Massachusetts -- Periodicals; New England -- Periodicals
This theocratic government, where one man calls himself God's vicegerent
and imposes his revelations on a narrow minded fanatical class of men,
carries its own hand into all its branches, nothing being too small or
petty for its fingers to grasp, and implicit obedience is to-day, as it
always has been, the watch-word of the church. At church conferences
there is never a dissenting voice and at the polls always the same
unanimous vote. The following quotations give an idea of how the power
is placed in Utah and of what theocracy consists:--Brigham Young said
in the Tabernacle in 1869, "what is the greatest miracle that can be
wrought before God, our Saviour, the angels, the inhabitants of the
earth and the infernal regions? Is it raising the dead or healing the
sick? No--it is not--it is bringing a people to strict obedience to the
rule of the priesthood."
Orson Pratt, the learned apostle, has always taught that "people cannot
govern themselves by laws of their own making or by officers of their
own choosing, for that would be in direct rebellion to the law of God.
Absolute power vested in one man is the best and most efficient human
government. There is one kind of government that will secure permanent
prosperity and happiness, and that is theocracy or the government of God
through his prophet, seer and revelator."
President Kimball said in the tabernacle:--"Have not the majority of
this congregation made most solemn covenants and vows that they will
listen, obey and be subject to the priesthood? Have not the sisters made
the same solemn covenant before God, angels and men that they will be
subject to their husbands?"
President Taylor says:--"You want to pay your tithing fairly and
squarely, or you will find yourselves outside of the pale of the church
of the living God. You must also uphold the co-operative institutions."
Col. Hollister, a gentleman thoroughly acquainted with Mormonism, writes
thus:--"There is no rule of the people intended in the Mormon church.
There is no state government contemplated because it has every organ of
despotic state government in and of itself. It takes no account whatever
of the natural right of man to life, liberty, property, freedom of
opinion or of conscience. Its bill of rights, its constitution, its laws
are the revelations of the prophet. It has not a single idea or
institution common to free government or free men. As long as they hold
this theocratic idea, to force democratic government upon them, is a
farce. Its political party is the church and into that political party
no one can enter excepting through the church."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account