Show TEMPLE ORDINANCES AND COVENANTS l Important Discourses Delivered by Presidents and Lund nt at the lice General Conference in Thc lilt Salt Lake City Octo October cr 6 1093 i PRESIDENT JOHN JOlIN R n WINDER I I 1 nut verY glad brethren and amI I to havo opportunity ot of with you In hi this con terence and I pray i that the ot of tho nho Lord nay muy bo be out upon us this on liD no It tine hus been thus tar TwO or thinGs mentioned y t that I havo thought bout about I tot tod tY IY Ono One was In relation to gather Ir rg A comparison was made between th the gathering ot of the Sainte and the tho or gathering of at the tho theS S Arm Army It truck me very that there thero woo was no proper com coin comparison parison then them The rhe gathering ot of th the day Saints was Inaugurated ed cd by revelation through Joseph Smith the Prophet It Is past patt and parcel of at the thc Gospel Jo pel of at this last anti and It was ass pr preached ached In n a very early day dayI I remember distinctly that when I tint hear l the tho Oos el there thero was little sold about the tho gathering but It was WIlS very that every person who time the Gospel began to prepare to gher with the When Whon they rec the tho t I icy ley receIved the ot of gathering with It As I under It tho Salvation truly rIllY la Is simply colonizing I think there Is between tho of ot the day l and the ot or Lao rely Another matter mentioned m was hr re to It 11 was stated that some ome of at the tho denominations are commencing to pay tithing Now I remember that I ds s Ion long ago as when I IWA WA wren a of at the Church ot of Eng England land the tho prInciple ot of tithing WM way taught In that church But there thero wal one between the tho tithing col collected rued there and tho tithing ot of the tho Saints one was collected by bylaw law the tho other la a voluntary Lion I have huo known a 11 to seat hla tram Into the grain leI a tako shock at the tenth tenth horl or grain out ot the field It If the moan man dill did pot pay the tho money I have seen Cecil juts myself So It Is III nothing particularly new lIew to them though it II may ha 10 tn lO the Iho I look upon the tithing or of the tho Latter da dap Saints all entirely different to tn that by other denominations The of oC titling tithing clime came to us by rove reo ell nUon on the came amo na as did all the tho norea of at tho lie Church while the brethren were speak speaking Ing of oC these thes accepting some of at the Ot of the Gospel It occurred to mo me that It would not be te a abad abad bad thing It they thoy every ono one ot of the ot of the Gospel th Y them because It ft would have hale the tho effect to bettor better time tho condition of oC nil the II people olla In the tho world I have havethe havethe the same opinion regarding that as I have hale tin In relation to the tha 01 m In the temples It t lies has been said that things are taught In the temples which cannot be spOken ot of outside I wont want to tell you OU who have been heen there know knoll what whitt I SO nay is 18 the tho every principle taught there Is ot of n 1 holy and sacred character They art are artall ell all calculated to male make people better to tomake I make better fathers better botter And b better citizens of at the United States This statement could be verified by In tidy this con l So true if fl this that one ot of a stake hu has commenced to organize the people In Ia his stake to go to the temple and work for tor the dead and one reason ho he assigns far tor doing thle Is that the people she to ordinance work In the templo make mako better members ot of It a ward better hetter fathers and mothers and better botter consequently ho all 1111 the people In his slake to go to the tho temple and partake ot of the and amI spirIt ot of that ho holy house I think this Is nn an example might well t min to followed t by other ot of lion where they thoy are so eo that they can do 10 It The Prophet Jo Joseph ph Smith sold be foro fora his hla that the one thing that was ns exe eking his mind moro more than Imp other was In relation to the ord Inan s for tor the dead It la 10 true n a con cono work has hn been and Is III being done dOM In our temples About ordinances bare been performed In nil the tho temples and about have havo been performed during durInA the past year rear In hi the Salt Lake Jake Temple hut But we lYO can enn do more It thIs Is as Important ns as the tho Prophet Joseph Bald It was surel surely It Is III our duty duly to attend fn 10 it II and not put It ort wince when r we lW have halo time the opportunity This Is III 1 a n attar worth worthy the ot of nil the th of Let them ell en your ae g nc o to t o gO o to the th house oC the J ml o redeem the lt dMd tho 1011 L d bla Uti us In III all our labors and any mire 10 so live before l i the Lord that lIe we may always s have 1 a claIm upon Ills Is IsI I my pr rr in III the name ot of Jesus Allien Aspen i I t It i H 11 LUND Time rho subject Brother Winder alluded for COI the a very ery Inter Interesting esting one It Is n a principle peculiar to the tho Gospel nil as preached by us There are churches whose members belleve In praying for Cor the dead but we believe In III working for tor the tho dead It was a new thing when the Prophet Jo rh h laid tills before the