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Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
had been ruled by Danish kings; but in that year, in consequence of the
tyranny practiced by Christiern II of Denmark, a revolution was inaugurated
by Gustavus Vasa, which ended in Christiern being driven from Sweden.
Gustavus was chosen king in his stead. While prejudiced in favor of the
"reformed" religion, he acted with great moderation. He invited learned
Protestants from Germany whom he directed to instruct his people in the
Bible and the Protestant faith. The Bible translated by Olaus Petri he caused
to be published and disseminated. In 1526, a great discussion on religion
was held at Upsal at the instance of the king, between Olaus Petri and Peter
Gallius, a Roman Catholic. Gallius seems to have been so far defeated, even
in his own estimation, that in the year following, in the assembly of the
states at Westeras, he recommended the "reformed" religion of Luther to the
representatives of the nation. After a long discussion, and much opposition
from the bishops, it was finally harmoniously decreed that the "reformed"
religion should be introduced. From that time until now the power of the
pope in Sweden has been prostrated. [See note 5, end of section.]

11. Denmark.—In Denmark the reformation was not accomplished so

happily. Christiern, whose authority, as we have seen, was overthrown in
Sweden, sought to establish the reformed religion in Denmark, but more
from a desire to deprive the bishops of their power, and confiscate their
property, than from a right zeal for true religion. In 1520 he invited Martin
Reynhard, a disciple of Carlstadt, to Denmark, and made him professor of
theology at Copenhagen. Reynhard stayed about a year. When he left, the
king sent for Carlstadt. He remained but a short time; and then the king
invited Luther himself to come, but the reformer would not accept the
invitation. All these failing him, the king set about the work of reformation
himself, but as he was a tyrant, his people conspired against him, and
banished him from the kingdom, in 1523. He was succeeded by his uncle,
Frederic, Duke of Holstein and Sleswick.

12. Frederic was as anxious as Christiern had been to see the reformed
religion established in Denmark, but he was more prudent than his nephew.
He permitted the leaders among the Protestants to teach publicly the
doctrines of Luther, and in time these raised up a strong following. In 1527
the king procured a decree from the senate, at the diet of Odensee, giving
religious liberty to the people. By this decree the Danes were left free to
embrace the new religion, or continue members of the Catholic Church, as
they saw proper. The successor of Frederic—Christian III—went further
than this, however, in the interest of the Reformation. He stripped the
bishops of their odious power, confiscated the church property, much of
which, however, he restored to the original owners, from whom it had been
obtained, it is alleged, by base arts. He called John Bugenhagius from
Wittemburg, and with his assistance regulated the religious affairs of his
realm by making the reformed the established religion of his kingdom. The
action of Christian III seems harsh, but a circumstance which mitigates if it
does not destroy the harshness of his measures, was the insufferable
arrogance, pride and power of the bishops, which was a constant menace to
the power of the monarch, and did much to eclipse his glory. [See note 6,
end of section.]

13. Holland.—Perhaps from being contiguous to Germany, the Netherlands

—Belgium and Holland—soon partook of the spirit of the Reformation—
the desire to be free. The writings of Luther were early received and widely
read by the Netherlanders. This alarmed the Catholics who, in 1552,
established the Inquisition there and persecuted with great vigor all who
accepted the doctrines of the reformers. It is estimated that in those
provinces which, taken together, constitute the Netherlands, in the reign of
Charles V alone—from 1519 to 1552—not less than 50,000 persons lost
their lives in consequence of their defection from the church of Rome. But
notwithstanding this severe persecution, adherents to the Protestant faith
increased. The tyranny of their oppressors seemed to increase the boldness
of the people in clamoring for the rights of conscience; and towards the
close of the sixteenth century seven of the provinces successfully revolted
against the Duke of Alva, Viceroy of the Catholic monarch, Phillip II of
Spain. These revolting provinces formed the Dutch Republic, and in a short
time became the most formidable maritime power in the world. They
suffered the most and wrought the most in behalf of the liberty of
conscience, the freedom of commerce, and the liberty of the state. It is said
by one historian that "In freedom of conscience they were the light of the
world."[42] It is well known that for many years their land was the asylum
for the oppressed, especially for those persecuted for their religion.
14. England.—The Reformation in England took on a different aspect to
what it did in the other countries. When Luther began his assault upon the
church of Rome, the English monarch, Henry VIII, appeared as a champion
on the side of the Roman pontiffs. He wrote a book against Luther in
defense of the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church, which met with
such favor in the eyes of the pope that he conferred upon Henry the title of
"Defender of the Faith." Henry's book appeared in 1522. Soon after this the
king began to question the legality of his marriage with Catherine of
Aragon.

15. Catherine had been the wife of the king's deceased brother, Arthur; and
a marriage with a deceased brother's widow was regarded as contrary to the
law of God.[43] Henry therefore applied to the pope for the annulment of his
marriage, since his conscience would not permit him to cohabit longer with
his deceased brother's wife. The conduct of the king, however, was such as
to give strong ground to the belief that it was his love for Ann Boleyn, an
English lady of high birth, and not conscientious scruples as to the
lawfulness of his marriage with Catherine. The queen's beauty had faded
and some disease, it is said, had rendered her person less agreeable. Still, to
do Henry justice, it must not be concealed that his father had scrupled the
legitimacy of the marriage; a foreign court had made it an objection to
intermarriage with his children by his wife; and the people of England very
generally entertained fears respecting the succession to his crown, and these
political considerations doubtless had their influence.[44] Still it will not be
denied that after the king had fallen in love with Ann Boleyn, his love for
her and not political considerations, or religious scruples, was the incentive
that prompted him to seek a divorce.

