Mormon Doctrines—Their idea of God—Plurality of gods—Mormon Sunday-school hymn concerning Smith—The pre-existence of souls—The doctrine of Polygamy—Practised on the plea of self-sacrifice and ambition—Necessity of preaching their gospel to all—Preaching to the dead—Baptismal regeneration—Baptism for the dead—Mormon priesthood necessary to salvation—Melchizedek and Aaronic priesthoods—Mormon Endowments—Blood Atonement—Doctrine of “The Fulness of Times.”
Having thus considered the sources of Mormon doctrine—the ways in which God has revealed His will and purposes unto them—let us consider in the second place some of their
II. Doctrines and Practices.
1. Their idea of God is materialistic. While they profess to believe the Trinity, they say that God was once a man, who has advanced in intelligence and power so much that now He may be called perfect; but He has still the form and figure of a man.
One of the standard Mormon works is called a “Key to the Science of Theology,” written by Parley P. Pratt, who, while he lived, was one of the Twelve Apostles. It is now used as a text-book among the people. In confirmation of the statement that they hold grossly corporeal ideas concerning God, it says: “God has an organized individual tabernacle embodied in material form and composed of material substance, in the likeness of man, and possessing every organ, limb, and physical part that man possesses.”
Christ, too, is believed to have been the offspring of the material union on the plains of Palestine of God and the Virgin Mary. Yet Christ is believed to have had a previous existence, and His worship is enjoined as Lord of all. The Holy Ghost, or Paraclete, is also material. Thus do they lower the divinity to humanity instead of lifting up humanity to the divinity.
2. Another doctrine is that of Plurality of gods.
Though there is one God supreme, there are many other beings entitled to the name because possessed of the attributes of God, such as creative power. All these gods were once men, and all men are potential gods. The book of Parley Pratt, already quoted, says: “It will be recollected that the last chapter recognizes a family of gods, or, in other words, a species of beings who have physical tabernacles of flesh and bones in the form of man, but so constructed as to be capable of eternal life.... A general assembly, quorum, or grand council of the gods, with their president at their head, constitute the designing and creating power.... Wisdom inspires the gods to multiply their species and to lay the foundation for all the forms of life to increase in numbers, and for each to enjoy himself in the sphere to which he is adapted.”
Adam is said to be the god of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ the god of Joseph Smith, and Joseph Smith the god of this generation. They teach their children that Joseph Smith is their god, and their little ones hear more of him than they do of Jesus. Even in their hymns is this great error taught. I will give one of the hymns found in their “Primary Hymn-Book,” which is sung by the children in the Mormon Sunday-schools, called by them “Primary Associations.” It is as follows:
“The seer, the seer, Joseph the seer!
I’ll sing of the Prophet ever dear;
His equal now cannot be found
By searching the wide world around.
With gods he soared in the realms of day,
And men he taught the heavenly way.
The earthly Sun, the Heavenly Sun!
I love to dwell on his memory dear;
The chosen of God and the friend of man—
He brought the Priesthood back again;
He gazed on the past; on the present, too,
And opened the heavenly world to view.
“Of noble seed, of heavenly birth,
He came to bless the sons of earth.
With keys by the Almighty given
He opened the full rich stores of heaven.
O’er the world that was wrapt in sable night,
Like the sun he spread his golden light.
He strove, oh, how he strove to stay
The stream of crime in its reckless way;
With a mighty mind and a noble aim,
He urged the wayward to reclaim;
’Mid the foaming billows of angry strife
He stood at the helm of the ship of life.
The Saints, the Saints, his only pride!
For them he lived, for them he died.
Their joys were his—their sorrows, too;
He loved the Saints and he loved Nauvoo.
Unchanged by death, with a Saviour’s love
He pleads their cause in the courts above.
The seer, the seer, Joseph the seer!
Oh, how I love his memory dear
The just and wise, the pure and free,
A father he was and is to me.
Let friends now rage in their dark hour,
No matter—he is beyond their power.
“He’s free! He’s free! the Prophet’s free!
He is where he will ever be
Beyond the reach of mobs and strife.
He rests unharmed, in endless life;
His home’s in the sky, he dwells with the gods,
Far from the furious rage of mobs.
He died, he died for those he loved—
He reigns, he reigns in the realms above!
He waits with the just who have gone before
To welcome the saints to Zion’s shore.
Shout, shout, ye Saints! this boon is given—
We’ll meet our martyred seer in heaven.”
