2/6/2019 - Official Declaration 1 & The Articles of Faith

February 6, 2019

Official Declaration 1

Plural Marriage Stopped, Prophets Guided By The Lord,

The student manual’s Historical Background found on pages 361-363 gives an excellent history of why and when polygamy was abandoned: In short, plural marriage was officially publically announced in August 29, 1852. Ten years later, Stephen Harding, the non-Mormon governor of the Territory of Utah, persuaded Justin R Morrill of Vermont to introduce an Anti-Polygamy bill into Congress. That bill was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on July 8 1862. In 1874, George Q Cannon and George C Bates believed that the Supreme Court would rule the law unconstitutional since it infringed on the freedom of religion provision of the Constitution. On May 5 1879 the Supreme Court concluded that although religious liberty was protected by the First Amendment, the amendment did not give one the right to commit “immoral” or “criminal” acts sanctioned by religious doctrine. In March 1882 Congress passed the Edmunds Bill which took away the right to vote, or hold office, from anyone practicing plural marriage. In March of 1887 Congress passed the Edmund-Tucker Act which dis-incorporated the Church, dissolved the Perpetual Emigration Fund, and gave the property of the Church to the government for the benefit of the common schools of Utah, and took away the right of Utah women to vote.

As is said in the Manifesto(Oct 4, 1890): if the church continued to practice plural marriage, those people would be imprisoned, and church property would be taken away, thus temples would close and that work would cease. Some members continued to practice polygamy in secret, or they moved to Mexico. Jan 8, 1900, President Lorenzo Snow assured the Church and the nation that “The Church has positively abandoned the practice of polygamy, or the solemnization of plural marriage.”

Plural marriage was instituted by the Lord. But the Lord has also said to the saints to abide by the laws of the land. The Church took this the right of plural marriage to the Supreme Court, and it was not upheld.  This is what President Woodruff said to the saints: “The Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice….Confusion would reign throughout Israel, and many men would be made prisoners. This trouble would have come upon the whole Church, and we should have been compelled to stop the practice. Now, the question if, whether it should be stopped in this manner, or in the way the Lord has manifested to us, and leave our prophets and apostles and fathers free men, and the temples in the hands of the people, so that the dead may be redeemed?...I saw exactly what would come to pass if there was not something done. I have had this spirit upon me for a long time. But I want to say this: I should have let all the temples go out of our hands; I should have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do; and when the hour came that I was commanded  to do that, it was all clear to me. I went before the Lord, and I wrote what the Lord told me to write…”

Do I truly understand plural marriage? No, not now—although I have feelings & thoughts about it on several levels . Do I believe the Lord guides His prophets? Yes. Will I ever understand plural marriage? Yes, I believe so, but it may not be in this life. Am I comfortable in having to wait for that understanding? Yes, because I understand—in my mind and in my heart-- so many other things the Lord commands and teaches us—the things that bring a deep peace to my life. I am very willing to wait for the entire, eternal picture.

12/6/2021 – The Articles of Faith

Basically, the Articles of Faith are a simple overview of what Mormons believe. They were written by Joseph Smith after John Wentworth, editor of the Chicago Democrat, asked him to provide a “sketch of the rise, progress persecution, and faith of the Latter-Day Saints”.  Joseph sent a multi-page document that contained an account of many of the early events in the history of the Restoration, including the First Vison and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. It also included 13 concise statements that outlined our beliefs. None of this was ever published in the Chicago Democrat, but it WAS published in the Church newspaper, Times and Seasons in March of 1842. In 1851 the Articles of Faith were included in the first edition of the Pearl of Great Price. 

The Articles of Faith were not the work of a team of scholars, but were authored buy a single, inspired man who declared comprehensively and concisely the essential doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They contain direct and simple statements of the principles of our religion, and they constitute strong evidence of the divine inspiration that rested upon the Prophet Joseph Smith. 

I love how these doctrines were explained in my study guide: 

#1 “The first article anchors our belief in God, our Eternal Father, in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost. How grateful we are for a knowledge of Supreme Beings that rule and govern this world. Our belief does not come from the speculations of men about the existence and nature of God, but from firsthand experience from the Prophet Joseph Smith in the Sacred Grove. His experience clarified for mankind the existence of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. Thus to the world came the vision that three personages comprise this great presiding council of the universe and have revealed themselves to mankind as three separate beings, physically distinct from each other as demonstrated by the accepted records of their divine dealings with mankind.” And I love that they all have distinctly different responsibilities, that personally helps me in so many different ways.

