Show kiso DISO OTTISE BY F ELDER GEORGE G 4 on sunday afternoon jan 30 1881 it I 1 1 ti BY GEO ono F GIBBS IV v THE appearance of the tiie congregation before me awakens within my mind a number of pleasurable reflections there la Is one unerring method of determining ter mining the value of all subjects H of all objects of all matters pertains ing to the interests of our common humanity and that method is the rule by which the results are attained and the determination of the at character of those results 9 whether they be g good or whether they be evil and this method moreover is not only applicable iu in determining tho various secular conditions and cirt cum stances of mankind but it is equally 0 bally unerring in determining the hugher hugher phases and conditions of the life of man it reaches upward into the realms of mind and invades if t you please or spreads itself over the entire field of human thought embracing not only our secular but our spiritual interests when jesus of nazareth the savior of man mankind hind kind was on the earth so solo sojo jo for a few brief years with the children of men he gave ex impression to this thia most beautiful and highly philosophic rule for every tree is known by its fruit for of thorns men do not gather figs nor of a bramble bush gather th they ef grapes by their fruits ye shall sha know them it is the lion of the elementary principles embed embodied led in th this Is rule that has a awakened wakened within my mind the reflect reflections idna r have referred to while gazing upon this congregation seated in this beautiful place of worship it is true that the spectacle presented before our minds when contemplating the surroundings of the people of the latter iatter day saints the comforts of life they are enjoying and the mat terdal blessings that they llave lwe be come possessed of does doea not alone determine the divine character of the spiritual philosophy the system of f principle pes pea q and doctrine q which I 1 I 1 constitute their theli faith for when we travel in the world and nd R extend our hiir observance observances soven over tife the great ceil cen tres treb called the civilized world of man mankind klud we cail eail can ean behold on every civery hand stupendous edifices flees gur gui bously denominated cathedrals raped in the most costly tapestry an and ff finished wiled filed in the most elaborate manner be speaking a high cultivation t 0 n pf af bri art arid anid a development of kelen Alien science cei in its most advanced stages with every inkins means improvised to render rendo the object and purpose of those structures efficient to the ends designed and a reference ce to rhoid th se representations of manes industry and skill and to the exhibition bf that wisdom which is at once the standard of the intellectual growth and ad advancement of the race and age in which they were brought fo north forth rth enables enabled us to judge com pom compana para pana t ively of the growth of wisdom and t the he growth of intelligence which h has as become the heritage of our race and which we inherit through th e very mysterious and complex nii nhi nature of our a spiritual ritual and physical constitutions abut but thab that which imparts greater ivalue value to the phy physical labors of the latter day saints bainte producing the unmistakable phenomena presented here today to day and in other places throughout the territory of utah and wherever the nat lat ter day saints are assembled together in their more scattered con dit ions lons of life following the varied pursuits thereof in developing the i var which ha have ve been buell d developed e 16 iri febbie 16 which society demands the performance of is the inviting run character and crude quality of their surroundings on one hand mind and the indomitable energy awakened by the thie inspiration of their faith on the other nand hand elucidating to a demonstration their faith to be the 9 gift ift of god and that their work works so far as they bre are the the products of that faith to be the works of righteousness therefore rhe we lay jay claim to consideration considerations bof of an equal character considerations of equal merit to the respect and gra that are awarded to the builders of the various cen tres of civilization and that are conferred upon those active agents and instrumentalities by which they have been established among men but that which actuates my mind my brethren and ana sis sla sisters bisters teri a nd and more especially on the present occasion is the peculiar character and constitution of the faith we have espoused fand and upon this subject as I 1 have been invited by my brethren to address you for a short time I 1 respectfully ask your attention what is it I 1 would ask that constitutes the peculiarities that distinguish the people of utah from the thi krestof ehe the e world of mankind froni from the divO divisions lons ions of human society variously denominated christian christian presbyterians rians christian epis copa lians and the christians of tile the various denominational titles by which they respectively desire to be recognized das as distinct and sepa separate kate hate societies I 1 ask what is it that marks so peculiarly the distinct distinction on between the latter day saints and the rest