Joseph Fielding Smith

“ Thou hast borne the burden and the heat of the day, thou hast toiled hard and labored much for the good of thy father's family; thou hast been a stay many times to them, and by thy diligence they have often been sustained. Thou hast loved thy father's family with a pure love, and hast greatly desired their salvation. Thou hast always stood by thy father, and reached forth the helping hand to lift him up when he was in affliction, and though he has been out of the way, thou hast never forsaken him nor laughed him to scorn ”

“ How much easier it would have been for Sidney Rigdon to have said, August 8, 1844: "I want to be appointed 'Guardian' until young Joseph grows up," instead of declaring that no successor could be appointed! How easy it would have been for Lyman Wight to have said, "I was present when Joseph blessed his son in Liberty prison, as his successor," or for James Whitehead and John S. Carter to have declared that young Joseph had been ordained as his father's successor in a public meeting in Nauvoo shortly before the martyrdom, and thus have reminded the people of it. ”

“ When Brigham Young therefore, and the apostles, lead the Church to the valleys of the mountains, it was in fulfillment of the word of the Lord to Joseph Smith, uttered first, in March, 1831, second in August 1842, and moreover, it was but carrying out the design of the Prophet Joseph Smith. When men accuse the Saints of fleeing to the west desiring to get beyond the borders of the United States, and of being disloyal to the American government, they not only place themselves at variance with the facts of history, but utter a miserable falsehood that merits only the severest contempt. ”

“ And I, the Lord God, had created all the children of men, and not yet a man to till the ground, for in heaven created I them, and there was not yet flesh upon the earth, neither in the water, neither in the air. ”

“ The great majority of you who are assembled here today are, without doubt, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I suppose that most of you have a divine testimony of the truth of this latter-day work—the Gospel of Christ—which we have received. To you who have a testimony, my remarks shall not be addressed particularly, but if you will bear with me in what I have to say that I may be led to say something that will strengthen the faith of those who may be weak, or that will encourage those who have no faith at all, I will feel amply paid. ”

“ Hence, the doctrine of a plurality of Gods is as prominent in the Bible as any other doctrine. It is all over the face of the Bible. It stands beyond the power of controversy. A wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err therein.'
"Paul says there are Gods many, and Lords many * * * But to us there is but one God—that is, pertaining to us; and he is in all and through all. But if Joseph Smith says there are Gods many and Lords many, they cry: 'Away with him! Crucify him, crucify him!' Mankind verily say that the Scriptures are with them. ”

“ And yet, this commandment without which the whole earth was to be utterly wasted and destroyed—this eternal commandment that had been prepared before the foundation of the world—is not binding on them! ”

“ If the faithful, who keep the commandments of the Father are His sons, then they are heirs of the kingdom and shall receive of the fulnesss of the Father's glory, even until they become like Father. And how can they be perfect as their Father in heaven is perfect if they are not like Him?
In the revelations given to Joseph which were accepted by the Church before 1844, the doctrine of plurality of Gods is also taught. ”

“ Such a thing in the nation could be no more foolish or absurd than were the attempts of apostates to set up a new organization of the Church from a handful of disgruntled office-seekers and their sympathizers. In one case there would be as much authority as in the other and no more.
But the contention of Reorganites has been, that the apostles assumed authority and powers that did not belong to them. That their duty was in the world and it was the prerogative of the high council of Nauvoo with William Marks and counselors, at their head, to direct the affairs of the Church. ”

“ Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices, by the sons of Levi, and for your oracles in your most holy places, wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelation and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name. ”

“ We are told that faithfulness shall be the strength of his loins. This is a figure. We all understand what it means. It means that the children of Hyrum Smith shall be faithful and from generation to generation shall be a shaft in the hands of God to execute His judgments. That is what it means!
But the blessing continues:
"And he shall be hid by the hand of the Lord, that none of his secret parts shall be discovered unto his enemies unto his hurt. ”

