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From: "Perry L. Porter" <[e-mail]>
Subject: ---> Lesson 37 Extra info D&C 125-28
Date: 11 Oct 1997 14:15:14 -0700

Section 125

The History of the Church notes that Section 125 was given about 20 March
1841, but and entry for 6 March 1841 in the John Smith Journal suggests an
earlier date.

...

A major factor that permitted the saints to gather again after their
expulsion from Missouri was the liberal land offer extended to them by
Isaac Galland. ..

The settlements of Zarahemla, Nashville, Ambrosia, and Montrose were
located in Lee County, Iowa, on properties that the Church had purchased
from Galland in 1839.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 282.

Section 126

On Thursday, 1 July 1841, Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, and John Taylor
arrived in Nauvoo, Illinois, from their British Mission. Section 125,
received the following week, commended Elder Young for his service in the
kingdom and counseled him not to leave his family again during his
missionary service.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985),p. 28.

Section 127

1 September 1842

...

These two letters, written in the hand of William Clayton, were addressed
to "all the saints in Nauvoo" at a time when the Prophet was making few
public appearances because of threats of unlawful arrest. Governor Carlin
of Illinois, responding to a demand from the governor of Missouri, issued
a warrant for Joseph Smith's arrest as an accessory before the fact in an
assault with intent to kill Lilburn W. Boggs, ex-governor of Missouri. ...


The letters concern themselves with salvation for the dead, a subject of
much interest and discussion in 1842. Baptism for the dead was first
publicly announced on 15 August 1840 at the funeral of Seymour Brunson.
...Church members began performing proxy baptisms in the Mississippi River
and in local streams. ...the actions were not recorded; consequently the
baptisms were later repeated. ... Baptisms for the dead in the Nauvoo
Temple were first performed on Sunday, 21 November 1841. With few
exceptions, endowments and sealings for the dead were first administered
in the St.

George, Utah, Temple.

...

the Prophet emphasized that "all persons baptiz'd for the dead must have a
Recorder present, that he may be an eye-witness to testify of it."
Sections 127 and 128 both give special attention to the matter of having
witnesses and recorders for the work of the dead.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 284-285.

On 10 August 1840 Seymour Brunson, member of the Nauvoo High Council, died
in Nauvoo. The Prophet took the occasion of his funeral, on 15 August
1840, to deliver the first discourse on the doctrine of baptism for the
dead.

...

He read the greater part of the 15th chapter of Corinthians and remarked
that the Gospel of Jesus Christ brought glad tidings of great joy, and
then remarked that he was a widow in that congregation that had a son who
died without being baptized, and this widow in reading the sayings of
Jesus 'except a man be born of water and of the spirit he cannot enter the
kingdom of heaven,' and that not one jot nor tittle of the Savior's words
should pass away, but all should be fulfilled. He then said that his widow
should have glad tidings in that thing. He also said the apostle was
talking to a people who understood baptism for the dead, for it was
practiced among them. He went on to say that people could now act for
their friends who had departed this life, and that the plan of salvation
was calculate to save all who were willing to obey the requirements of the
law of God.

Endowments for the dead were first performed in the St. George Temple on
11 January 1877.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 344.

...

During the previous May, Missouri's governor, Lilburn W. Boggs, who had
issued the extermination order against the Saints, was shot and wounded.

The Latter-day Saints were immediately suspected, and Joseph Smith was
specifically accused of being an accessory to the crime. During August the
Prophet was arrested on these charges but was soon released. At this point
some Missourians threatened to take the law into their own hands by
crossing the river into Illinois and seizing the Prophet by force. Joseph
therefore went into hiding for the sake of his own and the Church's
safety.

Richard O. Cowan, "Instructions on Baptism for the Dead," Studies in
Scripture, Volume One: The Doctrine and Covenants, Edited by Robert L.

Millet and Kent P. Jackson (Sandy, Utah: Randall Book Co., 1984), p. 490.

Section 128

6 September 1842.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 285.





-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Perry L. Porter" <[e-mail]>
Subject: ---> Lesson 38
Date: 11 Oct 1997 14:49:07 -0700

Doctrine and Covenants 129-31

Lesson 38

Scriptural Highlights

1. The Godhead

2. The celestial kingdom

3. Acquiring knowledge and intelligence

4. The "more sure word of prophecy"

Prayerfully determine which scriptures to discuss in this lesson.

Discussion and Application Questions

* What did the Lord reveal about the Godhead in D&C 129 and 130? (D&C
129:1-2; 130:1-3, 22-23.) Why is it important for us to know these truths
about the Godhead?

* What did the Lord reveal about the celestial kingdom in D&C 130 and 131?
(D&C 130:6-11; 131:1-4; see also D&C 137:1-4, 10.) Why is it sometimes
difficult to maintain our commitment to be worthy of the celestial
kingdom? How can we strengthen this commitment?

* The Lord promises that the knowledge and intelligence we acquire in this
life "will rise with us in the resurrection" (D&C 130:18). How can this
promise help us understand the purposes of mortality? Why is it impossible
for a person to be saved in ignorance? (D&C 131 :6.) How can we gain the
knowledge and intelligence we need to be saved? (See D&C 93:28, 39;
130:19; and the quotation from Elder Kimball.)

* In D&C 130:20-21, what did the Lord reveal about his purpose for giving
laws and commandments? What blessings have you received that you felt were
the result of obeying a particular commandment?

* What does it mean to have eternal increase? (See D&C 131:4 and the
quotation from the First Presidency.)

* What does it mean to receive "the more sure word of prophecy"? (D&C
131:5; see 2 Peter 1:10, 19). What people in the scriptures have had their
calling and election made sure? (Mosiah 26:15, 20; D&C 132:48-49.) What
must we do to have our calling and election made sure? (See the quotations
from the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Guide to the Scriptures.)

Quotations

Elder Spencer W. Kimball: "No man can ever really find God in a university
campus laboratory.... God and his program will be found only in deep
pondering, appropriate reading, much kneeling in devout, humble prayer,
and in a sincerity born of need and dependence....

"President Joseph Fielding Smith [said] 'that a man cannot be saved in
ignorance of the saving principles of the Gospel. We cannot be saved
without faith in God. We cannot be saved in our sins.... We must receive
the ordinances and the covenants pertaining to the Gospel and be true and
faithful to the end.' . . .

"The ultimate and greatest of all knowledge, then, is to know God and his
program for our exaltation" (in Conference Report, Oct. 1968, p. 130).

The First Presidency (Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, and Charles W.
Penrose): "Only resurrected and glorified beings can become parents of
spirit offspring. Only such exalted souls have reached maturity in the
appointed course of eternal life; and the spirits born to them in the
eternal worlds will pass in due sequence through the several stages . . .
by which the glorified parents have attained exaltation" (in Clark,
Messages of the First Presidency, 5:34).

The Prophet Joseph Smith: "After a person has faith in Christ, repents of
his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the
Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter,
then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and
thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the
Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted. When the Lord has
thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him
at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made
sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which
the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St.
John. [See John 14:12-27. ] Now what is this other Comforter? It is no
more nor less than the Lord
Jesus Christ Himself" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp.150-51).

Guide to the Scriptures ("Calling and Election"): "Righteous followers of
Christ can become numbered among the elect who gain the assurance of
exaltation. This calling and election begins with repentance and baptism.
It becomes complete when they 'press forward, feasting upon the word of
Christ, and endure to the end' (2 Ne. 31:19-20). The scriptures call this
process making our calling and election sure."

Next Week's Reading Assignment Doctrine and Covenants 132

Page 75

Class Member Study Guide

Lesson 38

Doctrine and Covenants 129-31 were recorded in and around Nauvoo during
the early months of 1843.

These sections, which are all identified as instructions, deal with a
variety of subjects.

As you study D&C 129-31, consider the following:

What did the Lord reveal about the celestial kingdom in D&C 130 and 131?
(See also D&C 137:1-4, 10.)

* How does D&C 130:18-19 help you understand the purposes of mortality?

* What blessings have you received that you felt were the result of
obeying a particular commandment? (D&C 1 30:20-21 .)

Joseph Smith's mansion home in Nauvoo, Illinois.

Page 76

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Section 129

...

Although the exact date of his receiving these principles of detecting
false spirits is not known, it can safely be set before 27 June 1839. On
that day members of the First Presidency and Quorum of Twelve met in
council in Nauvoo, and in this meeting the Prophet presented the following
instructions for the benefit of the Twelve prior to their leaving for
England:

...

When an angel of god appears unto man face to face in personage & reaches
out his hand unto the man he takes hold of the angels hand & feels a
substance the same as one man would in shaking hands with another he may
then know that it is an angel of god & he should place all confidence in
him ... but if a personage appears unto man & offers him his hand & man
takes hold of it & feels nothing or does not sens[e] any substance he may
know it is the devil, for when a Saints whose body is not resurrected
appears unto man in the flesh he will not offer him his hand for this is
against the law given him.

...

Parley P. Pratt arrived in Nauvoo from his mission to England.

...

the keys of detecting false spirits (section 129) were explained. The
Prophet's scribe, William Clayton, was present and recorded section 129,
and Clayton's account was the source for the 1876 publication of the
revelation.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 286.

Doctrine and Covenants 129 contains instructions given to Elder Parley P.

Pratt on 9 February 1843, on the occasion of his return from his mission
to Great Britain. Parley had remained over a year and one-half longer in
Britain than his brethren of the Twelve, to preside over the Church there
and to edit the Millennial Star.

...

The Prophet had discussed similar matter about angels with the Quorum of
the Twelve on two separate occasions in late June of 1839, prior to the
apostles' leaving for their mission to England. Parley had not been in
attendance at either of those two meetings, because he was still
incarcerated in Richmond, Missouri at the time.

Bruce A. Van Orden, "Important Items of Instruction," Studies in
Scripture, Volume One: The Doctrine and Covenants, Edited by Robert L.
Millet and Kent P. Jackson (Sandy, Utah: Randall Book Co., 1984), p.
497-498.

Far from saying that when the instructions of this discourse were
followed, the adversary's only recourse was to attempt to return the
handshake ...

Joseph Smith stated, "The Devil .... will either shrink back .... or offer
his hand." ..."certain signs and words by which false spirits and
personages may be detected from true, which cannot be revealed to the
Elders till the Temple is completed ... There are signs .. the Elders must
know ... to be endowed with the power, to finish their work and prevent
imposition".... Three day later Joseph Smith revealed these sacred keys to
nine men in accordance with his plans to as announced to the Relief
Society just six days before. To these men he taught the keys of prayer
and detection whereby all these documents, revelation, or manifestations
could be tested.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 344.

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In August 1840, he preached the funeral sermon for Seymour Brunson, a
respected and faithful Latter-day Saint. In the course of his remarks,
Joseph made the first public mention of the doctrine of vicarious baptism.


...

While the very moment when the Prophet envisioned vicarious baptism as a
doctrine to be instituted among the Illinois Saints may be historically
cloudy, its place in the larger view of eternal salvation is quite clear.

Not long after the Brunson funderal, Nauvoo Mormons began to act upon this
new revelation. On 12 September 1840, Jane Neyman walked into the
Mississippi and was baptized for her deceased son, Cyrus. In successive
baptisms for the dead performed at nauvoo, many women acted on behalf of
male relations or friends, and vice versa. Gender distinctions between
proxy and heir were not made until after the Prophet's 1844 martyrdom,
when Brigham Young assumed leadership of the majority of the Saints.

...

During the first two years of its practice at Nauvoo, baptism for the dead
was not closely circumscribed. Faithful Saints simply identified their
deceased relatives for whom they wished to be baptized and then performed
the rite. Local congregations were granted much latitude in the
performance of vicarious baptisms.

...

The work of these recorders shows that baptism for the dead was a major
religious activity for many Nauvoo Saints. It became necessary in 1843 for
Nauvoo Stake President William Marks to convene a special conference to
appoint recorders to keep track of all the baptisms for the dead.

...

Approximately 55 percent of the proxies were male and 45 percent female.

Most ordinance work was performed in behalf of aunts and uncles, including
great-aunts and great-uncles, followed closely by grandparents and
great-grandparents. ... Proxy baptisms for parents and siblings ... were
also a significant proportion. Other relationships included in laws,
friends, spouses, children, nieces, nephews, and grandchildren.

...

Baptisms for deceased friends often reflected personal reverence for
historical figures. ...Saints showed a fascination with saving the greats
of bygone generations such as Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, james
Monroe, William Henry Harrison.... The greater the historical reputation,
the more times proxy baptisms were performed. In 1841 alone, George
Washington, for example, benefited from proxy baptisms done by Don Carlos
Smith, Stephen Jones, and John Harrington. Many of these eminent men from
the past, including most of the signers of the Declaration of Independence
and former U.S. presidents, as well as several noted women, were again
baptized in the St. George Temple in 1877.

...

after November 1841 the temple font was the designated place for
performing the ordinance. Access to the font was granted only to those who
complied with Church dictates. William Clayton, as recorder of the Nauvoo
Temple, issued signed receipts verifying that the bearer was a full
tithepayer and thus was entitled to use the baptismal font. ... In this
respect, baptism for the dead at Nauvoo set a lasting precedent, requiring
verified worthiness for participation in temple rites.

...

When contrasted with sealings and the plurality of wives, baptism for the
dead was Nauvoo's universal ordinance.

...

M. Guy Bishop, "'What Has Become of Our Fathers?' Baptims for the Dead at
Nauvoo," Dialogue: Journal of Mormon Thought, (1988?)


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RELATES MAN AND TRUTH. -- What is true philosophy? It seems to me to be a
true principle for men to try and find out who they are. I like to examine
myself a little, and I sometimes ask who am I? where did I come from? what
am I doing here? and what will be the condition of things when I leave
here?

If there is anybody who can tell me anything about these things, I want to
know. If I had an existence before I came here, I want to know something
about it; and if I shall have an existence hereafter, I want to know what
kind of existence it will be, I do not want to be frightened about
hell-fire, pitchforks, and serpents, nor to be scared to death with
hobgoblins and ghosts, nor anything of the kind that is got up to scare
the ignorant. But I want truth, intelligence, and something that will bear
investigation. I want to probe things to the bottom and to find out the
truth, if there is any way to find it out. -- JD, 11:317, February 24,
1867.

