I am glad to have the opportunity once more of meeting with my
brethren and sisters in this place. And while I speak to you this
afternoon I trust I shall have the assistance of the Spirit of God. I
have had excellent health since I have been gone. But this morning,
from the effect of a cold which I have taken, when I arose I felt
worse than I have done since I left home, and as though I could
scarcely come to meeting. The ride in the air, however, has helped me,
and I feel better than I did.
There is a natural curiosity on the part of the Latter-day
Saints to know everything connected with our political affairs as well
as everything connected with our religious operations throughout the
earth. Everything of this character is so intimately blended in the
work in which we are engaged, that it is an exceedingly difficult
thing to draw the line of distinction between the temporal and the
spiritual, between that which pertains to the body and that which
pertains to the spirit, or which pertains to the dissemination of the
Gospel and the welfare of the people in political matters. It has been
a cause of frequent comment in newspaper articles and in works that
have been published concerning us and our organization, that we are a
peculiar people in this respect, and that this intimate blending of
the practical and the theoretical, of the temporal and the spiritual,
in our meetings and in the addresses of our Elders, is a marked
peculiarity. The reason of this is very apparent to those who are
familiar with the character of our work and with our belief concerning
these matters. We attach an importance to the physical organization
which God has given unto us, greater, I believe, than any other
religious people that I have ever met with. In like manner our
religion extends its ramifications into every department of our lives,
leaving nothing untouched, nothing connected with our earthly
existence uninfluenced by its power and its teaching. I am thankful
that this is the case, because it gives religion full scope, it gives
it an opportunity to exercise its proper influence upon the man and to
make him more perfect and more godlike. Our God is not a religious God
alone. The God we worship does not confine himself to religious
matters, so-called, in contradistinction from those that are secular.
He is not a God that concerns himself alone with the spirit of man,
but He is a God of science, He is a God of mechanism, He is a God of
creative power, a God of government, a God who attends to all the
departments of human life and progress, as we see them exemplified
here upon the earth. The first acts that are recorded of Him in the
record that has come to us were creative acts, acts of organization,
labors that might in one respect be termed temporal labors. Among the
first communications He had with man He taught him how to live
practically, to make himself clothing, and to perform other necessary
labors connected with his comfort and his happiness upon the earth.
And where they have been willing to be taught He has taught men
government, the principles of government, from the beginning. He has
established the best forms of government where men have listened to
His teachings—governments best adapted for the persons for whom they
were intended and for the objects that were to be accomplished; and He
knew in the days of Moses, as He did in the days of Enoch, the
principles of government that were best calculated for the happiness
of those peoples. So far as they listened to Him, so far as they were
governed in righteousness and in truth, each received the laws and the
necessary instructions that were best suited to their condition and
circumstances, for the progress that they had made and the progress
that it was anticipated they would make. And He knew all that was
necessary to be known, without the benefit of the experience that each
nation has received from their labors and from their progress under
the forms of government that they have had. Our government
today is considered the ripened fruit of the ages of experience that
men have gained upon the earth. Yet there is not a principle connected
with it that was not known to God, that was not taught by the Almighty
in the earliest days, and that has not been put into operation under
His instruction at one time or another among men. And these principles
are embodied in what we call the Gospel. It has been truthfully and
very forcibly said many times in our hearing that there was no
principle connected with man's existence upon the earth that is not a
part and parcel of that Gospel which God has revealed unto us and
commanded us to obey; that that which the world call "Mormonism"
embraces within its scope every good thing upon the face of the earth,
leaving nothing outside. Every true principle of science, everything
connected with the cultivation of the earth, with the government of
cities and of nations, with the management of all the multiplied
affairs of men in their great and varied diversity—that everything of
this character comes within the scope of the Gospel which God has
revealed, in the system of salvation that He has commanded us to
receive.
There is one great principle connected with the Gospel of Jesus Christ
as it has been taught among all the people who have ever received it,
as we find from their teachings in the records that have come down to
us, the same principle that lies at the foundation of our form of
government, and makes it the most valuable feature connected with it,
and that is, the equality of man before God. No man can be a true
follower of Jesus Christ; no man ever could be—anterior even to His
com ing—a true follower of God, without embodying in His faith and
practice and in every feeling of his heart this principle to which I
have referred, the equality of man. There could be no class
distinctions wherever this Gospel was received and put into practical
operation. Every man who received it became the equal of his
fellow man; he would be recognized, a proper place be assigned unto
him, and he would have his proper influence in the society of which he
was a member. It is this principle of the Gospel that will make us,
also, a thoroughly free people, a thoroughly great people, a people
who shall have place in the earth, and have influence in the affairs
of the children of men.
