Little children cannot repent; wherefore it is awful wickedness to deny the pure mercies of God unto them, for they are all alive in him because of his mercy. And he that saith, that little children need baptism, denieth the mercies of Christ, and setteth at naught the atonement of him and the power of his redemption. Wo unto such, for they are in danger of death, hell, and endless torment. I speak it boldly, God hath commanded me. Listen unto them and give heed, or they stand against you at the judgment seat of Christ. For behold that all little children are alive in Christ, and also all they that are without the law. For the power of redemption cometh on all they that have no law; wherefore, he that is not condemned, or he that is under no condemnation, cannot repent; and unto such baptism availeth nothing. But it is mockery before God, denying the mercies of Christ, and the power of His Holy Spirit, and putting trust in dead works. Behold, my son, this thing ought not to be; for repentance is unto them that are under condemnation and under the curse of a broken law. And the first fruits of repentance is baptism, and baptism cometh by faith, unto the fulfilling of the commandments; and the fulfilling of commandments bringeth remission of sins.[O] [Footnote O: Moroni 8:19-25.] The question naturally arises, if all must accept the principles of the gospel and be baptized for the remission of their sins, what of the dead who died without receiving the remission of their sins, or accepting Christ while they were in the flesh? They cannot be baptized in water now and have hands laid on their heads for the gift of the Holy Ghost, for these things of necessity pertain to this mortal probation. Therefore, it would be impossible for them to be baptized now or even after the resurrection, for they would no longer be mortal, but subject to the laws and regulations of that life which is to come. These ordinances must be performed in this life, or, if for the dead, vicariously by some one who is in mortality, the living acting as proxy for the dead. Again we hear the objection raised, that this is impossible; that one man cannot stand, or answer for another's sins; but that every man must stand for himself. This is true so far as it is possible to be done. But occasions have arisen where the man guilty of transgressing the law was unable to redeem himself. And punishment for sin, is for the propitiation of sin, and in such cases there is nothing in the scriptures forbidding one to stand vicariously for another when circumstances render it impossible for the first to comply with the law. In ancient Israel they had the scapegoat. On the head of this goat, Aaron placed both his hands and confessed over him all the iniquity of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and then sent