I do not wish to eradicate any items from the lecture Elder Hyde has
given us this evening, but simply to give you my views, in a few
words, on the portion touching Bishops and Deacons.
In Paul's first epistle to Timothy, third chapter, he writes as
follows—
"This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he
desireth a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of
one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality,
apt to teach; Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy
lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; One that ruleth well
his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;
(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take
care of the Church of God?) Not a novice, lest being lifted up with
pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover he must
have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into
reproach and the snare of the devil. Likewise must the deacons be
grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of
filthy lucre; Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.
And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a
deacon, being found blameless. Even so must their wives be grave, not
slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. Let the deacons be the
husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses
well."
I have read this that your minds may be refreshed, and that you may
know how it does read.
Instead of my believing for a moment that Paul wished to signify to
Timothy that he must select a man to fill the office of a Bishop that
would have but one wife, I believe directly the reverse; but his
advice to Timothy amounts simply to this—It would not be wise for you
to ordain a man to the office of a Bishop unless he has a wife; you
must not ordain a single or unmarried man to that calling.
If you will read this chapter carefully, you will learn the
qualifications necessary for Deacons and Bishops, and also for their
wives.
I will simply give my views with regard to this matter, and then leave
it.
I have no testimony from the Bible, neither have I from any history
that I have any knowledge of, that a man was ever prohibited in the
Church in the days of Paul from taking more than one wife. If any
historian has knowledge to the contrary, let him make it known at a
suitable time; but if such was the case it has not come to my
knowledge.
I will now give you my reasons why it is necessary that a Bishop
should have a wife, not but that he may have more than one wife. In
the first place he is (or should be) like a father to his ward, or to
the people over whom he presides, and a good portion of his time is
occupied among them. Still he does not wish to be bound up, or flooded
with cares of this world, so but that he can officiate in his
office, and magnify it to acceptance.
The office of a Bishop is in his ward; and when he finds a man who is
doing a good business as a farmer or a tradesman, and who has plenty
around him, and is faithfully paying his tithing, he has no business
there only to receive the tithing that man has to pay for the benefit
of the kingdom of God; his business is more particularly in the houses
of widows and orphans, and he is called to administer to them in
righteousness, like a father.
Paul, knowing by observation and his own experience the temptations
that were continually thrown before the Elders, gave instructions
paramount to this—Before you ordain a person to be a Bishop, to take
the charge of a Branch in any one district or place, see that he has a
wife to begin with; he did not say, "but one wife;" it
does not read
so; but he must have one to begin with, in order that he may not be
continually drawn into temptation while he is in the line of his duty,
visiting the houses of widows and orphans, the poor, the afflicted,
and the sick in his ward. He is to converse with families, sometimes
upon family matters, and care for them, but if he has no wife, he is
not so capable of taking care of a family as he otherwise would be,
and perhaps he is not capable of taking care of himself. Now select a
young man who has preserved himself in purity and holiness, one who
has carried himself circumspectly before the people, and before God:
it would not do to ordain him to the office of a Bishop, for he may be
drawn into temptation, and he lacks experience in family matters; but
take a man who has one wife at least, a man of experience, like
thousands of our Elders, men of strength of mind, who have
determination in them to preserve themselves pure under all
cir cumstances, at all times, and in all places in their wards. Now,
Timothy, select such a man to be a Bishop.
A Bishop in his calling and duty is with the Church all the time; he
is not called to travel abroad to preach, but is at home; he is not
abroad in the world, but is with the Saints.
When you have got your Bishop, he needs assistants, and he ordains
Counselors, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons, and calls them to help
him; and he wishes men of his own heart and hand to do this. Says he,
"I dare not even call a man to be a Deacon, to assist me in my
calling, unless he has a family." It is not the business of an
ignorant young man, of no experience in family matters, to inquire
into the circumstances of families, and know the wants of every
person. Some may want medicine and nourishment, and to be looked
after, and it is not the business of boys to do this; but select a man
who has got a family to be a Deacon, whose wife can go with him, and
assist him in administering to the needy in the ward.
These are simply my views in a few words on this subject, and always
have been since I have reflected upon the doctrine that the fathers
teach us in the Holy Scriptures. I will venture to say the view I take
of the matter is not to be disputed or disproved by Scripture or
reason.
I have no reasonable grounds upon which to say it was not the custom
in ancient times for a man to have more than one wife, but every
reason to believe that it was the custom among the Jews, from the days
of Abraham to the days of the Apostles, for they were lineal
descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, all of whom taught and
practiced the doctrine of plurality of wives, and were revered by the
whole Jewish nation, and it is but natural that they should have
respected and followed their teachings and example.
So much I wished to say to my brethren and sisters. We have had a
splendid address from brother Hyde, for which I am grateful. I feel in
my heart to bless the people all the time, and can say amen to brother
Hyde's last remarks. I know just as much about those matters as I want
to know, and if I do not know more, it is because there is no more of
it in the city. It is a hard matter for a man to hide himself from me
in this Territory; the birds of the air, they say, carry news, and if
they do not, I have plenty of sources for information.
I say to the congregation, treasure up in your hearts what you have
heard tonight, and at other times. You will hear more with regard to
the doctrine, that is, our "Marriage Relations." Elder Hyde says he
has only just dipped into it, but, if it will not be displeasing to
him, I will say he has not dipped into it yet; he has only run round
the edge of the field. He has done so beautifully, and it will have
its desired effect. But the whole subject of the marriage relation is
not in my reach, nor in any other man's reach on this earth. It is
without beginning of days or end of years; it is a hard matter to
reach. We can tell some things with regard to it; it lays the
foundation for worlds, for angels, and for the Gods; for intelligent
beings to be crowned with glory, immortality, and eternal lives. In
fact, it is the thread which runs from the beginning to the end of the
holy Gospel of salvation—of the Gospel of the Son of God; it is from
eternity to eternity. When the vision of the mind is opened, you can
see a great portion of it, but you see it comparatively as a speaker
sees the faces of a congregation. To look at, and talk to, each
individual separately, and thinking to become fully acquainted with
them, only to spend five minutes with each would consume too much
time, it could not easily be done. So it is with the visions of
eternity; we can see and understand, but it is difficult to tell. May
God bless you. Amen.