Show LII semiannual SEMI ANNUAL COTE nENCE of hie the church chit ach of jem jesus christ of latter Lalle iday day saints Saint in salt sall late lake city FRIDAY 10 a m the fifty second semiannual semi annual conference of tho the church of jesus church of latter day saints convened in the assembly hall at salt lake city 10 oct ath ill 1882 as per adjournment present on the stand of the first presidency jolin john taylor aco Q cannon and jos F smith of the tile twelve apostles wilford woodruff fr lorenzo snow erastus snow franklin D richards brigham young F 11 lyman john 11 smith I mosea thatcher Thatch cr and counselor D 11 II wella wells patriarch john smith of the F first arst presidency enc of the seventies H herriman IIer riman 11 II S eldredge jacob gates john van colt cott and win W taylor of the presiding bishopric E edward dward hunter leonard W hardy and robt T burton besides presidents of stakes and bishops and ani leading members from all parts of the territory conference was called to order by the president john taylor the choir sang on page 21 mortals awake with angels join prayer by apostle brigham young choir gang tau on page of promise the congregation was then addressed by APOSTLE F r M X who considered it a most precious time and hence desired the spirit of cod that diat he lie might instruct the in regard to the building up eatho of the kingdom of god and stud give tuch such words as woud would bo be of worth to the saints the instructions yesterday foreshadower foreshadowed fore an excellent confer once the kingdom of god has grown to attract the attention of the world worl dand and the lord is moving upon the world to search for truth beholding ile as it does a lack of virtue and ard love of god among mankind men are believing that something ing important will occur in the latter days that there is to be some remarkable change the latter day saints are established in the principles of tho the gas gospel el of christ au aal therefore bre have a beope hope for the bey beyond and which ehno no change can shako shake or abat shatter thia this is a strength and efficacy to them our lives here have an influence over the establishment of our characters in the hereafter our i associations here will endure eternally our family ties and or eions and the holy friesth priesthood g alizai will wil endure beyond tile grave we aro are here in a state of probation and our conduct hero here will determine our bap happiness in eternity the evils that wo ire conquer and the victories wo nye achieve in this life will bo be conquered and achieved in the life to conic the lord has bestowed upon this people so freely of his power and priesthood that it is not only necessary essaiy for individuals themselves to honor bonor these gifts by strict obedience to them but also that such individuals divi duals should seek nek to spread this knowledge to others pray for one another and ind for all good men upon the earth carth and also for their enemies for it is by the ilia spirit of tho the gospel that the they do good to all even to those who revile them in spreading good no man mail impoverishes crashes himself if the ilia saints carry these principles principles out in their lives no fear nee need be entertained regarding the welfare of tho ilia kingdom of god god lias has set his ilia hand to the work and no one need fear the re sulf guht each man has only to fear hla his own standing lest he be fall and de destroy troy bl hla ig own prospects for eternal li life fe the lord has prospered this people in this territory above many in in other states and territories and the fruitfulness of zion is spreading d ing avei over all the land zions children should 10 a taught in the ways of god before they leave their homes that they do q net not walk in forbidden paths in in places where they settle these children are sent to us that we may take thorough pains with them before they are eight years old those who fail to enlighten their children in fn the work of the gospel will have crave rave char charees es against them upon a day aa y of reckoning rec boning saints are not mado made as easily when age is is u upon n then as u when bt n the pliable mina TO of youth is placed lacad und under erthe the mission missionary ary care of a good father or mother how important then that the to young edg bo be taught in sabbath school in the primaries maxies and improvement associations ciati ons that they may grow up u faithful to the principles of god GOT the file speaker bore a strong testimony to the truth of the gospel and rud ex barted the saints to do the will of god and live in peace ace and qu quietude etude in in their homes ld and nil fill would be well with the kingdom of god a ram would be caught caugh t in tho tile thicket and the lords people would be saved CO COUX SELOn D 11 II WELL addressing the congregation bore his testimony that god haa has not forgotten ilia his people if they work according doilis to ilia direction nothing c can a prevent them from accomplishing in g lue the glorious designs which lle haa has contemplated and vill will surely carry out is as true today OB as it ever was and god haa has called us to assist in building work it requires great sacrifice to embrace this unpopular religion yet it is our lif lifes ea labor