| Show SERMON by president brigham Brig hama hara young tabernacle noy NOT REPORTED by GEO gro i D WATT I 1 am happy haply for the privilege of standing before the saints it is a great pleasure to me to ass associate 0 clate with those whose feelings are concentrated cent rated in the establishment of peace and righteousness upon the earth I 1 before I 1 heard the gospel as again revealed in its purity bority through joseph the prophet I 1 was tolerably well acquainted with the spirit disposition tact and talents possessed by the children of men and tho thol I 1 was then but about thirty years of age yet I 1 had bad seen and heard enough to make me well acquainted with the people in their acts and dealings one towards another the result of which was to make m me e sick tired disgusted avith with the world and had it been possible I 1 would have withdrawn from all peo people le except a few who like myself would leave t the E e vain vain foolish wicked vi cleed and jing ing customs and practices of the world sorrow w wretchedness death deatle mis misery ry disappointment anguish pain of heart and crushed spirita spirits prevail over the earth and apparently the whole of the intelligence of mankind is directed in a way to produce cruel and unnatural re suits since I 1 have been in this church and kingdom I 1 have endeavored to learn and treasure up wisdom and good url uri understanding lder standing and then not notto to forget them I 1 have endeavored to gather to myself every principle that would promote note righteousness in me and thosa those who A vo i ld hearken 0 o my counsel held head the history of any kingdom or nation and trace through all the channels froin froia the history of nations and kingdoms to that of families and individuals who ho bave have not known god nor observed his pis commandments and you will find that sorrow and disappointment have baVe been intimately mingled in all the gaiety lux uries and pretended enjoyments enjoy ments of their mortal lives they have found a bitter sting in their happiest moments and a deadly poison in their cups there is no man or woman on the earth who can enjoy solid satisfaction unalloyed peace and comfort but in the holy spirit of our religion in the gospel of salvation that is the only source of true hap Lap happiness read the history of those who can command the wealth we althof of th the 0 world to minister to their happiness and they find it not in authority station nor wealth from the monarch upon his bis throne to the most degraded ingrad ed beggar upon the streets all who enjoy not the gospel are destitute ot of the source of tru true trub e happiness it is not to be found among them when the portals of heaven are opened and the priesthood of god is given be so blesses the people that they can truly understand the principles that tend to peace to glory immor bality and eternal lives that and that alone can give true satisfaction to our spirits which are organized and continue to increase in principles of light intelligence power and glory organized to be preserved to eternally associate together mohave to have the privilege of beholding each others f faceson face enjoying each others society and the society of holy beings who ho have been tried as we ve have and have to be and ton tow toj enjoy joy love converse with and look upon the faces of those beings who have baye been glorified thru throughout lout all ages that are countless to us their identity has been preserved and they enjoy the smiles of their friends and associate with their companions who have in a mortal state passed through the same ordeals they endured while in this existence fathers and ana mothers associate with their thelt children child reh children with their parents brothers with sisters and sisters with their brothers all in their family circles dwelling in the midst of the glorified what else can satisfy a truly intelligent human being eing the immortal spirit that is in in a mortal tenement nothing what would induce an intelligent individual to suffer buffer his li is eyes e e s to be put out and to lle ile live lie without seeing ob objects jy c t around him the faces of his bis family fi friends end and connections would money what would hire an intelligent person to be deprived of the sense of hearing could money buy his hearing bearing what would hire you to suffer the destruction of the organ of speech or to be deprived of any of the more important members of your organization the thing zif zef f this world could not induce yonto you to buffer suffer the destruction of any of the vital powers of your organization yet the world are seeking after th the e paltry perishable things of time and sense th they ey are their glory their pretended comfort t their h ir god and their daily study and pursuit but the members which G god od has placed in our tabernacles are worth all the world to us we have the power of seeing hearing tasting smelling jling and feeling enabling us to converse and ata associate with each ot other herand and money can not buy these blessings from us stop then and consider what use you will make of these powers will you go wild after the things of this world as do jho tho majority of the inhabitants of the earth with whose ways you are well acquainted how long will they endure