether it be man or God — the obligation of living the Golden Rule.

And we cannot reserve our mercy only for those who we think are worthy of it. Remember: "Judge not, that ye be not judged." (Matt. 7:1.)

The Prophet Joseph Smith, in dis- cussing this matter on one occasion, stated :

"God does not look on sin with allowance, but when men have sinned, there must be allowance made for them. . . .

"The nearer we get to our heavenly Father, the more we are disposed to look with compassion on perishing souls. ... if you would have God have mercy on you, have mercy on one another." (Documentary History of the Church, Vol. 5, p. 24.)

There can be no license for sin, but we are told that mercy, justice, and love should go hand in hand with reproof. The Lord's words are these:

"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;

"That he may know that thy faith- fulness is stronger than the cords of death." (D&C 121:43-44.)

This is especially important for us to remember as we reprove our children when the necessity arises.

The third requirement of the Lord, as explained by the prophet Micah, is to "walk humbly with thy God." (Mic. 6:8.) This requires a strong faith that God is a just and merciful God.

The prophet Alma, addressing him- self to this subject, said:

". . . the plan of mercy could not be brought about except an atonement should be made; therefore God himself atoneth for the sins of the world, to bring about the plan of mercy, to ap- pease the demands of justice, that God might be a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also." (Al. 42:15.)

To walk humbly with God, one must love God, be humble, meek, and obedient. Another important ingredient is to hunger and thirst after righ- teousness.

By walking humbly with God, by identifying himself with the building of the kingdom, one obtains inner strength and peace from his Heavenly Father, is happy and successful, and enjoys personal growth and develop- ment.

As an example, Peter, James, and

John were humble fishermen until they became active in building the kingdom of God; then they became a powerful influence in the lives of men.

Sincere prayer and service in the Church help one to develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and confidence in himself.

After considering the prophet Micah's words regarding justice, mercy, and walking humbly before God, is it easier to see how justice can be merged with mercy and how these principles can be beneficially incorporated in our lives to qualify ourselves to better meet today's challenges?

We have seen how justice and mercy were merged in the story of the un- merciful servant, and we have learned that it is God's way to reprove "betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love " (D&C 121:43.)

Probably the greatest example we have is that described in the parable

of the prodigal son, considered by many to be one of the most beautiful stories ever written. Here we are told of the return home of a wayward son, of the father's great joy, and of the feast that celebrated his return.

We must never forget, however, that although the wayward son was received back into his family with rejoicing and love, it was to the faithful son that the father said, "Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine." (Luke 15:31.)

Here we have an excellent example of how a wise, humble father merged the great principles of mercy and jus- tice to the benefit of his family. Here we see that all persons are precious in the sight of God. In merging the eternal principles of justice and mercy, an equitable decision or result occurs, as was evidenced in this beautiful parable.

I bear you my witness that God the Father and the Son live, and that they are just and merciful beings. Their

justice and mercy was shown through the atonement of Jesus Christ and in restoring the gospel in its fullness through the Prophet Joseph Smith. And we should be grateful for God's mercy in providing a prophet to lead us today — President Joseph Fielding Smith. May the Lord bless and sustain him.

Those who are seeking a plan of life that will bring them peace, relief from inner tensions, happiness, and growth and development will find it in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. We in- vite your sincere and prayerful con- sideration.

The strength of the Church lies in the testimony of its members that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior and Redeemer, and that God is a just and merciful God.

To acquire eternal life requires de- votion to the gospel principles. May we appreciate the blessings of the gos- pel and dedicate ourselves to the up- building of God's kingdom, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. O

One Small Step

Elder Richard L. Evans Of the Council of the Twelve

• May I make two citations from the words of a discerning editorial writer, not one of my faith, but one of much faith: "If we neglect the divine . . . and give ourselves over wholly to the human," he said, "we may certainly count upon nothing but the triumph of pessimism. . . . True optimism must rest upon a calm, unshakable faith in eternal life and in the unlimited good- ness of him who gives it."1

"We rest on no new reason for be- lieving in the immortality of the soul," he continued. "The old reasons . . . are quite sufficient ... all religious faith and all hope of immortality begins with God, and rests on him. We came from him; we go to him. He lives, we

live. . . . [And] why should not a Father reveal himself to his children? Why should he not send prophets and teachers, and why not a supreme Teacher, a Son of God and a Son of Man? . . . We rest on the fact of One who died and rose from the dead, whose name we give to our faith, and whose triumph over death is our triumph also."2

This brings us to a declaration of the literal personal reality of God and the divinity of his Son, our Savior, and the reality of revelation, of prophets, and of the opportunities and purposes of everlasting life.

