For the first twenty years of their history the tragedy of the Latter-day Israel was woeful enough to make their guardian angels weep, and black enough in its scenes to satisfy the angriest demons.
This part of the Mormon drama began in 1831 with the removal of the church from the State of New York to Kirtland, Ohio, and to Jackson, and other counties in Missouri; and it culminated in the martyrdom of the prophet and his brother at Nauvoo, and the exodus to the Rocky Mountains. In all these scenes the sisters have shown themselves matchless heroines.
The following, from an early poem, written by the prophetess, Eliza R. Snow, will finely illustrate the Hebraic character of the Mormon work, and the heroic spirit in which these women entered into the divine action of their lives:
My heart is fix'd—I know in whom I trust.
'Twas not for wealth—'twas not to gather heaps
Of perishable things—'twas not to twine
Around my brow a transitory wreath,
A garland decked with gems of mortal praise,
That I forsook the home of childhood; that
I left the lap of ease—the halo rife
With friendship's richest, soft, and mellow tones;
Affection's fond caresses, and the cup
O'erflowing with the sweets of social life,
With high refinement's golden pearls enrich'd.Ah, no! A holier purpose fir'd my soul;
A nobler object prompted my pursuit.
Eternal prospects open'd to my view,
And hope celestial in my bosom glow'd.
God, who commanded Abraham to leave
His native country, and to offer up
On the lone altar, where no eye beheld
But that which never sleeps, an only son,
Is still the same; and thousands who have made
A covenant with him by sacrifice,
Are bearing witness to the sacred truth—
Jehovah speaking has reveal'd his will.The proclamation sounded in my ear—
It reached my heart—I listen'd to the sound—
Counted the cost, and laid my earthly all
Upon the altar, and with purpose fix'd
Unalterably, while the spirit of
Elijah's God within my bosom reigns,
Embrac'd the everlasting covenant,
And am determined now to be a saint,
And number with the tried and faithful ones,
Whose race is measured with their life; whose prize
Is everlasting, and whose happiness
Is God's approval; and to whom 'tis more
Than meat and drink to do his righteous will.* * * *
Although to be a saint requires
A noble sacrifice—an arduous toil—
A persevering aim; the great reward
Awaiting the grand consummation will
Repay the price, however costly; and
The pathway of the saint the safest path
Will prove; though perilous—for 'tis foretold,
All things that can be shaken, God will shake;
Kingdoms and governments, and institutes,
Both civil and religious, must be tried—
Tried to the core, and sounded to the depth.Then let me be a saint, and be prepar'd
For the approaching day, which like a snare
Will soon surprise the hypocrite—expose
The rottenness of human schemes—shake off
Oppressive fetters—break the gorgeous reins
Usurpers hold, and lay the pride of man—
The pride of nations, low in dust!
And there was in these gatherings of our latter-day Israel, like as in this poem, a tremendous meaning. It is of the Hebrew significance and genius rather than of the Christian; for Christ is now Messiah, King of Israel, and not the Babe of Bethlehem. Mormondom is no Christian sect, but an Israelitish nationality, and even woman, the natural prophetess of the reign of peace, is prophesying of the shaking of "kingdoms and governments and all human institutions."
The Mormons from the beginning well digested the text to the great Hebrew drama, and none better than the sisters; here it is:
"Now the Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee;
"And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing;
"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."
And so, for now nearly fifty years, this Mormon Israel have been getting out of their native countries, and from their kindred, and from their father's house unto the gathering places that their God has shown them.