Reply to a Pamphlet, Printed in Glasgow, Entitled "Remarks on Mormonism"

REPLY TO A PAMPHLET, PRINTED IN GLASGOW, ENTITLED
“REMARKS ON MORMONISM,”

Said to be printed with the approbation of Clergymen of different denominations.

“He that speaketh lies shall perish.”—Prov. xix, 9.

(Continued from our last.)

On the fifth page of the “Remarks," the author seems to think that it is con­trary to scripture for God to authorize his servants to curse, or for him to avenge his enemies through his servants. But we inquire,—will not the Lord cause all his enemies, and those who reject his servants to be cursed? Did he not anciently give his servants power, that “whatsoever they bound upon the earth should be bound in the heavens?” Did not Paul curse those who loved not the Lord Jesus Christ? (1 Cor. xvi, 22.) Did he not curse, not only man, but even “an angel from heaven,” if he should preach any other gospel than the one the Apostles preached? (Gal. i, 8, 9.) When Paul was smitten upon the mouth, did he not say to the high priest which caused it to be done, “God shall smite thee thou whited wall?” (Acts xxiii, 3.) If Ananias and Sapphira were smitten dead for telling a falshood in the presence of Peter; and Elymas for his wicked opposition to the truth, was smitten with blindness in the presence of Paul; who can say that the Lord will not show forth like power in the last days, and acknowledge the blessings and curses that shall be pronounced through his servants, by his authority, in his name, and according to his will? Will not the two witnesses, mentioned in the xi. chapter of the Apocalypse, have power to smite and kill their enemies who shall seek to hurt them during the days of their prophecy? Will they not “have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy; and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will,” until “they shall have finished their testimony” and be killed in the streets of Jerusalem? That God will execute vengeance upon the wicked through the medium of his Saints, is clearly predicted in the Psalm exlix. The Prophet David says, “Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud upon their beds; let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two edged sword in their hand; to execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punish­ments upon the people; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fet­ters of iron; to execute upon them the judgments written: this honor have all his saints. Praise ye the Lord”

This author supposes that the Book of Mormon cannot, by any possibility, be the new covenant, as is stated in a revelation given through Mr. Smith, and refers to several passages of scripture, which he supposes to be contradictory to that idea. In reply we say, that there are many covenants which God has made with indi­viduals in different ages of the world; as, for instance, the covenant with Noah, concerning seed time and harvest—the covenant of circumcision, made with Abra­ham and his seed—the covenant of the law upon Mount Sinai—the covenant made with Israel forty years after in the plains of Moab, (Deut. xxix, 1)—the covenant made with David and the Levites, concerning their posterity—the covenant of the Gospel, &c. Among these various covenants, there are two designated by the terms “Old” and “New.” The old covenant of the law was done away in Christ, and by him the new covenant of the Gospel was introduced in its stead. The Jews, having rejected this new covenant, were broken off; the Gentiles, hav­ing received it, were grafted in. But soon after the Apostle’s death, the Gentiles also “trangressed the laws—changed the ordinance, and broke the everlasting covenant,” (Isaiah xxiv,) and have corrupted the earth with their abominations, having lost the authority, powers, and blessings of said covenant. But now, in the dispensation of the fulness of times, God hath renewed the everlasting covenant as made manifest in the Book of Mormon. This covenant, now renewed for the last time, is the same as introduced by Christ and his Apostles; and Paul testifies in Hebrews viii, that the gospel covenant is the New Covenant predicted by the prophets. Therefore, unless the Book of Mormon can be proved not to contain the gospel covenant, there is nothing unreasonable nor unscriptural in the Lord’s call­ing it the “New Covenant.” Now every one knows that the new covenant of the gospel, as revealed anciently, did not produce the results upon “the house of Israel and the house of Judah" that Jeremiah predicted; for that covenant was to cause them." That same covenant renewed in the last days will produce the results pre­dicted. The time for the gospel covenant to take effect among Israel, was placed in the future by Paul, (Rom. xi, 25, 26 and 27.) He says, “that blindness in part is happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in, and so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, there shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob; for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” Here, we see, that the fulness of the Gentiles must first come in before the gospel covenant will save all Israel and take away their sins. To this end, and for this purpose the Lord has renewed it, and sent it forth by his angel to be preached to every nation, kindred, and tongue of the Gentiles first, to bring in their fulness, after which, it will produce all the results predicted upon both Israel and Judah.