16. The Rupture with the Pope.—The pope, Clement VII, evaded a direct
answer to Henry's appeal. Catherine was the aunt of Charles V, and perhaps
Clement feared that he would offend that monarch—to whom he looked to
suppress the Reformation in Germany—if he granted the divorce. Henry,
impatient of these enforced delays, consulted the universities of Europe,
and as most of them pronounced marriage with a deceased brother's wife
unlawful, he divorced Catherine without the consent of the pope. A quarrel
ensued between the king and the pontiff, which resulted in the former
casting off the authority of the latter, and the pope excommunicated the
king. In 1533 Henry was declared head of the British church and Defender
of the Faith, by the English parliament. He thereupon ejected the monks
from their possessions, disposed of their property at his own good pleasure,
and abolished in toto the authority of the pope in England.

17. No other country in all Europe was so well prepared for the Sixteenth
Century revolution as England. A century and a half before either Luther or
Zwingle were heard of, John Wycliffe proclaimed against the corruption
and abuses of the Catholic church, denounced the pope as anti-Christ,[45]
and preached against the doctrine of transubstantiation. He also translated
the Scriptures and circulated them among the common people. Two years
before his death, however, he was summoned before a church council by
which, notwithstanding he defended himself with great ability, many of his
doctrines were condemned, and he himself was restricted in his ministry to
the parish of Lutterworth, in Leicestershire, where he died. [See note 7, end
of section.] His teachings, however, had made a deep impression upon his
countrymen, and he left many followers, who were called by their
opponents Lollards. The Lollards were a proscribed sect in England, and as
they avoided persecution, but little was heard of them. Still they cherished
the doctrines of their leader, and transmitted them to their children, so that
when Luther and the other continental reformers began their work, there
were many in England who sympathized with them; and when Henry VIII
considered it to his interests to revolt against the authority of the pope, he
found large numbers of his people not only ready to support him in casting
off that authority, but anxious to go much farther in that revolt than the king
desired. [See note 6, end of section.] They had viewed the rupture between
the king and the pope with deep satisfaction; but they were soon to learn
that the defection of the monarch was not to bring religious liberty to
England, or establish there the doctrines of Wycliffe or Luther. It was but a
change of masters that had taken place, and the king was as despotic as the
pope. [See note 9, end of section.] Although Henry had thrown off the
authority of the pontiff, he would tolerate but few changes in the forms and
ceremonies of religion. More changes were introduced in the reign of
Edward VI, the son of Henry VIII by Jane Seymore; and still more in the
reign of Elizabeth, his daughter by Anne Boleyn.
18. The Puritans.—But these changes came far short of satisfying the
English Protestants, who were called Puritans. They demanded almost a
complete abolition of the rites and ceremonies of the Roman Church, which
they denounced as idolatrous. The most of them favored the Presbyterian
form of church government, or a still simpler method which would
recognize each congregation as a complete church within itself. Those who
contended for this more simple form of church government were called
Independents. The puritans were frequently rude and clamorous in their
demands for further reformation; and on their part the adherents of the
established religion were intolerant, and persecuted to imprisonment, exile
or death the Puritans. [See note 10, end of section.]

19. The Reformation in Scotland.—All things considered, the

Reformation in Scotland—that is the overthrow of the authority of the pope
—was accomplished with as little trouble as it was in England; and
accompanied by less injustice to Catholics. In Scotland, as in England, the
doctrines of Wycliffe had many silent adherents, and such was the frame of
the popular mind that only the leadership of bold men was needed to make
a successful revolt against the authority of the pope. That leadership was
found in John Knox.[46] Knox was thirty-eight years of age when he openly
declared himself a Protestant, and began his work of reform. About three
years later Cardinal Beaton, a proud, arrogant man, and of course the head
of the Catholic church in Scotland, was assassinated. His castle—St.
Andrews—was taken possession of by the band of nobles and others who
had murdered him, and it became for a time the stronghold of
Protestantism. To this place Knox repaired, and there in the parish church of
St. Andrews, first became famous as a preacher. In a short time, however,
the fortress was surrendered, and Knox was sent to the French galleys a
prisoner. After two years he was set at liberty, and allowed to depart for
England, where he lived for years, on terms of intimacy with Cranmer and
other English reformers. On the accession of Queen Mary,[47] Knox retired
to Germany and Switzerland, residing chiefly in the latter place, where he
learned and became attached to both the doctrines and form of church
government taught by Calvin.

20. In 155, political necessity compelled the government in Scotland to

become more lenient towards the nobles favoring the Reformation, and
Knox returned to Scotland, where his impassioned denunciations of the
idolatry of the mass and of image-worship aroused the pent-up enthusiasm
of the people. Indeed the people went far beyond what Knox intended; riots
ensued, churches and monasteries were destroyed, and the whole country,
already suffering the evils of civil war, was plunged into greater disorder. At
last, through the assistance of Queen Elizabeth, of England, a truce was
proclaimed, and a parliament chosen to settle the troubles. The parliament
met in 1560, and its deliberations resulted in the overthrow of the old
religion, and the establishment of the "Reformed church," based on the
doctrines and church polity of Calvin. In the midst of the harshness which
attended the overthrow of the old religion there was a singular instance of
moderation which will be looked for in vain in other countries where the
reformation succeeded. According to Hallam, it was agreed in the
settlement made by the parliament of 1560, "that the Roman Catholic
prelates, including the regulars, should enjoy two-thirds of their revenues as
well as their rank and seats in parliament; the remaining third being given to
the crown, out of which stipends should be allotted to the protestant clergy."
[48]
"Whatever violence may be imputed to the authors of the Scots
reformation," continues Mr. Hallam, "this arrangement seems to display a
moderation which we would vainly seek in our own"[49]—the English
reformation.

