--- title: Times and Seasons description: Issues of 1842 to 1843. 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: 4 number: 19 published: 1843-08-15 publisher: E. Robinson and D. C. Smith; later John Taylor publisher_place: Commerce and Nauvoo, Illinois language: en type: article reference: "β€œTo the Editor of the Times and Seasons,” *Times and Seasons* 4, no. 19 (August 15, 1843): 299–300." printed_title: To the Editor of the Times and Seasons. source: url: https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1843-08-15_4_19 transcription: Text from the Centerplace.org transcription (https://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v4n19.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_1843-08-15_4_19 start_page: 299 end_page: 300 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 1843 (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_1843-08-15_4_19 publication_year: 1843 --- # To the Editor of the Times and Seasons BRITON, Livingston county, } July. 30, 1834. } DEAR SIR:-We take this opportunity of sending you the minutes of a conference, held in the town of Briton, Livingston county, Michigan, convened on the 29th and 30th of July. Conference met according to appointment on the 28th of July, at 6 o'clock, P. M. There were several elders and other officers present on the occasion. The conference was opened with prayer by the president; who proceeded to make some appropriate remarks on the object of the meeting, After some general instructions the different branches were represented, and were as follows: B. Searls, teacher, represented the Pleasant Valley branch, Livingston county; one teacher and twenty members. Priest Loree represented the Cedar branch, Livingston county; one priest, one teacher, and eighteen members. A. Hovey, teacher, represented the Rose branch, Oakland county; one teacher, nine members. Elder M. Serrine represented the Franklin branch, Oakland county; one elder, one priest, one teacher, and sixteen members, also the Royal Oak branch; thirteen members. N. Goodell represented the Lapeer branch Lapeer county; two elders, two priests, and twenty-three members. Priest Bunnel represented the Brownstown branch, Wayne county; one elder, one teacher, and twenty-three members. Elder O. Jefferds represented the Van Buren branch, Wayne county; one elder, one teacher, and seven members. Elder C. Dunn represented the Livonia branch, Wayne county; one elder. one priest one teacher, one deacon, and twenty-three members; he also represented the Halimazo branch, twenty-three members, all in good standing, and fifty scattered members not represented. Many of the brethren and sisters bear strong testimony to the truth of the work, and some that were not members of the church declared before the congregation that they had been healed by the prayer of faith and the laying on of hands by the elders of his church. Motioned and carried that this conference be adjourned till the last Friday Saturday and Sunday in October; to be held in the vicinity of Franklin, Oakland county, Michigan, ten miles south of Pontiac. M. SERRINE, Prest. CRANDLE DUNN, Clerk. I thought that I would fill out this sheet with a short sketch of my travels and labor in this state since last December. I left La Harp, Hancock county, in November, and arrived in this state on the first of December where I commenced preaching. I had calls from all parts of the country; the people seem to have a spirit to investigate the doctrine more than ever.-I visited many parts of the state during the winter; some cried delusion while others said it was the truth if the Bible was true. I was then sent for to come to Lapere [Lapeer] county, and when I arrived there a great excitement prevailed amongst the priests and people saying, 'these that have turned the world up side down are come hither also.' Finally they struck upon a plan, as they supposed, to put a stop to the delusion, as they called it; and that was to get Elder Knight, a preacher of the Christian church, to meet me in a discussion, and show the people the falsity of the doctrine. They then asked me if I would set forth the doctrine of the Latter Day Saints, and let Elder Knight show the people wherein we were wrong. I told them that I would; we accordingly met on the 18th day of January to discuss the subject. A moderator was chosen, and thirty minutes was the time for each to speak. As it fell upon me to speak first, I proceeded to set forth our doctrine just as we believe it according to the scriptures, and in the first place I set forth the kingdom of God as disclosed by Paul in the 12th chapter of Corinthians, and also in the 4th of the Ephesians. He then attempted to show the people that those officers gifts and blessings were only given for the establishing of the church, and then were to cease; whereupon I demanded Scriptural evidence to prove his assertions. He said that the kingdom was established and therefore they were no longer needed. I then stated that Paul said in the 4th chapter of Ephesians, that they were given for the 'perfecting of the saints, and to keep them from being carried away by every wind of doctrine, by the seigh [sleight?] of men, and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive.' But we continued the discussion for about three hours, and the truth came off triumphant. The moderator decided that if the Bible is to be believed the doctrine must be true, for that we preached the very principles taught by Jesus Christ and his apostles. The debate made a very favorable impression on the minds of many. The next week I baptized ten, most of whom were members of the different churches; and thus instead of stopping the cause they added to its number, and I hope of 'such as will be saved' in the day of the 'coming of the Son of God.' I have held two more debates since, one on the 4th of July, with a Campbelite [Campbellite] in Lapeer, and the other on the 22d of July, in the village of Franklin, with a Universalian minister, by the name of Curtis, and the result has been the same in each of them. The decision went against them. I have baptized since last January between fifty and sixty, and have organized two more branches, one in Livingston county, town of Briton, consisting of twenty members, known by the name of Pleasant Valley branch; and another branch in the vicinity of Franklin, Oakland county; called the Franklin branch, consisting of sixteen members. Thus the cause of God is onward in this state, and all the powers of wicked men and hireling priests combined, cannot stop the cause of Israel's God, for it is onward and will continue to roll until the 'kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ.' I remain as ever, your brother in the bonds of the new and everlasting covenant. M. SERRINE.