RELIGION OF DAILY LIFE
A Practical Test
WE believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—we believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praise-worthy, we seek after these things. (Articles of Faith, 13).
In this brief statement the Latter-day Saints proclaim the practical character of their religion—a religion that embraces not alone definite conceptions of spiritual matters and belief as to conditions in the hereafter, doctrines of original sin and the actuality of heaven and hell, but also and more particularly of present, current, every-day duties, in which self-respect, love for fellow-men, and devotion to God are the guiding principles.
Religion without personal morality, professions of godliness without charity, church membership without consistent conduct in the common affairs of life are but as sounding brass and tinkling cymbals—noise without music, the words of prayer without the spirit.
"If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this: To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." (James 1:26, 27).
A good test of a man's religion is its utility. Religious profession used as a cloak—and that too often reserved for Sunday wear, hiding in part the shabby rags of sin—is but sacrilege. In any attempt to analyze a religious system or creed it is pertinent to examine the results of its operation in the lives of its adherents. This is as simple and fair as to judge a tree by the quality of its substance and fruit. Altruism is an essential ingredient of a religion that is worth while.
"If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also." (1 John 4:20, 21).
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints invites attention to its work of unselfish, practical, unremitting benevolence. In missionary service the Church has been active since the date of its organization; and this systematic labor, because of its extent and unique methods, has attracted attention and stimulated comment in practically all nations of the earth. Actuated by a genuine love for humanity and the desire to obey the Divine command respecting such, the Church sends out every year hundreds of missionaries to proclaim its message to the world. These devoted servants comprise men and women called from all vocations, who serve without salary or any other form of material remuneration. Furthermore, they pay their own way in traveling to their appointed fields of labor and while serving therein, except so far as they may receive assistance from those who become interested in their work.
A desire common to young Latter-day Saints is to so live that they shall be found worthy to be called into service to spend a period of years, generally from two to four, as traveling ministers of the Gospel of Christ. They offer their message without money or price, carrying it to the doors in city and country, distributing literature, inviting conversation, but never forcing themselves upon unwilling hearers. Who can consistently affirm that such faithful servants as these are insincere or devoid of that love for fellow-men without which genuine love of God is impossible?
The benevolence that manifests itself in material giving is impressed as a duty upon members of the Church, and while every one is taught to assist the needy by individual effort, a system of orderly contribution and distribution is maintained. In each Ward and Branch of the Church an organization of women known as the Relief Society is operative. Its particular function is that of caring for the needy and the afflicted, without exclusive distinction as to whether the subjects of their ministration are members of the Church or not. The Relief Society receives contributions of money, clothing, food and other commodities and distributes these as occasion requires, beside maintaining a system of visitation to the needy, giving aid in nursing, comfort in bereavement, and relief from distress in every way possible.
The Church teaches the efficacy of prudent fasting, moderate abstinence from food at stated times, as an accessory to prayer; and the first Sunday of each month is observed as a fast-day. On that day the people are invited to meet for special devotional service, and by common consent and custom they contribute at least the equivalent of the meals omitted through the fasting of the family. These offerings are received by the local officers and are distributed under their direction to the worthy poor. If there be a surplus in any Ward it is applied to the needs of other Wards in which the proportion of dependent poor is greater.
By these and other methods, including the tithing system to be considered later, are the Latter-day Saints taught to give of their substance for worthy purposes, and in such a way as to avoid indiscriminate charity whereby perchance unworthy dependency would be fostered. We believe that the harmony of our prayers will become a discord if the cry of the deserving poor accompany our supplications to the throne of Grace.
AMERICA THE CRADLE OF LIBERTY
No King to Rule in the Land
THE commanding position of the United States among the world powers, and the prominent place the American nation is to maintain as the exponent and champion of human rights, were foreseen and predicted centuries before the beginning of the Christian Era. Such is the Book of Mormon record.