"We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ,

and in the Holy Ghost" (Article of Faith 1) — not in theory, not as an indefinable essence, but a God of life and of love, who lives, and in whose image men were made.

"We believe all that God has re- vealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things per- taining to the Kingdom of God." (Article of Faith 9.)

Surely there is ample evidence of the counsel and divine calling of the prophets of the past. And surely there is ample evidence of the need all men have for divine guidance in this day.

In recent weeks we have lost by death a dearly beloved prophet, Presi-

Era, June 1970 37

dent David O. McKay. Our love and blessings reach out to his family, and to the beloved companion who was some sixty-nine years by his side.

And today we have heard from his beloved successor, President Joseph Fielding Smith, who will be presented for our sustaining vote in the days of this conference to come. God bless him and be with him and strengthen him, and give him peace, and all that per- tains to the goodness of life, with his loved ones.

Through prayer, impressions, inspira- tion, revelation, God does communicate with his children. The need for con- tinuous revelation would seem to be obvious. There is infinitely much our Father hasn't yet told us. There is in- finitely much that no man knows.

Who knows of a textbook that won't be revised or set aside? Who knows of a theory that won't be modified or abandoned? Who knows of a process that won't be improved? Who knows when the last findings of research will be found, or when the last revelation of the mind and will of God will be given? Humility before the unknown is always in order. Conceit of learning never is.

Who has any idea that we need divine guidance less today than did those in far places in the past? Proph- ets, prophecy, scripture, counsel, com- mandments are part of the precious heritage we have.

Now, what of life, its purpose, its problems, its possibilities? All of us have our unanswered questions, our discouragement, our mistakes, our good and poor performances, our sorrows, our searching.

It's a searching world. But many are looking for the right things in the wrong way. Some give themselves to protest, to tearing down, to destruc- tion— but most tragically to destruction of themselves, their minds, their peace, their happiness, their future possibili- ties. And, as to all of this, on a recent Sunday broadcast we used a sentence that has some earnest implications in it, which we submit for your con- sideration:

If we don't change direction, we will arrive at where we're going.

Home, of course, is the place to be- gin. "When one puts business or pleasure above his home," said Presi- dent McKay, "he that moment starts on the downgrade to soul-weakness." And in the last talk we were privileged to have from him, he said: "The most vicious enemy to home life is im- morality."3

I heard a few days ago a report of how a parent had criticized a school principal for not teaching her children better behavior. But surely the home is

the place to begin. Parents, teach your children, and live and be what you teach. I remember gratefully, soberly within my soul, saying prayers at the' knees of a beloved widowed mother. I remember her saying to us, and living what she said: "Do your duty. Say your prayers. Pay your tithing; pay your debts. Be honest. Work. Be clean. Don't quarrel. Don't gossip. Have faith."

Oh, beloved young people, listen to such teachings, and so live your lives. Don't gamble the peace and happiness and opportunities of eternity against the cheap and shoddy enticements of time.

You can't experiment with every- thing— there isn't enough time. There are thousands of things that could kill you, but you have only one life to lose. There are thousands of things that could destroy you mentally, morally, physically, spiritually. And not one of them is worth it. And so, profit by what has already been proved, by the trial and error and anguish of others over the ages. If everyone tried to go back to the beginning to repeat all the mistakes that other men have made, we wouldn't live long enough to learn very much. Part of the precious heritage we have is what has been proved, dis- covered, and revealed in the past. And so accept it, and go on from here, and learn and repent and improve, and become all you can become, not de- stroying body and mind, peace and self-respect, but seeking counsel, con- fiding in loved ones, living by law. Anyone who thinks he doesn't need counsel and stubbornly decides to go his own way has trouble and tragedy ahead.

