Show CHURCH RAISES I TECHNICALITY I Officials of Weber Stake Make M ke An Answer Answer Answer in ill Case t tHIGH HIGH COUNCIL MAIN ISSUE il QUESTION AS TO EXISTENCE OF 4 BODY NAMED NAM ED c c Irr pon lenc between bet Charles Charies A Ar AF t tF F r of oC Ogden and anI John V Vi i I u util ii clerk derk of or the stake high fl bearing on Jn Mr rai i t a from the decree of or Issued by the Weber stake high highT T i Jl Il wag wg given out yesterday JV F communications deal with tech c r d of or f procedure The Weber ko kc high council takes the position that no such body as the high coun C il d I o or tim the Church of or Jesus Christ ox ex fe V and aud that Mr tr Ir appeal 1 ut uc tic to the first presidency Mr lr walte contends that the appeal 13 3 directed to the high council of the church and an that the first presidency has no authority to consider the case ard ad that the first presidency Is dis disqualified disqualified qualified to hear this appeal because I o 01 f of ot f them Joseph Jo eph F Smith Is dis disqualified qualified by b his prejudices toward me mea a I 1 by his transgressions of the laws Jaws of the th church and of the land J nd see I his testimony before the senate commit committee committe I Itee tee te in the Smoot case ce Position of Authorities Clerk letter Jetter to Mr valte Waite follows Ogden Utah tah April 15 1 Charls A Esq Ogden t tan tab tabI I Itar Sir Your letter of April 7 1905 containing your appeal from the tilo decision j ef ot the thc high council of or the Weber stake In ir your case was nas received by me April 11 I having been bOEn absent from the th city at the time or delivery of ot the letter On the I evening of or April Avril li J at a meeting of the presidency nC of ot the stake I presented your our appeal and after atter full tun consideration I was Instructed ted to write you ou and advise you ou that the presidency had Instructed me to prepare the transcript on appeal but not notto notto notto to transmit It until hearing from you ou again as the appeal Is ambiguous if 1 not c in ill Its Us wording Iou Xou say In your appeal that you ou do dol l 1 rrb make written appeal and nd file fUe the E m r to be transmitted to tot 4 t r authorities Had there been r further r request it would have been t i u to comply rom ply with It and I would have havet t tD 1 n Instructed not only on I to prepare but butto butto butto to transmit tran a transcript of the papers nd In the case to the proper au auti ti s that is the first presidency or orte tc te church But you add In your our appeal V t And I make this appeal to the ther r 7 r K 1 council of ot the Church of Christ v ih th h according to the revelation from fromI I J 3 j to the Prophet Joseph Smith re 4 in section of ot the Book of or Doc tr o e and arid Covenants Is 14 to cons t of or oft t 1 r P high priests and one or three Cr LI ts t as the case may require The lat latt lath latif t if h rr rEquest quest makes it impossible to trans nM mL your jour appeal and the transcript tranS of or the tho thoa a r for such a body is Ie not the proper a nor In fact Is there any such I l jy iv in the church In other words your C C having be been n heard before the high highl I p 1 i il l of this thi stake which is n just such n i il or court as that to which you ac nL ac ct T there Is no higher council in the f I m h The only on I appeal that cnn can lie Is Ig Isto Isto to tin th first presidency of the church I Appeal Must Go to First Presidency I Sr r tion 10 of the Doctrine and Cove COIe Cover I r its contains an account of the M n of the first high hish council of the ml consequently the only high coun 7 MI in the church at that time and it Is Ie V t rr referred to as the high council r t 1 Church of Christ to p o which all r als a Ts from the th bishops courts or from t branches of the church would be DO DOi i But v verse er e 12 I of or the same Name section the proceeding to be followed a high council coun ll provides for the or orr jr r of other high councils It Ity TC y Js l as follows Whenever an high en n n r il of or th the church regularly organ z 1 ai according to the th foregoing pattern rn 4 ill Til be bf the duty dut duty etc clearly c that the growth of the church would rr 1 r t s the organization of J high I iTs As th the church chur h has grown crown this im has been followed and In all alt allf f 11 vf stakes so far as I am m jn r there is now an organized high higi I iril cil it proceeding under the same pattern nl lil down clown In the section to which you re ve ver ref f r They ThE are alt all high councils ils of the tho theor I ITU jr of or Christ and differ in no par part t Jar ir from the first council organized 1 i 1 14 1 4 and referred to In section 16 C pt that their Jurisdiction is limited to tot t tl take stake or district in which they are arc or orThis orr r zed This being so your case has al albeen albe albeen been be n heard ht Ard before such a church rt t