| Show JOHN W TAYLORS SERMON following to is the full text of the sermon delivered at the tabernacle on lF friday october 7 1898 by elder john tv taylor the transcript being tur fur finished by the stenographer who re 1 ported the speaker my brethren and slaters sisters I 1 pray that AM spirit of the lord will direct what 4 may say unto you I 1 have had great IVes measure sure during this conference in to the counsels of the breth n Q and I 1 feel that the importance of 4 e question brought to our attention br wy president smith can not be over asil mated area are a blessed anda and a pros pro arous people today what has made tto to so it Is the fact abot that the leaders df this church have given a similar aind lelnd of counsel for the past forty years t oth people 1 I 1 desire myself to refer to another phase of our religion tor for a few mo i as we are reminded we are F r dual creatures I 1 have felt fed in my from the first hour this con ference opened I 1 have been delight aed beyond expression with the tul singing that we have in this house taid I 1 rejoice to asso associate clate again for a time with the saints during conis therence wence for if I 1 know my own desires sat at is to build up the kingdom of god van the earth and to fco do my humble spart wherever I 1 am called to labor now I 1 have been abroad preaching the gospel to the world preaching re Imm tance we are commanded by our keavenly Itea venly father to preach repentance for it is a day of warning and not a say of many words and ninie times out qt af ten when I 1 speak I 1 cannot help stalking upon this subject because the to the eldera Elder sare are so waln plain regarding it now brethren and aisters all these temporal things that uve been spoken of are of great value ap vs us and we should all learn the les leon of patient labor I 1 never in my ate 4 in office work or in the field or wherever I 1 have labored with mankind allowed a man to do dio a better aty rayfl 0 work than jhan I 1 have done myself anyone who has labored with me in wy capacity will understand this to be ate ae yuth truth I 1 speak of this to bear peony of what has been said but there sorby lo 10 another thing that weighs weigh heavily ws AM my mind our feelings are very much influenced in by what we hear A sl stepped u up P to me at the r problem 9 cross os s station yesterday morn jilg and told rae me he was going to move to so aie rural districts and take up tand I 1 want more I 1 land he sa aada 1 ut there is one thing that i A do js mt like to move for and that it Is ie in y the settlement I 1 am going to I 1 is 8 in Is valley or kamas prairie and abt like to go for one reason and is that I 1 was informed that eight of rf every ten of the marriages e have been of such a character st the wives have had children bethey aw th ey were married now I 1 CAN BELIEVE in rhodes valk ia r the abe litter day saints are so rotten r inan man stated I 1 CAN NOT BE v if LIEVE that they have so thoroughly rotted in the valley now this is a question that I 1 want to speak of a little because there are things that we need to speak of to the latter day saints it is said by the prophet that we should be like watchmen on the towers of zion and that if we see the enemy approach and we warn not that city that their ald blood will be upon our heads and as far as I 1 am concerned as an individual inri vidual I 1 propose to rid myself of it another thing I 1 am going to refer to we as a people always put the imperfections of our people out bout and we do not cover them up slick them over and varnish them but we expose them like the physician th that at takes the knife and cuts out the ulcer in order that the whole body may be saved this has been the practice of the latter day S saints from the beginning because we are told that god does not look book upon sin with the least degree of allowance I 1 was told by a very prominent gentleman in this city that when he was driving his buggy down main street late one saturday evening several gentlemen stepped up to the carriage 1 I regret to say that we have some girls in our city as they do in other cities of the world that promenade the streets late at night paint their faces and put on all they can get upon their backs and heals heads to make them attractive unto the men the gen gentleman aleman referred to is here to verify what I 1 say you all see him that have eyes looking this way these three young men say we have been looking at ask these girls that are wandering up and down the streets and there were dozen of them and they said we have ir information formation to convince us that nine out of ten of these girls are immoral and have lost their virtue this gentleman said to the young men these are the girls you have to chose your wives from arent eddey yes I 1 suppose it if we ever get any was the reply I 1 CANNOT BELIEVE BUT THAT IT IS FALSE I 1 CANNOT BELIEVE THAT SUCH SUCA HORRIBLE immorality EXISTS right here in the tenter center stake of zion and I 1 want to say eay to the girls that maraler up and down streets with nothing t to do late on saturday night thet that you are looked upon as being immoral women woman while conversing this gentleman another man canie came up wo word rd I 1 could not mot doubt and he be said aid 1 I was informed by a lady in salt lake who