Counsel with parents, your bishops, competent and trustworthy people. President Smith counsels with his counselors. The Council of the Twelve counsel with each other and with their brethren. "There is no such thing in human existence as being so high you're not responsible to anybody."4 No man is smart enough to know all the an- swers. No man is so wise that he cannot benefit by talking things out with others. (There was a great coun- cil in heaven, before the world was.) And don't forget to talk things out with the Lord. And then listen. As Presi- dent Harold B. Lee said within the week, "We pray for guidance — but do we listen?" The communication of prayer is very real, and all of us need guidance in our decisions.

Temptation is everywhere. The op- portunities to do evil and to do good are everywhere, but we shouldn't tempt temptation. As one whimsical observer said, "When some people flee from temptation, they leave a forwarding

address."5 If we don't want to do wrong, we shouldn't even entertain the idea. If we don't want temptation to follow us, we shouldn't act as if we are interested. No one ever fell over a precipice who never went near one.

And let it be said here that our Father in heaven is not a theorist. Creation isn't kept in its course by theory. Spring doesn't return by theory. Seeds don't grow by theory. The physical and moral and spiritual laws are still in force. The command- ments are still in force. No one has repealed them. No one has a right to — except God, who gave them. And when our Father gives us counsel or com- mandments, we can be sure they are vitally essential. When he tells us something, we'd better believe it. If we live one way we get one result; if we live another way we get another result.

Many of you would be familiar with President Spencer Kimball's wonderful work on the miracle of forgiveness. I witness to you that God is a loving Father who will forgive and help us find peace and self-respect as we re- pent and show our sincerity by the lives we live. And there is nothing he asks of us that we cannot do; there is no requirement we cannot keep — if we are willing, if we want to. Repentance is a miracle, if it is sincere.

Some historians have said there have been 19 civilizations before this that have risen and flourished and fallen, mostly because of moral decay. And perhaps most of them didn't really know what was happening, until it was too late. We are not immune to the consequences of our own acts, or of what we permit to become possible.

You would remember the words spoken on the occasion of that first awesome step man took on the moon: "One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind,"6 to which another added:

"We've reached so far that we've touched the moon;

Now we must reach out to our neigh- bor. . . .

There isn't a thing that man cannot do

If he takes one small step at a time"7

— if he lives within law, keeps' the commandments and follows the pur- poses of Divine Providence.

God bless you, my beloved young friends. Don't live by rumor. Don't run aimlessly to and fro looking for what has already been found. Don't live by the sophistries and temptations of these times. Live by the counsel and commandments God has given, and find the peace and happiness that come to one through thoughtful, prayer-

38

ful living and cleanliness of life.

The times are troubled. The prob- lems are many. And men do run to and fro, and the hearts of many do fail them, and fear has come upon many people — but there is a God in heaven whose purposes and promises and power are over all, and if we will commit ourselves to keeping his coun- sels, his commandments, doing it his way, we can have peace and happiness here, and limitless, everlasting oppor- tunities with our loved ones forever.

Who would be so foolishly, stupidly shortsighted as to settle for less than this, here or hereafter?

The mission, the message of the Church is to all mankind, and will

bless and lift the lives of all who will be partakers of it. And we come to you with concern for the temporal and eternal salvation of every soul — to the weary, the wandering, the lost and the lonely, the sick and the sorrowing; those discouraged and despondent, those who have lost loved ones, those looking for something to hold to in life. Oh, it is there. May our Father help you find it.

I leave you my witness that God does live, that he has reestablished his work among men, that Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer. And I thank God for a prophet in the present, and for all the prophets of the past.

If we don't change direction, we'll

arrive at where we're going — but wherever we are, and wherever we've been, if we take one small step at a time, in the right direction, and repent and do better each day, we can arrive everlastingly with our loved ones, with the highest possibilities that God can give, and with assurance within our souls, this day — and always, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Q

1 Editorial, The Independent, 1898, p. 1596.

2 Ibid., April 12, 1900.

3 October 1969 general conference.

4 Lawrence A. Appley, "Managers in Action."

5 Rotary International club bulletin, Graham, Texas.

6 Neil A. Armstrong.

v R. Harris, "One Small Step."

Saturday afternoon session, April 4, 1970

Contend Not With Others, But

Pursue a Steady > Course

IIP*

Elder Gordon B. Hinckley

Of the Council of the Twelve

• I have but one desire, my dear brethren and sisters. That is to say something which will add to your faith. To that end I seek the inspira- tion of the Holy Spirit.

