Latter-day Saint Texts

  Elder E. L. T. Harrison offered the following prayer at the opening of the Church of Zion Conference on April 6, 1870, as found in the Mormon Tribune on April 9th, 1870 : OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, on this the morning on which it has been arranged, in Thy providence, we should hold the first Conference of the young and rising Church of Zion, we present ourselves before Thee, seeking for the inspiration of Thy Spirit to assist us to open this meeting and to dedicate it unto Thee, to all divine influences, to light, to truth, and to progress. And we pray that there may be around us this day that combination of holy and mighty ones who are delegated and appointed by the Controling Powers to assist this important Movement on the earth, and to bring about the great and mighty revolution in Spiritual matters which the Church of Zion is destined to accomplish. We pray Thee that those holy influences may be round about us, not only this day, but throughout the continuance of the Conference; th...

  As found in the Mormon Tribune on April 9th, 1870 UNIVERSALIAN THOUGHTS By F. T. Perris True religion is universally conceded by the thoughtful of every sect and denomination to be the practical working out and application to our every day lives of the higher attributes of our natures, such as love, charity, mercy, justice, etc., and these are the fundamental principles requisite on which to rear a religious superstructure to educate humanity rather than a confining and trammeling set of dogmatic rules for religious observance. This was the embodiment of the thought in Joseph Smith’s mind when he gave utterance in one of his inspirational bursts to the words, “I teach the people pure principles and they govern themselves.” It was a glorious truth, purely democratic and universalian in its character and tendencies. It is the underlying principle necessary to all future religious advancement and progress, and must be a great plank in any platform that has for its object the elevati...

  As found in the Mormon Tribune on April 9th, 1870 THE CASE REVERSED By Edward W. Tullidge Do our orthodox brethren realize how much to-day they reverse their own case from what it was a quarter of a century ago? It is changed in almost every particular and they themselves seem not the same men, touching the principle and object of their lives and mission. Indeed it is only when they open one of the proper chapters of their former Gospel, for some special purpose to be applied to some other case and to win their own point, that you can recognize anything of the Mormon Apostle in them. I will take, for instance, the nearest and latest illustration of this from that mastery document (doubtless from the pen of Elder George Q. Cannon) addressed to the Senate in “Remonstrance” to the Cullom Bill. His strongest clauses are against the absolute and irresponsible rule of one man clothed with supreme governmental power. He says, truly, that such a power assumed by Congress, and vested in i...

As found in the Mormon Tribune on April 2nd, 1870 ORDINATIONS AND COVENANTS. By Joseph Salisbury All ordinations should be made with strict reference to the natural qualifications of the person to be ordained. A misconception of this fact has led to an innumerable list of evils in the old organization. It had been foolishly supposed that ordination gave qualification, hence when Joseph Smith was murdered there arose aspirants for the leadership from many quarters, each basing his claims on the supposition that it was his right by virtue of the office he occupied at the time of the Prophet’s death, without ever taking into consideration whether Nature had endowed him with those qualities pre-requisite in the leader of the Church of Christ. But judging from the outcome of the whole affair, none of those who aspired to the successorship to the presidency possessed either the prophetic or the seer qualities in their natures. The bulk of the Church which survived the martyrdom of the Seer–i...

 I haven't quite had time to write a commentary for these next two articles or to transcribe them into the Deseret alphabet, but I decided to publish them early for people to access. Hopefully the commentary and apisizations will be coming soon! As found in the Mormon Tribune on April 2nd, 1870 Is Successive Ordination Necessary? A Discourse by Elder W. H. Shearman The idea prevails among the Latter-day Saints that no man has any right to receive revelation pertaining to the interests of the church or for the instruction of its members excepting the First Presidency, or some one ordained by them for this purpose, and that, if any other persons assume this prerogative, it is conclusive proof that they are in league with the devil and that their revelations emanate from him. It is assumed that God has no right to reveal anything  for the reproof, correction or guidance of the church or its leaders except through its presiding priesthood; and some orthodox brethren have gone so f...