The Mission of Joseph Smith

THE MISSION OF JOSEPH SMITH BY WILLIAM HALLS. Considered from a scriptural point of view, this subject may- be resolved into two propositions: first, was such a mission neces- sary; second, did the life and labor of Joseph Smith tend to the fulfilment of such mission? Taking for granted that the Bible is true, and that the pre- dictions of the Jewish prophets will be fulfilled, we will consider some of these in connection with this subject. A prophecy is usually in the form of a general statement — the prophet merely announces that a certain thing will take place without giving par- ticulars as to who will be the actors, or as to the time, place or manner of its fulfilment leaving us to infer that when the time ; comes, the Lord will call someone by revelation and give him a mission to fulfil his purpose. As the Lord has always worked through human agency in the past, we may believe he will do so in the future. We read in Amos, 3rd chapter: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." As Jesus and his apostles frequently quoted the sayings of the prophets, in confirmation of their mission, so we may do the same in confirmation of the mission of Joseph Smith. In the 37th chapter of Ezekiel we read of the stick of Judah and the stick of Ephraim, and that the stick of Ephraim shall be put with the stick of Judah, and they shall become one. We recognize the stick of Judah as identical with the Bible, we believe the Bible to be the word of God —the most precious book ever written. Why should not the stick of Ephraim be as precious? Surely the Lord would not cause it to be brought forth

— THE MISSION OF JOSEPH SMITH. and joined with the stick of Judah, if it were of no importance. It seems that of the millions who have read the chapter none were ever concerned about it until Joseph Smith. Why should he concern himself? Is it likely that he, an unlearned boy, seventeen years old, would undertake to find the stick of Ephraim and fulfil this prediction of his own accord? He claims that instead of acting on his own volition that an angel appeared to him and delivered , to him a record written by prophets who lived on this the Ameri- can continent, who were of the tribe of Joseph. Ephraim being the leading branch of that tribe, hence it is called the stick of Ephraim. As this record is an abridgement of the writings of other prophets, compiled by a prophet named Mormon, it is called . the Book of Mormon ' This record claims to be a history of the ancient peoples of this continent, also to contain the fulness of the gospel as delivered to them by Jesus after his resurrection. As the stick of Ephraim, it aptly joins with the stick of Judah the Bible — in testimony of the divine mission of Christ. As to its theology, not one of its doctrines has been shown to disagree with the Bible, and many principles more or less obscure in the Bible, are set forth in the Book of Mormon with such plainness that all uncertainty as to their meaning is cleared away, and many impor- tant truths not found in the Bible are clearly recorded in this book. It has stood the test of criticism, not only in its theology, but as regards its historical narrative. As this continent becomes better known, and the more thoroughly it is explored, the stronger the evidences of its truth become; and it is gaining ground to the extent that many who once ignored it as a silly romance are now willing to give it serious consideration. The bringing forth of a sacred volume of scripture giving the history of the dealings of God with the people on nearly one-half of the earth, of equal au- thority with the Bible, and joining with it in testimony of the justice and mercy of God in revealing himself and offering the means of salvation to his children on this western continent, as well as to those on the eastern continent, is the most imporant achievement of modern times, and distinguishes Joseph Smith as the most extraordinary character of the nineteenth century. But this is only a part of his mission. In the 24th chapter

92 IMPROVEMENT ERA. of Matthew, as one of the signs preceding his second coming, Jesus says: "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world as a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come." To fulfil this prediction, some men must be called with au- thority to preach this gospel; for how shall they hear without a preacher, and how shall they preach except they be sent?" Joseph Smith testifies that while translating the Book of Mormon, John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ at his first coming, appeared to him and Oliver Cowdery and ordained them to the Aaronic priesthood, giving them authority to preach the gospel and to baptize believers for the remission of sins ; and that soon after this, Peter, James, and John, who were apostles of Christ, ap- peared and ordained them to the Melchizedek priesthood, giving them authority to confer the Holy Ghost on baptized believers by the laying on of hands, and to administer in all the spiritual bless- ings of the gospel. Accordingly they commenced preaching the gospel, baptizing believers, organized the Church, confirmed mem- bers, ordained some to the priesthood, and sent missionaries to the states, and also to Canada. In the 11th chapter of Isaiah, we read that the Lord will "set his hand the second time to recover the remnants of his people, assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth." When the Lord gathered Israel from Egypt, he called Moses by revelation and guided him by revelation to accomplish that mission. The gathering of Israel from Egypt in the days of Moses was a small matter compared to the gathering of the millions of Israel from all the nations, in the last days. Surely it is necessary that a prophet like unto Moses be called to this work. Joseph Smith testifies that on the 3rd of April, 1836, in the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, the Prophet Moses appeared to him and Oliver Cowdery and delivered to them the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the restoration of the ten tribes from the land of the north. In pursuance of this authority, the next year a mission was opened in England —the first foreign mission, and an organized system of immigration commenced, and from that time to the