I express thanks and wonder for the marvelous growth of the Church. A few days ago I participated with Brother Benson in the organization of the Tokyo Stake of Zion. Three weeks before that Brother Tuttle and I or- ganized the Lima Stake of Zion. A week or two ago Brother Romney or- ganized a stake in Johannesburg. Think of it, within a period of a few weeks, strong and vigorous stakes have been organized in such far-away places as Japan, Peru, and South Africa.

The days of which our forebears spoke are upon us. These are days of prophecy fulfilled; and I, with you, am grateful to be alive and a part of this vibrant, marvelous work which is af- fecting for good so many people in so many parts of the world.

This growth is not a victory of men; it is a manifestation of the power of God. I hope we shall never be proud or boastful concerning it. I pray that we shall ever be humble and grateful.

Last evening there was presented in this Tabernacle, with word and music, a stirring tribute to the Prophet Joseph Smith, commemorating the 150th an- niversary of the First Vision. I am thankful that we paused to remember this most remarkable manifestation when the Father and the Son appeared to the boy Joseph on a spring morning in the year 1820. All of the good we see in the Church today is the fruit of that remarkable visitation, a testimony of which has touched the hearts of millions in many lands. I add my own witness, given me by the Spirit, that the Prophet's description of that mar- velous event is true, that God the Eter- nal Father and the risen Lord Jesus Christ spoke with him on that occasion in a conversation as real and personal

and intimate as is my conversation with you this day. I raise my voice in testimony that Joseph was a prophet, and that the work brought forth through his instrumentality is the work of God.

I read again the other evening a summary of Joseph's work and a state- ment of our obligation to advance it. These words, poetic in their beauty, were written by Parley P. Pratt in 1845, less than a year following Joseph's death. I quote:

"He has organized the kingdom of God. — We will extend its dominion.

"He has restored the fulness of the Gospel. — We will spread it abroad. . . .

"He has kindled up the dawn of a day of glory. — We will bring it to its meridian splendor.

"He was a 'little one,' and became a thousand. — We are a small one, and will become a strong nation.

"In short, he quarried the stone. . . . We will cause it to become a great

Era, June 1970 39

mountain and fill the whole earth." (Millennial Star, Vol. 5, March 1845, pp. 151-52.)

We are seeing the unfolding of that dream. I hope we shall be true and faithful to the sacred trust given us to build this kingdom. Our effort will not be without sorrow and setbacks. We may expect opposition, both deter- mined and sophisticated.

As the work grows, we may expect a strengthening of the efforts of the adversary against it. Our best defense is the quiet offense of allegiance to the teachings which have come to us from those whom we have sustained as prophets of God.

Joseph Smith gave us instruction pertinent to the situation in which we find ourselves. Said he, "Go in all meekness, in sobriety, and teach Jesus Christ and him crucified; not to con- tend with others on account of their faith, or systems of religion, but pur- sue a steady course. This I delivered by way of commandment, and all who observe it not, will pull down perse- cution on their heads, while those who do shall always be filled with the Holy Ghost; this I pronounced as a prophecy."

I should like to take a few of the words of that statement as a theme for something I should like to say, if the Lord will inspire me.

"Contend not with others, but pursue a steady course."

We live in a day of shifting values, of changing standards, of will-o'-the- wisp programs that blossom in the morning and die in the evening. We see this in government, we see it in public and private morality, we see it in the homes of the people; we see it in the churches, and we even see it among some of our own members who are led away by the sophistry of men.

Men everywhere seem to be groping as men in darkness, casting aside the traditions that were the strength of our society, yet unable to find a new star to guide them.

We recently participated in a dedi- cation of the Church pavilion at the Expo '70 world's fair in Japan. One of the speakers was a Japanese govern- ment official who warmly compli- mented the Church on its participation in this exposition, which is devoted almost entirely to man's technical achievements. He deplored the waning influence of religion in the lives of the people of his own nation, with a con- sequent deterioration of standards and ideals.

It appears to be so everywhere. Some months ago I read a provocative arti- cle by Barbara Tuchman, a Pulitzer Prize- winning historian. Said she:

"When it comes to leaders we have,

if anything, a super abundance — hun- dreds of Pied Pipers — ready and anx- ious to lead the population. They are scurrying around, collecting con- sensus, gathering as wide an acceptance as possible. But what they are not doing very notably is standing still and saying, 'This is what I believe. This I will do and that I will not do. This is my code of behavior and that is out- side it. This is excellent and that is trash.' There is an absence of moral leadership in the sense of a general unwillingness to state standards."

