--- title: Times and Seasons description: Issues of 1841 to 1842. authors: - Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints editors: - Ebenezer Robinson - Don Carlos Smith - Smith, Joseph, Jr. - Taylor, John collections: - periodicals tags: - newspaper - times-and-seasons - nauvoo - nineteenth-century periodical: Times and Seasons volume: 3 number: 16 published: 1842-06-15 publisher: E. Robinson and D. C. Smith; later John Taylor publisher_place: Commerce and Nauvoo, Illinois language: en type: article reference: "“Mormonism,” *Times and Seasons* 3, no. 16 (June 15, 1842): 822–823." printed_title: MORMONISM. source: url: https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1842-06-15_3_16 transcription: Text from the Centerplace.org transcription (https://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v3n16.htm), with its page breaks; this Internet Archive scan is the reference copy (its OCR was used only as a witness for OCR repair) identifier: per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1842-06-15_3_16 start_page: 822 end_page: 823 curator_note: A Mormon newspaper published by the church in Nauvoo; included for historical study. Inclusion does not imply endorsement. rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1842 (Nauvoo, Illinois); published before 1931, so public domain in the United States source: https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1842-06-15_3_16 publication_year: 1842 --- # Mormonism [Hand] The Editor of the "Signs of the Times"-the paper that advocates the coming of Christ next year, proposes to publish "a pamplet [pamphlet] in a few weeks, which will fully expose the iniquity of the Mormon delusion." Such an announcement is amusing enough; while, at the same time, it shows most conclusively the blindness and folly of religious fanaticism. The doctrines of the Mormons are, to be sure, somewhat inconsistent and absurd, when viewed by the light of reason and common sense; but when viewed by the Bible, which is a very different sort of light and a very dubious one they appear on the whole, quite as authentic as Christian doctrines generally. Whatever may be the absurdities of the Mormons, (we mean their doctrines, not themselves, for personally we believe they are quite as correct a people as can be found in any Christian sect in existence,)-whatever, we repeat, may be the absurdities of their doctrines, they have none so supremely ridiculous as that advocated by the signs of the Times;" and if the Editor was not clean gone in religious monomania he must certainly see it himself. What can be more foolish, if we think of it for a moment, than the doctrines of Christ's bodily appearance in the clouds with a retinue of angels, &c., all of them sailing through the air and blowing trumpets as they pass? The idea even on Bible authority, is nonsensical in the extreme, since all these pretended personages being spiritual, it is impossible they can be seen by material beings, or perform material works. Nor does the Bible afford any more conclusive authority for the doctrine that Christ is to come next year or at any particular time, since Christ himself expressly declares in the 24th Chapter of Matthew and 36 verse, that "of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only." But in the face of this high authority, which all Christians if consistent, ought to be governed by, the Rev. Editor of the :Signs of the Times," does not hesitate to speak confidently of the time of Christ's coming-thus presuming in fact, to possess the knowledge of God himself! And yet he deliberately reproaches the Mormons for being deluded! How very applicable in this case, are the words of one of his own standards,-"Physician heal thyself!"-Boston Inv. Times and Seasons. City of Nauvoo, Wednesday, June 15, 1842.