Editor’s Table: “Where Your Treasure Is, There Will Your Heart Be Also”

EDITOR'S TABLE. WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS, THERE WILL YOUR HEART BE ALSO." Regardless of what has often been said by the authorities of the Church on the subject of secret societies, letters are con- stantly being received by the Improvement Era desiring answers on various phases of this question. How strict shall we be with youDg men who have joined? Is there any harm in joining a secret society purely for financial reasons? Is it wrong to join a secret society whose aims are onlv fraternal and charitable? What shall be done with persons belonging to the Church who are now members of a secret society? Why is it wrong to join protective societies when none such exist in the Church? Is it wrong to join a protective society with a view only of protecting one's family? It is a well known truth that the counsel of the First Presi- dency of the Church, in all cases, has been and is against our brethren joining secret organizations for any purpose whatsoever, and that wherever any of them havi already joined, they have been and are counseled to withdraw themselves from such organ- izations, as soon as circumstances permit and wisdom dictates. In taking this position, there has not been, neither is it intended that there shall be, any controversy with the societies, and with their aims and objects. The merits of the various orders are not considered at all; their aims may be ever so worthy and their ob- jects ever so commendable. That matter does not enter into the discussion, so far as a member of our Church is concerned. The gospel of Jesus Christ is true, and is a power unto salva- tion, temporal and spiritual. A man who complies in every respect

306 IMPROVEMENT ERA. therewith has everthing that any society can offer, with countless truths and consolations added: "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and 'his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." The Church is divinely organized, and in that organ- ization there is provision for the development and practice of every virtue known, every charity revealed. For this reason and for its promises of eternal life and glory, the gospel, and the Church divinely established for its promulgation, should be nearer and dearer to a follower of Christ than all other things. "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon." It is true that many of our people have been led to join these various societies on the ground that their aims and objects are purely charitable and social in their character; and, besides, in- ducements are held out procuring life insurance at greatly reduced rates. Now, however worthy their aims and objects—and there is no controversy on this point—they are outside the pale of the Church, and, by joining them, young men divide with man-made organizations their allegiance to the Church, which, for the love of Christ and the glorious and eternal promises of his gospel, de- mands their all. In joining other societies than the Church, young men render themselves liable to have their feelings, in whole or in part, alienated from the Church, for where theii/ treasures are— social, fraternal, charitable, financial—there also will their hearts be found. Gradually, too, at first imperceptibly, perhaps, the society will exert an influence that will have a tendency to with- draw the man from the Church, on the principle that every or- ganization, like every creature with life, looks to its self-preser- vation first. "He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth." Then come the plausible financial excuses in the way of insur- ance, and we have young men pleading for themselves or their families at death—providing for the future. That is a natural feeling, but if it cannot be satisfied without the risk of our losing the spirit of the gospel, of what benefit is it? "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"

EDITORS TABLE. 307 Ambition to be rich, says Paul, drowns men's souls. We have many examples in the Church of brethren who have made ship- wreck of their faith because of their inordinate desire to gather wealth—to provide for their children and families. In some cases they gained the wealth; in others, they died poor; bat, in either event, they lost the faith, and often their children, whom they provided or sought to provide for, have squandered their inherit- ance, or are without hope in Christ Jesus, death finding them bankrupt for eternity. They accentuate the present and temporal, forgetting the kingdom of God and their inheritance therein, which are the great essentials. On the contra y,there are hundreds of the Saints who have died poor in this world's goods, but with a faith surpassing understanding. Their children have struggled with the world, buoyed up by the rich treasures of hope and faith; and their very struggles have made them strong. They seek first that which is essential, the Spirit of God and his king- dom, and God makes all the incidentals.—possessions, food, clothing, —his gracious care. Of them it shall be said: "Their reward is sure: they stand prepared to take upon themselves the responsibilities connected with the ordinances of the house of the Lord. Every man who understands the gospel must know that the Church, along the line of its labors of salvation and redemption, cannot ally itself with any institutions that are begotten by and conducted in the spirit of the world ; but it must hold itself free from them, of whatever name or nature. Since the Church is made up of members, and since any organization can only be what its aggre- gate individual membership is, the members must also be free. Those of the brethren who are still in doubt as to the evils of secret associations, will find abundant proof in the history of the Church, as written in the Book of Mormon, to be traced from ref- erences in II Nephi 10: 15. (References page 85.) In conclusion, the members of our Church who have faith to heed the advice of the authorities thereof, will not ally themselves, under any pretense, with any organization not instituted by the Lord for the building up of Zion. Neither will they, for any con- sideration, allow themselves to imbibe the spirit of the world, or be tempted to lose their faith, which will be the result with those who divide their interests, devoting some to other organizations.