She continues, "Of all the ills that our poor . . . society is heir to, the focal one, it seems to me, from which so much of our uneasiness and confusion derive, is the absence of standards. We are too unsure of ourselves to assert them, to stick by them, if necessary in the cases of persons who occupy posi- tions of authority, to impose them. We seem to be afflicted by a widespread and eroding reluctance to take any stand on any values, moral, behavioral or esthetic." ("The Missing Element — Moral Courage," McCall's, June 1967, p. 28.)

While standards generally may totter, we of the Church are without excuse if we drift in the same manner. We have standards — sure, tested, and effective. To the extent that we ob- serve them, we shall go forward. To the extent that we neglect them, we shall hinder our own progress and bring embarassment to the work of the Lord. These standards have come from him. Some of them may appear a little out of date in our society, but this does not detract from their validity nor diminish the virtue of their ap- plication. The subtle reasoning of men, no matter how clever, no matter how plausible it may sound, cannot abridge the declared wisdom of God.

I recently heard the patriarch serv- ing in the Milwaukee Stake, who sits in this hall today, speak a few words that I have not forgotten. Said he: "God is not a celestial politician seek- ing our vote. Rather, God is to be found, and God is to be obeyed." (Hans Kindt.)

The satisfying thing is that obedi- ence brings happiness. It brings peace; it brings growth — all of these to the individual, and his good example brings respect for the institution of which he is a part.

Our adherence to these divinely given standards need never be an of- fensive thing to those about us. We need not contend with them. But if we will pursue a steady course, our very example will become the most effective argument we could ever ad- vance for the virtues of the cause with which we are associated.

The Lord has given us counsel and commandment on so many things that no member of this church need ever equivocate. He has established our guidelines concerning personal virtue, neighborliness, obedience to law, loy- alty to government, observance of the Sabbath day, sobriety and abstinence from liquor and tobacco, the payment of tithes and offerings, the care of the poor, the cultivation of home and fam- ily, the sharing of the gospel, to men- tion only a few.

There need be nothing of argument or contention in any of them. If we will pursue a steady course in the implementation of our religion in our own lives, we shall advance the cause more effectively than by any other means.

There may be those who will seek to tempt us away. There may be those who will try to bait us. We may be disparaged. We may be belittled. We may be inveighed against. We may be caricatured before the world.

There are those, both in the Church and out, who would compel us to change our position on some matters, as if it were our prerogative to usurp authority which belongs alone to God.

We have no desire to quarrel with others. We teach the gospel of peace. But we cannot forsake the word of the Lord as it has come to us through men whom we have sustained as prophets. We must stand and say, to quote again the words of Miss Tuchman: "This is what I believe. This I will do and that I will not do. This is my code of behavior and that is outside it."

There may be times of discourage- ment and deep concern. There cer- tainly will be days of decision in the lives of each of us. It was ever thus.

Every man and woman in this church knows something of the price paid by our forebears for their faith. I was again reminded of this when I recently read the narrative of my wife's grandmother. I think I would like to share a few words from that story of a 13-year-old girl. She tells of her childhood in Brighton, that delightful city on the south coast of England, where the soft, green hills of Sussex- roll down to the sea.

It was there that her family were baptized. Their conversion came nat- urally because the Spirit whispered in their hearts that it was true. But there were critical relatives and neighbors and even mobs to deride and inflame others against them. It took courage, that rare quality described as moral courage, to stand up and be counted, to be baptized and recognized as a Mormon.

The family traveled to Liverpool, where with some 900 others they

40

boarded the sailing vessel Horizon.

As the wind caught the sails, they sang, "Farewell, My Native Land, Farewell." After six weeks at sea — to cover the distance covered today by a jet plane in six hours — they landed at Boston and then traveled by steam train to Iowa City, for fitting out.

There they purchased two yoke of oxen, one yoke of cows, a wagon, and a tent. They were assigned to travel with and assist one of the handcart companies.

Here at Iowa City also occurred their first tragedy. Their youngest child, less than two years of age, suffering from exposure, died and was buried in a grave never again visited by a mem- ber of the family.

