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Show A TITHE-GRABBER'S "TIME." Tho Logan Republican, in its issue of N'ovembor 27, .1009, prints a report of a sormou delivered 1)3' President Joseph F. Smith in tho Logan tabernacle taber-nacle on Sunday, November 21, 1909. President Smith said, in part: But when we come to sum It up after all. tho largest portion of our llmo Is ox-pended ox-pended In gathering to ourselves tho things of thin world, and but si small portion of our llmo Is devoted lo those principles, thoso groat gifts and blessings of (ho gospel of Jesus Christ, which cannot, perish, which "moth and rust cannot corrupt," and which nothing can destroy. In this, as in other respects, President Pres-ident Smith is regarded as tho most prominent figure in the church nu exemplar ex-emplar and onsnmplo to tho inhabitants of all tho world. And his t.ostimoii3' shows thai, he is living up to tho part. It is a nolablo fact that ho soldom preaches' to the saints nowad.oys, contenting con-tenting himsolf with merely addressing them at tho semi-annual conferences. His sermon at Logan comes as a break in the rule. As to the attention ho pa3s lo "thoso principles, thoso great gifts and blessings" of which ho speaks, it is onl3' necessary lo go to his Washington Washing-ton testimony for information. Therein There-in ho confesses that so far as devotion to "principle" is concerned, he has voluntary- chosen to disregard tlie command of tho Almighty reserving lo himself the right to obey or dis-obcy dis-obcy God just as ho pleases. It is also admittod 1)3' him (speaking of "those great gifts") that, while ho prclonds to possess prophetic gifts ho docs nol cxerciso them that ho has never uttered ut-tered a prnphcc3 in all his life. Concerning Con-cerning tho "gift " of revelation which he claims to have, ho confesses that this also has lain dormant with him that he has never once recoived a revelation, revela-tion, lie pretends to bo a seer, and is sustained as such b3" his church; but not. j'ct has ho over exercised the superior su-perior prescienco presumed lo accompany accom-pany the possession of this "gift." But thero is a reason for all this. Joseph F. explained it at Logan when ho said that "tho largest portion of our time is expended in gathering lo ourselves tho things of this world." President Smith of Iho Mormon church is also president of. or a director di-rector in, more than a scoro of big business concerns. As such president or director ho draws his pn3r for attendance attend-ance upon meetings. There being monoj in it, ho prefers not to neglect these duties to attend, to thoso of a rolig ions character. So far as ho is personally person-ally concerned, the "moth and rust" scare holds no terrors that doctrine is well enough for the saints. For his part, the foundations of tho houso of Smith are to bo laid in sugar trust transactions, stock dealings, real cslalc sales and purchases, mercantile shopping, shop-ping, life and lire insuranco policies, knitting factories, publishing houses, banks and tho tithe graft. So that, under these circumstances, how can thoro bo much timo for ro-ligious ro-ligious work, or attention to "principles," "prin-ciples," or cultivation of "gifts" of a spiritual nature'? As a rule Joseph F. wants fo be the whole thing or nothing; and in this caso he presents the greatest personal example of the failing of which he complained at Logan. |