# 2-3: “The second and third articles announce our belief in the Atonement of our Lord and Savior, that through Him all mankind will be blessed with immortality. They state that we have the responsibility for accepting Him as our Savior, and we will only be responsible for our “own sins and not for Adam’s transgression”.  I love the comfort that has come to me when I have said, or done, something that was not good or loving; and when I have recognized that I have gone to the Lord in prayer asking for the power of the atonement to calm the heart of those I have hurt, and also asking the Lord help me remember to keep His commandments with a greater understanding of loving and helping one another.

# 4-5: “The fourth and fifth articles refer to our belief in the first principles of the gospel. They are faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and repentance. We also learn that the first ordinances of the gospel are baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost. These ordinances are bestowed by men “called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those” who have the authority to administer them.”  There is a purpose and a plan for this world. We are to learn how to continue in faith when we are no longer in the presence of the Lord. The world, for us, is like a celestial collage, and we are here to learn more deeply and keep more completely, the things we must have been taught in the spirit world. 

#6: “Building on the foundation established in the first five articles of faith, the sixth article tells us that an organization is necessary, and the same organization that existed in the primitive Church has been restored. The restored Church exists on the earth today, with the sacred power received through the restoration of the holy priesthood.” We do have what the people of Christ’s time had. We have prophets, who commune with the Lord and guide us with loving teaches. Do they sometimes make mistakes? YES! They are human, and they also, are in this same heavenly schooling that we are in. 

# 7 & 9: “The seventh and ninth articles profess that the heavens are not closed, that God continues to reveal His will to mankind; as He has in the past, He does now in the present, and He will in the future. Spiritual gifts are received by mankind today, just as they were in days past.” I have found such comfort by going to the Lord in faith and asking to help me to be better in certain ways, or to understand more completely the commandments He gives to us. I have felt His love in my difficult days. I have felt His comfort. And I have felt His strengthening power. He is always there for us. The only requirement for us is to come unto Him, then we will feel His love and His power and His understanding.

# 8:  “The eighth article states our belief in the Bible as the “word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.” The Book of Mormon gives to us that second witness of the authenticity of the scriptures as recorded in the Bible. The Lord, in His divine plan for the restoration of the gospel in the latter days, brought forth the Book of Mormon as that additional witness to the mission of our Lord and Savior. It also provides a religious history that is profoundly important to our Father in Heaven’s children.” I love the scriptures. When I pray for understanding, so often I have found my mind opened and have recognized truths in a way that I had never recognized them before. I love the advice: When we want to talk to God: pray. And when we want Him to talk to us: read the scriptures.

#10: “Article 10 tells of our belief “in the literal gathering of Israel,” that Zion will be built again and Christ will return and “reign personally upon the earth.” When Christ was on the earth, he was constantly teaching the people of the Lord’s plan and the Lord’s love. His 12 apostles continued that work after Christ’s death. We are to do the same thing in our sphere of living. When I try to do this, I have found wondrous peace and love and friendship.

#11-12: “The 11th and 12th articles profess our belief in religious liberty, tolerance, and agency. Agency is one of the great gifts of God to His children. It allows all men and women the right to choose for themselves and to earn their own individual salvation. Also declared is our belief in secular governments and “in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law” of the land. Our agency can be an amazing wonderful thing, and it can also be a scary, frightening thing. That’s why it is so important to maintain a sweet, spiritual contact with Heavenly Father every day of our lives, for as we ask for His help and His teaching, our agency to follow His plan will increase in power.

#13: “We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.” Is there anything else that needs to be said? The Lord can always be with us – in our good times and in out bad times—and that is what makes all the difference!

12/7/2021 – D&C: Official Declaration 1

Background: The first legislation in the US against the practice of plural marriage came ten years after the doctrine was officially announced on 29 Aug 1852 by Elder Orson Pratt. In 1862, Stephen Harding, the non-Mormon governor of the Territory of Utah, was able to get Justin R Morrill of Vermont to introduce a bill into Congress: The Anti-Polygamy Act of 1862. In 1874 the Church decided to sponsor a case to test the validity of the law of 1862 believing that the Supreme Court would rule the law unconstitutional since it infringed on the freedom of religion provision of the Constitution. The Supreme Court heard the case and ruled against it.

On 24 September 1890 President Wilford Woodruff met with the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his two counselors. On the twenty-fifth President Woodruff recorded: “I have arrived at a point in the history of my life as the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where I am under the necessity of acting for the temporal salvation of the church. The United States government has taken a stand and passed laws to destroy the Latter-day Saints on the subject of polygamy, or patriarchal order of marriage; and after praying to the Lord and feeling inspired, I have issued the following proclamation which is sustained by my counselors and the twelve apostles. ” (In Clark, Messages of the First Presidency, 3:192.)

