Brighouse & Rastrick Gazette. — 1893-01-14 (Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England)

HEARTHSTONE LECTURES,  NO. 40.  MORMON PRIESTHOOD.  F CONCLUDEDI  S. The hisieop.—The duties of the bishop are—to preside over all the lesser offices of the Aaronic priesthood, to minister in outward ordinances, to conduct the temporal business of t he church, and to it as a judge on transgressors. He is thus, in a most literal sen.e, a bishop or overseer in the Mormon theocracy.  _ The salt Lake City is divided into so many wards each of winch has its own bishop. In all other sett lenients in the territory similar divisions are made presided over by a bishop. They make house to house visits each week to ineuire into the temporal and spiritual condition of each person, rind all persona disaffucted as to word or doctrine are reported to the first presidency, The bishops are the general informers es between prophet and peopie, and all gentiles within the wards are watched and reported on. This sistem of espionage is sail to have led to the foulest murders in order to get rid of the disaffected. The civil power of the bishop is mainly gene now, but at one time the power was serious. It was no joke to be excommunicated from the Mormon Church when the Mormons were in power. It meant that your wife and children must have no more to do with you. You are damned for time and for eternity, and you lost all in time that you valued most. The bishop colleots the tithes, and unless you have paid all your tithes he would not give you permissson to get married. The bishop's certificate must be there, else the ceremony cannot proceed. There is no escape from that iron law. No one has any legal right to the Oise of bishop unless he be a literal descendant of Aaron. and has been duly ordained to the office by the president of the Melohisedeo priesthood. If no literal descendant of Aaron can be had to fill the office, then a high priest of the order of Melchisedeo can fill it, after he has been duly ordained to it by the president of the Melchisedeo priesthood. In the latter case the bishop can act only with the assistance of councillors, in the former case he can act without them except at a trial of the high priest of the higher priesthood. The bishop is thus an important civic and ecclesiastical funtionary. 9, The high eon iietl.—Au appeal can be made from the decision of the bishop to the high council, which consists of n men chosen from among the high priests, twelve of whom act as jurors and the majority of these decide the case by vote. The remaining three act as judges, passing sentence and fixing damages, costs and the like. An appeal can be made from that court to the first presidency, which in every case is the final court of appeal. No saint is ever expected to take any case to a gentile or secular court, No Mormon must ever ask an unmormon court to settle any dispute among the saints. If justice coull be had by humus arrangements it ought to be secured in Mormoudom but all history warns us against all ecclesiastical courts, The interests of justice are always regarded as nothing when compared with those of the church. The Mormon church is no exception, 10. The teacht r.—Eacti bishop is assisted by one or two teachers, whose function it is to make domiciliary visits, catechise the people an children. inquire into their tinaocial position and into all their disputes, and see whether they pay their tithes and he ends his visit by prayer for all the heads of the church. He is thus to watch over and strengthen the members of the church, and see that the saints live in love and unity. He reports all irregularities, heresies and doubts to the bishop. Like an archdeacon in the state church he is the eye of the bishop.' The idea is a lovely one, and if men were filled not so much with the love of an ecclesiastical organisation but with the Lord Jesus it would work well. IL lhe dearest—The deacons are to assist the teacher in his duties, act as door 'keeper, treasurer, and attend generally to the comfort of the assembled saints. They have also to cast out disturbers of the meetings, and hence they are supposed to have good physiques. The grades] of the Mormon priesthood are thus intricate and numerous, and unlike anything else in any Christian 'church, except the organizAion of the Jesuits.