Show WORTHY 11 jhb HE STUDY OP OF AD PHILOS BY courtesy of gay brothers of new york we are enabled to present a letter addressed to them by mr george ticknor curtis whose name is now new almost a household word in utah rue fhe remarks made in the correspondence by that able jurist are worthy of attention in a legal argument made by him upon a notable occasion he be confes sed harn jya dt la ia having up to that tha t alme ai hoeu so little attention to th the e af a greatly abused people or Bethin lio that effect it is to be pr satt tait 4 0 since then he has devoted 0 9 the investigation of IL a subject to the Imports importance uce of which he was suddenly awakened H hf is now in a position tion to intelligently state stat that ehat the mormon religion must rank among the most remarkable liable phenomena of modern times in thus depicting the religious system of the latter day saints mr carti Is correct it would verbe difficult for any individual outside the pale of the community organized under it to define the re reasons tor for the phenomenal character of 09 what is called Ator moult 11 toe idea is iafe ased d mostly upon i L f me t e distinctness of itself and its aavo devotees teis all other systems and people in 0 many essential particulars what these distinctions consist of is greatly misunderstood and aad indeed ean only be in any degree of falness by thosa who nave accepted ut or and conformed to the faith its adherents claim that its phenomenal character arises iruin from precisely the same cause that mat Z Ons titu led the singularity of primitive christianity as introduced aud and promulgated promulgate dby by its head and those laurn waurn lie he specially commissioned to proclaim and establish it the reason why the adae adherents rents of the modern religious phenomenon claim that their religion is peculiar on the cue same basis us as was the tae primitive baurch is id grounded on the further clain claim that eliat the latter laiter day gospel its is pot not a new system DUL simply the efte original plan revealed anew in a later dispensation this claim involves tho the corel core co rel re yative one that taut the christianity established uy by christ sad and his hid apostles was a system entirely different from the confused heterogeneous religious religions of the present age as well as a good many preceding ones the original system included divine authority by the aae raed ap pp urn of revelation a distinct organization including apostles prophets aud and other officers placed in the church for specific fic purposes not only baith in the fattier father of our lurd lord and we atonement of the latter to reecle humanity from the conditions imposed ay the fall tint but also repentance baptism by immersion I 1 for or the remission of sins and the imposition of the aanas ol of those holding the required authority for the imparting of the holy ghost to repentant and baptized bull vers also tue performance of vicarious work by the tae living in behalf of the dead who depart to the spirit world without having had an opportunity port unity of hearing and em racing those doctrines while in mortality in the primitive church littiere were likewise spiritual gifts the fruits of the holy ghost whose communion munion was enjoyed by the faithful christians of that age N NJ intelligent individual who reads the scriptures and believes what he reads can consistently deny that the foregoing were among the conditions and principles which characterized the system instituted by our lorland lor jand dand those whom he empowered to be ilia his agents in and perpetuating the same labor on toe the same ground it cannot be denied that these peculiarities are not even claimed by the great bulk of christians of this chis day much less enjo enjoyed e d e this leads to the conclusion n that die original system was repudiated and others falsely claiming to be orthodox planted in its stead in other words that there has been an apostasy if it were otherwise the churches of today would with the experience of et ag ages e 8 have been immeasurably in advance in genuine theology of the those devotees of true religion who lived nearly two housand years ago As it is their basis is not only constituted of what occurred so many centuries since but the intelligence then thea promulgated is about all the material they have at command and upon this there is an endless division of opinion people being blown hither and thither oy dy every wind of doctrine A religious phenomenon of the same eliar character acter as divine providence offered to plant among men nearly 1900 years ago would be likely to be similarly I 1 created to one of the same structure and genius revealed later A like cause will produce a like effect at any time history does not furnish any evidence to speak of that men of thought and education in the days of the primitive church took any pains to study it or its claims it was then as now in relation to mormonism it was repudiated a clumsy imposture and its devotees were dragged before judges cast into prison and put to deaia in various shapes mr curtis carels claims correctly that aside from a belief in abe rightfulness of plural marriage there is ouch much la in the modern phenomenon to engage the abe attention of eminent thinker and workers of the word it if that class would honestly act upon that suggestion they would discover in the sublime theory theor of mormonism a field as broad an and deep as was ever conten contemplated plated by mortal eren a person claiming it to be illusive could not dot but admire the sublimity its of its aspect it takes truth for its scope things as they have been as they ae a e and ever shall be it is claimed that included in this grand category is the identity of man in a spirit life in form conformable in in shape and dimensions men to his bis mortal body when in perfect condition the spiritual u ai fatherhood of god and consequent brotherhood of man maa the mortal probation combined with tree free agency as a progressive condition condit ioa preparatory to entering upon another stage of spirit life beyond the grave tiie the ultimate union of body and spirit by the power of the resurrection when the whole man will be clothed with immortality so comprehensive is ia the divine plan that it cometa comes near the principle of universal salvation excluding ithone only comparatively few in number who elect to remain outside the pale of divine clemency by persisting in being a law unto themselves as all alf things must be redeemed by the conditi conditions ors of law the final d destiny and condition ot 01 who have passed through 1 the abe mortal probationary stage will depend end upon their fitness attained by development development and conformity to just end and correct principles previous to the classification directed by the wisdom and adde justice stice of omnipotence T the key to the devotion of intelligent and educated people as well as those who are perhaps not so tar far advanced in a certain class of culture to the mormon religion exists in the fact of their having obtained a witness of its truth they have been baptized into one spirit and claim to know of the doctrine this was the case with the early christians they were convinced that god and truth were in their religion this caused thera them to face without faltering the revolting prisons of that day they confronted without blanching ibbe faggot and tie the torch death and dr ivings because they felt they were sustained by these two ve pe eminent rod invincible conditions condit luu surely when something approach approaching irig similar conditions exise in these times it resents presents a question worthy the tudy study of of the statesmen and philosophers of the age |