| OCR Text |
Show "Book of Mermen, jostWi Smith and Mormnism" Is the Subject' of Sermon by Rev. Mr. Huntington licv. Silas G. Huntington of the Seventh Day Advontists spoke at tho gospel tent on Postoffico plnco Tuesday Tues-day evening ou tho subject; "The Book of Morinon, Joseph Smith and Mormoni'sin.-' Itov. Mr. Huntington said: When Joseph Smith was but 14 years of age he claims to have seen a vision, and tliat In this vision both God, tlu.-c'ather, tlu.-c'ather, and Ills Son, Jesus Christ, appeared ap-peared to him In person, and revealed to him that all Christian denominations were "all wrong-," and their creeds an "abomination'" In IIU sight (P. G. P., p. S5). lie also was Informed that he (Smith) would be the instrument In the hands of God of laying tho foundation of "the only true and living church upon the face of tho whole earth" (D. C.. aec, 1;30), and that this was all fulfilled In the organization of the "Mormon church," April ti. 130. In tho language of Wider B. H. Roberts, he says: "Tne restored gospel of Jesus Christ, then, Is tho claim which Mormonlam mokes for Itself." "Wo know." he continues, "tho claim is a bold one. It challenges the position of all religions re-ligions and socts" (Monnonlsm, p. 11). In this church la to be found the Book of Mormon, claimed by Mormonlsm to have been translated by their prophet, Joseph Smith, from certain gold plates he found hid In a hill called Cumorah, Now York, and as was said by a speaker In tho tabernacle a little over a week :io, a work of "greater clarity and authenticity" au-thenticity" than the holy scriptures. It Is also claimed that tho' books called "Doctrlno and Covenants" and "Pearl of Great Price" are authoritative works embracing em-bracing revelations and translations by Smith. Now, in view of these bold claims. Iterated and reiterated limes without number in I lie teachings of the Mormon church. It can not be thought strange If occasionally one of that class Smith holds up as "corrupt professors" should step aside for a. moment now and then to Inquire In-quire the validity of Smith's prophetic gift, his revelation and the church he founded. Was Joseph Smith a prophet of God? Is the Book of Mormon the word of God? Arc the other writings of Smith and the teachings of Mormonlsm generally the truth? Theso arc riuestlons, not for "statesmen" necessarily, as Mr. Roberts says, for If so our Mormon fr!enLs arc to bo pitied still Uie more, but for honest investigation In the light of divine truth. The rule, and only infallible rule by which Iruth is to be tested, is given by the prophet Isaiah in these words: "To tho law and to the tesllmonv, If they speaJc not according to this word It Is because there is no light in them." Tims tho question resolves Itself at once Into a very simple one. the merits ot which aro easily tested. Therefore, do the claims of Smith as a prophet of God and his teachings agree with the teachings teach-ings of the Holy Scriptures? ' The proof of the pudding In the eating," T-el us see. Tulto the. origin of the Book of Mormon to begin with. It is said that Moroni, an agol. once a man, directed Smith to the gold plates from which It is claimed the book wus translated. Now, the uureasonablencsH of this is quickly shown. First "While men may become ccpial to the angels, they never become angels. Angels are an order of beings greater than and created before man. (Gen. .1:21; Col. 10; Hcb. 2:5-7). Second Sec-ond According to the Scriptures man does not receive his eternal reward until the resurrection In the end of tho world. Tho angels arc the reapers, and the harvest is the end of the world. Think of the idea of the angels coming to earth to harvest themselves! Third Elder Nephl L, Morris, an exponent of Mormonlsm. Mor-monlsm. adlmis that the style of the Book of Mormon is different from that of the Bible. Ho lays It to the "diverse section" of the world In which the book was written and "environment." (Desorct News. Aug. 1, 1910.) According Accord-ing to the Bible, all true prophets speak by tho same spirit, nor is there with God any "variableness" or "shadow of turning." turn-ing." But here Mormonlsm virtually declares de-clares that "localities" and. "environment" "environ-ment" may and nUuoIly did in this instance in-stance Influence God's style of address. Sheer nonsense. 