Our Indestructible, Immortal Identity

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RACHEL RIDGEWAY 1VINS GRANT. 591

men and women in the Church to live nearer unto the Lord. Such was the husband she chose, and she has lived true to his memory. Today we meet here at her bier, and in a sense we feel no regret that she has been called away. Her son and all who knew her will miss her, but there is a happy reunion in store for them and for us all. May God bless us all and help us to follow the beautiful example that she has given us, and may we live so that it can be said of us, as has been said of her today, that we have well and truly fulfiled our mission here upon the earth, as she has done. May our Heavenly Father comfort her son and his chil- dren and all thosewho mourn, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus, Amen.

OUR INDESTRUCTIBLE, IMMORTAL IDENTITY. BY PRESIDENT- JOSEPH F. SMITH.

I trust that I may be able to control my feelings and that I

may say just a few words in connection with the many most pleas- ing and excellent things that have been said. I have felt espe-

cially and rather peculiarly touched since hearing of the sickness and death of Aunt Rachel Grant; not that the result of her sick- ness is anything extraordinary or unusual at her period of life,

but because memories of the past are brought up, memories of relationships that have made her rather more to me than a mere sister or friend. Her life's history, altogether, may not be pub- licly known, and it is not my purpose to say anything especially of that, more than that the relationships and ties that have been formed here under the bond of the new and everlasting covenant are most sacred things of which the Lord himself will take cog- nizance and will adjust in the great future, according to his own wisdom and principles of righteousness. I have learned to look upon Aunt Rachel as very near to me,

from the days of my childhood, and I have regarded her in the light in which she has been spoken of by my cousin, John Henry Smith, and those who have spoken of her. Hers was a life excep- tionally grand and pure and lovely. She was not only lovely in her appearance, and in her earthly being, but she was lovely in her spirit, her faith, her love of God, and in her integrity to the truth that she received in her youth. In heart and soul she has been true to these things all her life

What a glorious thing it is to know and be true to that which has been revealed in these latter times through the instru- mentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith. It was revealed ancient- ly by the Savior himself, and he exemplified that glorious princi- ple of which I wish to say a few words, and which has been renewed and emphasized more especially in these latter-days through Joseph Smith— I refer to our identity, our indestructible, immortal identity. As in Christ we have the example, he was born of woman, he lived, he died, and he lived again in his own person and being, bearing even the marks of the wounds in his flesh, after his resurrection from the dead, — so also a testimony has been given to you, in latter-days through the Prophet Joseph Smith and others who have been blest with knowledge, that the same individual being still lives and will always live. Jesus is pos- sessed of immortality, and eternal life; and in evidence of his

existence and his immortality, and in evidence of the great and glorious truths of the gospel which he taught, the death which he died, and the resurrection that he wrought from the dead, he has revealed himself and borne his own record and testimony to those who have lived and still live in this day and age. What a glori- ous thought it is, to me at least, and it must be to all who have conceived of the truth or received it in their hearts, that those from whom we have to part here, we will meet again and see as they are. We will meet the same identical being that we associ- ated with here in the flesh— not some other soul, some other

being, or thesame being in some other form, but the same iden- tity and the same form and likeness, the same person we knew and were associated with in our mortal existence, even to the wounds in the flesh. Not that a person wiil always be marred by scars, wounds, deformities, defects or infirmities, for these will be removed in their course, in their proper time, according to the merciful providence of God. Deformity will be removed; defects will be eliminated, and men and women shall attain to the perfection of their spirits, to the perfectionGod de- that signed in the beginning. It is his purpose that men and women,

his children, born to become heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, shall be made perfect, physically as well as spiritu- ally, through obedience to the law by which he has provided the

OUR INDESTRUCTIBLE, IMMORTAL IDENTITY. 593

means that perfection shall come to all his children. Therefore, I look for the time when our dear Brother William C. Staines, whom we all knew so well, and with whom we were familiar for years — I was familia^ with him all my life, just as I was familiar with Aunt Rachel here all my life, and do not remember the time when I did not know her — I look for the time, I say, when Brother Staines will be restored. He will not remain the crippled and de- formed William C. Staines that we knew, but he will be restored to his perfect frame — every limb, every joint, every part of his physical being will be restored to its perfect frame. This is the law and the word of God to us, as it is contained in the reve- lations that have come to us, through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The point in my mind which I desire to speak of particularly is

this: When we shall have the privilege to meet our mother, our aunt, our sister, this noble woman whose mortal remains lie here now, but whose immortal spirit has ascended to God from whence it came, when that spirit shall return to take up this tabernacle again, she will be Aunt Rachel in her perfection. She will not always remain just as she will appear when she is restored again to life, but she will go on to perfection. Under that law of res- toration that God has provided, she will regain her perfection, the perfection of her youth, the perfection of her glory and of her being, until her resurrected body shall assume the exact stature of the spirit that possessed it here in its perfection, and thus we shall see the glorified, redeemed, exalted, perfected Aunt Rachel, mother, sister, saint and daughter of the living God, her identity being unchanged, as a child may grow to manhood or womanhood and still be the same being. I want to say to my friends, my brethren and sisters, and to the kindred, that the Lord Almighty has revealed these truths to us in these days. We not only have it in the written word, we have it in the testimony of the Spirit of God in the heart of every soul who has drunk from the fountain of truth and light, and that witness bears record of these words to us. What else would sat- isfy us? What else would satisfy the desire of the immortal soul? Would we be satisfied to be imperfect? Would we be satisfied to be decrepit? Would we be satisfied to remain for ever and ever in the form of infirmity incident to age? No Would we be satis- !

