| Show tabernacle SUNDAY 10 AM JUNE 12 1853 elder john taylor tailor addressed the congregation as follows I 1 in rising to address you this morning I 1 do it w with ith feeling of peculiar pleasure for I 1 always love to meet with the saints of the most moat high I 1 always loved to sr speak ea k or to hear of the things associated with the kingdom of god and consequently as we are ull all engaged in the worship of the almighty and meet together from time to time to slug a to speak to edify and be edified it is of little importance to me what part I 1 take in the drama I 1 am pleased at all times limes to hear my brethren speak and it likewise gives me pleasure to address the saints for their edification As men and women of intelligence as those who prof profess ss to be the servants of the most high we all of us have more or less of reflection pertaining to the kingdom of god it is those ideas that we have entertained relative to this kingdom that have brought us here these feelen feelings a and principles have caused us to leave our native nati ve homes our former habitations and associations tind to mingle with the saints of the most high in the valleys of these mountains if we have suffered affliction i and privations if we have passed through troubles or sorrows if we have h had d to do with the J checkered he C I 1 ere cl scenes of this life more particularly as it is associated with the kingdom of god it is because we have been stimulated with thoughts feelings hopes and desires pertaining to the eternal world and those things associated with our everlasting welfare if these are not our feelings what are we doing here why are we found in this far off distant land why have we e left the land of out birth and dwelling place why have we quit our former associations and friends and thus become amalgamated together from different nations countries tongues and people why do vt e worship the most high together i in n the valleys of the mountains if these have not been our feelings we have come here expressly for this purpose this has been our only object our orly hope our chief desire and may account for our singular gathering and our peculiar position here and notwithstanding we may have a few trials and difficulties and various things that frequently perplex and annoy our minds and diff urb our feelings yet the polar star of our cur minds the strong and deep feeling of affection and the principle of truth within us still points pints to the same thing for which we started at the commencement of our career and when we bow down before our god when we enter into I 1 our ur closet and call upon the lord when associated with our families we supplicate the most high when we mingle with the saints in public worship or whenever we are led seriously to reflect upon the true position of this kingdom our rejo rejoicing cing is that our face is that our hopes are placed upon god and we know that he is our father and friend we contemplate with joy that hat the heavens have been opened that truth has been revealed and the power of god developed that angels have manifested themselves that the glory of the eternal world has been made known and that we have been made participators participatory in that light glory and intelligence which hi ch god has been pleased to reveal for the blessing salvation and exaltation of the human family on this earth and throughout t all eternity these are our feelings we believe that god has set his hand in these last days to accomplish his purposes yea bes to gather together his elect from the four winds even to fulfill fulfil the words which he lias has spoken by all the holy prop prophets liets to redeem the earth from the power of the curse to save the human family from the ruins of the fall and to place mankind in that position which god designed them to I 1 occupy before this world came into existence or the morning stars sang together for joy we believe in and realise nealise these things we feel them we appreciate them and therefore are we thus assembled together I 1 know that as other men we have our trials afflictions affliction sorrows sorrows and privations we meet with difficulties we have to contend with the world with the powers of dark darkness nesB with the corruptions corrupt ions of men and a variety of evils yet at the same time thue through these things we have to be made perfect it is necessary that we should have a knowledge of ourselves of our true position and standing before god and comprehend our strength and weakness our ignorance and intelligence our wisdom and our folly that we may inay know how to appreciate true principles and comprehend and put a proper value upon all things as they present themselves before our mind it is necessary ebsary that we should know our own weaknesses weakness eq and the weaknesses of our fellow men our own strength as aa well as the strength of others and comprehend our tr true ue position tion before god lod angels angela and men that we may be in inclined elined to treat all with due respect and not to over value our own wisdom or strength nor depreciate preel preci ate it nor that of others but put pat our trust I 1 in the living god and follow after h him im a and n d re n lis the that we are his children and that tha t 1 lie ie is our father and our dependence is upon