There have been fears indulged in many times, and expressions have
been given to those fears, that the growth of the Latter-day Saints
was a menace to surrounding peoples and to the government under which
we live. There can be no menace in the growth of such principles as
are taught and as are recognized and enforced among such a people as
we are. It would be impossible for tyranny to flourish for any length
of time in our midst. Oppression of every form would sooner or later
have to disappear, or else there would have to be apostasy from the
true principles of the Gospel on the part of the people. Oppression,
tyranny, misrule, cannot co-exist with the principles of the
everlasting Gospel as they are taught in our midst and received by us.
There must be the greatest possible liberty of thought, of expression
and of action in our midst—that is the greatest possible consistent
with good order, and the preservation of the rights of others. Liberty
cannot be permitted to degenerate into license, but the utmost liberty can be enjoyed so long as it does not overstep that boundary.
It becomes, therefore, a natural duty devolving upon us, with our
views concerning these eternal principles that have come down from
God, that were taught by God in the early ages unto man, that have
been reinforced from time to time by Him through the silent, unseen
agency of His power in various ages—I say it becomes our natural duty
to see that these principles are carried out and maintained in the
earth. We become their natural champions. Besides advocating and
maintaining them, it becomes our province to struggle for their
supremacy.
As I have said these principles were taught in the very beginning. If
we had the records we would find that they were taught to our father
Adam, because they are consistent with man's agency. God gave unto man
when He placed him upon the earth, the fullest agency—the power to do
that which was right in his own sight without let or hindrance. He
taught those principles to Enoch, and He taught them from time to time
to all the men of note who would be taught by him. Abraham became in
his turn the great expositor of those truths; and you will find by
tracing the lives of these men in the record that has come down to us,
that in every instance they were men who were champions of the right,
who stood out boldly and fearlessly in the midst of their fellow men,
contending for those God-given principles which they believed to be
the inalienable right of every human being. You will find that the
opponents of truth, or, to speak more plainly, according to our
phraseology and our methods of expressing ideas, the followers of
Satan—you will find that whenever there was persecution upon the
earth, they were its authors. Whenever men were trampled upon and
their rights were denied them, when men fell victims to violence and
the maladministration of the laws, it was those who were led by
Satan's influence and yielded to his power, who were the instruments
in committing those evils. Hence you find that good men never
persecuted bad men; never destroyed wicked men when they had power.
They were not oppressors, they were not tyrants, they were not
persecutors, they did not infringe upon the rights of their fellow
men, upon the liberty of conscience, nor upon its proper exercise, nor
upon the exercise of man's agency; they never sought to restrain it.
If wicked men were disposed to do wickedly, so long as they did not
transcend certain well-defined bounds that found their expression in
law, you will find no account of good men interfering with bad men.
You will not find them, as I say, taking upon themselves the role of
oppressors, nor saying that men shall not do that which their
conscience and that which they in their agency think it is their right
to do. God does not do it. Jesus did not do it, and no servant of God
ever did it that had a true conception of his calling. God has given
to every man his agency, and he respects that agency. He might grieve
over its exercise, angels may weep, and the heavens themselves may
weep over the wrong exercise by man of the agency that God has given
unto him, but he nevertheless has it to its fullest extent; but the
devil and those under his influence would, if possible, destroy man's
agency and prevent him from exercising it to suit himself.
I am thankful that we are surrounded by such delightful circum stances today. We have escaped another peril, and we still are
a free people. Is there anyone in this congregation who professes to
be a Latter-day Saint who is not filled with profound thankfulness to
God for that which He has done for us? Is there any man or woman, or
child of age sufficient to comprehend these things, who has not come
this day to this house of worship with a feeling of profound
thankfulness to our God for His mercy and His loving kindness, as
manifested unto us His people? Though I have been taught and always
have believed that not one word of His promises would fail, still I
say that I am almost amazed myself when I see how wonderfully God hath
wrought, when I look at our circumstances, when I see the liberty that
we enjoy, knowing as I do the plans and the concerted efforts which
have been made to deprive us of our liberty, and to bring us into a
bondage that would be intolerable to us. A paean of rejoicing went up
from all quarters of the land about a year ago, that is, on the 22nd of
March. Every man who desired to see the overthrow of the Latter-day
Saints, to see their system obliterated, rejoiced from one end of this
land to the other—there were among them preachers, politicians and
journalists, and the rabble everywhere, who rejoiced that a deadly
blow had been struck at the Latter-day Saints. Men, while they
admitted that the Constitution had been violated, justified the act in
consideration of the great good that they supposed would be
accomplished. Yet we today have all the happiness, the peace, the
enjoyment, and the quiet that we could reasonably desire. If it were
not for God's power; if it were not for His overshadowing protection;
if it were not for the promises that He has made unto us, how long
could we endure? How long could we maintain ourselves in our present
position?