594 IMPR0VEMEN7 ERA.

fied to see the children we bury in their infancy remain as children only, throughout the countless ages of eternity? No! Neither would the spirit that did possess the tabernacles of our children be satisfied to remain in that condition. But we know our child will not be compelled to remain a child in stature always, for it

was revealed from God, the fountain of truth, through Joseph Smith the prophet, in this dispensation, that in the resurrection of the dead the child that was buried in its infancy will come up in the form of the child that it was when it was laid down, then it will begin to develop. From the day of the resurrection, the body will develop until it reaches the full measure of the stature of its spirit, whether it be male or female. If the spirit pos- sessed the intelligence of God and the aspirations of mortal souls, it could not be satisfied with anything less than this. You will remember we are told that the spirit of Jesus Christ visited one of the ancient prophets and revealed himself to him, and he de- clared his identity, that he was the same Son of God that was to come in the meridian of time. He said he would appear in the flesh just as he appeared to that prophet. He was not an infant; He was a grown, developed spirit; possessing the form of man and the form of God, the same form as when he came and took upon him a tabernacle and developed it to the full stature of his spirit. These are truths that have been revealed to us. What for? To give us intelligent hope; to give us intelligent aspiration; to lead us to think, to hope, to labor and accomplish what God has aimed and does aim and design that we should accomplish, not only in this life, but in the life to come. I rejoice exceedingly that I know and have known nearly all

my life such a noble woman. I do not remember the first time that I saw Aunt Rachel, I can't recall it; it seems to me I always knew her, just as I knew my mother in my childhood and all the way through life; and I rejoice exceedingly in this testimony of the Spirit of the Lord that has come to us through revelation in the latter days. Through this testimony I am confident that I shall see Aunt Rachel by and by; and when I go and I expect to — go, perhaps, long before she shall recover this tabernacle — ex-I pect to meet her there. I expect to meet the same individual that I knew here. I expect to be able to recognize her just as I could

OUR INDESTRUCTIBLE, IMMORTAL IDENTITY. 595

recognize her tomorrow, if she were living. I believe [ will know

just exactly whom she is and what she is, and I will remember all I knew about her; and enjoy her association in the spirit as I did in the flesh; because her identity is fixed and indestructible, just as fixed and indestructible as the identity of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. They cannot be any other than themselves. They cannot be changed; they are from everlasting to everlasting, eternally the same; so it will be with us. We will progress and develop and grow in wisdom and understanding, but our identity can never change. We did not spring from spawn. Our spirits were from the beginning, have existed always, and will continue forever. We did not pass through the ordeals of embodiment in the lesser animals in order to reach the perfection to which we have attained in manhood and womanhood, in the image and like- ness of God. God was and is our Father, and his children were begotten in own image and likeness, male and the flesh in his female. There may have been times when they did not possess the same intelligence that they possessed at other times. There are periods in the history of the world when men have dwindled into ignorance and barbarism, and then there were other times when they have grown in intelligence, developed in understanding, enlarged in spirit and comprehension, approaching nearer to the condition and likeness of their Father and God, and then losing faith, losing the love of God, losing the light of the Spirit and re- turning again to semi-barbarism. Then again, they have been re- stored, by the power and operation of the Spirit of the Lord upon their mind, until they again reached a degree of intelligence. We have reached a degree of intelligence in our dispensation. Will this same degree of intelligence, that now exists throughout the world, continue to exist? Yes, if the world continue to abide in the light that has been shed abroad in the world by the Father of light, with whom there is no variableness nor shadow of turning. But let them deny God, let them deny truth, let them depart from righteousness, let them begin again to wallow in wickedness and transgression of the laws of God, and what will be the result? They will degenerate; they will again recede possibly into absolute barbarism, unless they repent, and the power of God be again re- stored to them and they be again lifted up by that light which

shines and is never dim, except to men who shut their hearts and eyes and ears against it and will not receive it. I did not expect to enter into any lengthy discourse. I thank God for my relationship and acquaintance with this noble, good mother. I expect to be associated with her throughout all the ages to come, if I can be as faithful as she has been. I desire to be, and that isn't all — with the help of God, / intend to be faith- ful, as she has been faithful, that in the end I may be worthy to dwell where she will dwell, with the Prophet Joseph Smith, with her husband with whom she was associated here in the flesh, with her son and her children, from generation to generation. I

expect to be associated with them in the mansions that are pre- pared for the righteous, where God and Christ are, where those shall be who believe in his name, who receive his work and abide in his law. Oh! that I could be instrumental in the hands of the Lord in bringing every loved soul unto him, for there are souls that are still lacking, whom I luve, and if it were possible, how I would love to be instrumental in the hand of the Lord in bringing