The prophet Nephi was one of the original company, who, under the leadership of his father Lehi, left Jerusalem in the year 600 B. C., and journeyed to the Arabian shore, thence voyaging to the American continent in a vessel they had constructed as, centuries earlier, Noah had built an ark under Divine guidance.
In the early stages of the exodus, while the travelers were journeying seaward through the deserts of Arabia, the Lord revealed unto Nephi that a part of the posterity of his brethren would be smitten by the righteous wrath of God; and it was specifically shown that the nation into which the little company was to develop would be isolated beyond the seas from all other peoples. Thus runs the account of the revelation to Nephi the prophet, the events being chronicled in the past tense as though already accomplished:
"And it came to pass that I looked and beheld many waters; and they divided the Gentiles from the seed of my brethren. And it came to pass that the angel said unto me, Behold the wrath of God is upon the seed of thy brethren. And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land." (Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 13:10-12).
Lehi and his people were Hebrews; all other nations are designated in the Book of Mormon as Gentiles. As later parts of the record make plain, "the promised land" is the continent of America. The "man among the Gentiles," who was to come across the many waters and discover the descendants of Nephi's brethren upon whom the wrath of God had fallen, was Christopher Columbus whose mission was as surely foreappointed as was that of any prophet. Then follows the prediction of the migration of the Pilgrim Fathers, who are described as "other Gentiles" going forth out of captivity; while the subsequent occupation of the land by multitudes of the Gentiles who would prosper as a nation and would subjugate the Indians is impressively set forth. The struggle of the American colonies for independence was foretold, and the assurance that the power of God would be exercised to give them victory over "their mother Gentiles", or the British nation, was inscribed on enduring metal before the existence of the western world had found place even in the dreams of mankind.
Thus runs the ancient record: "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity, did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them; And I beheld that their mother Gentiles were gathered together upon the waters, and upon the land also, to battle against them. And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together against them to battle. And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles that had gone out of captivity, were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations." (1 Nephi 13:16-19).
In the economy of God, America, which is veritably the land of Zion, was aforetime consecrated as the home of a free and independent nation. It is the divinely assured inheritance of the "House of Israel"; and people of all nationalities who will abide by the laws of righteousness, which embody the principles of true liberty, may become by adoption members of the House of Israel. For a wise purpose this promised land, the American continent, was long kept from the knowledge of men; and the hand of the Lord has been potent in directing its discovery and in the establishment of the nation of promise and destiny thereon. Nephite prophets reiterated this solemn assurance, and proclaimed as the will and purpose of God that the government of the land should be a government of the people and not the tyranny of kings.
Lehi was explicit in avowal of the Lord's purpose in consecrating America as the home of free men, on conditions of righteousness: "Wherefore I, Lehi, prophesy according to the workings of the Spirit which is in me, that there shall none come into this land, save they shall be brought by the hand of the Lord. Wherefore, this land is consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath given, it shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore, they shall never be brought down into captivity; if so, it shall be because of iniquity; for if iniquity shall abound, cursed shall be the land for their sakes; but unto the righteous it shall be blessed for ever. And behold, it is wisdom that this land should be kept as yet from the knowledge of other nations; for behold, many nations would overrun the land, that there would be no place for an inheritance." (2 Nephi 1:6-8).
DEMOCRACY OF AMERICAN ORIGIN
The Founding of an Ancient Republic
Democracy is indigenous to America.
One of the earliest recorded experiments of representative government by the people was undertaken on the Western Continent; and it was a success.
These statements are not made with reference to the establishment of the United States of America as a free and independent nation, but to events that antedated by nearly a century the birth of Christ.
At that time North America was inhabited by two great peoples, the Nephites and the Lamanites, each named after an early leader, and both originally of one family stock. Except for brief periods of comparative peace the two nations lived in a state of hostility due to Lamanite aggression.
The Nephites were progressive, cultured, and of peaceful desires, while the Lamanites became degenerate, dark-skinned and barbarous. Eventually the Nephite nation was destroyed by its savage foes; the Lamanites persisted and are represented today by their direct descendants, the American Indians.
