Oliver Cowdery

“ Not to occupy time on the absurdity of that system which confesses that the great Author of our being once conversed with men, but has now ceased, we pass directly to the last subject of faith or belief. For, after having ranged through the wide field of matter, and seen the great changes in nature, and the consistency, and in fact, the certainty of the continuance of the soul, we confess we have but little faith in a person who may be called our Creator, who once spake to man, but will do so no more! ”

“ That religion is made a traffic, and the souls of men merchandize, we shall not deny; but, as each generation are to make their own choice, and the present quickly following in the footsteps of the last, it is honorable in all to examine for themselves, as the past cannot laugh at our follies, nor the one to come, relieve us from former dilemmas—the things of life and the thoughts of death, being sufficient for all men. ”

“ To acknowledge this being is more than fine gold—to serve him with a pure heart is more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices, and whether we have succeeded or failed, such has been the intention of our labors in the Messenger, to draw the minds of men to look into the perfection of that system which has charms sufficient to sustain it in a trying hour, and free our fellow-men from the grasp of hell. ”

“ And so long as the body is inactive and senseless without the soul, or intelligence, we are ready to consider it of the least value. Then, since the body, though it decays, is not annihilated, where is the presumption that the wise and intelligent part, which could no longer be confined within this tabernacle, has become extinct? Not to be lengthy on this point, but we confess, from a careful examination of its consistency and claims for belief, it falls far short of a rational system, consequently, gives neither hope nor consolation. ”

“ And we now only express our astonishment, that so many others have since gone, and we survive—it cannot be because we are better than they—if any thing, we are inclined to think it because we are not prepared to enter those fair mansions with them, and are mercifully spared to become sanctified, that by-and-by we may enjoy that rest so much desired by all who have once been permitted to gaze for a moment into the society where the wicked never come, and where one eternal round of perfection occupies the attention of the inhabitants. ”

“ The next, and great point is that which believes in a God who is eternal: to constitute such a being must be one that never changes. To attach to his attributes changeableness at once argues finitude; and how any rational man can spread out his hands towards heaven, and worship, (in his mind,) such a being, is past our comprehension—such is not the God we adore—it is not the being we serve. The One we worship comprehends all things, from the extent of eternity to the rip [p] ling crimson that flows and throbs through our hearts. No power so high that he does not surpass it ”

“ On this point we have only one opinion: When the Lord judges the secrets of men's hearts, those miserable beings will be cast off as the shedders of innocent blood and the destroyers of peace and human happiness. ”

“ Reason may be called what it may, and be urged upon us by whom it may, but when it opposes itself to facts it ceases to be reason, and is only to be set down in an even column with thousands of assertions which have neither reason nor common sense for a foundation. ”

“ It is an astonishing thought, and we venture to say, that it passes through the mind of no sober man without producing anxiety, that we must go hence! Amid all our other concerns, and even in the heat of the most absorbing earthly considerations, that reflection never steals across the mind without making a deep impression. ”

“ We repeat what we have already said, that it is all in consequence of the lies put forth by persons in this country: Men whose moral responsibility, where known, weighs no heavier in point of veracity than the acts of Judas in the scales of righteousness.
By christians it is contended that there is a heaven, and by infidels, that such is a vain theory, got up to scare men into communities to support the defenders of particular creeds. ”

“ It is common with all, and especially with editors, that they promise themselves and friends a great many new things for the new year; but we shall not venture to promise our friends any thing extra, on untried ground. We already owe so many apologies for the past, that if our friends will overlook our imperfections and forgive our faults we shall be glad ”

“ This we are willing for, and would rather choose than they should live in the midst of confusion and war; but we regret that men are so destitute of righteous principles that they will vilify the innocent, and cause strangers to become alarmed for their own safety so much as to wish our friends from among them. ”

“ That, to us, important word, TIME, from the Saxon tim, tima, or Danish, time, which simply means a part or portion of duration, in performing his accustomed march has found us here, at the close of another twelve-month, though strange it is, that we are spared while others have fled. ”

“ They have made purchases in a new place, and many families are already prepared for the winter: in all probability, they have made such an arrangement, and have cultivated that friendly understanding with their neighbors, that they will now be permitted to gather by themselves and form a community of their own. ”

“ The affairs of the church in the west have been very distressing: Men, women and children, have been so much and so long exposed to the inclemency of the weather, that sickness, with a number of deaths, have followed. Our enemies here, and the enemies of truth, righteousness and justice, have acted their part in this tragedy. From time to time has the country, where our brethren have lived, been flooded with false statements concerning our situation and acts ”