THE SUCCESSION, 1844.
Sidney Rigdon's Claim to Guardianship.—Rigdon's Spiritual Condition.—Comparison of Sidney Rigdon and Frederick Williams.—Remarks of Brigham Young.—Meeting on Aug. 8, 1844.—Brigham Young Follows Sidney Rigdon in Address to the People.—Members of the Twelve Speak.—Vote on Question of Leadership.
The return of the Twelve to Nauvoo at that particular time was both opportune and providential. Elder Woodruff's careful record of what was said and done gives us an insight into the condition of the city and into the feelings of the people. The minds of the Saints were agitated, their hearts were sorrowful and darkness seemed to becloud their path; they were like sheep without a shepherd, since their beloved Prophet had been taken away.
Elder John Taylor was recovering from his wounds; and on the 7th of August, 1844, the Twelve met in the forenoon in council at his home. At four o'clock in the afternoon the Twelve, the high council, and the high priests met in the Seventies' Hall. It was there that Sidney Rigdon made his appearance, he having returned from Pittsburg. On invitation of President Young he took charge of the meeting. Sidney Rigdon presented to the people his claims to the guardianship of the Church. He recounted to those present, a vision which he said he received in Pittsburg on the 27th of June, the day of the Prophet's martyrdom. This vision is given by Elder Woodruff in his journal as follows: "This was presented to my mind, not as an open vision, but rather as a continuation of the vision mentioned in the Doctrine and Covenants. It was shown to me that His Church must be built up unto Joseph and that all the blessings we received must come through him. I have been ordained as spokesman to Joseph and must see that the Church is governed in a proper manner. Joseph sustains the same relationship to this Church as he has always done. No man can be a successor of Joseph. The Kingdom has to be built up to Jesus Christ through Joseph. There must still be revelation. The martyred Prophet is still the head of this Church. Every quorum should stand inthe order in which its members received their anointings. I have been ordained a spokesman to Joseph and was commanded to speak for him. The Church is not disorganized though our head is gone. We have a diversity of feelings on this matter. I have been called to be a spokesman unto Joseph and I want to build up the Church unto him; and if the people call me to sustain this place, I want it upon the principle that every individual shall acknowledge my right for himself. I propose to be a guardian to the people. In this matter I have discharged my duty and have done what God has commanded me to do. The people may please themselves whether they accept me or not."
It will be remembered that although Sidney Rigdon had for a long time been faithful and had passed through many persecutions and tribulations with Joseph, he had weakened and had become "weary in well doing." When he came out of Liberty jail he made an expression both presumptuous and sacrilegious by saying, in substance, that the Savior was nothing in suffering, compared with himself. Again when the Prophet gazed upon Commerce, the place where Nauvoo was built, he prophetically remarked: "It is a beautiful site but not long a resting place for the Saints." Sidney was so impetuous and so weary of suffering that in a tone of vexation he said of Joseph's words: "I thought that Joseph knew better than to prophesy evil concerning the Saints."
The foregoing remarks disclose the state of Elder Rigdon's mind and explain the interpretation which he put upon the sacrifices he had made for the gospel's sake. From these sacrifices he sought honor rather than the knowledge and spirit they contained. Elder Rigdon further manifested a weakness in his faith by his critical attitude towards the Prophet whose mind, to Sidney Rigdon's knowledge, had been so wonderfully enlightened by a divine power that enabled him to foresee future events. When Elder Rigdon, in closing his talk, remarked that the people could do as they pleased about it, he manifested a weakness of conviction and a spirit of indifference to his own claims that created an equal indifference in the minds of those who listened to his words.
Before his death, Joseph had conferred the keys of his divine authority upon the Twelve who stood next in authority to thePresidency of the Church and they succeeded to the leadership when the latter for any reason became disorganized.
Before the Prophet's death Elder Rigdon became separated from the body of the Church and really abandoned his calling by his return to his former home in Pittsburg. Associated in this particular event in the history of the Church are the words of the Prophet which so perfectly portrayed, not only Sidney Rigdon's character and future life, but also the marvelous inspiration which characterized the words of the Prophet. From Church History, Volume I., page 448, the following is given:
"Brother Sidney is a man whom I love but is not capable of that pure and steadfast love for those who are his benefactors that should characterize a president of the Church of Christ. This with some other little things, such as selfishness and independence of mind, which too often manifested, destroy the confidence of those who would lay down their lives for him—these are his faults. But notwithstanding these things, he is a very great and good man; a man of great power of words, and can gain the friendship of his hearers very quickly. He is a man whom God will uphold, if he will continue faithful to his calling. O God, grant that he may for the Lord's sake. Amen."