THE MISSION OF JOSEPH SMITH. 93 present, as missions have been opened and converts made, the Saints have been gathering.- In connection with this gathering, we read in the 4th chapter of Micah, that in the last days a house shall be built in the tops of the mountains. "And many nations shall come and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob, and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths." Before this can take place it will be neces- sary that at least three things be revealed — first, that the time has come; second, the mountains to which they shall come, and third, the kind and purpose of the house to be built. That this was re- vealed to Joseph Smith is evident from the fact that some years before his death he pointed to the Rocky Mountains as the place to which the Saints should gather, and began to plan for the emi- gration. Though mob violence may have hastened the exodus to some extent, it was not the primary cause. In the 4th chapter of Malachi we read: "Behold, I will send Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, le'st I come and smite the earth with a curse." If the coming of Elijah is to save the earth from being smit- ten with a curse, its importance cannot be over-estimated; and yet of all the millions who have read this promise, there were none to realize its importance till Joseph Smith. He claims that at the same time and at the same place, after the visit of Moses, that the prophet Elijah appeared and conferred on them the keys of the priesthood of turning the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to their fathers. This includes the doc- trine of salvation for the dead; and one of the purposes of the house of the Lord, is for a place wherein the ordinances for the dead may be performed; thus by the authority given by Moses, the Saints gather by themselves to the mountains; and by the authority given by Elijah, hundreds are going into the house of the Lord and doing a vicarious work for their dead. In connection with these ordinances performed in the temple, is another very important principle— the eternity of the marriage covenant, commonly re- ferred to as "celestial marriage," — the sealing of men and women,

— «.n IMPROVEMENT ERA. both the living and the dead, as husbands and wives for eternity. We read in the 11th chapter of Corinthians: "Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man in the Lord." This doctrine is peculiar to the Saints; even the great Catholic church does not seem to. believe in it, for the mother church in substance says to the Catholic youth, "My son, it is not good to marry; if you would attain to the highest degree of per- fection, if you would wish to be as near like your Father in heaven as it is possible to become, you must never be a father." And to the Catholic maiden the mother says: "My daughter, you had better be without the man in the Lord; he will only degrade you. If you would attain the highest degree of virtue, purity, and holiness, and be like your mother in heaven, the mother of our Lord, you must never be a mother." God is no respecter of persons; if this is good for one it is for all, and if universally extended would depopulate the earth. Contrast this awful dogma— this mystery of iniquity with the doctrine of celestial marriage, revealed through Joseph Smith, and judge which is the more natural and God-like. Why should Joseph Smith concern himself with the stick of Ephraim? How should he know that to preach the gospel it was necessary he should receive the priesthood from those who held it in a former dispensation? and that it was necessary for Moses and Elijah to confer on him the authority they held? Why should he think of salvation for the dead? and of the eternity of the marriage covenant? being poor, and illiterate, and having to work every day for a living. It is not likely he was very familiar with the scrip- tures, and probably never read many of these prophecies, and knew little or nothing of them till called by revelation to fulfil them. Considering all these things, in connection with the perfection of the organization of the Church, with its quorums of priesthood and with all the auxiliary associations working in in perfect order, harmony for the preaching of the gospel, the gathering of Israel, and perfection of the Saints, looking at these things without prej- udice or sectarian bias, the conviction is forced on the mind that Joseph Smith was a prophet called of God; that the mission he claimed is necessary; and that his life and labor, and that of his successors, all tend to the accomplishment of said mission, the literal fulfilment of the predictions of the prophets, that the earth,

! : — , THE MISSION OF JOSEPH SMITH. 95 instead of being smitten with a curse at the coming of the Lord, may be sanctified, and the Saints prepared to reign with Christ a thousand years in universal peace. Mancos, Colo.