IS MORMONISM PHILOSOPHICALLY TRUE? -- It may be asked: Are all Mormons,
then, philosophers?

To this we answer: Not in the general acceptation of the term. Mormonism
is philosophically true, but all Mormons are not  philosophers -- neither
do we consider it necessary. A man may understand first principles,
without knowing the mysteries. He may  also enjoy certain influences and
powers and priesthood without being able to define the cause of those
operations or their scientific  bearings. We have taken the pains to
investigate this subject, but the Mormons arrive at conclusions by a much
shorter route. The above may be necessary to some. The Mormons know by
obedience. They may not all be philosophers, but they know it by
inspiration through obedience. A blacksmith can heat iron in a fire, as
well as a philosopher; a lady . . . can make bread, without understanding
how wheat is raised, dressed, or ground into flour. Nor is it necessary
for an elder, who "baptizes for the remission of sins," or "lays on hands
for the gift of the Holy Ghost," to understand the philosophy of its
operations. They are God's ordinances, and he bestows the blessings
promised through obedience to his commands, The blind man might not know
much about Jesus nor, be acquainted with the mysticisms and intricacies of
Jewish theology; but one thing he knew as well as any theologian, that he
"was once blind, but he then could see." The ancient apostles were not all
philosophers, but Jesus told them that they should heal the sick and cast
out devils in his name. They simply believed him, tried the experiment,
and found it effectual; and, when they returned from a mission, reported
that even "devils were subject to them in his name," or by his power. This
was all they understood about it at that time. They could not tell how the
Spirit operated, nor by what invisible agency the devils were subjected or
banished; they simply knew it by its effects -- just the same as a boy
would know that a ball would rebound if struck against a wall or the
ground, without knowing the properties of matter or the nature either of
resistance, elasticity, or projectile force. A man, under the direction of
another may be able to make an electrical machine and not understand its
properties nor the nature and force of electricity. So a man may receive
the gospel through faith in testimony. By yielding obedience, by baptism
administered by an authorized agent, and having hands laid upon him for
the gift of the Holy Ghost by an elder legally qualified, the blessing
will follow the administration, whether the person to whom it is
administered or the administrator be a philosopher or not. Furthermore,
God imparts his philosophy frequently to men of limited abilities. They
follow his teachings -- the result is, they confound the wise. It is not
their philosophy, but God's; but being true to law, it is always obedient
thereto. A boat with a hole in it will sink with a good man in it a sound
boat will bear up a wicked man.

Telegraphic wires will operate as they are operated upon, and might convey
either a revelation of God or of the devil. So, when the apostles were put
into communion with God, although illiterate, "they spake as they were
moved by the Holy Ghost." Hence they became intelligent and "a mouth and
wisdom was given to them that all their adversaries were not able to
gainsay nor resist." They had the gift of the Holy Ghost, that brought
things past to their remembrance, led them into all truth, and showed them
things to come.

They had a principle of living revelation, or a living fountain of true
eternal principles. Those principles would always overturn the puerile
principles of a corrupt philosophy and the ridiculous fantasies of a false
religion and vanquish them; they might not always understand why it was
the gift of God to them; but it was philosophical. Such is Mormonism. --
The Mormon, Vol.2, No. 3, March 8, 1856.

THE COMPREHENSIVE NATURE OF MORMONISM. -- Is there a true principle of
science in the world? It is ours. Are there true principles of music, of
mechanism, or of philosophy? If there are, they are all ours. Is there a
true principle of government that exists  in the world anywhere? It is
ours, it is God's; for every good and perfect gift that does exist in the
world among men proceeds from the  "Father of lights with whom there is no
variableness, neither shadow of turning." It is God that has given every
good gift that the world  ever did possess. He is the giver of all good
principles, principles of law, of government, and of everything else, and
he is now gathering  them together into one place, and withdrawing them
from the world, and hence the misery and darkness that begin to prevail
among the nations; and hence the light, life, and intelligence that begin
to manifest themselves among us. -- JD, 10:57, May 18, 1862.

THE ENIGMA OF MORMONISM. -- Mormonism is an enigma to the world. . . .
Philosophy can not comprehend it; it is beyond the reach of natural
philosophy. It is the philosophy of heaven; it is the revelation of God to
man. It is philosophical, but it is heavenly  philosophy, and beyond the
ken of human judgment, beyond the reach of human intelligence. They cannot
grasp it; it is as high as heaven; what can they know about it? It is
deeper than hell; they cannot fathom it. It is as wide as the universe; it
extends over all  creation. It goes back into eternity and forward into
eternity. It is associated with the past, present, and future. It is
connected with  time and eternity, with men, angels, and Gods, with beings
that were, that are, and that are to come. -- JD, 15:25, April 7, 1872.

THE STRENGTH OF MORMON DOCTRINE. -- I have traveled to preach these
doctrines in most of the United States and in the Canadas; I have preached
them in England, in Scotland, in Wales, in the Isle of Man and the
Jerseys, in France, Germany, in the principal cities of America and
Europe, and to many prominent men in the world; and I have not yet found a
man that could controvert one principle of Mormonism upon scriptural
grounds. -- JD, 5:239, September 13, 1857.

There is a spirit in man, possessed of so much "divinity, that it will
discover truth by its own light; no matter whether it is covered  with a
"sectarian cloak," or thrown among the rubbish of scoffers. -- TS, 6:855,
April 1, 1845.

John Taylor, The Gospel Kingdom, p. 3-6.

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One of the most important things in the world is freedom of the mind; from
this all other freedoms spring. Such freedom is necessarily dangerous, for
one cannot think right without running the risk of thinking wrong, but
generally more thinking is the antidote for the evils that spring from
wrong thinking. More thinking is required, and we call upon you students
to exercise your God-given right to think through on every proposition
that is submitted to you and be unafraid to express your opinions, with
proper respect for those to whom you talk and proper acknowledgment of
your own shortcomings.

You young people live in an age when freedom of the mind is suppressed
over much of the world. We must preserve it in the Church and in America
and resist all efforts of ernest men to suppress it, for when it is
suppressed, we might lose the liberties vouchsafed in the Constitution of
the United States.

Preserve, the, the freedom of your mind in education and in religion, and
be unafraid to express your thoughts and to insist upon your right to
examine every proposition. We are not so much concerned with whether your
thoughts are orthodox or heterodox as we are that you shall have thought.

One may memorize much without learning anything. In this age of speed
there seems to be little time for meditation.

Dissatisfaction with what is around us is not a bad thing if it prompts us
to seek betterment, but the best sort of dissatisfaction in the long run
is self-dissatisfaction which lead us to improve ourselves. Maturity
implies the ability to walk alone and not be ashamed within ourselves of
the things we do and say.

Progress in maturity may be measured by our acceptance of increased
self-responsibility and an increased sagacity in decision-making. This
transition is not a time of calm enjoyment, but of growth and adaption.

One matures as a person by responding differently today from the way in
which one responded yesterday. We observe restraint so that restraints do
not have to be imposed upon us; we do our best to think clearly so that we
avoid chasing after false doctrines; we use deliberation so as to see
through nonsense; we realize our social duty to the honest opinions of
others while maintaining our own principles.

Self-discipline - and that is a subject which I think I have somewhat a
right to speak because of my military training and experience
-self-discipline means doing things you would rather not do but having the
courage to do them if they are right. When a course of action shows itself
to be unprofitable, it is sensible and valorous to drop it.

There is no personal value in making a show of maturity if you do not have
it. Affectation of any sort borders on vulgarity, and at the least its is
ridiculous to pretend to feelings and beliefs that do not appeal to your
intelligence. On the other hand, no mature person will be content to sit
by the side of the road and watch the world go by. One cannot be merely a
bystander, doing nothing but criticize.

When a human being finds himself at a dead end, he is tempted to turn to
that last desperate resource of muddled mankind: lawlessness. He does not
realize the unprofitableness in delinquency and the low standard of living
to which it condemns him. He may even imagine himself a martyr in some
trivial or irrelevant cause. His hooliganism brings discredit to the
peaceful, legitimate, and often courageous protests by young people on
great moral issues.

Society is indulgent toward young people, but there are limits to
permissibility. Youth is right to repudiate sham and hypocrisy, but to
assume that disorder and chaos have merit in themselves is to assume that
we are no longer capable of reasoning together in search of the right
solution of problems.

You students have strong desires. You are not content to live a merely
miscellany life, however pleasurable it may be. You dream beyond the
actual and think beyond your fingertips. In doing so you are living up to
the great law of culture, that a man shall become all that he is created
capable of becoming.

While we speak of independence and the right to think, to agree or to
disagree, to examine and to question, we must not forget that fixed and
unchanging laws govern in all God's creation, whether it be in the
vastness of the starry heavens, or in the minute revolving universe of the
atom, or in human relationships. All is law. All is cause and effect, and
God's laws are universal. god has no favorites; none is immune from either
life's temptations or the consequences of his own deeds. god is not
capricious.

Our reactions to the ever-changing impacts of life will depend upon our
goals, our ideals. "The vision that you glorify in your mind, the ideal
that you enthrone in your heart, this you will build your life by, this
you will become." Every life coheres around certain fundamental core ideas
whether we realize it or not, and herein lies the chief value of revealed
religion. but while I believe all that god has revealed, I am not quite
sure that I understand what he has revealed, and the fact that he has
promised further revelation is to me a challenge to keep an open mind and
be prepared to follow wherever my search for truth may lead. You young
people have been attending a school presided over by the president of the
Church, a school established by a prophet of God, a school where your
eternal welfare is ever foremost in the minds of your professors, your
administration, the faculty, and others. Our reactions to the
ever-changing impacts of life will depend upon our goals and our ideals.
And I would like to leave that thought with you to ponder.

Again I emphasize, there is no final goal. Life must continue to expand,
to unfold, and to grow, if it is to continue to be a good life. These
things are indispensable, and in this connection age makes little
difference. There is opportunity for all to expand and to grow and to be
and to become.

There are forces at work in our society today which degrade an
intellectual quest for knowledge. These forces are nothing new. They have
always been powerful. They are anti-intellectual. Forces in this country
and in other countries are known and grappled with, but they are making
headway. The Know-Nothings of the last century in this country could be
cited as but one example. Germany in the thirties saw the burning of books
and the glorification of barbaric emotion as part of the tragedy of
Hitlerism.

We have been blessed with much knowledge by revelation from God which, in
some part, the world lacks. But there is an incomprehensibly greater part
of truth which we must yet discover. Our revealed truth should leave us
stricken with the knowledge of how little we really know. It should never
lead to an emotional arrogance based upon a false assumption that we
somehow have all the answers - that we in fact have a corner on truth. For
we do not.

Whether you are in the field of economics or political science, history or
behavioral sciences - continue your search for truth. And maintain
humility sufficient to be able to revise your hypotheses as new truth
comes to you by means of the spirit or the mind. Salvation, like
education, is an on-going process.

One may not attain salvation by merely acknowledging allegiance, nor is it
available in ready-to-wear stores or in supermarkets where it may be
bought and paid for. That it is an eternal quest must be obvious to all.
Education is involved in salvation and may be had only by evolution or the
unfolding or developing into our potential. It is in large measure a
problem of awareness, of reaching out and looking up, of aspiring and
becoming, pushing back our horizons, seeking for answers, and searching
for God. In other words, it is not merely a matter of conformity to
rituals, climbing sacred stairs, bathing in sacred pools, or making
pilgrimages to ancient shrines. The depth and height and quality of life
depends upon awareness, and awareness is a process of being saved from
ignorance. Man cannot be saved in ignorance.



An Eternal Quest: Freedom of the Mind by President Hugh B. Brown

Delivered on 13 May 1969 and printed in _Dialogue: Journal of Mormon
Thought_ (In 1983)


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Unlike those whose religious faith is uneasy and precarious in the modern
world of expanding scientific knowledge, we are at home with the most
advanced truths discovered by scientists and with all competent
philosophic thought -- with truth wherever found -- because our religion
enjoins in us a love of knowledge and education; encourages us to seek
understanding through the broadening of our vision and the deepening of
our insight. This is an eternal quest. (p. 17)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accepts newly revealed
truth, whether it comes through direct revelation or from study and
research.

We deny the common conception of reality that distinguishes radically
between the natural and the supernatural, between the temporal and the
eternal, between the sacred and the secular. For us, there is no order of
reality that is utterly different in character from the world of which we
are a part, that is separated from us by an impassable gulf. We do not
separate our daily mundane tasks and interests from the meaning and
substance of religion. We recognize the spiritual in all phases and
aspects of living and realize that this life is an important part of
eternal life. We aspire to the best of which we are intrinsically capable
and will think our thoughts, fashion our ideals, and pursue every task
firm in the faith that in a very real sense we are living in the presence
of God here and now. (p. 18)

For us God is not an abstraction; He is not just an idea, a metaphysical
principle, an impersonal force or power. He is not identical with the
totality of the world, with the sum of all reality. He is not an
"Absolute" that in some way embraces the whole of reality in His being.
Like us, He exists in a world of space and time. Like us, He has ends to
be achieved and He fashions a cosmic plan for realizing them. He is a
concrete, living person, and though in our finite state we cannot fully
comprehend Him, we know that we are akin to Him, for He is revealed to us
in the divine personality of His Son, Jesus Christ. (p. 21)

Peace and brotherhood can be achieved when these two most potent forces in
civilization -- religion and science -- join to create one world in its
truest and greatest sense. Continue to become acquainted with human
experience through history and philosophy, science and poetry, art and
religion. Every discovery of science reveals clearly the divine plan in
nature. The remarkable harmony in the physical laws and processes of the
universe, from the infinitesimal to the infinite, that surpasses mortal
understanding implies a Supreme Architect, and the beauty and symmetry of
his handiwork inspire reverence.