i as that to which you rou appeal There g no high council superior to those l In the various stakes and there i ig 1 ro to provision in tU the church for an L C r il ii frum frim r m the council of one stake to tot t t f r another stake the only authority your our appeal can be transmitted d the tle first presidency of the church You i 8 of or course aware that in all these pes aes a fOS the first presidency sit as an appel appella I lat la and not as a 0 trial court that they rr lew the case c e from the record on ap apr apA A r rr 1 and do not rehear tho the case caser r he e presidency n of or the stake considered It a t jost m in fairness to yourself and to tot 1 t rm to advise you of these facts so that n T 1 might have an opportunity to amend am nd signify 91 our desire to tot v r appeal app al or to your t the appeal m ill light hint of r the ex ox r nation here h re offered if Jf It you ou wish tish tim the ther r eal eat to stand tand and It is 11 i taken to tho the thor r T roper opec authorities I will prepare the as a sp speedily as my other duties x T permit and transmit It to the first and advise you of the trans transi r i I am vc erY Y BLUTH Clerk Cl rk of ot the High Council Reply by Mr waite ite 4 To this Mr r replied as 7 follows Olden Ogden Utah April 19 J Eder L der John V Bluth Clerk of ot th the HJ Hl h Weber Stake of or Zion Dear Bear D clr ler Your favor of ot the I Is received and carefully perused peru ed In reply relI I beg to o 0 state stafe My lh appeal Is from front the decision of lf the thc high council of the Weber eber stake of Zion to the high council of tim the seat fe t of or the first presidency pre of the UT ur verses erell 26 2 and 27 7 of oC the Book of ot d Doc Doctrine trine and Covenants as follows 2 Tt shall be the duty dUt of or thip t said to the Weber eber stake high council counell which heard m my case caseto to transmit Immediately a copy cop ot of their with a full fun statement stat of or the testimony their decision to the thc high hl h council of ot the th seat eat of the first presidency tn of ot the church hurch Should the parties or either of or them be dissatisfied with the decision of or said council which I am they may appeal to the high council of the seat of th the first j r ald idne ncy of the church anti and have llave a R rehearing which cas case e shall shaU there re be conducted according to the for former former fornier mer nier pattern written as thought no such decision lon had hud been made mad madeTh The Th Weber e r stake high council eo 11 I agree Id 11 tribunal b contemplated t in verso verse 12 1 of r section t in lOt bet bat Ot Verses 28 and l d 27 provide for tur appeals from said Raid high hi h council to ft higher high council I Ie It Ie e t the tb hl h council 11 of the seat t of the t presidency of th tb church chur h This his Is the high council coun 11 which I appeal to and which I desire shall rehear ar my m case as though no such uch decision had been made as 58 has haH b be been en n made by b the Weber stake staka high council Not the First Presidency I decline to appeal a eal to the first presidency dency y of ot the church for three supreme reasons 1 There IH Is no authority In the tho rovel revelations revelations published in the th book of Doctrine and Covenants authorizing an appeal to the he first t presidency of the church hurch except in II the ease Aho of bishops and StUd high hl h priests to which departments of the priesthood I do not belong 2 My ly appeal anneal Is for a rehearing by b the only provided for in the revola revelations revelations tion and not for a H review of f the case 3 It is unreasonable to ask me to ap appeal appeal appeal peal to the first presidency though they the were the divine tribunal in this case be because cause allee one of them Joseph F P Smith SmithIs Is disqualified by b his bin prejudices toward me and b by his transgressions of ot the laws of o othe the church and of the thc land hand see tsee SE e his lila testimony testimony mony before the senate sE nate committee in tho the Smoot cas ca case from hearing my m Appeal as my alleged conduct con consists consists wholly holl of my objection to his said transgressions transgression tran and md in the statement that 1 J could not therefore ther fore support him us HI i Prophet t seer and revelator was found my alleged apostasy For the reasons herein set forth I hereby repeat my m request j for an appeal to and an for a rehearing by b the high council of the seat of or the first presidency of 01 the church h and If It as you Intimate no such body bod now exists In the church I 1 ask that the higi council of or the seat of the first presidency of ot the church be resuscitated In pursuance of verse 8 S of or said section JOe be by bv the voice of or a gen general genral oral eral ral council of high priests convened for that HuH purpose to act In the name of the hurh hunh h Signed CHARLES A i UTE |