But God made promises unto His people; and those promises have been
abundantly fulfilled thus far, and they will be fulfilled to the very
letter. And this Church and this people, and this organization will
continue to grow and spread, and gather influence and power in the
earth, until every word that has been spoken under the inspiration of
the Holy Ghost will be fulfilled, and not a single word fall. It
cannot fail, for God has spoken it. Already the influence of this work
is being felt to an extent that none without the eye of omniscience
can comprehend. We can see little glimpses of it here and there where
our eyes are open to perceive; but the full extent of the influence
that is being wrought in the earth through this work that God has
established, is impossible for man to comprehend. I do not believe
that any power short of omniscience itself can comprehend it. The
principles of this Gospel which God revealed through the Prophet
Joseph, have been like a little leaven, and they have been gradually
leavening the whole lump. The effects have gone forth, and the
influence is being felt in every direction throughout the world.
Though we are but a small people, but a handful, so to speak, and in
some respects quite insignificant, yet an influence has gone forth
from this people, from the teachings of the Elders of this Church that
is being felt everywhere. It has invaded every domain of thought, and
gradually made itself felt—the leaven of truth has; and men begin to
acknowledge principles as a part of their faith which but a short time
ago they denied and scouted at. In this way the work of God is
being carried on far beyond that which we can see with our natural
eyes. The work of the preparation of the earth, and of its
inhabitants, is pressing forward with a rapidity that we who are
taking part in it do not realize. We look at ourselves too much, we
think that God's operations and labors are confined to us who comprise
this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In doing so we make
a great blunder. He is operating among the nations of the earth. His
spirit has gone forth; and it is accomplishing that which He said
should be accomplished. And this great work of the last days will be
cut short in righteousness. It is not the conversion of men and women
and their baptism into the Church that is alone to be accomplished.
The work of God is not to be measured by the number of souls that are
brought into the Church. The progress of events connected with this
last dispensation cannot be thus gauged; and when we think so we make
a great mistake. Look abroad in other realms. Look at the religious
world, and see how fast the principles that we believe in are being
received. It may be said that they are not received properly. True,
but notwithstanding truth is progressing; and the mind of man is being
emancipated from many errors.
Repentance after the grave is now taught—you have heard of it, and
read about it in the newspapers. Prominent preachers talk about it and
receive it; and actually preach as scriptural doctrine, that it is
possible for spirits to receive the Gospel in the spirit world.
Another step has been made in advance, through the preaching of the
Elders of this Church, or rather by means of the revelations of God
through the Prophet Joseph Smith, in scientific truth which is
astonishing; I refer to the doctrine of the eternal duration of
matter. When first this was made known it was ridiculed everywhere by
religious people, who viewed it as a principle, the teachings of which
detracted from the dignity and glory of God. The popular idea was that
this earth was created out of nothing. This was the almost universal
belief among Christians. Joseph Smith said it was not true. He
advocated the doctrine that matter always had an existence, that it
was eternal as God Himself was eternal; that it was indestructible;
that it never had a beginning, and therefore could have no end. God
revealed this truth to him. Now who is there that does not believe it?
So with regard to the periods occupied in the creation of the earth.
Joseph taught that a day with God was not the twenty-four hours of our
day; but that the six days of the creation were six periods of the
Lord's time. This he taught half a century ago; it is now generally
received as a great truth connected with the creation of the world.
Geologists have declared it, and religious people are adopting it; and
so the world is progressing.
Again: It is not an uncommon thing at all now to hear of faith being
exercised, of healings being produced through the prayer of faith. The
daily papers frequently publish accounts of people being healed in
this way. The adversary is trying, of course, to take advantage of it
to rob God of the glory. He is determined that God shall not have any
credit for these things. But it matters not how much he may struggle,
mankind are receiving these truths, and progress is being made
and error is being overcome.
So it is with regard to religious liberty. We are contending today
for liberty on the old platform. God, as I have said, gave it in the
beginning, and we stand on that platform, and are contending for those
rights, and we will achieve the victory too. Mark it! Just as sure as
God lives we will achieve the victory, and this Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints will be recognized as occupying the foremost rank
in this work. The principles of liberty, the rights of man will be
established, and will be guaranteed to every man as in olden times;
but there will be a struggle first.
The effect that the defense of our system, this last winter, had upon
one of the great political parties of the United States was most
remarkable. I was amused at it, and it afforded me a great deal of
interesting reflection. There are a great many members of this Church
who do not seem to have a thorough comprehension of their own
doctrines, who nevertheless call themselves Latter-day Saints; and
they are Latter-day Saints so far as their profession goes. But if
asked about the principles of their belief some of them are ignorant
of the extent of their application. It is in politics as in religion.