1th. That such men as Moroni and Mormon ever lived wo liavo no record only that of Smith in the Book of Mormon Mor-mon and the product of his own hand. The proof of the divinity of Smith's vis-Ions vis-Ions and the Book of Mormon run something some-thing like a recently returned missionary mission-ary said to mc the other day. "Do you believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God?" I asked this missionary. "Yes." was his reply. I asked again why ho believed thus. He answered, "Because the Book of Mormon Is an inspired volume." vol-ume." I then ashed him who wrote the Book of Mormon, and ho said "Joseph Smith." Thus it is"; one must believe In Joseph Smith because tho Book of Mor mon Is an inspired volume, and one must believe that the Book of Mormon Is an Inspired volume because Joseph Smith wrote it. Convincing proof, Indeed! nth. But wo are confronted with tho witnesses lo the Book of Mormon, Oliver Cowdery. David "Wliltmer, and Martin Harris, and told to look at them. "Very well, lei us look at them, and look at them. too. as wo llnd their history In Mormon books. Oliver Cowdery, It Is said on page 2ni) of "New Witnesses for God," by lOlder B. II. Roberts, was "excommunicated "excom-municated from the church for his sins," the specific charge being. "1st Persecuting Perse-cuting the brethren by urging on vexatious vexa-tious law suits against ihem, and thus distressing the Innocent. 2nd Seeking to destroy the character of Joseph Smith, Jr., by falsely insinuating that ho was guilty of adultery. 3rd Treating the church with contempt by not attending meetings. Ith Leaving his calling, to which God had appointed him by revelation, revela-tion, for Hie sake of filthy lucre, and turning to the practice of law. 5th Disgracing the church by being connected connect-ed In the 'bogus' business, as common report says." ld-p. 25;!. Cowdery was out of the church for about eleven years and died soon after being taken back. David "Whit'mer was excommunicated from tlie church about five years before Joseph Smith was shot and never did return. Tho sins with which ho was charged are as follows: "1st Not observing ob-serving the Word of Wisdom. 2nd Unchrlslianliko conduct In neglecting to attend meetings and uniting with and possessing1 the same spirit as the dissenters. dis-senters. 3rd Writing letters to tho dissenters dis-senters In ICIrtland, unfavorable to the t.ause and character of Joseph Smith, Jr. -1th 'Neglecting the duties of hla calling, and separating himself from the church. 3th Signing himself president of the Church of Christ In an Insulting letter to the high council, after he hail been cut off from tho presidency." Id-p. Martin Harris, though never excoininu-! excoininu-! ideated from the church, separated hlin-! hlin-! self from it about 1S3S. and had practl-! practl-! cally nothing- to do with It for over thirty ' years. Speaking of Harris, Elder Roberts j says: "It is evident that his mind became be-came somewhat darkened; for after the I martyrdom of tho Prophet Joseph, In 1 1SH, when various persons arose clalm- lug the right of leadership In the church. ' Martin Harris for a time supported the claims of James J. Strang, and under the auspices of the hitter's pseudo-church or-, or-, ganfxallou went to England 011 a mission. in 1SIG " Id-p. G. I Krom these extracts, taken from tho pen of tlie Mormons themselves, it must I appear to all thai at best these men , were of the weak, vacllatlng sort. Therefore. There-fore. Is It possible that such double-minded, double-minded, unstable men as these, men who I would slander, graft and swlndlo their . brethren one day. and then In acrobatic stylo change their stunt to that of holv witnesses for the. miraculous the next, ; be the kind of men God has chosen upon whom to establish the "only true and living 1 hureh upon the face of the whole earth" In these last days? Well, hardly. Think of It. every last one of the throe 'witnesses left the church in one way or another. Wliltmer never returned, though Cowdery and Harris, poor, sickly plants, wandered back with tho saving 1 grace in the eyes of the .Mormon church that tliev never forsook their testimony to tho Book of Mormon. It Is also said 1 that Wliltmer who went off with tho Church of, Christ stuck