Thus are the Mormon children early taught to think of Joseph Smith as their Saviour, and as divine. Brigham Young, too, was regarded as God by some of his followers even before his death; and no doubt before long, when they forget to some extent his misdeeds that have been brought to light since his death, they will deify him as well as Joseph Smith. Indeed, they teach that all Mormons may, by obedience and holiness, become gods in the celestial world, and people and rule a kingdom forever. Helped by polygamy, men may become makers of worlds like this, of which Adam was the fashioner; and in those worlds their posterity become the creatures over whom they bear sway.
3. Another doctrine is The Pre-existence of Souls.
All men lived before they were born. They existed for ages as spirits, waiting eagerly for fleshly tabernacles; and multitudes of these spirits are now waiting, desiring to come to earth; for it is only by the way of the flesh that they can reach the final bliss of their perfected being, and therefore it is a work of great benevolence to provide earthly bodies into which they may come to dwell.
4. The Doctrine of Polygamy springs naturally out of the two preceding doctrines. In the “Book of Mormon” this practice was forbidden; and in the earlier revelations of Joseph Smith it was distinctly condemned; but it was sanctioned in a revelation claimed to have been given to him at Nauvoo, July 12th, 1843, although it was not promulgated until the fall of 1852 in Salt Lake City by Brigham Young. This doctrine is a necessary sequence of their ideas with regard to the celestial world and the pre-existent life of the human soul. Mr. Pratt, in one of his sermons, says: “The spirit that dwells in each man and woman is, I venture to say, more than five thousand years old. The Lord has ordained that these spirits should come here and take tabernacles by a certain law and through a certain channel; and that law is the law of marriage. The Lord ordained marriage on this globe between Adam and Eve as eternal in its nature; hence we believe in marrying for eternity. Among these spirits in the heavens are many more noble, more intelligent, that were called the great and mighty ones, who were reserved till the fulness of time to come forth upon the face of the earth through a noble parentage, who shall train their tender minds in the truths of eternity, that they may be prophets, priests, and kings to the Most High God. Among the Saints is the most likely place for these spirits to take their tabernacles, to be trained up by that people that are the most righteous of any other people upon the earth. This is the reason that the Lord is sending them here, brethren and sisters. The Lord has not kept them in reserve for five or six thousand years, waiting for their bodies, to send them to the Hottentots, the Hindoos, or the negroes, but to the Saints of Zion. Then, is it not reasonable that the Lord should say unto his faithful and chosen servants: ‘Take unto yourselves more wives, that more of these noble spirits should come forth through these my faithful and chosen servants’?”
Thus do the Mormons have as one of the underlying principles of this abominable practice one of the grandest sentiments of humanity—self-sacrifice for the sake of others. It is that sentiment which has taken hold of the Mormon women and led them not only to submit in silence to what is entirely counter to their nature, but even to choose it and glory in it. Brigham Young told his people often that the world was rapidly hastening to a close, and there were multitudes of spirits waiting for honorable bodies. The Gentiles were corrupt, and the ethereal spirits were waiting anxiously for the favors of the Mormons. The women, he said, would be selfish if they could not endure the wandering affections of their husbands. It was their duty to make a self-sacrifice. Jesus had given His life to redeem; why could they not help to save? It is on that account that the women of Utah have made the sacrifice of the most vital principle of their souls.
The principle which has led the Mormon men to embrace this doctrine, which greatly increases their earthly cares and burdens, is ambition. In heaven they will rule over their posterity; and, consequently, the more wives they have, and the greater their posterity, the greater will be their rank in heaven. Orson Hyde, in one of his sermons, said: “The revelation of the Almighty to a man ... whom God designs to make a ruler and a governor in his eternal kingdom is that he may have more wives, that when he goes to another sphere he may still continue to perpetuate his species; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” The Mormons declare that those who have no wives are the servants of those who rule. Therefore the object of the Mormon men in embracing polygamy, as they themselves set forth, is to raise up a numerous posterity here and in the world to come, that they may be exalted to the rank of “gods to reign upon thrones.” They believe that all the gods have many wives, and they rule over their descendants, who are constantly increasing in number and dominion; and in accordance with that belief, they teach that Jesus was a polygamist, and that Mary and Martha were his plural wives, with whom he is now living in marriage relations in the celestial world.
