Show DISCOURSE BY PREST yhu YOU idl lil at logan cache county on monday morning may 25 1877 at the priesthood Pries theod meeting beld held for me the purpose of organizing a stake of zion I 1 REPORTED BY G F GIBBS when I 1 have asked my counsel lors or any of the brethren of the twelve with regard to the selection of the tho presidency of this stake of zion the reply has been make your own choice brother brigham and we will vote for them I 1 this is correct and he nie proper method of nominating such officers we will give you the liberty of voting as you please but as for the appointment that is with us to say this is so ordered it is so revealed and so written and we mutt abide by I 1 it t the lord in founding this work did not ask the opinion of the world as to what they thought of this that or the other suppose the prophet joseph had sought the opinion of the orthodox world with regard to b his bis is right to receive revelations from god how bow long do you think he would have waited before they sanctioned his appointment or acknowledged that the lord had the right and that it was his privilege to appoint whomsoever he tie would the appointment of joseph was from god and it was in the authority of the priesthood of the tiie son of god that joseph was called ordained and set apart as cis an apostle prophet aud and elder in israel and if it had been referred to the christian world for their approval and sanction 1 n I 1 think the izo lord rd would have waited until this ti time ime they would have got 1 up ap here there ther e and arid everywhere saying 1 I oppose it aj I 1 shall no nominate minato as president of this stake of zion moses thatcher carried unanimously l it is brother broiher thatchers privilege to choose his counsellors coun if he wishes sa so to do and it is our right and privilege to give them to him I 1 shall therefore nominate william B preston as his hia first counsellor unanimously carried and 1111 milton ton ji D hammond who is etow now bishop at providence as his second counsellor I 1 iam lam am not intimately acquainted with brother Hamm Hamin odid orid but I 1 understand he is a man of good sound judgment a ma man n who ilyes live s his religion and who is ed capable pable of giving counsel in almost all matters pertaining to the building p the kingdom of god upon the earth this is what I 1 learn respecting him what do you think brethren and sisters of this nomination it was seconded and carried unanimously we will now present the tho names of the high council forathis for W s stake of zion the names were read and they were voted for by the conference when we organize a stake of zion we set apart a high priest to preside over the high priests in that stake he either selects his two counsellors coun or we give them to him there is 19 but one quorum of high priests in any stake of zion hor por the elders we also appoint a president and two counsellors coun to preside over them when they number ninety six six I 1 there will be a full quorum but it is is not so with the high priests it matters not whether they number fifty five hundred or br five thousand or more in a stake of zion there cn can only be one quorum alid arid ond one president they thus differ from the elders then if there should be a sufficient number of elders to make two quorums qu we would select two presidents red reA dents with their counsellors coun tut but if there were more than llian enough to f form orm one quorum and not sufficient to make two tw they could meet with the first quorum until there should be enough to form a second quorum forty eight priests form forma a quorum I 1 we will have a president set apart for the priests quorum who will also have two counsellors coun and when there are forty eight priests more it will then be time to organize another quorum the teachers and deacons will be organized too twenty four form a quorum of teachers aind twelve a quorum of deacons J the seventies are scattered all through our r settlements we do not organize them they are already organized in their sev several eral quorums qu As for mass quorums qu I 1 du do not acknowledge such organization organizations a in consequence of operations carried on under that name I 1 have felt feitt disposed to change it and instead of calling them mass quor ams name them causs cm muss quorums qu at almost every place where they have met to gettier together there has been quarrelling between the seventies and the bishop this was first brought to my notice by learnd learning 9 that when bishops gave out notice for the people to come together at a certain time it was not an in thing for the presidents of the mass quorums ef of the same wards to give out their appointments for the seventies to meet at the same hour this would be done for the purpose of showing what great authority they had and to get up a quarrel A A president acting in this tuis manner ought to be cut cutoff from the church hurch rhe the rho seventies are apos fies fles iles and they stand next in authority to the twelve tho first pre pro sideney organize and regulate the affairs ol 01 the church wherever they can go or they instruct others to do doit dolt it when the first presidency are not here and the twelve are here they then tilen attend to these matters and their authority by a