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Show CWeS EDITORIAL PAGE DESTTISyCTOVE IFOICHS Abraham Lincoln one time, President At said that no outside force can ever but if destruction does de- come stroy America, it will be by the hands of enemies from within. This has been true of many strong nations of the past. They have died by suicide, not by conquest. The principle involved holds true of other organizations including religious groups. In our nation we have had our Benedict Arnolds. In the Church we have had our John C. Bennetts and our William Laws. And today there are still some who try to subvert our interests. There are many ways in which certain individuals attempt to destroy faith. Some do it by attempting to explode the mvths' of Mormonism, even attempting to cast aspersions upon the good name of the Prophet Joseph Smith. ELDER HAROLD B. LEE of the Counof the Twelve recently told of a brother whose faith had been tested. Among other trials he had lost his hearing. Discouraged, he was approached by an apostate group who attempted to dissuade him from the truth. Then said Elder Lee: They came to this father who had been struggling with his faith. This night the father was pondering what had been said. His faith was somewhat weakened by his experience. He walked along and as he approached a light on the corner he heard with his ears with which he had not heard for months and months, a voice which said, Stick with the old ship; it will lead you safely through. This is the time for us to remember that, you leaders. Stick with the old ship. It doesnt need anything new excepting as the Lord has need for more revelation. This Church guided as it is by divine leaders this ship will carry us safely through. . . . FOLLOWING TIIE DEATH of President Brigham Young, the Council of the Twelve sent out a message to the Church which I think bears repeating today, so I conclude with this statement by the Twelve: Latter-da- y Saints should so live that voice of the true shepherd will the know they and not be deceived by pretenders. This is a piivilege of every member of the Church, Saint who does not live and the Latter-da- y so as to have revelations of Jesus constantly with him stands in great danger of being de cil fflnfflBm al Conference, April 1989. From its beginning, the Church has constantly stressed the importance of the home. Homes can be heaven here on earth. Where love is present in a home, it can and will be a happy home. When the Savior was here filling His earthly mission. He gave strong emphasis to the principle of love. At one time alearned man, a lawyer, apRCH long-sufferin- g, bearing with each others faults; and yet avoiding the very appearance of evil, so that others seeing our good works may be led to glorify God. Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take. The clouds ye so much dread are big with mercy, and shall break in blessings on your head! THE MASTER PRAYED for his disciples, I pray not that thou wouldst take them out of this world (the world of sin he meant) , but that thou shouldst keep them from evil. So today, we dont pray to take our youth and our people out of the world, because they shall be as a leaven to the whole of the community. But please, God, with all our power, while they are in the world, we pray that they may be kept from evil. I echo that prayer, and bear you my solemn testimony to you who may be wavering, and who havent developed a testimony. I know that this is the Lords work. I know that Jesus Christ lives, and that He is closer to this Church, and appears more often in holy places than any of us realize, excepting sometimes to those to whom He makes personal appearance. I know it, and the time is hastening when He shall come again to reign as Lord of Lords and King of Kings. You leaders, you have young people who dont have that faith and that testimony, but dont neglect to bear your testimony to them so that they may have something to cling to when turmoil comes in their lives, and the temptations and the fires of Satan are burning hot in their lives. So I admonish you and bear my humble testimony, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Homes Can Be Heaven It m IftitHJl J v Excerpts from an address by Elder Henry D. Taylor at Gener- ceived and falling away. All signs which the Lord promised to send in these last days are making their appearance. They show that the day of the Lord is at hand. A. great work has to be done, and there is but little time in which to accomplish it. Great diligence is therefore required. Let us not slacken our diligence or give way to doubt, unbelief or hardness of heart, but be strong in the Lord and cry unto Him unceasingly to give us the power to build up His Zion upon the earth, and to help establish a reign of righteousness, peace and truth. Let us build each other up in the most holy things, cultivating love, meekness, lowliness of heart, charity, patience and proached Him and asked: Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said to him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy (Matt. neighbor as thyself. 22:36-39Then, to give added strength to His statement, He said: On these two commandments hang all the l.aw and the prophets. (Matt. 22:40). ). WEEK ENDING AUGUST 16, 1969 On another occasion the Loid taught that in addition to loving God our Father in Heaven, and our neighbor, we also should love even our enemies. With our human frailties and prejudices, that becomes a real challenge. Here is His counsel: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitofully use you, and persecute you; (Matt. 5:44) ' BOOK OF MORMON PROFILES ' Hagoth: A Ship Builder 1 in the Book of Mormon but once by name. (Alma 63:5). Yet the reference to him is important: And it came to pass that Ilagoth, he being an exceedingly curious man, therefore he went forth and built him an exceedingly large ship . . . and launched it forth into the west sea, by the narrow neck which led into the land northward. j Hagoth is mentioned The next several verses tell how other expeditions of Nephites sailed off with much provisions,1 and also many women and children. j Hagoth also built other ships. Some voyages were successful and made return trips; another ship also did sail forth; and whither she did go we know not, according to Shiblon, who kept the records. Tradition has it that some of the ships that did not return may have reached the islands of the Pacif- ic the Hawaiian Islands, the Society Islands, the Samoan Islands, and Easter Island. As a result, natives of these islands may be descendants of the Ne-phites. The possibility that ships could sail and drift west across the Pacific Ocean was demonstrated some years ago by the Norwegian ethnologist, Thor Heyerdahl. He too, being a curious man, built a raft of balsam logs, named it and drifted Wes' from Gallao, Peru, 4,300 miles to the Raroia Islands More recently, Heyerdahl built a raft of papyru and sailed from the northwestern coast of Africa the Western Hemisphere. His purpose has been t( demonstrate the possibility of Near Eastern people migrating to the American continents by drifting an( sailing boats. What kind of ships Hagoth built is, of course, unknown. But that he must have been a skillful mechan ic and master builder can be appreciated. His craft carried many Nephites, and they were sufficiently j seaworthy to make return trips. It is generally assumed the voyagers who trav-- , eled to the land northward probably landed somewhere along the California coast. Hagoths sNp wa.' built on the borders of the land Bountiful, by ihf land Desolation, and the narrow neck that lec nortnward was what is now the area of Panama Hagoth is described as exceedingly curious. This characteristic is in keeping with the spirit oi the Gospel. To be curious is to want to learn, to gair knowledge. The late Albert Einstein, scientist, said ol curiosity: The important thing if not to stop questioning., Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be ir awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose t holy curiosity. Hagoth, the Nephite ship builder, had such curl; -' -' 1 Kon-Tik- i, t osity. ;) |