"AN ESOTERIC GOSPEL."

Another charge is that after the death of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, President Young and the Apostles introduced secrets into the Church, that they claimed to hold "keys that the written word never spoke of, nor never will." (True Succession, p. 122). All this, say they, is contrary to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to the teachings of Joseph Smith, who always taught openly and not in secret. One of their defenders writing on this point quotes from the Redeemer as follows:

"Jesus answered him, I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, wither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing. Why ask thou me? ask them: behold they know what I said." (John 18:18-21.)

"But Brigham was afraid that people would ask his followers what he taught. In speaking of some who wanted their endowments, he says: 'Well, he gets his endowment, and what for? To go to California, and reveal everything he can, and stir up wickedness, and prepare himself for hell." (Journal of Discourses, 2: 144).

"Christ was not afraid of any revealments. He stood there among His enemies, defying them to find any fault with His teachings; but Brigham was afraid of what his followers might reveal of his doctrine and secret works. Did he represent Christ?" (Necessity for a Reorganization, p. 30).

Yes, Jesus taught the Gospel openly as far as the Jews were able to stand it; but it does not follow that he did not teach His disciples things that were not for the world! And at times He was constrained by His Father from teaching His disciples some truths. Why? Because of the hardness of their hearts they were not able to receive His teachings. In not revealing everything to the world, did Brigham Young,—aye, did Joseph Smith represent Christ? for Brigham Young was only following in the footsteps of the Seer! What was it the Savior said to Peter, James, and John, when they came down from the mount of transfiguration? Jesus charged them, saying, "Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of Man be risen again from the dead."—Matt. 17:8. (Inspired Scriptures) Why didn't he tell them to proclaim it openly from the housetops? Because it was not for the world! Jesus was in the habit of teaching the people in parables. On one occasion when He had thus spoken, His disciples came and said unto him:

"Why speakest Thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever receiveth, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance; but whosoever continueth not to receive, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables; because they, seeing, see not; and hearing, they hear not; neither do they understand." (Matt. 13:8-12).

On another occasion Jesus said unto His disciples: "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd." (John 10:16). But He did not tell them who those "other sheep" were. The reason He failed to tell them this interesting fact we learn from the Book of Mormon:

"And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words, He said unto those Twelve whom He had chosen, ye are my disciples; and ye are a light unto this people, who are a remnant of the house of Joseph. And behold, this is the land of your inheritance; and the Father hath given it unto you. And not at any time hath the Father given me commandment that I should tell it unto your brethren at Jerusalem; neither at any time hath the Father given me commandment, that I should tell unto them concerning the other tribes of the house of Israel, whom the Father hath led away out of the land. This much did the Father command me, that I should tell unto them. That other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. And now, because of stiffneckedness and unbelief, they understood not my word: therefore I was commanded to say no more of the Father concerning this thing unto them." (III. Nephi, 15:11-17).

How different this is from Reorganite philosophy, according to their rule of faith, Jesus should have spoken boldly and openly and should not have withheld anything. Was Jesus "afraid of any revealments?"

Paul says he knew a man, whether in the body, or out of the body, he could not tell, "How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter." What made the words unlawful to utter to man? simply because in the hardness of his heart and unbelief, man was not worthy to hear them, he could not endure them.

The Book of Mormon is most emphatic on this point that there are "mysteries" that are not to be revealed to the unfaithful. This is from the Prophet Alma:

"And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, (Zeezrom), saying, It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command, that they shall not impart only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men; according to the heed and diligence which they give unto Him; and therefore he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until he know them in full; and they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word, until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now, this is what is meant by the chains of hell."

It is because Reorganites have hardened their hearts that they have not received the greater portion of the word, even the mysteries, and therefore they are, through their hard-heartedness and unbelief, captives of the devil and in danger of the chains of hell.

If the Lord places His servants under a strict command not to reveal His word, "only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto Him;" and, therefore, they withhold some of those things from the world that have been revealed unto them does that make them cowardly? If so, not only Brigham Young, but Joseph Smith, yes, even the Son of Man Himself would be cowardly. No, the fact that they have refused to do this thing proves them to possess the greatest courage, for it has caused them to face persecutions, even death.

We are told that the Book of Mormon contains the fulnesss of the Gospel, yet the greater parts of the teachings of the Savior to that people are not yet revealed, because of the unbelief of the people. This is from III. Nephi, 26th chapter:

"And now there cannot be written in this book even a hundredth part of the teachings which Jesus did truly teach unto the people; but behold the plates of Nephi do contain the more part of the things which He taught the people; and these things have I written, which are a lesser part of the things which He taught the people; and I have written them to the intent that they may be brought again unto this people, from the Gentiles, according to the words which Jesus hath spoken.

