Concerning Marriage and Inspiration

;J ,.Jt-';: k, 5 Concerning Marriage and Inspiration By President Heber J. Grant

A revelation was given to the Church ninety years ago last February from which I have read during this conference, and I will read from it again. This revelation is to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or the elders in it. A VERY IMPORTANT REVELATION. "Oh, hearken, ye elders of my church, and give an ear to the words which I shall speak unto you. "For behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, that ye have received a commandment for a law unto my church, through him whom I have appointed unto you, to receive commandments and revelations from my hands." I want to emphasize once more, "A law unto my church"

"And this ye shall know assuredly that there is none other appointed unto you," [Who? "my church,"] "to receive commandments and revelations until he be taken, if he abide in me. "But verily, verily, I say unto you, that none else shall be appointed unto this gift except it be through him, for if it be taken from him, he shall noi have power except to appoint another in his stead; "And this shall be a law unto you," [and who is this law unto? "Unto my church/'] "that ye receive not the teachings of any that shall come before you as revelations or commandments; "And this I give unto you that you may not be deceived, that you may know they are not of me. "For verily I say unto you, that he that is ordained of me shall come in at the gate and be ordained as I have told you before, to teach those revelations which you have received, and shall receive through him whom I have appointed." And I said that anybody who taught contrary to that was a plain, simple, every-day liar. That is what I said; that is what I mean. The of this revelaidea that any man claiming to believe the teachings the right to perform plural marriages, is tion saying that he has today utterly absurd. We have cut such men off from the Church. CONCERNING PLURAL MARRIAGES. Perhaps I owe an apology—in fact I will make one— for speaking I came to the with anger in this building last Sunday night. As meeting Sunday night, I was told that a person had said that neither nor any other man had any right to say that an Heber J. Grant that God had reindividual could not perform a plural marriage; vealed plural marriages, and therefore that I had no right to say that could not be performed, and that one party had remarked that it they him, even if I did say would take an angel from heaven to convince Remarks at the closing session of the April, 1921, General Annual Conference of the Church.

744 IMPROVEMENT ERA it. In my remarks on Sunday evening I had no thought of referring to anybody outside of this Church, or that I ever had any right to undertake to say that I had anything to do with directing any other people than the Latter-day Saints. But I branded as plain, simple liars those who undertake to say that anybody, aside from the President of the Church, had any right to give revelations to this people. I had

just heard that one more pretended plural marriage had been performed, and after all the teachings from this stand, and all the declarations, and after excommunicating, as we have done, within the last year, one — — man for marrying or pretending to marry a plural wife, I confess I was angry and "rebuked with sharpness."

NO PERSON HAS THE RIGHT TO PERFORM PLURAL MARRIAGES. But I want to say to the Latter-day Saints that no man upon the face of the earth has any right or any authority to perform a plural marriage, and there are no plural marriages today in the Church of Christ, because no human being has the right to perform them. Therefore, any person pretending to have that right is attempting to exercise an authority that he does not have, and therefore he does not perform a marriage and there is no marriage covenant when such ceremonies are performed. SEVERAL PERSONS EXCOMMUNICATED FOR PERFORMING PRETENDED MARRIAGE CEREMONIES. We have excommunicated several patriarchs because they arrogated unto themselves, the right, or pretended right, to perform these ceremonies, and after our having excommunicated several patriarchs, another one, so I am informed, has committed the same offense. I announce to all Israel that no living man has the right to perform plural marriages. I announce that no patriarch has the right to perform any marriages at all in the Church. We have delegated, at the present time, to the presidents of stakes and to the bishops of wards, the right to perform lawful marriages, and there has been delegated to some elders who held positions as county clerks, the right to exercise the authority of the Priesthood to perform legal marriages for time. And it was in view of the lie that was going out, and a desire to protect virtuous, noble, good girls who were being deceived and entrapped into doing what, under the law of God today, and under the law of the land, is adultery, that I was branding the liar. CONCERNING INSPIRATION. want my friends to know that the doctrines of the Church of I

Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declare that God inspires men. We heard Elder Whitney read to us the twenty-ninth chapter of Alma. When I was the junior member of the council of the twelve apostles, I knew that chapter off by heart, and I used to repeat it, time and time again, in my public addresses. "O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that 1 might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!"