tho world The Tho Christian world wold lad had been taught for lun ot of cars that death ends all 1111 with mUll t It lie ho did not believe bellevo In Christ at his death there thelo was us no far 01 h him When Then you OU consider the thel small number ot of the tho Inhabitants of at tho thoI I I vho have heard ot of the name mune ot of Christ Chrlot and then thon think ot of nil all the rest being damned bemuse they dill did not obey oboy that which they had never lIever heard time the Inconsistency anti injustice of such sucha a 11 doctrine as that Is very ery apparent The Gospel ot of Christ was ryas formulated 11 in inlove love loe God Is love lie He loved Ills lIts dill dren dlen so 80 much that lie sent Ills Only Son Sol who gave savo himself a I sac sae for tor the tha ilna of at all Jesus came and filled Ills mission Ills 1115 name has hall bren h n preached to the nations for tor con cen thrice Yet Vet the Christian world today tollay doos doeN not constitute II a third ot of the whole population or of the globe globo The other two thirds do tint bello In and when l the they tile uc u I i g 0 some i fleets ti r chance ot of salvation ea t allon Is gone Kona We believe bellove that the tho OO lel Is III much broader than this Wo h believe that the Illan ot of sal formulated this hlll earth Polled Into existence was framed by heavenly beings who could coult see sel the fut tut future ure UIe and who understood what would 1 lake place anti were able to provide for tor the salvation ot nt Ill all who should inhabit thIs earth They rhey dill dl so AO lye e have 1 learned through the Prophet Joseph that there thero is h a possibility ter those who have departed In 10 hen the t tr truth th to e belleve In God In Ills flon on to re repent Pout pent to t o have hae the tho ordinances or nt the tho performed for tor them J i know that many have held that these doc are 1110 blasphemous hut but they are 1110 not they rhey alt me principles that thit give hano unto men You love heard a per haps or of the tho savage chief who was converted by ty the Christians and liS he runs going oto to 10 o stop alep Into o the waters ot of baptism he o askel what had become ot of his and his hili forefathers ers The priest who teas to In baptize him I n little more mora zealous than wise told him they hud had nil all gone to hell lIo ho stepped hack anti ond said suld Then rhen I want to ro go where the they have gone Konc Nors Noll those who hear henr the Gall Gos pet Iel today may ask osk where their tore fore fathers have gone and It can be said to them thein They all shall hear henr the tho namo ot of Christ to for I the Gospel will be preached unto them therm It If they have not heard It here they will hear hoal It yonder and every knee shall how bow und and every cery tongue shell shall confess Ills Ilia name nama lie He member It 1 t Is the tho spirit In n inn IMn that hears anti and understands and wills This tabernacle or of lay dilly la is not capable ot of these functions The spirit uses the different to obtain perceptions tram from the tho outer world And when the tho spirit leaving the tho body goes Into the spirit world It cnn enn still think and will and r reason The intelligent part of at mist man does not nol tile IlIe At some tine or oth other r those thosa authorized to Preach the tho Gospel will minister unto flee tho In the tho spirit world anti lay before them the glorious principles ot of truth the tho thief on the cross 1 asked the SavIor to remember him when lie He carne came Into Ills Jesus saw that lint the roan was penItent that he hail n broken heart hearl and n contrite spirit and ho he comforted him with the promise that tad a thou he be with me In paradise I do not think lIe Ito hel held l out It a fallacious hope to this mall when lie laid Balli that he should be with limn III that dl day I believe lint when the Saviors heft lett Ills HIs body hody hanging upon the tree It went Into paradise anti Ito He gladdened tile hearts ot of the tho spirits there with the glorious tidings that lie had harl conquered that lIe IIa had given Ills HIs life lite for tor their and that everything they thoy had done in III their worship pointing for tOI forward ward to Ills His great grent sacrifice had been fulfilled thereby giving validity to their What joy must have havo tilled filled them when the they hoard heard hut lie Ire did not visIt them alone Ho wont Went further Into the spirit world lIe Ho vIsited the spirits III prison who had once heard and rejected the Gospel Ito He preach preached e ed the ao Gospel pel unto them so Peter tell tells II us Peter also gIves us to under understand stand who they wore They were the tho antediluvians who rejected the message ot of salvation as preached by the Gospel preacher Noah These heard the voice ot of the tho SavIor In the tho spirit world No doubt they had maple to con milder and repent of at their nets acts and were longing for tor the tho time spoken ot of by Isa lah when the prison doors should be opened mid the captives should go tree free Christ dill did this according to Peters testimony Why Wh did Ito He preach to them Item Sonic Some have havo meld hell that Ile He did so 80 to them oVer the had lost Oh nol That WM was not the mis Sian or of Jesus Ito preached glad tid logs Ings