Now let me give you the very words of this 13-year-old girl as I read a few lines from her story:

"We traveled from 15 to 25 miles a day . . . till we got to the Platte River. ... We caught up with the handcart companies that day. We watched them cross the river. There were great lumps of ice floating down the river. It was bitter cold. The next morning there were fourteen dead. . . . We went back to camp and had our prayers, [and] . . . sang 'Come, Come Ye Saints, No Toil Nor Labor Fear.' I wondered what made my mother cry [that night]. . . . The next morning my little sister was born. It was the 23rd of September. We named her Edith. She lived six weeks and died. . . . [She was buried at the last

crossing of the Sweetwater.]

" [We ran into heavy snow. I became lost in the snow.] My feet and legs were frozen. . . . The men rubbed me with snow. They put my feet in a bucket of water. The pain was ter- rible. . . .

"When we arrived at Devils Gate it was bitter cold. We left many of our things there. . . . My brother James . . . was as well as he ever was when he went to bed [that night]. In the morning he was dead. . . .

"My feet were frozen; also my brother's and my sister's. It was noth- ing but snow [snow everywhere and the bitter Wyoming wind]. We could not drive the pegs in our tents. . . . We did not know what would become of us. [Then] one night a man came to our camp and told us . . . Brigham Young had sent men and teams to help us. . . . We sang songs, some danced and some cried. . . .

"My mother had never got well. . . . She died between the Little and Big Mountains. . . . She was 43 years of age. . . .

"We arrived in Salt Lake City nine o'clock at night the 11th of December 1856. Three out of the four that were living were frozen. My mother was dead in the wagon. . . .

"Early next morning Brigham Young came. . . . When he saw our condition, our feet frozen and our mother dead, tears rolled down his cheeks. . . .

"The doctor amputated my toes . . . [while] the sisters were dressing

mother for her grave. . . . When my feet were fixed they [carried] ... us in to see our mother for the last time. Oh, how did we stand it? That after- noon she was buried. . . .

"I have thought often of my mother's words before we left England. 'Polly, I want to go to Zion while my children are small, so they can be raised in the Gospel of Christ, for I know this is the true church.' " (Life of Mary Ann Goble Pay.)

Thus conclude portions of the nar- rative of a 13-year-old girl.

I conclude with this question: Should we be surprised if we are called upon to endure a little criticism, to make some small sacrifice for our faith, when our forebears paid so great a price for theirs?

Without contention, without argu- ment, without offense, let us pursue a steady course, moving forward to build the kingdom of God. If there is trouble, let us face it calmly. Let us overcome evil with good. This is God's work. It will continue to strengthen over the earth, touching for good the lives of countless thousands whose hearts will respond to the message of truth. No power under heaven can stop it.

This is my faith and this is my testi- mony.

God help us to be worth of the great and sacred commission that is ours, thus to build his kingdom, I humbly pray, as I leave with you my witness and testimony of its divinity, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. O

Courage

Elder Marvin J. Ashton

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

• A few days ago we had another stimulating experience as we visited with some of our young friends. Time was taken not only for group discus- sions and opinions, but for some pri- vate talks as well. We learned again that our choice youth want answers.

They want direction. They want ac- ceptance. One young lady impressed us with her very sincere, "Why can't I be the same every day? Some days I feel like I'm on top of the world; other times I'm discouraged and am low, especially on myself."

Brothers and sisters, we dre living in a day when there has never been a greater need for moral courage: the courage to continue in righteousness, courage to communicate, courage to have patience, and courage to have childlike faith. May I briefly review

Era, June 1970 41

with you these important areas where courageous reinforcement is essential.

As we think together of the scope of faithfully continuing in righteousness, important parts must be: courage not to be diverted, courage not to be mis- led, courage not to stray, and courage to be anxiously engaged in good work. From the eighth chapter of John, verses 31 and 32, we are reminded of the promised blessings in store for those who have the courage to con- tinue. "If you continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free." What a joy it is to be associated with members of the Church, young and old, who are con- tinuing in the paths of righteousness. It is a thrill to see our youth in far- off stakes and missions, as well as those nearby, preparing valiantly for temple marriages. Other thousands inspire us as we see them valiantly continuing in their missionary and military services. God will help us continue in his ways if we humbly seek his guidance. Direct- ing our energies in his pathways will bring blessings of genuine joy and happiness. His way is the right way; the right way is the happy way.

