I have been reminded, while listening to Brother Rudger Clawson's
remarks, of the sayings of the Savior, recorded in the 6th chapter of
the Gospel according to St. Luke, 22nd and 23rd verses—
"Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate
you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name
as evil, for the Son of man's sake.
"Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is
great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the
prophets."
It is frequently remarked concerning the Latter-day Saints that there
being so many stories told about them, there must be some truth in
some of them; in other words, to use the familiar saying, "Where there
is so much smoke there must be some fire." But it is worthy of remark
that, from the beginning, according to the history that has come down
to us of the dealing of God with the children of men, every man and
people who pro fessed to have a knowledge of God, and who really did
have that knowledge, or a portion of it, and who were raised up by
him, or called by him, had to suffer persecution. Stephen, the martyr,
when he was being stoned at Jerusalem, said to the Jews: "Which of the
prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them
which shewed before of the coming of the Just One" —scarcely a prophet
that had ever lived among them who had not suffered persecution. Even
Moses himself, the great lawgiver, the great deliverer of the Hebrew
nation, who had led them out by the exhibition of mighty power,
several times during his career came very near being stoned to death,
or killed by the people. It is an evidence, an infallible evidence,
of truth to have persecution accompany it. It is not that every one
who is reviled and who is persecuted possesses the truth. This does
not always follow. But there never was a prophet of whom we have any
account, raised up in the midst of the children of men to proclaim
unto them divine truths, who did not receive in his life and
experience these very things of which Jesus has spoken. They were
hated, they were separated from the company of their fellows, they
were reproached, their names were cast out as evil, they were reviled,
their lives were sought; and this was especially the case with the Son
of God himself—a Being who spoke as never man spoke, whose life was an
exemplification of purity, who was without sin, whose doctrines were
holy and pure, who performed mighty miracles among the children of
men, whose work and labors were accompanied with great power; and
notwithstanding these evidences of divinity which accompanied him, the
generation in which he lived, and by which he was surrounded, were not
satisfied until they had slain him. It is also recorded that every one
of the Twelve Apostles, excepting John, died a violent death. There
are reasons for this which are made plain in the Scriptures. There are
two powers; there is God and there is Belial; or in other words, there
is the Spirit of God and there is the spirit of Satan. These two
powers, or forces, have been in existence since man was expelled from
the garden of Eden. Satan has opposed God. He has contended against
goodness and purity. Each of these influences has been operating upon
the hearts of the children of men. When the adversary has succeeded in
overpowering the truth, in slaying the servants of God, in shedding
the blood of innocence, and the extirpation of the power and authority
which God had bestowed upon man has been accomplished, then there has
been a lull, there has been a cessation of that violence which has
attended the proclamation of the truth. The extirpation of those who
had authority to proclaim it has left the field to the adversary. Then
he had his own way. One of the greatest evidences of the bad condition
of affairs now existing in Christendom is the popularity that attends
what is called the preaching of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Whenever a preacher is popular in the midst of a wicked generation, or
a man is popular who professes to be a minister of truth, you may set
it down as a certain fact that that man does not preach the truth as
it exists in Christ. There is no disputing this, if this book (the
Bible) be true; if there is any reliance to be placed in the word of
God. As true as there is a God, and as true as there is a devil, the
man that preaches the truth to a wicked generation will bring about
the hatred of which I have read in your hearing. This is just as true
as that God lives and that there is evil to combat, or that Satan has
power over the hearts of the children of men. Satan knows very well
that his time is short. He knows very well that if the truth is
proclaimed and believed in and practiced by mankind his kingdom is
overthrown, that his power will soon cease. Hence it is that he has
aroused in every age and at all times the children of men to rage
against the truth.
