The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-05-24
JOSEPH F. SMITH
TALKS OF CHURCH
Does This i'm Commencement
Sermon Delivered at
Barratt Hall.
III ALL is A DELUSI0N
NOBODY HURT, HE SAYS
List of Graduates in High
School and Business
Courses.

Smith, the testimony of the three wit
ncsses relative to the hearing OF the
voice of God, and the testimony OF the
eight witnesses regarding the tablets
was the truth, inviolate, was the note
which ran throughout the commence
mept sermon preached by President Jo-
seph F. Smith of the Mormon church
before the students and friends Of the
Latter-dav Saints High school and bus
mess college in Barratt hall Sunday
evening.
The exercises of the evening were
onened by the congregation singing,
which was followed by Joseph E, Tay-
lor, who led in prayer. Immediately
after, President Smith arose and stated
that ipasmuch as he had not had time
in which to prepare for the occasion,
he hoped that the Lord would bring to
his mind something to say. lnasmuch
as he had not had time to prepare any
thing be also sincerely hoped that the
congregation would not expect much.
lie would depend entirely on the Lord
10 help him TO grace the occasion prop
erly.
President Smith then said that he un
derstood that the l.. -. =. school was
church school for the purpose of instill-
ing in the minds Of the children the
truths of the church. If God were God
and Christ were indeed his son, then the
word spoken BY each must be true and
there was nothing of so great import
ance TO the youth of Zion as the know
ing of the truth. God s word, and the
acknowledging and corprchending of its
truth, Coming from the source of all
truth. as IL did, the truths taught by the
church of the L3tter-day Saints must
of necessity be true, If that were not
the case the church of the Latter-day
Saints would have fallen to the ground
long ago.
President Smith then went on to give
his conception of what the true relig-
ION was and said that some of the peo-
pie in the world believed in putting OF
long face aud in denying themselves
the good things Of life. This was not
the true religion. President Smith had
ut one time gone into the home of
Methodist minister and had asked the
minister 8 wife why there were no pie.
lures on the walls and no ornaments of
any sort in the house. She had an
swered that she did not want to have
her thoughts distracted from the con
temptation of the Christ and that orua-
n,cnts and such things would tend to do
that sort of thing.
Not the True Idea.
What did she know about the true
religion. WAS the question which Presi-
dent Smith asked, He answered it by
saying that she was sincere. no doubt.
hut that she had the sectarian idea of
religion and not the true idea such as
was taught by what was known as Nor
monlsm. He was thankful that he had
received the true religion and he be-
lievcd in all Of its teachings II was
his religion he reiterated over aud over,
lie then spoke of the first vision of
Prophet Joseph Smith. at the time when
the prophet was only II years of age,
and was an innocent youth searching at
that early age for the rrue church. This
youth, with his great faith in God, had
gone into the woods 10 pray, perfect in
his belief that God would show him the
true way. President Smith then said
that 1T was wonderful to him that
child OF such tender age could be so
impressed with passage In the bible
that he would go into the woods and
pray for light 10 guide him But the
Lord was with him in that hour of need
and impressed on his mind which was
the true religion
Led onward by the holy inspiration
of Prophet Joseph Smith, the church had
continued TO grow until TODAY there was
no other organization in the world so
perfect IN every way and so thoroughly
organized in every detail AS the church
of the Latter dav Saints. This could not
have been perfected To the extent il was
at the present time by the work of man
alone, but was on account of the di.
vine help which the institution had re.
ccived- The speaker theu said If the
church were true il resulted in The good
Of the world. the living and the dead
Even supposiug that the teaching OF the
church were not true, no one had ever
been injured by the work of the church.
Talks OF Delusion.
President Smith then said: "Will ii
make me any worse as a man if the
church IS deluson! No: it will make
me better man even if it is a delu-
SION. 1T is necessary for YOU and ME TO
know that God spoke to Joseph Smith,
giving to him his laws and that the
angels ministered TO him and that this
is the truth And in spite of all Of the
s'n, eloquence. lies. chiconery. hyprocri-
sy and even murder that has been
waged against the church it has grown;
we still move onward because we have
ihe truth. In the face OF hatred, malig.
nance. misrepresentation and pcrsecu.
ton, We grow aud grow until our mis-
slonaries throughout the world number
thousands Behind all of our efforts
is the almighty power, an irresistible
providence pushing our church ahead
and sustaining ii in tine face Of all op.
posifion.''
The speak ker then went on to say that
he believed in the testimony Of the
Ihree witnesses who had heard the voice
or Cod i'll the testimony Of the cipht
witnesses who had seen the plates and
IN the divine revela tiops of Prophet
Smith. He defed any one TO prove that
either Of the witnesses had ever denied
their testimony. Some liars had said
that one Oliver Cowdrv had said that
he might have been mistaken Oliver
Cowdry had years after come back TO
the church aud died in the faith and
This was proof of the fact that he had
lhcn asked that every one connected
with the school Of the Latter-day Saints
be helped forward in the great work
They were doing for the world in instill.
ing the truth in the minds of the chill.
Iren.
President Smith was followed with 4