We need the courage to communi- cate through word and deed the great truth, "... I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. . . ." (Rom. 1:16.) Joseph Smith's prayer in the grove was an- swered because he had the courage to communicate with unwavering faith. Channels of communication between parents and youth are being effec- tively opened and used today. Mothers and fathers are getting to know their children better because wise leaders have encouraged the strengthening of the family circle. Where necessary, we challenge our youth to take the lead to see that family home evenings are scheduled and held so that they might learn not only to communicate with family members, but also more pur- posefully with their Heavenly Father. Many of our youth have done this in the past, and today their parents love them for it. Family home evenings, properly held, will open the channels of communication not only for family members but for God's Spirit as well.

In our work in the Unified Social

Services Program of the Church, noth- ing gives us more satisfaction than to help parents and youth become better acquainted or reacquainted and united- ly start down the paths of safety again together. What a pleasure it was the other day to have a beautiful young 17-year-old high school girl say, "Dad and I no longer have a communication hang-up. Thanks to family home evenings, we are back on the same wave length and are now pretty well tuned in."

One of the greatest blessings that can come to any child is the benefit of being raised in a home where the mother and father love each other. A husband's and wife's love should be warm and sincere. An obvious and sincere love will provide a priceless environment for our children. Children will learn love as they experience it. Earnest communication with others develops a feeling of belonging. It will let others know we care.

Love and compassion are not obso- lete or old-fashioned. They are virtues that build understanding and happi- ness. It is difficult for young people to keep the commandments of God with- out sharing a feeling of close relation- ship with their parents and leaders in the Church. Let us look for the best in our children and associates. It is the Lord's will that we build up — not tear down. Our responsibility is to communicate the positive, emphasize the positive, and not be parties to pro- moting the negative.

We need the courage to have pa- tience, understanding, and compassion. From some of our troubled youth in today's complex society, may I humbly make this request for them to their parents and leaders: "Don't give up on us, don't condemn us, don't resent us. Don't try to get us to conform through sympathy, embarrassment, or ridicule. Instead, give us reasons; give us exam- ples; give us your best you." Let us as parents and leaders so live and lead to merit the gratitude of a grateful teen- ager's "Thank you for helping me find my way back," or "Thank you for help- ing me to remain steady." We must learn through patience and understand- ing to lead our friends. Say the en- couraging word at the right time and the right place.

What a thrill it was the other day

"We challenge our youth to take the lead to see that family home evenings are scheduled"

to be visiting with one of our hand- some full-time Navajo Indian mission- aries when he said, "The main reason I'm on a mission today is because when I was a small boy, President Spencer W. Kimball came into our home, patted me on the head, placed a silver dollar in my hand, and said, 'Take this and start saving for a mission.' " Wrapped up in that example of leader- ship are all of the important parts: recognition, encouragement, challenge, and example. To bring groups back, we must learn to lead the individual back through patience and love. Good leaders don't give up. Good parents don't give up. Good youth don't give up.

We need the courage to be as a child. "Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the king- dom of God." (3 Ne. 9:22.) We need childlike love, childlike repentance, childlike prayers, and childlike faith.

What a warm experience it was a few weeks ago to kneel with a Latter- day Saint family in far-away Uruguay, South America, as we shared the thoughts of an 11-year-old girl who led us in family prayer. Her spirit touched us as she communed with her Heavenly Father in her native Span- ish language. At the conclusion of her lovely prayer, we said to her father, "What was it she said in her prayer about the temple?"

He responded with, "She said, 'Help me, Heavenly Father, to be good enough in the way I live so that some day I can marry in the temple.' "

With this childlike faith and daily, sincere preparation, her heart's desire will be possible.

"Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who for- saketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my command- ments, shall see my face and know that I am." (D&C 93:1.) What a crowning promise to the faithful! What a blessing for those who will continue! What could be a more effective, hum- ble prayer for us in this troubled day than to ask our Father in heaven to bless us with courage — the courage to so live that we won't be the same every day, but with the Lord's help a little better each day, step by step. It is my hope for us this day that we may show our love and courage by keeping his commandments.