For five centuries prior to the events now under consideration each nation had been governed by a succession of kings. The Lamanite rulers exercised autocratic sway and relied upon physical force for their power. Some of the Nephite monarchs were almost as bad, though many were notably considerate and just.
The last of the Nephite sovereigns was Mosiah; he died 91 B. C. after a righteous reign of thirty-three years. King in name, he called his people brethren and counted himself their trusted and presiding servant.
A short time before his death Mosiah called for an expression from his people as to whom they desired to succeed him on the throne. There was a united answer; the people wanted the king's son, to whom it was said "the kingdom doth rightly belong." But Aaron, the people's choice, declined the crown, as did his brothers in turn; for all these sons of Mosiah were devoted to the preaching of the Gospel and esteemed the labors of the ministry above the royal estate.
Mosiah seized the opportunity occasioned by the people's loyalty and unity to awaken them to the fact that the powers of government were inherent within themselves, and to urge them to exercise their sovereign rights and assume the privileges and responsibilities of self-rule. He recommended that they abolish the monarchy and establish a Republic according to "the voice of the people."
In a stirring proclamation he set forth the potential dangers of kingly rule and admonished the nation to guard its liberty as a sacred possession, and to delegate the governing power to officers of its own choosing, whom he called judges, who should be elected by popular vote, and who could be impeached if charged with iniquitous exercise of power and be removed if found unworthy. King Mosiah summarized in a masterly way the fundamentals of true democracy. After reciting the wrongs the people had suffered under monarchical oppression, he continued in this wise:
"Therefore choose you by the voice of this people, judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord.
"Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe, and make it your law to do your business by the voice of the people.
"And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you, yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land.
"And now if ye have judges, and they do not judge you according to the law which has been given, ye can cause that they may be judged of a higher judge.
"If your higher judges do not judge righteous judgments, ye shall cause that a small number of your lower judges should be gathered together, and they shall judge your higher judges, according to the voice of the people.
"And I command you to do these things in the fear of the Lord: and I command you to do these things, and that ye have no king. . . .
"And now I desire that this inequality should be no more in this land, especially among this my people; but I desire that this land be a land of liberty, and every man may enjoy his rights and privileges alike." (Book of Mormon, Mosiah 29.)
The affairs of government were to be the concern of the whole commonwealth; for, as the king proclaimed with convincing plainness, "the burden should come upon all the people, that every man might bear his part." It is gratifying to know that the Nephites adopted the proposition, straightway set about creating election districts, and at the appointed time chose by vote the first elective rulers of the new Republic.
From American soil, which of all was first to be prepared for the cultivation of representative government by the people, the seed of democracy shall be carried to every other land, until all men are free, in accordance with Divine intent.
PERPETUITY OF AMERICAN NATION
Assured by Prophecy
As late as but a few months prior to that fateful date—August 1, 1914—when the war storm burst in Europe, some of the world's great ones, eminent in scholarship and leaders of thought, aggressively proclaimed their belief that a great war was impossible. They held that the affairs of nations were so intimately related, the interests common to humanity so closely knit, as to safeguard the world against any such devastating conflict as would be entailed by the outbreak of war among great nations with the frightfully efficient enginery of destruction developed by present-day science. There was neither ambiguity nor reservation in the academic pronouncement that the human race, in its course of evolutionary progression, had happily risen above the barbarous incentive to wholesale murder and ruthless destruction such as characterized the less cultured epochs of history.
Certain optimistic protagonists averred that if, contrary to their demonstrated facts and figures, great nations should plunge recklessly into war, the struggle would of necessity be brief, for the total wealth of the world was insufficient to maintain for more than a few weeks at most the waging of war with modern equipment.
Yet in spite of all prognostications, as though derisively flouting the wisdom of the wise, August 1, 1914, was so deeply crimsoned that the weathering of ages future will not dull the stain. That day and all the days since have witnessed the fulfilment of the prediction relating to the last dispensation, the time in which we live, as voiced by Isaiah:
"Behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid." (Isa. 29:14.)
