Teachings of Presidents of the Church George Albert Smith TEACHINGS OF PRESIDENTS OF THE CHURCH GEORGE ALBERT SMITH Published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Salt Lake City, Utah Books in the Teachings of Presidents of the Church Series Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (item number 36481) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young (35554) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: John Taylor (35969) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff (36315) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith (35744) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant (35970) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: George Albert Smith (36786) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: David O. McKay (36492) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee (35892) Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Spencer W. Kimball (36500) To order these books, go to your local distribution center or visit store.lds.org. Your comments and suggestions about this book would be appreciated. Please submit them to Curriculum Development, 50 East North Temple Street, Room 2404, Salt Lake City, UT 84150-3220 USA. Or e-mail your comments and suggestions to: [email protected] Please list your name, address, ward, and stake. Be sure to give the title of the book. Then offer your comments and suggestions about the book’s strengths and areas of potential improvement. © 2011 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America English approval: 8/02 Contents Title Page Introduction .........................................v Historical Summary ................................. viii The Life and Ministry of George Albert Smith ...............xi 1 Living What We Believe. 1 2 “Love Thy Neighbour as Thyself”. 11 3 Our Testimony of Jesus Christ .......................21 4 The Prophet Joseph Smith, God’s Instrument in Restoring the Truth ...............................33 5 The Holy Priesthood—for the Blessing of God’s Children ...45 6 Sustaining Those Whom the Lord Sustains ..............57 7 The Immortality of the Soul .........................67 8 Temple Blessings for Ourselves and Our Ancestors .......81 9 Open Your Soul to the Lord in Prayer .................93 10 The Scriptures, the Most Valuable Library in the World ...103 11 Revelation from God to His Children. 111 12 An Enthusiastic Desire to Share the Gospel ............123 13 Doing Our Part to Share the Gospel. .135 14 How to Share the Gospel Effectively .................147 15 Advancing the Work of the Lord ....................157 16 “Offer Up Thy Sacraments upon My Holy Day”. 169 17 The Strengthening Power of Faith ...................179 18 Stay on the Lord’s Side of the Line. 191 19 Temporal and Spiritual Blessings from the Word of Wisdom ................................201 20 Temporal Salvation for Ourselves and Others ..........211 21 The Power of Kindness ...........................223 22 Bringing Up Children in Light and Truth ..............233 23 “Of You It Is Required to Forgive” ...................247 24 Righteous Living in Perilous Times. 255 List of Visuals ......................................266 Index ............................................267 iii Introduction The First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have established the Teachings of Presidents of the Church series to help you deepen your understanding of the restored gospel and draw closer to the Lord through the teachings of latter-day prophets. As the Church adds volumes to this series, you will build a collection of gospel reference books for your home. The volumes in this se- ries are designed to be used for personal study and for Sunday instruction. They can also help you prepare other lessons or talks and answer questions about Church doctrine. This book features the teachings of President George Albert Smith, who served as President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from May 21, 1945, to April 4, 1951. Personal Study As you study the teachings of President George Albert Smith, prayerfully seek the inspiration of the Spirit. The questions at the end of each chapter will help you understand President Smith’s teachings and apply them in your life. As you study these teachings, you may want to think about how you could teach them to family members and friends. This will strengthen your understanding of what you read. Teaching from This Book You can use this book to teach at home or at church. The follow- ing guidelines can help you. Prepare to Teach Seek the guidance of the Holy Ghost as you prepare to teach. Prayerfully study the chapter to become confident in your under- standing of President Smith’s teachings. You will teach with greater sincerity and power when his words have influenced you personally (see D&C 11:21). v INTRODUCTION If you are teaching a Melchizedek Priesthood or Relief Society lesson, you should not set this book aside or prepare lessons from other materials. Prayerfully select from the chapter those teachings that you feel will be most helpful to those you teach. Some chapters contain more material than you will be able to discuss during class time. Allow good discussions to continue rather than trying to cover all the teachings. Encourage participants to study the chapter before the lesson and to bring the book with them. When they do so, they will be better prepared to participate in a discussion and edify one another. Introduce the Chapter As you introduce the chapter, and throughout the lesson, try to create an atmosphere where the Spirit can touch the hearts and minds of those you teach. To start the lesson, help those you teach focus on the teachings of the chapter. To do this, you could: • Read and discuss the section titled “From the Life of George Albert Smith” at the beginning of the chapter. • Discuss a picture or scripture from the chapter. • Sing a related hymn. • Briefly share a personal experience about the topic. Lead a Discussion about President Smith’s Teachings As you teach from this book, invite others to share their thoughts, ask questions, and teach one another. They will learn best when they actively participate. This is also a good way to help them receive per- sonal revelation. To encourage discussion, use the questions at the end of the chapter. These questions are referenced at various places in the chapter to show which section of teachings they refer to. You could also develop your own questions especially for those you are teaching. For example, you could ask participants how they can apply President Smith’s teachings in their responsibilities as parents or as home teachers or visiting teachers. The following options may give you additional ideas: • Ask participants to share what they have learned from their per- sonal study of the chapter. It may be helpful to contact a few vi INTRODUCTION participants during the week and ask them to come prepared to share what they have learned. • Assign participants to read selected questions from the end of the chapter (either individually or in small groups). Ask them to look for teachings in the chapter that relate to the questions. Then invite them to share their thoughts and insights with the rest of the group. • Read together a selection of President Smith’s statements from the chapter. Ask participants to share examples from the scriptures and from their own experience that illustrate what President Smith taught. • Ask participants to choose a section they are interested in and read it silently. Invite them to gather in groups of two or three people who chose the same section and discuss what they learned. Conclude the Discussion Briefly summarize the lesson or ask one or two participants to do so. Encourage those you teach to share with others what they have learned from President Smith’s teachings. Testify of the teachings you have discussed. You may also want to invite others to share their testimonies. Information about the Sources Quoted in This Book The teachings of President Smith in this book are direct quo- tations from a variety of sources. These excerpts have retained the punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and paragraphing of the original sources unless editorial or typographic changes have been necessary to improve readability. For this reason, you may notice minor inconsistencies in the text. For example, the word gospel is lowercased in some quotations and capitalized in others. Also, President Smith often used terms such as men, man, or man‑ kind to refer to all people, both male and female. He frequently used the pronouns he, his, and him to refer to both genders. This was common in the language of his era. Despite the differences be- tween these language conventions and more current usage, President Smith’s teachings apply to both women and men. vii Historical Summary The following chronology provides a brief historical framework for the teachings of President George Albert Smith presented in this book. 1870, April 4 Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, to John Henry and Sarah Farr Smith. 1874–75 His father, John Henry Smith, serves a mission in Great Britain. George Albert is four years old when he leaves. 1880, October 27 John Henry Smith is ordained an Apostle. 1882–85 John Henry Smith serves as president of the European Mission. 1883 George Albert Smith begins working in a clothing factory at age 13. 1888 Begins working for a railroad com- pany. He suffers permanent damage to his eyes because of his work. 1891, Serves a mission in southern Utah for September–November the Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Association. 1892, May 25 Marries Lucy Emily Woodruff in the Manti Utah Temple. 1892–94 Serves a mission in the southern United States, beginning just a few weeks after his marriage. Lucy joins him four months into the mission. 1903, October 8 Ordained an Apostle by President Joseph F.