BEWARE of man's capacity for monumental mischief and his tendency to lose
sight of moral values. In these ominous times moral values are not only
desirable but they are imperative. The survival of the race depends upon
their conscious cultivation. Education is in the fullest sense the entire
process by which individuals and groups modify, redirect, stimulate and
control their native tendencies. It seems obvious then that continuing to
seek knowledge and education is the high road to salvation. A man is saved
only as he gains knowledge. But mere accumulation of facts, though they be
encyclopedic, will not save a man if he lacks wisdom.

It is not measured by knowledge or intellect alone, but will be reflected
in your search for learning, in the scientist's search for facts, the
philosopher's search for understanding, and in every man's search for
truth and the freedom which comes with it. Learn to stretch your minds by
constant preparation, enrich your spirits by constant prayer, increase
your stature by companionship with great people and great books. Thus may
your potential God-like status become real and actual through
ever-increasing intelligence, which is the glory of God. (p. 53-54)

We would like you to know we are interested in academic research. You must
go out on the research front and continue to explore the vast unknown.

You should be in the forefront of learning in all fields, for revelation
does not come only through the prophet of God nor only directly from
heaven in visions or dreams. Revelation may come in the laboratory, out of
the test tube, out of the thinking mind and the inquiring soul, out of
search and research and prayer and inspiration. You must be unafraid to
contend for what you are thinking, unafraid to dissent if you are informed
and honest.

We must combat error with truth in this divided and imperiled world and do
it with the unfaltering faith that God is still in his heaven even though
all is not well with the world. (p. 87-88. Baccalaureate Address, Brigham
Young University, May 24, 1962)

And now to you brethren who preside in the Church, I should like to say a
word -- presidents of stakes, presidents of missions, bishops of wards,
all who preside in any capacity -- we urge you to recognize and use your
counselors. You will notice through all the organization of the Church our
Father in Heaven has provided that each presiding officer shall have two
counselors. We regret that occasionally we hear of a stake president, a
mission president, a bishop or some presiding officer, who arrogates to
himself the honors which belong to the office he holds, who presides in a
"one man" dictatorial way, forgetting his counselors, neglecting to
counsel with them, and thereby assuming all the honors of the presidency
or bishopric and taking upon himself all the responsibility for decisions
in which his counselors should share. There is wisdom and safety in
counsel. Honor those with whom and over whom you preside. That we honor
the priesthood and the offices in it applies not only to our attitudes
toward those who preside over us but toward those over whom and with whom
we preside. Let us preside with kindness, consideration, and love.

But brethren, beware that you do not become extremists on either side. The
degree of a man's aversion to Communism may not always be measured by the
noise he makes in going about and calling everyone a Communist who
disagrees with his personal political bias. There is no excuse for members
of this Church, especially men who hold the priesthood, to be opposing one
another over Communism; we are all unalterably opposed to it but we must
be united in our fight against it. Let us not undermine our Government or
accuse those who hold office of being soft on Communism. Furthermore, our
chapels and meeting houses should not be made available to men who seek
financial gain or political advantage by destroying faith in our elected
officials under the guise of fighting Communism. We call upon the
priesthood of the Church to stand together with a solid front against
everything that would rob men of their God-given freedom. (p. 194-196.)

During recent months, both in Salt Lake City and across the nation,
considerable interest has been expressed in the position of The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the matter of civil rights. We would
like it to be known that there is in this Church no doctrine, belief, or
practice that is intended to deny the enjoyment of full civil rights by
any person regardless of race, color, or creed.

We say again, as we have said many times before, that we believe that all
men are the children of the same God and that it is a moral evil for any
person or group of persons to deny any human being the rights to gainful
employment, to full educational opportunity, and to every privilege of
citizenship, just as it is a moral evil to deny him the right to worship
according to the dictates of his own conscience.

We have consistently and persistently upheld the Constitution of the
United States, and as far as we are concerned this means upholding the
constitutional rights of every citizen of the United States.

We call upon all men everywhere, both within and outside the Church, to
commit themselves to the establishment of full civil equality for all of
God's children. Anything less than this defeats our high ideal of the
brotherhood of man. (p. 233-235. Civil Rights Statement.)

On succeeding stages of your journey you will become acquainted with and
utilize various units of time and space. For a moment I shall paraphrase
Dr.

Henry Eyring, a renowned scientist. As of now you are content with such
units as seconds and seasons, meters and miles. But later you will become
concerned with the chemical world of molecules and atoms, where electrons
complete their revolutions in one one hundred million millionths of a
second (grasp that if you can -- I can't), and where one inch measures one
hundred million atoms. Then in outer space you will find the revolutions
of planets measured in years rather than in fractions of a second. The
unit of distance is the light year, which, as you know is a one-year
journey at the speed of light, 186,000 miles a second -- perhaps about
10,000 million miles. Later you will penetrate the spiritual realm where
time and space shall be no more, referred to only as eternities and
limitless. Thus in thought, and later in reality, you will be able to see
and comprehend the infinitesimally small and the infinitely large.

At the end of your stopover on this island you will jettison part of your
equipment, the mortal shell. How foolish and unrealistic it is to speak of
this necessary metamorphosis as death or think of it as the end of the
flight. On this subject I bring you word from the noted Dr. Wernher Von
Braun, the space and missile scientist. Dr. Von Braun stated:

Many people seem to feel that science has somehow made religious ideas
untimely or old fashioned, but I think science has a real surprise for the
skeptics. Science, for instance, tells us that nothing in nature, not even
the tiniest particle, can disappear without a trace. Nature does not know
extinction. All it knows is transformation.

Now if God applies this fundamental principle to the most minute and
insignificant parts of his universe, doesn't it make sense to assume that
he applies it also to the human soul? I think it does. And everything
science has taught me -- and continues to teach me -- strengthens my
belief in the continuity of our spiritual existence after death. Nothing
disappears without a trace.

Now I ask you, do you think it is possible that in this universe, created
and governed according to eternal law, the most intelligent creatures in
it are here by chance? Is it possible that there was no plan or purpose or
design? Did the Creator make a stairway leading to nowhere? Or did he plan
a flight leading to a certain fatal crash? Your flight is to be eternal,
and you are to be at the controls, with full responsibility and freedom to
choose your course and your conduct - - and to take the consequences. (p.
250-251. General Conference, October 6, 1963)

Hugh B. Brown, "An Abundant Life", (Salt Lake City, Utah, Bookcraft, 1965)



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Hugh Nibley, "Baptism for the Dead in Ancient Times,"

The subject of this epistle was salvation for the dead, a doctrine ...

believed in the early church to have been the main theme of Christ's
teaching after the resurrection.

...

the main weight of early Christian doctrine was not on the cross ... but
on the work of the Lord as a teacher, marking the way of eternal progress
for the living and the dead according to a pattern first followed by Adam.

...

the contemporary teaching of the Jews that "all who die hoping for the
Messiah will be resurrected to eternal life."

...

It was what the Lord said and did after the resurrection that established
his doctrine, yet we are told only what he said and did before. ... ...
"For this reason ... have I gone below and spoken to Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, to your fathers, the prophets, and preached to them, that they
might enjoy their rest in heaven." ..."He opens to us, who were enslaved
by death, teh doors of the temple, that is the mouth; and by giving us
repentance introduced us into the ... spiritual temple builded for the
Lord." ..."since he also was reckoned among the dead, while he was
preaching the gospel to the spirits of the saints...." ...Jesus "became
the evangelist of the dead, the liberator of spirits and the resurrection
of those who had died." ..."Christ went down to Hades for no other purpose
than to preach the gospel."

A great favorite with the early Christians was a passage from the
apocryphal Book of Sirah: "I shall go through all the regions deep beneath
the earth, and I shall visit all those who sleep, and I shall enlighten
all those who hope on the Lord: I shall let my teaching shine forth as a
guiding light and cause it to shine afar off." ..."The Lord God hath
remembered his dead among those of Israel who have been laid in the place
of burial, and has gone down to announce to them the tidings of his
salvation." ...

...

"Descending into the other world," ... Christ "prepared a road, and led in
his footsteps all those whom he shall ransom, leading them into his flock,
there to become indistinguishably mingled with the rest of his sheep." "I
made a congregation of the living in the realm of the dead," says the Lord
in the Odes of Solomon. ... ..."Christ ... did not ascend to the higher
heavens until he had descended to the lower regions ..., there to make the
patriarchs and prophets his compotes. The word compos ... in Tertullian
always denotes "one who shares secret knowledge....

...Christ ... "gathers together his dispersed sons from the ends of the
earth into the Father's sheepfold, mindful likewise of his dead ones who
fell asleep before him; to them also he descends that he may awaken and
save them." The philosopher Celsus, making fun of the strange doctrine,
asks Origin: "Don't you people actually tell about him, that when he had
failed to convert the people on this earth he went down to the underworld
to try to convert the people down there? ...Origen answers the question
... in the affirmative: "We assert that Jesus not only converted no small
number of persons while he was in the body ... but also, that when he
became a spirit, without the covering of the body, he dwelt among those
spirits which were without bodily covering, converting such of them as
were willing to Himself." ...

...

"What then, does not the same economy prevail in hades, so that there,
too, all the spirits might hear the gospel, repent and admit that their
punishment, in the light of what they have learned, it just?" ...

...his coming in the spirit world heralded by John the Baptist. Origen
says John "died before him, so that he might descend to the lower regions
and announce ... his coming." ..."For everywhere the witness and
forerunner of Jesus is John, being born before and dying shortly before
the Son of god, so that not only to those of his generation but likewise
to those who lived before Christ should liberation from death be preached,
and that he might everywhere prepare a people trained to receive the
Lord." "John the Baptist died first," wrote Hippolytus, "being dispatched
by Herod, that he might prepare those in hades for the gospel; he became
the forerunner there, announcing even as he did on this earth, that the
Savior was about to come to ransom the spirits of the saints from the hand
of death." Even in the medieval Easter drama, the "Harrowing of Hell," the
arrival of Christ in hell is heralded by John the Baptist.

..."these Apostles, and the teachers who had proclaimed the name of the
Son of God, after they had fallen asleep in [the] power and faith of the
Son of God preached likewise to the dead; and they gave them the seal of
the preaching. They accordingly went down with them into the water and
came out again. But although they went down while they were alive and came
up alive, those who had fallen asleep before them ... went down dead, but
came out again living; for it was through these that they were made alive,
and learned the name of the Son of God." ..."These Apostles and teachers
died in possession of his faith and power, preached to those who had died
before, and themselves gave them this seal. Hence ... they went down into
the water with them; but they who had died before went down dead, of
course, but ascended living, since it was through them that they received
life and knew the Son of god."

...

"Christ visited, preached to, and baptized the just men of old, both
gentiles and Jews, not only those who lived before the coming of the Lord,
but also those who were before the coming of the Law ... such as Abel,
Noah, or any such righteous man. ... I went down and spoke to Abraham,
Isaac, and jacob, your fathers, and declared unto them how they might
rise, and with my right hand I gave them the baptism of life and release
and forgiveness of all evil, even as I do to you here and to all who
believe on me from this time on.

...

Servants ... because they [the dead] will receive the baptism of life and
the forgiveness of your sins from my hand through you, ... and so have
part in the heavenly kingdom.

As the Apostles in all their work are simply acting for their Lord, so all
the ordinances they perform in his name are to be regarded as his own but
done vicariously.

...

(Origen) specifies that no one can be baptized in this river who has not
been "first baptized with water and the Holy Ghost on this earth." ...

...

Now if some of them are "baptized for the dead," can we not assume that
they have a reason for it? Certainly he [Paul} is maintaining that they
practised this in the belief that the ordinance would be a vicarious
baptism and as such be advantageous to the flesh of others, which they
assumed would be resurrected, for unless this referred a physical
resurrection there would be no point in carrying out a physical baptism.

...

To return to early practices, an interesting aberration of the rite if
found among the Marcionites. When a catechumen died, they would lay a
living person under his bed; then they would ask the corpse if he wished
to receive baptism, to which the living person under the bed would reply
in the affirmative; then the living person would be baptized for the dead
one.

...

It will be recalled that in his discussion with the Apostles, the Lord
promised them the keys at some future time; since this conversation took
place shortly before the crucifixion, and since this conversation took
place shortly before the crucifixion, and since Jesus himself postponed
any discussion of the mysteries of the kingdom "till the Son of Man be
risen from the dead," we can believe that nothing much was done in the
matter, during his first mission. In a passage of impeccable authority
Eusebius quotes Clement as saying: "To James the Just, and to John and to
Peter after the resurrection the Lord transmitted the gnosis; these passed
it on to the other Apostles, and they in turn to the Seventy, ... ...Peter
did no announce it to the whole church, nor the Apostles to all the world,
nor is there mention of "the gnosis" being handed down any further than to
the Seventy, .... "The gnosis" is that fulness of knowledge, which Paul
always speaks of as the highest and holiest of god's gifts, a rare,
choice, and hidden thing, reserved for but a few.



...the sudden and immense success of the Gnostics showed only too plainly,
as Neander has observed, that people were looking for something which the
church could no longer supply. Then, too, the fact that the church yielded
to the Gnostics on point after point, adopting many of their more popular
practices and beliefs, shows that she had nothing to pu in their place.
The fact that the church finally denied that there ever was a gnosis, and
defined the heresy of Gnosticism not as a false claim to possess higher
revelations, ... but the mere belief that such revelations had ever
existed--shows clearly enough that the church no longer possessed "the
gnosis" to which the New Testament repeatedly refers. When the church
fights shy of the very word and is alarmed at the mere suggestion that
there could be such a thing, it needs no argument to show how little of it
she still possessed.

...

...[St. Augustine] dared promise not only paradise but also the kingdom of
the heavens to unbaptized children, since he could find no other escape
from being forced to say that God damns innocent spirits to eternal
death.... But when he realized that he had spoken ill in saying that the
spirits of children would be redeemed without the grace of Christ into
eternal life and the kingdom of heavn, and that they could be delivered
from the original sin without the baptism of Christ by which comes
remission of sins--realizing into what a deep and tumultuous shipwreck he
had thrown himself ... he saw that there was no other escape than to
repent of what he had said.

...