Verily the accumulated wisdom of men has failed us in the time of need, has failed to forecast and fails to expound the dread happenings of these eventful times. Where is the master mind that can interpret the problems of contemporary history, with factors innumerable, with relations so intricate and differentials so varied that the calculus of time is inadequate to solve?
Human reasoning unillumined by Divine revelation offers but dark and insecure refuge from the turmoil of current events. Whither then shall we look for guidance? Or, must we abandon ourselves to the despairing conclusion that to the storm-lashed ocean of the ominous present there is no haven of hope, and to our buffeted bark no anchor of comforting assurance?
To him who listens in faith there rises even above the roar of strife, the voice of prophecy citing earlier prediction of events now materializing in rapid sequence, and telling of the eventual triumph of righteousness and the vindication of man's right to liberty and happiness.
The great world conflict was predicted by both ancient and modern prophets. Joseph Smith, speaking the word of God, told of the imminent outpouring of war upon all nations, wisdom of the world's wise men to the contrary notwithstanding. And in these utterances the modern prophet spake in harmony with the predictions of earlier seers, as did he also of the promises made concerning America, which is described as a land choice above all others. Read these words of assurance given through an ancient Jaredite: "Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it, shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ, who hath been manifested by the things which we have written." (Book of Mormon, Ether 2:12.)
Furthermore, hearken unto the following with reference to this same choice land, spoken unto the ancient inhabitants of this continent through Jacob the Nephite: "But behold, this land, saith God, shall be a land of thine inheritance, and the Gentiles shall be blessed upon the land. And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles. And I will fortify this land against all other nations." (2 Nephi 10:10-12.)
We hold that the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States are inspired documents, veritable scriptures of the nation, framed by men under Divine direction, men specifically empowered and raised up for this high mission; and that these charters of liberty constitute a pattern after which the governments of the nations shall be shaped. Thus shall be fulfilled, in part at least, the prophecy of the ancient revelator, that out of this land, which in solemn truth is the land of Zion, shall go forth the law of the Lord unto the world at large. In the majesty of her high destiny our Nation has taken a stand as the champion of freedom and human rights. Her enduring greatness is conditioned only by the righteousness of her people, who, if they will but serve the God of the land—the God of Heaven and earth—shall never be subject to alien domination.
It is not written in the book of destiny that America shall bow the knee to autocracy; but, to the glorious contrary, it is inscribed on the scroll of the Divine purpose, that this, the land of Zion, shall be the haven of refuge to the oppressed: "And it shall be said among the wicked: Let us not go up to battle against Zion, for the inhabitants of Zion are terrible; wherefore we cannot stand. And it shall come to pass that the righteous shall be gathered out from among all nations, and shall come to Zion, singing with songs of everlasting joy." (D&C 45: 70-71.)
LAW OF THE TITHE
The Lord's Revenue System
Payment of tithes was required under the Law of Moses. Indeed, the early prominence given to this requirement has led to the incorrect assumption that tithe-paying had its beginning in an Israelitish statute. Tithing is older than Israel. Abraham paid a tenth part of his gains to Melchizedek, who was king of Salem and priest of the Most High God (Gen. 14:20 and Heb. 7:1-8); and Jacob made a covenant to devote to the Lord's service a tenth of all that would come into his hands. (Gen. 28:22.)
Following the development of the children of Israel into a theocratic nation, the practise of paying tithes in kind became one of the features by which they, the worshipers of Jehovah, were distinguished from all other peoples. The requirement was explicit and its application general, to rich and poor alike. Thus we read: "And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's: it is holy unto the Lord. . . . And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord." (Lev. 27:30, 32.)
As long as the people faithfully complied with the law of the tithe they prospered; and when they failed the land was no longer sanctified to their good. Hezekiah (2 Chron. 31: 5-10) and Nehemiah (Neh. 13:10-13) reproved the people for their negligence in the matter and awakened them to the jeopardy that threatened; and, later, Malachi voiced the word of Jehovah in stern rebuke, forceful admonition, and encouraging promise, relative to the payment of the Lord's tenth:
"Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, said the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it." (Mal. 3:8-10.)