"And again, blessed be brother Sidney, notwithstanding he shall be high and lifted up, yet he shall bow down under the yoke like unto an ass that croucheth beneath his burden, that learneth his master's will by the stroke of the rod; thus saith the Lord: yet, the Lord will have mercy on him and he shall bring forth much fruit, even as the vine of the choice grape when her clusters are ripe, before the time of the gleaning of the vintage; and the Lord shall make his heart merry as with sweet wine, because of him who putteth forth his hand, and lifteth him up out of the deep mire, and pointeth him out the way, and guideth his feet when he stumbles and humbleth him in his pride. Blessed are his generations; nevertheless one shall hunt after them as a man hunteth after an ass that has strayed in the wilderness, and straightway findeth him and bringeth him into the fold. Thus shall the Lord watch over his generation, that they may be saved, Even so, Amen."
"The man who willeth to do well, we would extol his virtues, and speak not of his faults behind his back. A man whowilfully turneth away from his friend without a cause, is not easily forgiven. The kindness of a man should never be forgotten. That person who never forsaketh his trust should ever have the highest place of regard in our hearts, and our love should never fail, but increase more and more, and this is my disposition and these are my sentiments."
"Brother Frederick G. Williams is one of those men in whom I place the greatest confidence and trust, for I have found him ever full of brotherly love, and kindness. He is not a man of many words but is ever winning because of his constant mind. He shall ever have a place in my heart, and is ever entitled to my confidence. He is perfectly upright and honest and seeks with all his heart to magnify his Presidency in the Church of Christ, but often fails because of lack of confidence in himself. God grant that he may overcome all evil. Blessed be Brother Frederick for he shall never want a friend, and his generation after him shall flourish. The Lord hath appointed him an inheritance upon the land of Zion: yea, and his head shall blossom, and he shall be as an olive branch that is bowed down with fruit. Even so. Amen."
The fulfillment of these words were wonderfully brought about recently through the discovery of Sidney Rigdon's son, John W., in New York. The son, most of his life, had been separated from the Church and all its interests. The proselyting of the elders in that city awakened in him a spirit of inquiry into the doctrines which his father had so ably expounded. The son became converted to the divinity of those doctrines and espoused the teachings of the Church.
On the other hand, the posterity of Frederick Williams became numerous and faithful. In view of such divine insight into the lives of men as well as into the course of events, who can doubt? Joseph Smith stood forth in prophetic majesty like Moses, Samuel, Isaiah, Peter, James, John, and others of old.
Returning to that important meeting in the Seventies' Hall, we find recorded in Elder Woodruff's journal the words of President Young. They are given by that faithful chronicler as follows: "I do not care who leads the Church as long as the Lord directs it. One thing I must know and that is what God says about it. I have the keys, and, therefore, the means of obtaining the mind of God upon this subject. I know there are those in ourmidst who will seek the lives of the Twelve as they did the lives of Joseph and Hyrum. We shall ordain others and give them the fulness of priesthood, so that if we are killed the priesthood shall remain. Joseph conferred upon our heads all the keys and powers belonging to the apostleship which he held before he was taken away. No man, no set of men, can get between Joseph and the Twelve in this world or in the world to come. How often Joseph has said to the Twelve: 'I have laid the foundation, and you must build thereon; for upon your shoulders the Kingdom rests.' The Twelve as a quorum will not be permitted to tarry here long, they will go abroad and bear off the Kingdom to the nations of the earth. They will baptize people faster than mobs can kill them. I would like it, were it my privilege, to take my valise and travel and preach until we had a people gathered who would be true. My private feelings would be to let the affairs of men and women alone, except to preach the gospel and to baptize people into the Kingdom of God. However, what duty places upon me I intend to fulfill."
Upon the suggestion of President Young, a special conference was appointed for the following Tuesday, August 8, at ten a. m. To this those present gave unanimous assent.
At the request of William Marks, who then presided over the stake in Nauvoo, a special meeting was held in the morning to choose a guardian for the Church. At that time Sidney Rigdon took his position in a wagon about two rods in front of the stand and talked to the people for about an hour and a half upon the choice of a guardian for the Church. Those who were present on that occasion and who were familiar with the eloquence of Sidney Rigdon, say that all his former inspiration and eloquence had vanished while setting forth his personal claims for recognition. He spoke as one who had forsaken the path of duty and had become, like many others, indifferent to his obligations in the Church.