5. Another doctrine is that the Latter-Day Gospel must be preached to all men. Until that gospel is accepted, none can be saved; and so, from the earliest days, zeal for propagandism has been a marked feature of this sect. At the very soonest the world must be conquered by this gospel. This has from the first been their fixed design, and about three hundred missionaries are always in the field. The order is: first, offer salvation to the Gentiles till the Lord proclaims that their opportunity is past, and then turn to the Jews. Moreover, they believe there is need for hot haste; for these are the latter days, and the dread second coming of the Son of God is at hand. Many of the devout Mormons believe that when the great temple in Salt Lake City is finished, the Lord Jesus will descend to earth and reign with His Saints for a thousand years.
But not only can none be saved until the Mormon gospel is accepted; neither can any be condemned till it has been heard and rejected by him. And so, not only must the living hear the Latter-Day Gospel, but the same proclamation must be made through all the bounds of the great gathering-place of the dead. To these “spirits in prison,” whose sad misfortune it was to die before the Hill of Cummorah gave up its golden plates to the great Prophet, must be made the offer of faith and baptism. Hence, when Mormon missionaries die they go on preaching just as before—so great is the task, so distant the goal, set before this peculiar people.
6. They also believe in Baptismal Regeneration. They bless little children, but baptize none under the age of eight. They practice the mode of immersion, and they teach that it is able to wash away sins, and that it may be repeated for the remission of sins whenever it is needed. Consequently, when any of the Saints fall into heinous sins, they are taught that those sins can be washed away by their being rebaptized.
7. They also believe in Baptism for the Dead. They base this doctrine on Paul’s statement in the fifteenth chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians. They claim that since three things are essential to salvation—faith, repentance, and baptism—and the latter is not possible in the world of spirits, one in order to be saved after death must be baptized by proxy—i.e., some Saint on earth must be immersed in his behalf. It is claimed that here Mormonism is most unique, and performs its noblest service to the race. In this way the Mormons save their ancestors from everlasting punishment, and bring their souls within Zion; and this service is extended beyond relatives, too, and is given to the heroes and heroines of history. Washington, Franklin, and other famous men have thus been vicariously baptized into the Mormon Church. A writer on Mormonism has well said: “In fact, no one is safe from the clutches of Mormonism after death. You may be made a Mormon without desiring it for all eternity.”
It is said that in the summer of 1884 a wealthy Mormon, while on a visit to Boston, employed a young lady to look up his genealogy. Having learned the names of about two hundred of his ancestors, he had the rite of baptism performed for them all. And it is related that an old man, long a convert to Mormonism, residing in the southern part of Utah, went thirty miles distant to a place where the Saints were in conference for the purpose of saving nearly one hundred of his ancestors from everlasting destruction by being baptized for them. He made the journey in an ox-cart with his two sons. The baptism, of course, was immersion in a river; and the old man was dipped as many times as he could stand the operation, each dip representing an entrance into the Mormon paradise for some one of the otherwise lost hundred of his forefathers; and then his sons in turn were baptized, until the object of their visit was fully accomplished.
8. Another doctrine is that a priesthood duly authorized by God is absolutely essential to salvation. Without this no sacrament or rite is acceptable to God or of value to men. It is only through their preaching that sinners can repent and believe; and the remission of sins follows baptism only when priestly hands administer it; and this authority comes by no fancied apostolical succession, but from Joseph Smith as the sole source. Before him for a thousand years there was no authority, and to-day all is illegitimate outside the Mormon Church.
There are two classes of priesthood: The Melchizedek and the Aaronic. The Melchizedek priesthood is the higher branch, having special reference to spiritual affairs, while the Aaronic priesthood has most to do with the temporal interests of the Church. Both of these branches are obtained through Joseph Smith, who received his ordination in a supernatural manner. According to Mormon authority, an angelic messenger, calling himself John the Baptist, met him in the woods of New York, May 15th, 1829, and ordained him to the Aaronic priesthood; and soon after, it is claimed, he received his ordination to the Melchizedek priesthood at the hands of the apostles Peter, James, and John.
The Aaronic priesthood includes (beginning with the lowest) the offices of deacon, teacher, priest, and bishop. The Melchizedek priesthood includes the offices of elder, high-priest, patriarch, seventy, and apostle. A worse despotism than is exercised over the people by this priesthood cannot be found on earth. Claiming to have the keys of heaven and hell, and to have its authority directly from the Lord, it wields absolute power, not only in spiritual but in all temporal affairs.
9. Another peculiar doctrine is with reference to Endowments. To get one’s endowments constitutes one of the most exalted privileges and ambitions of the devout Mormon. These can be had only in Utah and in connection with the temples, although in Salt Lake City, where as yet the temple is unfinished, the Endowment House is used. After divers washings and anointings and rubbings, the acting of an historic drama, the taking of oaths and grips, and the giving of a new name, celestial wisdom and joy are supposed to descend and forever rest upon the favored soul. Secret marriage rites, which seal husband and wife for time and eternity, form part of the ceremony.