“ We say to all Saints who desire to do the will of heaven, arise, and tarry not, but come up hither to the places of gathering as speedily as possible, for the time is rapidly approaching when the Saints will have occasion to regret that they have so long neglected to assemble themselves together and stand in holy places awaiting those tremendous events which are so rapidly approaching the nations of the earth. ”

“ If the Lord places His servants under a strict command not to reveal His word, "only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto Him;" and, therefore, they withhold some of those things from the world that have been revealed unto them does that make them cowardly? If so, not only Brigham Young, but Joseph Smith, yes, even the Son of Man Himself would be cowardly. ”

“ Those that remain of the old stock are the masses, always honest in the main and sincere even in delusion; and their guides are a few tried and trusty men, little initiated in the plotting of synagogues, and more noted for services rendered than bounties received. They are the men whom I saw on the prairie trail, sharing sorrow with the sorrowful, and poverty with the poor; the chief of them all, a man of rare natural endowment, to whose masterly guidance they are mainly indebted for their present prosperity, driving his own ox team and carrying his sick child in his arms. ”

“ Joseph Smith's grandfather did not hold the Priesthood nor his fathers before him for generations upon generations. So we must look at this in a broader sense than our friends are willing that we should do. What is meant by the Priesthood coming down from the fathers, and that it must needs remain through the lineage of the Elders of the Church? It means simply this, that the Priesthood has come down from those who held it in ancient days and has been conferred upon men in this day according to promise, because they are of the seed of Joseph of the tribe of Ephraim. ”

“ Joseph Smith taught that there were certain sins so grievous that man may commit, that will place the transgressors beyond the power of the atonement of Christ. If these offenses are committed, then the blood of Christ will not cleanse them from their sins even though they repent. Therefore their only hope is to have their own blood shed to atone, as far as possible, in their behalf. This is Scriptural doctrine, and is taught in all the standard works of the Church. ”

“ To presume to speak in the name of the Lord is a serious matter, and woe be to the man who speaks in the name of the Lord when he has not been commanded. It is far better never to receive a revelation than to follow after those who receive "revelations" that the Lord has not given. The "revelations" given by the Reorganite president to the "Reorganized" Church, need only to be read to convince one of their spurious character. They are weak, puerile, and it takes a very little of the spirit of discernment to know what source they are of. ”

“ In addition to this, I now give you my dying blessing, You shall have a season of peace, so that you shall have sufficient rest to accomplish the work which God has given you to do. You shall be as firm as the pillars of heaven unto the end of your days. I NOW SEAL UPON YOUR HEAD THE PATRIARCHAL POWER, and you shall bless the people. This is my dying blessing upon your head in the name of Jesus. Amen."
There is the birthright!
And now Joseph's blessing:
"Joseph, my son, you are called to a high and holy calling. ”

“ Even in Book of Mormon times, Nephi was the younger brother of Sam, a faithful man, and Nephi ordained his brother Jacob, not his son. Alma who became the High Priest of the Nephite church was not a son of Mosiah who by right of birth became the king of the people. And thus we might go on. It is a peculiar law indeed when the Lord ignores it almost if not quite every time, and we may conclude that it is a man-made doctrine concocted to bolster up the claim of an aspiring set of men, not inspired of the Lord. ”

“ If there is within the sound of my voice one soul who has not received a testimony of this work, and that Brigham Young was the right man in the right place, and the rightful successor, and so on down to the present day, then I say to you, when you go home go before the Lord in the spirit of repentance, and humility, and prayer, and ask Him in faith for that knowledge and He will hear your prayers. There is no reason why any man should be deceived, for the Lord has promised us that we shall receive if we ask and if we knock it shall be opened unto us. ”

“ President Joseph F. Smith has never stated in public nor in private that he lied when he gave his evidence or at any other time, and he is not a confessed, nor any other kind of a perjurer, and I must repeat that I am surprised that any man claiming to be fair, and to be an example of truthfulness, should follow in the steps of men who indeed 'love and make lies,' as you well know. ”