I bear witness to you that this is in very deed the Church of Jesus Christ. I humbly pray that we may courageous- ly continue in his work, walking pur- posefully in his path, which insures the abundant life, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. O

42

Salvation Is a Family Affair

President Bruce R. McConkie

Of the First Council of the Seventy

:

• Salvation is a family affair.

We are all members of the family of God the Eternal Father. We are his spirit children. We lived with him in the family unit before the foundations of this world were laid.

In one of our great doctrinal hymns we sing:

"In the heavens are parents single? No; the thought makes reason stare! Truth is reason, truth eternal Tells me I've a mother there.

'When I leave this frail existence, When I lay this mortal by, Father, Mother, may I meet you In your royal courts on high? Then, at length, when I've completed All you sent me forth to do, With your mutual approbation Let me come and dwell with you."

—Hymns, No. 138

While we yet dwelt in his presence, our exalted and eternal Father ordained the plan of salvation, which would enable us to advance and progress and become like him.

This gospel plan offered to all of God's children the privilege of a mortal probation and the hope of eternal life. We were all promised that through the atonement of Christ we would be raised in immortality, and that if we obeyed the laws and ordinances of the gospel we would have eternal life.

Now eternal life is the name of the kind of life which God our Eternal Father lives. Eternal life is God's life, and God's life is eternal life. Thus, if we gain eternal life it will be because we advance and progress and become like him.

President Lorenzo Snow penned these words relative to this glorious hope of gaining eternal life:

"The boy, like to his father grown, Has but attained unto his own; To grow to sire from state of son, Is not 'gainst Nature's course to run.

"A son of God, like God to be, Would not be robbing Deity." — "Man's Destiny," Improvement Era, Vol. 22, p. 661.

Manifestly if we are to become like our Eternal Father, we must become immortal as he is immortal; we must gain the character, perfections, and attributes which he possesses; we must attain the power, glory, and dominion which he enjoys; and we must create for ourselves eternal family units pat- terned after his eternal family.

Now that gospel which he has re- stored in this dispensation is a gospel of eternal life. It is the same system of salvation possessed by all the prophets and all the saints in all dis- pensations. It consists of those laws and powers whereby we may become perfect, even as our Father in heaven is perfect; whereby we can create, per- fect, and perpetuate our own eternal family units.

The great work of God our Father was creation. He brought us into being; we were born as members of his fam- ily; and by his power the earth and all things thereon came into existence. And God has done his work perfectly.

The great work of Christ was re- demption. Through his atoning sac- rifice all men are raised in immortality, while those who believe and obey the whole law of the whole gospel are raised unto eternal life. And Christ has done his work perfectly.

The great work of every man is to believe the gospel, to keep the com- mandments, and to create and perfect an eternal family unit. And the Latter-day Saints are seeking to do

their work as near to perfection as they can.

It follows that everything we have in the Church centers around celestial marriage, and that salvation is a fam- ily affair.

From the moment of birth into mortality to the time we are married in the temple, everything we have in the whole gospel system is to prepare and qualify us to enter that holy order of matrimony which makes us husband and wife in this life and in the world to come.

Then from the moment we are sealed together by the power and au- thority of the holy priesthood — the power to bind on earth and have it sealed eternally in the heavens — from that moment everything connected with revealed religion is designed to help us keep the terms and conditions of our marriage covenant, so that this covenant will have efficacy, virtue, and force in the life to come.

Thus celestial marriage is the crown- ing ordinance of the gospel, the crowning ordinance of the house of the Lord. Thus the family unit is the most important organization in time or in eternity.

And thus we should have more inter- est in and concern for our families than for anything else in life.

Every major decision should be made on the basis of the effect it will have on the family unit. Our court- ship, schooling, and choice of friends; our employment, hobbies, and place of residence; our social life, the or- ganizations we join, and the service we render mankind; and above all, our obedience or the lack of it to the standards of revealed truth — all these things should be decided on the basis of their effect on the family unit.

There is nothing in this world as important as the creation and perfec-

Era, June 1970 43

tion of family units of the kind con- templated in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And so, when the Lord speaks to husbands, he says: "Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else." (D&C 42:22.)

When his voice is heard by wives, it imposes a similar obligation upon them with reference to their husbands.

To both of them he commands: "Thou shalt not commit adultery or anything like unto it." (See D&C 59:6.)

When he speaks to parents, he di- rects them to bring up their children in light and in truth, to teach them