21. Unfortunately, as in England, after the authority and religion of the pope
were overthrown in Scotland, the religious difficulties were far from settled.
A controversy arose between the church and the crown on the subject of
authority. It will be remembered that Calvin insisted that the church should
be independent of the state,[50] and nowhere was it so strenuously insisted
upon as in Scotland; not only did it demand of the secular authority freedom
from interference, but assumed the right to reprove the king and his court,
and that, too, in no guarded language. In 1854, Andrew Melville was
summoned before the king's council, to give an account of some seditious
language employed by him in the pulpit against the court. He declined the
jurisdiction of the council on the ground that he was responsible only to the
church for such language; and the king could not judge of the matter
without violating the immunities of the church.[51]
22. The king and council, however, did not hesitate to declare the
supremacy of the secular power, and thus was begun a controversy which,
united with the attempts on the part of the sovereigns and parliament to
restore the Episcopal form of church government, led to violent
persecutions on the part of the secular authority, and to heroic resistance on
the part of the people of Scotland. In that protracted struggle, persecuted by
both parties with varying fortunes, the people were at last successful;
though their victory was not secured for them until the Stuart line of
monarchs were driven out of Scotland and England by the revolution of
1688, which dethroned James II of England and VII of Scotland, and placed
William, Prince of Orange, and Mary, his wife, on the British throne.

23. The Discovery of America—Its Influence on Liberty.—It is

significant that about the time of the "Revival of Learning" in Europe,
America was discovered by Columbus, led hither by the inspiration of God.
[Note 11, end of section.] Between this struggle for liberty in the Old World
and the discovery of the New there was doubtless a providential connection.
God knew there could be but a stunted growth of the tree of liberty in the
Old World, hence he opened the way for it to be planted in a land more
congenial to its growth. The whole continent of America is a land
consecrated by the decrees of Almighty God to liberty, and the people who
inhabit it are assured by that same decree of their freedom.[52] Hence when a
fullness of liberty was denied the Puritans in England, they fled to America,
and here found room for the planting of colonies where they could enjoy the
liberty denied them in the Old World, and the founding of the New England
colonies (now the New England States) was the result.

24. Catholics Seek Liberty in America.—Nor were the Puritans the only
ones who sought liberty in the New World. Even the Catholics came; for
they, no less than the Puritans, were persecuted in England. Sir George
Calvert, whose title was Lord Baltimore, a Roman Catholic, desiring to
establish a colony in America that would be a place of refuge for persecuted
Catholics, obtained a charter for that territory comprised within the
boundary lines of the state of Maryland. Before the charter was signed, Sir
George died; but it was made out to his son Cecil, who carried out his
father's designs. The charter granted to Lord Baltimore was unlike any
which had hitherto passed the royal seal, in that it secured to all who should
settle in the colony, religious liberty. That is, Christianity was the
recognized religion, made so by the law of the land, but no preference was
given to any sect or party.

25. Puritan Intolerance.—Unfortunately all the colonies were not founded

in the same liberal spirit as Maryland. The Puritans themselves seemed not
to have learned toleration by the persecutions they had suffered; but, on the
contrary, when they found themselves possessed of power, they forgot right
and persecuted all those not of their own way of thinking. This led to the
founding of other colonies where greater religious liberty was granted; such
as Pennsylvania, settled by the Quakers; Rhode Island, by Roger Williams,
a Baptist, driven by Puritan intolerance from Massachusetts.

26. Common dangers, however, taught these colonists toleration. They were
surrounded by hordes of savages, against whom they were compelled
frequently to combine. The wars between the French and the English
extended to their respective settlements in America, and this circumstance
drove the English colonists together and taught them toleration. They were
driven into a still closer union by the oppression of England, and forgot
their religious differences in the presence of the great danger of losing all
their freedom, civil as well as religious. When they had achieved their
independence, and necessity and experience taught them that a national
government—an indissoluble union of the colonies—must be formed,
wisdom clearly suggested that the chief cornerstone of the new temple of
liberty must be religious freedom. Hence in the constitution which they
adopted, freedom to worship God according to the dictates of conscience is
guaranteed. [See note 12, end of section.]

27. The Hand of God Manifested.—If in the rise of the great Roman
Empire we see the hand of God preparing the way for the introduction of
the gospel under the personal administration of the Son of God, that under
the protection of that great government the apostles of Messiah might visit
every land and deliver the glad tidings of great joy—if in this the hand of
God is visible, it is equally clear that the meaning of this sixteenth century
revolution which we have been considering, together with the subsequent
founding of a great republic in the New World, pledged to the maintenance
of religious liberty—it is clearly the meaning of all this that God was
preparing the day for a restoration of the gospel—the ushering in of the
Dispensation of the Fullness of Times. [See note 13, end of section.] That
revolution of the sixteenth century was the first glimmerings of the dawn
which heralded the approaching day; the light became clearer in America on
the establishment of religious liberty under the Constitution of the United
States; the sun rose when the Lord introduced the DISPENSATION OF
THE FULLNESS OF TIMES by revealing himself and his Son Jesus Christ
to the Prophet Joseph Smith.

NOTES.