unanimous feeling and faith in the gospel ia ii the same as that thab of the first presidency their decisions and doings are equal to those of the first presidency next in order orden to them stand the seventies if through the provi dences of god the first presidency and the twelve were taken away then it would be the duty of the seventies to preach the gospel build up the church and ordain every officer regi requisite site in order to establish the 0 church to ordain high priests bishops high nou pou patriarchs and set in order the W whole hole church h in all t the 11 e world this is according to ao the revelations given to us this dissension has come between the seventies and the nigh high priests in I 1 consequence of some poor miserable beggarly whiners phiners who craved after duwer and who did not know what to do with the authority they already possessed some of these high priests would go to joseph sayin saying g brother joseph do you t think h in k the twelve have any more power than we have brother joseph the seventies es are they ordained to as high authority and power as the high priests are the seventies equal to the high priests brother joseph it cannot be so it must not be the high priests must be the greater and they are first now even to this thia day there is contention and I 1 do not know but even among the first elders of r israel grael there may be argument as to which should come next next if anything were to happen to the firt first presidency and the twelve the high priests or the Seve nies aies Is the apostleship an auto outgrowth howth of the high priesthood or Is is the high priesthood an outgrowth of the apostleship or in other words which is the highest office in the church the office of an apostle the apostleship is the highest authority that can be imposed upon man urion upon the earth I 1 recollect when brother don carlos smith was ordained president of the high priests quorum be got up a gene tree and written along the trunk of this tree were the words 96 the high priests A little distance up the trunk a limb shot out away off which represented the twelve apostles this is not according to the revelations which have been given to us when a man is ordained an apostle he is ordained to every calling pertaining to the holy priesthood a man aman on the earth can hold but when he is ordained a high priest he is ordained a priest after r the order of or Melchi sedek it is then his right to officiate idall in all nil the offices below him I 1 suppose I 1 ordained hundreds of seventies in early days brother joseph smith has come to us many times saying brethren you are going to ordain ordin seventies do not forget to confer the high priesthood upon them ordain each of them to the high prest priesthood hood and to be one of the seventy apostles that was my language in the ordination of the seventies and that is tile the way I 1 ordain them now whether in doing so I 1 mention the high priesthood or nor not that is included in consequence of this a little inquiry arose among the high priests respecting the high priesthood r iest lest hood and the apostleship al the ho twelve apostles had bad been ordained and every one of them happened to be high priests excepting brother heber 0 kimball and myself we were elders the fact that we were not high priests and had never been ordained to the high priesthood was taken to brother joeph joseph these cavilers vilera ca wanted him to take some action about it they wanted to know if it we should not be ordained high priests such a suggestion made jose joseph P h ri righteously angry said he liy my brethren with as much as I 1 have taught you and as many revelations as have been given on the subject of the priesthood that you should ask such a question it would bean be an insult ingulf to the priesthood of the son of god to ordain a man a after he had been heen ordained an apostle for the apostleship holds all the keys of the priesthood upon the face of the earth to build up the kingdom of heaven to sanctify the people and prepare them to enter into the presence of god the father NOW kow to say fay that such a m man i an holding this priesthood should bo be ordained a high priest is an insult and I 1 want to hear no more about I 1 it t 17 but this agitation about the high priesthood has ever since lattice been a matter mater of speculation with a few I 1 say that a man that craves for office and authority does not know enough to magnify the office of a deacon for if he did he would not say a word about authority he would ask for wisdom that ne lie might know how to magnify the priesthood placed upon him with regard to the authority of the church and kingdom of god upon the eaith in its ita organization read the book of doctrine and covenants for yourselves we have a new edition you car read it acquaint yourselves with the powers and authority of the priesthood and learn how the church is organized I 1 have spoken of these things before and aud yet some will say tt 1 I want to know if the seventies have as much authority as the high priests I 1 way bay unto you latter day gay saints thattie th atthe seventies follow the twelve apostles and the ti welve twelve apostles follow in the wake of the first presidency and the first presidency follow iu in the wake of peter james and john