Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-01-22
,pEs1DENT MILFORD WooDRUFF
InrpoHrEp by ARTHUR wISrERl

go for counsel: they knew where to
ask for advice; they knew that where
! there was IA sick man the sick man
went to the High Priest to be cleansed.
/ Even in the time of our Lord, Christ
said. after He had cured many a leper,
Go and show thyself to the Priest"
| There was bond OF union, because
| God Himself had created it. They
| were sanctifed; not sanctitied merely
| in language, not by fabrication. but
\ they were sanctihed because the law
! of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, If
| followed out, II lived out, could make
! of them holy men and women. They
| were a people that could Withstand all
| attacks from without Why? Because
| they had the power of God in their
midst That is-that was-the Church
! of God. That was the Church which
Jesus Christ established upon the
! earth.
Let me be frank with you, my breth-
rem. II would do no gold II l We're not
/ feel, as l stand here to address you,
that ] stand in a holy place. Christ has
told us, where two or three are gathered
together in His name He will be in
their midst. / said this was n Church
of God. You might misunderstood me,
and think that am a Mormon. / were
u hypocrite II / were to say that. OF
course, according to my own belief
there is one church that makes that
ciaiih. but WHAT mean 10 say 10
! you Is this: Here is the Mormon
Church. Here Is another tabernacle.
Here also an Israel has spread and
| pitched its tents. And to my mind.
your Church and the Roman church
are the only two churches in the world
today that make any real claim to
Christianity. / understand that little
4 while ago some ecclesiastical gentle
men in this city passed n resolution
as to whether or not the Mormons are
Christians-as If you might pass reso-
buttons TO say that mans color shall
change over night! You might as well
pass resolution that colored man
shall become white. and a white man
man shall become colored, as to pass a
resolution that people be not Chris
I tians who bow their heads before Christ
and who stand up and say. I'VE are the
only Church" But these gentlemen
say, Resolved, that the Mormon
| Church are not Christians" Why, 1t Is
the height of absurdity; 1t is NONSENSE
| CAL only fit for children!
The reason why I have been attract
| ed by your Church, and most likely
why the head Of your Church has hon.
ored me with the distinction and priv
| flege to speak to you, is because your
Church will at an times arrest the
mind and rthe heart OF man whose
heart burns with zeal for truth and
| who has got brain to think. come into
Salt Lake City. and everywhere am
4 surrounded by Mormons who tell me
| very fiatly, cYou have no authority:
you have lost everything; we are the
true Church" A man would commit
| crime against his conscience, against
his God, II he We're not to stop and say
to himself, This is worth examining"
! must investigate this. ! cannot go
from Salt Lake City back to New
| York and simply say, II have been
there and heard something about the
I Nd fVt.arr Ia
queer Ideas in their heads" No; I must
| meet that Church face to face. 1 must
know what 1t is. I must know upon
what they rest their claims and pre-
tensions. I do not say / am convinced
of It. I say l am open for conviction
There is no truth upon earth which a
man should not accept when proven;
and there is no man upon earth who
Is too great to accept the truth, no
matter whence II emanates.
Now. this Israel here In Utah-this
new Israel, and this new Zion. there
We're many man. many a Balaam
| standing here to curse. Many indeed
went out to curse, to scandalize. to
criticise. with malicious motives. Far
be 1t from me to utter single word.
either here in your presence or after
have left. which even you yourselves
could object to from your own stand
point. Now, hare IL the point. A
church that makes claim to unity,
church that makes claim to sanctity, n
church that makes claim to possess the
authority from Christ. may be true
church. Which one is It? You say 1t
Is your Church; say II Is mine. But
| this Is not a place for debate. This is
place where l mean to show you that
over and over again the Church of God
was to, be cursed. but was blessed
| But her strength. her power was that
| she was one, that she had authority
that she had all the sacraments in her
| own possession. Even In the time of
Israel, nobody could ever point the I'm
ger and say there was n heresy; no.
body could say there was n
was one, Israel knew it by the direction
| or God. III there was false testimony
| israel knew by the revelation Of God
| II there was false living. Israel
knew 1t by the direction Of God Thar,
e, to my judgment and in my opinion,
Is true Church of Christ. It is
very marvellous indeed when man
| goes out and mingles with the various
Christian sects.
! have noticed good many things
which have impressed me very much.
While lecturing on Thursday night to
your students Mt one OF your acade-
| mics, In little place called Ogden.
called their attention to n certain ex-
preston heard: 1t Is this: Language
indicates something; II represents a
-. '"ih ihstitutinn, NOW, since i nave
mingled with Mormons ! have heard
over and over again, THAT man is an
apostate." An apostatel All. yes, why.
no other modern church can use that
language. A man may leave the First
Presbyterian church to join the Fourth
Presbyterian church; he may leave the
Fourth Presbyterian to join the First
baptist church, he may leave the First
baptist church to join the Lutheran
church; but he is not AN apostate, he
may merely be a man who has crossed
from one street into another. He can
never be an apostate. What should he
apostatize from? You ask those very
men who passed resolutions as to who
Is TO he Christian or who is not to be
CHRISTIAN, who is to be regarded as
one that worslips CHRIST or not-ask
those very men, Have you the truth"
Well yes-part; the other part il with
my netghhor." Have you the TRUTH"
wen, yes, the essential truth we
have" "Have'you the truth, the whole
ruth, and nothing but the TRUTH"
there Is absolute silence. unless a voice
comes from one corner OF the Alps.
from Rome. and says. Il have the
truth and then 1t comes again from
another corner of the world. in this
new hemisphere-from Salt Lake City
A-Whero the hand of vntfr Nhnrrh anva