When this meeting was dismissed, President Young made an appointment with the brethren to assemble at two p. m. that day. There were present among the assembled multitude, President Young, Heber C. Kimball, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, Wilford Woodruff, Willard Richards, and George A. Smith. The various quorums were assigned to their respective places around the stand.After the opening exercises, President Young arose and said: "Attention all! This congregation makes me think of the days of King Benjamin when the multitude was so great that all could not hear. Let none complain of the size of this congregation, it was necessary to call you together. For the first time in the history of our lives, for the first time in this dispensation of the gospel, we are without the Prophet Joseph in our midst. I step forth, therefore, to act in my calling in connection with the Quorum of the Twelve, the Apostles of Jesus Christ of this generation—Apostles whom God has called by revelation through the Prophet Joseph Smith and who are ordained and anointed to carry the keys of the Kingdom of God unto all the world.
"Hitherto the people have walked by sight and not so much by faith. We have had the Prophet as the mouthpiece of the Lord; now he is gone. He has sealed his testimony with his blood. We are called for the first time to walk by faith. Now that our Prophet and Patriarch are taken from our midst, in behalf of the Twelve I submit to the people this question: Do you want someone to guard, to guide, to lead you into the Kingdom of God as a guardian, spokesman, or something else? If so, signify it by raising your right hand. (There was no vote).
"When I came to this stand I had peculiar feelings and impressions. The faces of this people seemed to say: we want a shepherd to guide us through this world. To all who want to draw apart from the Church I say, let them do it if they choose, but they will not prosper. They will find that there is a power with the Apostles which will carry the work off victoriously and which will build up and defend the Church and Kingdom of God in all the world. What do the people want? I want the privilege of weeping and mourning for thirty days at least, and then rising up and shaking myself and telling the people what the Lord wants of them. Although my heart is too full of mourning to launch out into business transactions and into the organizations of the Church, I feel compelled this day to step forth and discharge all those duties which God has placed upon me.
"I now wish to speak of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Church is organized, and you want to know how it is organized, I will tell you. I know your feelings. Do you want me to tell you your feelings? Thereis President Rigdon who was counselor to Joseph. I ask, where are Joseph and Hyrum? They are gone beyond the veil, and if President Rigdon wants to act as his counselor, he must go beyond the veil where he is.
"There has been much said about President Rigdon being President of the Church and leading the people—being the head, etc., etc. Brother Rigdon has come sixteen hundred miles to tell you what he wants to do for you. If the people want President Rigdon to lead them they may have him; but I say unto you that the Quorum of the Twelve have the keys of the Kingdom in all the world. The Twelve are appointed by the finger of God. Here is Brigham, have his knees ever faltered? Have his lips ever quivered? Here are Heber and the rest of the Twelve, an independent body who have the keys of the priesthood; the keys of the Kingdom of God to deliver to all the world; this is true, so help me God! They stand next to Joseph and are as the Presidency of the Church. I do not know whether my enemies will take my life or not and I do not care, for I want to be with the man I love.
"You cannot fill the office of a prophet, seer, and revelator. God must do that. You are like children without a father, and sheep without a shepherd. You must not appoint any man at your head; if you do, the Twelve must ordain him. You cannot appoint any man at your head, but if you do want any other man or men to lead you, take him or them, and we will go our way to build up the Kingdom of God in all the world.
"I know who are Joseph's friends and who are his enemies; I know where the keys of the Kingdom are, where they will eternally be. You cannot call a man to be a prophet. You cannot take Elder Rigdon and place him above the Twelve; if so, he must be ordained by them.
"I tell you there is an over-anxiety to hurry matters here. You cannot take any man and put him at the head. You would scatter the Saints to the four winds. You would sever the priesthood. So long as we remain as we are, the Heavenly Head is in constant co-operation with us; and if you go out of that course, God will have nothing to do with you.
"Again, some perhaps think that our beloved Brother Rigdon would not be honored, would not be looked to as a friend;but if he does right and remains faithful, he will not act against our counsel nor we against his, but act together and be as one.
"I again repeat—no man can stand at our head except God reveals it from the heavens. I have spared no pains to learn my lesson of the Kingdom in this world and in the eternal worlds: and if it were not so, I could go and live in peace; but for the gospel and your sakes, I shall stand in my place. We are liable, all the day long, to be killed. You have never lived by faith.
"Brother Joseph, the Prophet, has laid the foundation for a great work and we will build upon it. You have never seen the quorums built one upon another. There is an almighty foundation laid and we can build a Kingdom such as there never was in the world. We can build a Kingdom faster than Satan can kill the Saints off.
"What do you want? Do you want a patriarch for the whole Church? To this we are perfectly willing. If Brother Samuel H. Smith had been living, it would have been his right and privilege, but he is dead. He is gone to Joseph and Hyrum. He is out of the reach of bullets and spears and he can associate himself with his brothers, his friends, and the Saints.
