Show DISCOURSE delivered sy by Fres president ident george Q cannon ag the parowan carowan stake conter confer af june fune 20 aft enoe a rowan 1892 BY ARTHUR WINTER i A I 1 see a good many of the youth I 1 would like to give our boys boya e chapter of my experience my alar IB rowing growing white now and al h f I 1 do not think I 1 am old I 1 everybody else elee wo would uld call me am I 1 therefore way may say MY something that if I 1 were younger might not be daemer ed proper when I 1 was a boy I 1 mind that I 1 would be up my asim p good a boy as an I 1 possibly could abe when I 1 was quite a y duag fellow Z bud d a very dear friend he was the goo brilliant young man of his age anat I 1 over ever know knew in this cb church some of our associates would drink whisky when they could get it and he found fault with me because I 1 did not drink salu he be george you are unsociable why cant you drink a ule little whisky with the boys it wont hart hurt you I 1 dont care anything about whisky but I 1 like to be sociable and it dont look well for qs MB to to drink with them r reaid said ill right go BO far as aa you are con aerne berned 1 but I 1 dont drink whisky aud and I 1 re fused to taste it well I 1 know that it made me an unsociable young man with them he wa a man of fine promise and occupied coupled prominent positions but when on he was thirty four years of age he fined a dru drunkards gravel grave and left tito reputation as a dreadful legacy to joe his family when I 1 talked and rest rea troed ed with him he be did not think that he would ever become a drunkard lie he aid add that be did not care about liquor fiut that was waa his big fate since bince then I 1 have been in a great aw of society where wine drinking I 1 haafeen been common and where smoking ft bac been the rule and it is my expert an nee that I 1 was always more re than it ever I 1 had bad either drunk or smoked I 1 tot lost no credit in any society that I 1 bare ever been in for not partaking of ask thing on n the contrary I 1 found E I 1 had more influence because will respect others who are firm I 1 la n alie them matters there Is no wan man who drinks that does not in his soul joel feel that he b would be better off if he dw did not met drink and he admires a man who does not drink now I 1 am at my present age and I 1 have never drunk a glass of liquor in my life I 1 made up p my mind when I 1 was wag a boy that I 1 would n nether ather smoke nor ch chew ew tobacco and etever mover have I 1 made up my mind also that I 1 would not drink tea or coffee and I 1 have observed that through my life and I 1 know I 1 am healthier and better for it I 1 started out in life in that way I 1 wanted to be a latter day saint and I 1 wanted to be an elder in this church that was the highest ambition I 1 ever had bad I 1 never wanted to hold any other office but I 1 did desire exceedingly that I 1 might be considered worthy to preach the gospel of the rao rion n of god when that office offic e aa waa conferred upon me that was all I 1 desired I 1 have shrunk from holding office I 1 have besought my brethren not to choose me t to 0 fill positions I 1 knew when I 1 was a boy that I 1 should be chosen one of the apostles and I 1 have gone out more then than once in secret and besought the lord to choose somebody else elee for I 1 did not want to fill that position I 1 dreaded it for I 1 knew how serious a thing lt it would uld be 10 0 hold so ao sacred an office as aa that of an apostle I 1 have asked god lr it I 1 could be saved and exalted without that office to choose oh joae someone else when I 1 was chosen one of the first presidency I 1 besought president taylor and my brethren not to choose me that there were others who were far are more c pable than I 1 to fill the position but it was so ordered and sud I 1 have endeavored to the beet beat of my ability in humility to fill that position I 1 do not speak in this strain to excite in your minds ambition for office but to encourage you to put yourselves in positions where you can be useful do not acquire these miserable habits babito da not allow intoxicating beverages to touch your lips do not fall into the destructive habit of smoking cigarettes and chewing tobacco do not give way to drinking tea or coffee and other things of this thia kind be latter jay J y saints be firm wherever you are and set act an example to everybody I 1 want to say that much to the young boys 1 I need not say eay it to the girls for it is a remarkable thing that women as a rule do not drink liquor nor use ure tobacco they are not given to these evil practices and in this respect they met an example to their brothers to their sons some to their husbands and in some instances instance pi no doubt to their fathers the women in this church are re worthy of all praise they are more attentive to their meetings more faithful in the observance of the duties that devolve upon them and have proved sta staunches stauncher advocates of the truth and shown less lees treachery in our recent troubles than the men have I 1 know that god to la elcee bingly pleased with the women of this church for they have shown that are worthy of the angels in heaven I 1 know that god wilt will bless the mothers an and I 1 the daughters of zion for their fidelity to the gospel gospe