The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-05-17

of church and state as they appear to
be, the solution is easy.
In the Deseret News of May II, find
the following quoted with seeming APP
prevail from the Catholic Review, In
deed, the Mormon leaders should go
further and lay down the law that no
clerical official in the Mormon church
should be a candidate for political Of
flee. If that regulation We're generally
enforced, religion would be saved sucn
scandals as last year sEamed the state
of Ohio, when a clergyman in the legis-
failure offered to sell his vote for
bribe''
From this draw encoura cement that
the church organ will endorse my plan
for a remedy of dreaded evils. My rem
edy is this. Let the political conven-
tons adopt a resolution something like
the following:
Whereas, The dominant church of
this state has adopted a rule of disci-
pline for it's members by which they
say that every leading kofficial of the
church shall, before accepting any po-
litioal position which would interfere
with the proper and complete discharge
of his ecclesiastical duties, apply to the
proper authorities to learn from them
whether he can, consistently with the
church obligations, take upon himself
the responsibilities of the new position.
And, Whereas, This same church
and it's leaders express themselves OPP
posed to union of church and state.
And, Whereas, We are likewise OPP
posed to a union of church and state,
and by this we mean to oppose as much
the practical union by which few &C.
clesiastical leaders will control the po-
litical action of church members in all
political parties, as well as the legal
and technical union.
Now, therefore, be it Resolved That
While we recognize the right of every
church organization to make any rule
of discipline its members may see fit
to submit to. yet we conceive it to be
our right and our duty to SO regulate
the affairs of our party that no rule
of church discipline shall have the eff
feet of putting it under the control of
any priesthood whatever.
I'VE believe that B. H. Roberts,
when speaking upon this in the Salt
Lake Herald of October /, 1895, correct
ly outlined our course in this matter
when he said. If the church permits
its high officials to enter politics at all,
then those men ought to be absolutely
free to follow their own discretion as to
what their politics should be, and the
extent to which they shall engage in
the affairs of the government, as any
thing short of this would render party
loyalty impossible. 1 do not believe
that Democratic church officials ought
to be expected to go to Republican su-
perfor church officials for counsel in po-
lltica1 affairs or vice versa
Such requirement in our commu-
nifty would place the control of the re-
spective parties under the church Off
Gals and would give political affairs
entirely into their hands. I see no
middle ground between absolutea and
complete retirement on the part of
high Mormon church officials from poll
tics or else perfect freedom of conduct
in respect to politics.
In view of the fact that the church
has seen fit not to leave its high Of
ficials free to act as they think best
now therefore, we declare, that for
the purpose of preventing a practical
union of church and state. no person
shall be deemed eligible for nomina-
ton teAany office in the gift of this
party Is whom this rule of discipline
above referred to applies, unless such
person shall first have publicly re-
nounced the right of every man or
priesthood, to either give or withhold
their consent to his candidacy, or that
of any other man.
1--WE regret that those who framed
the church rule referred to, have seen
fit to leave it uncertain as to who
comes within the designation of lead
ing officials but considering, as we do,
that the weight of public interpreta-
ton by those in authority, is that it
applies to all holding the Office of bish-
op, presidents of stakes, and their coun-
selors, presidents of quorums of sew
enttes, apostles, the president of tho
church and his counselors.
I'VE, therefore, declare them inel-
glble to receive any nomination for of
flee in this convention, except upon the
condition above specified.
ut is not cur intention to make war
upon any church or creed, and in the
adoption of this regulation for the gov
eminent Of our organization, we are
only taking the necessary steps to
bring about complete separation of
church and state.
ITO this end we invite the earnest CO.
operation of those church officials af-
fected thereby, feeling sure that upon
reflection they will consider it fortunate