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Show THE CHANGING BELIEFS. Elder Thomas Hull delivered an address ad-dress at the tabernacle on Sunday afternoon aft-ernoon last. In looking over a sj'nop-sis sj'nop-sis of the address as given by tho morning morn-ing church organ, wc find Mr. Hull roportcd as follows: Mormonlsm. ho said, was perhaps the most discussed and at the same time the least understood of any religion on earth; excepting possibly Mohammedan-Ism Mohammedan-Ism or Buddhism. He said Mormonlsm had been before the world for many years, and lie regarded It as remarkable thai so many persons In tho United States had ouch a slight know edge of the beliefs of the Mormon people. Why should Elder Hull foci astonishment aston-ishment at tho condition described by him? How is anyone- to understand Mormonism while ono is unable to find it in the same place two days in succession, suc-cession, so to speak? Let us" explain tho situation in part. In the beginning of Mormonism Joseph Jo-seph Smith announced tho unswerving belief in one God, the Eternal Father of all and the Creator of tho universe. Later on there became many gods, ono of whom was Adam; and this theory gradually developed into tho pronouncement pro-nouncement that, thcro wero as many-gods many-gods as thoro were worlds, and that each man obeying tlio requirements of the Mormon faith in aH their fulness should in turn become a god. Their progeny, too, wero to rise to their own godships, as well as their children after them. They got tho matter of god6 so tangled up that they were unablo to untangle un-tangle it themselves. The thing got entirely beyond them; so how aro they to expect others to unravel that which they have so hopelessly knotted up 7 Ask a Mormon to explain tho Mormon tjieory of godships, and you will be answered an-swered with a far-away, startled look and an undclayod "slopo"' for moro comfortable quarters. Either that, or he will make such a Horry bluff at clu cidation that if you don't laugh it will' be because you arc as charitable as you aro polite. How, then, is an outsider to understand the ever-changing nonsense? Once upon a time there were supposed sup-posed manifestations at Mormon meetings meet-ings of the "gift of tongues nnd tho interpretation thereof.." So much folb' and trouble grow out of these exhibitions exhibi-tions that they were quietly inhibited by the authorities. Yet they wero formerly for-merly announced as being "signs following fol-lowing believers" in Mormonism. What is an outsider to bolicvo or understand under-stand -from this change if he 'is able to understand anything about the thing at all? Besides, whoro is tho Mormon who can give satisfactory reason for abandonment of "signs" of such importance im-portance to tho faith in which he bo-liovcs7 bo-liovcs7 Then there was the belief in polygamy. polyg-amy. Times without number it has been asserted by tho Mormon chief authorities au-thorities that tho doctrine and practice prac-tice wero in tho church to stay, and that no power on earth could romovo them. Later on enmo the Woodruff manifesto inhibiting tho practice. And still later enmo the rncrudoBccnco of polygamy. Whore is tho church nt with rospect to this itom? Wo guarantee that no lay Mormon can accurately define the attitude of tho church in this mattor. How, therefore, may a Gontilo? In the early days of tho church thoro woro wondrous "miracles" porformcd by the laj'iug on of hands, if wo arc to believe tho published statements in old Mormon prints, Wc hoar of no such things now. What is tho Gentile to understand from this chango? In its inception, Mormonism was announced an-nounced to the world by its founders to bo a system devoted ontiroly to the worship of God. Now it is merely a combination of commercial scheming and political intrigue How is an outsider out-sider to make a religion out of that I Thero aro so many other somersault? that thcro is not space to mention thorn here. Until Eldor Hull himself knows where to find Mormonism from ono day to another, it will not bo timo for him-to him-to wonder that outsiders aro unable to locato it1 |