Whether the Latter-day Saints preach the truth or not it is for those
who hear them and examine their doctrines to decide; but there is this
noted fact connected with the preaching of this truth, as imparted in
this system which we call the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, that
wherever it has been preached it has raised hatred, it has stirred up
animosity, it has enkindled the fires of persecution, it has caused
blood to flow, mobs have been raised, houses have been burned, fields
have been destroyed, grain has been burned, cattle have been
shot down, men and women have been expelled from their homes in the
depths of winter, the blood of innocence has flowed, and all because
men and women chose to believe a system of religion that differed from
that which is popularly entertained. And there is this remarkable fact
connected with the persecution of the people called Latter-day
Saints—and it is the same characteristic that attended the preaching
of the Gospel of the Son of God by himself and his Apostles the chief
persecutors, and those who have stirred up strife in the hearts of the
people have been popular preachers—have been themselves, in too many
instances, the professed ministers of Jesus Christ. It was the High
Priests, it was the Pharisees, it was the religious people in the days
of the Savior who were his chief persecutors, and I am sorry to say
the chief persecutions which we as a people have had to endure have
had their origin with the same class. Why, I am informed that one or
two if not more, of those men who formed the mob that shot Elder
Joseph Standing, were circuit riders; preachers who professed to have
great zeal for holy religion and pure morality. They were so filled
with zeal that they could not let two young men travel in their
country and preach from the Bible, without mobbing them!
As Latter-day Saints this ought to cause us to rejoice. We should not
be angry, we should not indulge in the spirit of revenge. Such a
spirit is foreign to the Gospel. It is our duty to endure all things
patiently, uncomplainingly, and with long-suffering, putting our trust
in God, relying upon his arm, awaiting the deliverance which he will
bring to pass in his own time and in his own season. If I am
persecuted and I turn upon my persecutors in the spirit which they
manifest, do I exhibit a spirit that will bring down the blessing of
God upon me? Certainly not; I would be no better than my persecutors.
If a man strike me on the one cheek and I turn and strike him again,
retaliate, give him blow for blow, do I by so doing manifest that I
have received any better spirit than the man who struck me? I think
not. It is very natural, I know, when we are reviled to turn round and
revile again; when we are struck to turn round and strike again; when
we are abused to turn round and abuse again. This is the natural
prompting of the human heart; this is the natural feeling of every man
of spirit—not to submit to indignity, but to resent it instantly. Our
codes are all formed upon this. The training that we have had from our
childhood upward, in the society of the world, has been that a man who
submits to an outrage quietly is unworthy of the name of man; that the
man who submits to be called a liar, or to rebukes, or to abuse
quietly, is unworthy of the name of man. Now, that is certainly not
the teaching of the Savior; all his teachings are to the contrary. His
people are to be a meek people. His people are to be peacemakers. His
people are to leave the results with him; to submit to these things
quietly, uncomplainingly, that is, so far as outward manifestations
are concerned; to pray unto him, to leave it with him. He has given
unto his people a law upon this subject. If our enemies come upon us,
or our families, once, we are to bear it patiently and revile not,
neither seek revenge, and we shall be rewarded. If our enemies come
upon us the second and third times, we are to bear it patiently, as on
the former occasion, and great rewards are promised. If they
come the fourth time, then the law in ancient days, and as the Lord
has revealed it to us, is that they are in our hands to do to them as
we may please; but if we then will spare them, we shall be rewarded
for our righteousness. I speak of these things because I know how
painful it is to submit to outrages such as have been heaped upon us.
There are many such committed that are almost unbearable, men feel as
if they could not submit to them; but as I understand it, it is far
better for us to submit to these things patiently, and without
retaliating, and leave the Lord to deal with them, than to indulge in
the other spirit and the other feeling.
There is a great anxiety in the minds of many of the Latter-day Saints
respecting the future. "How long must we submit to such wrongs as we
many times have to endure?" is a question that arises very frequently
in the minds of the people. We have been in these mountains nearly
thirty-three years—thirty-two years last July. We had more freedom in
some respects the first few years we were here than we have today,
notwithstanding our growth, notwithstanding the numbers of the people
have increased to so great an extent, notwithstanding the labors that
have been performed; and there is a natural anxiety in the minds of a
great many people as to how long these things will go on as they are,
and some are almost discouraged. There was a time when throughout
these valleys, from one end to the other, drunkenness was
comparatively unknown. Drinking saloons were not permitted, gambling
saloons were not licensed, nor did they exist; other places which I
need not name had no foothold, nor existence, in our midst, and from
one end of the Territory to the other there was a condi tion of affairs
which everybody who loved good order and peace admired. I frequently
meet with gentlemen who knew us a few years ago, who speak of the
unfavorable change which has taken place in our affairs. The
Latter-day Saints realize very fully how great this change has been.
