--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Whitney, Orson F. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 29 number: 4 published: 1926-02 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: "Whitney, Orson F., “Why Thank Them?,” *Improvement Era* 29, no. 4 (February 1926): 316–318." source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2904unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2904unse start_page: 316 end_page: 318 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1926-02) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2904unse publication_year: 1926 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1926, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Why Thank Them? WHY THANK THEM? . By Orson F. Whitney Many years ago, when I was a Ward Bishop, and was engaged one evening in settling tithing, a good brother came forward who seemed more or less reluctant to be present for the purpose indicated. Almost ill-naturedly he tossed a roll of bills upon the table, and in response to the usual question put to tithepayers at such times — "Is this a full tithing?" he replied: "No — but you may be thankful to get that much." "Thankful?" I echoed. "Why should I be thankful for it? You are not paying this money to me. I am only an agent, appointed by the Church to receive it for the Lord, to whom it rightfully belongs. You make a big mistake in supposing this to be a personal matter between you and me. My interest in the case is simply this: Here is a report that I must sign and send to the Presiding Bishop. It is a list of those who ought to pay tithing in this ward, and your name is among them. At the head of one column are the words 'Full Tithing,' and at the head of another column, 'Part Tithing,' or 'Not Full.' The Ward Clerk must check these names in the columns where they belong, and I must then affix my signature, as the Ward Bishop, certifying that the report is correct. "Now do you know why I asked you that question? I had a right to ask it. I must know the facts, in order to render a true report. And while, as your bishop, I am pleased to know that you are honoring the law of tithing even in part, I am under no obligation to thank you for so doing. Nobody thanks me for paying my tithing. Nor do I expect it. I pay it in order to be obedient to the law of the Lord, and esteem it a privilege, one that I would not willingly forego." Such in substance was the homily I addressed to that good brother on the occasion in question. I hope he saw the point, and that others will see it when they read this article, whether or not they have need of the same instruction. After I was ordained an apostle, and began to visit the various stakes and wards, I was surprised more than once to hear the presiding officer, at the close of a meeting, thank the congregation for their presence there. The question arose in my mind and found expression on my lips: Why thank them for doing their duty? — for doing what the Lord commands his people to do, and blesses them if they obey? Is it not a privilege to attend a stake or a ward conference, to hear what is said by the servants of the Lord, to be reminded of our sacred duties, partake of the good Spirit that is always present at such times, and be strengthened and renewed, so as to be better able to play our part in the great work of our Divine Master? WHY THANK THEM? 317 Ought the Saints to be thanked for receiving blessings from heaven? Continuing the theme, my thoughts ran on in this channel: We do not thank men and women for joining the Church, for being baptized, for paying their tithing, for holding office in the Priesthood, going on missions, or serving in the auxiliary organizations. It is a privilege so to do. It brings blessings that are beyond all price. What thanks are due to those who receive such blessings? Can it be conceived, that when we present ourselves at the Gates of Glory, and apply for admittance to the society of the blest, that the Lord will thank us for it? I can almost hear him say, to one who has struggled up through great tribulation: "Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord!" But I cannot conceive of his saying: "Thank you, my son, or my daughter — thank you for coming to Heaven!" No; such a thing is utterly inconceivable. Well, then, if we are not to be thanked for entering into glory, why should we be thanked for going in that direction — for doing the things that will entitle us to admission there? It has become quite a custom in some of the stakes and wards, when officers are released after a term of service, to give them a vote of thanks for that service. This seems to me an incongruity. These brethren and sisters were not working for a vote of thanks. They were serving the Lord, and if possessed of the proper spirit, they did the work gladly, esteeming it a precious privilege to thus help on the Master's cause. A vote of thanks would not reimburse them. Far more precious is the approval of a good conscience and the sense of duty well done. There is also this consideration: If those who labor in the Priest- hood, in the temples, and in the auxiliary organizations at home, are to be thanked for their service, then consistency demands that the missionaries who labor abroad should be thanked for preaching the gos- pel and administering its sacred ordinances for the salvation of the souls of men. And I have never yet heard of anything of that kind. Of course we all appreciate the motive in the case. It is a good and worthy one. But is not the act misleading? Could not the same end be reached in another and a better way? My point is simply this: A stake president, a bishop, or any other presiding officer in the Church, should miss no opportunity to speak comforting words to the people, especially the flock of which he is the shepherd. He should do everything in his power to en- courage them, and on every proper occasion commend them for their faithfulness. But he should not, by word or deed cause them to think that they are doing the Lord a favor by keeping his com- mandments, and that his servants ought to thank them for it. We get far more out of our religion than we put into it. Re- 318 IMPROVEMENT ERA demption, salvation, exaltation, eternal life — these are the incompar- able rewards for the service that we render to our heavenly Father; and unceasing gratitude and thanksgiving are due, not from him to us, but from us to him, for the countless blessings showered upon us by his all-bountiful hand. Thanks be to Him forevermore! Deacons' Hike to Box Canyon Elder Clifton N. Ottosen furnishes these snapshots of a trip with the deacons of the Manti Center ward to Box Canyon on October 2. "This is a very beautiful spot, characteristic of some of the freaks of nature in the Wasatch mountains. As shown in the picture, it is a deep canyon nearly one mile long, the walls of which tower perpendicularly and narrowly on each side, leaving only a comfortable space in the bed of the canyon to travel on. The deacons' quorum trip was made under the auspices of SCENES IN BOX CANYON, NEAR MORONI, UTAH Alphonzo Henrie, Jean E. Harrison, and Clifton N. Ottosen. Three auto- mobiles carried the party of twenty-three to the mouth of Maple Canyon, west of Moroni, about twenty-five miles distant from Manti. From here they hiked to the Box Canyon, about an hour's walk. An hour's time was spent in hiking and enjoying the scenery. It is through meeting the boys on such occasions on their own ground that brings them into the realm of greater activity in the work, causing them to understand their teachers better and to learn and love them. The trip was a huge success and all came back pleased with their experience and delighted for having tightened the bonds of friendship and understanding. — Clifton N. Ottosen, Manti, Utah.