In that hour, also, is put on the “endowment robe,” a garment reaching from head to foot, and made all in one piece, high-necked and with long sleeves. This robe is said to be a sure defence against the adversary and all physical ills. One must never be caught without it; but if, living and dying, he wears that garment, and remembers the grips and his celestial name, he is sure of heaven whatever may befall him.
The rites of the Endowment House are said to be a kind of bastard Masonry, instituted by Joseph Smith at Nauvoo. A remarkable resemblance has been pointed out between the ancient Eleusinian Mysteries and the mysteries of the Endowment House as they are represented by some of the historians of Mormonism. Their object, according to Brigham Young, is “to receive all those ordinances in the house of the Lord which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to enable you to walk back to the presence of the Father, passing the angels, who stand as sentinels, being enabled to give them the key-words, the signs and tokens pertaining to the holy priesthood, and gain your eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell.”
10. Another doctrine, which is peculiarly a Mormon doctrine, and the most horrible doctrine ever taught by their leaders, is the doctrine of Blood Atonement.
According to this doctrine there are some sins which cannot be forgiven or atoned for except by cutting the throat of the man who committed them and pouring out his blood as an atonement. Three of these sins are apostasy, disclosing the secrets of the Endowment House, and marital unfaithfulness on the part of a wife.
This doctrine has been frequently taught by the leaders of the Church, who have declared that it is a meritorious act for any Saint to spill the blood of a person guilty of any of these sins, and that he would thereby be carrying out the golden rule of love. Thus, Brigham Young, in a sermon delivered in the Bowery at Salt Lake City, September 21st, 1856, said: “There are sins that men commit for which they cannot receive forgiveness in this world or in that which is to come, and if they had their eyes open to see their true condition they would be perfectly willing to have their blood spilled upon the ground, that the smoke thereof might ascend to heaven as an offering for their sins; and the smoking incense would atone for their sins, whereas, if such is not the case, they will stick to them and remain upon them in the spirit world.
“I know when you hear my brethren telling about cutting people off from the earth that you consider it strong doctrine; but it is to save them, not to destroy them.”
And in another discourse, delivered in the Tabernacle of Salt Lake City, February 8th, 1857, Brigham Young said: “I have known a great many men who have left this Church, for whom there is no chance whatever for exaltation; but if their blood had been spilled, it would have been better for them. This is loving our neighbor as ourselves; if he needs help, help him; and if he wants salvation, and it is necessary to spill his blood on the earth in order that he may be saved, spill it. Any of you who understand the principles of eternity, if you have sinned a sin requiring the shedding of blood, except the sin unto death, would not be satisfied nor rest until your blood should be spilled, that you might gain that salvation you desire. This is the way to love mankind.”
But although this horrible doctrine has been publicly preached again and again, yet many of the Mormons deny that it was ever carried into actual practice. The editor of the Deseret News, one of the Mormon leaders, not long ago denied that blood atonement had ever been practised among the Mormons, but he said “in the good time coming it will be.” On the other hand, it is claimed by many Gentiles that not only has it been put into practice frequently in past years, but that it is actually done at the present time. A Gentile observer, after several months’ residence in Salt Lake City in 1884, wrote: “As to the blood atonement, which Mormons generally deny, you may be sure it is still practised.”
After a careful study of the facts in the case, it seems to be clear that the evidence is overwhelming in substantiation of the declaration that it was often practised in the past; and it seems to be equally clear that, while it may be the fact that this abominable practice is still carried on, only more adroitly than formerly, yet the mass of evidence is overwhelming in opposition to that view and in favor of the opinion that the incoming of thousands of Gentiles and Federal officers have effectually stopped the practice of that barbarous doctrine. Nevertheless, it remains one of their doctrines.
11. Another Mormon doctrine, and one of which much is made, is the doctrine of the Fulness of Times. The Mormons claim that whatever good thing in doctrine and practice has ever existed in the world under former dispensations has been restored in these last days; and so to the Latter-Day Saints have come all the blessings of all past ages, especially the priesthood, polygamy, and all the offices and gifts of the days of the apostles. They believe the day of miracles has not ceased, but that many such have been wrought, especially healings of the sick, in the latter-day dispensation. They believe, also, in giving one tenth of their income and increase for the building of the temples and the progress of the Church.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE RELIGIOUS PUZZLE (continued).