On page sixth, this author quotes a clause from a revelation, given January 19th, 1841, commanding the Saints to build the “Nauvoo House,” and let Mr. Smith and his heirs for ever afterwards occupy a certain portion of the same. (For be it remembered that Mr. Smith himself furnished a larger amount of capital towards its erection than any other person.) “In the same generation,” this author exclaims, “in which he uttered his predictions” he was “slain with impunity.” “The establishment at Nauvoo is overthrown. The Saints are utterly exterminated from their Nauvoo Zion. Yea, their very Temple became a college in the hands of their enemies, and was ultimately consumed by fire!” If the author had read a little further in the same revelation, he would have found a very plain intimation that the Saints would be hindered from doing the work assigned to them. It reads thus:—“Verily, verily, I say unto you, that when I give a commandment to any of the sons of men to do a work unto my name, and those sons of men go with ail their might, and with all they have, to perform that work, and cease not their dili­gence, and their enemies come upon them and hinder them from performing that work; behold, it behoveth me to require that work no more at the hands of those sons of men, but to accept of their offerings; and the iniquity and transgression of my holy laws and commandments, I will visit upon the heads of those who hindered my work, unto the third and fourth generation, so long as they repent not and hate me, saith the Lord God. * * * * * * And this I make an example unto you, for your consolation, concerning all those who have been com­manded to do a work, and have been hindered by the hands of their enemies, and by oppression saith the Lord your God.” Some five or six years after this prediction, the Saints were hindered by their enemies from completing that house. This was nothing more than what might have been anticipated from the intimation given in the revelation. Previous to the period in which this revelation was given, and for some time afterwards, the Saints enjoyed peace and tranquility in Nauvoo, and in the regions round about, and to all human appearance there were no fears to be enter­tained that they would be hindered from building until the Lord indicated it by revelation. Therefore the martyrdom of Joseph Smith and the persecutions of the Saints, instead of weakening the evidence of the truth of the revelation, are confir­matory of its divine authenticity.

The author of the “Remarks” seems to exert every power of his mind in mis­representing our doctrine, in order to deceive the public. He says, that in the Doctrine and Covenants, sec. ciii., par. 35, “indisputable evidence is given of a fact which the Mormons uniformly deny, viz., that the Scriptures are of no estimation in the opinion of a true Mormon.”

The clause from the revelation reads thus:—“And again, verily I say unto you, let no man pay stock to the quorum of the Nauvoo House, unless he shall be a believer in the Book of Mormon, and the revelations I have given unto you, saith the Lord your God; for that which is more or less than this cometh of evil, and shall be attended with cursings and not blessings saith the Lord your God." We see nothing in this passage to prohibit the Saints from believing in the Scriptures, but directly the reverse, they are, in this very quotation, required to believe not only in the Book of Mormon, but “in the revelations which God had given them” Now what “revelations” has the Lord given unto his Saints? I answer, the Scrip­tures, together with the Book of Mormon and many other revelations. As a proof that the Scriptures are included among the revelations which God has given for the government of the Saints, we further quote—“Thou shalt take the things which thou hast received, which have been given unto thee in my scriptures for a law, to be my law to govern my church.” (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. xiii, 16.) Hence, “that which is more or less” than a belief in the Scriptures, and in all other revelations which God has given to the Saints, “cometh of evil and shall be attended with cursings and not blessings.”