of their fellow creatures we claim them to be our fellow creatures whether they are willing to claim us as their fellow creatures or not we know we have proceeded from the same bound boundless less lebs the same limitless the same immutable of life from which they sprang as niso also our forefather forefathers sand and indeed all the generations of the children of men back to the border lines of ethnological territory and earliest dawn of human history this distinction of which we speak may be stated in a very few words however unacceptable that statement maybe may be to those of our friends or those who ought to be our friends who differ from us it is in this that in the profession of christianity we have accepted it as a whole w we 3 have not regarded fractional christianity tia ti n ity sectional christianity mo modem dern christianity as the embodiment of those principles and teachings which the great founder of our faith came into this world incarnate to reveal and which he left as a heavenly legacy ato to the chii chil children drep ef men mea child 0 of the thi grat cocas t i t al 3 ff mon father NT with ith I 1 who whom in we with him once existed he beng be ng the first begotten begot fen of the father full of grace and truth the first barnof born of many brethren and we chose chod to accept christianity ii its complete and entire constitution by the precepts and doc doe doctrines of men auen pure puro from heaven unfolding to our understandings the incomparable plan pian of human redemption we jiava accepted the christian revelation dionas as proclaimed by angels and inspired prophets and apostles and evangelists 0 ie every degree tois tots to us rit ailt ilisa iga modern revelation ii and dud we accept it ath tbt all the obligations which it has hag jm imposed osea osda upun lipon us as conditions condi tidas of salvation with all its constituted and a organized officers ont oft leers withal with all nil lits its divinely instituted ord nances bances wo and id with all nii nil its pure and a nd heaven born principles prine teat that it I 1 t embodies the truth and ana elements which go to maka makeUp that system of worship that syn or mth that system of belief or 6 r in other othen airo words ads that dyste system in of d divine knowledge possess in their theer naab nature rg every amess virtue itu requisite T I 1 and d every element clement 6 of ep worth ah anci ancl 1 every force and principle 0 of that can reach man iian lian maia man in ils lis his entirety man as a a whole whole not some particular reticular phase of his nature as they they agrenot are not designed to develop P one onel particular orti cular characteristic of his being the teachers of the el of jesus christ are ire not evolutionists who choose to develop one particular characteristic character iric ikic to the extreme anaf analo to suppress others to 1 ail afi an abnormal condition thereby producing results the tiie most derogatory and per in their government over the constitution of the being bing we e have embraced the gospel which ch has been revealed for the express purpose of meeting mans mahs every want and if furn Lhing an 1 intellectual f regime and mental discipline adequate ate to the of PV attribute and quality of m man n cn 16 this constitutes tades the essential tf difference re renee rence 1 I the distinctive c tive discriminative features between betge en he the lauter latter day saints sainta and the rest of t the ll 11 so 0 called christian world it is upon his ground that our frie friend differ from us that our felloe men wage wager war against us they however would telf you sou no na they would say shy it is because we have institutions and practices that are antagonistic to tollice the moral ethics of the ager 1 that we support practices and lend our defense to dodt doctrines rines that are re ignant to td the tho th moral emoral sense of christianity ti to the enlightened races of mankind that they do not at all op ase Os us on the ground that we e be M leve V el the bible that we accept the doctrin doctrines eq of pf the lord jesus christ because we believe in pr prophecy arid anid revelation but that we have come in contact with would be customs and ii usages sitges with the popular interpretation pre Pret tation atlon of moral principles and moral conduct con eon duet dudt and that therefore we have rendered tendered ourselves obnoxious to the thia christian world and that hat therefore because we are in the he minority forsooth it would be in n good grace for us to abandon that which the tho majority so strenuously oppose and so persistently reject and annd they claim that we must qa it now my friends stated m I 1 f n a very brief manner the feelings of the christian world I 1 do not speak of any ahter ob ter phase of society because the rest of the world worl dof dot ot mankind are not in pursuit of divine knowledge they ar are e not searching for those prin cleles which bring life ilfe and immortality tali tall to light they are generally committed to the science of moneymaking they have exerted and brought wrought into play all the energies of f their being to develop trade and commerce and to engage in developing all of odthe the secular interests inte interests rests of we the world not only of duo due one nation bot but