Hugh Nibley, "Baptism for the Dead in Ancient Times," The Collected Works
of Hugh Nibley: Volume 4, Mormonism and Early Christianity, (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book Company and Provo, Utah: Foundation for Ancient
Research and Mormon Studies, 1987)

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Other information can be found at this excelent site:

http://www.srv.net/~sro/Notepad/Notepad.html





-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Perry L. Porter" <[e-mail]>
Subject: ---> Section 134
Date: 12 Oct 1997 23:47:24 -0700


Section 134

The date 17 August 1835 is when section 134 was approved by a Church
general assembly to be included in the Doctrine and Covenants, not the
date of writing.

At the close of the meeting, after all those present had examined the
revelations and voted to approve them, Oliver Cowery stood and "read an
instrument containing certain principles or items upon law in general &
church governments." After he had read the document, the entire
congregation unanimously voted that it be accepted and included with the
revelations.

Although Joseph Smith and Frederick G. Williams were on a mission to
Michigan when the above meeting was held, the Prophet approved of section
134 and declared the statement to be "the belief of the Church" on
principles of law and government.

The authorship of section 134 traditionally has been attributed to Oliver
Cowdery.

Lyndon W. Cook, The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City:

Deseret Book, 1985), p. 296.

---------------------

After this action, W. W. Phelps presented an article (not a revelation) on
"Marriage," and Oliver Cowdery one on "Government and Laws in General,"
both of which were ordered printed in the book of "Doctrine and
Covenants." There was also printed in the book a series of Seven Lectures
on Faith, that had previously been delivered before a theological class in
Kirtland. So that the Doctrine and Covenants then comprised the Articles
of Faith, seven in number, the two Articles on Marriage and Government and
a collection of Revelations, (not all that had been given, by the way,)
the last forming the body and greater part of the book.

(See History of the Church, Vol. II, chapter xviii.)


[According to B. H. Roberts]
History of the Church, Vol.2, p.246, Footnotes

It should be observed that this "Article on Marriage" presented by W. W.
Phelps, and also the one on "Government and Laws in General," presented by
Oliver Cowdery, were not presented as revelations and were not published
as such at the time, but were expressions of course, of the belief of the
Saints at that period on those subjects. It should also be noted that
these two articles were presented and acted upon in the absence of the
Prophet who was at the time visiting saints and preaching in Michigan.

-------------------
Article on Marriage.

"According to the custom of all civilized nations, marriage is regulated
by laws and ceremonies; therefore we believe that all marriages in this
Church of Christ of Latter-day Saints should be solemnized in a public
meeting or feast prepared for that purpose, and that the solemnization
should be performed by a Presiding High Priest, High Priest, Bishop, Elder
or Priest, not even prohibiting those persons who are desirous to get
married, of being married by other authority. We believe that it is not
right to prohibit members of this Church from marrying out of the Church,
if it be their determination so to do; but such persons will be considered
weak in the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"Marriage should be celebrated with prayer and thanksgiving, and at the
solemnization, the persons to be married, standing together, the man on
the right and the woman on the left, shall be addressed by the person
officiating as he shall be directed by the Holy Spirit, and if there be no
legal objections, he shall say, calling each by name: 'You both mutually
agree to be each other's companion, husband and wife, observing the legal
rights belonging to this condition: that is, keeping yourselves wholly for
each other, and from all others, during your lives?' And when they have
both answered 'yes,' he shall pronounce them 'husband and wife,' in the
name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by virtue of the laws of the country
and authority vested in him. 'May God add His blessing and keep you to
fulfill your covenants from henceforth and forever. Amen.'


"The clerk of every church should keep a record of all marriages
solemnized in his branch. All legal contracts of marriage made before a
person is baptized into this Church should be held sacred and fulfilled.

Inasmuch as this Church of Christ has been reproached with the crime of
fornication and polygamy, we declare that we believe that one man should
have one wife, and one woman but one husband, except in case of death,
when either is at liberty to marry again.

It is not right to persuade a woman to be baptized contrary to the will of
her husband; neither is it lawful to influence her to leave her husband.
All children are bound by law to obey their parents, and to influence them
to embrace any religious faith, or be baptized, or leave their parents
without their consent, is unlawful and unjust. We believe that husbands,
parents, and masters, who exercise control over their wives, children and
servants, and prevent them from embracing the truth, will have to answer
for that sin."

President Oliver Cowdery then read the following article on "Governments
and Laws in General," which was accepted and adopted and ordered to be
printed in said book, by a unanimous vote'

History of the Church, Vol.2, Ch.18, p.247


---------------------
The book's preface (pp. [iii]-iv), signed by Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery,
Sidney Rigdon, and F. G. Williams, February 17, 1835, alludes to the
"aversion in the minds of some against receiving anything purporting to be
articles of religious faith," and defends the book as a needed statement
of the beliefs of the Latter-day Saints, who have been so widely
misrepresented. (Years later David Whitmer, in his Address to All
Believers in Christ (Richmond, 1887), described his opposition to the
Doctrine and Covenants because it enunciated a creed for the Latter-day
Saints. )

The first main part of the book (pp. [5]-74) is occupied with the seven
"Lectures on Faith." These lectures, delivered before the school of the
Elders in Kirtland during the preceding winter, cover such basic doctrines
as the necessity and effect of faith; the attributes of God, Jesus Christ,
and the Holy Ghost; man's relationship to God; and the nature of
salvation; with supporting citations from the Bible, Book of Mormon, and
in some cases, the Book of Commandments. Three of these lectures appeared
earlier in print, the first as a broadside (Item 20) and the fifth and
sixth in the May, 1835, Messenger and Advocate. Exactly who authored the
lectures is not clear, although Sidney Rigdon is a possibility. In any
case, their final form bears the influence of Joseph Smith, who in his
history remarks, "During the month of January [1835], I was engaged in the
school of the Elders, and in preparing the lectures on theology for
publication in the book of Doctrine and Covenants,77 The "Lectures on
Faith" were maintained in the various LDS editions of the Doctrine and
Covenants until 1921.

The second main part of the book (pp. [75]-257) contains 100 revelations
spanning the period July, 1828, to March 28, 1835, as Sections 1-4 and
6-100 with two sections erroneously numbered 66; the minutes of the
organization of the first High Council, February 17, 1834, as Section 5;
an article on marriage and an article on government and laws in general as
Sections 101 and 102; and the minutes of the August 17, 1835, General
Assembly. The sixty-five chapters in the Book of Commandments are
reprinted in the Doctrine and Covenants with substantial changes
consistent with those changes made in the revelations in reprinting The
Evening and the Morning Star. Ten of the chapters in the Book of
Commandments are combined into three sections of the Doctrine and
Covenants, so that fifty-eight sections actually comprise that portion
originally published in the Book of Commandments. Traditionally, the
articles on marriage and government have been attributed to Oliver
Cowdery. These were read at the General Assembly of August 17, 1835, and
accepted as part of the Doctrine and Covenants. The article on marriage
appeared in all LDS editions until 1876, while the article on government
is still included as Section 134. The minutes of the General Assembly
occur only in the 1835 edition. An index comprises pages i-xxiii, and page
xxv contains errata.

Apparently the changes in the printed revelations troubled a certain few
of the brethren. At a meeting of the High Council at Far West, April 24,
1837, David W. Patten charged Lyman Wight with teaching false doctrines,
among others that "the book of Doctrine and Covenants was a telestial law;
and the Book of Commandments (a part of the revelations printed in Jackson
county) was a celestial law." Wight was censured for these teachings, and
directed to acknowledge his error to the churches where he had preached.78
H.C., 2:481-82.

Peter Crawley, BYU Studies, Vol. 12, No. 4, p.502-503

---------------------
Official Declaration--1

To Whom it may concern:

Press dispatches having been sent for political purposes, from Salt Lake
City, which have been widely published, to the effect that the Utah
Commission, in their recent report to the Secretary of the Interior,
allege that plural marriages are still being solemnized and that forty or
more such marriages have been contracted in Utah since last June or during
the past year, also that in public discourses the leaders of the Church
have taught, encouraged and urged the continuance of the practice of
polygamy--

I, therefore, as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, do hereby, in the most solemn manner, declare that these charges
are false. We are not teaching polygamy or plural marriage, nor permitting
any person to enter into its practice, and I deny that either forty or any
other number of plural marriages have during that period been solemnized
in our Temples or in any other place in the Territory.

One case has been reported, in which the parties allege that the marriage
was performed in the Endowment House, in Salt Lake City, in the Spring of
1889, but I have not been able to learn who performed the ceremony;
whatever was done in this matter was without my knowledge. In consequence
of this alleged occurrence the Endowment House was, by my instructions,
taken down without delay.

Inasmuch as laws have been enacted by Congress forbidding plural
marriages, which laws have been pronounced constitutional by the court of
last resort, I hereby declare my intentions to submit to those laws, and
to use my influence with the members of the Church over which I preside to
have them do likewise.

There is nothing in my teachings to the Church or in those of my
associates, during the time specified, which can be reasonably construed
to inculcate or encourage polygamy; and when any Elder of the Church has
used language which appeared to convey any such teaching, he has been
promptly reproved. And I now publicly declare that my advice to the
Latter-day Saints is to refrain from contracting any marriage forbidden by
the law of the land.

Wilford Woodruff

President of the Church of Jesus Christ

of Latter-day Saints.

President Lorenzo Snow offered the following:

"I move that, recognizing Wilford Woodruff as the President of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the only man on the earth at the
present time who holds the keys of the sealing ordinances, we consider him
fully authorized by virtue of his position to issue the Manifesto which
has been read in our hearing, and which is dated September 24th, 1890, and
that as a Church in General Conference assembled, we accept his
declaration concerning plural marriages as authoritative and binding."

The vote to sustain the foregoing motion was unanimous.

Salt Lake City, Utah, October 6, 1890.

Excerpts from Three Addresses by

President Wilford Woodruff

Regarding the Manifesto

The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of
this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in
the mind of God. If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out
of my place, and so He will any other man who attempts to lead the
children of men astray from the oracles of God and from their duty.
(Sixty-first Semi-annual General Conference of the Church, Monday, October
6, 1890, Salt Lake City, Utah. Reported in Deseret Evening News, October
11, 1890, p. 2.)

It matters not who lives or who dies, or who is called to lead this
Church, they have got to lead it by the inspiration of Almighty God. If
they do not do it that way, they cannot do it at all...

I have had some revelations of late, and very important ones to me, and I
will tell you what the Lord has said to me. Let me bring your minds to
what is termed the manifesto...

The Lord has told me to ask the Latter-day Saints a question, and He also
told me that if they would listen to what I said to them and answer the
question put to them by the Spirit and power of God, they would all answer
alike, and they would all believe alike with regard to this matter.

The question is this: Which is the wisest course for the Latter-day Saints
to pursue--to continue to attempt to practice plural marriage, with the
laws of the nation against it and the opposition of sixty millions of
people, and at the cost of the confiscation and loss of all the Temples,
and the stopping of all the ordinances therein, both for the living and
the dead, and the imprisonment of the First Presidency and Twelve and the
heads of families in the Church, and the confiscation of personal property
of the people (all of which of themselves would stop the practice); or,
after doing and suffering what we have through our adherence to this
principle to cease the practice and submit to the law, and through doing
so leave the Prophets, Apostles, and fathers at home, so that they can
instruct the people and attend to the duties of the Church, and also leave
the Temples in the hands of the Saints, so that they can attend to the
ordinances of the Gospel, both for the living and the dead?

The Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place
if we did not stop this practice. If we had not stopped it, you would have
had no use for...any of the men in this temple at Logan; for all
ordinances would be stopped throughout the land of Zion. Confusion would
reign throughout Israel, and many men would be made prisoners. This
trouble would have come upon the whole church, and we should have been
compelled to stop the practice. Now, the question is, whether it should be
stopped in this manner, or in the way the Lord has manifested to us, and
leave our Prophets and Apostles and fathers free men, and the temples in
the hands of the people, so that the dead may be redeemed. A large number
has already been delivered from the prison house in the spirit world by
this people, and shall the work go on or stop? This is the question I lay
before the Latter-day Saints. You have to judge for yourselves. I want you
to answer it for yourselves. I shall not answer it; but I say to you that
that is exactly the condition we as a people would have been in had we not
taken the course we have.

...I saw exactly what would come to pass if there was not something done.
I have had this spirit upon me for a long time. But I want to say this: I
should have let all the temples go out of our hands; I should have gone to
prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven
commanded me to do what I did do; and when the hour came that I was
commanded to do that, it was all clear to me. I went before the Lord, and
I wrote what the Lord told me to write...

I leave this with you, for you to contemplate and consider. The Lord is at
work with us. (Cache Stake Conference, Logan, Utah, Sunday, November 1,
1891. Reported in Deseret Weekly, November 14, 1891.)

Now I will tell you what was manifested to me and what the Son of God
performed in this thing...All these things would have come to pass, as God
Almighty lives, had not that Manifesto been given. Therefore, the Son of
God felt disposed to have that thing presented to the Church and to the
world for purposes in his own mind. The Lord had decreed the establishment
of Zion. He had decreed the finishing of this temple. He had decreed that
the salvation of the living and the dead should be given in these valleys
of the mountains. And Almighty God decreed that the Devil should not
thwart it. If you can understand that, that is a key to it. (From a
discourse at the sixth session of the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple,
April 1893. Typescript of Dedicatory Services, Archives, Church Historical
Department, Salt Lake City, Utah.)

-----------------
[Commentary, Plural marriages and rumors of such, including accusation
about adultery mixed with secrete marriages, are what prompted the
statement on marriage, in an attempt to squash rumors and innuendo.  JS
was conveniently out of town, thus he could be seen as supporting the
inclusion of that statement from outsiders, while continuing to spread
plural marriage privately to select people for many years to come.  The
issue of conflicting revelations was avoided by his absence.]

BTW the Article on Marriage was section 101 of the 1835 edition of the
D&C.  The RLDS church maintained this section to this day.  The LDS church
kept it in the Nauvoo editions 1844, 1845 and 1846.  It was not removed
until SLC 1876 Edition, just before the Death of Brigham Young, when
section 132 was inserted.]