1. Zwingle.—Zwingle discovered the corruptions of the church of Rome, at

an earlier period than Luther. Both opened their eyes gradually, and
altogether without any concert; and without aid from each other. But
Zwingle was always in advance of Luther in his views and opinions; and he
finally carried the reformation somewhat farther than what Luther did. But
he proceeded with more gentleness and caution, not to run before the
prejudices of the people; and the circumstances in which he was placed did
not call him so early to open combat with the powers of the hierarchy;
Luther, therefore, has the honor of being the first to declare open war with
the pope, and to be exposed to persecution. He also acted in a much wider
sphere. All Germany, and even all Europe, was the theatre of his operations.
Zwingle moved only in the narrow circle of a single canton of Switzerland.
He also died young, and when but just commencing his career of
usefulness. And these circumstances have raised Luther's fame so high that
Zwingle has almost been overlooked.—Murdock.

2. Calvin.—John Calvin was born in the year 1509; and in his studies
connected law with theology, studying the former at the command of his
father, and the latter from his own choice; and from Melchoir Valmar, a
German and professor of Greek at Bourges, he acquired a knowledge of the
evangelican [reformed] doctrines. After the death of his father, he devoted
himself wholly to theology, and publicly professed the reformed doctrine,
which he spread in France with all diligence. His name soon became known
in Switzerland as well as in France; and Farell and Viret [two Swiss
reformers] besought him, as he was traveling through Geneva, to remain
there and aid them in setting up the new church. But in the year 1538, great
dissension arose in Geneva; and Calvin and his assistant, Farell, severely
inveighed from the pulpit against the conduct of the council, which resolved
to introduce the ceremonies agreed on at Bern, in the ordinances of baptism
and the Lord's supper, and to reject those which these ministers wished to
have adopted: and the consequence was, that Calvin and Farell were
banished from the republic. * * * But in the year 1541, at the pressing and
repeated invitation of the Genevans, he returned to them again, and there
officiated with great perseverance, zeal, prudence and disinterestedness, till
his death in 1564. His great talents and virtues were shaded by the love of
control, by a want of tenderness, and by a passionate vigor against the
erring.—Schlegel.

3. The Reformation In France.—France was the first country where the

reformation that commenced in Germany and Switzerland, very soon and
under the severest oppressions, found many adherents. No country seems to
have been so long and so well prepared for it as this; and yet here it met the
most violent opposition; and nowhere was it later, before it obtained legal
toleration. Nowhere did it occasion such streams of blood to flow; nowhere
give birth to such dreadful and deadly civil wars. And nowhere have state
policy, court intrigue, political parties and the ambition of greatness had so
powerful an influence on the progress and fortunes of the reformation, as in
France.—Schroeckh.

4. Massacre on St. Bartholomew's Eve.—During the civil wars which

desolated France from the year 1560 up to the edict of Nantes—which
secured religious toleration from the Protestants, 1598—occurred the
massacre of St. Bartholomew's eve. A peace was concluded in 1570, by
which toleration was granted the Protestants. The terms of the treaty were
enforced with much apparent zeal by the French court, for the purpose, as
Protestant writers claim, of lulling the Protestants into security preparatory
to their assassination by order of the king. The bloody scene began at
midnight of the 22nd of August, 1572. The signal for the beginning of the
massacre was the tolling of the great bell of the palace. The scene of blood
and murder continued for three days. During which time five hundred
noblemen and about six thousand other Protestants were butchered in Paris
alone. Orders were dispatched to all parts of the empire for a similar
massacre everywhere. More than thirty thousand—some say seventy
thousand—perished by the hands of the royal assassins; and the pope
ordered a jubilee throughout Christendom.—Murdock.

5. The Decision to Introduce the "Reformed" Religion into Sweden.—

This decision was the effect specially of the firmness and resolution of the
king [Gustavus Vasa], who declared publicly that he would rather resign his
crown and retire from the kingdom, than rule over a people subjected to the
laws and authority of the Roman pontiff, and more obedient to their bishops
than to their king.—Mosheim.

6. The Danish and Swedish Bishops Stripped of Power.—Violent

measures were adopted, and the bishops, against their wills and their efforts
to the contrary, were deprived of their honors, their prerogatives and their
possessions. Yet this reformation (?) of the clergy in both those northern
kingdoms, was not a religious, but a mere civil and secular transaction; and
it was so necessary that it must have been undertaken if no Luther had
arisen. For the bishops had by corrupt artifices got possession of so much
wealth, so many cattle, such revenues and so great authority, that they were
far more powerful than the kings, and were able to govern the whole realm
at their pleasure; indeed they had appropriated to themselves a large portion
of the patrimony of the kings and of the public revenues. Such therefore
was the state both of the Danish and the Swedish commonwealths in the
time of Luther, that either the bishops who shamefully abused their riches,
their prerogatives and their honors must be divested of the high rank they
held in the state, and be deprived of their ill-gotten wealth, or the ruin of
those kingdoms, the irreparable detriment of the public safety and
tranquility, and the sinking of their kings into contempt, with an utter
inability to protect the people, must be anticipated.—Mosheim.

7. Wycliffe.—John Wycliffe, the greatest of all the "Reformers before the

Reformation," was born in 1324, and is supposed to have been a native of
the parish of Wycliffe, near the town of Richmond, Yorkshire. He studied at
Oxford, but little is known of his university career. Wycliffe appears to have
been a man of simple faith and of earnest and manly courage. He made a
strong impression upon his age; an impression that was not effaced at the
time of the Reformation. The Lollards, as his disciples were called, were to
be found, not only among the poor, but in the church, the castle and even
the throne. Wycliffe died in the year 1384.