Our sons and daughters are now exposed to temptations of which they
knew nothing in former years. We had the power, which we exercised, to
control these affairs, but as I explained here not a great while ago,
we have now found out that the charter of this city, which we supposed
gave unto the municipal authorities all the power necessary to
control, regulate, and, if necessary, prohibit the institutions and
practices to which I have alluded, is limited in its power to stop the
sale of liquor. So the judiciary have ruled. Monster petitions have
been gotten up by the women of this city and presented to the City
Council, asking for the prohibition of liquor saloons; but in vain.
The City Council are powerless in the matter, because of judicial
ruling. Naturally the inquiry arises, how long shall these things
continue? Shall all the hopes respecting the future of this country,
respecting the future of Israel, be blotted out? Are we to be
disappointed, and a condition of affairs be established here which
will perpetuate all the evils existing elsewhere, from which we have
fled? If I thought this would be the case I should be discouraged. If
I thought for one moment that we should not have power in the future
as we have had in the past to maintain righteousness and a righteous
rule and good order in this country, I should feel exceedingly
discouraged. But I do not look for a perpetuation of these evils. I
expect the day will come when this people, if they will be true to themselves and the principles which we have espoused, will
have power to control affairs throughout these mountains. Shall we do
this by violence? Not at all. By overstepping the bounds of the
Constitution, or of the legal rights of individuals? Not at all. I do
not look for any such thing; but I look for the time to come when this
people throughout these mountains shall have the power they ought to
have—the power to elect their own officers, enact their own laws and
to enforce them; when the majority of the people shall have the right
to say what shall be the rule in this land, a right that has been
denied us up to the present time. Why is this right denied us? Partly
because of the fears of people who live in our midst—their imaginary
fears, or their pretended fears. There is a class of people in these
valleys, particularly in this city and the country round about, who
are using every influence in their power to prevent the Latter-day
Saints from having the power that citizens of the United States have
elsewhere. They say that if we get this power and this authority it
will be impossible for them to live here, that they will have to leave
the land; that there will be such a reign of terror, or such a
condition of affairs that no one will be able to endure it, except the
Mormons, or Latter-day Saints, themselves; and by the publication of
such stories as these, by magnifying all the trifling things they see
done, by calling attention to plural marriage, and by giving a false
representation of the power that is wielded by the leaders of the
people, and by the circulation of the most infamous falsehoods, they
create an impression abroad that is unfavorable to us and to our
rights.
In the providence of God I recog nize all these things as likely to
accomplish much good for us. I myself feel it is important that we as
a people should be trained; that we should learn those lessons that
are necessary to enable us to temperately and properly exercise power
when we gain it; and I have hoped that, by submitting to these things,
by enduring them—as we have had to do for many years—a lesson would be
taught to us that neither we nor our posterity should ever forget; and
that when the time should come for us to exercise our full rights as
American citizens, we might be able to administer the laws and govern
in such a way that all should be protected, that every man of every
creed, of every nation, and of every people, should enjoy his rights
in our midst as perfectly as if he were in full faith with the
majority of the people. Not the right to do wrong, not the right to
practice iniquity, not the right to trample upon his neighbor, to
intrude upon his rights, but the right to do that which may seem good
in his own eyes, so long as he should not thereby interfere with the
rights of others; the right to worship God as he pleases, to call upon
him in any form that may be acceptable to him or his conscience, to
believe in God, or not to believe him if he choose, so long as the
belief, practice and rights of his neighbor shall not be interrupted.
Until we can reach this condition and entertain these views and carry
them out, it would not surprise me if we should be kept in subjection.