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Perry L. Porter" <[e-mail]>
Subject: ---> Lesson 39
Date: 24 Oct 1997 21:31:00 -0700

Doctrine and Covenants 132

Lesson 39

Scriptural Highlights

1. Certain conditions must be met for a marriage to last through eternity.

2. Celestial marriage is required for exaltation.

3. Plural marriage is justified only when the Lord commands it.

Ask class members to think about the blessings that come to a man and
woman when they are married in the temple and live true to their
covenants.

Discussion and Application Questions

* What questions from the Prophet Joseph Smith brought about the
revelation in D&C 132? (See D&C 132:1-3 and the Class Member Study Guide
for this lesson.)

* What is the new and everlasting covenant? (D&C 132:4-6. The new and
everlasting covenant is the fulness of the gospel. A new and everlasting
covenant refers to any of the eternal covenants found within the gospel,
such as eternal marriage or baptism.)

* What does it mean to have an action sealed by the Holy Spirit of
Promise? (See D&C 132:7 and the first quotation from President Smith.)

* The Lord said that all things "that are not by me or by my word . . .
shall not remain after men are dead" (D&C 132:13; see also 132:12-14).
What are some of the things that will continue throughout eternity? With
this knowledge, what changes could we make in how we spend our time and
energy?

* Why is it important that we enter into the new and everlasting covenant
of marriage? (See D&C 132:15-18 and the second quotation from President
Smith.) How can we help children understand the importance of marrying in
the temple?

* What conditions must be met in order for a marriage to endure for
eternity? (D&C 132:19.) What blessings does the Lord promise to those who
marry in the temple and keep their covenants? (D&C 132:19-20.) What are
your feelings as you read these verses?

* What does D&C 132:21-25 teach about how we obtain eternal lives? What
does the term "eternal lives" mean? (See the quotation from Elder
McConkie.)

* Why was Abraham justified in having more than one wife and in being
willing to offer Isaac as a sacrifice? (See D&C 132:29, 34-37, and the
quotation from the Prophet Joseph Smith.) How has the Lord blessed you
when you have obeyed a commandment even though you did not fully
understand its purpose?

* What may have been reasons for the Lord's commandment to the early
Saints to have more than one wife? (D&C 132:34, 45, 63; Jacob 2:27-30.)

* What great promises did the Lord give to Joseph Smith in D&C 132:45-49?
(Compare D&C 131:5.) When did Joseph Smith receive the sealing power? (D&C
110:13-16. Note that Jesus gave this same power to his Apostles as
recorded in Matthew 16:19.)

Quotations

President Joseph Fielding Smith: "The Holy Spirit of Promise is the Holy
Ghost who places the stamp of approval upon every ordinance: baptism,
confirmation, ordination, marriage. The promise is that the blessings will
be received through faithfulness. If a person violates a covenant, whether
it be of baptism, ordination, marriage or anything else, the Spirit
withdraws the stamp of approval, and the blessings will not be received"
(Doctrines of Salvation, 1:45).

President Joseph Fielding Smith: "If a man refuses to take upon himself
the responsibilities of married life, because he desires to avoid the
cares and troubles which naturally will follow, he is taking a course
which may bar him forever from the responsibilities which are held in
reserve for those who are willing to keep in full the commandments of the
Lord. His eternal progression will thus be limited....

" . . . It is a most serious error for a young man or a young woman to
marry outside of the Church....
"You good sisters, who are single and alone, do not fear, do not feel that
blessings are going to be withheld from you. You are not under any
obligation or necessity of accepting some proposal that comes to you which
is distasteful for fear you will come under condemnation" (Doctrines of
Salvation, 2:74-76).
Elder Bruce R. McConkie: "Those who gain eternal life (exaltation) also
gain eternal/ lives, meaning that in the resurrection they have eternal
'increase, ' 'a continuation of the seeds,' a 'continuation of the lives.'
Their spirit progeny will 'continue as innumerable as the stars; or, if ye
were to count the sand upon the seashore ye could not number them.' (D&C
131:1-4; 132:19-25, 30, 55.)" (Mormon Doctrine, p. 238).

The Prophet Joseph Smith: "That which is wrong under one circumstance, may
be, and often is, right under another. God said, 'Thou shalt not kill;' at
another time He said, 'Thou shalt utterly destroy.' this is the principle
on which the government of heaven is conducted - by revelation adapted to
the circumstances in which the children of the kingdom are placed.
Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may not
see the reason thereof till long after the events transpire" (Teachings of
the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 256).

Next Week's Reading Assignment Doctrine and Covenants 135

Page 77

Class Member Study Guide

Lesson 39

As early as 1831, while working on the inspired translation of the Bible,
the Prophet Joseph wondered why Old Testament prophets had more than one
wife. In answer to his inquiry, the Lord revealed the doctrine of plural
marriage. Joseph did not record the revelation unit 12 July 1843 (see D&C
132).

The Lord made clear that plural marriage was justified only when commanded
by him. It was part of the restoration of all things (see D&C 132:45), and
it would be the means of raising up a righteous people. Those members of
the Church who lived this law did so because they knew that Joseph Smith
was a prophet of God and that the law was a commandment of God.

Doctrine and Covenants 132 not only answered the Prophet's questions about
plural marriage, but it explained the doctrine of eternal marriage.

* What are some of the things that will continue throughout eternity? (D&C
132:8-14.) With this knowledge, what changes could you make in how you
spend your time and energy?

* Why won't many marriages endure beyond death? (D&C 132:15-18.) What
conditions must be met in order for a marriage to endure for eternity?
(D&C 132:19-20.)

* What does D&C 132:21 -25 teach about how we obtain eternal lives?

The Nauvoo Temple. Photograph by Lucian Foster, 1846.

Page 78



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1. When the day set apart for the solemnization of the marriage ceremony
has arrived, the
bridegroom, and his wife, and also the bride, together with their
relatives, and such other
guests as may be invited, assemble at the place which they have appointed.


2. The scribe then proceeds to take the names, ages, native towns,
counties, States, and
countries of the parties to be married, which he carefully enters on
record.

3. The President, who is the Prophet, Seer, and Revelator over the whole
church throughout
the world, and who alone holds the keys of authority in this solemn
ordinance, (as recorded in
the 2d and 5th paragraphs of the Revelation on Marriage (D&C 132:7,
18],)--calls upon the
bridegroom, and his wife, and the bride to arise, which they do, fronting
the President.

4. The wife stands on the left hand of her husband, while the bride stands
on her left. The
President, then, puts this question to the wife:

5. "Are you willing to give this woman to your husband to be his lawful
and wedded wife for
time and for all eternity? If you are, you will manifest it by placing her
right hand within the
right hand of your husband."

6. The right hands of the bridegroom and bride, being thus joined, the
wife takes her husband
by the left arm, as if in the attitude of walking: the President, then,
proceeds to ask the
following question of the man:

7. "Do you brother, (calling him by name,) take sister, (calling the bride
by her name,) by
the right hand to receive her unto yourself to be your lawful and wedded
wife, and you to be
her lawful and wedded husband for time and for all eternity, with a
covenant and promise, on
your part, that you will fulfil all the laws, rites, and ordinances,
pertaining to this holy
matrimony, in the new and everlasting covenant, doing this in the presence
of God, angels,
and these witnesses of our own free will and choice?

8. The bridegroom answers, yes.

9. The President, then, puts the question to the bride: "Do you, sister,
(calling her by name,)
take brother, (calling him by name,) by the right hand, and give yourself
to him, to be his
lawful and wedded wife for time and for all eternity with a covenant and
promise, on your
part, that you will fulfil all the laws, rites, and ordinances, pertaining
to this holy matrimony, in
the new and everlasting covenant, doing this in the presence of God,
angels, and these
witnesses of your own free will and choice?"

10. The bride answer, yes.

11. The President then says, "In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by
the authority of the
Holy Priesthood, I pronounce you legally and lawfully husband and wife for
time and for all
eternity;

12. "And I seal upon you the blessings of the holy resurrection, with
power to come forth in
the morning of the first resurrection, clothed with glory, immortality,
and eternal lives;

13. "And I seal upon you the blessings of thrones, and dominions, and
principalities, and
powers, and exaltations, together with the blessings of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob,

14. "And say unto you be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth,
that you may have joy
and rejoicing in your posterity in the day of the Lord Jesus.

15. "All these blessings, together with all other blessings pertaining to
the new and everlasting
covenant, I seal upon your heads, through your faithfulness unto the end,

16. "By the authority of the Holy Priesthood, in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of
the Holy Ghost, Amen."

17. The scribe, then, enters on the general record, the date and place of
the marriage,
together with the names of two or three witnesses who were present.

The Temple Marriage Ceremony, published by Elder Orson Pratt in The Seer
(LDS
periodical published in Washington, D.C.) February 1853.

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Despite the obvious Nauvoo origin of the document itself, Mormons have
long held the notion that Joseph Smith received the revelations on the
subject of eternal and plural marriage during the early Kirtland period.
Joseph B Noble, a close friend of the Prophet, said that the doctrine was
revealed to Smith "while he was engaged in the work of translation of the
Scriptures."

...

Implicit in the Mormon concept of revelation is the idea that divine
communications come in response to prophetic inquiries.

...

Section 132 answers at least three separate questions which Joseph Smith
asked the Lord; two are explicitly mentioned in the revelation itself.
Verse one clearly states that Joseph wanted to know and understand why the
ancient patriarchs and prophets were justified in having plural wives. The
second, a query about adultery, is referred to in verse forty-one.

Knowledge of the third question is derived from a clear bu ungrammatical
report of a statement by Joseph Smith in 1844 to the Nauvoo city council
then deliberating the fate of the Nauvoo Expositor. ... In the city
council meeting on 8 June 1844, Joseph Smith explained that a portion of
the revelation came when he inquired "concerning the passage in the
resurrection [sic] concerning 'they never marry nor are given in marriage,
&c.' " This obviously refers to passages in the twenty-second chapter of
Matthew (or parallels) which detail a confrontation between Jesus and the
Sadducees over the doctrine of the resurrection.

The unbelieving Sadducees described a woman who under the Levirate law had
seven husbands but died without issue. Their interrogatory, "in the
resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven?" brought forth from
Jesus the response that "in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are
given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven." This reply
apparently piqued the Prophet's curiosity.

...the material immediately following verse one does not answer the
question therein about the patriarchs. The name of Abraham or any of the
ancients is not mentioned until verse twenty-nine. That verse and those
following to verse thirty-nine do answer the question by explaining that
the conduct of the ancients was justified by proper authority. Verses two
through twenty-eight deal with the third question about marriage in
heaven. Lengthy verse seven lays down a general principle regarding the
efficacy of any contract or covenant in the postmortal world. If the
conditions are not met then they "are of no efficacy, virtue, or force in
and after the resurrection from the dead." Verses fifteen to nineteen
apply this principle to three specific case of marriage.

...

The primary issue is, when and why did Joseph ask these questions? There
is very little in the Nauvoo situation immediately preceding the recording
of the revelation that can be discerned which may have prompted questions
one and three, but conditions in Ohio were ripe.

...

Matthews asserts that such questioning was one of the primary reasons
Smith was directed to revise the Bible. ... Joseph Smith revised the
pertinent portions of Genesis dealing with Abraham's plural wives between
February and March of 1831, and by 26 September 1831 had completed
Matthew. Thus, given Joseph's native inquisitiveness as shown on several
other occasions, and the purpose for the revision, there was sufficient
stimulus for him to ask questions at this time about marriage.

... Of the 136 section in the present LDS Doctrine and Covenants, 64
sections or 47 percent were recorded in Ohio from 1831 to 1837, and 1831
led all other years with 37 revelations received, 25 of which were in
Ohio. During the period he worked on the revision of the Bible, from July
1830 to June 1833, 75 revelations or 56.6 percent of the total were
recorded. This then lends considerable credence to the Matthews hypothesis
and increases the likelihood that the doctrines of eternal and plural
marriage were revealed in this period.

Some of the early revelations received in Ohio confirm the Prophet's
interest in marriage in the new church. ... The proximity of a nearby
Shaker community with its practice of celibacy led to the reception of
Section 49 in march 1831. Among its contrasts between Shaker doctrine and
the fulness of the restored gospel is one of the first significant
doctrinal statements regarding the purpose of marriage. Section 74,
received in January 1832, answers a specific question relative to paul's
counsel about marriage to the Corinthians....

The historical situations which spawned the question about adultery is
more difficult to pin down. It is possible, of corse, that Joseph's
curiosity about the meaning of adultery arose during his work with the
difficult teachings of Jesus on that subject in the New Testament. ...may
be connected with passages which obviously refer to the 1843 Nauvoo
situation. ...there was the Bennett scandal of 1842 which brought to the
fore the issues of plural marriage and adultery. Then there was the
problem of undivorced people with bad marriages who wanted permission to
remarry without a divorce ... But a very probable stimulant for the
question may have involved the Prophet's own domestic difficulties. In
verses fifty-one to fifty-six, Emma Smith is commanded to accept those
women that her husband has already married. She is also told to cleave
unto him and "none else" and to forgive him his trespasses against her.
Given the fact that Emma was never reconciled to the matter of plural
marriage, is it possible that accusations of adultery came from her?

...

...for much of what went on in the Kirtland years regarding marriage, sex,
and the family was harmonious with principles outlined in Section 132.

...

Society and culture in the United States were greatly modified in the era
between the Revolution and Civil War. many Americans were politically,
religiously, and philosophically ambivalent. Mormonism, one of the few
religions to emerge and survive this schizophrenic time, mirrored some of
the countercurrents of the day.

...

As Mormon doctrine developed, this tendency to mingle the old and new, the
radical and traditional, is particularly evident in weaving Old Testament
concepts into the restoration of Christianity. Joseph Smith may have
reached back two millennia to the original Christian era for his
inspiration, but the theology which emerge in New York and Ohio exhibited
heavy reliance on the Old Testament. For example, the Book of Mormon is a
mixture of pre- and post-Christian dispensations, and the Old Testament
ideal of a theocracy undergirds the Mormon idea of the kingdom of God.
Likewise, the temple, with its washings, anointings, and covenants, had
its inception in the Old Testament milieu.