8. England Prepared for the Reformation.—No revolution has been more

gradually prepared than that which separated one half of Europe from the
communion of the Roman see; nor were Luther and Zwingle any more than
occasional instruments of that change which, had they never existed, would
at no great distance of time been effected under the names of some other
reformers. At the beginning of the sixteenth century, the learned, doubtfully
and with caution, the ignorant with zeal and eagerness, were tending to
depart from the faith and rites which authority prescribed. But probably not
even Germany was so far advanced on this course as England. Almost a
hundred and fifty years before Luther, nearly the same doctrines as he
taught had been maintained by Wycliffe, whose disciples usually called
Lollards, lasted as a numerous though obscure and proscribed sect, till aided
by the confluence of foreign streams, they swelled into the Protestant
church of England. We hear, indeed, little of them during some parts of the
fifteenth century, for they generally shunned persecution; and it is chiefly
through records of persecution that we learn of the existence of heretics.
But immediately before the name of Luther was known, they seem to have
become more numerous, or to have attracted more attention; since several
persons were burned for heresy, and others abjured their errors in the first
years of Henry VIII's reign. Some of these, as usual among ignorant men,
engaging in religious speculation, are charged with very absurd notions; but
it is not so material to observe their peculiar tenets as the general fact that
an inquisitive and sectarian spirit had begun to prevail.—Hallam's Const.
Hist. England.

9. Henry VIII and his Revolt Against Rome.—Soon after Henry was
declared by Parliament the only supreme head on earth of the church of
England, the authority of the pope was finally abolished, and all tributes
paid to him were declared illegal. But although the king thus separated from
the church of Rome, he professed to maintain the Catholic doctrine in its
purity, and persecuted the reformers most violently; so that while many
were burned as heretics for denying the doctrines of Catholicism, others
were executed for maintaining the supremacy of the pope. As therefore the
earnest adherents of both religions were equally persecuted and equally
encouraged, both parties were induced to court the favor of the king, who
was thus enabled to assume an absolute authority over the nation, and to
impose upon it his own doctrines as those of the only true church. * * *
When news of these proceedings reached Rome, the most terrible
fulminations were hurled by the pope against the king of England, whose
soul was delivered over to the devil, and his dominions to the first invader;
all leagues with Catholic princes were declared to be dissolved—his
subjects were freed from their oaths of allegiance, and the nobility were
commanded to take up arms against him. But these missives, which half a
century before would have hurled the monarch from his throne and made
him a despised outcast among his people, were now utterly harmless. The
papal supremacy was forever lost in England.—Wilson, Hist. U. S.,
Appendix to Voyage and Discoveries, p. 153.
10. The Puritans.—The Puritan party professing to derive their doctrines
directly from the scriptures, were wholly dissatisfied with the old church
system, which they denounced as rotten, depraved and defiled by human
inventions, and they wished it to undergo a thorough reform, to abandon
everything of man's device, and adopt nothing, either in doctrine or
discipline, which was not directly authorized by the word of God.
Exceedingly ardent in their feelings, zealous in their principles, abhorring
all formalism as destructive of the very elements of piety, and rejecting the
regal as well as papal supremacy, they demanded in place of the liturgical
service, an effective preaching of the gospel, more of the substance of
religion, instead of what they denominated its shadows; and so convinced
were they of the justness of their views and the reasonableness of their
demands, that they would listen to no considerations which pleaded for
compromise or delay.—Wilson, Hist. U. S. Appendix Voyage and
Discoveries, p. 157.

11. Columbus Inspired of God.—And it came to pass that I looked and

beheld many waters; and they divided the Gentiles from the seed of my
brethren. And it came to pass that the angel said unto me, Behold the wrath
of God is upon the seed of thy brethren. And I looked and beheld a man
among the Gentiles who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the
many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought
upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed
of my brethren who were in the promised land. And it came to pass that I
beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went
forth out of captivity upon the many waters: * * * [and] I beheld many
multitudes of the Gentiles upon the land of promise.—Nephi's Vision, Book
of Mormon, ch. xiii:10-14.

12. Religious Liberty in the Constitution.—The parts of the United States

Constitution which secure religious freedom are the clause in article vi,
which says: "No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to
any office or public trust under the United States;" and the first Amendment
which says: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of
religion or prohibit the free exercise thereof." Respecting these two clauses
in the Constitution, Judge Story remarks: "We are not to attribute this
prohibition of a national religious establishment to an indifference to
religion in general, and especially to Christianity, (which none could hold in
more reverence than the framers of the Constitution), but to a dread by the
people of the influence of ecclesiastical power in matters of government; a
dread which their ancestors brought with them from the parent country, and
which unhappily for human infirmity, their own conduct, after the
emigration, had not, in any just degree, tended to diminish. It was also
obvious, from the numerous and powerful sects existing in the United
States, that there would be perpetual temptations to struggles for
ascendency in the national councils, if any one might thereby hope to found
a permanent and exclusive national establishment of its own; and religious
persecutions might thus be introduced, to an extent utterly subversive of the
true interests and good order of the Republic. The most effectual mode of
suppressing the evil, in the view of the people, was to strike down the
temptations to its introduction."