"Do you want a patriarch? Here is Brother William left. Here is Uncle John Smith, uncle to the Prophet Joseph. It is their right. The right of the patriarchal priesthood belongs to Joseph's family.
"Do you want a trustee-in-trust? Has there been a bishop who has stood in his lot yet? What is his business? To take charge of the temporal affairs so that the Twelve and the elders may go on their business. Joseph condescended to do their business for them. Joseph condescended to offer himself for Presidency of the United States, and it was a great condescension.
"Do you want a spokesman? Here are Elder Rigdon, Brother Amasa Lyman, (whom Joseph expected to take as a counselor) and myself. Do you want the Church properly organized, or do you want a spokesman. Elder Rigdon claims to be spokesman to the Prophet. Very well—he was. But can he now act in that office?
"If he wants now to be a spokesman to the Prophet he must go to the other side of the veil for the Prophet is there, butElder Rigdon is here. Why will Elder Rigdon be a fool? Who knows anything of the priesthood or of the organization of the Kingdom of God? I am plain. Does the Church want it as God organized it, or do you want to clip the power of the priesthood, and let those who have the right go and build up the Kingdom in all the world wherever the people will hear them?
"If there is a spokesman, if he is a king and priest, let him go and build up a kingdom unto himself. The Twelve are at the head of the Church. I want to live on the earth and spread truth through all the world. You Saints of Latter-days want things right. If ten thousand should rise up and say they have Joseph's shoes, I know they would be imposters. In the priesthood you have a right to build up a kingdom if you know how the Church is organized.
"Now if you want Sidney Rigdon or William Law to lead you, or any body else, you are welcome to them both, but I tell you in the name of the Lord that no man can put another between the Twelve and the Prophet Joseph. Why? Because Joseph was their file leader and he has committed into their hands the keys of the Kingdom in this last dispensation for all the world. I ask, who has stood next to Joseph? I have; and I will stand next to him. We have a head and that head is the Apostleship, the spirit and power of Joseph, and we now can begin to see the necessity of that Apostleship.
"President Rigdon was at his side, not above. No man had a right to counsel the Twelve but Joseph Smith. Think of these sayings. You cannot appoint a prophet; but if you let the Twelve remain and act in their place, the keys of the Kingdom are with them, and they can manage the affairs of the Church and direct all things aright.
"Now all this does not lessen the character of President Rigdon. Let him magnify his calling and Joseph will want him behind the veil. Let him be careful what he does lest that thread which binds us together be cut asunder. May God bless us all."
Following the remarks of President Brigham Young, Amasa Lyman spoke a few words fully sustaining President Young and the Twelve. Elder Lyman had been chosen as a counselor to the Prophet Joseph and in reference to the matter pending said: "I am gratified with the open, frank, and plain expositionof President Young. He has seen the relation I bear to our deceased brother. I never did conceive that it gave me a right to stand above the Twelve. I make no exceptions, whatever, to anything he has said. President Young has stood next to the Prophet Joseph with the Twelve and I have stood next to them and will be with the Twelve forever. We have a head here. What is that head? The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles."
The words, the appearance, and the spirit of Brigham Young were so convincing and so like those of the Prophet Joseph that the people knew the voice of their new shepherd.
President Rigdon next called upon W. W. Phelps to speak for him as he could not speak for himself. Although Elder Phelps spoke at some length, he did not advocate the claims of Elder Rigdon. He sustained the right and duty of the Twelve Apostles to stand at the head, and expressed his hope that Elder Rigdon would submit to that authority.
Apostle Parley P. Pratt then spoke in support of President Young and the Twelve and said with reference to the wicked men in Nauvoo: "If there are wicked men here, it is because we support them. Stop dealing with them and they will go away. I am willing to do good to all men, especially to the household of faith. Mobs and wicked men will cease only when you cease to support them. I know we can all live and be happy—when we deal with honest men. If some men want a doctor to cure them, they will send directly for the worst man they can find. I would die a natural death rather than have a wicked doctor help me off. Cunning device and hypocritical sophistry gain an ascendency in Nauvoo, and this they have often done elsewhere in the History of the Church."