unto them nM amid Ito He opened their Prison doors An opportunity was given en In tho nho spirit world for tor them tu to receive and obey oboy thin the So wIth our forefathers who died without n a knowledge 1 of o the tho pUrIO purposes es of at God rhey will have n chanco to hear and the Gospel Jesus In Ills with mus laid down the tho law which must b bo obeyed by all who shall enter the icing dent Ot of hell heaven ven J Except a 11 mart bl be horn born or of water and Ot of the tho Spirit ho he cannot enter Into the of at God In other 1101 words 18 the tho In Inv was laid Inid down In the fraternal councils that baptism I ii necessary to salvation limit the tho epic ite cannot ho be baptized How there fore rore can the they obey otey thIs law It must be borne In mind that Jesus extended thIs laW late to nil ali Some have gone gOlle so tar as to Ia pay that hint It Includes little children also but the Lord has hns ed cd unto us that children before they arrive nt at the tho years CArli ot of accountability are without sir alII and therefore It ft Is not noL n necessary to them th m tin h lug Ing for the remission or of R sin On n one J dc cas 1011 hell held up lr t n little child chil I and unto Ills His disciples elIes t ln 0 be converted And become become as dren yB I shall not enter Into time the king Icing dom ot of heaven On another occasion in speaking Ot of children lie Ho or Of such much is III the tho of at h heaven nen But after they arrive at the years earll ot of ac they must obey y this law This t law lan applyIng to nil men how shall those who ha have vo tiled died obo obey It od In Ills IlIa mercy has provided that may p perform this ordinance for them In the flesh and this work Is attended to In temples Wo We final the Lord for tor this glorious doctrine It I our hopes for tor those whom we 1 love lovo anti who did not obey the require requirements meats ments of at mho tho Gospel III ht life Wo We ro re jolce that they can hayo havo the In the tho other nth er alta Ite But tho e In n this mortal life lite must bo be baptized tor thein This Is not 1 a now new doctrine Paul understood It and used med It In his day as n II strong argument In favor ot of the resurrection Ot Of what use ule would It ho to baptize anyone It if there thore wore no I remu Bead Hend time the verse ot of 1 the chapter or of First I Else lse what shall the they do which me baptized for tor the tho dead It t the dead rise not at all Why are the they then thon bap for tor the dead dond 7 Whoa When In England r attended the tho fun lUn eral Ot of n a nie member niber ot of the I h church and heard henrJ the rend fend the beautiful chapter containing this verse I wondered what they thought ot of that verse erso hut Dul the they read It Itane ane nail never nuver commented upon It I 1 see though that Dean Farrar In his book on The Early Days of at Christianity says sas It Christ preached to dead men ho were on once co disobedient then Scrip turn turo shows us that the moment ot of each does not necessarily Involve a 11 final Onal and hopeless torment for tor every evory sinful soul Now we believe that the tho In law II laid down by Jesus to Nicodemus must bo be obeyed and that men In III time the flesh cnn can obey It by proxy for those who have hao departed For I or this reason renson We e have built temples 1 Yon may ny may we have hae only I a small number ot of temples that very cry tow few can call enter theme lime and that the tho myriads ot of spirits III the tho spirit world bo be reached by the mere handful of at people who ale performing vicarious work hero on the earth In to this I will say sa lIe we believe those there will be ba ample amplo time In the future Wt We do Ill all that la is In our power while God gives given us days to hive fn and we know there thero lire are many more going to jolt time the ranks ot of time tho Saints Thu Tho Gospel will spread this land will bo be the land lall ot of Zion temples will bo be built In various localities from one end ot of It to the other othol and the tho Saints ot of Clod living In the tho Millennium will wIli have precious labor to per perform form torm Then the tho veil ell I bello believe will bo be much thinner between the spIrIt world worl worland and this mid wo we will work for the tho dead not only In faith that those for whom we labor will accept the tho but with u Inh nn an actual knowledge that lint they the theare are longing for tor the to te donI I I took upon Ullon the tho work for reI the dead ns as a most glorious principle While I am speaking about time the Tern Tem pies I want to mahO A declaration hero before you any brethren amid We havo hao ben been accused of at entering Into covenants In those holy edifices which are aro unpatriotic and against OUr gov ov Now I declare here hOre solemnly before you ou pmt those thero is 18 not n a word ot of truth In It that nobody Is called upon to take oath or covenant that militates against our government III fu the mho least tie do Krel gree On time tho other land hand I will 1111 say that those who obey the tho covenants they enter Into there thoro will b be bettor better citizens because of at It They rhey cannot help it II hOe be because cause th they make covenants there thore to servo ere the Lord to do right unto Into |