13. Hand of the Lord in the Establishment of the United States

Government.—That the hand of Almighty God was in the work of
founding the Government of the United States is plainly declared in one of
the revelations to Joseph Smith: "It is not right that any man should be in
bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the
constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto
this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood." (Doc.
and Cov. sec. ci: 79, 80.) Nor are thoughtful historians blind to the fact that
the hand of God has had much to do with those revolutions which finally
produced the great republic of the New World. Commenting on the war of
the American Revolution, Marcus Wilson says: "The expense of blood and
treasure which this war cost England was enormous; nor, indeed, did her
European antagonists suffer much less severely. The United States was the
only country that could look to any beneficial results from the war, and
these were obtained by a strong union of opposing motives and principles,
unequalled in the annals of history. France and Spain, the arbitrary despots
of the Old World, had stood forth as the protectors of an infant republic, and
had combined, contrary to all the principles of their political faith, to
establish the rising liberties of America. They seemed but as blind
instruments in the hands of Providence, employed to aid in the founding of
a nation which should cultivate those Republican virtues that were destined
yet to regenerate the world upon the principles of universal intelligence, and
eventually to overthrow the time-worn system of tyrannical usurpation of
the few over the many."

REVIEW.

1. Was the Reformation confined to Germany?

2. When did the Reformation first begin?

3. Who was the leader of the movement in Switzerland?

4. State what you can of the Reformation in Switzerland under Zwingle.

5. What fate befell the young Reformer?

6. State the chief difference in methods of work between Luther and

Zwingle. (Note I.)

7. Who succeeded in the leadership of the Reformation in Switzerland?

8. Where and when was Calvin born?

9. State the points of difference in the views of Calvin and Zwingle.

10. Describe the Presbyterian system of church government.

11. Give a sketch of the life and character of Calvin. (note 2.)

12. State the several views of the Reformers in respect to the eucharist.

13. What difference existed between Calvin and Zwingle on the subject of
predestination?

14. What can you say of the spread of Calvin's doctrine?

15. Describe the Reformation in France.

16. What can you say of the persecution of the Protestants in France? (Note
3.)

17. Give a description of the massacre of St. Bartholomew's eve.

18. State what you can of the Reformation in Sweden.

19. Tell how the Reformation in Sweden was accomplished.

20. On what ground can the king of Sweden and Denmark be justified in
stripping the Catholic bishops of their power and wealth? (Note 5.)

21. Give an account of the Reformation in Holland.

22. What was the attitude of Henry VIII of England at the beginning of the
Reformation in Germany?

23. What title did his defense of the Roman Catholic sacraments secure for
him?

24. What circumstance was it that afterwards estranged Henry from the
pope?

25. What was the conduct of Pope Clement VII in this controversy?

26. What course did Henry adopt?

27. What resulted from the king's conduct?

28. How did the friends of the Reformation in England receive the rupture
of the king and pope?

29. Did the rupture between king and pope help the Reformation in
England?

30. What were the Reformers in England called?

31. What were the demands of the Puritans in respect to religion? (Note 8.)
32. When denied religious liberty in England to what country did the
Puritans go?

33. What influence on liberty did the discovery of America have?

34. What can you say of the inspiration of Christopher Columbus? (Note 9.)

35. What people besides Puritans sought religious liberty in the new world?

36. Give an account of the settlement of Maryland.

37. What can you say of Puritan intolerance?

38. What circumstances taught them, at least, partial toleration?

39. What power was working in all those changes which brought freedom
to man? (Note 11.)

40. What was the object of enlarging the liberties of mankind?

Footnotes

1. February, 1070, A. D.

2. Subsequently Henry IV made war upon Gregory, drove him from the
papal chair into exile, and placed Guibert, archbishop of Ravenna, upon the
papal throne. Guibert took the name of Innocent III, at his consecration,
1084, A. D.

3. It was invented by Schwartz in 1320.

4. Guizot Hist. Civilization.

5. Smith's Eng. Inst., pages 8,9.

6. It is only fair to Catholics to say that such is their explanation of

indulgences now.
7. Maclain's note in Mosheim, vol. II, Ch. ii.

8. The account here given of the rise and character of indulgences is

condensed chiefly from Schlegel, quoted by Murdock in the latter's
translation of Mosheim, vol. III, book iv, cent. xvi, ch. i.

9. The canon law consists of the enactments of the councils and decrees of
the popes.

10. Peter Lombard, who in the 12th century collected and arranged
systematically the theological opinions and decisions of the Latin fathers.

11. In the church of Rome it may be said there were two parties, one of
which held that the pope's power was supreme—superior to all other
authority in the church; the other maintained that the pope's authority was
subordinate to that of a general council of the whole church. The latter party
was quite strong in Germany, so that a great many sustained Luther in his
appeal to a general council. Even Duke George of Saxony favored the
calling of such a council. Said he:—"The scandalous conduct of the clergy
is a very fruitful source of the destruction of poor souls. There must be a
universal reformation; and this cannot be better effected than by a general
council. It is therefore the most earnest wish of us all, that such a measure
be adopted."—Milner's Church Hist. vol. iv, ch. v, (Note.)

12. Milner's Church Hist., vol. IV, p. 405.

13. Milner's Church Hist., vol. IV, ch. iv.

14. The diet was a great council of the German empire, consisting of the
princes, provincial rulers and the chief dignitaries of the church. The diet
from the 10th century had assumed the right of electing the emperor of
Germany, subject to confirmation by the pope, by whom alone he could be
crowned. The diet was also usually assembled for the consideration of very
important matters pertaining to the empire.

15. Mosheim (Murdock) vol. iii, bk. iv, cent. xvi, sec. i, ch. ii.
16. The Emperor was not present at this second diet at Spire. He was absent
in Spain. "They appealed to the emperor, to a future council of the German
nation, and lastly to every impartial judge. For they believed that a majority
of votes in a diet could decide a secular question, but not a spiritual or
religious question; they appealed to the emperor, not as recognizing him as
their judge in a matter of religion, but merely that he might allow their
appeal to a council to be valid."—Schlegel.