...Mormonism's ideas on sex roles, marriage, and the family reflect a
strong Old Testament flavor. The Mormon male role as priesthood bearer and
father hearkened back to the patriarchs and prophets for many of its
examples.

...

The collective weight of the evidence presented above suggests that the
revelations on eternal and plural marriage were not merely
rationalizations for Smith's moral indiscretions or the satisfaction of
his passions as some have averred. Nor dies it appear that they were
outgrowths of significant social dislocation caused by lengthy separations
between spouses while husbands served missions. ... Rather, the impression
coming from a study of the pre-Nauvoo years is that the Prophet was
operating on a level above passionate capriciousness, and like the rest of
Mormon theology the tenets of marriage emerged from a primarily religious
context.

...

Danel W. Bachman, "New Light on an Old Hypothesis: The Ohio Origins of the
Revelation on Eternal Marriage," Journal of Mormon History, Volume 5
(1978).

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[B.H.Roberts]: "There is indisputable evidence that the revelation making
known this marriage law was given to the Prophet as early as 1831. In that
year, and then intermittently up to 1833, the Prophet was engaged in a
revision of the English Bible text under the inspiration of God, Sidney
Rigdon in the main acting as his scribe. As he began his revision with the
Old Testament, he would be dealing with the age of the Patriarchs in 1831.
He was doubtless struck with the favor in which the Lord held the several
Bible Patriarchs of that period, notwithstanding they had a plurality of
wives. What more natural than that he should inquire of the Lord at that
time, when his mind must have been impressed with the fact--Why, O Lord,
didst Thou justify Thy servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; as also Moses,
David and Solomon, in the matter of their having wives and concubines...?
In answer to that inquiry came the revelation, though not then committed
to writing."

... It appears, therefore, that one of the major reasons for the formal
recording of the revelation in 1843 was to assist Emma to recognize the
divine source of this doctrine.

...

[William Clayton]:

"On the morning of the 12th of July, 1848, Joseph and Hyrum Smith came
into the office of the upper story of the "Brick-store," on the bank of
the Mississippi River. They were talking of the subject of plural
marriage, [and] Hyrum said to Joseph," If you will write the revelation of
celestial marriage, I will take and read it to Emma, and I believe I can
convince her of its truth, and you will hereafter have peace." Joseph
Smiled and remarked, "You do not know Emma as well as I do." Hyrum
repeated his opinion, and further remarked, "The doctrine is so plain, I
can convince any reasonable man or woman of its truth, purity, and
heavenly origin," or works to that effect

.... Joseph and Hyrum then sat down, and Joseph commenced to dictate the
Revelation on Celestial Marriage, and I wrote it, sentence by sentence, as
he dictated. After the whole was written, Joseph asked me to read it
through slowly and carefully, which I did, and he pronounced it correct."

...

The first question asked by the Prophet Joseph was simply why the
polygamous actions of notable Old Testament prophet-leaders had received
divine approval.

...in this instance the explanation for the ancient phenomenon was to be
accompanied by a commandment to institute the practice in modern times.

... "Except a man and his wife enter into an everlasting covenant and be
married for eternity, while in this probation, by the power and authority
of the Holy Priesthood, they will cease to increase when they die; that
is, they will not have any children after the resurrection. But those who
are married by the power and authority of the priesthood in this life, and
continue without committing the sin against the Holy Ghost, will continue
to increase and have children in the celestial glory."

...

The second question posed by the Prophet Joseph Smith seems to be
associated with the cryptic statement by Jesus in response to a Sadduceean
trap: "Ye do err, non knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. For in
the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as
the angels of God in heaven".

... This expression, little understood in the days of the Prophet, is
repeatedly given today as scriptural evidence against the Latter-day Saint
doctrine of eternal marriage. Joseph Smith's question concerning its
meaning led to a modern revealed commentary upon the passage and pointed
us to the reality that Jesus Christ had taught the doctrine of eternal
marriage during hi mortal ministry.

...THEY who neither marry nor are given in marriage in eternity are they
who choose not to enter in by the strait gate and partake of the new and
everlasting covenant of marriage.

...

Without question, one of the most misunderstood (and misquoted) verses of
scripture is D&C 132:26. Some members of the Church have wrested the
scriptures to the pont where they have concluded that a temple marriage
alone (which they equate with being sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise)
will assure them of an exaltation, in spite of "any sin of the new and
everlasting covenant whatever, and all manner of blasphemies."

...

All men are subject to temptation and mortal weaknesses and therefore
commit some sin, even those whose callings and elections have been made
sure.

... Though the disposition to commit grievous sin would certainly be less
among such individuals, yet the principles of repentance and forgiveness
are as highly treasured by these as by any of our Father's children.

...

... Verse 27 has specific reference to those who have received the new and
everlasting covenant of marriage and proven faithful enough to have the
final stamp of approval from the Holy Ghost. One who has been sealed up
unto eternal life and thereafter proves to be a total enemy to the cause
of righteousness is guilty of "shedding innocent blood," the innocent
blood of Christ, ad assenting unto his death.

...

Verse 41 of section 132 suggests the third question that Joseph Smith must
have asked of the Lord. In essence, the question of the Prophet was: Why
were not such polygamous relationships violations of the law of chastity?
Why was this not considered adultery?"

...any action inspired, authorized, or commanded of God is moral and good.


...

"... That which is wrong under one circumstance, may be and often is,
right under another.

God said thou shalt not kill,--at another time he said thou shalt utterly
destroy. This is the principle on which the government of heaven is
conducted--by revelation adapted to the circumstances in which the
children of the kingdom are placed. Whatever God requires is rigth, no
matter what it is, although we may not see the reason thereof till long
after the events transpire.

... Every thing that God gives us is lawful and right, and 'tis proper
that we should enjoy his gifts and blessings whenever and wherever he is
disposed to bestow; but if we should seize upon these same blessings and
enjoyments without law, without revelation, without commandment, those
blessings and enjoyments would prove cursings and vexations in the end,
and we should have to go down in sorrow and wailings of everlasting
regret.

... Blessings offered, but rejected are no longer blessings, but become
like the talent hid in the earth by the wicked and slothful servant--the
proffered good returns to the giver, the blessing is bestowed upon those
who will receive."

[Footnote] A concubine was a wife who came from a position of lower social
standing, and who thus did not enjoy the same status as one of higher
birth. Under ancient practice, where caste systems were much more common
than at present, a man could take a slave or non-citizen as a legal wife,
but it was understood that she was of a lower status. This was the case
with Sarah (the first wife) and Hagar (the servant who became a
concubine).

Robert L. Millet, "A New and Everlasting Covenant," Studies in Scripture,
Volume One: The Doctrine and Covenants, edited by Robert L. Millet and
Kent P. Jackson (Sandy, Utah: Randall Book Company, 1984).

Because the Prophet had learned of and begun to practice plural marriage
several years earlier, and because he started performing eternal marriages
in 1841, many have concluded that section 132 was revealed years earlier,
and merely written down in July 1843. A more accurate interpretation is
that while Joseph Smith may have received revelation on matters contained
in section 132 prior to 1843, this revelation (its form, language, and
message) was unquestionable received for the first time in the summer of
1843.

...available evidence attests that the Prophet began to take additional
wives by 1836, in Kirtland, Ohio. Although plural marriage did not become
a law of the Church until its public announcement in 1852, Joseph Smith,
and later Brigham Young, did instruct a select number of faithful Mormon
brethren to take additional wives before that date.

Whereas the concept of plural marriage appears to have had its birth in
Kirtland, the principle of eternal marriage developed at Nauvoo. ...Emma
... appears to have objected to his taking additional wives. Her refusal
to accept the doctrine and to support her husband in righteousness
resulted in a year's delay in administering the blessings of the temple
endowment to women because Joseph desired his wife to be the first woman
to receive the ordinance.

Finally, in Ma 1843, she consented to the Prophet's taking plural-eternal
wives, but by July she had reversed her position and was adamant. Hyrum
Smith, William Law, and William Marks, presiding Church leaders, also were
bitterly opposed to the doctrine, and while Law and Marks could never
assent to the implications of the practice, the Prophet's brother, Hyrum,
was converted to it on 26 May 1843.

... Hyrum was fairly confident that if the Prophet would write down a
revelation on celestial marriage, he could take it for Emma to read and
thereby regain her support. William Clayton took down the ten-page
revelation at Joseph Smith's dictation in the "small office upstairs in
the rear of [the Prophet's Red Brick] store." ... "...read it to E[mma].
who said she did not believe a word of it and appeared very rebellious."
Towards evening on 12 July Bishop Newel K. Whitney received permission to
copy the revelation. About mid-day on 13 July Joseph C Kingsbury,
store-clerk for Bishop Whitney, carefully took a copy, which both Whitney
and Kingsbury proofread against the original. The Kingsbury copy, which
was given to Brigham Young in March 1847, was used to publish the
revelation five years later.

Whereas the Clayton copy was burned, the Kingsbury copy is still in
existence.

... A statement known as the "Article on Marriage," written by Oliver
Cowdery in 1835, served as the Church's official position on marriage and
was printed in each edition of the Doctrine and Covenants until 1876, when
it was replaced by section 132.

[Footnote] Upon accepting the implications of the doctrine of plural
marriage Emma Smith was eternally sealed to the Prophet (28 may 1843).
...only by receiving the fulness of the priesthood could Emma Smith have
claim on her husband in the eternities. Despite Emma's changing moods
regarding this matter, ultimately she was administered the fulness of the
priesthood, in connection with the Prophet (28 September 1843).

[Footnote] ... Several accounts affirm that Emma Smith burned it.

...

Lyndon W. Cook, "The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical
and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants, (Salt Lake
City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1985), p. 293-295.

The information contained in D&C 132 was recorded on 12 July 1843 to meet
a specific need. But the principle of plurality of wives, which
constitutes a major portion of the section, was known to the Prophet long
before this date. Therefore, the new edition adds the following
explanation: "Although the revelation was recorded in 1843, it is evident
from the historical records that the doctrine and principles involved in
this revelation had been known by the Prophet since 1831." This is an
important clarification relative to the time period in which the laws
governing the plurality of wives were revealed to the Prophet.

Among the historical evidence for the earlier time period is a signed
report written by Elder Orson Pratt in 1878 and published in the
Millennial Star. In it he affirms hi personal knowledge that the Prophet
received a revelation on the matter in the fall of 1831. A second piece of
evidence comes from an address by Elder Joseph F. Smith, delivered in Salt
Lake City on 7 July 1878, in which he gives 1832 as the time of the
revelation.

Robert J. Matthews, "The New Publications of the Standard Works--1979,
1981," Brigham Young University Studies, Volume 22, Number 4 (Fall 1982),
p. 415.

Although verse 7 indicates that "there is never but one on the earth at a
time on whom this power and the keys of this priesthood are conferred,"
statements and actions later would indicate that many church leaders hold
simultaneously hold this priesthood authority. Of particular note are
comments made by President Hinckley in several conferences where he has
stated that each member of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve
hold all the keys of the priesthood.

Verse 19 seems to say that a couple married in the temple are sealed to
eternal life unless they commit murder. The allusion ("sealed unto them by
the Holy Spirit of Promise, by him how is anointed") is to the second
anointing. Usually only sealed couples received the second anointing. See
" 'The Fulness of the Priesthood': The Second Anointing in Latter-day
Saint Theology and Practice" by David John Buerger

| - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |

The Notepad, www.srv.net/~sro/Notepad/Notepad.html, contains notes on D&C
132.  In the notes is a brief explanation that D&C 132:19 does not mean
that a temple marriage is a garantee of salvation.

Also available is "New Light on an Old Hypothesis: The Ohio Origins of the
Revelation on Eternal Marriage" by Danel W Backman

Particularly of note is that at one time, the temple marriage ceremony was
published by the church (specifically by Orson Pratt).  The text is
available on The Notepad, under the Doctrine Index.

http://www.srv.net/~sro/Notepad/Notepad.html


| - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |





-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Perry L. Porter" <[e-mail]>
Subject: ---> 1979 D&C & Church History Gospel Doctrine Teachers's
Date: 27 Oct 1997 23:01:50 -0700

[1979 D&C and Church History Gospel Doctrine Teachers's Supplement.  It is
interesting to note that more in depth lessons provided in the mid to date
70's. 1 years was spend on D&C 1 - 103 and the next year was the rest of
the D&C Plus a lesson on every President as well as major Historical
trends.  A supplement page to this years lesson suggested that this 150th
Anniversary of the arrival in the valley, that more emphasis be places in
history, but it appears the correlation committee is not very nimble.]

D&C 132

Lesson 12

OBJECTIVE

Class members will become familiar with section 132 and will more fully
appreciate the importance of _the_ new and everlasting covenant of
marriage.

ITEMS FOR PREPARATION

1. Confirm the readiness of class members assigned to give reports.

2. Prepare a chart showing the historical background of section 132 (see
the introduction , to this lesson).

SUGGESTED LESSON DEVELOPMENT

Introduction

Scripture : Have a class member read the headnote to Doctrine and
Covenants 132.

Note : Plural marriage is one of the major concepts found in section 132,
but the major purpose of this lesson is to emphasize eternal marriage. The
practice of plural marriage will be discussed in lesson 24

Discussion : - Does the headnote give the date when the revelation was
received? (no. The date refers to when it was recorded.

Chart : Display the following chart:

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS 132

1. The Lord commanded Joseph to make _a_ new translation of the Bible in
the summer of 1830.

2. Joseph received visions of Moses in the fall or early winter of 1 830.

3. After the Prophet arrived in Kirtland in February 1831, he immersed
himself in a study of the Old Testament.

4. Sometime in February or March 1831, Joseph studied the life of Abraham.

5. On 7 March 1831 the Lord commanded Joseph to stop translating the Old
Testament and to study _the_ New Testament.

6. Joseph translated the Book of Matthew between 8 March and 1 September
1831.

7. Sometime in 1831, Joseph received the revelation found in section 132.

8. At the request of the Prophet, William Clayton, who acted ,as Joseph's
scribe, formally wrote the revelation on 12 July 1843.