johll but for the seventies and the twelve to have equal authority in their decisions with the first presidency they must be unan unanimous m oust ouse as is written in the book of D doctrine and covenants the priesthood which peter james and john held while in the flesh was the highest ever bestowed upon the children of men and it was conferred upon joseph and oliver and without it they never could have built up tip the kingdom then after this came along the high priesthood I 1 have bee been n told since 11 came here that sidney bigdon rigdon orde ordained ined joseph a high priest I 1 would ask who ardal ordained ned aed sidney rigdon what priesthood he had begot he got gol from joseph and then he turned around and ordained joseph to an office the authority to hold which he had received from josephl joseph it would be unwise if I 1 f sidney sioney had done thio thia I 1 think I 1 would have heard hoard of it you can i read how joseph and oliver rot pot this apostleship then after the conference in kirtland in 1831 joseph received a revelation to erlain iain high priests which he did As far as his being ordained a high priest it would be a as s proper to call for a priest teacher or deacon to ordain me a high priest the lord luord sent his messengers peter J james ames and john to ordain him to the highest authority that could be given I 1 trust that these remarks will put astop a stop to such foolish and absurd questions read head the revelations and understand them at this point elder geo t L farrell was elected president of the high priests quorum and elders eiders iders charles 0 card and thomas C Q ricks were elected as his counsel oral ors ane tle lie presidency of the stake can coni conA complete piete this organization they can san select for lor quorum priests teachers and deacons quorums Qu and organize everything prop eily in the entire stake and agid then it is dene I 1 have been showing you sou how bow to organize a stake of zion there is no need of delay or of adjo adjourning over from one meeting till another r if you want to make presidents of quo ruins select your men and organize them but you may say bay awo we may get some one who is is not worth anything then bebas he has bas a chance to prove himself and if he is not I 1 sul sui suitable table tabie you can put another in his hia place at the next quarterly conference with will regard to the tho authority ina lna in a stake of zion nil all the members are amenable to the high council with their president at their thein lead suppose one of the twelve were here who should be guilty of swearing drinking or purloining hib hie neighbors foods goods lie he would lee lle be amenable to this high council and he should be deaia with now a question arises can you try him and deal with him as ith with a lay member no you can try him prote his guilt place it upon record and then by the united voice of the people of this stake slake of zion you yon could withdraw your fellowship from him but you could not cut him off from the church in one of my discourses it Is stated that the twelve could be cut off ff from the church by the local authorities of the branch or ward where he might be residing when dealt with but it should have been stated that this action on the case w would id be only so far as that branch cr ward wara was concerned but tint on hand band let the members of this high nich council ellor or the presidency of this stake gei gel get butof out of the way begin to drink swear le or steal the apostles could cut any one of them off from the church send them adrift and appoint others in their places that Is the ditre difre difference rence between the authority of the twelve apostles and the authority of the high priesthood there is authority and there are degrees of authority and nd there is a difference in degrees callings and the authority of the priesthood if there ab should ouid be one apostle left on the earth he can regulate and set in order the whole of the church and kingdom of god if there Is one seventy left he be could do BO so this order Is not my getting ting up TIA it Is the lords doings high priests may mourn over 14 it the lord hag has said it and I 1 have no right to say eay it is not so 90 it is so I 1 know seme eeme of you might bay eay did not brother joseph take high priests out of the quorum of and place them in the hiah high priests quorum and put others in their places yes yc but what did he do this for sor font tort I 1 I 1 can tell you it was to satisfy the continual teasing of ignorant men who did not know what to do with authority when they got it and I 1 think most of those high priests who were BO so anxious upon this subject afterwards apostatized you have my word for iti ita it I 1 believe there were none of the whisperings of the spirit suggesting that movement and I 1 will give yon my reasons for tor thinking so they set their watch for tor joseph whenever he preached on the subject they invited him to preach at their quorum meetings on the difference between a high priest and a Ee venty seventy there had been deen been cavill cavilling ng aud and bickering in relation to this subject he con descended to try to do something for them he preached upon this subject and I 1 eay say be he stooped to the level of those whiners phiners to try |