At the close of Elder Pratt's remarks President Young arose and said: "If Brother Rigdon is the person you want to lead you, vote for him; but if you do, then follow him and take his counsel hereafter as you did the counsel of Joseph; and do not say so unless you mean to follow him. I will say the same for the Twelve. Don't make a covenant to support them unless you intend to abide by their counsel. President Rigdon wants me to bring up the first question of sustaining the Twelve. If the Church wants the Twelve to stand at its head, to be the Presidency of the Church in all the world, standing next to Joseph, towalk in their calling and to hold the keys of this Kingdom, manifest it by holding up the right hand. (There was a unanimous vote in favor of the proposition.) If there be any of a contrary mind, lift up your hands in like manner. (No hand went up). This supercedes the other question and the necessity of putting it to the quorums."
The remarks of President Young on this occasion clearly indicate that there was no disposition to treat unkindly or with disrespect the feelings of Elder Rigdon, or to disregard the fact of his long experience, and of his sufferings for the gospel's sake. President Young continued: "We feel as though we could take Brother Rigdon along with us. We want such a man. Let him be one with us and we one with him." Later in his remarks President Young asked the congregation if they would sustain Elder Rigdon in his relationship to the Twelve. The vote to do so was unanimous.
Of the deceased Prophet, President Young said: "You did not know whom you had amongst you. Joseph so loved this people that he gave his life for them. Hyrum loved his brother and this people unto death. Joseph and Hyrum have given their lives for the Church. Very few knew Joseph's character, who loved you unto death. He has now sealed his testimony with his blood. If the Twelve had been here, they would not have seen him given up. He should not have been given up. He was in your midst and you did not know him. He has been taken away, for the people are not worthy of him. I do not know whether my enemies will kill me or not. I would wish to be with the man I love."
The patriarch of the Church had been taken away and the office therefore left vacant. Of this matter President Young said: "We shall have a patriarch, and the right to this office is in the family of Joseph Smith. It belongs to some of his relations. Here is Uncle John. He has been ordained a patriarch. Brother Samuel would have received it, but he also has been taken away. The right is in Uncle John or in one of his brothers." The matter of selecting a patriarch was left to the Twelve for future action and for the purpose of learning the will of the Lord concerning it. At that time the Patriarch Hyrum's son, John, who now fills the office was only ten years of age. Uncle John, brotherto Joseph's father, was finally chosen to fill the place which he did with honor and satisfaction during the rest of his life.
Since that memorable conference all therein said by President Young and his associates is confirmed by the position taken with respect to the authority or the leadership in the Church. Notwithstanding the predictions of a migration by the Saints to the valleys of the Rocky Mountains, the leaders adhered strictly to the divine command, admonishing them to complete the Temple. By the conscientious regard for the word of God which was manifested to them from day to day they accomplished the work at hand and trusted their future movements to the guidance of their Heavenly Father. They waited upon the Lord and were taught by Him the lessons of patience as well as the lessons of faith. The conference just closed was a notable landmark in the history of the Church. Its decisions have been faithfully kept and the wisdom of those decisions, time has justified.
SECOND CALL TO GREAT BRITAIN, 1844.
The New Leadership.—Second Call to Great Britain.—Warning Against Leading Companies from Nauvoo.—Instructions To Finish the Temple and To Build up the City.—W. W. Visits Emma Smith and Others.—Parting Address to the Saints.
The mid-summer days of 1844 were full of uncertainties, wonderment, some misgivings, many jealousies, and considerable resistance to the newly established authority and leadership in the Church.
Joseph Smith was a wonderful man, a man with a marvelous career. The full force of his prophetic mission had not fallen upon those who were his contemporaries. A person's relationship with him in those days was no doubt a favored opportunity. His magnetism, individual force, and the personal qualities of his life impressed those with whom he was most intimately associated, those who had sincerely accepted his divine calling. It is not true, however, that the highest and best understanding of his prophetic mission could be had by personal contact. The highest and best testimony that ever came to men and women in the world respecting the prophetic calling of Joseph Smith came to them through the gift of the Holy Ghost. By that spirit men who never saw him, never felt the magnetism of his personality, were among the most devoted in their adherence to his teachings.
Those Saints who saw in Joseph Smith the instrumentality of a divine purpose, and saw above and beyond their young Prophet the glories of a new dispensation, did not hesitate at the call of a new shepherd, the accents and tones of whose voice had the ring of the same inspiration that had moved other hearts in the days gone by. Ambitions had to be reckoned with, and they are full of seduction and danger when they obscure the vision by selfish aims. There is always darkness when men stand in their own light; there is nothing that dims a man's vision so much as his own shadow. There were aspiring men who cherished the desire to put to the test their own personal influence. It is so easy for personal influence to beget pride,—pride which not only shuts off that influence, but which also makes men helplessto realize its absence long after it has departed. Even after the vote of the conference had been general to sustain the new leadership, there were small factions who wandered away from the body of the Church.