those loved souls to a knowledge of this truth, that they might receive of its glory, benefits and blessings in this life and in the

life to come.From my childhood, I have always tried to be a savior on Mount Zion, a savior among men. I have that desire in

my heart. I may not have been very successful in my ambition

to accomplish this work, but I have desired it, and I still desire

that I may be instrumental in helping to spread this truth to the earth's remotest bounds and the testimony of it to the children of men in every land. I know it is true. It appeals to my judg- ment, to my desires; and to the aspirations of my soul. I want my family, I want those the Lord has given to me; I want them now; want them forever! I want to be associated with them I

forever. I do not want them to change their identity. I do not want them to be somebody else. This idea of theosophy, that is gaining ground even among so-called Christians, in these latter days, is a fallacy of the deepest kind. It is absolutely repugnant to the very soul of mm to think that a civilized, intelligent being might become a dog, a cow, a cat; that he might be transformed into another shape, anuther kind of being. It is absolutely repul- sive, and so opposed to the great truth of God, that has been re-

RACHEL RIDGEWAY GRANT Born, March 7, 1821; Died, January 27, 1909.

"I grieve' that I cannot hear: but while I cannot hear the good things that are said, my peace is not marred by the evil that is spoken."— A sentiment expressed by Sister Grant, and treasured by Lydia D. Alder.

vealed from the beginning, that he is from the beginning always the same, that he cannot change, and that his children cannot change. They may change from worse to better; they may change from evil to good, from unrighteousness to righteousness, from humanity to immortality, from death to life everlasting. They may progress in the manner in which God has progressed; they may grow and advance, but their identity can never be changed, worlds without end — remember that. God has revealed these prin- ciples, and I know they are true. They assert their truth upon the intelligent mind and soul of man. They embrace or embody that which the Lord has planted in our hearts and souls to desire, and give it unto us. They put us in the way of receiving that which we most desire and most love, that which is most necessary and essential to our happiness and exaltation. They take of the things of God and give them to us, and they prepare us for the future, for exaltation and for eternal happiness, a reward which all the souls in the world desire, if they are correct in their lives and thoughts. It is only the vicious and the truly wicked who do not desire purity; they do not love purity and truth. I do not know whether it is possible for any soul to become so debased as to lose all regard for that which is pure and chaste, good and true and godlike. I believe that there still lingers in the heart of the most vicious and wicked, at times at least, a spark of that divinity that has been planted in the souls of all the sons of God. Men may become so corrupt that they do not have more than mere glimpses of that divine inspiration that strives to lead them to- ward and to love good but I do not believe there is a soul ; in the world that has absolutely lost all conception and admiration of that which is good and pure, when he sees it. It is hard to be- lieve that a human being may become so depraved that he has lost

all desire that he might also be good and pure, if it were possible; but many people have abandoned themselves to evil and have come to the conclusion that there is no chance for them. While there is life there is hope, and while there is repentance there is a chance for forgiveness; and if there is forgiveness, there is a chance for growth and development until we acquire the full knowledge of those principles that will exalt acd save us and pre- pare us to enter into the presence of God the Father, who is the

OUR INDESTRUCTIBLE, IMMORTAL IDENTITY. 599

Father of our spirits, and who i? the Father, in the flesh, of his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, who joined divine immortality with the mortal, welded the link between God and man, and made it possible for mortal souls, on whom the sentence of death had been placed, to acquire eternal life, through obedience to his laws. Let us, therefore, seek for the truth and walk in the light as Christ is in the light, thatwe may have fellowship with him, and with each other, that his blood may cleanse us from all sin. May the Lord comfort my Brother Heber, and I know he will. Brother Heber does not feel that there is any death here. I don't think I could weep for sorrow. I could give way to tears just now, but they would not be tears of sorrow, of mourning or of grief, for this good soul. They would only express the love I have for her; they would only indicate my feelings toward her, for the noble and pure example she set before me and all who have known her. I could weep for joy in the knowledge that I possess that she, in her spirit life and being, is and will be associated with all those who have been endeared to her by the persecutions, the experiences and the trials through which she has had to pass in this world. With them she is rejoicing today, as one born out of death into life everlasting. She is not dead; she lives! What greater proof do you want of that fact than to see her lifeless form? Where is she? This is her casket. This is her mortal tenement; this is but the clay that enveloped the immortal, living Aunt Rachel, the living spirit. The spirit has fled. Her spirit, the immortal part, has departed from this tabernacle; hence, this tabernacle lies here lifeless and ready to return to mother earth from .whence it came, but to be restored again, every element to be recalled and re-formed in its perfect frame, when Aunt Rachel will come and take possession of it and inherit it forever, just as

Christ came and took up his body that was not suffered to see cor- ruption, and inherited it in its immortal state, never to be sepa- rated again; so it will be with her. God bless you, my brethren and sisters. May he help us to be faithful to the light of truth and walk uprightly in it, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen. Salt Lake City, Utah.