keeps a rooming house that after the close of practice ices by the Taber choir several members come came to tio her rooming house for immoral purposes oes I 1 thought to myself myrtlf ts Is this possible Is it possible that ithac we w c dan look upon the beauty of this salt lake tabernacle vole choir and have a hanging banging over them like this I 1 cannot believe these things nevertheless elesa I 1 say unto you my brethren and sl eters that I 1 fear there is a disposition dispo critton among some rf of our mv people to 0 o become careless car care elewa lews and lax in their morale to look lightly upon men and women men who infringe upon the moral law I 1 feel strongly impressed to bo read the vision of nepa the prophet pophet if this me is ie true it if there them Is a portion of truth about these exaggerations how must you feel fathers and mothers when your sont and aoel daughters come to learn and sing the songs of zion when you send your daughter to trade and obtain the necessities of life to hear that chat your daughters are viewed in this ligat by the young men of zion alon the several young men referred to axe are here and you can see them all of you but I 1 went to say to you that these things are NOT TRUE in their entirety but I 1 do db believe there is some truth regarding dimS these things linings I 1 want to tio read the vision of nepal the prophet to show elbow yon how the people of god have wandered away in every age of the world haw it was with behls family I 1 say unto you biou brethren and slaters sisters the wealth we will have to in the dhe morning ott of the will be our sons and aad daughters and while it is necessary to wove move and live and have an interest on this earth when we come beafore bei fore the bat bar of god in the morning of the resurrection what will we have we will nave have our sons and our daughters or wei we will be the poorest persons there we will be barren and and win will bee be under condemnation if we nave have not mot faugh t our olur sons and in the principles of righteousness the iwuc W munt of lebios dream as reco recorded oded in ilk the chapter of I 1 nepal la is as follows and it came to pass that we had gathered together all manner of seeds of every kind both of stain grain of every kind and also of the seeds of fruit ot of every kind and it came to pass that while ay AT father tarried in the wilderness he unto us saying behold I 1 have dreamed a dream or in other words I 1 seen a vision and behold because of the thing thine which I 1 have seen I 1 have reason to rejoice in the lord because of nephi and also alao of sam for I 1 have reason to suppose that they and also many of their seed will be saved but behold laman and lemuel I 1 fear exceedingly because of you for behold I 1 saw in my dream a dark and dreary wilderness and it came to pass that I 1 saw a man and he was dressed in a white robe and he came and stood before me and it came to pass that he unto me and bade roe me follow him and it came to pass that as I 1 followed him I 1 beheld myself that I 1 was waft in a dark and dreary waste and after I 1 had traveled tor for the space of many hours in darkness I 1 besan began to pr pray y unto the lord that pe would ha on me according to the multitude e of his tender mercies me retes and it came to pass after I 1 hm had prayed unto the lord I 1 beheld a large and spacious spa clious field and it came to paw pass chati beheld I 1 tree whose fruit was desirable to make une happy and it came to pass that I 1 did go forth and partake of the fruit thereof emd and I 1 beheld that it was most sweet above all that I 1 ever before tasted yea and I 1 beheld that the fruit thereof was waa white to exceed all the whiteness that I 1 had ever seen and as I 1 partook of the fruit thereof it filled my soul with exceeding great joy wherefore I 1 began to be desirous that my family should partake of it also for I 1 knew that it was desirable above all other fruit and as I 1 cast my eyes round about that perhaps I 1 might discover my family also I 1 beheld a river of water and it ran along and it was near the tree of which I 1 was partaking the art frt and anda 1 looked to behold from whence lt cane fand and I 1 saw the head thereof a PW and at the head thereof OV I 1 beheld your mother sariah and saxa SAM ana nepha and they stood as if ther knew wet vot whither they should go 1 and tt it dameto to pass that I 1 beckoned unto thie tai anna and I 1 also alga did say unto them with a edw voice That they should gme ahto VAt omd me arid aad partake of the fruit desirable above all aft other otna r trait and it came to pass that they did come cato me and partake of the fruit also sisa and tt it came to pass that I 1 was dextrous that liaman laman and lemuel should come doln ard anu partake harrake of the fruit also alao I 1 cast mine eyes towards the head of ifft vie the river that perhaps 1 might soo aee hem and it carte came to pass that I 1 saw them but thaw they bUld not dome to me an ana I 1 behold beheld a red pod of iron and it extender along aadlan the bank of the river and NO led to the free by which I 1 stood and I 1 also beheld a straight and narrow path came along by the rod or iron even to the tree by which I 1 stood and it also led by the head of the fountain unto a large and spacious field as