Origin, Doctrines and Dangers
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Y TATEMENT PREFATOR S . FOR a number of years I have been an interested student of Mormonism and have gathered many 1 1 8 facts concerning it . On Dec . 7, 99, I delivered two addresses on Mormonism in the church of A which I am pastor . large number who heard them , and many who did not hear them , have urged that they be published . In compliance with this m h de and I ave rewritten and greatly enlarged them , and in the interest of truth and true religion send them forth to the public . I have used only reliable authority , and have verified all statements made, as far as possible . Reference is duly made to the sources of information , and can be verified by those inclined to doubt any statement . In order to save space I have used a system of abbreviations which is easily understood . I am indebted to Rev . N . S . DD Burton , , for valuable suggestions and assist ance in the preparation of the pamphlet . Sincerely , 0 1 00 . Jan . 3 , 9 T . W . YOUNG . ABBREV AT N EX N I IO S AND PLA ATIONS . ’ McMHPUS McMaster s History of the People l I a V o . V . of the United St tes , BHAC Bacon ’ s History of American Christi ni a ty . M cMHSM McMillans Historical Sketch of Mor monism . ’ TOPM Tucker s Origin and Progress of Mor monism . ’ o HMU H we s Mormonism Unveiled . PGP Pearl of Great Price . DC Doctrine and Covenants . ’ ACAB Appleton s Cyclopedia of American Bi r h l o a V o . V . g p y, , Art Spalding, Rigdon and Smith . e SM Spalding M morial . Sc ’ . 1 880 . Scribner s Magazine, Aug , BM Book of Mormon . I . ol . V MWH Magazine of Western History , V PWDABM Pratt ’ s Work on the Divine Author ity of the Book of Mormon . MC Mormon Catechism . HJSM S ' : History of Joseph Smith in the Millen nial Star . E DAL S D . A . Leonard in Bibliotheca Sacra , l 2 V o . 4 . PW ’ p Pratt s Works , paper . ABB EV ATI m AN n N 6 R I ONS AND B A O s . ’ BH N . R WG . r B H Robe t s , New Witness for God . D JSJ Joseph Smith in Journal of Discourses . PKT ’ Pratt s Key to the Science of Theology . EME o E . Book of Morm n , ther BY D _ i J Br gham Young 111 Journal of Discourses . AHCK C . Apostle H C Kimball , Conference TS The Seer . AOHRMS Apostle Orson Hyde, Rocky Moun tain Saints . EYMRW Eugene Young in Missionary Review of the World . In . NFC d . m Rev . N E Cle enson in Independent d n i n . EYI . Eugene Young Independent MRW Missionary Review of the World . Ind . Independent . ME Ind . d t J Prof . M E Jones in In ependen . 1 8 8. March 3 , 9 M Pres . J G President J . M . Grant . BY : DN Brigham Young m Deseret News . P D : i n O J Orson Pratt Journal of Discourses . AGSJD Apostle George Smith in Journal of Dis-f courses . AH K D C J Apostle H . C . Kimball in Journal of Discourses . MD Mormon Doctrine . H EH ’ B R . B . H . Roberts Ecclesiastical History AJTJD Apostle John Taylor in Journal of Dis courses . BYHW ’ Brigham Young in Harper s Weekly, . 1 0 1 8 . Dec , 99 NYCA o 1 1 New York Christian Adv cate, Jan . , 1 900 . : MORMONISM ITS ORIGIN , DOCTRINE AND DANGERS . T ri in o o i he O g ofM rm n sm. Our Lord said that after his departure false prophets and false teachers would arise and lead many astray . Every succeeding generation has fur nished m 1 82 a fulfil ent of this prediction . In 9 the o English poet, R bert Southey, cast the horoscope of our western world in these memorable words “ The next Aaron Burr who seeks to carve a king dom for himself out ofthe overgrown territories of the Union may discern that fanaticism is the most effective weapon with which affl bition can arm itself ; that the way for both is prepared by that immorality i which the want of relig on necessarily induces , and that camp - meetings may be very well directed to forward the designs of military prophets . Were r there another Mohammed to arise, there is no pa t of the world where he would find more scope or fairer opportunity than in that part of the Anglo American Union into which the older states continu a a ally disch rge the restless p rt of their population, a a a le ving l ws and Gospel to overt ke it, if they can, for in the march of modern civilization both are left behind . He did not know when he was uttering these words that in the very