At the time of our Lord's personal ministry the law had been supplemented by innumerable rules, comprising unauthorized exactions often based upon mere trivialities. Christ approved the tithe but made plain the fact that other duties were none the less imperative. See Matt. 23:23.
During recent years great interest has been manifest in the matter of the tithe, among theologians, ministers and intelligent laymen; and the reestablishment of tithe-paying as a religious duty has been strongly advocated. It is important to know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has observed this requirement from the early days of its history—not because it was operative in ancient Israel, nor because it was law and custom among the Jews in the days of Christ, but because it has been authoritatively established through modern revelation in the Church. In 1838 the Lord systematized the practise upon which the people had voluntarily entered, and defined the tithe as a tenth of one's individual possessions: "And this," said He, "shall be the beginning of the tithing of my people. And after that, those who have thus been tithed, shall pay one tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them for ever, for my Holy Priesthood, saith the Lord." (D&C 119: 3-4.) The manner in which the tithes of the people are to be paid and the channels through which the contributions are to be distributed and used in the work of the Church are specifically set forth.
As of old, so in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today, tithing is the divinely established revenue system by which the pecuniary needs of the ecclesiastical community are provided for. And as of old so today, tithe-paying must be a voluntary free-will sacrifice, not to be exacted by secular power nor enforced by infliction of fines or other material penalties. The obligation is self-assumed; nevertheless it is one to be observed with full purpose of heart by the earner who claims standing in the Church and who professes to abide by the revealed word given for the spiritual development of its members.
It is essential that men learn to give. Without provision for this training the curriculum in the school of mortality would be seriously defective. Human wisdom has failed to devise a more equitable scheme of individual contribution for community needs than the simple plan of the tithe. Every one is invited to give in amount proportioned to his income, and to so give regularly and systematically. The spirit of giving makes the tithe holy; and it is by means thus sanctified that the material activities of the Church are carried on. Blessings, specific and choice, are promised the honest tithe-payer; and these blessings are placed within the reach of all. In the Lord's work the widow's penny is as acceptable as the gold-piece of the millionaire.
Tithing is the rental we are asked to pay on the property committed to our keeping and use. We are but temporary holders, lessees of property the ultimate title of which is vested in Him who created all that is.
The Latter-day Saints believe that the tithing system has been divinely appointed for their observance; and they esteem themselves blessed in thus being permitted to have part in the furtherance of God's purposes. Under this system the people have prospered severally and as an organized body. It is the simple and effective revenue law of the Church; and its operation has been a success from the time of its establishment. Amongst us it obviates the necessity of taking up collections in religious assemblies, and makes possible the promulgation of the Church's message through the printed and spoken word, the building and maintenance of Temples for the benefit of both living and dead, to an extent that would be otherwise unattainable.
THE UNITED ORDER
No Longer Mine and Thine, But the Lord's and Ours
WE live in a material world, and certain material possessions are essential to life, to say nothing of convenience and comfort. Man must have food, clothing, and shelter; and he should have the means of intellectual enjoyment, wholesome recreation, and the desirable comforts of life. All these things are comprised in what we call wealth, and under present social conditions are represented by the one word money. Is it not true that money or its equivalent—the essential things that money can buy—must be counted among the necessities of life?
By misquotation we hear it said that money is the root of all evil; but the Scriptures say not so. The inspired declaration reads: "For the love of money is the root of all evil." (1 Tim. 6:10.) As soon as one sets his heart on money he becomes unbalanced in mind and spirit; his vision and perspective are disturbed.
