Onward With Mormon Ideals

Onward With Mormon Ideals GOD has said, "Hearken, O ye people of my church — Hearken ye and give ear to him who laid the foundation of the earth." " — I have sent mine everlasting covenant into the world to be a light to the world, to be a stan- dard for my people. ... "Verily I say unto you all: Arise and shine forth that thy light may be a standard for the na- tions." "For behold I will bless all those who labor in my vineyard with a mighty blessing. . . . "Behold I have said it. . . . Heaven and earth may pass away, but my word will never pass away. ..." From the beginning until today we have seen that God has called his people to carry on his great Carry On By L. Verl Broadbent* and endless work. From the coun- cil of the Gods to Adam came the call to carry on. To him as he was cast from Eden, again the call — carry on. From out of bondage God delivered the children of Is- rael and bade them carry on. Amid the thunder and lightning of Sinai he bade them again to carry on. To Nephi in the wilderness, in search of the promised land, again the clarion call. From generation to generation through the centuries, that call has sounded unto all peoples — carry on — carry on! '"THE prophets heard it and A obeyed. The Christ answered it with his life. Its everlasting melody penetrated the hearts of his disciples and they in turn have sent it forth even unto our own day. Into the very soul of the Saints it burned its way and was answered in an unparalleled trek across America to the great American des- ert, and then in fruitful fields, beautiful cities, great institutions of learning and magnificent temples to the Most High. For century upon century, over land and sea, its echo has rung forth, calling Is- rael out of the nations, and gather- ing them unto Zion, into the val- leys of these mountains. And now unto you, M Men and Gleaners, unto you the call is given — carry on! For the sake of those who went before, carry on- For the sake of those who will follow after — carry on. In the name of him whose word shall never fail — carry on — carry on — carry on! ♦Theme given at M Men- Gleaner ses- sion, Sunday evening of M. I. A. Con- ference, June 8, 1930. M Men and Gleaner Girls: T REPRESENT your fathers and your mothers, and those of the older generation. I am here to speak their thoughts, and to ex- press the fears of many of the lead- ers of the Church. For a hundred years, men and women have fought for the establishment and preserva- tion of the Church of Christ. For a hundred years, they have been clinging to the truths revealed in these latter days. They have given up their homes, their lands, their wealth, their friends, to follow their God. They have gathered from all parts of the earth: from America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and the Isles of the sea to these mountains and these val- leys of the west, to live and wor- ship in righteousness. For the Gos- pel, some have been martyred and many have endured trials and trib- The Challenge By Warwick C. Lamoreaux* ulations almost to the limit of hu- man capacity. Yet they have found it all worth while! Those who sacrificed wealth to gather to Zion have rejoiced be- cause they have been privileged to make a sacrifice for the Gospel. Those who endured hardships did not complain. Those who wearily trudged their way across the track- less wilderness to build up this land did so with a song on their lips, a song of thanks unto God for a prophet to lead them in these latter days. AND while they were working, i and singing, and praying; while they were overcoming the elements: while they were enduring persecution; while they were sac- rificing, and building, and grow- ing, they were planting the seeds of your heritage, the heritage of faith, of honor, of noble manhood and noble womanhood, of courage, of perseverance, of virtue. Generation by generation, they nurtured your heritage. Decade by decade, they improved it, hand- ing it down from father to son un- til it has come to you. What are you going to do with it? What will be your attitude? Do you believe in the sanctity of the home as did they; in the virtue of rearing families unto God, or are you to be carried away with modern movements toward love- less marriages and childless homes? Do you believe that the human body is a tabernacle of the spirit of God as they believed, a body to be kept clean and strong and pure? Or are you to be swept off your feet by the cunning appeals of self- ish men who use every human de- vice to deceive people into believ- ing that tobacco, liquor, and other indulgencies are beneficial?

