| Show DISCOURSE ir T PRESIDENT BRIGHAM T TOUNG young tabernacle AM OF MARCH marcu 16 1856 1 BY geo GICO 1 S watta I 1 feel very thankful for the privilege that I 1 have en enjoyed joyed this morning and for the discourse that has been delivered to 0 o us it is meat and drink to me it is joy and peace truly if we are good men and good women we can make ourselves very comfortable and happy otherwise we shall be very miserable I 1 I 1 believe that itis a bell intolerable for a people a family or a single person to strive to grasp truth with one hand and error with the other to profess to walk in obedience to the commandments of god abdat and at the same time mingle heart and hand with the wicked I 1 I 1 believe that I 1 should be one of the most miserable beings upon the earth it if I 1 did not enjoy the spirit of 0 the religion which I 1 pro professed esse I 1 also believe that if every person who professes professes esses to be a latter day saint was actual actually y a saint our home would be a paradise there would be nothing heard nothing felt nothing realised realized reali sed but praise to the name of our god doing L our duty and keeping his commandments there are thousands of individuals in these val vai valleys feys and I 1 may say thousands within this cit city men aien women and children who are c constantly minding their own business living their religion and are full fall of joy from monday morning until saturday night on this account they do not obtrude them selves and their acts upon the notice of the public hence they are known but by few probably my my beloved brother vernon who has spoken t to you this morning is not known by many of ol this congregation for since his arrival in our midst he has been bren quietly and industriously practicing the principles pt of our religion for this reason a formal introduction of K br vernon to the congregation might by some have been deemed necessary but with me mormonism is out with the truth and that will answer our and is all we desire br vernon came here with elder taylor when he returned from europe ile he is riot not known except by a fenot his big asso associates clates who have been laboring with him at the sugar works but suppose he be had been guilty of swearing in the streets of getting intoxicate intoxicated of fighting fig biting and carousing he would have been a noted character and there would hardly have been a child but what would by this time have known br vernon and the expressions would have been 0 he is the man we saw drunk the other day the one whom we heard swear and saw fight the one who was tried before the high council for disorderly conduct or reproved before a general conference for his big wickedness but br vernon is almost entirely unknown because ha has lived his religion kept the com of god and minded his big own business so it is with many in this city they are known but by few they live here year after year and are scarcely cnown known in the community Y because thea they apay pay ai attention to the their thein ir own business they ey live their religion love the lord reio rejo rejoice i ice continually are happy all the day long iong ong and satisfied without making an excitement among the people this is mormonism I 1 wish we were all so I 1 should then indeed be very much pleased I 1 think such a state of society would answer my happiness not particularly my spiritual enjoyment joy ment for I 1 know that in that particular I 1 must be happy for myself I 1 must live m my religion for myself and enjoy the light of ruth for my self and when I 1 do that all hell bell cannot deprive me of it nor of its fruits my spiritual enjoyment must be obtained by my own life but it woi would wol d add much to the comfort of the community and to my happiness as one with them if everyman and woman would live their religion and enjoy the light and glory of the golip gospel ea for themselves be passive humble and faith falth faithful fu rejoice continually before the lord attend to the business they are called to do and be sure never to do anything wrong all would then be peace joy and arid tranquility in in our streets and in our houses litigation would cease there would be no difficulties before the he high ir council and bishop bishops courts and court courts turmoil and strife would not be known then we would have bave zion for all would be pure ire lre in heart Is I 1 should bould be pleased if we had a dew few few more thousands of such men as br vernon that class I 1 am happy to say is increasing this I 1 can truly say for the encouragement of this community when we reflect upon how many strange s we gather eather ather abber to these valleys those who formerly believed lieveld some of the various creeds of thedac did not fully inform them upon the principles of the gospel who come clothed upon with aiani of the diverse tradition and customs of different nations and neighbors hoobs and how harmoniously they mingle how few differences ellist ex among them how bow little strife and wickedness it is is a subject full fuli of consolation still there is mn mno more strife than we should have bave yet with all e consider how bow easily under these varied circumstances we get along how easily we pass the time and with what wha little difficulty I 1 can say in truth for