Teacher Presentation : Summarize the chart and present the setting in
which the revelation recorded as section 132 was given many years earlier:

During the summer of 1830 shortly after the publication of the Book of
Mormon, the Lord instructed the Prophet Joseph Smith to make a new
translation of the Bible. Joseph began his new translation in the summer
and fall of 1330, but more intensive study began

Page 65

after the Prophet Arrived in Kirtland, Qhio, in February 1831. Beginning
with Genesis, the Prophet studied the first chapters: He apparently
received the visions of Moses (see Moses in the Pearl of Great Price)
during the late summer and early winter of 1830. Probably by February or
March 1831, he had studied the life of Abraham. On 7 March 1831, the Lord
commanded the Prophet to stop work on the Old Testament until after he had
translated the New Testament. It appears that he translated the entire
book of Matthew between 8 March and 1 September 1831.

As Joseph pondered the life of Abraham and the teachings of Jesus (both in
the Book of Mormon and the New Testament), undoubtedly many questions
arose in his mind, not of the marriage relationship

Scripture discussion : Have a class member read and summarize Jacob
2:27-33; Matthew 19:3-6; 22:23-30, and Genesis 1 16:1-3.

- What specific questions might have arisen in the Prophet's mind as he
studied these scriptures? (How could Abraham have more than one wife and
not commit adultery? Does the marriage relationship continue after death?)

To show that such questions were probably on the Prophet's mind at that
time, read together with the class section 132:1, 41. (Point out that
while these verses show that Joseph raised at least two questions
concerning plural marriage, the Lord revealed to the young prophet two
other concepts found in section 132. In addition to answering the
Prophet's questions about plural marriage, the Lord emphasized the
difference between _the_ new and everlasting covenant and _a_ new and
everlasting covenant. He further explained the principle of eternal
marriage.) In addition to this internal evidence pointing to an early date
for the revelation, Elder B. H. Roberts, in his analysis of the date of
the revelation, declared, "There is indisputable evidence that the
revelation . . . was given to the Prophet as early as 1831 " (History of
the Church, 5:xxix).

Apparently, then, it was probably in 1831 that Joseph first received the
revelation. However, because of the sensitive nature of the plural
marriage aspects of the revelation, Joseph did not even record it until 12
July 1 843, when William Clayton, the Prophet's scribe, recorded it at the
Prophet's request. Copies of the revelation were made by Bishop Newell K.

Whitney and Joseph C. Kingsbury. In 1852, when Elder Orson Pratt received
the assignment from Brigham Young to publicly declare the law of eternal
and plural marriage, Brother Kingsbury's copy became the source for the
printed revelation now known as section 132.

The Difference between _the_ New and Everlasting Covenant and _a_ New and
Everlasting Covenant.

Scripture : Have a class member read section 1 132:4-7 Note the word a in
verse 4 and the in verse 6.

- What is the difference between _the_ new and everlasting covenant and
_a_ new and everlasting covenant? (_The_ new and everlasting covenant is
the fulness of the gospel, while _a_ new and everlasting covenant pertains
to any of the eternal covenants such as eternal marriage or baptism found
within _the_ new and everlasting covenant of the gospel.

Reports : Have the assigned class members read the resource material, "_A_
New and Everlasting Covenant, and "The Celestial Law ")

Discussion : What are the conditions of _the_ new and everlasting
covenant?

(All contracts, covenants, oaths, etc., must be sealed by the Holy Spirit
of Promise, verses 6-7.)

- Who held the keys to _the_ new and everlasting covenant when the
revelation was written in 1843, and who holds them today? (Joseph Smith
then, and the President of the Church today.)

- Why would the Lord reserve these keys for only one person at a time?

(Let the class explore this question for a few moments: What would happen
to the control of the keys and order in the Church if more than one held
them at the same time? Point out that members of so-called
"fundamentalist" groups fail to comprehend this principle: only one man at
a time may hold the sealing keys - the President of the Church.)

Page 66

D&C 132

Eternal Marriage

Scripture discussion : Have A class members read section 132:8 - 14

- What does the Lord say about the covenants and powers not entered into
through him? (If they are of men, they shall not exist after death.)

Point out that these verses are the Lord's introduction to eternal
marriage, and that he further defined the principle by giving three
examples, also contained in section 132.

Have a class member read section 132:15 - 17.

- Can marriage between a man and a woman performed by civil authority
continue through eternity? (No. The couple may live together during earth
life with the Lord's approval, but they have no marriage after death.)

- According to the Lord, what happens to the marriage of Latter-day Saints
performed by civil authority only? (They will not he married after they
are out of the world.)

Note : Point out that no single sister should feel obligated to marry in
this life unless she is as convinced of the inspiration of her choice as
she is of this principle.

- What is their future state? (They will be angels and live singly and
separately.)

Scripture discussion : Have a class member read section 132:18.

- Under what circumstances may a man and a woman be married for eternity
and not have an eternal marriage? (Eternal covenants are valid only when
performed by the Lord's authorized servants, when the covenants are kept,
and when subsequently sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise. Thus many who
are married in the temple may not have an eternal marriage.)

- What is their future? (They cannot inherit the fulness of the glory of
God.)

- What if they repent? Does the ceremony become valid? (The Holy Spirit of
Promise both seals and unseals an ordinance according to a persons's
worthyness.) Teacher presentation

Read "The Holy Spirit of Promise" and Holy Spirit Both Seals and unseals
Unseals"

Resource Material.

Scripture discussion : Have a class member read section 132:19 - 20 and
section 131:1 - 4

- If a man and a woman marry according to the law of God and are faithful
to the covenants of _the_ new and everlasting covenant, what are their
promises? (They shall inherit thrones, principalities, etc., have a
continuation of seed, become gods and dwell in the highest degree of the
celestial Kingdom.)

Note : A question may arise concerning the need to repent and the concept
expressed in section 132:26. You will find the resource material,
"Isolated Scriptures May Give the Wrong Impression" most helpful. Do not
discuss this issue, however, unless the question is raised.

Adultery

Teacher presentation : Have a class member read section 132:41-44.

Point out that, as earlier mentioned, after studying the lives of some of
the great Old Testament patriarchs, Joseph Smith became concerned about
the question of adultery, and in verse 41 the Lord answered his question.

Discussion : - How does the Lord define adultery for those who have
entered into _the_ new and everlasting covenant? (A sexual relationship
between a man and a woman who are not ,married to each other.)

Plural Marriage

Teacher presentation : You may wish to observe that while the entire
section 132 arose from the Prophet Joseph Smith's desire to know how the
Lord could justify his servants Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,

Page 67

and others in having more than one wife, certainly, as previous discussion
has shown, the Lord revealed much more than the law of plural marriage to
the Latter-day Saints.

Scripture discussion : Have a class member read section 132:29-32 and
34-39

- Why did Abraham take plural wives? (He had received a revelation and
commandment from God.)

- How did David and Solomon sin in taking plural wives? (They took wives
not given them by the Lord. That is, unless commanded of God through his
authorized servants to take more than one wife, a man is guilty of
adultery when he practices plural marriage.)

- How does the Lord look upon Abraham's actions? (Answers should include:
Abraham followed a commandment from God, he was faithful to revelation,
and the Lord considered him a righteous man. He has received his
exaltation and he is a god [see D&C 132:37].)

- Some of our grandparents and great-grandparents practiced plural
marriage, but what does the Lord expect of the Church today? (Jacob
2:27-28, 30. Emphasize that the Lord said that one man shall have but one
wife [verses 27-28], unless, as noted in verse 30, he commands otherwise.

This command, of course, would only come through the President of the
Church. A person who marries polygamously today is excommunicated from the
Church because he is committing adultery.)

Report : Have the assigned class member report on the resource material,
"First Presidency Statement on Plural Marriage.")

Conclusion

Teacher presentation : Summarize the lesson by stressing the following
points:

1. Eternal Marriage is required of every Latter-day Saint who is seeking
exaltation; plural marriage has sometimes been required, but now is not.

2. Adultery is condemned by the Lord in all situations.

3. The law of eternal marriage, which is _a_ new and everlasting covenant,
is an important part of the gospel, which is _the_ new everlasting
covenant.

4. Most of section 132 apparently was revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith
as he sought information while translating the Bible in the early 1830s,
but it was not committed to writing until 1843.

Challenge : the class to evaluate their testimony and commitment to
eternal, temple marriage. Urge Married members to more fully honor their
temple covenants.

RESOURCE MATERIAL

_a_ New and Everlasting Covenant

"Each ordinance of the Gospel is a covenant which is new and everlasting.

It is new and everlasting because it is divine truth and never grows old.

. . .  This was said of baptism, and the Lord calls it '_a_ new and an
everlasting covenant, even that which was from the beginning.' (D&C 22:1.)
It is so with all the covenants and obligations in the Gospel which
pertain to salvation and exaltation of man.  . . .

"President Brigham Young has said that, 'All Latter-day Saints enter _the_
new and everlasting covenant when they enter the Church . . .' (Brigham
Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, pp. 247 - 48).).

"There are some members of the Church who seem to think that _the_ new and
everlasting covenant is the covenant of celestial marriage, or marriage
for eternity, but this is not so. Marriage for eternity is an everlasting
covenant, and like the Lord said of baptism, we may say of marriage, it is
_a_ new as well as an everlasting covenant because it was from the
beginning. It will be, if properly performed according to the law of the
Lord, eternal. In the opening verses of Section 132, the Lord draws a
distinction between _a_ new and

Page 68

everlasting covenant and _the_ new and everlasting covenant. While the
definition is given in the negative form, it is plainly discernible that
_the_ new and everlasting covenant is the fulness of the Gospel. In the
words of the Lord, [section 132:7, quoted]" (Joseph Fielding Smith, Church
History and Modern Revelation, 2:356).

The Celestial Law

"[Verses] 7-14. The celestial law is here explained. All covenants,
agreements, promises, etc., not entered into for eternity are of no force
after death. Only the covenants that are sealed by the Holy Spirit of
Promise, through one who holds divine authority, remain in force after
death.

"[Verse] 7. Him who is anointed] Refers to the President of the Church,
who holds the keys of the kingdom of God on Earth.

"But one . . . at a time] Only one man at a time holds this authority. He
may delegate others to act for him, but he remains responsible for the
administration of the kingdom. For 'mine house is a house of order' (v.

8).

"[Verse] 13. Everything that is in the world . . . shall not remain] The
important truth is here taught that all institutions in this world, not
founded on divine law but erected by human ingenuity, cease to exist on
this side of the veil. Man-made governments are obliterated, as are the
sand castles children build on the tide-swept beach. Man-made religions
and churches are swallowed up in death. Not a trace of them will be seen
on the shores of eternity. Social customs and habits not sanctioned by
God, will not continue. On the other hand, all institutions founded on the
Word of God will remain throughout all eternity. The Church will remain.

The family will remain. All the organizations of which God is the author
are eternal (v. 14)" ((Hyrum M. Smith and Janne M. Sjodahl, The Doctrine
and Covenants Commentary, rev. ea., p.. 824).

The Holy Spirit of Promise

" The Holy Spirit of Promise is the Holy Ghost who places the stamp of
approval upon every ordinance: baptism, confirmation, ordination,
marriage. The promise is that the blessings will be received through
faithfulness.

"If a person violates a covenant, whether it be of baptism, ordination,
marriage or anything else, the Spirit withdraws the stamp of approval, and
the blessings will not be received.

"Every ordinance is sealed with a promise of a reward based upon
faithfulness. The Holy Spirit withdraws the stamp of approval where
covenants are broken" (Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation,
1:45).

Holly Spirit Both Seals and Unseals

"When a man and a woman, in all sincerity, enter into a covenant of
marriage for time and all eternity (and after they have 'overcome by
faith,' and are 'just and true'), the Holy Ghost - who is the Spirit of
promise - bears record of or ratifies that sealing. In other words, he
seals the promises appertaining to the marriage covenant upon them.

"Now the Lord has said: 'But there is a possibility that man may fall from
grace and depart from the living God; Therefore let the church take heed
and pray always, lest they fall into temptation; Yea, and even let those
who are sanctified take heed also.'

"If one or both of these covenanting persons break that covenant by which
they were sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, then the Spirit withdraws
the seal and the guilty party, or parties, stand as if there had been no
sealing or promise given. All covenants are sealed based upon
faithfulness.

"Should a person endeavor to receive the sealing blessing by fraud, then
the blessing is not sealed, notwithstanding the integrity and authority of
the person officiating. Instead of

Page 69

blessing they will receive a cursing, the heaviest of all. Therefore, a
person who may deceive the bishop or any other officer, will stand
condemned before the Lord, for he cannot be deceived and justice will be
meted out to all" (Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, 2: 98-99)

Isolated Scriptures May Give the Wrong Impression

"Verse 26, in section 132, is the most abused passage in any scripture.

The Lord has never promised any soul that he may be taken into exaltation
without the spirit of repentance. While repentance is not stated in this
passage, yet it is, and must be, implied. It is strange to me that
everyone knows about verse 26, but it seems that they have never read or
heard of Matthew 12:31-32, where the Lord tells us the same thing in
substance as we find in verse 26, section 132

is wrong to take one passage of scripture and isolate it from all other
teachings dealing with the same would bring together all said by authority
on the question. If we were to make a photograph, it would be necessary
for all of your rays of light to be focused properly on the subject. If
this were not done then a blurred picture would be the result. This is the
case when we try to obtain a mental picture, when we have only a portion
of the facts dealing with the subject we are considering. Therefore we
must find out what else has been said about salvation.  . . .

"The Lord said by his own mouth: 'And he that endureth not unto the end,
the same is he that is also hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence
they can no more return, because of the justice of the Father. And this is
the word which he hath given unto the children of men. And for this cause
he fulfilleth the words which he hath given, and he lieth not, but
fulfilleth all his words. And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom;
therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed
their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of
all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end.'

"So we must conclude that those spoken of in verse 26 are those who having
sinned, have fully and are willing to pay the price of their sinning, else
the blessing of exaltation will not follow. Repentance is absolutely
necessary for the forgiveness, and the person having sinned must be
cleansed.

"John said: 'There is a sin unto death.' 'If any man sees his brother sin
a which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for
them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that
he shall pray for it.'