their breath is in their nostrils today they are tomorrow to morrow they are not dot what projects ts have they for futurity have the they y any promise yes what is it death have they the promise of life eternal they have upon certain conditions but they care no ma more re about those conditions than did certain characters that paul wrote about they are ate even like the dumb beasts that are entirely ignorant of futurity F fatten atten an ox and lead him to the slaughter and he knows nothing of what awaits him so it is with the great majority of the inhabitants of the earth they have no knowledge of their future condition they merely inow know that death will terminate their present career we are blessed with the words of eternal life with the everlasting priesthood and the keys thereof with principles that if rightly acted upon will secure to us those blessings we now enjoy and which you hear bear the brethren often speak about I 1 am happy I 1 am full of J joy oy comfort and peace all within me is light for I 1 desire hoth nothing but to do the tha will of mcfather my Father in heaven I 1 delight not in unrighteousness but in righteousness and ant truth 1 seek to promote the good and happiness of myself and those with whom I 1 am associated we have bave the privilege of securing 0 to ourselves that eternal bliss that can never fade away and of preserving pre servin our identity that VV when hen millions of ages have rolled away we can then behold each other as we doto do today to day and can converse to together t ether one thousand years hence probably many of this congregation will talk over difficulties we are now passin passing g through you hear bear some of the brethren surmise that we are going to have trouble you need not expect any trouble except you take a course to bring it upon y you 1 ou you need never expect to see sorrow unless your own conduct conversation and acts bring it to your hearts do you not know that sorrow to you can exist oni only y in your own hearts though men or women were in the mountains perishing though they be in overwhelming depths of snow freezing to de death athor or be on a desolate island starving to death for want of food though they perish by the sword or in any other way yet if the heart is cheerful au all is light and glory within there is no sorrow within them you never saw a true saint in the world that had sorrow neither can you find one it if persons are destitute of the ahti fountain of living water or the principles of eternal ilfe life then they arg are are sorrow f ful fui al if the word so life dwell within us and we have the hope of eternal life and glory and let that spark within us kindle to a flame to the consuming of the least and last remains of selfishness we never can walk in darkness and are st strangers to doubt and fear fedr yet we see people among us who are still selfish and that principle we must abandon we must strip off selfishness and put covetousness far from us we must become of one heart and mind in order to full fuli fully y enjoy the blessings we anticipate br phineas correctly observed in his remarks that if ten men are united in these mountains they are not to be overcome by their enemies Is this whole people perfectly united I 1 fear not when I 1 undertake to present before f ore this people the true principles of the priesthood I 1 almost shudder because so many do not yet understand them and can not receive them thein I 1 go into my room where we have our prayer circle and among twelve men there will perhaps be twelve different prayers offered up one praying for one thing and another for another thin thing you may reduce the number to three and let them be clothed for secret prayer and while one is praying aloud each of the others will be praying for that which the one that is mouth is not praying for unless they are better taught in regard to prayer than is the cb christian ristian world ask the people if they understand the principle ri n caw le of prayer and many reply we do not know n 0 v we e pray with all our might and at the same time it is is a scene of confusion and distraction of mind we are in a land of liberty and our fathers have taught us especially those born in america that every man and woman and every child old enough to speak argue read reflect etc must have minds of their own and not listen to anybody else they are taugh taught tto to shape their own opinions and not depend upon others to direct their thoughts words or actions that system of teaching reminds me of the old saying every man for himself and the devil fort for them bern all such views though entertained by the human family at lar large e must be checked in this people yet when I 1 undertake to strip off the garb of erroneous tradition and to teach reach the people true principles of faith prayer and obedience there are many who cannot receive those principles in their understanding 1 and hearts 1 I have told you and will liow how tell you again that you have to bring your minds right fo to the authority of the gospel to the true b gospel line let an elder pray here and then ask a brother in the congregation what has been prayed for and he cannot tell you ask a sister what has been brayed prayed for and she cannot tell you she may say ildas so fervent in in prayer myself