"And when they shall have received this, which is expedient that they should have first, to try their faith, and if it shall so be that they shall believe these things, then shall the greater things be made manifest unto them. And if it so be that they will not believe these things, then shall the greater things be withheld from them, unto their condemnation. Behold I was about to write them all which were engraven upon the plates of Nephi, but the Lord forbid it, saying, I will try the faith of my people." (Verses 6-11).

The calling of Brigham Young a coward for withholding some things that the Lord has revealed to His Church, may be excused because of the ignorance of the accusers; but who dare presume to say the Lord was cowardly because He withheld the greater things from His people? And yet if you have done it unto one of His servants ye have done it unto Him.

Again:

"Behold, I have written upon these plates the very things which the brother of Jared saw: and there never was greater things made manifest, than that which was made manifest unto the brother of Jared; wherefore the Lord hath commanded me to write them; and I have written them. And He commanded me that I should seal them up; and He also hath commanded that I should seal up the interpretation thereof; wherefore I have sealed up the interpreters, according to the commandment of the Lord. For the Lord said unto me, They shall not go forth unto the Gentiles until the day that they shall repent of their iniquity, and become clean before the Lord." (Ether 4:4-6).

Joseph the Prophet was commanded to keep some things from going out into the world that had been revealed unto him and the Church. He also received revelations that he could not teach to the Church in the beginning, no more than Jesus could teach all things to His disciples. When he did reveal some of the "mysteries" there were many who left Him and denied the faith, just as they did when Jesus told His disciples He was the bread of life (John 6:66). "Many of them went back and walked no more with Him." The Prophet said at Kirtland, April 6, 1837: "If the Church knew all the commandments, one half they would condemn through prejudice and ignorance. (Hist. of Church, Vol. 2:477). A great many did fall away at that time, not being able to endure, and among them were the Witnesses of the Book of Mormon, one of whom afterwards set up a church of his own, declaring that Joseph Smith was a fallen Prophet, and rejecting all his commandments given after about 1835.

The Lord gave a revelation to the Prophet, March 7, 1831, at Kirtland (Sec. 45), in which He revealed many things to take place before His second coming, and at the close of the revelation He said:

"And now I say unto you, keep these things from going abroad unto the world, until it is expedient in me that ye may accomplish this work in the eyes of the people, and in the eyes of your enemies, that they may not know your works until ye have accomplished the thing which I have commanded you."

When the Prophet Joseph gave his charge to the first foreign missionaries of the Church, Elders Heber C. Kimball, Orson Hyde, Joseph Fielding, and others, he said:

"My instructions to the brethren were, when they arrived in England, to adhere closely to the first principles of the Gospel, and remain silent concerning the gathering, the vision, (D. & C., Sec. 76), and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, until such time as the work was fully established, and it should be clearly made manifest by the Spirit to do otherwise. (Hist. of Church, 2:492).

Was there anything in the doctrine of gathering, in the vision, or the Doctrine and Covenants, that Joseph Smith was ashamed of? Was he "afraid that people would ask his followers what he taught?" that he gave such a charge to these first foreign missionaries of the Church! Was he afraid, a coward? No, he was merely obeying the voice of the Spirit, for the people were not prepared to receive these things. Brigham Young was no more "afraid that the people would ask his followers what he taught," than was Joseph Smith, or even the Master Himself, when He commanded certain of His disciples to withhold some of His teachings from the world, until after His resurrection.

Now, our Reorganite friends have attempted to make considerable capital out of the statement of President Brigham Young, that there were "keys that the written word never spoke of, nor never will." In the light of the facts herein set forth, that "it is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command, that they shall not impart only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men; according to the heed and diligence which they give unto Him, and that things have been revealed to the faithful even to babes, that were "forbidden, that there should not any man write them," and that many of them have seen and heard "unspeakable things, which are not lawful to be written," (III. Nephi 26:16, 18). is it, after all, so unreasonable that there should be keys that the written word does not and will not speak of? Joseph Smith the Prophet held the "keys" of the mystery of things which have been sealed, even things which were from the foundation of the world." (D. & C. 35:18), which mysteries it was given to the Saints to know, "but unto the world it is not given to know them." (D. & C. 42:65). Again: "But unto him that keepeth my commandments, I will give the mysteries of my kingdom, and the same shall be in him a well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life." (D. & C. 63:23).

Now, how were these keys and mysteries to be kept from the world, if they were to be published to the world in the written word? And if the Saints through faithfulness are to receive the mysteries of the kingdom, then they must be withheld from the world and from the unfaithful. How is this to be if they are to be published to the world in the written word? Therefore, when our friends of the "Reorganization" attack President Young because there were keys not spoken of in the written word, which keys we have seen were held by Joseph Smith, they merely display their own ignorance and folly in raising the question.