Charles W. Penrose

“ The person whom I worship I acknowledge as my Father. Through Him I may learn to understand the secrets and mysteries of eternity, those things that never had a beginning and will never have an end. He has ascended above all things after descending below all things. He has fought his way from the depths up to the position He now occupies. He holds it by virtue of His goodness, of His might, of His majesty, of His power. He occupies that position by virtue of being in perfect harmony with all that is right, and true, and beautiful, and glorious and progressive. ”

“ Did you ever think of the principle of one dying for another? Did not Jesus suffer for all on the principle of a vicarious atonement? On this principle of proxy rests the whole scheme of human redemption. Without that principle of proxy, every one must pay the penalty of blood and death, for the wages of sin is death, and "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God," and "without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin." Christ died for you and for me and for all mankind, on condition that they would receive His Gospel. ”

“ The whole race of Adam must be raised from the dead. The vail between earth and heaven must be removed. The knowledge and glory of God must cover the earth as the waters cover the deep, and the spirit of life and peace and light and joy must be poured out upon all flesh, until the whole creation vibrates with pleasure and responds with praise. ”

“ It is the privilege of every Saint to have this light fork themselves, the light of God, the light of truth, "the light that is in all things and through all things and round about all things, and is the law by which all things are governed." It is our privilege to be in possession of that faith that we may ask and receive, that we may seek and find, that we may knock and have the door opened unto us. Well, are we doing this? If so, then we rejoice in our religion. The world compared therewith is as nothing all things are as dross compared with the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. ”

“ If I do anything which interferes with the life, the liberty, the happiness, or the property of my neighbor, the law has a right to step in and protect my neighbor and restrain me. But if my religion—that which I believe to be true, and which I try to carry out as a part of my faith—does not interfere with human rights, does not infringe in any degree upon the rights of my fellow man, neither Congress, nor any other law-making power on the face of the earth, has the right to interfere with me under the Constitution of the country. ”

“ When that spirit departed there was but a dead form left. Only by the restoration of divine communication with man could the Church of Christ be re-established on earth. Only by raising up a prophet to commence the latter-day dispensation could our heavenly Father maintain his invariable method from the beginning of the world. And instead of men, professing to be his servants, opposing and fighting against divine revelation, they ought to hail with gladness the re-opening of the heavens and shout for joy that the rays of the Millennial morning have burst upon the world. ”

“ It seems to me that I exercise just as much volition or free will in voting for my friends, men of the same faith, men of the same interests, men who have a stake in this country, men whose interests are embodied here, men who are known, men whose actions I have seen, men whose motives I to a great extent understand by seeing their actions—I say I think I display as much freedom in voting for such men as I would in voting for men I do not like, men in whom I have no confidence. ”

“ This is the Spirit of God; it is the spirit of the everlasting Gospel; it is the spirit of peace, and joy, and consolation and comfort, and there is real, true happiness in it. What a miserable feeling it is not to be able to meet a man frankly and cordially. How different when friends and brethren meet. Their countenances at once brighten, and there is a glow and warmth which bespeak their feelings for each other; it is a feeling of joy and satisfaction, and those who possess it desire to bless and do good to their fellow-men. ”

“ And the time will come when death and hell shall be destroyed, and there will be no more death, neither sorrow nor pain, but every creature, in heaven above and the earth beneath shall be heard to sing, "Blessing, and honor, praise and power, be unto God and the Lamb forever, who has redeemed us by His blood out of every nation and tribe and tongue and people!" ”

“ Death came by Adam, life comes by Christ. Through one act death entered the world, through one act life will come to all that death has grasped. "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Good and bad, believer and unbeliever, male and female, young and old will be raised from the dead and brought into the presence of the Eternal Father. This is the work of Jesus of Nazareth, who shed His blood in this great atonement to redeem all mankind from the fall. ”

“ I have learned that it is a holy thing, a sacred thing; that it requires self-abnegation, not to men, but to truth, to righteousness, to that which God reveals. The very essence of "Mormonism" is to find out what the Lord wants, and then to do it, and to do it regardless of anybody living upon the face of the earth, regardless of what the world may do to try and prevent us. And the people here are most of them of the same mind. They have come out from the various sects and have all been baptized into one spirit, into one body. ”

“ This is the point which I desired to make plain this afternoon—the glorious doctrine of the resurrection of the body, one of the main doctrines of the Christian religion. It all hinges on that; for if Christ is not risen, then is our hope vain. Christ died and was raised again. So shall we die—perhaps not all of us will sleep in the earth, for some are to remain and be alive at his coming—but we shall all be raised, and those who dwell upon the earth when the Lord appears shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye. ”

“ Our influence and power will extend. Our unity will extend and become a great power; we will contend for liberty to all, liberty to every man and every woman under the canopy of heaven. That is our doctrine and creed. God gave to man his agency in the beginning. We have the liberty of choosing for ourselves. We have come into this Church of our own free will and choice, because we believed its principles. I can speak this for myself. I came into this Church because I believed what was taught to me in my boyhood's days, and left my home for the Gospel's sake. ”

“ The gift of the Holy Ghost is conferred on us that we may learn something about God, so that we may go on to perfection; that we may walk in his ways; that we may climb the ladder which he has climbed to perfection; that we may peradventure overcome and be made like him, share in his glory, and be one with him. And if we will take the course that our Father has taken, living by every word that comes from his mouth, we shall know what is right, for he will reveal unto us what is true, and it is the knowledge and practice of truth that exalts. ”