Professor Coyner’s analysis of Mormonism—Rev. Dr. McNiece’s analysis—Reasons for the growth and tenacity of Mormonism—The Christian element its chief source of strength—No Mormon converts from heathenism—Protestantism the source of its recruits—Bible doctrines in the Mormon “Catechism for Children”—The Mormon Articles of Faith—The Mormon heresy compared with Gnosticism in the early Christian Church—A clue to the solution of the religious puzzle.
From the enumeration of some of the prominent and peculiar doctrines of Mormonism which was given in the preceding chapter, it can very clearly be seen that it is naught else than a jumble of a half dozen different systems of religion.
Professor Coyner, Principal of the Salt Lake Collegiate Institute for ten years, has analyzed it as follows: “Mormonism is made of twenty parts. Take eight parts of diabolism, three parts of animalism from the Mohammedan system, one part bigotry from old Judaism, four parts cunning and treachery from Jesuitism, two parts Thugism from India, and two parts Arnoldism, and then shake the mixture over the fires of animal passion and throw in the forms and ceremonies of the Christian religion, and you will have this system in its true component elements.” But, subtle as that analysis is, it cannot be true; for it does not include in the system, as even one of its twenty parts, Christianity; and yet it seems to me that it is the Christian element in the system which, mingled with a great deal of error, gives it its real strength.
The analysis given by Rev. Dr. R. G. McNiece, of Salt Lake City, in the Presbyterian Review, April, 1881, seems to be more correct, and about as near the real truth as any one, perhaps, can come. He says: “Let Paganism, Judaism, Mohammedanism, Jesuitism, Protestantism, and Diabolism be shaken up together, and the result is Mormonism; for from Paganism comes its idea of God; from Judaism its theory of the priesthood and special revelation; from Mohammedanism its plural wife notions, and its sensual ideas of heaven; from Jesuitism its cunning and arbitrary form of government, in which the end is continually made to justify the means; from Protestantism its talk about faith in Christ and the guidance of the Holy Spirit; and its general policy from the devil, as any intelligent man will have to confess after a careful study of its cunning, devilish ways and means.” From this analysis it is seen that its great strength lies in the shrewd way in which it has blended Christian truth with heathen error.
The reasons of its growth and tenacity are many. It is especially adapted to the intellectual capacities of the masses. To these are offered just what they are sure to hunger after—bold assumption and boundless assertion, together with great show of authority. For the superstitious it has miracles, ecstasies, visions, and revelations. The secrecy of the endowments, too, has a charm. The minds of the ignorant delight in prodigies. “Omne ignotum, pro mirifico.” For the lovers of prophecy there is promised the New Jerusalem, an actual reign of the Saints, and an equality with the Redeemer. The gross see charms in its sensual paradise, and listen eagerly to the announcement that a conversation with their spiritual ruler, or a journey on a mission while facing a frowning world, will immediately clear them from their iniquities. These are all elements in the system, which have led to its growth, and now keep it from falling to pieces.
But its chief source of strength is its recognition of many of the truths of the Bible. If its strength came from its heathenish doctrines and practices, then it would naturally follow that its converts would be gathered mainly from heathendom, whereas ninety-nine proselytes in every hundred have been obtained from Christian churches.
About thirty years ago swarms of Mormon missionaries were sent to China, Japan, India, Australia, South Africa, South America, and the Society and Sandwich Islands, and they fondly hoped that many converts would be gathered; but in less than five years they had all returned, completely baffled and disgusted. They reported that the devil was far too lively in those lands, and that, among the Hindoos especially, stupidity and awful depravity were universal. Since then we hear of no more attempts to evangelize the pagan world. A few hundred Sandwich Islanders and New Zealanders have been baptized, but only after American and English missionaries had first brought them to a knowledge of Gospel truth.
And it is said that no Roman Catholic has ever been brought into the Mormon fold, Protestantism furnishing Mormonism its entire supplies. Yes, the fact is that Mormonism has grown in strength and power by the addition of those once members of Protestant Christian churches, or those very near the entrance. Perhaps eight out of every ten who have come to Utah were of that class; and it cannot well be questioned that hundreds of so-called Mormons, though laboring under a great delusion and greatly misled by the hierarchy, are still sincere believers in Christ and His Gospel. Rev. Dr. McNiece says in the Presbyterian Review, April, 1881: “It is only just to say that scattered all through the Mormon ranks are hundreds of devout, worthy, kind-hearted, hospitable people, who came from England, Scotland, and the Scandinavian countries, bringing their Bibles and Christian sentiments with them, and who, although nominally Mormons, have never been persuaded to embrace these odious pagan doctrines, which are the distinctive features of Mormonism.”