CONCERNING MARRIAGE AND INSPIRATION 745

This same chapter further states that men are inspired, and are given all that is wisdom in God that they should have, and Alma says that he ought to be content with the things that were allotted unto him. And the thing allotted unto him was to declare repentance to the people, and he had had great joy in that many men, because of the word he had declared, had come unto God. Perhaps there is no other passage, no single chapter, in all the Book of Mormon,

that I have preached from as often as I have from that twentyninth chapter of Alma. We believe absolutely, as has been said here, that God inspired Columbus. I commend to all Latter-day Saints

when the conference pamphlet is, published, to read what Elder Orson F. Whitney said about the inspiration of God being given to men in all parts of the world. We endorse his remarks. One of the fundamental articles of faith promulgated by the Prophet Joseph Smith was :

"We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience and allow all men the same privilege ; — let them worship how, where, or what they may.'' But we claim absolutely no right, no prerogative whatever, to interfere with any other people. We desire the good will of all mankind, and we desire the advancement of all mankind, and we pray God to bless every man that is striving for the betterment of humanity in any of the walks of life; and we say of every man who believes that Jesus is the Christ and who proclaims it: O God, bless that man. But we cannot pray for those who pretend to preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and deny the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, and who proclaim that he was only a man. Jesus is the Redeemer of the world, the Savior of mankind, who came to the earth with a divinely appointed mission to die for the redemption of mankind. Jesus Christ is literally the Son of God, the Only Begotten in the flesh. He is our Redeemer, and we worship him, and we praise God for every individual upon the face of the earth who worships our Lord and Master as the Redeemer of the world. I rejoice in the blessings of the Lord that have come to us during this conference. God bless the Latter-day Saints. God bless every honest-hearted soul all over the world, all who are striving to do good, striving to benefit mankind. I thank the Lord for the rich outpouring of his holy Spirit during our conference. May we all go home and take the Conference spirit of love and of fellowship and good will to all the congregations of the Saints, and thus inspire them to serve God and to keep his commandments is my prayer, and I ask it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. I want to read just one more thing:

"We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers and magis- tates; in obeying, honoring and sustaining the law."

The law provides that any person performing a marriage shall record the marriage, and I haven't heard of this last marriage" I referred to being recorded; and there should be a license issued also; I haven't heard of any license.

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746 IMPROVEMENT ERA

Meaning of Prophet and Seer

A correspondent desires to know what the office and calling of a seer is, and what the words "seer" and "prophet" mean. The following answer is given for him and for others, which will make clear the definition of these two words, and the calling of those who hold the keys to these offices in the Church. The office and calling of a prophet, and a seer, are to a great extent the same, although they differ in minor respects. A prophet, in ancient Israel, was one who spoke for God an interpreter, a spokesman, one who foretold future events, a foreteller. The prophet not only foretold the future, but was the interpreter of the word of the Lord, as well as of the law. The word prophet was also applied to one who expounds, exhorts, comforts and builds up. In ancient Israel, schools were established where men were trained in the interpretation of the law, and of the Scripture, and these schools were known as Schools of the Prophets.

"Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer, for he that is now called a Prophet, was before time called a Seer." (1 Samuel 9:9.)

A seer, according to the original translation of the word, is one endowed with the power to see things not visible to the ordinary person. "A seer, a prophet, a dreamer of dreams, a seer of visions, a person who foresees and foretells the future, one gifted with second sight." A seer had the power to use the Urim and Thummim, or seerstone. (See Book of Mormon, Mosiah 8:13-15.)

June Conference Rates

To whom it may concern: Special railroad rates to the June conference of the Y. M. and Y. L. M. I. A. and Primary Associations, to be held in Salt Lake City, June 6 to 12, inclusive, viz: Conventions of Bee Hive and Primary workers, June 6, 7, 8, 9, and Conference of the Y. M. and Y. L. M. I. A. and Primary Association June 10, 11, 12, will be made under following plan: One and one-half fare on certificate plan is authorized from all points in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming, and also from El Paso, Texas. Return limit: Tickets for return trip may be purchased at Salt Lake City up to June 30, inclusive. When buying tickets to Salt Lake City do not fail to obtain a certificate from the ticket agent. No refunds will be allowed if this is neglected. Members coming from Alberta, Canada, should buy tickets at Sweet Grass (Coutts), Montana.