There are a great many men who make a profession of politics,
professing to understand, to act upon, and to stand upon certain
political principles, which are embodied in their platforms, of which,
however, they are really ignorant. You may have thought it very
strange that any members of the democratic party, for instance, which
professes to be the champion of home rule, as well as other great
fundamental principles, should be found so oblivious to their own
principles as to take any part whatever in attacks upon us for the
purpose of depriving us of our rights as citizens. But so it has been.
If it had not been for the recreancy of some Democrats the Act of
March 22, 1882, known as the Edmunds' law, would never have become one
of the statutes of the United States. Mr. Edmunds succeeded in
cajoling some of the Democrats. An astute man is Senator Edmunds. In
their action towards us these Democrats seemed to be blind to the fact
that they were apostatizing from their own principles; and that in
doing so they were striking a deadly blow at the platform on which the
party stood. We had been reasoning against this action; but our voices
were unheard; we were considered heterodox upon religious matters, and
it was supposed that we were heterodox upon political matters:
therefore all that we said upon this subject fell heedlessly upon
their ears. But we succeeded in getting an apostle of democracy to aid
us, one of the old leaders of democracy—Judge Jeremiah S. Black. He
began to preach the true doctrines of democracy to his Democratic
brethren; and to their amazement, some found that they had, in voting
for this law, been trampling upon their own principles. And he proved
it to them so thoroughly, that some of them became ashamed of it; and
they said, "We have gone far enough." He explained the principles of
the Constitution and the rights that men had under that instrument
when properly administered. Good doctrine for every politician, and
every class, not for democrats so-called alone, but for republicans
also. There is something in such doctrine that strikes a chord in every freeman's breast. It calls forth a response from every lover
of liberty by whatever name he may be called. He says, when he hears
the rights of man explained by an authority that is entitled to
respect: "There is something in that which I cannot but accept." Such
men hesitate before flying in the face of principles expounded in this
way, to commit acts, the effects of which are to deprive people of
liberty. The effect of Judge Black's argument upon some of the
Democrats was to stiffen their backbone so much that they could not
consent this time to have other measures enacted as were proposed.
I was very much struck by a statement made to me by President Taylor
since my return, showing that faith when connected with works
accomplishes wonderful results. Brother Caine and myself, with some
other Utah friends, were in the Senate chamber on the 23rd of February
last, watching Senator Edmunds' attempt to get through his special
legislation of which you have read. It seemed as though nothing could
prevent it. Senators with whom we had conversed said that they saw no
possible chance of stopping it; that its passage seemed inevitable.
But a Cabinet minister gave a dinner party that evening, and one by
one those who were invited stole from the Senate Chamber while the
bill was under discussion to the dinner party; and the first that was
known when a vote was called was that a quorum was not present. In the
absence of a quorum, you know, a legislative body is powerless to act.
For four hours Senator Edmunds did all in his power to get action on
his bill; but every attempt was resisted by the Democrats upon the
ground that there was no quorum, and they ac cordingly filibusted
until Edmunds, disgusted and tired, called for an adjournment.
President Taylor told me upon my return that, on the 22nd of February,
feeling exercised in his mind about our political affairs, and that it
was a time of peril, he called a few of the brethren together and they
met at the Endowment House according to the holy order, and besought
God, in the name of Jesus, to baffle the plans of our enemies and
frustrate them in their designs, and put them to confusion and shame.
In watching Senator Edmunds that evening, I thought that if ever there
was a man confused, chagrined and confounded at the futility of his
own attempts, it was he. And there is no doubt in my mind that the
prayers of President Taylor and the brethren ascended favorably unto
the ears of the God of Sabaoth, and were heard and answered. The
dreadful wrong was defeated and failed, and it may be said, it met
with its death blow; for every attempt afterwards made to bring it up,
was unsuccessful. In this way God has wrought out deliverance for
Zion.
I mention this because there are a great many people who think that
prayer is not effective. It is effective in not only producing desired
results, but in increasing faith in the hearts of those who exercise
it in that manner. If you pray to God—as I have no doubt you did, that
He would baffle the attempts of our enemies to injure us—you have had
the satisfaction of knowing that He heard your prayers, and that your
prayers were answered; and you can go before Him now with increased
confidence and ask again, because you see the fulfillment of your
prayers, and you share in the gratification and joy and thanksgiv ing which answers to prayer always bring to those who offer
them in faith.
I have talked longer than I expected. I rejoice with you, my brethren
and sisters, today; and I bear my testimony, as I have so often done
in your hearing, that God lives; that He is the same God today that He
was in days of old, and that if we will continue faithful to Him, He
will lead us back to His presence, there to reign with Him eternally
in the heavens, which may God grant, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
- George Q. Cannon