to his testimony. But we ask what Is tho value of such testimony? Dowlo also died bearing his testimony that he wns was Elijah tlio Third. Swcdenborg declared that he saw-God, saw-God, and talked with spirits and angels, arid died with his testimony. Ann Lee, the leader of tho Shakers, had visions and revelations and died In the faith that she was In direct touch with tho Almighty. Al-mighty. Poanna Southcott died In her delusions as a prophetess. Mahomet also, as likewise scores of oilier deluded vislon-Ists. vislon-Ists. false prophets and religious cranks. Many a maloiactor also has protested his Innocence when standing before the Judge to be sentenced. Even Prophet Joseph P. Smith could testify under oath before congress to what he after-wards declared In the tabernacle was a lie, and make himself think he was doing God's service. Testimony! Yes. one can get all he wants of that, of most any kind to most anything. any-thing. But Is it a question of testimony, living or dying that Is wanted? Does either make a lio Iho truth? Absurd. The question is ono of fact In the light of God's word and facts In this case are hard against the claims of Mormonlsm. 1 say then, away' with such sentimental nonsense. Joseph Smith and his three witnesses, as likewise tho second batch of eight witnesses, three of whom also either left the church disgusted with It or were cxcommunlcatod for their sins, may have thought they nuw something, perchance they did, gold plates, maybe, angels, Christ and even tho eternal God, and died under such nn hallucination, but Is that proof sufficient tnat tney wore led of God? Spiritualism, a Satanic agency, with Its many signs and wonders Is abio lo account for all such pretended revelations. Even from the tlmo of Eve until' now and till time shall close the Devil has been and will, be busy either In the form of a serpent, an angel of light, or some poor weak mortal preaching preach-ing his gospel and making converts for tlie Infernal regions. The Apostle Paul prophesied that Just such deceptions as Mormonlsm would arise In the last days. Manifestly, then, the Book of Mormon Is no more of Divine origin than tho first Ho the devil told In Eden, or Is Joseph Jo-seph Smith anv more a nrotmet of God than wore Jannes and Jambrcs. Egyptian magicians, who withstood Moses in the courts of Pharaoh, To harmonize the Book of Mormon and the works of Jo-soph Jo-soph Smith with the Bible, therefore. Is impossible. They do not agree. But si III adhering strictly to tho rule laid down by Isaiah as the standard of truth we proceed with our investigation. In Doctrino and Covenants. Sec. SI, par. 57, I note that Joseph Smith says that tho Book of Mormon is tho New Covenant. Cove-nant. In Sec. l.'In, Smith's biographer says that the Book of Mormon was sealed with tho blood of the Smitns. Docs this revelation agroe with the Bible? Unfortunately Un-fortunately for Mormonlsm It happens that the Abrahamlc or New Covenant was made with Abraham J572G years before be-fore Joseph Smith was born, and that It was ratified nearly 1800 years by the blood of Christ on the cross before the Book of Mormon was ever heard tell or. Do prophets of God make such terrible mistakes as this? But again, T notice In Sec. 121, par. 58, of Doctrlno and Covenants, these words: "And ns I said unto Abraham concerning tho klndrcO& of the earth, even so I say unto my servant serv-ant Joseph, In thco and In thy seed shall the kindred or Die earth bo blessed." Paul says the seed promised to Abraham and the only seed In whom the kindreds of the earth could possibly be blessed was Chrlsl. (Gal. 3 10.29.) Therefore, ir the same blessing promised to Abraham was also to come through Smith, and tho revelation of Smith says so, that makes Abraham" and - Smith snarcholdcrs In the lineage of Christ after the flesh, although Christ was born or the Virgin Mary more than 1S00 years before Smith ever saw the light of day. or the pedigreed pedi-greed dynasty he set up through which holy blood might flow appeared to take tho reins of God's kingdom on tlie oarlh, establish the holy order of Enoch,, assume as-sume the vlccgcrcncy of Christ, pronounce pro-nounce palrlarchlal blessings, and administer ad-minister bread and water to tho faithful with authority! But, of course, all this is Just