no enthusiastic tie revival but an every day labor in i which the sword of righteousness must ever bo be unsheathed every latter day saint will have sufficient to try him in the work of god and the closer ho he lives to hi his religion the harder will be the trials but let nothing intervene between usand us and the lord god let us press on to the goal with stout hands bands and brave hearts and as soon as god finds ho ile haa has a people who will stand faithful then wilt will the kingdoms of this earth bo be given to the saints of the most high let us prove ourselves faithful and overcome all the difficulties of our lives thus enabling us at length to stand victorious at our journeys end the work of god is growing rapidly even so much so that had bad any one in tha the days of missouri i prophesied prop b esic d concerning our standing today to day he lie would have been considered a wild enthusiast but the work will grow even more rapidly than ever until it shall cover the whole earth the world batell hate us S because of our righteousness no unrighteous man can live with the righteous C church and be saved he must repent pen and do his first works over again no fears need be entertained of the prosperity of this work it is and ever will be a success for ake the lord is willing to establish his ilia kingdom and to aid his ilia saints in perfecting their labors but we should not falter or become tired bacasse we grow rich it is no reason we should discard tho the work of god because we increase in wealth but we should serve him the more doreother oth er wise it is a great reat pity wo we should become wealthy wealthy in the goods of the world we should first seek the tile kingdom of god and its righteousness and all thines things else shall bo be added unto us tho the perishable things of earth wo we cannot afford to trade for eternal life if we do this we will indeed make a poor change jhc thc thereby belly losing our I families and friends and ourselves destroying the most tender ties that bind us to our loved ones but the majoria majority r of the saints will continue faithful and endure the trials of life thus vouchsafing to themselves eternal glory and salvation in the kingdom of their god which was tho the speakers prayer for all the faithful L JOHN read a statement of freewill free will of feringa to the logan and the manti temples Tem plea the reports were unanimously accepted by tho the conference the choir gang sang an anthem praise the lord in his ilia holiness prayer was offe offered reI by patriarch john smith and the conference adjourned till pm at p ra in tho the assembly hall was crow crowded so d to its utmost capacity many being unable to obtain entrance tr the congregation was called te to order by prest john taylor and the choir sang an n page zion stands with hills surrounded opening prayer by apostle moses thatcher choir sang on page how firm a foundation etc APOSTLE BRIGHAM addressed the audience the po positions si and acclamations of the elders mors of this church seem presumptuous to the people of the world but the most learned men of the world have not the remotest idea of the work wo rk of godana his ilia hand dealings with this people even the lawyers delight in drawing their arguments from the moral lessens mons of the bible yet these and all the world when told of the true and simple principles contained in that holy book boo k by the light li bt of revelation isali isili will coff at those itose who speak of these tb things lags this ii is astonishing because the truth is hid to none exec except t g those who are lost no matter matt erwest what sect comes along as a rule they get the people to listen and in many cases accept their doctrines but let a mormon 14 ormon elder present the principles of truth and he will be scoffed at and nt not listened to if the people know that he is a mormon 11 how is it that all are against us and none are with us we look upon those who come among us to cariati christianize an this people as wolves among sheep and lambs why because the end of their doctrines is hell and the speaker would rather follow his children to the grave than let them be taught tau t by those who establish fine schools among us they are fine schools and if it it were not for the evil of their ends they would be indeed lovely if our children attend them they are made infidels t they le a are e led aw away a from ram god and his y kingdom i n yd g rin be hence n none n but true and f faithful alit b f men loul d be employed to teach our children F fifty efty millions of people arc are fighting against us and it will not be long until one hundred millions will oppose c us but god will assist us I we e are powerless of ourselves the speaker felt ho he had not the strength in hia his arm if lie had some body would have been hurt now but it waa was not so and was wili waiting ting ilia his own time if sainta saints were as united as they be no enemies would have over them even those among them today to day would not bo be here bore it if t thoroughly lived ill up ta to tho the requirements Ilie lits of god he hoped god would help hell us to live by the forever which was his fervent desire APOSTLE 1105 next occupied the time lie ile for the spirit of god abile he lie should speak while the world cast us