At a meeting of the Twelve Apostles on the 12th of August, the subject of missionary work came up for consideration. The new movement called forth a proselyting spirit that was just as strong after Joseph's death as it was before. The American continent was considered none too large for a field of operation. It was districted for missionary purposes and presidents were appointed over the several divisions. At this meeting Elder Woodruff was chosen to preside over the European mission. One never reads of his call abroad without some feeling of regret that so faithful a chronicler of current events should be separated from the main body of the Church, and future generations deprived of the detailed narrative which he gave of the counsels, teachings, and movements of the leaders.
On Sunday, the 18th, President Young addressed a vast congregation of Saints, a synopsis of whose teachings is found in Elder Woodruff's journal. "I discover," says President Young, "a disposition in the sheep to scatter abroad now that their former shepherd has been taken from them. I do not mean to say that it will never be right for the people to leave this place, but they should wait until the proper time comes and until they can go under proper counsel. The report has gone through the city that the Twelve have secret understandings with those who are going away, and with those who are taking companies with them; and that although the Twelve will speak against it publicly, yet privately they approve such migration. If it were the last words I had to speak before going into the eternal world, I would solemnly declare that there is not one word of truth in such a report. No man has any right through consent of the Twelve to lead one soul out of this city except Lyman Wight and George Miller who have the privilege of taking the Pine Company. If they go contrary to our counsel, they will go to their own self-destruction. If men do not cease striving to be great by exalting themselves and by leading people astray, they shall fall and not rise again."
Those were great words, words remarkably fulfilled in the subsequent career of Lyman Wight who rebelled against the authorityof the Twelve and led a little body of people into Texas. His influence, however, soon departed. His followers scattered and he died of mountain fever. The same fate befell others who pursued the same course. It was too bad that Wight should thus obscure what had been in him in earlier days, a great loyalty and a great devotion.
Continuing, President Young said: "I wish you distinctly to understand that the counsel of the Twelve is for every family that does not belong to the Pine Company to stay in Nauvoo to build the Temple and obtain the endowments to be given therein. Do not scatter. United we stand, divided we fall. It has been whispered abroad that all who go into the wilderness with Wight and Miller will get their endowments. They cannot give an endowment in the wilderness. If we do not carry out the plan laid down by Joseph we can get no further endowments. I want this to sink deep into your hearts that you may appreciate it.
"Do the people leave here because they are afraid? If so, I tell them before God that they shall have no place to rest, but shall flee from place to place like the Jews. I would rather have the dead body of the Prophet than some men who are alive. We want to build the Temple in this place even if we have to do as the Jews did in their erection of the Temple at Jerusalem: work with a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other. Stay here. Plow, sow, and build. Put your plow shares into the prairie. One plow share will do more to drive off the mob than two guns.
"Do you suppose the mouth of God is closed to be opened no more? If this were true, I would not give the ashes of a rye straw for this Church. If God has ceased to speak by revelation or by the Holy Ghost, there is no salvation, but such is not so. Woe! Woe! Woe! to all who have shed the blood of the Saints and the Lord's anointed. If you have the spirit of God you can discern right from wrong. When a man is not right, even though his language is as smooth as oil, there will be many queries about him, he will not edify the body of the Saints and I give this to you as a key. Store your grain in Nauvoo, for it will be needed there while you are building the Temple.
"I want to say to the hands upon the Temple, be united; and to the committee, don't turn away any person because he is English, Irish, or Scotch. Employ every man you can, and buildthe Temple and build your homes. I would rather pay out every cent to build up this place and receive an endowment, even were I driven the next minute without anything to take with me.
"I had a dream which I will relate here. I saw a fruit tree and went to it in search of fruit. I soon discovered that some of the main branches at the top of the tree growing from the body were dead. It seemed necessary to cut off the dead branches in order to save the tree. I asked someone to help me cut them off. He stepped on a large green limb. He was afraid it would break, so I put my shoulder under it and held it up while he cut off the dead branches. The green limb was cracked but it did not break. After we cut off the dead branches the wounds healed up and the tree grew nicely. Now let us cut off the dead branches of the Church that good fruit may grow."
The central idea now in the mind of Brigham Young and the paramount influence actuating him in those days may easily be seen in the steadfast purpose he manifested to build upon the foundation which the Prophet had already laid. He had no ambition to excel his predecessor and was therefore loyal to the Prophet, and throughout all his life he magnified his calling by sustaining the prophetic mission of Joseph Smith. A few of the leaders fell by the wayside, but those who were foremost in supporting the Prophet at the time of his martyrdom were found faithful after his death.