The death of Mr. Smith is next referred to by this author. The cruel, cold­blooded martyrdom of Mr. Smith and his brother, by an armed mob, who had painted themselves black for the occasion, is a circumstance too well known to need any comment here. Joseph Smith died a noble martyr for his religion,—innocent of any crimes against the laws of his country: and in all cases, where he received a trial before the courts of his country, he was honorably acquitted. The various crimes alledged against him by his murderous persecutors were never sustained. His murderers, knowing him to be innocent, had not the most distant hope of con­demning him by the law—they merely issued their perjured writs against him for th_e purpose of dragging him into the midst of his enemies, where they could murder him with impunity, and where he had no friends to protect him. Mr. Smith never escaped from any former prison as this author pretends; he was taken by a hand of heartless murderers in Missouri, who had just imbrued their hands in the blood of many of the saints, and who had dragged little children from their hiding places, and murdered them with the most horrid oaths. By this fiendish hand, he, with many others, were thrust into prison, where they were kept many days and were offered “ human flesh” to eat, and threatened with death constantly at length, however, they took them from prison and escorted them several days’ journey over the country, still saying that they intended murdering them The most of the guards became Beastly drunk, while the balance, being a little more humane, were unwilling to have them murdered, therefore they advised the prisoners to leave for the state of Illinois. Thus Mr. Smith escaped from this blood-thirsty banditti, Mr. Smith was not endeavouring to escape from Carthage prison, as this author insinuates, at the time this painted mob first made their appearance in the distance. They had rushed upon the building—burst open the door—shot dead his brother Hyrum, and severely wounded elder Taylor, one of the twelve, before he, (Mr. Smith) went to the window where he leaned partially out, as if to shield himself from the shower of balls which were pouring through the door; in which position he was shot by the mob without, and his body fell to the ground. Before he expired he was taken by the mob and placed against a well-curb, after which four of the gang simultaneously raised their guns and shot him dead. This is according to the tes­timony of eye witnesses to the whole scene.

This author proceeds to quote the words of our Saviour;—“It cannot be that a prophet perish out Jerusalem.” And concludes that Mr. Smith could not be a prophet because he perished out of Jerusalem. But we ask, Where did Peter and Paul perish? At Rome. Were they prophets? Yes. Paul declares, Ephesians iii, that God had made known to him a certain mystery, by revelation, “which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and PROPHETS by the Spirit.” Christ promised all of his apostles the spirit of prophecy, and expressly told them that the Holy Ghost should show them things to come. Look at the numerous prophecies contained in the writings of the apostles, all of which prove to a demonstration that they were great prophets, and yet the most of them perished out of Jerusalem! It is very evident from the adjoining passages that our Saviour only intended to convey the idea of the wickedness of Jerusalem, compared with other cities, and not that no prophets should, in a time to come, perish out of Jerusalem. We do not wonder at this author using such flimsy, ignonorant, and foolish arguments; for there are none that can be used against the truth. Gross slanders, foul misrepresentations, and persecutions, are the only weapons that the devil or any of his emissaries ever used to overthrow the work of God.     

The next effort of this unknown author is, to quote a sentence from my tract (“Divine Authority”) and then, with all the cunning that he possessed, endeavour to misrepresent its meaning.

The sentence which he denounces, reads thus:—How could an impostor so far surpass the combined wisdom of seventeen centuries as to originate a system diverse from every other system under heaven, and yet harmonize with the system of Jesus and his apostles in every particular? What! an impostor discover the gross darkness of ages, and publish a doctrine perfect in every respect, against which not one scriptural argument can be adduced! The idea is preposterous! The purity and infallibility of the doctrine of this great modern prophet is a presumptive evidence of no small moment in favor of his divine mission.” “What does this amount to,” inquires this deceptive author, “but that Smith has invented a more perfect system than that of Jesus Christ?” And further, this author assumes that, “the system introduced by Christ has been on the earth under heaven these eighteen hundred years.” But this is his own assumption without proof. Indeed, it is a false assumption; for the system of Jesus Christ includes inspired apostles and prophets, and all the miraculous gifts of the Holy Ghost which Christ promised. Now we ask this author if all these have been on the earth during “these eighteen hundred years? If not, then the system of Christ has not been on the earth during that time. It is true, we have the history of that system as it once existed on the earth. But where is the system now? Fled from under heaven, leaving only a history by which mankind understand that it once had place on the earth. The system introduced through Joseph Smith which embraces inspired apostles and prophets, and all other powers, gifts, and blessings, is diverse from every system under heaven, and yet it harmonizes and agrees in every par­ticular with that system which Jesus once had on earth, but which has not, because of wickedness existed among men for many centuries past. Indeed, it is the same system renewed—the same offices, gifts, and powers restored, that mankind may once more have the system of Jesus among them preparatory to his second advent.