688 The Improvement Era for August, 1930 Do you cling to the belief that the United States are creations of the constitution and government of the Almighty, established for the benefit of all mankind, and worthy of the loyal support of all citizens as did your fathers, or are you to be led astray by the false propa- ganda of those who eat at the very heart of the nation by breaking its laws, and dishonoring its purpose? And lastly, do you love your religion — your Church — your God? Do you have faith in its high purpose? What would you sacrifice for it? Are you going to live the laws of God, and keep his commandments? Or are you to be among those who, deceived by the craftiness of mortal men, turn their backs on the everlasting pre- cepts of God? I challenge you! Answer me, M Men and Glean- ers, if you will! With one ac- cord answer, and tell us! (The young men and women, five thousand strong rose and sang: "True to the Faith." *Talk given at June Conference, Sun- day evening, June 8, 1930. "V\7E have heard the call, and as w Gleaner Girls and M Men, whose project is "I Will Contrib- ute Each Day to the Honor and Happiness of the Home," we are prepared to answer the challenge. The word home has two mean- ings. In the broad sense it means "country." In its restricted term, it means "the place where the fam- ily lives and loves and grows and develops." To us, the youth of Zion, it means more than our towering mountains and blossoming valleys. It means an empire reared on a foundation of faith in a divine cause; it means the achievement of a spiritual ideal, for home is the heart of the nation, the foundation of the universe. It is the place where the spirit of the family may find expression. It holds the germ of all those fine and simple virtues which assure the durability and power of a so- cial institution. It is where God's plan has its fruition. At the base of the home is found respect for the past; an understanding of the present, and the anticipation and reaching out for the future. The art of daily living deserves a place among the fine arts. It is the art of extracting from life its highest enjoyment and, through it, reaching its highest ideals. A benevolent Creator has en- dowed mankind with eminent ca- pacity for enjoyment; has set him in a fair and lovely world; sur- rounded him with things good and beautiful, given him the disposi- tion to love, serve, produce and en- joy, and thus become an honorable and happy being, bringing God's work to perfection. And as a foun- dation to build on, he has endowed mankind with the protection of Home By Maurine Burt sanctity of the home where youth may learn and grow, reaching up- ward and onward, aspiring to the infinite, linking time to eternity, where the true art of living has its final consummation. A ND so, the youth of Zion, the "^ girls and boys of today, we who expect to be the mothers and fathers of tomorrow, we who are daily reaping the blessings which our home-loving pioneers sowed and cultivated, and whose grati- tude for that heritage translates those ideals into everyday living with a determination to perpetuate those purposes, answer this chal- lenge to carry on. (Bugle Call, after which a Gleaner Girl in light blue arises in the audience and repeats these words) : "I will carry on by manifesting faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ." (Bugle, following which a Gleaner Girl in pink responds) : "I will contribute each day to the honor of the home by observ- ing my daily prayers." (Bugle, and a third girl dressed in yellow repeats this pledge) : "My Gleaner pledge will be ob- served by being pure in heart." (Bugle, while another Gleaner Girl in a gown of peach says) : "My contribution to carry on with Mormon ideals will be the endeavor to exemplify the thought 'The Glory of God is Intelligence' by seeking knowledge from good books." (Bugle, after which a Gleaner Girl in green repeats) : "My pledge of honor to the home is to pay tithes to the Lord." (Bugle, and dressed in palest lavender a Gleaner Girl says) : "I will carry on by keeping the Word of Wisdom." (Bugle, the girl arising gowned in rose and now repeats) : "My pledge will be observed by daily devotion to home and country." (Bugle. A Gleaner girl in Alice blue says) : "My contribution to carry on with Mormon ideals will be my humble endeavor to render service in the Church through the teach- ing of little children." (Bugle. Now we have an M Man, he arises and answers) : "As an M Man I mean to con- tribute good health — mental, mor- al and physical health, with the ambition to provide for those who shall on me depend." (Bugle. Another M Man re- sponds with these words) : "My answer to carry on with Mormon ideals is to bring to the home the divine Priesthood of God." (While the following chorus is being sung, the Gleaner Girls and M Men who have just been speak- ing are proceeding down the aisles and ascending the platform where they form in positions back of the central speakers.) In concert they declare: "It is our prayer that through an indi- vidual testimony of the divinity of this Latter-day work, these ideals may be realized and as Gleaner Girls and M Men we resolve to exemplify these principles by con- tributing each day to the honor and happiness of the home." (Chorus sings one verse of "Love at Home."