and for the devotion that they manifest and the men of this church might take lesson lessolo from the sisters in the way they attend I 1 to meetings and perform the other duties that devolve upon them therefore I 1 say eay it is not necessary to talk to our sisters about drinking I 1 do not know a woman in the church of any stand ing that ever touches any intoxicating drinks I 1 do not know a woman in the church that smokes or chews tobacco ayoung A young man would think he was courting a queer sort serf of a girlia gir irl lif if when he went tu to visit her sh she noula should pull out a cigarette and commence smoking and ask him if he would nt take a smoke or she should produce a bottle of beer and ask him if he would not take a glass of beer with her and why have they not just as much right to do that as the boys have why have not the girls as much right to drink liquor or beer and smoke or chow chew tobacco as the boys have I 1 cannot pee why one sex should have liberties of this kind that it to is considered improper for the other sex to take I 1 think it a man drinks he should not 06 be startled if his bis wife does the same and if he be makes a drunkard of her by his example he will have a great deal to answer for these are things my iny brethren and sisters that enter into our everyday lives I 1 would like myself to see me a generation of young men gro growing up that would abstain from these vices vice and we who are fathers should set get examples of this kind I 1 know it to is not necessary to be talking to our families all the time about the word of wisdom if we set a proper example ourselves our selvo but if we do not set such an example then than w we e have to be continually talking in order to counteract the influence of our own example I 1 feel that fat fathers ers will have much to answer for in these them matters for if a man takes ft a correct course in this direction his wife and his bis children will follow his him example god has said that those who will observe this counsel shall have wisdom given to them even great treasures of wisdom and these are the men we want men of wisdom and will you have wisdom if you take ahll a course just us as bure as god baa said d 0 BO o for his word will not fail and those who observe the word of wisdom will be distinguished among this people because of the wisdom that god will give them god gd will give them the blessings blee sings that he has promised and he will preserve prea erve them when you go SM as elders to administer in a family that observe these wor words a 0 of god 0 J you W will have aye faith to 0 lay JAY hands bands n the sick nick and to ask aak the blessings of god in their behalf and to heal them through the power of god whereas if they are living in violation of these theme words the faith of the elders and of the persons themselves will be weakened and they will not have enough to claim the promises that god has made this la Is grippe and other diseases that are going through the country are merely precursors of the pestilences that will yet sweep through the nations of the earth and aad we are required to stand in holy places place that we may esca escape these destruction and god has given unto us these counsels that we may be fortified so to speak against these theme scourges urges you know what they did in israel the lord commanded them through moses to sprinkle blood on the lintels linkels of their doors they did this and the destroying angel passed them by and did not nol ly slay the firstborn first born of any of tle hebrew but every f rehborn firstborn first born of the egyptians was slain in the museum at berlin or n I 1 believe there is Is record in stone found in egypt which the fact in the minds of egyptologists that the king of egypt himself lost his bis firstborn first born on some occasion and it is in made plain they thinks thick that it was when the destroying ying angel pass passed ed over egypt not a hebrew lost his him be they observed the nece necessary abury requirement rement god has bass in his revelation to us used this fact to bring home to us the importance of this counsel and what blessings will follow the observance of it therefore we should have faith in god in these matters believe that thai which he may marsand sand claim the prom promise isep not that we can altogether escape death tor for drath is in the world but we may escape these peati pestilences lences and judgments that are going forth among the nations of the earth already it seems as am though the elements bad been let loose with a violence that has not been known for or generations read bead the accounts of ef the floods the fires the earthquakes the tempest sand the awful destruction that has bus come upon the people in various places god has predicted this through the mouths of his holy prophets prophet and he has hae commanded us to gather out from the nations of the earth he has given unto the people a wonderful spirit of gathering gath cring he has done this for the express purpose 0 separating us from the wicked world and preserving a righteous seed aeed in the earth that when the judgments of god go forth there shall be some that will be spared but how bow few there are out of those that have received the truth who nave have maintained their integrity ind