Elder Woodruff was no less enthusiastic in the great latter day work than he had formerly been. The men he most respected he regarded simply as instrumentalities of a divine purpose; for to his mind it was a great thing to be an instrument in the hands of God in the furtherance of a new and grand dispensation. His missionary zeal never waned and those mid-summer days of 1844 found him busily occupied making preparations for his departure to England where he was to preside over the British Mission. His wife was to accompany him, and arrangements were made to leave their son, Wilford, during their absence with his old time friend, John Benbow.
Before leaving Nauvoo, he paid a visit to Emma Smith to whose life he sought to bring consolation in the hour of her bereavement. She gave him a piece of oak for a staff. The oak had been taken from Joseph's coffin. She also presented him witha pair of white cotton gloves, and to his wife she gave a handkerchief. He and Mrs. Woodruff next called upon Mary Smith, widow of Hyrum, and the mother of President Joseph F. Smith. She gave Elder Woodruff several small locks of hair taken from the heads of Joseph, Hyrum, Samuel, and Don Carlos, all brothers who had passed away into the other world. Speaking of these relics Elder Woodruff says: "I also obtained some hair of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. My purpose in getting it was that I might put a part of each of these collections in the knob of my staff as a relic of those noble men, the master spirits of the nineteenth century." These relics he held as something sacred during his life time, and they are now in the possession of his family.
"I next visited Mother Lucy Smith, the mother of the Prophet, and of a large family of sons. This noble mother and prophetess felt sorely grieved over the loss of her children, and lamented the cruel treatment she had received at the hands of an unfeeling world. She begged a blessing at my hands. I laid my hands upon her head and by the spirit of God pronounced upon her a blessing. This was August 23, 1844. I quote from that blessing as follows: 'Let thy heart be comforted in the midst of thy sorrow for thou shalt be held forever in honorable remembrance in the congregations of the righteous. Thou shalt be remembered in thy wants during the remainder of thy days; and when thou shalt be called upon to depart, thou shalt lie down in peace having seen the salvation of thy God who has laid the everlasting foundation for the deliverance of Israel through the instrumentality of thy sons.'"
That God had made her sons the instrumentality in the opening of a new dispensation gave the aged mother an abiding consolation in the midst of her grief.
On the 24th of August Elder Woodruff was set apart for his mission to Europe under the hands of the Twelve Apostles, John Taylor pronouncing the blessing. On Sunday the 25th Elder Woodruff addressed the Saints in Nauvoo, and from the synopsis he made of his remarks, the following quotation is here given: "There is a spirit in man, and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth him understanding. It is through this spirit which giveth understanding that this congregation is assembled at this place. You havethe spirit of God and you therefore understand His ways and purposes. I have now one important declaration to make to you and that is that inasmuch as you have been anointed in heart, mind, and action in supporting your counselors, the priesthood of God, the present authorities of the Church, as you have supported the Prophet while he was alive, you will be safe and you will be blessed. You will also be protected, but if you are divided and reject the counsels of God, you will fall. Union and faithfulness are necessary for your salvation. It is true that you have been led by one of the best men that ever graced humanity or tabernacled in the flesh, but he is gone, he sealed his testimony with his blood, he loved this people unto death.
"I now call upon the people to be united in building upon the foundation which the Prophet laid during his lifetime. You have been called to suffer much for the cause in which you are engaged, but if judgment begins at the House of God, Babylon will not escape. If there is fire in the green tree, what shall happen to the dry tree. No people are better prepared for the shock that is coming to this world than are the Latter-day Saints. The real object we have is to secure the blessings which lie beyond the veil and which will be found in the first resurrection. For these blessings we are preparing ourselves.
"The fact that the Prophet sealed his testimony with his blood does not destroy the gospel or lessen the power and purposes of God. Truth has not been annihilated, neither has the priesthood found its burial. The testimony of Jesus is now in force. My counsel, therefore, is to follow the example of those who are gone and who have been faithful unto death. If you would be united, go in all your might and build that Temple and get your endowments.
"I earnestly exhort you to faithfulness and ask your faith and prayers in my behalf. I also want your forgiveness for any wrong I may have done. I bid the congregation farewell."
"The next week I went to the river with Mrs. Woodruff where we were baptized for some of our dead friends." At midnight of that day Elder Woodruff and his wife, accompanied by Chas. C. Rich, Elder Goddard, and several others ascended the walls of the Temple where they knelt in solemn prayer. Elder Woodruff, being mouth, poured out his soul to God for the successfulcompletion of the Temple. He also implored divine aid for a prosperous season for the Church.
