The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1859-10-06


judge that there is com par atively little here;
between Mormons and Gentiles or stran-
gers, of course still less Their reli sious
services are much like those that may be
shared or witnessed 10 the churches of
most of our popular sects; the music rath.
er better than you will hear in en- ave-
rage worsbiping assemblage in the States;
the prayers pertinent aud fsll of unction;
the sermons adapted to tastes or needs
different from mine. They seemed to
me rambling, dogmatic, and ill.digested; !;
in fact, Elder Orson Pratt, who preached
in the morning, prefaced bis harangue BY a
statement that he had been hard at work
on bis farm throughout the week, and la
bored under consequent physical exhaus-
ton. Elder John Taylor Q believe be is
one of the Twelve; at all events he is
high dignitary in the Church, and man
of decided natural ability spoke like
wise in the afternoon with little or no
premeditation. Now. l believe that eve-
ry preacher should be also worker;
like to see one moving or pitching hay
in his sbirt-leeves; and | hear with edif-
cation an unlettered but devout and earn
est evangelist who, having worked a part
of the week for the subsistence of his fam
/ lily, deyotes the rest of it to preaching the
gospel to small school house or wayside
gatherings of hearers, simply for the
good of their souls. Let him only be
sure to talk good sense, and 1 will excuse
some bad grammar. But when preach
er is to address a congregation of one to
three thousand persons, like that which
assemblies twice each Sabbath in he Salt
Lake City Tabernacle, insist that due
regard to the economy of time requires
that he should prepare himself, by stud y
and reflection, if not by writing, to speak
directly to the point. This mortal life is
too short and precious to be wasted in
listening to rambling, loose jointed bar-
angues, or even those which severally
consume an hour in the utterance, when
they might be boiled down and clarified
until :hey were brought within the COM
pass OF half an hour each. A thousand
balf-hours, Rev Sir have you ever pom
dered their valuel Suppose your time to
be worth ten times that of an average
bearer; still, to take an extra half hour
from a thousand hearers in order to save
yourself one or fifteen hours labor in the
due and careful preparation of sermon,
is scandalous waste, which see not how
to justify. Be entreated to repent and a.
mend !
The discourses to which I listened
were both intensely aud exclusively Nor
mon. That is, they assured that the
Mormous were Gods peculiar, chosen,
beloved people, and that all the rest of
mankind are out Of the ark OF safety and
foundering in heathen darkness. am
not edited by this sort of preaching. 1t
reminds me forcibly of the Pharisee s
prayer: "Lord, thank thee that am not
as other Gen are,-unjust, extortioners, "
&c. | do not think good men delight in
this assumption of an exclusive patent for
the grace of God, and | am quite sure il
is not well adapted to the transform alton
of bad men into good. Itis too we'll cal
culated to puff up its disciples with self
conceit and spiritual pride. That Jesus
Christ is about to reappear on the earth
in all the pomp and splendor of mighty
conqueror--that be will then proceed to
take vengeance on his enemies (mankind
in general. whether heather or nominally
Christian) and to glorify his elect (the
Latter-Day Saints or Mormons) were
treated by the Tabernacle preachers as
( propositions too self evident to need dem
onstratioD. Having thus chastised hi.
enemies and gathered his elect from the
four winds of Heaven" the Saviour is tc
} reign over them here on earth for thou
J sand years; at the end of which pc
! riod, they are together to be transferred
to heaven. Of course, l had heard the
5 like of this before, but it always seems t.
4 me very gross and wooden perversicI
. of the magnificent imagery whereby the
Bible foresbadows great spiritual trans
D formation But the spirit of the Mormon
: religion appears to me Judaic rather thar
. Christian; and really believe that Hebe
0 Kimball, or at any rate one of the grea
j, lights of the Church, once said in conver
: sation with Gentile-"I do pray for m,
: enemies: pray that they may all 60 t
: hell Neither from the pulpit nor else
: where have | heard from a Mormon on
: spontaneous, hearty recognition of the es
i sential brotherhood of the entire HUNS al
D Race one generous prayer for the en-
. ligbtenment and salvation Of all mankind
It On the other hand, have been distinct
8 ly given to understand that my nterlocu
!, tors expec, to sit on thrones and to bea
y rule over multitudes in the approaching
9 kingdom of God. In fact, one sincere
C devout man has to-day assigned that t
: NE as reason for polygamy: be wants L
= qualify himself by ruling large and di
Il versifed family here. for bearing rule Q
r yer bis principality in the "new earth,
q that he knows to be at hand. Think h
: might far better devote a few years t
! pandering Christ's saying to this effec
"He who would be least in the kingdot
J of Heaven, the same shall be greatest .
| was undeceived with regard to tn
Book of Mormon. | had understood tina