as plain to the Mormon priesthood priest-hood as need be. for being gifted with authority all Ihcy need to do Is to call for their mini and thunimlm goggles, look wise and the mists soon clear away! Verily It Is clear, yes as mud. But again I notice In the Book of Mormon chapter 20 of TI Nephl, and likewise in section 12S. paragraph 7 of Doctrine and Covenants that men aro to be judged out of books written by Mormon Mor-mon scribes hero on earth. But tho BIblo savs It Is by God's Iftw men shall bo Judged, and out of the books of Heaven. Just another slight mistake, but as easllv patched up as any other. I suppose. If you simply apply a good Mormon plaster to the weak spoil Again In II Nephl. chapter 2. T rend that death was ordained of God. that Adam and Eve would liavc had no children luul they not sinned, nor Known any joy. isui mui to tho Corinthian church declared that death Is an enemy; and the command to mulllplv, Moses declares, was given of God to man before the fall. Another square contradiction, but perhaps an Instance In-stance where the Bible Is at fault not being translated properly! Section 8S, puragraph li of Doctrine and Covenants says the spirit and body Is the soul of man. The Bible says "Tho dead know not anything." (Eccl. 9:5). Elsewhere in the teachings of Mormonlsm It Is declared that the spirit is the real man and never dies. Strange harmony. Is It not? Section 130. puragraph 3 of Doctrine and Covenants declares that "the idea that the Father and Son dwell In a man's heart Is an old sectarian notion and Is false." Contrarv to this the Bible re-peatedlv re-peatedlv declares that God abides with all His believing children. (Eph. 317. John 11-23. 1 John -1: 12-15). This doctrine doc-trine may be an old sectarian notion .according .ac-cording lo Mormonlsm. but Us denial cer-talnlv cer-talnlv sounds the death knell to Mormonlsm Mor-monlsm as a spiritual, regenerating system sys-tem of religion. Mormontsm to the contrary, con-trary, notwithstanding. Joseph Smith and his successors also leach the continuation of the Anionic priesthood since the Cross, thai Mornion-isni Mornion-isni holds It. etc. This too. Is In direct conflict with the Holy Scriptures, which teach that the Aaronlc priesthood ceased at the Cross. Other teachings found In the Book of Mormon and lite, writings of Smith, such as the New Jerusalem being be-ing built In Independence Mo.; thafman Is Ihe offspring of God by procreation; that polygamy is of God; that the living can bo baptized for tlie dead; that men become Gods; that the gospel was taken from tho earth for a period of hundreds of years since Christ; that God was once ;is "men are now; that Missouri was the original Eden etc.. a., of which is so contrary to the Holv Scriptures that It lnrdly seems possible that men of Intelligence In-telligence could ever be Induced to believe be-lieve in such stuff. But I know that the Mormon church ilocs not like to bo stood up by the side of the Bible and compared with It. Smith : feared the consequences of this and tried to escape the condemnation justly due him with the bluff Hint tlio Bible was lnsuflkinnl as a rule of faith and practice. prac-tice. Thus he says: "Thou fool, that shall say. a Bible, wc have got a Bible, and wc need no more Bible. Wherefore, because that you have a Bible, yc need not suppose that It contains all mv words; neither need yon suppose thai T have not caused more to be written." (B. M. II Nephl o.0:UJ-10). Hence the man who takes the Bible as his rule of fail I) and practice, accord'.ig lo Smith, is a fool. To be a wiae man. therefore, one must believe what Smith says Instead, swallow down nil his Incredible teachings, absurdities ab-surdities and nonsense and go on ns though ho wero already walking the gold paved streets of the Now Jerusalem. Vciilv, one does not so much as need Clirls"t within, the hope of glory, that If an "old Keetarlan notion and is false," says .Smith. Just merely accept Mormon-Ism. Mormon-Ism. pay your tithe, get as many wives about you ns you can. etc.. ami a. god-ship god-ship is assured you without further ipilb-ble! ipilb-ble! Verily that Is Mornionlsm In a nut shell. Contrasted with the Bible It lacks all the oar marks of Divine Truth and should be given no placo In the worship of the people of God. |