out wicked it is our duty to live by the ilia words of god that we may learn all the ways of the lord and gain a victory over all the powers darkness and finally obtain eternal lives iv the tile gospel lias bas been tereace preached to the poor of the ilia car earth to a limited extent and god has taken the ilia weak of the earth to confound the wisdom of the wise the knowledge of the ilia gospel has his not come to us by the facing feeing of the eye alone but by the knowl knowledge edgo of god within us and every one of us has been personally convinced of the gospel the testimony wo ire leavo has enabled us to relinquish the riches of the world and the ilia tender ties of nature and it is one that is more deep sure and lasting than any that can bo be given to tile outward senses of man when wo nye come to compare the love and virtue of this people with that of the world we find them far ahead and thia people are more nearly living up to the first great commandment which throbs in iu all nature multiply and replenish the earth than any other in the world and we teach our children to walk in ill the tile love of god and become faithful members in society the gospel will thus increase and eventually fill the whole earth and no one need have any fearon fear of the final inal salvation of all who adhere to its over ever enduring principles wo we will bow in submission to the laws of the land and obey the mandates of the government yet like the hebrew children this wo vo do know we will stand firmly by our principles though we bo be cast int into principles furnaces iurna u ces of fire the s speaker had but little fault to find with the different acts against us for he lie knew that they only tended to make us stronger in our faith and more united in the gospel truths wo we havo aye espoused the lord stood by ili his is people a in in tho the days of old and arid made thousands to fly at the sound of one and we believe that today to day he ile is as able to protect the ilia latter day our enemies may plot and conspire spending pending the oil of the ilia night lamps yet what god decrees will come to pass for we believe he ile is the god who commands the greatest armies and leads the humblest ii soul while in no respect the speaker speaker desired to be radical while he e believed in treating the enemies of this people with fairness lie did not wish to t any of the institutions of those who arc are as uncharitable towards us as were the scribes and pharisees Pharis ees towards the savior there must needs be of cs but woe woo unto them by whom they come it was designed that jesus should 11 have aye enemies enemies who would lie about him and finally follow him to the tile cross to say that this nation is ignorant of the gospel of christ t the go speaker could not being MIMI cognizant of the fact that the gospel had been preached all through it requests were made by the reman roman soldiers of the king to place a mighty mi aty seal over the tomb of the savior who declared lie would rise from the grave which fact showed they knew something of the plan of salvation tion the tile deop people of the tile united states have heard beard the gospel eel and they have no right right to prohibit its being preached notwithstanding resolutions had bad been adopted to expel the ciders elders from certain state states F from ram the bottom of liis his heart the a speaker speaker pitied the people of this na plan of salvation I lie would ask this nation if the tile passage sage of the edmunds bill was not a victory of church over state it was the result of the orts of bacot cd ed religionists of the tile nation I that hat bill was or originated i i bated in salt lake ct city I y and was born in infamy every bill that has bas been enacted to brim bring this people into bond bondage age has 11 he was conf confident ident originated in the se emo me place notwithstanding the charges of iniquity among ilia saints we ire cannot better convince the nation of our purity by the use of tb the a pu pulpits I and an press of at christendom he lie would rather be the husband of several W wives ive than the husband of one and the the keeper echer of mi distresses stresses the commissioners had incorporated a clause in one of their rules which admitted to the polls tho the libertine and harlot barlot but excluded the roan man who acknowledged his wives and children mormonism will quench i fires face sabres fabres and the cannons mouths months and has always done so this people if prompted by tile pro proper er spirit will never deny the ilia fait faith nor turn their wives and children into the streets for the le lecherous aber to prey pray upon did joseph smith fed feel like denying his religion during h his persecution take the instance of charles IX of F france r ance by whose cruel edicts thousands oy OT religionists were put to d death t and following history we lenan eat that i a t he received retribution but could tho human mind bo be bent or was their belief in the savior and adherence to their religious forms crushed out A man was sent tent here some time since who by a peculiarity in his mathematics made 1300 votes out count but thank god the speaker could pray for such a man the jews crucified the savior and josephus tells us that in the course of time wood |