territory of which he was amm was speaking, there then another Moh ed preparing another Koran to be published the fol lowing year . For more than half a century the people of this country have laughed at the super stitions and pre m a tentions of Mor onism and s id, that as icebergs drift from northern seas into southern oceans and a m ta melt, so this bsurd ecclesiasticis would cer inly f perish in the light o advancing civilization . This a expectation has not been re lized, for today it is one of the most troublesome and menacing problems o thrust upon us for solution . Providence and p li tics have now brought us face to face with the issue . The origin of Mormonism is entirely too recent to plead sanctity under the cover of obscurity . It was born a little too late to be permanently success “ . a ful in its deceits Lincoln s id , You could fool all om l the people sometime , and you could fool s e peop e all the time, but you can never fool all the people all ” the time . The deceptions of Mormonism will dis in solve the light of information . T Tim T Ti he e and he de. The first half of the nineteenth century was ol marked by the most phenomenal expansion . F lowing the downfall of the Napoleonic Empire in “ ” a o Fr nce , there was an era of go d feeling in this “ acification country, and the p of Europe, the dis a war banding of the armies and n vies, the enormous and e taxes , the general depression of trad and agri RIGIN DOCTRINB S AND AN ERS 9 O , D G . e E cultur sent the middle classes of urope, Ireland and Germany to our shores by thousands . The 1 20 immigration up to 8 was inconsiderable . But between 1 820- 29 the annual arrival of immigrants h x us . u n t e 1 8 0 was nine tho and D ri g ne t decade , 3 - 1 8 0 a five . 4 , the annu l arrival was thirty thousand The English Parliament was called upon to do some “ ' thing to stop this ruinous drain of the most useful ” part of the population of the United Kingdom . These multitudinous aliens were bound for the great western territories lying between the Alle ni gha es and the Mississippi river . The roads were “ th ronged ‘ winter and summer with flitting families ” from the eastern states . The exodus from the sea board became alarming . It created a vacuum in the labor markets . This stream of emigrants pouring down th e western slope of the Alleghanies was for the most r . part ignorant , immoral , and ir eligious The relig iou s societies of the East could not supply the de mand for religious teachers and preachers in the new I 1 1 . n 8 West 5 two missionaries , Samuel J Mills h m rhorn n . Sc e e and John F , were se t to the West, and Mills reported that wherever t hey went the “ people were in a state of spiritual darkness . In his opinion , he said , there were between the Alle ghany Mountains and the Mississippi river not less than seventy- sixthousand families destitute of the ” Bible . The preaching of itinerant missionaries . and - l . m trave ing evangelists was popular Ca p meetings , 1 0 11 01111 0111 81 . where people came from afar and dwelt in tents , a became the order of the day . Gre t religious excite n ment prevailed . The ig orant people , when con victed wa of their sins , gave y to their emotions , and were seized with dancing, shouting, laughter, weep ing, or violent jerking . Many who resisted the religious excitement became conspicuous infidels ; and others giving way to it became religious fan i s a at c . The godly ministers being few and tr nsient, a this uneducated piety soon wasted away , or else g ve ‘ rise to strange and innumerable religious sects . The character and condition of the people presented n an inviti g field to any religious adventurer . In mm this period of i igration, ignorance, irreligion and a excit ble piety, there did arise such religious delu “ ” “ as Win atism sions g , Followers of the True ” “ ” “ ” “ ” Christ, Halcyons , New Lights , Adventism , “ ” “ m ” Spiritualism , Mor onism and many others . Some of them came to a speedy death , while others have perpetuated themselves till the present time by trading with the semblance of Christian truth . 50 ; HBACp334) ‘ Th R e nted F ther o M ormoni e p a f sm. TH E origin of Mormonism is inseparably con nected with Joseph Smith , Sidney Rigdon and Solo a .