Reading 1 – Wilford Woodruff wrote what Joseph said at the
end of his instruction during the winter of 1843-44 – " Brethren, I have
had great sorrow of heart for fear that I might be taken from the earth with
the keys of the Kingdom of God upon me, without sealing them upon the heads of
other men. God has sealed upon my head all the keys of the Kingdom of God
necessary for organizing and building up of the Church, Zion, and Kingdom of
God upon the earth, and to prepare the Saints for the coming of the Son of Man.
Now, brethren, I thank God I have lived to see the day that I have been enabled
to give you your endowments, and I have now sealed upon your heads all the
powers of the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods and Apostleship, with all the
keys and powers thereof, which God has sealed upon me; and I now roll off all
the labor, burden and care of this Church and Kingdom of God upon your
shoulders, and I now command you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to round
up your shoulders, and bear off this Church and Kingdom of God before heaven
and earth, and before God, angels and men; and if you don't do it you will be
damned." (James R. Clark, Messages of the First Presidency, Vol.3, p.134)
Reading 2 – Doctrine and Covenants 107:22-24
Reading 3 - Brigham Young wrote of his thoughts after
hearing that Joseph had been killed:
"The first thing I thought of was whether Joseph had taken the keys
of the Kingdom with him from the earth. Brother Orson Pratt sat on my left; we
were both leaning back in our chairs. Bringing my hand down on my knee, I said,
'The keys of the Kingdom are right here with the church'." (CHC, 2:413)
Sidney Rigdon said: "It was shown to me that this
church must be built up to Joseph, and that all the blessings we receive must
come through him. I have been ordained a spokesman to Joseph, and I must come
to Nauvoo and see that the church is governed in a proper manner. Joseph
sustains the same relationship to this church as he has always done. No man can
be the successor of Joseph." (HC, 7:229)
Reading 4 - Brigham Young said: "I do not care who leads the church,
even though it were Ann Lee [founder of the Shakers]; but one thing I must
know, and that is what God says about it. I have the keys and the means of
obtaining the mind of God on the subject....
"Joseph
conferred upon our heads all the keys and powers belonging to the Apostleship
which he himself held before he was taken away, and no man or set of men can
get between Joseph and the Twelve in this world or in the world to come.
"How often has
Joseph said to the Twelve, 'I have laid the foundation and you must build
thereon, for upon your shoulders the kingdom rests'....
"My private
feelings would be to let the affairs of men and women alone, only go and preach
and baptize them into the kingdom of God; yet, whatever duty God places upon
me, in his strength I intend to fulfill it." (HC, 7:230)
Reading 5 – Brigham Young began his afternoon address to the
gathered Saints as follows: "Attention all! This congregation makes me
think of the days of King Benjamin, the multitude being so great that all could
not hear. I request the brethren not to have any feelings for being convened
this afternoon, for it is necessary; we want you all to be still and give
attention, that all may hear. Let none complain because of the situation of the
congregation, we will do the best we can.
"For the first time in my life, for
the first time in your lives, for the first time in the kingdom of God in the
19th century, without a Prophet at our head, do I step forth to act in my
calling in connection with the Quorum of the Twelve, as Apostles of Jesus
Christ unto this generation--Apostles who God has called by revelation through
the Prophet Joseph, who are ordained and anointed to bear off the keys of the
kingdom of God in all the world....
"There has
been much said about President Rigdon being President of the Church, and
leading the people, being the head, etc. Brother Rigdon has come 1,600 miles to
tell you what he wants to do for you. If the people want President Rigdon to
lead them they may have him; but I say unto you that Quorum of the Twelve have
the keys of the kingdom of God in all the world." (HC, 7:232-233)
Reading 6 - Benjamin F. Johnson wrote: "I sat in the assembly near to President
Rigdon, closely attentive to his appeal to the conference to recognize and
sustain his claim as 'guardian for the Church.' And I was, perhaps, to a
degree, forgetful of what I knew to be the rights and duties of the
apostleship. And as he closed his address and sat down, my back was partly
turned to the seat occupied by Apostle Brigham Young and other Apostles, when
suddenly, and as from heaven, I heard the voice of the Prophet Joseph. That
thrilled my whole being, and quickly turning around, I saw in the
transfiguration of Brigham Young, the tall, straight, and portly form of the
Prophet Joseph Smith, clothed in a sheen of light covering him to his feet. And
I heard the real and perfect voice of the Prophet, even to the whistle, as in
years past caused by the loss of a tooth, said to have been broken out by the
mob at Hiram. This view or vision, although but for seconds was to me as vivid
and real as the glare of lightning or the voice of thunder from the heavens.
And so deeply was I impressed with what I saw and heard in this
transfiguration, that for years I dared not publicly tell what was given me of
the Lord to see. But when in later years I did publicly bear this testimony, I
found that others could testify to having seen and heard the same. But to what
proportion of the congregation that were present, I could never know. But I do
know that this, my testimony, is true." (quoted in BYU Studies, 32:188)
Reading 7 – Wilford Woodruff wrote: Every man and every woman in that assembly,
which perhaps might number thousands, could bear the same testimony. I was
there, the Twelve were there, and a good many others, and all can bear the same
testimony...just as quick as Brigham Young rose in that assembly, his face was
that of Joseph Smith - the mantle of Joseph Smith had fallen on him, the power
of God that was upon Joseph Smith was upon him, he had the voice of Joseph, and
it was the voice of the shepherd. There was no person in that assembly, Rigdon,
himself, not excepted, but was satisfied in his own mind that Brigham was the
proper leader of the people... There was a reason for this in the mind of God;
it convinced the people. They saw and heard for themselves, and it was by the
power of God. (JD, 15:81)
Brigham then put the question to a vote: "If the church
want the Twelve to stand as the head, the First Presidency of the Church, and
at the head of this kingdom in all the world, stand next to Joseph, walk up
into their calling, and hold the keys of this Kingdom, every man, every woman,
every quorum is now put in order, and you are the sole controllers of it. All
that are in favor of this, in all the congregation of the Saints, manifest it
by holding up the right hand." (HC, 7:240)
Reading 8 - President Harold B. Lee said: “The Prophet
Joseph Smith declared that ‘where the president is not, there is no First
Presidency.’ Immediately following the death of a President, the next ranking
body, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, becomes the presiding authority, with
the President of the Twelve automatically becoming the acting President of the
Church until a President of the Church is officially ordained and sustained in
his office” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1970, 123; or Improvement Era, June
1970, 28).