That proclamation was read in the Oct 6 1890 General Conference. It is now included in the D&C as Official Declaration 1, and is often referred to as The Manifesto.

“Some, however, claimed that President Woodruff gave in to pressure and that the Lord had not really revealed that plural marriage was to cease. The fact that this declaration did not specifically mention revelation as the reason for stopping the practice seemed to fuel the criticism. A year later at a quarterly conference held at Brigham City, Utah, President Woodruff made it clear why he had made the decision to stop the practice of plural marriage: “I have had some revelations of late, and very important ones to me, and I will tell you what the Lord has said to me. Let me bring your minds to what is termed the manifesto. The Lord has told me by revelation that there are many members of the church throughout Zion who are sorely tried in their hearts because of that manifesto, and because of the testimony of the Presidency of this Church and the apostles before the master in chancery. Since I received that revelation I have heard of many who are tried in these things, though I had not heard of any before that particularly. Now, the Lord has commanded me to do one thing, and I fulfilled that commandment at the conference at Brigham City last Sunday, and I will do the same here today. The Lord has told me to ask the Latter-day Saints a question, and he also told me that if they would listen to what I said to them and answer the question put to them by the Spirit and power of God, they would all answer alike, and they would all believe alike with regard to this matter. “The question is this: Which is the wisest course for the Latter-day Saints to pursue—to continue to attempt to practice plural marriage, with the laws of the nation against it and the opposition of sixty millions of people, and at the cost of the confiscation and loss of all the temples, and the stopping of all the ordinances therein, both for the living and the dead, and the imprisonment of the First Presidency and Twelve and the heads of families in the Church, and the confiscation of personal property of the people (all of which of themselves would stop the practice); or, after doing and suffering what we have through our adherence to this principle to cease the practice and submit to the law, and through doing so leave the prophets, apostles and fathers at home, so that they can instruct the people and attend to the duties of the Church, and also leave the temples in the hands of the Saints, so that they can attend to the ordinances of the gospel, both for the living and the dead? “The Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice. If we had not stopped it, you would have had no use for Brother Merrill, for Brother Edlefsen, for Brother Roskelley, for Brother Leishman, or for any of the men in this temple at Logan; for all ordinances would be stopped throughout the land of Zion. Confusion would reign throughout Israel, and many men would be made prisoners. This trouble would have come upon the whole Church, and we should have been compelled to stop the practice. Now, the question is, whether it should be stopped in this manner, or in the way the Lord has manifested to us, and leave our prophets and apostles and fathers free men, and the temples in the hands of the people, so that the dead may be redeemed?... “I saw exactly what would come to pass if there was not something done. I have had this spirit upon me for a long time. But I want to say this: I should have let all the temples go out of our hands; I should have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do; and when the hour came that I was commanded to do that, it was all clear to me. I went before the Lord, and I wrote what the Lord told me to write. I laid it before my brethren—such strong men as Brother George Q. Cannon, Brother Joseph F. Smith, and the Twelve Apostles. I might as well undertake to turn an army with banners out of its course as to turn them out of a course that they considered to be right. These men agreed with me, and ten thousand Latter-day Saints also agreed with me. . . . Why? Because they were moved upon by the Spirit of God and by the revelations of Jesus Christ to do it.” (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 214–16.)

In 1911 President Joseph F. Smith, once again, emphasized the Church’s stand on polygamy: “And another thing, as we have announced in previous conferences— as it was announced by President Woodruff, as it was announced by President Snow, and as it was reannounced by me and my brethren, and confirmed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, plural marriages have ceased in the Church. There isn’t a man today in this Church, or anywhere else, outside of it who has authority to solemnize a plural marriage—not one! There is no man or woman in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who is authorized to contract a plural marriage. It is not permitted, and we have been endeavoring to the utmost of our ability to prevent men from being led by some designing person into an unfortunate condition that is forbidden by the conferences, and by the voice of the Church, a condition that has to some extent at least, brought reproach upon the people.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1911, p. 8.)

I so appreciated the final paragraph of Official Declaration 1 as it is written in the Doctrine and Covenants. It is also from President Wilford Woodruff as he spoke at the sixth session of the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple, April 1893: “Now I will tell you what was manifested to me and what the Son of God performed in this thing….All these things would have come to pass, as God Almighty lives, had not that Manifesto been given. Therefore, the Son of God felt disposed to have that thing presented to the Church and to the world for purposes in his own mind. The Lord had decreed the establishment of Zion. He had decreed the finishing of this temple. He had decreed that the salvation of the living and the dead should be given in these valleys of the mountains. And Almighty God decreed that the Devil should not thwart it. If you can understand that, that is a key to it.”