Besides, the Mormons believe in the Old and New Testaments as inspired, and in the “Book of Mormon” itself there is much that is taken directly from the Bible—as the Decalogue, the Sermon on the Mount, and other teachings of our Lord; and in their “Catechism for Children,” published in 1877, one finds mingled with many false teachings such sound biblical propositions as these: that our first parents, having fallen under the influence of Satan, “had not the least power to recover themselves from the effects of that fall;” that in this condition “the justice of God required a sacrifice to atone for the broken law, and our first parents being subject, through transgression, to the penalty of the law, could not make this sacrifice;” that to meet such a state of things, “God sent His only begotten Son, who knew no sin, to die for the sins of the world, and thus to satisfy divine justice;” that “this redemption by Jesus Christ is the only one,” and that it is available to all mankind, “but only on conditions of obedience;” that these conditions are “as unchangeable as their Author,” and include faith, which is described as “a principle of power” within the soul, and repentance, which is defined as a “forsaking of sin, with full purpose of heart to work righteousness;” and that even little children are “considered sinners in the sight of God,” and as such are “redeemed solely through the atonement of Christ,” and are therefore to be taught to repent and believe.
In reading such statements, and seeing them corroborated continually by quotations from Scripture, it is not hard to imagine ourselves studying the catechism of some Christian sect, differing from other sects in detail and expression, but agreeing with them in the essentials of the common Christianity. How far such truths are proclaimed by the Mormon teachers and missionaries, or how far they still remain as vital convictions in the breasts of thousands who once professed them in other communions, or who have been taught them catechetically in the Mormon fold, it is very difficult to determine.
In the Mormon Articles of Faith there is very little but what could be subscribed to by some Christian denomination. It is presumed that these Articles comprise all the essential beliefs of Mormonism. They are what their missionaries constantly teach, and what the Mormons always give forth as their creed. They are just one third the number of the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England. They are as follows:
“1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
“2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.
“3. We believe that, through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
“4. We believe that these ordinances are: First, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, repentance; third, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.
“5. We believe that a man must be called of God by prophecy and by the laying on of hands’ by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer the ordinances thereof.
“6. We believe in the same organization that exists in the Primitive Church—viz.: apostles, prophets, teachers, evangelists, etc.
“7. We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, etc.
“8. We believe the Bible to be the Word of God, as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the ‘Book of Mormon’ to be the Word of God.
“9. We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
“10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel, and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion will be built upon this continent; that Christ will reign personally upon this earth, and that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisic glory.
“11. We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our conscience, and allow all men the same privilege; let them worship how, when, or where they will.
“12. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates; in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
“13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we say that we follow the admonition of Paul: ‘We believe all things; we hope all things;’ we have endured many things, and hope to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report, or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.”
The fact is, that this nineteenth century heresy bears much the same relation to the Gospel of to-day that Gnosticism, Montanism, and Manicheism did to that of the early centuries. On the true foundation of the Old and New Testaments, it has built a structure of wood, hay, and stubble. “To the law and the testimony,” is the constant cry. Argument is based almost entirely upon the Bible. Proof-texts are quoted by the thousand.
Our object in directing attention to the Christian element in Mormonism is not to furnish apology or to divert attention from its fearful errors; but it is mentioned because it furnishes a decided clue to the vitality and persistency of the system, and also opens our eyes as to the best way to solve the religious puzzle which this system presents before us. The great question to be answered is: How are we to get rid of the erroneous doctrines of Mormonism?
CHAPTER XV.
THE RELIGIOUS PUZZLE (concluded).
The character of efforts hitherto put forth to solve the puzzle—What has been accomplished—The plan somewhere defective—Mormonism to be reformed, not destroyed—Why Mormons will not listen to Christian missionaries—Moody and Sankey’s meetings in Salt Lake City—The Deseret Evening News on Bishop Tuttle’s sermon—Mormonism a perversion of Christianity—The educational and colonization scheme best fitted to reform it—Proved by comparing Roman Catholicism in the United States with Roman Catholicism in Mexico or Brazil—The probable effect of a larger intelligence—The probable effect of the introduction of Gentile colonies—The religious puzzle solved—The duty of the hour.
Hitherto the efforts which have been put forth against Mormonism as a religious system have been the same in character as when contending with Buddhism, Confucianism, or any other pagan religion. And what has been accomplished?