“ All through the ages that are past, God has placed before his children good on the one hand and evil on the other, and it is the privilege of all men to choose the good or the evil, which they please. Their agency is free. God will force no man to heaven; he will allow no man to be forced to hell. We are placed here where there is a mixture of good and evil, of light and darkness, of truth and error, of sorrow and joy, of bitter and sweet, of life and death ”

“ Everything that seems to be against us will be turned for our good. The clouds that overshadow us from time to time will part and roll away, and the glorious sun of prosperity will shine upon us. If we are true and faithful God Almighty will overrule all things for our good, and bring us off more than conquerors. And every nation and people and institution and society that fight against Zion shall become like the dream of a night vision—it will pass away ”

“ What is called religion in the world, I admit, is a matter of sentiment and opinion, and one man's opinion is just as good as another—and in some respects, as the Irishman said, "a great deal better." One reverend divine's opinion is just as good as another's, for they differ just as much as the people do whom they teach. And so the idea prevails that religion is a mere matter of opinion, and therefore we can expect nothing but division. But true religion does not come from man. True religion comes from God, if there is a God. ”

“ This needs no argument; it is so self-evident that many thinking people, beholding the contention and strife of ages over religious affairs, have formed the opinion that all religions are human, conceived in the minds of men and promulgated for selfish purposes. Yet, admitting that there is a Supreme Being, the Creator of all things, who is the embodiment of truth, justice, mercy, wisdom and love, it seems unreasonable to think that he would leave his intelligent creatures without a guide on the road to the eternal future.
As there is but one Supreme God, there can be but one true religion. ”

“ We should live in this spirit, my brethren and sisters, so that we may enjoy happiness and peace to-day as well as the prospect of having eternal happiness and peace in the world to come.
I pray God, in the name of Jesus Christ, to stamp these truths upon our hearts, so that we may be able to order our lives by the laws of truth and righteousness, individually and as a people; that we may live for the Lord and for the truth, and for one another—not for selfish objects, but for the glory of God and the salvation of our race. ”

“ I know that when a man is ordained to the holy priesthood, if he seeks for the spirit of his calling, he can draw nearer to God than he could without it; I know he can do more good to humanity with it than he could possibly do without it. I know that the priesthood of God is effective; that there is life and vigor in it, and that through it a man has access to God the Eternal Father, and has power to help his fellowman. We should be a nation of kings and priests unto God, a royal priesthood, a peculiar people zealous of good works. This is what we should be, my brethren and sisters. ”

“ If we are living our religion it is everything with us "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." Earthly things perish with the using and when we pass away we must leave them behind, but we will carry with us the Gospel, and every one of its truths we have made our own. We will carry with us the holy priesthood and its gifts and powers, if we have been faithful, and will be permitted to mingle with the spirits of just men made perfect, and rejoice in the hope of a glorious resurrection. ”

“ Are the heavens sealed up and become like brass, that no man can break through, and no heavenly being come to this little world and make manifest the things of eternity? Has the Holy Ghost changed in its power and influence and revealing qualities? Or are the children of men in such a condition that they are not willing to receive the Lord and His ways and His works and His light? Has God purposely departed from the earth, or have the people of the earth departed from God? ”

“ But that which remains to be accomplished is so vast, that no mind, unless illuminated by the light of God, can see how it can ever be performed and perfected. Yet it will be done, and blessed are they who aid in the heavenly labor! With what joy will they be greeted by the spirits of their progenitors when they meet them in Paradise! What honor will crown their brows in the day of reward and compensation! They will stand among the saviors, and shine among their kindred who are redeemed, like glorious suns in the heavenly constellations! ”

“ In our Church there is liberty for all, and there is liberty within our borders for those who do not belong to our Church, those who do not believe as we believe, who do not see as we see. We do not try to coerce them in the least degree. They can build their chapels, churches and schools unmolested. They may worship an image if they like, or a white dog, and they may do without worship at all, and we will never infringe upon their rights. Liberty is a part of our creed—liberty to all, liberty to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. ”

“ It is the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. There is no person born into this world who breathes the breath of life, but who at the same time receives a portion of this divine spirit, this divine illumination. ”

“ The Priesthood, as I have quoted to you, is without beginning of days or end of years. It was always existent and always active. And therefore there was never a first world or being, neither will there be a last one. We are here to learn those principles that pertain to this lower sphere; to learn how to raise ourselves from this groveling mortal condition, and make ourselves like God, that we may dwell with him, come into perfect harmony with that spirit of which I have been speaking, be one with the Father and participate with him in the power which he wields, in the midst of eternity. ”

“ The Lord, even Jesus the Messiah, will come to his Holy Temple. He will be glorified in his Saints, but will "take vengeance on them that know not God and obey not the gospel." He will break in pieces the nations as a potter's vessel. He will sweep the earth as with a besom of destruction. He will establish righteousness upon it and give dominion to his people. "The meek shall inherit the earth and the wicked be cut off forever." Therefore, repent and turn unto him, all ye nations, and obey him, all ye people, for these words are true and faithful and are given by his Spirit! ”

“ It is our privilege to come near unto our Father, to drink of those streams that flow from the eternal fountain, to have the Holy Ghost in our hearts every day, springing up "like a well of water unto everlasting life." ”