I wish to say for the encouragement of the Latter-day Saints, because
I have sometimes thought there was a feeling of discouragement
creeping over some of the people, that some were letting down bars and
yielding to the influences around them and almost giving up in
despair, feeling that all that had been spoken concerning our future
is very doubtful or not likely to be fulfilled—I therefore wish to say
for the encouragement of the people today that the time will come, as
sure as God lives, that all that has been said concerning us will be
fulfilled. There is a great destiny in store for this people called
Latter-day Saints. They cannot be repressed. Mr. Evarts may issue his
circular, he may send to the nations of the earth, and the ports of
the United States may be closed against our emigration. The law of
1862, against plural marriage may be enforced with rigor, and
everything be done that can be by those who are determined to check
the growth and development of this people, and yet there is a power
connected with them that cannot be unless the people themselves be
extirpated. Anything short of this will fail, will fail entirely, in
accomplishing the stoppage of this work. A people such as this, with
all their faults—and our faults are numerous—but possessing such
qualities as are being developed among us, must rise to the surface
and become a governing people. Where in the race of life, as you
witness it among private individuals, do the qualities that
characterize the Latter-day Saints fail to win success? We have
temperance, frugality, union, true love, honesty, industry and
chastity. "No," says one, "not chastity." Yes chastity! For among
no
other people upon this continent is chastity respected as it is among
the Latter-day Saints. Where will you find these qualities fail in
being successful? They are always successful in private life. If you
want a man to succeed, if you want your son to succeed, you say to
him, "my son, be truthful, be honest, be indu strious, be frugal, be
chaste, avoid drunkenness, avoid wicked society, avoid taking the name
of God in vain, govern your speech, be temperate in all things, and
you will succeed." What father who loves his children does not impress
upon them the importance of these qualities? And these are the
qualities that dominate among the Latter-day Saints.
I had occasion to go to a gentleman here, within a week, to transact
some business. He has been doing business here for some years. Without
my leading him on at all he said to me, "I never dealt with so honest
a people as the Mormons. They pay their bills, they meet their
engagements; you can rely upon them. Any money that I have lost I have
not lost it through the Mormons." I felt thankful that this man could
say this about us, and yet we are not near so honest as we should be,
but there is this to be said in our favor, we are struggling in this
direction, struggling to be honest, struggling to be truthful. We have
raised a standard which is much higher than we have attained unto. It
is an elevated standard, but there is this to be said for the people,
if their standard is high they are struggling to attain to it. If not
done to so great an extent as we ought to do, still it can be said we
are struggling to be truthful, honest and temperate, and we deplore
intemperance, profanity, litigation and strife, enmity and hard
feelings. I say there is a hope for a people who have a standard of
this kind, and especially so when they have men in their midst—as I
thank God we have—who are not afraid to tell the people when they do
wrong, to tell them their faults to their faces and say unpleasant
things to them. There is one thing about the leading men of this Church; they do not depend upon the people for their support. It
is not necessary for them to tickle their ears by fine speeches and
pleasant things. They can say rough things, unpleasant truths, because
they are independent; they can live without the aid of the people by
the industry of their own hands, and they are not afraid of some of
their deacons or some of the congregation taking exceptions to their
manner of speech and cutting off their salary. Why if such unpleasant
truths were told, as have been told to the Latter-day Saints, by
ministers of different denominations, who do you think would give them
a call? Would they receive a call to some other places and be paid a
higher salary? No, their style would be too unpleasant to be popular.
Well I have hope for this people while this is the case, and I pray
that we shall always have men here who are not afraid to tell you and
me our faults and warn us of them and reprove us, for "better the
reproof of a friend than the kiss of an enemy."
It is not going to be a great while—and many of you will see it
too—before there will be a great revolution in the earth. Just as sure
as the Lord lives the day will come when there will be consternation
not only in foreign nations but in our own nation. The people of this
Republic are actually treading upon a volcano and they do not know how
soon the fires may burst forth, how soon the governmental fabric of
this nation, the most glorious the sun has ever shone upon, the best
that man without the priesthood has had upon the earth, shall tumble.
And why? Through the corruption of the people. The best government
becomes the worst government when the people become corrupt, when
bribery in high places rules, when political parties condescend to
purchase votes. The power of a government is weakened when Senators,
Representatives, and Presidents get their places by the use of money.
Woe to a nation when this becomes the case. It is doomed and sooner or
later it must fall. What is the remark respecting the election of
United States Senators in many of the States? It is that a man cannot
get that position except he be wealthy. What does that mean? Every one
can draw his own conclusion. But that is not the worst feature either.
There is disunion and animosity and the fires of sectional hatred burn
fiercely. They may smolder at times. They may not always appear on
the surface. But let the breeze blow and quicken them into life and
how fierce the flame burns.