It is not our desire to depreciate what has been done in Utah by the noble Christian men and women who have faced the insults of men and sometimes death itself in battling with the errors of Mormonism. They are Christian heroes and heroines, and are deserving of all praise and honor. They are worthy to receive crowns and laurels that can never fade. But their sterling worth and Christian heroism do not alter the facts concerning the visible results of their labors. It is true that nearly twenty years elapsed after the occupation of Salt Lake Valley by the Mormons before any attempt was made to introduce the Gospel. It was only by the occupation of Camp Douglas, in 1862, by several regiments of United States troops that the way began to be opened; and only since 1865 has there been any missionary work done in the Territory. But in the twenty years of missionary work what has been accomplished? How many converts from Mormonism have been obtained?
Rev. R. G. McNiece, D.D., of Salt Lake City, in a personal letter to the writer, said: “The number of converts directly from the Mormon ranks I cannot give you; but it is very small, especially among adults. Among the youth the number is greater, and here is where the hope lies. The children and youth come under Christian influence first in the day-schools maintained by the Christian denominations. In the Sabbath-school this influence is deepened, and thereby the way into the Church is opened. I should say that three hundred would be a large estimate of the total number of Christian converts from the Mormon ranks; but the work thus far has been preparatory.”
Now, while it is very true that the work has been in great measure preparatory, nevertheless no such long preparation as twenty years should be necessary in dealing with a people to a great extent speaking our own language. If it were China, or Japan, or India just opened, and it required time for the missionaries to get acquainted with the habits and language of the people, it would be a very different thing. It seems from the small crop of Christian converts thus far obtained that the system of missionary work adopted is somewhere defective.
And does not the fact of the large Christian element in the Mormon religious system show that it must not be treated as a pagan religion? and that different methods must be adopted to overcome its evils? All missionary labor in Utah up to the present time has been in open and direct antagonism to the whole Mormon system, and its object has been openly and professedly to exterminate it from the face of the earth. Now, we raise the question, Can any Christian sect be easily annihilated? Should it be our desire to exterminate it? Should not the object of all our efforts be to reform it—to purge the gold of its dross? And so, does it not seem far more likely that Mormonism is not to be destroyed at all, but rather reformed by various influences brought to bear upon it?
The adult Mormons will not go to hear the Christian missionaries, for they believe that all that is good in Christianity they have already in their own system. The only difference is that they have more; they have an enlarged and expanded Christianity. Consequently they think their system is vastly superior to the Christian’s. Mormon boys write “Come to Jesus” on the clean, white window-sills of Christian chapels, while their parents at home tell them that they know a hundredfold more truth than the Christians, whose whole creed, they say, begins and ends with this despised phrase.
The evangelists Moody and Sankey held a series of meetings in Salt Lake City only a few years ago, and the Deseret Evening News, the official Mormon organ, in an editorial on Moody’s preaching in that city, said: “There is not a man among the whole fraternity of evangelists who can present anything of any value to the Latter-Day Saints which they have not already received; and there is no preacher of them all who, if he were desirous of learning the truth as it is in Jesus, but could learn very many valuable lessons in the things of God from members of our Young People’s Improvement Associations, and even from our Sunday-school children. ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ’ is a saying the full meaning of which is appreciated by the Latter-Day Saints. To exhort them to ‘faith in Christ’ is the work of supererogation.”
And shortly after, the same paper, in an editorial on a sermon preached by Bishop Tuttle, of the Episcopal Church, in Philadelphia, said: “So far as the institutions of modern Christendom are concerned, we candidly confess our lack of confidence in their power to do anything for us.... We have got so far beyond them through the revelations of the Almighty vouchsafed in these latter days, that we look back upon their teachings as a man reverts to the alphabet of his school-days, and we remember their powerless forms and spiritless ceremonies as mere playthings compared with the higher things of the kingdom to which the system they call Mormonism has introduced us.”
Thus we see that Christianity is discounted by the Mormons from the very start; and can we, then, hope to accomplish its overthrow by the ordinary means? From its peculiar relations to Christianity, must we not in reason and fairness regard the Mormon Church, as we must the Roman Catholic Church and even Mohammedanism, as being not utterly false, so much as a mingling of error with truth? It is, therefore, a perversion of Christianity. There is genuine Gospel enough in the Mormon creed to save it from the grave. We are, therefore, to look for a repudiation of the false rather than the destruction of both false and true together.