On page eighth of the “Remarks” the author pretends to quote a revelation contained in the fourth section of the Book of Covenants, purporting, as this falsely pretends, that the New Jerusalem should be built in this generation, and that it should be dedicated by the hands of Joseph Smith, jun. Now, every one who has read the Book of Covenants, knows that there is no such declaration in the book, and that this author has quoted falsely to deceive. Mr. Smith, in the year 1831, dedicated by commandment the temple lot; but there is no revelation that says he shall dedicate the New Jerusalem; neither is there any intimation in the revelation that the New Jerusalem should be built in this generation. These are falsehoods of this wicked author’s own invention, which he has endeavored to palm off upon the public as though they were in our books. It is difficult to con­ceive how “clergy men of different denominations” could approbate such wilful and barefaced falsehoods as are contained on almost every page of the “Remarks" unless they were of the same spirit as its author. With regard to the New Jerusalem, we believe that there will be such a city built by the direction of the Almighty, in the place that he has appointed, and that it will be built between this and the expiration of the Millennium—that it will be preserved when the earth passes away—that it will afterwards come down out of heaven upon the New Earth, and that it will be the abode for ever of immortal and glorified beings. We also believe that the old Jerusalem will be built upon the land of Palestine—that it will never afterwards “be plucked up nor thrown down,” (Jer. xxxi, 38, 39, and 40,) but will be preserved when the earth passes away, and will also come down upon the New Earth after the New Jerusalem has descended, and that both cities will be occupied from thenceforth with glorified and immortal beings, who will inherit the earth for ever and ever.

The dimensions of this last city that John saw descending, are given in the twenty-first chapter of his book. John says, (verse 16,) “And the city lieth four-square, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs," which is 1500 miles; now it is rather improbable that the city should be 1500 miles in length and breadth, but it is not improbable that it should contain 1500 square miles; for 1500 square miles could all be contained in a city less than thirty-nine miles in length and breadth. There­fore, the measurement of the angle, no doubt, had reference to the superficial con­tents. John further says, “The length, and the breadth, and the height of it are equal." Does this mean that the height of the city is to be nearly 39 miles, or equal to the length and breadth, or as our Scotland author says, “a perfect cube?" We think not. The expression was, no doubt, used to represent the great equality that existed in all parts of the city, as for instance, the length of parallel lines running in one direction (as north and south) should all be equal; and parallel lines running at right angles (as east and west) through any part of the city should also all be equal; while the height of the buildings in one part of the city should be equal to the height of the buildings in any other part of the city. A perfect equality seems to characterize every part of the city, that is, the length in one place is equal to the length measured in parallel directions through any other place: the same equality characterizes the breadth, and the same equality characterizes the buildings. We have no idea that the buildings will be 39 miles in height so as to form “a perfect cube.” Indeed, we very much doubt whether the buildings will be as high as the wall; for John says, the city “had a wall great and high.” How great and high was this wall? Only “an hundred and forty and four cubits.” Now, if the height of this city was to extend up to 1500 miles, or even 39 miles, this wall could not be called “great and high” when eompared with such huge buildings. The wall would be immensely lower than the houses, and therefore would be very ill-proportioned to the city; but from the fact that the wall is called “great and high“ we may draw the conclusion that these splendid mansion were lower than the high wall with which they were surrounded.

(To be continued.)