17. Before the diet rose the cities Kempten, Heilbronn Windsheim, and
Weisenburg also subscribed; and afterwards many more. It was immediately
printed and soon spread all over Europe, and was translated into various
languages. It thus became of great service to the Protestant cause; for it was
a very able document and was drawn up in a most judicious manner.—
Murdock.

18. The Protestant princes had held that the election of Ferdinand to be king
of the Romans was contrary to the laws of the empire.

19. Luther himself testifies to this. In the Latin preface to the first volume
of his works, the Reformer says: "In the year 1517, when I was a young
preacher, and dissuaded the people from purchasing indulgences. * * * I felt
assured I should have the pope on my side: for he himself, in his public
decrees had condemned the excesses of his agents in this business."

20. The foregoing six statements of fact I have summarized from M.

Guizot's excellent work on the Civilization of Europe.

21. D'Aubigne's Hist. Ref., vol. I, pages 82, 83.

22. D'Aubigne's Hist. Ref., vol. I; book III, page 119.

23. Ibid, page 122.

24. Milner's Ch. Hist., vol. IV; page 514.

25. Men desire to do good works before their sins are forgiven, whilst it is
necessary for sin to be forgiven before men can perform good works. It is
not the works that expel sin; but the sin being expelled good works follow.
For good works must be performed with a joyful heart, with a good
conscience towards God, that is, with remission of sins.—D'Aubigne's Hist.
Ref., vol. 1, page 117. "The works of the righteous themselves would be
mortal sins, unless being filled with holy reverence for the Lord, they feared
that their works might in truth be mortal sins."—Ibid, page 119.

26. Milner's Ch. Hist., vol. IV., page 379.

27. D'Aubigne's Hist. Ref., vol. III, page 340.

28. Ibid.

29. Mosheim's Eccl. Hist. (Murdock,) vol. III., page 147 (second edition.)

30. This doctrine was called Antinomianism; many believed it and followed
it to its very extremes.

31. From Luther's Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians, quoted by

Milner, vol. IV., page 520.

32. D'Aubigne's Hist. Ref., vol. I., page 15.

33. End of Religious Controversy, p. 80.

34. Ibid.

35. Milner's Church Hist., vol. iv, page 500.

36. Such is the cause assigned for the Reformation by Catholics: John
Milner, the noted Catholic divine, author of The End of Religious
Controversy, p. 105, says: "As to Martin Luther, he testifies, and calls God
to witness the truth of his testimony that it was not willingly (that is, not
from a previous discovery of the falsehood of his religion,) but from
accident, (namely, a quarrel with the Dominican friars, and afterwards with
the pope) that he fell into his broils about religion."

37. See preceding section.

38. Archdeacon Blackburn's Confessional, p. 16.

39. End of Religious Controversy, p. 100.

40. I Nephi xiii: 26, 28, 32. See also Part I, Section VI, note 3.

41. Ibid.

42. Bancroft.

43. It must appear remarkable that such an idea could become prevalent
since it is provided in the law of God to ancient Israel that the brother
should marry the deceased brother's widow.—Deut. xxv:5, 6, 9, 10.

44. Hume's Hist. of England vol. iii, ch. xxx.

45. On one occasion he declared the pope to be "The proud, worldly priest,
Rome, the most cursed of clippers and purse-kervers (cut-purses)."

46. Knox was born in the year 1505, near Haddington, Scotland. Died at
Edinburgh, 1572.

47. Daughter of Henry VIII, and Catherine of Aragon. She was a bigoted
Catholic; married Philip of Spain, also a Catholic.

48. Hallam's Const. Hist. England, p. 812.

49. Ibid.

50. Page 253.

51. Precedents for such an immunity it would not have been difficult to
find; but they must have been sought in the archives of the enemy. It was
rather early for the new republic to emulate the despotism she had
overthrown.—Hallam, Hist. of England.

52. Book of Mormon, Ether, ch. 11:7-13.

 PART IV.

THE RESTORATION OF THE GOSPEL.

 SECTION I.
1. The Dispensation of the Fullness of Times.—By a dispensation, in
connection with the work of God, we mean "the opening of the heavens to
men, the bestowing of the Holy Priesthood with all its powers upon them,
and the organization and building up of the church of Christ upon the earth,
for the salvation of all who will obey the gospel."[1] By the Dispensation of
the Fullness of Times we mean the last dispensation, the one in which all
things, in Christ, whether in heaven or in earth, shall be gathered together in
one;[2] a dispensation which will include all other dispensations—one which
will encompass all truth. As the rivers of the earth all eventually find their
way to the ocean and empty into it, so all former dispensations will run into
and become part of the Dispensation of the Fullness of Times, in which the
work of God, in respect to the salvation of man and the redemption of the
earth, will be consummated. [See note 1, end of section]

2. Birth and Parentage of Joseph Smith.—Joseph Smith, the man whom

God appointed to stand at the head of the Dispensation of the Fullness of
Times, and be the great Prophet, Seer, Revelator and President thereof was
born in the year of our Lord 1805, on the 23rd of December, in Sharon,
Windsor [Winsor] County, State of Vermont. His father's name was
Joseph[3] Smith, and his mother's maiden name Lucy Mack. Joseph and
Lucy Smith had nine children, six sons and three daughters. The sons in the
order of their age were Alvin, Hyrum, Joseph, Samuel Harrison, William,
Don Carlos; the daughters, Sophronia, Catherine, Lucy.