In the completion of the Temple was centered the hope of all the devoted Latter-day Saints of those days. The leaders of the Church prayed and labored unceasingly for its completion. The spirit of apostasy in those times manifested itself most strongly in the efforts of those who sought to get away from Nauvoo, who wanted to establish in some distant place the Church anew. These dissenters argued that Nauvoo must be abandoned, and they were right in that conclusion; but Nauvoo was not to be abandoned at that time nor under their leadership. It sometimes happens in this life that greater wisdom and virtue are found in the time an event is accomplished than in the accomplishment of the event itself. The great truth of the exodus from Nauvoo was to be sought for rather in the circumstances of that exodus, than in the fact itself.
That was not the first time nor was it the last time that men, anticipating the accomplishment of some divine purpose, placed themselves in front of those appointed for the accomplishment of God's will. It sometimes requires as much virtue to refrain from doing when the time has not yet arrived, as it required to do when the command was given. It is not always easy for men to wait upon the Lord, especially when they are actuated by an overweening ambition to anticipate His purposes and be the first to undertake their accomplishment.
The men in those days who were opposing the completion of the Temple, were full of sophistries. They argued then, as men argue now, largely in harmony with their own selfish ends and overpowering ambitions. If their arguments could not be, to their minds, successfully answered, they must be right. To their minds it was evident that the Saints must sooner or later leave Nauvoo. Why build the Temple, they asked, and thus throw away the labor of their hands in the hour of its completion. They argued the folly of such a course, and some who were loosely anchored in their faith were led away by the sophistries contained in such arguments.
With the thoughtful, it was otherwise. The Temple might be destroyed even before its completion, or they might not be permitted to enjoy, at any length, its blessings after it was finished.With them that was not the question. Their highest guidance was found in the observance of God's will. He had said so; if so, enough. The spirit bore testimony long before the mind had evidence of the great truth contained in God's command. The same spirit that actuated Christ in the garden of Gethsemane, actuated His faithful followers in those trying days in Nauvoo. "Thy will be done." It is hard for men who have strong wills to yield to other wills, even though it be God's will which is at variance with their own. Men were taught then, as they were taught in ancient Israel, to wait upon the Lord.
The over-anxious, the ambitious, the rebellious, would not wait upon the Lord. They went their own way; they were scattered abroad. Not having learned the lesson of self-restraint, the light and truth of the gospel became obscured in their minds, and their own will they mistook for God's will. They fell by the wayside.
A letter containing his appointment is given in his journal as follows:
"Nauvoo, August 22, 1844.
"To all Elders and Saints in Great Britain Greeting:
"We send our beloved Brother Wilford Woodruff to England to take charge of all business transactions pertaining to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, both spiritual and temporal. We wish you to give diligent heed to his counsel in all things, and as we have not the opportunity of informing you of what has transpired this season by letter, our beloved Brother will make known unto you all things. We wish the brethren to be faithful and diligent in keeping all the commandments of God, and in hearkening to the counsels of those who are sent to counsel them. Let no man or set of men think they have power of authority or the keys of the Kingdom above Apostle Wilford Woodruff whom we send unto you to instruct you in the things pertaining to life and salvation. Though our Prophet be slain for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus, yet the keys of the Kingdom remain in the Church and the heavens are not closed, neither is the mouth of the Almighty sealed up that He cannot speak. The God of Israel will communicate to His disciples all things necessary for the building up of His Kingdom on the earth untilIsrael is gathered, yea even all the blood of Abraham scattered over all the earth, Zion established, Jerusalem rebuilt, and the whole earth be filled with the glory and knowledge of God. We wish all the Saints in England to continue their gathering as usual to the land of America; and they may have the privilege of appointing a committee to visit the land of America to prepare a location for a settlement of the brethren from Europe according to their desire under the direction and counsel of Elder Wilford Woodruff; and further we would say unto the Saints in all the world that may be visited by Elder Wilford Woodruff that inasmuch as they will hearken to his counsel, they shall be blest, inasmuch as they will render him any assistance in his mission they will be doing the will of God and shall not lose their reward; and we desire that all Saints may use their efforts to sustain him in this important mission which he is called to fulfill by their faith, prayers, and brotherly love according to the grace of God; for he is qualified to teach in all things pertaining to the Church and and Kingdom of God established in these last days. Therefore, dear brethren, we would say unto you in conclusion be humble and faithful and hearken diligently unto the counsel of this our beloved brother in the Lord, Elder Wilford Woodruff, and the blessings of the Lord will attend you, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
"BRIGHAM YOUNG,
"President of the Twelve,
"WILLARD RICHARDS,
"Clerk."