the comfort and credit of this community that hat the latter day saints are indeed improving do oti you oil hear bear of any difficulty among hose those long tried and proven or among that portion of Y younger 0 u n members embers who are thoroughly imbued with i th seldom principles principles of the gospel g os hp el rarely you seldom find persons w who 0 b have ave been reared in this church or who were very young wilen wh en their parents acme into the be church creating any difficulties they grow into the truth they udder far d those principles which are taught th thy they y know the very foundation and essence of the gospel they ahry are schooled in the first rudiments of tho the education of the saints in those principles wh ich are designed for the P eole edip i n their childhood while learning of government blisse principles seem to be lost to the world judging by their present operations br vernon dauti Cauti beautifully fully tully portrayed this fat tile the principle of correct government seems lo 10 be lost by the world seems to be taken from the nations the thi very rudiments of the gospel of our salvation teach the principles best adapted to control the child and if so of course best designed to guide gulde ide his steps when lie he has advanced further in illi fife life ilfe and it if best for instruction in the he govern ment of one they mastbe for that of two and it if for that of two then they must needs be for that of a family of a neighborhood of a nation lation brid and prid of the whole earth 0 no man evers everl ever even did or ever will rule judiciously on this earth with honor to himself and glory to his god unless he first learned to rule and con troi himself A man must first learn t to 0 ir rightly rule him himself elf eif before his knowledge can be fully brought to bear for the correct government of it a family a neighborhood or nation over which it is his lot to preside Is the spirit of the government and rule here despotic in their use of th the word some may deem it so it lays the ax at the root of the tree of sin and iniquity judgment is dealt out against the transgression trang of tile the law of god if that is despotism d es 0 ti is in then the policy of this people may b be e lemed deemed e despotic but does not the government of god as administered here give to every person his rights does it not sustain the methodist Ss 19 well as the mormon the quaker equally as well as the methodist in his religious rights the jew as well as afie the gentile it does it will sustain all the religions sects and par parties les ies on the earth in their religious just as much as it will sustain the latter latler day saints in thelis theirs not that the diverse creeds are right but the agency of the believers therein demands protection for them as well as for us the law of god is pointed against sin and iniquity and where they appear it is unbending in its nature and must sooner or later hold sovereign rule against them or righteousness could never prevail do we not see this exemplified in a portion of acred sacred hest hrit luetory lu story ory when there was rebellion in heaven judgment was laid to the line and righteousness to the plummet and the evil were cast out yet there was a portion of grace allotted to those rebellious characters or they would have been sent to their native element but they must go from heaven they could not dwell there they must be cast down to the earth to try the sons sous of min men and to perform their labor in prodoc producing i ing an opposite te in all things that the inhabitants of the earth might havethe have the privilege of improving upon the intelligence given to them the opportunity for overcoming evil and for learning the principles which govern eternity that they may be exalted therein I 1 I 1 know that this people peo le are improving notwithstanding we have trill trials and are called to pass through difficulties and have to endure a season of ec scar Ecar scarcity city I 1 tell you honestly that I 1 do no not know when I 1 have been more thankful in all my life than I 1 have to see the pinching hand band of want compel every man and woman to pray god our father to give us day by day our daily bread it makes me b happy appy inasmuch b as the people will not otherwise understand that the lord does feed them in years of plenty their understandings seemed closed to this fact they did tild not appear to realize that the lord made the earth fruitful and caused it to yield its fruit bountifully and w while kl le our flocks and herds were increasing upon the mountains and plains the eyes of the people seemed closed to the operations a tl ons of the invisible hand of providence an and oie oge they were prone to say it it I 1 is is our own handy ia nd Y work it is our labor that has performed this the people are so blinded when fuley ulley ful ull they fliey ey are prospered that they do not realize that it is all due flue to the direct providence of 0 that god who is truly invisible to the world but whose operations should no not t be unacknowledged by this people it seems to be so interwoven with our nature while we are blessed and surrounded with all the t e comforts of the earth to forget that the lord furnishes these things to us then I 1 pa ay Y that I 1 rejoice when the