Gospel Doctrine: Selections from the Sermons and Writings of Joseph F. SmithSmith, Joseph F. (Joseph Fielding)
Religion
Gospel Doctrine: Selections from the Sermons and Writings of Joseph F. Smith
Smith, Joseph F. (Joseph Fielding)
Latter Day Saint churches
WHO RECEIVES CHURCH HELP SHOULD BE TITHE PAYERS. When one comes to
a bishop and asks for assistance because of his or her straitened
circumstances, the first thing the bishop should do is to inquire if
he or she is a tithe-payer. He should know whether the name is on the
book of the law of the Lord, and if not on the book, if he or she has
been derelict and negligent in relation to this principle of tithing,
he or she has no claim upon the bishop, neither have their children;
and if, under those circumstances, the bishop assists him, it will
simply be out of pure charity and not because such have any claim upon
the Church. That is why the widow who receives assistance from the
Church should pay her tithing, so that her name may be on the records
of the Church. It is not a law that is applicable to one and not to
another. If the rich may not receive blessings because their names are
not on the record, then neither shall the poor receive blessings in
the house of God, if their names are not recorded. So long as a poor
person receives his or her support through the tithings of the people,
they should be willing to observe the law themselves in order that
they may be entitled to what they receive. They should show by their
observance of the law that they are law-keepers and not law-breakers.
Our children, as soon as they become old enough to earn means, should
be taught to pay their tithing, that their names may be written in the
book of the law of the Lord, so that if perchance their father die
and they are left orphans, their names as well as the names of their
parents, will be found upon the records and they will, as God lives, be
entitled to {291} their support and to their education. It is our duty
to look after these children and see that they have an equal chance
with those who are most favored with parents to look after them.--_Oct.
C. R.,_ 1899, pp. 44, 45.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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