Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1915-04-09
PRESIDENT BRINGS
MESSAGE OF PEACE
HEAD OF CHURCH DECLARES
CHURCH rs AT PEACE WITH
ALL THE WORLD.
Opening Session Of Annual Confer
enee Of Church Of Jesus Christ Of
Latterday Saints Is Held on
Easter Sunday.

=
Salt Lake City.-With the presence
Of nearly all the general authorities
of the church, and a large and en-
thusiastic crowd, the opening session
Of the eighty-fifth annual conference
of the Church of Jesus Christ OF Lat
ter-day Saints was held on Easter
Sunday, the first time In twenty
eight years that. the opening day of
conference has fell on Easter Sunday
President Joseph F. Smith, although
he has not been entirely well for
some time, presided and made the
opening address. His message was
one of peace. Everything seems to
point out" he said, that the church
is pursuing its way peacefully. 1t is
at peace with itself and with all the
world, for 1t carries a message of life,
peaceful salvation and redemption
from SIN. Our work is to make peace
and to establish goodwill"
Following the principal part OF his
address, President Smith announced
that he would take liberty that, he
said, was rather unusual, because Of
the many false, wicked things that
had been charged against him and his
brethren. He then gave a summary
OF the tithes received during the
year Of 1914 andeof the uses to which
this money had been put. The total
amount received from tithes during
the year he said was $1,S87,920.
In addition to the amount paid out
OF. the tithes to the poor, $116,23S,
there has been collected and paid to
the poor by the relief society S74,290,
and there has been paid to the poor
by bishops from the fast offerings and
other ward charity funds $4,000,
making total paid to the poor for
1914 of $266,52S.
There has been collected for the
war sufferers, which is being ex-
pended under the direction Of Presi-
dent Hyrum M. Smith of the Euro
pean mission, $4,000.
| Our records show that 70 per cent
Of all the Latter-day Saint families
residing in all the stakes of Zion own
their own homes.
The birth rate of the church for
the year 1914 is 1915 to the thousand.
The death rate for the year 1914 is
8.3 to the thousand.
Marriage rate for the year 1914 is
IL to the thousand.
| During the year there were 14,717
children blessed.
There are 1875 elders and 115 wo-
men laboring in the missions as mis-.
sionaries.
There has been a net increase in
the membership of the church in the
stakes Of Zion from the year 1901 to
1914 Of 129,943 souls.
| There are nnu 79Q ride oud irfx
three independent branches There
are sixty-eight stakes of Zion and
twenty-one missions. During the year
1914 twenty-one new wards have been
organized and two stakes of Zion.
There have been performed in the
temples during the past year 1885,
| 500 baptisms for the living and dead
and 1882 endowments for the living
and dead. Altogether 326,264 ordi.
nances have been performed in the
four temples. This is a very consid-
cradle increase over any previous
year.
The speakers at the opening ses.
sion were President Joseph F. Smith
and his counselors. Anton H. Lund
and Charles W. Penrose.
At the afternoon session $4,000 PEG.
pie attended the three meetings held
the speakers at the tabernacle being
Elder Charles w. Penrose and Elder
Francis M. Lyman
The great organ was not used, be-
cause it is undergoing repairs. The
floor of the tabernacle has been en-
| tirely replaced; the seats have been
reprinted and revarnished and the
building put in excellent condition.
Nine thousand persons sat OF stood
in the tabernacle Sunday night in at
tendance at what the program demon
mated the biggest Sunday school in
the world" the meeting being under
the auspices of the Deseret Sunday
School union and a part of the spring
conference of the Mormon church
Speakers included President Joseph
F. Smith, who by virtue of his offioe
as head Of the church Is also general
superintendent of the Sunday School
union, and other workers prominent In
Sunday school activities.
A feature of the services was sing
ing by a chorus of 1000 voices, mos
of them children from the Salt Lake
stake of the church. The report Of
George d. Piper, general secretary Of
the Sunday School association
showed total Sunday school enroll
ment of 195,416. a gain of 1856 ovei
last year.
President Joseph F. Smith presided
at both sessions Of the conference or
Monday, April 5. The speakers at this
morning session were Apostle Hebel
]. Grant, Apostle Rudger Clawsor
and Apostle Reed Smoot.
81 believe" declared Apostle Grant
sfhat | never saw the people of thu
church SO devoted as they now are
Recently a wave of unusual zeal ant
faith seems to have swept over al
the church and its people. WORK Il