The Improvement Era for August, 1930 Introduction of President Heber J. Grant 689 '"THE youth of this Church has 1 been challenged; challenged as to our attitude toward religion, government, home, and body. The challenge shall not pass unheeded. We do not fear to answer frankly and with heads erect. Some say that we are living lives of debauchery and crime. We re- ply that the young men and wo- men of today are as law-abiding and as God-fearing as they have ever been. Some call us shiftless, indolent, irresponsible. We resent such unfair criticism, and we sol- emnly proclaim that, should the need arise, the young people of this Church would as willingly endure pioneer hardships and persecution as did our fathers whose memory we revere, for the inspiration of those who founded God's Church in the face of sacrifice, suffering and death, has become our inspira- tion. The courage of those who carried on across desolate plains to a desolate valley, has given us strength. The industry of those who made that desolate valley a haven of beauty has fired us to action, and the blood which flowed through the veins of all those who saw a vision and made it a reality is the same blood which flows through the veins of the young men and women of this Church today. It is the rich, red blood of pioneer stock; it is our price- less heritage, and we are grateful for it. With such a heritage we cannot wander far from the path of integrity. "YJi7"E may not be living lives of v perfection; we do not claim to be. But we want the world to By James Sabine* know that down deep in our hearts we have a feeling of warmth and gratitude; and we stand ready to demonstrate our appreciation. We want the leaders to know that should the existence of our beloved Church ever again be threatened, the indomitable will of our forefathers will be the banner round which we will rally our forces in defense of that for which they gave their all. And with our love of Church is mingled love of country. Our eyes are still upon the nation's flag; our pulse ever responds to the strains of the national anthem. We love the United States of Amer- ica, and whether it be in defense of law or national honor, we shall always be valiant in her service. No! The young people of this Church are not hopelessly wicked; they have not forsaken their in- heritance; they have not forgotten God! In humility, they, too, pray and work for the advancement of the true Gospel. A ND so to you, founders of our ■** glorious heritage who carried on in time of crisis, we pledge ourselves never to forsake the re- ligion for which you lived and died. To you, who, even in the face of persecution and abuse, never for- sook the nation to which you had pledged allegiance, we say that your example shall not be forgotten, and that we do not value our lives as highly as we do the continued existence of our God-given gov- ernment. To you of the Pioneer period, who carried on the building of homes in these beautiful Rocky Mountain valleys, we say that we, too, revere the sacredness of the home and shall ever strive to keep it a sacred fountain-head of purity and high ideals. And to you older ones who car- ry on in the present era we say that you need fear not for our phy- sical well-being. The Word of Wisdom is to us a cherished prin- ciple which shall ever guide our conduct. Look with hope to the future; for we will take up with youthful vigor the burdens that lie before us, prepared to live, and to die if the need arise, for the true Church of God. AND lastly to you, President **■ Heber J. Grant, leader in the faith today, we, the young people of this Church, here tonight affirm our faith in your inspired leader- ship and pledge our whole-hearted support in the great task of carry- ing on. And now I have the honor of introducing a leader in the Church who is a real "scout," who is wel- comed by the M Men as one of them, a man who has been called by God to represent him here on earth, a man who is wholly un- spoiled by authority, who is a con- stant inspiration to the young men and women of this Church, a man who is where he is today because he has carried on! because he lives what he teaches. It is my privilege to introduce our leader, our friend, our inspiration., President Heber J. Grant. Song: "Hail to Our President." ♦Talk given at the M Men-Gleaner session of the M. I. A. Conference, June 8, 1930. President John Taylor's Philosophy J WAS not born a slave! I cannot, will not be a slave. I would not be a slave to Cod! I'd be his servant, friend, bis son. I'd go at his behest; but would not be his slave. I'd rather be extinct than be a slave. His friend I feel I am, and he is mine: — a slave! The manacles would pierce my very bones — the clanking chains would grate upon my soul — a poor, lost, servile, crawling wretch to lick the dust and fawn and smile tpon the thing who gave the lash! Myself— perchance my wives, my children to dig the mud, to mould and tell the tale of brick and furnish our own straw! * * * But stop! I'm Cod's free man: I will not, cannot be a slave. Living, I'll be free here, or free in life above — free with the Gods, for they are free: and if I'm in the way on earth, I'll ask my God to take me to my friends above!" "I would rather trust in the living God than in any other power on earth. I learned (while on missions) that I could go to God and he always relieved me. He always supplied my wants. I always had plenty to eat, drink and wear, and could ride on steam-boats or rail- roads, or anywhere I thought proper: God always opened my way, and so he will that of every man who will put his trust in him. "I would rathv have God for my friend than all other influences ana powers outside."