him and that every blessing we receive flows from his beneficent hard hand it is necessary then that we pass through the school of suffering trial affliction and privation to know ourselves to know others and to know our god therefore it was necessary when the savior was wag upon the earth that lip I should be tempted in all points like unto us and be touched wilh the feelings of our infirmities to comprehend the weaknesses and strength the I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 r I 1 ti 4 perfections one and imperfections of poor fallen tia nature lare and having accomplished the thing he came into the he world to do having hat had ta to grapple with the hypocrisy corruption weak dan and imbecility of man having met wil with temptation and trial in all its it various forms forma and lov overcome ersome he ha po become A faithful high 1 priest eat to intercede for us ua in the everlasting kingdom of his hid father he knows how to esti nate and put a proper value upon human nature tor for he having been placed in the some same pc position as we were knows how to bear with our weaknesses and infirmities and can fully comprehend the depth power and strength of the afflictions and trials that men have to cope with in this i 1 world and thus understandingly and by experience he can bear with them as a father and in an elder brother it is necessary also that we inasmuch as we profess that we are aiming at the same glory exaltation power nd d blessings in the eternal world pass through the same affliction endure the same privations conquer as he conquered and overcome as he did and thus by integrity truth virtue and purity by a high minded and k honorable course before god angels and men I 1 secure for ourselves an eternal exaltation in the eternal world as he did the world at the present time to is all confused and it seems to me sometimes that even we have made very little prof proficiency indeed according to 0 the light and intelligence god has comment communicated to us as but what has ha the world done whether you look at it morally religiously philosophically or politically or what way you please you will find it is all a chaotic mass man confusion disorder f weakness corruption and vice of every kind is abounding and the whole world seems to be confused and retrograding they have departed from the principles god has laid down for the guidance direction and men support of the human family they have forsaken him the fountain of lavint living waters and hewn out to themselves cista cisterns broken cisterns that can hold no water I 1 shall not at the present examine particularly their philosophy or politics these things you are already acquainted with for you have had more or less to do with them you have seen their weakness and nd incompetency to accomplish anything they desire in times past and there is no project they have put on foot at the present time if carried out to the farthest extent according to the most desires of its aavo cites would not be capable of producing happiness to the human family I 1 shall not enter into a detail of these things at the present but merely make this statement suffice it to say that we have been satisfied of these things years ago and therefore have come here have hare we come here because we expect to become more rich no have we united with this church because we expect to become more honorable in the eyes of the world no I 1 think it would have been the last a ship hip we should hould have boarded if that had been what we sought this reminds me of a minister that I 1 once conversed with in england he wanted a little private conversation after having had some public debate with me said he be elder eider taylor is in there any way you know of that I 1 can be saved without uniting with your chirch these were the feelings that most of us had when we first heard beard the gospel mormonism is the first impression and the mormons cormons are looked upon as being deluded fanatics and tools fools the of the earth 11 I 1 this is the way that we have been looked upon and it is the light that we looked upon it ourselves at the first when I 1 first read about the gospel preached prea phed by the latter day saints I 1 though ought tt it was nothing akin to religion and I 1 presume now in england and the united states particularly since they have heard some of bf the late doctrines which have been proclaimed they think it is nothing like religion I 1 know what their feelings are and I 1 know that nothing but sterling asterling desire to do the will of god will cause men to endure the contumely and reproach of their fellow men and associate themselves with the people denominated latter day saints or mormons cormons Mor mons we had bad si feelings to these ourselves and we united with this people because we considered there was truth associated with their religion or we never would have become converts to it we would never have been here but we should have been with the world and following in their path but we are here the world have their ideas and we have ours 1 was going to say they think they are right but on reflecting a ino moment ment I 1 am led to think they do not think so but bat they are at a loss to I 1 know how to mend themselves the difference between them and us is they think they do not know a