that I 1 did not hear what was prayed for and so it is with hundreds of people w who ho congregate here and I 1 think that I 1 may venture to say that you will scarcely find an individual in the 1 whole abo le congregation that can tel tei teli teil I 1 what the person who prays has prayed for do you not know that to be a fact 1 I will appeal to your own minds when a man opens or closes a meeting with prayer every man wo woman man and child in the congregation coneo gre gation w who eo professes to be a saint should have no desire nor words in their hearts and mouths but what are being offered by the man who is mouth for the whole congregation if all would follow out that principle where would it lead the people they would act with one heart and mind in all their acts through 1111 life and promote the kingdom of god on the earth how many times I 1 have attended prayer meetings among the in my 30 youthful ut days when perhaps one hundred men and women would all be praying aloud at once I 1 did not then know but that it was all right J 1 neither said nor cared anything about it it 0 often used to ta be father joseph smiths custom when he took the lead of a fast meeting to request all present to pray aloud at the same time and there would be as many different prayers as there were persons p dersons where was the concentration on a single and united thread of faith it is like the cable that holds the ship unwind a cable and you will find several hundred small smal I 1 cords unwind the small cords and you will find fourteen strands in each cord unwind each strand and there are thousands of fabres fibres and you have parted tb the e cable of a ship fastened to asure anchor and the ship is free and wafting hafting unmanageable before the furious tempest ia is with prayer you say you want to be united and want the blessings of heaven i how many times have I 1 said here within the last three months I 1 pray that god would so lead us and our enemies that there will be no blood shed and how many have come to meeting and prayed in their hearts that our enemies would come on for we want to slay them for we have been mobbed and hunted enough and another would pray the same prayer with a disposition to desire the poll spot poil one of the brethren prayed in camp that the snow might fall 40 feet deep on our enemies I 1 am satisfied if it falls only four or five feet deep I 1 will tell you my faith in regard d to the dreth oreth ren now in the mountains gen wells t takes al ves ces the charge a and nd when I 1 write to him I 1 counsel him to do as the holy ghost shall dictate him and inform him that whatever verbe he may order and perform he has my fai fal faith falth th and influent influence e to sustain him I 1 I 1 I 1 pray god to turn away our enemies to put tray eray hooks in their jaws laws and turn them wherever cewill he will with their gold their horses and all ail they possess they donot do not hot know the clel mor wor lor mons they are strangers to this people are full fall of wrath and malice towards us but they know not why they know not that they are stirred to anger allger against us by the enemy of all righteousness should those these who instigated in the sending of this arm army undertake to come here there will be another aro are more or less acquainted with us and know that we are arc the most upright people on the earth and they will not able to shield themselves in the garb of ignorance I 1 will not talk about them tor for you know their history androu and you know and have seen much of the squalid wretched wretchedness of the wicked inhabitants of the earth Is there honor and virtue amon among them where is the man or woman waman amon among them that is to be trusted 9 if there is here hene and there any semblance of goodness goodne sd or virtue it is at once over overcome comp by every everi fiendish art in their powei powel power women are overcome by sycophants by those who rule tu thie nation and those who have power and influence in the various vates states tates parties and religious sects beets man aun is overcome by man they cuddle and wink and gamble and run to and fro in abominations of every grade and lift their voices for and against each other as did the paddy in his petition to the king icing for an office wherein be lie stated that he would or against him fight light for him or fight him Wim just as he lie wished it colonel alexander probably one of the it best 1 men in ahe the army now near lear badger ruid ruins s told one I 1 I 1 of our messengers when replying to a piece ot of advice I 1 had gh ghen en him to resign his commiss commission loil rather than be found operating an innocent people that lie was compelled to remain in the army lor for if he resigned lie knew not how to manage to sustain his family he said lil iliavi 1 Ili I have ave no other means of support I 1 cannot throw up iny my corn cord commission mission for then I 1 should have no means to support my wife and children 1 I As an american ican shame and infusion would overwhelm me were I 1 to even think of trying to sustain iiri my family by siding with tyranny and oppression that is the only circumstance I 1 wish isho to name nanie they are sent ostensibly to civilize this people but I 1 do not wish to taik talk much about such nonsense the |