lord brings us into cir clr cir clr wlm rim stances calculated to make us aware that if we are fed it is h m that feeds us that if we are clothed it is him that clothes us for we cannot do it ourselves that if we get tread bread bread to et e from this until harvest if it must be the hand of the lord that hat furnishes it for far of ourselves we cannot obtain it it I 1 am glad to see you brought brodig brinto into a state where you may begin to think ard and realize from whence your blessings r flow the lord rules arid ahel reigns if we could see and understand things as they are we would understand that there is is not a king u upon on his throne that there has been flom hom tie the forming of the earth to this time with out ont the lords bringing about the ci which placed that king in that position there never was one dethroned dethroner without the lords moving the circumstance circumstances i to cause it there never was a nation built bulit up and prospered except by the hand 0 of f the almighty and there never was a nation crushed and brought to naught without its being done by the generalship the invisible workings of providence the ancient proverb reads whom the go gods ds would destroy they first make mad 9 11 and it is written that the lord will destroy the wicked and he has doue done so by bringing about circumstances to tp cause them to destroy themselves do you suppo suppose ae that the lord would have i ever given a a king to israel if they had bad not re quiren one at his bands no he would have been their king and ruler and there would have been a prophet to guide them had it not bee been n for their rebellion they made choice of a kin king I 1 and god gave them one oe in his aneer anzer their rebellion a against ainest the law the agency given to them al allowing loving their free choice induced them to ask for a kiny and dod cod gave them one was it the lords choice thal thai they should have an earthly king no it was wag not his mind and will but it was the will of the people consequently he be brought about circumstances to give them kin kings kins C s and rulers according to their desire and to bring judgments upon them the prophet joseph has hag been referred to and his big pro prophecy that this people would leave leate nauvoo a and be planted in the midst of the rocky mountains we see it fu fulfilled filled this prophecy is nota not a new ailing hing it has not been hid bid in the dark nor locked up in a drawer but it was declared to the people long before we left nauvoo we see lle ile lie he invisible hand of Providenc ein all this we realize that his band has wrought out our salvation through his control of circumstances this people eople have been removed from civilization and me have been brought to inhabit these vales among the rocky mountains to dwell in these desolate and barren plains where no other people that we ire have any knowledge of would live one year if the hey cound ouid get away the providence of god has brought us here are we here in fulfillment of prophecy the world kay say that he prophet knew nothing about it that the lord had nothing to do with it that the mormons cormons Mor mons became obnoxious to them and had to leave because they were the weakest party and their enemies tile the strongest no G jod od knew nothing about all this lie he had no hand band it it but we could not live with you mormons cormons Mor mons 1 they saidee baid said lwe methodists Presby presbyter tei tans baptists etc cannot live with you one of us must leave which shall it be you mormons cormons Mor mons must leave gave if we can drive you they herald forth that i it t was us who drove you to the rocky mountains ins i s every one knows who is acquainted with your history the mormons cormons Mor mons must leave and go where no other people will go 0 and live where no other people can or wiil will live the world cannot see the hain haio of the lord in all our movements mova ments they have not eyes to see nor hearts to tinder stand that the lord showed the future to the him in vision they cannot understand that the lord produced all the circumstances which effected d tb the e removal of this people they do not now understand that the lord is bui bul building laing up his big kingdom on the earth is gathering his israel for the last time to make a great and mighty nation of this people pepie circumstances have plant planted edthe the saints in the midst of the mountains have given them a territory and a territorial government and will eer long lorig give hem them a free and in dependant state and justly make them a sovereign people circumstances will accomplish all this now in the name of common sense who rules these invisible circumstances Is it you or I 1 true to a certain permitted degree we rule govern and con troi circumstances in a great many instances but on the other hand band do not circumstances control us they do who has guided all these birc circumstances which neither we nor the prophet knew anything about was it in the power of a single man or of any set of men to create and conf cont control r ol 01 the circumstances which caused this people to be planted within these mountains the moment that you say it was not cot you acknowledge the workings of a S supreme U reme power the world ans and those of us |