so broad and expansive have leome become their idess ideas that tha t they have become purely international in m their scope of u utility ti h ty th they ey h have ave crossed crowed th the 6 expanse of oceans and penetrated the continents and taken into consideration the welfare of other races as we well weil 11 as of that of their own I 1 financially secularly but the christian world oppose p se us as upon the ground of 0 our r being offensive io to them because use of our institutions now my friends brethren and sisters it is a consolation to us when we read the pages of prope prophecy ecy eer when we open the sacred volume and pore over its historical pages page s and take a ret retrospective giau glau glance ce in into th the history of the past and learn pearn that similar charges were brought against the founder of our faith against jesus of nazareth and also against his apostles and prophets and the patriarchs and that it is with the unbeliever in revelation and with thea er who eho 11 irb ire bre I 1 K a s te i I 1 by pro proscribe proscribed scrib ed principles and spirit of any age in which they lived to oppose progress td oppose development in iii any direction there is one great difficulty in the way of f progress and that is invested itella interests not less jess so in religion than in the avenues of commerce and trade wil wid uen wen Wll enever ever there r e san ean any apy great principles brought forth in the mechanical world in any d department 0 part ment mechanism of from ajile agricultural through gli all the tamini w catinna of society they haveT haye aare tare arely ly escaped ped ioni loii and imm ito deed r this patr obstruction in i neb way phy opy af 9 resa gresa biot confined to io mechanical pursuits there thele is a spirit with large capitalists and d men who have invested deeply and extensively their capital in the manufacture of any comm commodity odit y produced for the worlds wo rIds market which arrays itself against growth and pi progress made in any direction excepting only where it will especially benefit them i there is opposition their invested interests stand in ln the way of progress and it is no not toniy tonly only in tena temporal i aff affairs sirs airs but it ia is also enrel ia religion aglon in theology one great reason why the ther doctrines of the latter Lat nat day saints are opposed by the so called christians ia IS because they place at a discount their fractional faith their fractional currency of belief so to speak and they do not wish to have their faith discounted they do not wish to be placed in the unenviable light aa ab to be regarded as only professing a fragmentary christianity and in this they only manifest the same envious traits that have marked tild history of our facein race in all the great phases and stages of progress which the world has made I 1 must he ceremy here remy my friends make one remark in relation to the spirit of persecution that is in the world and which by the way is a very anomalous phenomenon very mu much ch so indeed christianity in its fundamental da mental principles has running through it a broad abroad vein of charity ud and that spirit of mercy and love permeates every avenue of itan it and d thrills with sensitive pulsations through every ry brain heart and vein of its lis unfeigned believers there is no nd duty to be performed no services rendered which the doctrine pf af the christian revelations requires of its devotees ot of its acceptors but that enjoins tile the administration of mercy aid and forbearance and long suffering and gentleness and tenderness ami and meekness and brotherly kindness and all those excellencies and ana virtues which grace grac eMe ewe the character of an exemplary christian and t imay may mry here say and 1 I do so with feelings ol 01 shame and reg regret et that the bitterest persecutions thit have llave ever been widd waged upon the worlds battle fields haye have been waged by men who have professed the doctrines of the meek and lowly jesus jeslis yes the most overwhelming forrend torrents of human blood that have ever stained the world with its gory hue have been let out but by the violent bands of those who professed to administer in the sacred things of god who professed tobe inspired by the spirit of the divine haster raster and all classes of men and women that I 1 have ever met or that I 1 have any know knowledge edge of or theological and religious fanatics have been the most unreasonable the most unapproachable the worst of infidels to the christian cause this is a broad stat statement ement to make it is notwithstanding made with due consideration it has not been hurriedly pronoun pronounced cedi for fori I 1 have given this matter some thought some study and some little observation and I 1 am convinced my friends that the ignorance and superstition that have produced the direst evils the knowledge of which has been recorded upon the pages of history have not been the legitimate m ate outgrowth of the principles of christianity jut but of christianity falsely so called they have been the product of unenlightened ideas they have been the result of misguided zeal that was not according to knowledge and they have been too frequently manifested in directions and among communities where better results |