"The Lord, in verse 27, has pointed out some sins unto death for which
there is no forgiveness. It will do no good for one to pray for his
brother for forgiveness from such a sin. All other sins, including
blasphemy against the Son of God, may be forgiven men, on their true
repentance. If they do not repent, then no matter what the sin may be, or
the covenant violated, the guilty party or parties will never enter into
the kingdom of God!" (Smith, Doctrines of Salvation 2:95-96).

First Presidency Statement on Plural Marriage

"The First Presidency have recently received letters making inquiry
concerning the position of the Church regarding the contracting of
polygamous or plural marriages. It is evident from these letters, as well
as from certain published material - some of it distributed during our
last General Conference - that a secret and, according to reputation, an
oath-bound organization of misguided individuals is seeking to lead the
people to adopt adulterous relations under the guise of a pretended and
false polygamous or plural marriage ceremony.

"While the position of the Church since 1893 has been repeatedly set
forth, namely, that polygamous or plural marriages are not and cannot now
be performed, yet in order that there may be no excuse for any Church
member to be misled by the false representations or the corrupt,
adulterous practices of the members of this secret, and (by reputation)

Page 70

oath-bound organization (of which the history of the Nephites and
Lamanites show so many counterparts), it is deemed wise again to set out
the position of the Church on this matter, at the same time tracing the
outlines of the historical facts lying behind the Church's position, of
which many young Church members may not be fully aware.  . . .

"Any ceremony pretending to bind man and woman together beyond the period
of mortal life, which is not solemnized by one who has been commissioned
and authorized by the man who holds the keys of authority to bind upon
earth with a covenant which will be binding in heaven, is of no efficacy
or force when people are out of the world. [Sec. 1 32:7.]

"There is but one person on the earth at a time upon whom the keys of this
sealing ordinance are conferred. That man is the Presiding High Priest,
the President of the Church. He is the bearer of this authority, which he
may exercise personally or he may commission others to exercise it under
his jurisdiction, for such time, long or short, up to the end of his life,
as he may desire.  . . .

"September 24th, 1890, President Woodruff promulgated his Official
Declaration to the Church and to the people of the United States, commonly
referred to as The Manifesto.

"On the day that The Manifesto was issued President Woodruff wrote in his
journal: 'I have arrived at a point in the history of my life as the
President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where I am
under the necessity of acting for the temporal salvation of the Church,
and after praying to the Lord, and feeling inspired, I have issued the
following proclamation, which is sustained by my counselors and the Twelve
Apostles.  . . . '

"The Manifesto was signed by President Woodruff as President of the
Church.  . . .

"The Official Declaration by President Woodruff and its approval by the
members of the Church in General Conference assembled, was accepted by the
government as evidence that the practice of plural marriage would be
discontinued" (Roy Doxey, comp., The Latter-day Prophets and the Doctrine
and Covenants, 4:445-46, 448-49, 455).

CLASS ASSIGNMENT : Ask class members to read Doctrine and Covenants 133
and consider the preparations necessary for the second coming of Christ.

ADVANCE PREPARATION :

1. Assign a class member to report on the following resource material:
"Historical Background of Section 133"

2. Assign three class members to read the following resource material:

a. "Israel Shall Gather to Zion and to the New Jerusalem"

b. "A Physical Restoration of the Earth" c. "The Ten Tribes to Receive
Their Blessings"

Page 71


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http://www.troubador.com/~mahonri/poly/church/jswives.htm

THE WIVES OF JOSEPH SMITH


No  Wife                  Married          Officiating                 Ref

 1  Emma Hale             Jan 18,'27       Squire Tarbuck

 2  Fanny Alger                  '35       Oliver Cowdery?              AJ

 3  Lucinda Pendleton            '38?                                   AJ
        Morgan Harris

 4  Louisa Beaman         Apr  5,'41       Joseph B. Noble              AJ
 5  Zina Diantha
     Huntington Jacobs    Oct 27,'41       Dimick B. Huntington         AJ
 6  Prescinda Lathrop
     Huntington Buell     Dec 11,'41       Dimick B. Huntington         AJ
 7  Sylvia Sessions              '41                                    AJ
 8  Mary Elizabeth
     Rollins Lightner     Feb   ,'42       Brigham Young                AJ
 9  Delcena Johnson
        Sherman           Spring '42                                    AJ
10  Eliza Roxey Snow      Jun 29,'42       Brigham Young                AJ
11  Sarah Anne Whitney    Jul 27,'42       Newel K. Whitney             AJ
12  Ruth Vose Sayers      Aug    '42                                    AJ
13  Desdemona Wadsworth
        Fullmer                  '42                                    AJ
14  Elvira A. Cowles             '42                                    AJ
15  Sarah M. Kinsley
        Cleveland                '42                                    AJ

16  Flora Ann Woodworth   Spring '43                                    AJ
17  Maria Lawrence        Spring '43                                    AJ
18  Sarah Lawrance        Spring '43                                    AJ
19  Emily Dow Partridge   Mar  4,'43       Heber C. Kimball             AJ
20  Eliza M. Partridge    Mar  8,'43       Heber C. Kimball             AJ
21  Almera Woodward
        Johnson           Apr3/4,'43       William Clayton              AJ
22  Olive Grey Frost      Apr 12,'43                                    AJ
23  Lucy Walker           May  2,'43       William Clayton              AJ
24  Helen Mar Kimball     May    '43       Heber C. Kimball             AJ
25  Hanna Ellis           Summer '43                                    AJ
26  Rhoda Richards
     Smith                Jun 12,'43       Willard Richards             AJ
27  Melissa Lott Wiles    Sep 20,'43       Hyrum Smith                  AJ
28  Fanny Young
        Murray            Nov  2,'43       Brigham Young                AJ

29  Mary Hustin                  '43/4?                               OFW
30  Sarah Scott                  '43/4?                               OFW
31  Nancy Maria Smith            '43/4?    (Winchester?)              OFW
32  Nancy Maria
        Winchester               '43/4?                               OFW

Very probably married to Joseph, but not in official listings

33  Nancy Marinda                '39?                   (SLC, Jul 31,'57)
        Johnson Hyde?

34  Clarissa Reed                '40?                   (Family Tradition)
        Hancock?

35  Patty B. Sessions     Mar  9,'42       Willard Richards
36  Mrs Durfee            Spring '42
37  Sally Ann
        Fuller Gatty?     Spring '42                   (Nauvoo,Jan29,'46)
38  Martha McBride        Summer '42       Heber C. Kimball
39  Sarah Kimball         Jul  7,'42       Newel K. Whitney
40  Martha M. Kimball            '42       Heber C. Kimball

41  Almira Barton         Spring '43
42  Margaret Moon         Apr 27,'43       Heber C. Kimball?

43  Mary Ann
        Frost Pratt?      May +, '43?             (Nauvoo, Feb '46)
44  Lucy Kimball          May  1,'43       William Clayton
45  Catherine P. Smith    Aug    '43       Hyrum Smith


Wives sealed to him in the temple after his death who may have also been
married to him whilst he was alive -

46  Olive Andrews?               '43/4?            (Nauvoo, Jan '46)
47  Elizabeth Davis?             '43/4?            (Nauvoo, Jan '46)
48  Vienna Jacques?              '43/4?            (Geneal. Archives)
49  Cordelia Calista
        Morley?                  '43/4?            (Nauvoo, Jan '46)
50  Jane Tibbets?                '43/4?            (Nauvoo,Jan17,'46)
51  Phebe Watroud?               '43/4?            (Nauvoo,Jan19,'46)
52  Sophia Woodman?              '43/4?            (Nauvoo,Jan27,'46)

             AJ = Andrew Jenson / OFW = Orson F. Whitney


                (C) 1996 NCT


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[Comentary I do not know who NCT is, and I do not know where the
information came from.  I know that Tod Compton's up comming book will
confirm much of this]

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BIBLICAL POLYGAMISTS

Wives Reference

1 Abdon 40 sons Judg 12:13-14

2 Abijah 14 2 Chron 13:21

3 Abraham 3 Gen 11:29;16:3;25:1

4 Ahab 70 sons 2 Kings 10:1

5 Ashur 2 1 Chron 4:5

6 Belshazzar many Dan 5:2

7 Caleb 2 1 Chron 2:48

8 David 7 2 Sam 3:2-5,14

9 Elkenah 2 1 Sam 1:1-2

10 Esau 5 Gen 26:34;28:9;36:2

11 Gideon 70 sons Judg 8:30 (Jerubbaal) 9:2

12 Hosea 2 Hosea 1:3;3:1

13 Izban 60 children Judg 12:8-9

14 Jacob 4 Gen 29:23,28;30:4,9

15 Jair 30 sons Judges 10:3-4

16 Jerahmeel 2 1 Chron 2:26

17 Joash 2 2 Chron 24:2-3

18 Josiah 2 2 Kings 22:1-2;23:25,31,36

19 Lamech 2 Gen 4:19

20 Machir 2 1 Chron 7:15-16

21 Manasseh 2 1 Chron 7:14

22 Moses 2 Exo 2:21;Num 12:1

23 Rehoboam 18 2 Chron 11:18-21

24 Saul 2 2 Sam 21:11;1 Sam 9:2

25 Shaharaim 2 1 Chron 8:8

26 Soloman 700 1 Kings 11:3

27 Tribe of Issachar 1 Chron 7:4-5

(C) 1996 NCT

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FIRST PRESIDENCY MESSAGE

ON THE SUBJECT OF PLURAL MARRIAGE

(SECTION DEALING WITH THE 1886 REVELATION)

It is alleged that on September 26-27, 1886, President John Taylor
received a revelation from the Lord, the purported text of which is given
in publications circulated apparently by or at the instance of this same
organization.

As to this pretended revelation it should be said that the archives of the
Church contain no such revelation; the archives contain no record of any
such revelation, nor any evidence justifying a belief that any such
revelation was ever given. From the personal knowledge of some of us, from
the uniform and common recollection of the presiding quorums of the
Church, from the absence in the Church archives of any evidence whatsoever
justifying any belief that such a revelation was given, we are justified
in affirming that no such revelation exists.

Furthermore, so far as the authorities of the Church are concerned and so
far as the members of the Church are concerned, since this pretended
revelation, if ever given, was never presented to and adopted by the
Church or by any council of the Church, and since to the contrary, an
inspired rule of action, the Manifesto, was (subsequently to the pretended
revelation) presented to and adopted by the Church, which inspired rule in
its terms, purport, and effect was directly opposite to the interpretation
given to the pretended revelation, the said pretended revelation could
have no validity and no binding effect and force upon Church members, and
action under it would be unauthorized, illegal, and void.

...

HEBER J. GRANT, ANTHONY W. IVINS, J. REUBEN CLARK, JR., First Presidency.

Deseret News, 17 July 1933; James R. Clark, Messages of the First
Presidency, Vol. 5, p. 327.



ERRORS IN THE ABOVE STATEMENT

ADMITTED BY CHURCH SCHOLARS

J. Max Anderson, on page 140 of the manuscript for his book, Mormon
Fundamentalism, admits that the above statement "cannot be entirely
correct." Several reasons were given to substantiate this, including:

1. Elder Abraham H. Cannon recorded in his journal that Heber J. Grant was
present at a Council meeting on 30th September 1890 when the 1886
revelation was discussed.

2. Heber J. Grant was at the trials of John W. Taylor and Matthias F.

Cowley in 1911, when the 1886 revelation was mentioned many times.

"On April 21, 1972, Raymond W. Taylor found copies of the revelation among
the John Taylor papers in the Church Historians office. He located a total
of 11 reproductions, bearing the notation that they had been copied from
the original. A number of these were personally copied by the church
historians."

The Kingdom or Nothing, p. 368-9, 1976, Samuel W. Taylor.



Why Study Polygamy?

Despite the Church's emphasis on conservative family values, despite the
huge missionary programme which has seen the Church's teachings taught to
millions of the world, despite the mainstream Christian image which has
been strongly promoted over the last century; Polygamy is still the
doctrine most non-members first associate with the Church.

Although only publicly accepted by the Church for a third of its history,
and although it's practice has not been officially approved of for over
100 years, yet this principle is still brought up more than any other by
those investigating or challenging Mormonism. The saddest commentary on
this subject is that we as members of the Church are often just as guilty
of not understanding this doctrine, as those outside the Church.

Whilst at one time the importance of polygamy as part of the restoration
was perhaps stressed more than any other principle, in talks by the
General Authorities of the Church, and in Church periodicals; Today the
topic is absent from General Conference discourses, and our manuals and
magazines only give us fleeting references to its practice.

In seeking to distance ourselves from this doctrine in order that
non-members will focus on those other principles we believe, we have
perhaps left ourselves more open to attack from anti-Mormons who may be
more informed (and misinformed) about this subject, and we may have also
been left without sufficient knowledge to supply answers to those with
genuine concerns and questions.

Perhaps some might argue that none of this matters. Is it possible that we
can claim to be diligent students of the Gospel though, when we ignore a
principle which many Saints went to jail and risked their lives for? It
mattered very much to them what the prophets had to say about this aspect
of the Gospel, and without having a testimony of its truthfulness they
would not have made such a sacrifice.

If we choose to ignore their lives, and the principle they spent their
lives fighting for, are we not adding further injury to the persecutions
they received? Wouldn't their efforts have been in vain, if we - the heirs
of their struggle for religious freedom - don't learn of them, learn from
them, and through this give them the respect they deserve.

Let us then resolve to understand this matter as well as any other,
because - although we may feel that its practice may not apply to our
lives at present - the principle is as much a part of the Gospel as it has
ever been, and our testimonies of the Gospel will be incomplete without
gaining a knowledge of this doctrine.

Not to mention that just the last conference a child of a sanctioned
Plural marriage was called to be a General Authority.  There are 100's of
children still alive today, from parents that lived the principal.

Polygamy is still alive and part of the church as long as they are still
alive.  If you want to trivialize the importance of polygamy in the
church, do NOT do it in front of one of these people, unless you like
getting a free lecture.


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Ciao Perry     <[e-mail]>    http://pobox.com/~plporter