11. Reflections.—Such is the law of consecration and stewardship given to the church as early as the first and second year of its existence in this last dispensation; under which law, and under no other, the Saints are to build up the Zion of God, the New Jerusalem upon this continent.[[78]] The law is designated to humble the rich and the proud and raise the poor and the lowly,[[79]] that men might be equal in temporal possessions according to their families, their circumstances, their wants and their needs.[[80]] There is enough in the earth and more than enough[[81]] to supply the necessities and the reasonable luxuries desired by man if the wealth created by his industry was but more equally distributed. The plan which the Lord has revealed to accomplish this, however, does not aim at the destruction of the individuality of men. It makes no attempt to control men in the detail management of their stewardships, or the disposal of their time, or to set taskmasters over them, but only to control and dispose of the surplus arising from their labors in the management of their respective stewardships.
12. In consequence of the unsettled state of the church arising from the persecutions and drivings inflicted upon the Saints during the time they were settling in Missouri, coupled with their inexperience, their pride, covetousness, greed and disobedience, they failed to live up to the requirements of the law of consecration, and in 1838 the lesser law of tithing was given, and has obtained in the Church unto this day. This law of tithing requires that the Saints pay first their surplus property to the bishop, and after that those who have been so tithed shall pay one-tenth of their income annually. This is the law of tithing now binding on the church.[[82]]
NOTES.
1. Promises to the Lamanites.—Then shall the remnant of our seed know concerning us, how that we came out from Jerusalem, and that they are descendants of the Jews. And the gospel of Jesus Christ shall be declared among them; wherefore they shall be restored unto the knowledge of their fathers, and also to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which was had among their fathers. And then shall they rejoice; for they shall know that it is a blessing unto them from the hand of God; and their scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among them, save they shall be a white and delightsome people.—Prophecy of Nephi, Nephi II, ch. xxx.
2. Newel K. Whitney's Appointment to be Bishop.—Though in natural gifts few men were better qualified for such a position, he nevertheless distrusted his ability, and deemed himself incapable of discharging the high and holy trust. In his perplexity he appealed to the prophet: "I cannot see a bishop in myself, Brother Joseph; but if you say it's the Lord's will, I'll try." "You need not take my word alone," answered the prophet, kindly, "go and ask Father for yourself." Newel felt the force of this mild rebuke, but determined to do as he was advised and seek to obtain the knowledge for himself. His humble, heartfelt prayer was answered. In the silence of night and the solitude of his own chamber, he heard a voice from heaven: "Thy strength is in me." The words were few and simple, but for him they had a world of meaning. His doubts were dispelled like the dew before the dawn. He straightway sought the prophet, told him he was satisfied and was willing to accept the office to which he had been called.
3. The Sphere of the Aaronic Priesthood.—The lesser priesthood is a part of or an appendage to the greater, or the Melchisedek priesthood, and has power in administering outward ordinances. The lesser or Aaronic priesthood can make appointments for the greater, in preaching, can baptize, administer the sacrament, attend to the tithing, buy lands, settle people on possessions, divide inheritances, look after the poor, take care of the properties of the church, attend generally to temporal affairs, act as common judges in Israel and assist in ordinances of the temple, under the direction of the greater or Melchisedek priesthood. They hold the keys of the administering of angels and administer in outward ordinances, the letter of the gospel and the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.—Items on Priesthood. John Taylor.
4. Zion.—The word Zion is variously employed: "This is Zion, the pure in heart." (Doc. and Cov.) In this instance the word refers to a people who are declared to be the pure in heart. In the south part of Jerusalem is a hill frequently spoken of in Jewish scripture as Zion, or Mount Zion. Then Enoch the seventh from Adam gathered the righteous and built a city, "that was called the city of Holiness, even Zion." The Lord in speaking to Enoch about the great events to take place in the last days, in which he would come to the earth in his glory, said He would with righteousness and truth sweep the earth as with a flood to gather His elect to "an holy city * * * and it shall be called Zion, a new Jerusalem." The Nephite prophet, Moroni, tells us that Ether in vision saw the days of the coming of the Son of Man and that "he spake concerning a new Jerusalem upon this land" (America), that was to be built up unto the remnant of the seed of Joseph (Ether xiii). Jesus also after his resurrection, when he visited the Nephites on the American continent, told them that he would establish them upon this land, and if the Gentiles would not harden their hearts, but would repent of their sins, they should be included in the covenant, and should assist in building up the city of Zion, or New Jerusalem (III Nephi: xx). The word Zion, then, is applied to a people; it is the name of a hill in the south part of Jerusalem; it is the name of a city built by Enoch and his people; it is to be the name of a city built in the last days by the Saints of the Most High upon the continent of America.—Missouri Persecutions.
5. Western Missouri (1831).—It was a country whose richness and fertility of soil far surpassed anything which they [the Saints] had ever before seen. It was a country abounding with springs and rivulets of the purest kind of water, whose crystal streams flowed in luxuriant abundance in almost every grove and prairie. A great variety of the most excellent timber bordered upon the rivers and water-courses. These shady and delightful groves were from one to three miles in width, extending many miles in length, while the rich rolling prairies, covered with a gorgeous profusion of wild flowers of every varied hue, lay spread around among the intervening groves. Their grassy surfaces extending for miles, presented the delightful appearance of a sea of meadows. It was a new country; but few inhabitants had as yet formed settlements within its borders. These consisted principally of emigrants from the Southern States.—Orson Pratt.
6. The Temple Site.—Taking the road running west from the court house for a scant half mile, you come to the summit of a crowning hill, the slope of which to the south and west is quite abrupt and very gradual toward the north and east. * * * This is the temple site. It was upon this spot on the third day of August, 1831, that Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Edward Partridge, W. W. Phelps, Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris and Joseph Coe and another person whose name I cannot learn, for there were eight in all—men in whom the Lord was well pleased, assembled to dedicate this place as the temple site in Zion. The eighty-seventh Psalm was read. Joseph [the prophet] then dedicated the spot where is to be built a temple on which the glory of God shall rest. Yea the great God hath so decreed it, saying "Verily, this generation shall not all pass away until an house shall be built unto the Lord, and a cloud shall rest upon it, which cloud shall be even the glory of the Lord, which shall fill the house. * * * And the sons of Moses, and also the sons of Aaron shall offer an acceptable offering and sacrifice in the house of the Lord, which house shall be built unto the Lord in this generation upon the consecrated spot as I have appointed." (Doc. and Cov., sec. lxxxiv: 5, 31.)—Missouri Persecutions—Roberts.