Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1896-11-21

mas DestOWtu upon tncill, anu nave
desire to magnify and honor it, and TO
see it honored, yet they recognize that
in and oil themselves they are very weak,
and they feel the lack of that ability and
power which they ought TO have to
magnify their offices to the acceptance
OF God and the satisfaction OF the peo'
pie. You know the President oil this
Church. | need not-in his presence,
at least-enumerate his qualities, nor
speak to you OF his humility and his un'
assuming character. You know him.
So II is with the rest, Some may
not have SO happy faculty of
appearing humble in public as others;
but in the hearts of these men
there is no desire to exercise any inn
proper authority among this people.
Can testify oil this, for know these men
| and their spirit. What, then, is it that
prompts them to talk about the Priest
hood and to appeal to the Saints to
honor that Priesthood II is that God
our Eternal Father may be honored.
| He has bestowed this authority, and 1t is
representative Of Him, and we should
| honor il as we desire 10 honor Him.
know that il this people will listen to the
counsel OF Gods servants they will be
prospered and blessed, and the gifts and
graces OF the Gospel will be enjoyed by
| them to their fullest extent. | know
that those who have this spirit grow in
knowledge, in strength, and in the gifts
Of the Gospel, and are, might say,
better Latter.day Saints than those who
| do not.
You take the leading men of this
| Church, not only the Twelve, but the
Presidents OF Stakes, the High Council
| ,I,. ;-I, I u not hn-
| lieve you can find in any organization,
| religious, political or social, a body OF
| men so independent, SO DESTROYS oil hav-
ing their own way, SO firm. and so de-
| termined, as those to whom ! allude.
Take the First Presidency. Those who
know us know what our characteristics
are. Take the Twelve, the Seven Presi.
! dents OF Seventies, the Presidents OF
Stakes, the High Councillors and the
| Bishops OF wards, Those who know
these men know to great extent what
| their characteristics are. These men,
generally speaking, are men OF indepen-
| dent thought, men that will not bow
| lightly to the behests OF others. They
are men that would rather die than sac
| rilice principle. They would suffer
| their goods to be destroyed and their
| bodies to be burned rather than to bow
to that which in their estimation was not
right. call attention to this because
these men are submissive men. 1t is not
| because they are easily influenced.
What is the cause OF their submission
and their obediencel 1t is because God
has revealed the Priesthood and has re-
stored the authority. That is what
bow to. When respect and honor
MILFORD Woodruff | bow 10 God who
has chosen him. My neck does not
nor never did bow to man. Those who
know me know that am unbending in
that respect. / may get along quietly:
| do not like to quarrel; but never yet
| bowed to man. only bow TO proper
authority. II listen 20 MILFORD Wood
ruff, il look to him 10 see how the
Spirit OF God moves upon him; il ask
his counsel and take it, II is because God
| has commanded me. God has given
| him the keys OF authority. Let anybody
else try it, and see what effect their
| action would have. When Joseph +.
Smith obeys MILFORD Woodruff, he does
it upon the same principle. We rever.
ence him as the prophet OF God, and as
| our leader. We listen to him, and are
guided by his slightest wish. 1t is be.
| cause we know that he is the servant OF
| God, chosen by the Almighty to fill that
| place, and that he holds the keys OF the
| Priesthood to this generation on the
earth at the present time. can say
| tnithiully that we strive 10 consult his
| slightest wish, and honor him in his
| position, because we know that God has
| chosen him. And who are we that we
| should Withstand Godf Who are we
that we should withstand that which
God revcals1 Does this sacrifice our in
dependence2 Not in the least. And
| these Twelve Apostles are in precisely
the same position. When they accept
| the counsel OF the First Presidency, they
| do it because they believe the First
Presidency to be chosen OF God. They
may have different views on many
things; but when the First Presidency
gives counsel, every man that has the
| Spirit OF God accepts that counsel. This
| does not prevent him from entertaining
his views and expressing them, and it
does not detract from his influence.
| Now, we do not ask this people to be
! more obedient than we are. We do not
ask you to do something that we are not
| willing TO do. We have set you the ex-
ample. We ask you, as the Lord asks
you, to obey the authority OF God and
| to respect it. Does this mean man-wor-
shipr Does this mean loss OF indepen'
| dence? No, thousand times no. There
Is no more independent people on the
earth than the Latter-day Saints. They
have proved it. They have been willing
TO leave everything they had on earth,
and even to risk their lives, for that
which they knew to be true. Men,
therefore, who talk about us, as though
we were servile, as though we do not
have independence OF character, as
though we blindly follow a few leaders,
are guilty OF falsehood. We are as in.
dependent as human beings can be. Blu,
we know that God has restored the
| Priesthood, and we obey that. When
| a man takes me down into the water
after believing in Jesus and repenting Of
my sins, and baptizes me in the water
and know that receive the remission
OF my sins through that act; when a
man lays his hands upon ME and con
| firms me member OF the Church OF
| Christ and coniers upon me the gilt oil
the Holy Ghost, and know that re-
ceive that gift through that ordinance,
shall mot respect and honor thatman unto
whom God has given such extraordinary
power1 Why, would be the meanest
being on the earth II would not respect
authority OF that kind. To go farther;
| when man administers to me certain
ordinances. and he promises unto me
that shall come forth in the morning OF