In view of the prevailing conditions of social unrest, of protest against existing systems whereby the distribution of wealth is becoming more and more disproportionate, the consequent dissatisfaction with governments, and the half-smothered fires of anarchy discernible in almost every nation, we find comfort in the God-given promise of a better plan—a plan that provides without force or violence to establish a rational equality, to take the weapons of despotism from the oppressor, to banish poverty, and to give to every man the opportunity to live, labor, and rejoice in the field or sphere to which he is adapted. From the tyranny of misused wealth, as from every other form of oppression, the truth will make men free. To deserve real freedom, and to enjoy the blessings thereof to the full, mankind must subdue selfishness, which is the potent enemy of godliness.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been put under training in the practise of altruistic living, in liberality, and in the overcoming of selfishness, by the Lord's requirement of the tithe and other free-will offerings and efforts. We regard the tithe system, however, as but a step in the course of advancement toward the consecration of all our possessions, time, talents and ability, to the service of God.
Within a few months after the organization of the Church the voice of the Lord was heard in the matter, foreshadowing a development yet future, in preparation for which the tithing system was established. The day is coming when none amongst us shall speak of mine and thine, but all we have shall be accounted ours and the Lord's.
In this confident expectation we indulge no vague dreams of communism, fostering individual irresponsibility, and giving the idler an excuse for hoping to live at the expense of the thrifty; but in the assurance that every man shall be a steward of the property entrusted to his care, with the certainty of being required to give a full account of his stewardship. The varied and graded vocations will still exist; there will be laborers whose qualifications are for physical toil, managers who have proved their ability to lead and direct, some who can best serve with the pen, others with the plow; there will be engineers and mechanics, artizans and artists, farmers and scholars, teachers and authors—each laboring so far as practicable in the sphere of his choice but each required to work, and to work where and how he can be of the greatest service. Equal rights are to be insured, for thus the Lord hath spoken:
"And you are to be equal, or in other words, you are to have equal claims on the properties, for the benefit of managing the concerns of your stewardships, every man according to his wants and his needs, inasmuch as his wants are just." (D&C 82:17.)
Only the idler would suffer under such an order of things as is here outlined, and against him the edict of the Almighty has gone forth. We read in the revelations of the Church: "Thou shalt not be idle; for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer." (42:42.)
In the early part of the apostolic ministry, the unity and devotion of the Church was such that the members established a system of community ownership; (Acts 2:44-46; 4:32-37; 6:1-4) and during the brief period of its operation the people prospered temporally and spiritually. More than thirty centuries earlier the people of Enoch had rejoiced in a similar condition of oneness, and their righteousness was such that "The Lord came and dwelt with His people. . . . And the Lord called His people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them." (Pearl of Great Price, p. 38.)
The people of whom the Book of Mormon bears record also attained a blessed state of equality and with corresponding results. The Twelve Disciples, whom Christ had specially commissioned, ministered with such effectiveness that the people "had all things common among them, every man dealing justly one with another." (3 Nephi 26:19.) Further, "Therefore they were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the heavenly gift." (4 Nephi 1:3.) Of them the prophet wrote: "Surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God." (Verse 16.)
The United Order will be a success when it is established by Divine direction. The tithing system has failed whenever meddled with by the secular power. Common ownership can never be enforced by the law of the land. It must be a religious observance, of voluntary acceptance devoid of compulsion or restraint; and as such, the world shall yet see this, the Lord's plan, in successful operation.
THE WORD OF WISDOM
Sanctity of the Body
"KNOW ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." (1 Cor. 3:16; see also 6:19; and D&C 93:35.)
In these and kindred Scriptures the sanctity of the human body is affirmed with impressive simplicity. The word of God stands in strong contrast with the erroneous assumption that the body is a hindrance and burden to the spirit and ought to be contemned and kept in subjection by self-imposed afflictions. The lust of the flesh as manifested in perverted appetites and passions is a very real temptation, and servitude thereto is among the commonest of sins; but this is the evil against which the saints of old were so solemnly warned in the foregoing citation.
If the mortal state be an advancement beyond the pre-existent or unembodied condition, and a preparation for a yet more exalted existence, and so the Scriptures attest, then the body of flesh and bones is an endowment of supreme worth.