Reading 9 - President Joseph Fielding Smith said: “No man of
himself can lead this church. It is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ; he is
at the head.…
“He chooses men and calls them to
be instruments in his hands to accomplish his purposes, and he guides and
directs them in their labors. But men are only instruments in the Lord’s hands,
and the honor and glory for all that his servants accomplish is and should be
ascribed unto him forever.
“If this were the work of
man, it would fail, but it is the work of the Lord, and he does not fail” (in
Conference Report, Apr. 1970, 113; or Improvement Era, June 1970, 26).
Brigham Young wrote - “This
morning there was an immense crowd at the reception room waiting for admission.
… One hundred twenty-one persons received ordinances” (History of the Church,
7:565).
“Such has been the anxiety
manifested by the saints to receive the ordinances [of the Temple], and such
the anxiety on our part to administer to them, that I have given myself up
entirely to the work of the Lord in the Temple night and day, not taking more
than four hours of sleep, upon an average, per day, and going home but once a
week.
“Elder Heber C. Kimball and the
others of the Twelve Apostles were in constant attendance but in consequence of
close application some of them have had to leave the Temple to rest and recruit
their health” (History of the Church, 7:567).
Brigham Young recorded the
following on 3 February 1846: “Notwithstanding that I had announced that we
would not attend to the administration of the ordinances, the House of the Lord
was thronged all day, the anxiety being so great to receive, as if the brethren
would have us stay here and continue the endowments until our way would be
hedged up, and our enemies would intercept us. But I informed the brethren that
this was not wise, and that we should build more Temples, and have further
opportunities to receive the blessings of the Lord, as soon as the saints were
prepared to receive them. In this Temple we have been abundantly rewarded, if
we receive no more. I also informed the brethren that I was going to get my
wagons started and be off. I walked some distance from the Temple supposing the
crowd would disperse, but on returning I found the house filled to overflowing.
“Looking upon the multitude and
knowing their anxiety, as they were thirsting and hungering for the word, we
continued at work diligently in the House of the Lord. Two hundred and
ninety-five persons received ordinances” (History of the Church, 7:579).
Reading 10 - Eliza R. Snow recorded: “Mothers gave birth to
offspring under almost every variety of circumstances imaginable, except those
to which they had been accustomed; some in tents, others in wagons—in
rain-storms and in snow-storms. I heard of one birth which occurred under the
rude shelter of a hut, the sides of which were formed of blankets fastened to
poles stuck in the ground, with a bark roof through which the rain was
dripping. Kind sisters stood holding dishes to catch the water as it fell, thus
protecting the new-comer and its mother from a shower-bath. …
“Let it be remembered that the
mothers of these wilderness-born babes were not … accustomed to roam the forest
and brave the storm and tempest. … Most of them were born and educated in the
Eastern States—had there embraced the gospel as taught by Jesus and his
apostles, and, for the sake of their religion, had gathered with the saints,
and under trying circumstances had assisted, by their faith, patience and
energies, in making Nauvoo what its name indicates, ‘the beautiful.’ There they
had lovely homes, decorated with flowers and enriched with choice fruit trees,
just beginning to yield plentifully.
“To these homes … they had just
bade a final adieu, and with what little of their substance could be packed
into one, two, and in some instances, three wagons, had started out,
desertward” (in Edward W. Tullidge, The Women of Mormondom [1877], 307–8).
Reading 11 - Refugee camps of five to six hundred homeless
men, women, and children were scattered along two miles of the riverbank. Most
had only blankets or brush for shelter and very little to eat. Many of them too
sick to travel, and some died. Bishop Newel K. Whitney purchased some flour and
distributed it as best he could, but this was not enough to sustain the people.
Then the Lord provided for them in
a miraculous way: On 9 October, when
food was in especially short supply, several large flocks of quail flew into
camp and landed on the ground and even on tables. Many of them were caught,
cooked, and eaten by the hungry Saints. To the faithful it was a sign of God’s
mercy to modern Israel as a similar incident had been to ancient Israel. (See
B. H. Roberts, A Comprehensive History of the Church, 3:135–36.)
"It might be thought by the casual reader of the
history of the Latter-day Saints, that their coming into these valleys when and
as they did was merely a matter of necessity, without design so far as the
purposes of the Lord were concerned. President George A. Smith, one of these
pioneers, very frequently stated - speaking of Latter-day Saints - 'that we came
here of our own free will and choice, because we had to." (Joseph Fielding
Smith: Doctrines of Salvation, vol III, p. 347)
Elder Gerald Lund has said:
"The question was asked, how Brigham Young was able to colonize a
desert. The answer came simply that by the time he said "this is the right
place" most of the physically weak had died and all of the spiritually
weak had been left behind... [the Lord] was out to forge steel so hard it could
become an instrument for his purposes. And if the metal was flawed, sometimes
it must go back into the fire." ("A Stone Cut Out," CES
Symposium, August 1989"
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