Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-01-22

1--WE have the truth" Or. ms the ven
cradle head of the Church said TO me,
"If you have any truth that have not
got, let me see II, and l Will take it."
These are the two churches.
Now, II makes no difference who the
BALKAN will be that will come to curse
be assured as long as you pitch your
tents by the direction OF God, as long
as you have got the Lawgiver. God, as
long as you claim to have authority,
as long as you claim to have the
Priesthood, as long as you claim to
have the sacramento, you may find a
thousand enemies surrounding you and
they will all have to pronounce n bene-
dictlon upon you. As go through the
arch here from time to time since my
sojouTn here in your midst 1 recall
many time / have walked through
the catacombs In Rome by the side of
a guide with torchlight in his hand,
pointing out here and yonder, there lies
one man." and there another" there
Is the place where one Of those who
were slaughtered by the enemy OF God
Is buried" AS l go through this arch
/ feel that I am treading on n spot
where your forefathefs came in across
the plains In order to pitch their tents
in this modern Zion. | went out once
purposely in the middle of the night.
about l o'clock, when / was fatigued
with writing. l took my overeoat and
went out In the street, and passed
by n little bit of an Office. Stiffness
everywhere! There was light In the
Office and 1t seemed to me as If 1t was
a perpetual light burning in the temple
| OF Vesta stood there gazing up
ward, and saying to myself, Here is
remarkable thing. a peculiar people.
People came in here many a time to
| curse, many time to condemn, and
vet here they still live, here they still
have got their tents, from here they
| are still proclaiming that they are the
only true Church. That, my brethren,
is your only strength in the world In
my crossing the ocean about sixteen
| times have met with many an acci-
| dent. remember many time of ship
wreck, and recaii one instance when
| we had to turn around the ship and go
back thirty-six hours. The captain
stood there wet to the skin; every Of
something SERIOUS should happen, and
he turned to the man at the
helm. "How is It there?" A
voice came, strong, positive. de
| termined, "All is right here" And
| so is the Church of God upon the earth.
| She is still upon the great ocean.
shaken by every billow-by enemies,
by MISUNDERSTANDING But the Great
/ CAPTAIN cries back to the man at the
helm--to those whom He left upon
earth, whom He has appointed to
guide His people. to His AUTHORITIES;
.
right here!" But alas when look
around today in Protestant Christen-
| dom, am almost tempted to say that
the man who stands at the helm Is
! drunken, staggering sailor, with an
| unsteady hand and he cannot make
any response when this question comes
/ to him.
have in mind n very beautiful thing
which is appropriate for your people
In The Talmud of Babylon. II pictures
| where a young woman in the bloom
| of life sits at her table, and 1t seems
as II all her occupation is nothing else
/ but reading some letters That woman
loves man dearly, as dear as her life,
who has left and gone into far coun-
try. She heard nothing from him
month in and month out, year in and
year out, and he returned. Upon his
waiting for him. She received him;
she was loyal as ever, true as ever,
| steadfast as ever. He said to her. MY
beloved one, how is 1t that for these
many years L have. been away from
I you. you heard nothing from me: you
and true to you. and yet you are loyal
| and true to me-" "Ah!" said She
while you were away, and was
sometimes in anguish, and sometimes
doubt crept into my soul. i took your
| love letters, / read those love letters of
I
who can write such letters is honest. Is
true. is loyal, he cannot lie, he will re-
! main true as long as there is n breath
left in him." And, says the Baby
lonian Talmud, in the last days God
| will say to His people. 20 my people
Israel. how was il? i have left you
down on this earth. In the wilderness.
in tribulation, often in agony, often in
starvation, surrounded by enemies;
how was 1t that you remained loyal,
true and steadfast to me?" And Israel
will answer and say, 20 thou Most
High. while we were away from you;
while we dwelt In the valley of tears;
while many n time aflliction visited us;
| while many a blow fell upon us: while
our hearts were often torn; while dark
ness often covered our habitations in
those days we read your love letters.
we read your promises, and we said.
"A God that can thus speak to His peo-
pie. a God that can make such prom
| ises as these, that God Is true: His
hand is not short to help help will
come sure: He will deliver His people
from all anxiety" And So, my breth-
rem, with the Church of God. Permit
me to say that you as a people. in your
| Church. whom you are surrounded by
enemies, when sometimes the hand Of
civil war is laid upon your head heav-
ily when sometimes you are misunder-
| stood, when sometimes you suffer, then
take the love letters of Him who has
thus far guided your forefathers, who
| has thus far kept you, and be assured
| that a God who can thus speak, a. God
who can thus talk to His people. that
God will remain true.
Let me say to you one word, in con-
clusion. You have heard the cath
| chapter of Numbers read to you.
| BaliGm came to curse, but Balaam
did not curse-Ralaam pronounced
benedlction. The enemy who stands
outside of the Church, that enemy will
always be conquered. The enemy that
| attacks the Church from without, that
| enemy you need never fear. But go on
and read the 25th chapter, and what do
| you find there. Right after the enemy
was conquered and blessed Israel.
Israel forgot his God and committed
| sin, and Jehovah brought pestilence
| upon His own people. The Church of
| God need never fear an enemy from
without; but the enemy within your
walls-he who walks with you side by
side into your tabernacle or into your
| temple. he who makes the same pro-
| fesslon; he who speaks the same Lam
| guage; he who pretends to have the
same religion and to believe in the
same revelation. and to be guided by
the same authority, but. whose heart
is far from God and who lives an un-
godly life. he is the worst enemy you
have; and In due time. II you do not
clear out your house from such people.
God himself will srite you with pes
thence.
II is remarkable thing, my friends.