The genius of the current age recognizes the nobility of the mortal tabernacle in fact if not in theory; and as a result of this advanced conception, means for the maintenance of health and preservation of the body and the conservation of its divinely implanted functions are taught in school and college and are enforced by statute for community observance.
After long centuries of painful experience the race is coming to understand that the human body is essentially good; and the word of God so proclaimed even in the beginning. I venture to affirm that every natural appetite, yearning, passion of the human organism is inherently good; and that evil comes not from the normal satisfying of these cravings but from the perversion thereof.
As early as 1833 the Lord spake to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in warning against the use of stimulants and narcotics, and in counsel as to matters of food and drink. This revelation is currently known as
The Word of Wisdom
"That inasmuch as any man drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold it is not good, neither meet in the sight of your Father, only in assembling yourselves together to offer up your sacraments before him.
"And, behold, this should be wine, yea, pure wine of the grape of the vine, of your own make.
"And, again, strong drinks are not for the belly; but for the washing of your bodies.
"And again, tobacco is not for the body, neither for the belly, and is not good for man, but is an herb for bruises and all sick cattle, to be used with judgment and skill.
"And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.
"And again, verily I say unto you, all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man.
"Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the season thereof; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving.
"Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly;
"And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.
"All grain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, not only for man but for the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven, and all wild animals that run or creep on the earth;
"And these hath God made for the use of man only in times of famine and excess of hunger.
"All grain is good for the food of man, as also the fruit of the vine, that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground.
"Nevertheless, wheat for man, and corn for the ox, and oats for the horse, and rye for the fowls and for swine, and for all beasts of the field, and barley for all useful animals, and for mild drinks, as also other grain.
"And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel, and marrow to their bones;
"And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;
"And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.
"And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen." (D&C 89.)
Hot drinks, against which the people are specifically warned, are understood to include tea and coffee, and the counsel against their use was preached and published long before chemists and physiologists had recognized the deleterious effect of thein and caffein, which are poisonous alkaloids contained in the beverages named. The inhibition, however, applies in another sense to all liquids at high temperatures. To this point special interest attaches in view of recent demonstrations in science. Dr. Wm. J. Mayo, a surgeon of prominence, declared in an address delivered in San Francisco, June, 1915, that hot drinks are among the dominant causes of gastric ulcers and cancer.
The Word of Wisdom is generally but not universally observed in its entirety by the Latter-day Saints; and it is pertinent to inquire as to the results revealed by the vital statistics of the people. The Presiding Bishopric of the Church report that, for the six year period ending with 1916, deaths among Latter-day Saints in the organized Stakes, due to cancers and malignant ulcers of the stomach, averaged 15.83 per 100,000 of population. For the United States registration area as a whole, during the six year period covered by the latest available report, which, however, is earlier than the sexennium of the latest Church statistics, the average mortality from stomach cancer is 28.3 per 100,000. Deaths from all cancerous afflictions among members of the Church during the last six years averaged 31.15 per 100,000, or only 2.85 more per 100,000 than the national rate of mortality from stomach cancer alone for the six years last reported.
The statistics of the Church show for its members resident in organized communities exceptionally low death-rate, high birth-rate, and high average age at death, as compared with the official reports of corresponding data for the registration area of the country at large.
Of the certified causes of death "Mormons" lead the country in one, and that one is old age.
The Divine promise of health, prosperity, and prolonged life are in course of rich fulfilment among the Latter-day Saints, as in part the natural effect of obedience to the word of the Lord embodied in the Word of Wisdom.
UNCHASTITY THE DOMINANT EVIL
Infamy of a Double Standard of Virtue
THE Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proclaims the law of personal purity as a Divine commandment, the violation of which constitutes one of the most grievous of sins. We hold that the requirement is equally binding upon both man and woman, and that a standard by which he is excused and she condemned is infamously unjust. Expressive of the attitude of the Church upon this subject, the following excerpts are taken from a pamphlet issued by the late President Joseph F. Smith, who at the time of writing was the presiding official in the Church.