It may be asked what has all this to do with the Gospel? The Lord has
restored the everlasting Gospel for the express purpose of raising up
a pure people upon this land. This American continent is the choicest
land upon the face of the whole earth. God kept it hidden until the
15th century that it might not to be overrun by the people of Europe
or of the rest of the world. He kept it hidden in darkness and covered
with clouds until the set time had come when he could accomplish his
purpose and prepare the way for the American Republic, under which his
kingdom could be established. Could it have been established in Asia,
in Europe, or in Africa? No, it required the Declaration of
Independence framed by men inspired of God; the Constitution of the
United States framed and adopted by men whom he had raised up; it
required a people who had fought for their liberty, religious and
civil, and who by his divine blessing had succeeded in gaining
it and in establishing a free form of government. It required such a
republican government as we have, to permit this people called
Latter-day Saints to be organized, to grow and increase and become a
mighty power. Is there anything incompatible with true republicanism
in the growth of such a people organized as the Latter-day Saints are?
Let me say that the men and women who live in accordance with the
Gospel are the best people in the world. They make the best members of
society and live above all earthly law, that is constitutional law.
Now I take issue, you know, with some laws. Some laws are
constitutional, and some laws are unconstitutional, but a man who
believes in and practices the Gospel of Jesus Christ will live so far
above every constitutional law that he will never violate it. He may
be guilty of mistakes, he may fall into error, but there will be
nothing culpable in his conduct.
As the people of God, we must be meek and lowly of heart. We must
confess our sins one to another, help the poor, clothe the naked and
administer sustenance to those who require it. We must cease our
backbiting, our strife, our fault finding, our evil speaking, bearing
false witness and all other practices of this kind, and live as
Latter-day Saints should who are worthy of the name, then we will be
the best citizens of the country, the best citizens that can be found,
citizens of whom people will be proud—that is all good and honest
people—and whom God will bless. These are duties that devolve upon
every one of us. We should not be Saints in name alone, but in deed
and in truth, striving to make our lives an exemplification of the
principles we profess, and then if men revile us and cast out our
names as evil we can leave our case in the hands of God. We can call
upon him and ask his blessing, and then what difference does it make
what the wicked think or say about us? None in the least. We do not
live for the opinion of the wicked; but if we live as we should do, if
we live for God and pursue a straightforward course, and then if our
enemies malign us, God will be our friend; he will deliver us and it
will be all right with us in the end. "But," says one, "how do you
know God is your friend?" Pray to him in faith and you will find out.
Man may deride and say there is no God, and say that it is all humbug.
But I know for myself that God lives. I know that when I pray to him
he hears and answers my prayers. If I pray to him in secret and he
rewards and gives me the desires of my heart, supposing all the rest
of the world should say that God does not live, does that alter my
position, or detract from any of the blessings I enjoy? Not in the
least. It does not interfere with them. It is my right to believe
there is a God, and if another man chooses to believe there is not,
then that is his business. Shall I quarrel with a man because I think
my religion is better than his? Not at all. If my religion is better
than his, why I will show it in my life and not descend to ridicule
and violence. When people take up pistols and use violence they give
to the world the best proof that their religion is not of God. But
that is the way we have been treated. For believing in the true Gospel
we must be mobbed, we must have our houses burned, we must be driven
from our homes, our children and aged people must die by the way side,
our track being marked with the graves of them that fall, all because
we have a religion that happens to differ from the religion
of others. It is curious that men will do such things in the name of
religion! Now if you have true religion—as I know we ought to
have—show the world that your religion is what it is proclaimed to
be—the Gospel of Jesus Christ; show the world that it is a pure, a
better and a loftier religion than any other, and not with our lips
alone, but proclaim it to all, by our words, and by our deeds, and
then the time will come when it will receive its proper recognition.
Belial, or Satan, is not going to rule always. His end draweth near,
and the time is nigh when misrule and wickedness shall be banished
from the face of the earth.
I pray that the blessing of God may rest upon us. I pray God to fill
us with the Holy Spirit, to inspire our hearts with pure desires, that
we may serve him to the best of our ability and knowledge, which may
God grant in the name of Jesus. Amen.
- George Q. Cannon