kept the faitel it is sad mad to think how large a number 0 of f people who once knew the gospel have faller fallen away from it and are not sharers now in its blessings you men of middle age can think of your former acquaintances and can recall the families that you knew in your early life the friends probably of your youth ano ana w where e are they now w some have gone here and there some have died out of the church others have bare lost one faith and gone no one oae know where it is a ead thing to contemplate how bow many have received the gospel who have lost the spirit of god and become aliens to the covenant having no name or place nor their children among the people of god why Y is 8 this in brethren and sisters ie it became god has withdrawn his hia blessings and power from them out of caprice Is it because they were predestined to lose the faith do you think there was any fatalism about this and that these people could not help doing what they have done dobe why no it is as plain as the light that shines through these windows that that Is ie not the case came it is become because they themselves have laid the fondation Rin dation for spon tacy they have grieved the spirit of god ana caused its withdrawal from them now it if we who are here today do not prove faithful and retain the spirit of god we shall be to blame and not god we cannot blame the presidency of the stake nor the high council nor the bishop nor the pret presidency of the church nor ner the twelve for we ourselves will be individually for that which we have brought upon ourselves how is the spirit of god grieved why in various ways but there is one fruitful cause and I 1 wish to call the attention of the young men of parowan carowan stake to it the lord has given in two revelations his express word concerning a sin that is fruitful in apostasy he declares that any man that will look upon a woman to lust after her shall deny the faith unless he repent and I 1 want to say to you young men that as eure bure as you live god will fulfil fulfill that word if you look upon woman to lust after her you will dery deny the faith unless you repents repent and that sorely you cannot indulge in this dreadful sin without grieving the spirit of god and causing its to withdrawal from you and if we cannot look upon a woman to lust after her without grieving the spirit of god and being in danger of toning lobing the faith hew much more serious would it be if any of us should act towards one of the other sex in an improper manner I 1 say to you in the narce name of the lord there to is no more fruitful cause of apoita cy than this and you had better be warned for god has spoken w with ith the grea greatest teet this the thought of doing anything that would cause me to apostatize from this church is the most horrible that ever entered into my heart it has filled me with a dread that my language is unable to and if I 1 thought there was anything that I 1 would do which would lead to ta such a dreadful result as am that I 1 would fly from it with all my might the lord does love purity and chastity in women and in men why should our sisters or our daughters or our wives be required to be more pure than we are are we not subject to the same lawe do we not expect to receive the same exaltation certainly then waw should a man think that he be do a ihirg with impunity wh nil his wife cannot do when be thinks that he deceives deceived dece ivee himself y this li Is the growing sin gin of the wor world men in these indulge passions a ai think they are justified in it us virtue is 10 almost unknown among au 01 sex gex under such conditions of couri cou the other sex become the victim and lire are preyed upon u fo 0 n by libertin vt it to ie this thia that is bringing d st ruction upon the nations of the earth and it would dent destroy the latter day palte pal tai te 1 they gave way to it god will have a pure peola people he will have a virtuous people ae a KW will haves have a holy people he will hav a people in whose tabernacles the spirit of god will dwell and it will bof dwell in unholy tabernacles whole history of our people is a proof of this thim oliver cowdery who stood sid aidee by ai si dewith joseph who was ordained ordal by an angel from heaven second elder in the church who be hold held the son of god himself who ww many wonderful was blessed of god as was J oseph joseph this man whom one would think would have stood tf any man in the flesh ever could low binl bulged in sin joseph warned him against that which he did bat he persisted in it and tl the r suit was his priesthood was taken from him and the crown that he be would have bad was given to another i hyrum smith received the blema net that oliver cowdery had had bestowed t pon him and which he had forfeited by his impure conduct ought not this to be a warning to all ot of us what man is there in the flesh who win can calculate upon being secure fro from corn milting sin if he fie could not noi this the fate also of other men who r received great gifts from god apostle 13 13 m maa johnson had bad great manipes manifestation tation A angele angels mi ministered ered unto him and h was the first man in this generation k to be ch aaen one of the twelve apo apal ties yet he be apostatized denied falth faith and became an enemy |