"What has come to be known in present day literature as the social evil is a subject of perennial discussion, and the means proposed for dealing with it are topics of contention and debate. That the public conscience is aroused to the seriousness of the dire condition due to sexual immorality is a promising indication of prospective betterment. No more loathsome cancer disfigures the body and soul of society today than the frightful affliction of sexual sin. It vitiates the very fountains of life and bequeaths its foul effects to the yet unborn as a legacy of death.
"Infidelity to marriage vows is a fruitful source of divorce, with its long train of attendant evils, not the least of which are the shame and dishonor inflicted on unfortunate though innocent children. The dreadful effects of adultery cannot be confined to the erring participants. Whether openly known or partly concealed under the cloak of guilty secrecy, the results are potent in evil influence. The immortal spirits that come to earth to tabernacle in bodies of flesh have the right to be well-born, through parents who are free from the contamination of sexual vice.
"It is a deplorable fact that society persists in holding woman to stricter account than man in the matter of sexual offense. What shadow of excuse, not to speak of justification, can be found for this outrageous and cowardly discrimination? Can moral defilement be any the less filthy and pestilential in man than in woman? Is a male leper less to be shunned for fear of contagion that a woman similarly stricken?
"Oh the baseness, the injustice, the dishonor of it all! Happily the early promulgators of this shameful conception of a double standard of morals for the sexes are hidden in the oblivion of the past. Let the infamy in which they should rightly share be borne by those who countenance the current acceptance of so vicious a distinction! Visualize the spectacle. Man, who is by nature the protector and defender of woman, ready to stone to social death the adulteress, in whose sin he was partner!
"So far as woman sins it is inevitable that she shall suffer, for retribution is sure whether it be immediate or deferred. But in so far as man's injustice inflicts upon her the consequence of his offenses, he stands convicted of multiple guilt. And man is largely responsible for the sins against decency and virtue, the burden of which is too often fastened upon the weaker participant in the crime.
"Horrifying as the condition is, it is nevertheless a black reality, that hordes of women prostitute their bodies and souls for money and find no lack of eager buyers. Who is the more depraved—the vendor or the purchaser of woman's honor? In many cases a power of discernment and analysis superior to human attainment is essential to a just verdict, but it appears certain that whatever of palliation through stress of circumstance may be found for the woman, guilty lust is too generally the primal motive of the man.
"The low esteem in which strict sexual morality is currently held is an element of positive danger to the nation as a human institution, to say nothing of the wholesale debauching of souls as an offense against Divine decree. With such awful examples as history furnishes, it is a matter of astonishment that governments should be so nearly oblivious to the disintegrating forces springing from violations of the moral law amongst their citizenry.
"The grandeur of ancient Greece, the majesty of Rome, once the proud rulers of the world, have disappeared; and the verdict of history specifies the prevalence of sexual immorality as among the chief of the destructive agencies by which the fall of those mighty peoples was effected.
"Is our modern nation to bring upon itself the doom of destructive depravity? The forces of disintegration are at work throughout the land, and they operate as insidiously as does the virus of deadly contagion. A nation-wide awakening to the need of personal sanitation and of rigorous reform in the matter of sexual morality is demanded by the exigencies of the times.
"The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the divinely ordained panacea for the ills that afflict humanity, and pre-eminently so for the dread affliction of sexual sin. Note the teachings of the Master while He ministered among men in the flesh—they were primarily directed to individual probity and rectitude of life. The letter of the Mosaic Law was superseded by the spirit of personal devotion to the right. 'Ye have heard,' said He, 'that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.' (Matt. 5: 27, 28.) The sin itself may spring from the sensual thought, the lustful glance; just as murder is often the fruitage of hatred or covetousness.
"We accept without reservation or qualification the affirmation of Deity through an ancient Nephite prophet: 'For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women. And whoredoms are an abomination before me. Thus saith the Lord of Hosts.'"