better way than that they are pursuing we think we do and some of us know we do I 1 C confess conf ess myself that if I 1 knew no other religion than the religions that are propagated abroad I 1 would not be a religious man at all but I 1 would lay it all aside as so something methin 9 beneath my notice and worship god according to my own judgment independent of the opinions of man as the great supreme of the universe without having any regard to the ridiculous dogmas dogma taught in the world many find fault and blame blam the infidel community and say that none but scoundrels would be associated with them etc ate the most intelligent men in the world are found a among the infidel class of soei society ety they see a variety of sects and parties contending for all kinds of conflicting dogmas they know that persecution and wrong have prevailed under the cloak of religion causing many to be imprisoned S and put to death in fact there has been no ao inhumanity barbarity or cruelty equal to that practised practiced by the professors of religion hu manity shudders at the thought and yet the hypocrites ten tell us it is all for the love of god that all are actuated by the love of god and do it for the benefit of the human family fAi nily the catholics have killed protestants by thousands and vice versa and yet we must believe it is for the love of god and for the welfare of souls can I 1 think that god has anything to do with influencing such a course of conduct no what can there be more ridiculous fot for ini instance tance at the present day than christian nations fl fighting with each other and both borshi worshipping wor shipping api i n the same jod and whose ministers call upon tod god as the they y say in in sit sincerity i what for per for god to destroy their enemies their brother christians who are going to the same heaven the other party prays f for or the same thing and when both have been praying then comes the clang of armies the deadly strife the groans of the dying blood carnage ind a ad desolation and after the they y have got through the victorious party thank god that he has given them the victory over their enemies this kind of christian feelings does exist I 1 speak of this as one circumstance what can I 1 think chink of such priests and of such prayers prayer sP I 1 think just as much of one as I 1 would of the other but what would you think of the gullibility of the people who would listen to such things would I 1 be gulled by such inconsistencies not if I 1 had my reason at the present time take christians in general cre which you know we all suppose to be the best beet people in the world and one half of their time is spent in polemical essays and strife and I 1 think sometimes our idere elders engage too much in that matter and are too belligerent but bat I 1 am not surprised at it because they have come from that school and been trained in that element they seem to have the bump of combativeness well developed for almost the very first thing that many do when they go out to preach is to run ran against them and their principles we are not among them here but gathered out from them and if I 1 we refer to their inconsistencies it is that we may comprehend our own and the position of others here is catholicism presbyterianism and all other ISMS who worship the same god though their doctrines precepts and belief are not the same they think different and worship different and each party sends all to hell in a wholesale manner who differ from them and if god was no more merciful than they are we should find ourselves all there together this is the way things exist down iu in the world if it was not for the religion I 1 profess which gives me to know something about it by revelation for myself I 1 would not have anything to do with relie I 1 anew i on at all I 1 would worship god the best I 1 lew how bow end and act justly and honorably with my neighbor which I 1 believe thousands of that class of men called do at the present day 1 but I 1 never world submit to be gulled with the I 1 nonsense that exiana in the world under the name of religion I 1 what is 4 t ikei fht we believe in we believe in faitt 6 restoration of all things we believe lie we that god hs has spoken from the heavens if I 1 did not believe he had I 1 would not be here we believe that angels have appeared that the heavens have been opened we believe in eternal principles in an eternal gospel an eternal priesthood in eternal communications and associations ciati ons everything associated with the gospel that we believe in is eternal if it were not so I 1 would want nothing to do with it I 1 do not want to profess and worship a god because this I 1 one that one or the other does it and not know whether I 1 am right and those whom I 1 imitate not know any more than myself whether they are right or wrong I 1 profess to know for myself and if I 1 did not know for myself I 1 would have nothing to do with it acting upon this principle I 1 associated myself with the latter day saints I 1 preach that doctrine which I 1 verily believe with my whole soul I 1 believe in its principles because there is something intelligent about it for instance if I 1 am an eternal bein being I 1 I 1 want something that is calculated to satisfy tte the capacious desires of that eternal mind ir I |
