The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-07-06
ATTACKING THE CHURCH. :"

The old, familiar cry of attacking
| the church - is raised by the "hirellngs
of the priesthood every time any
criticism goes forth regarding the sins
| of the leaders. In order not TO hear
this howl, one must laud hypocrisy and
graft, and tacitly admit that Joseph F..
Smith and his colleagues arc the re-
deemers of mankind and the Lord s
| special vicegerents on earth, recognlz-
| ing them as in all things above suspi-
cion. To even intimate that they may
| be stealing a few thousand dollars,
marrying dozen new celestial -
wives, or that the Smith family have
a death grip on the management of
the church, is hcralded as blaspbemy
against God. In the small towns pub
licly, and in larger places in secret
meetings, the saints are taught to keep
all anti Mormon literature away from
the people, especially the young men,
that Gods enemies are trying to de-
stroy the only true church, that Satan
is working his old schemes to prevent
God IS plans from being carried out.
1t is the cry of the coward and
sneak, not of the hero; ii is the cunning
wall of the thief who robs and must
resort to strategy for sympathy, 1t is
the only refuge for those who are in
terested in covering up evils and seeing
that ignorance fourishes regarding the
history of their Vaccinations; the de
| fense of the impostor who relies on
misrepresentation for support, knowing
that deceit is his weapon and light and
truth his downfall.
If the Mormon prophets have what
they claim, why do they fight so te-
naciously against all forms of publicity
which do not emanate from the
church7 Must the world know them
only as they explain themselves? Can
men Judge darkness until they have
experienced the effect of hght7 To
those who admit the whole Mormon
system to be God special work, and
claiming that the forms and ceremo-
hies passed through give them immeas'
urable advantages over the rest of the
world, how is it they are so afraid of
criticism? If these things are true,
which we hear harped on so much, why
do they fear the unfolding of both sides
of the questions at issue7 Why do they
not say: "Here, brothers and sisters,
is the other side of the dispute; with
your great knowledge and light from
Heaven, take out the truth from the
falsehood. that you may combat the
opposers of truth?''
| But no; it has ever been a game of
keeping the saints from reading any
| thing that does not meet the sanction
of the leaders. To play such farce
requires ingenuity, deceitful cunning,
and all varieties of faIsehood known
to mankind. And 1T is an easy affair
when you get the people in the rut to
keep them there if you can prevent
their reasoning and reading about the
other phases of life-phases that the
''wise heads" slight, passing over with
lies made of their own cloth.
If the good saint, who disobeys
counsel and reads these sentences, will
answer the questions asked he may see
new light. And then he may ponder
over few more questions and sugges-
tions. Is it not cowardly to lay the
blame all on the "Lord's enemies, -
as superintcnded by the devil himself,
for the American party g successes and
the large number who have opposed
the present "prophet" If the Lord
|
direct charge of Mormonism, is it not
right to expect Him to master all op.
position without the church leader Is