And what would be better calculated to effect this end than the colonization and educational scheme, which we have already advocated as the surest and easiest means to overcome the political and social evils of the system? The Roman Catholic system is in many respects similar to the Mormon system; and see what intelligence and a surrounding atmosphere of pure Christian truth has done for Roman Catholicism in our land! What a vast difference there is between the system here and the same system in Mexico, Brazil, Spain, or Italy! There is a difference almost as wide as the hemispheres. Take a Roman Catholic from our land to Brazil or Spain, and he will scarcely recognize his religion in that religion called there by the same name. And what has brought about this difference? The American Roman Catholic has been surrounded by intelligence and a free, pure, Christian society. These two things have so operated upon American Roman Catholicism as to greatly reform it and almost radically change it, while they did not antagonize it in a spirit of rancor. How wonderful the revolution! And it has not ceased yet, but is ever going on. The same things would thus be done, we believe, for Mormonism.
1. A larger intelligence would surely modify or wholly set aside the claims of the priesthood to the possession of divine authority and power, and would relegate to the realm of oblivion such outlandish doctrines as baptisms for the dead. As Froude says, “Ignorance is the dominion of absurdity.”
And, from the same cause, the demand would gradually spring up for pulpit teaching, couched in a far better spirit, and of much higher intellectual character. The presence of a few intelligent Gentiles has already put to shame and almost banished from religious assemblies those harangues which in days not very remote were accustomed to combine in about equal measure the profane, the obscene, and the brutal.
2. And, then, the introduction of Gentile colonists in large numbers would naturally increase the force of effective preaching missionaries, and they would then be supported, not by the churches in other parts of our land, but by the Utah colonists themselves. In this way we would have more missionaries at less expense, and they would accomplish more in the end than an aggressive force, such as we now have, though it were increased tenfold.
Then the Territory would be fairly flooded with Gospel institutions of every sort. In every Mormon town there would be a school and a church; and there being in every community a few who in character and life would be truly Christlike, they, aided by the sharp criticisms of a free press, would cuttingly and most effectually rebuke the seriously lax morals of the Mormon Church; and before long it would be found to be politic and necessary in sheer self-defence to remove from Church leadership whoever in walk and conversation would fail to conform to what is at least decent.
It is most likely that in this way the better elements in Mormondom would be led, unconsciously perhaps, to assert their force, and work out through grace a religious reformation. The leaven of revolt is slowly working now. It is well known that many Mormons do not countenance polygamy, and the time may yet come when this view shall prevail, notwithstanding the alleged revelations in the case. And there may come a time when, with polygamy, other false doctrines will be questioned or rejected. And thus reformed, purified, and made fit to live, we may expect to see Mormonism continue for generations a sect fairly Christian, although it would doubtless have many peculiar points; or there may come, through the workings of the Gospel in this subtle way, such a division in belief among the Mormon ranks as to rend asunder the entire Mormon organism.
To this work of internal reformation let us direct our forces. Let the Christians of our land arise in all their might and endeavor to have schools planted all over the Territory of Utah, that intelligence and freedom may be widely disseminated; and let them form Colonization Aid Societies to induce Christian families to emigrate to Utah, and settle in every Mormon town and hamlet. Through the faithful representation and living of the Gospel I have all hope.
In strict accord with this belief, Rev. Arthur T. Pierson, D.D., pastor of the Bethany Church, Philadelphia, in the Homiletic Review, October, 1885, said: “Salt Lake Valley needs nothing more to-day than colonies of Christian tradesmen. Mormonism should be confronted with the witness of a Christian community, consecrated workmen in all the learned professions and departments of industry; Christian families free from the taint of polygamy and full of the rich blessing of the normal household.” Likewise, Judge Osborne, of Utah, wrote recently as follows: “An excellent way to do good with little or no cost would be the location of Christian families in the Mormon towns.... The Mormon priesthood insist upon the complete isolation of their dupes from Christian civilization. They say, ‘You must live your religion;’ they obey, and the result is bitter fruit. Let a few Christian families ‘live their religion’ in their presence, and the darkness of prejudice and superstition would roll away like the mist before the morning sun.”
Yes, put in every Mormon town a few noble Christian families, consecrated men and women, who in character and life shall exhibit the sweet spirit of the Man of Nazareth, who by example and precept shall show a more excellent way, and presently error will depart, and iniquity hide its head abashed. Let the various denominations combine and co-operate against the common foe in that silent yet most effective way, and the Mormon Puzzle will be solved, and solved forever. Let us all labor to this end.
“O Christ, our land for thee;
Naught less we crave,
That Thou supreme mayst be
From wave to wave.
Naught less we ask of Thee,
Our prayer unceasingly,
Our land for Thee,
All, all for Thee.”
THE END.