if it had been a world and I 1 saw numberless concourses of people many of whom were pressing 9 forward that they might obtain thy the path oath which led unto the tree by which and it came to pass that they did ickle forth and commence in the path which leato led to the tree and it ft came to PAWS pass tha there arose mist of darkness yea even an exceeding great mist mint of darkness inso myc h that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way that they wandered oft off and wire were lost loit aad it came to pass that I 1 beheld others pressing fb forward iward and they came forth aua caught hold of the end of the W ot lion iron and they did press forward through the mist of darkness clinging to the rod pod of iron even until they ad come forth and partake of the faudt of the tree audi and after they had partaken partaker par taken of the fruit of the tree they did cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed and I 1 also cast my eyes round about and beheld on the other side of the alef of at water a great and spacious building and it stood as it were in the air high above the earth anid and at 1 1 was filled with itai people both old 31 gunj both male and female and nd their pa manner of dress was exceeding ed in faw alne and they weri were in the attitude ot of mocking and pointing painting their fin fingers gers towards I 1 those who had come at and ere of odthe the fruit bruit anda way had tasted at 0 the fruit ft they mey were ashamed because of thock that were scoffing rg at t them and they fell away ant info b forbidden forbidden paths and aid were ift lost and now I 1 nepal do not speak all the words of my father but to be short in writing behold he saw other multitudes pressing forward and they came and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron and they did press their way forward continually holding fast to the rod of iron until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree and he also saw other multitudes feeling their way towards the great and spacious bul building iding and it came to pass that many were drowned in the depths of the fountain and many were lost from his view wandering in strange roads and great was the multitude that did enter into that strange building and after they did enter into that building they did point the finger of 0 scorn at me and those that were partaking taking of the fredt also but we heeded them not hot these are the I 1 words of my father er as many as an heeded them had fallen kway away and lantan laman and lemuel partook not of the fruit said my father and it came to pets pass after my father had spoken all the words wards of his dream or vision which were many he said aid unto us because of these things which he saw in a exceedingly feared for laman and lemuel yea he feared lest they should be cast off from the presence of the lord and he did exhort them then with all the feeling of a tender parent that they would hearken to his words that tha perhaps the lord would be merciful to them and not cast them off yea my father did preach unto them and after he had preached unto them and also prophesied unto them of many things he bade them to keep the commandments of the lord and he did cease speaking unto them nephi the prophet testie fid that the lord also gave him a vision which was the interpretation of the vision which his father had see book of mormon chapter 15 today we see the Lania wandering forth as a dark and loathsome people upon the north and south american continent and al alao po upon some of the pacific islands andt the curse of god has been upon that people as it was upon the land they inhabited as referred to by president smith today As the result of their disobedience to the commandments of god now my my brethren and sisters sIf what I 1 wish to refer to la is this chait are your sons and daugh daughters teri doing are they fully employed in some useful labor bort it if they are carrying out the counsels cou upon pon this subject that were given by presidents cannon and smith they would toot mot ber be wandering away from the path of virtue into mist and darkness in sin and corruption as many of the o nave have done no no mv crey would be as their fathers following the lessons lesions of patient labor and industry will be full of the spirit of virtue and energy I 1 want to say unto you my brethren and als tens tem and friends god will bless this people if they win beaure be pure and if we are not pure he will withdraw his spirit tram from us the writ spirit of god cannot at it is impossible that it will dwell in an unholy tabernacle taber you might lust just as well put a bottle battle of ink into a jug jog of pure water and expect to drink it and relish religh it as to expect the spirit 0 ot ged ta dieh dw eja tn in an unholy tabernacle the spirit of god ts is pure the glory of lot god Is intelligence intel intelli fience gece it i refined and i and it will not mot abide with a man leow be keeps clean and ps pure lar I 1 light ris truth tru aach R want waa to say ud unto the ww aard oe V tf zi zion keep V r ours daae i vew a pure and upa potted from the mine alna of this wicked and adulterous genera generation thom remember the counsels of jesus christ if thine eye offend thee pluck it out if thy right hand offend thee cut it off |