3. The parents of the prophet were of humble origin, and poor, having to
labor with their hands, hiring out by day's work, and otherwise to obtain a
livelihood for their large family. In consequence of their poverty, they could
give their children but very limited opportunities for attending school; yet
Joseph learned to read, to write, and had some knowledge of the
rudimentary principles of arithmetic.
4. When Joseph was ten years of age, his father moved from the State of
Vermont to that of New York, settling in Palmyra, Ontario County.[4] Four
years later the family moved from Palmyra to Manchester, in the same
county.

5. Religious Agitations.—While the Smith family lived in Manchester,

when Joseph was in his fifteenth year, there was an unusual excitement on
the subject of religion. It began with the Methodists, but soon became
general among all the sects, and union revival meetings, in which all sects,
took part were held in the vicinity of Manchester. The Smith family, being
by nature religiously inclined became interested in these meetings, and
several of them, viz., Joseph's mother, his brothers Hyrum and Samuel
Harrison, and his sisters Lucy and Sophronia, were converted to the
Presbyterian faith. Joseph's own mind was much wrought up by this
religious agitation, and at one time he became somewhat partial to the
Methodist persuasion.

6. He was greatly perplexed, however, by the strife among the sects, and the
divisions which existed. The Presbyterians were opposed to the Methodists
and Baptists; and these last named sects, though not agreeing with each
other, were equally opposed to the Presbyterians. Why should the church of
Christ be split up into fractions? Is God the author of confusion? Would he
teach one society to worship one way, and administer one set of ordinances;
and then teach another society quite a different system of worship, and
another set of principles and ordinances different from those taught the
first? Such were the questions Joseph Smith frequently asked himself when
he reflected upon the confusion he witnessed.

7. In the midst of the war of words and tumult of opinion that accompanied
this agitation, Joseph would often say to himself, What is to be done? Who
of all these parties are right?

8. Joseph Smith's First Prayer and Vision.—While floundering in the

midst of these difficulties he came to the following passage in the first
chapter of the Epistle of James:

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men
liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
This passage impressed him with great force. It was the voice of God to
him. If any man lacked wisdom he did; and here was counsel given directly
how to obtain it, with a promise that he should receive it and not be
unbraided for asking. He at last decided to follow the divine injunction.

9. It was in the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of

eighteen hundred and twenty, that Joseph put his resolution into effect. He
selected a place in a grove near his father's house for that purpose. It was
his first attempt to pray vocally, and he was somewhat timid; but finding
himself alone he knelt down and began to offer up the desires of his heart to
the Lord. He had scarcely began to pray when he was seized by some power
which threw him violently to the ground, and it seemed for a time that he
was doomed to a sudden destruction. It was no imaginary power but some
actual being from the unseen world. His tongue for a time was bound that
he could not speak; darkness gathered about him; but exerting all his
powers he called upon God to deliver him out of the hands of his enemy,
and at the very moment he was ready to give up in despair and abandon
himself to destruction, he beheld a pillar of light immediately over his head
descending towards him. Its brightness was above that of the sun at noon-
day, and no sooner did it appear than he was freed from the enemy which
had held him bound.

10. When the light rested upon him he beheld within it two personages
standing above him in the air, whose brightness and glory defy all
description, but they exactly resembled each other in form and features.
One of them, pointing to the other said: "JOSEPH, THIS IS MY
BELOVED SON, HEAR HIM."

11. Joseph's purpose in calling upon the Lord was to learn which of the
sects was right, that he might know which to join. As soon, therefore, as he
gained his self-possession, he addressed these questions to the personage to
whom he was directed. To his astonishment he was told that none of the
sects were right, and that he must join none of them. He was further told by
the person who addressed him, that all their creeds were an abomination in
his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that they drew near to him
with their lips, but their hearts were far from him; that they taught for
doctrine the commandments of men; that they had a form of godliness, but
denied the power of God. And he was commanded the second time to join
none of them.

12. There were many other things which Jesus said to Joseph on this
occasion, but the prophet never recorded them further than to say that he
received a promise that the fullness of the gospel would at some future time
be made known to him.

13. The Importance of the Vision.—This splendid revelation is of vast

importance: First, it dispels the vagaries that men had conjured up in respect
to the person of Deity. Instead of being a personage without body, parts or
passions, it revealed the fact that he had both body and parts, that he was in
the form of man, or rather, that man had been made in his image.[5] Second:
It clearly proves that the Father and Son are distinct persons, and not one
person as the Christian world believes. The oneness of the Godhead, so
frequently spoken of in scripture, must therefore relate to oneness of
sentiment and agreement in purpose. Third: It swept away the rubbish of
human dogma and tradition that had accumulated in all the ages since
Messiah's personal ministry on earth, by announcing that God did not
acknowledge any of the sects of Christendom as his church, nor their creeds
as his gospel. Thus the ground was cleared for the planting of the truth.
Fourth: it showed how mistaken the Christian world was in claiming that all
revelation had ceased—that God would no more reveal himself to man.
Fifth: the vision created a witness for God on the earth: a man lived who
could say to some purpose that God lived and that Jesus was the Christ, for
he had seen and talked with them. Thus was laid the foundation for faith.
We shall see anon, how the foundation was broadened.

14. The Interval of Three Years.—For three years after this first vision,
Joseph received no other visitation or revelation; and as he had been
forbidden to join any of the religious sects then existing he stood alone. It
was a period of severe trial. A few days after his first vision, he related the
circumstance to a Methodist minister who had been active in the religious
agitation before mentioned. To the lad's surprise he treated his story with
the utmost contempt; and declared it to be from the devil, as the Lord gave
no revelations in these days, those things having ceased with the apostles.
Making his vision public brought upon him the ridicule and indignation of
the whole neighborhood, especially of the ministers. In this trying period of
three years, according to his own statement, he was guilty of some youthful
follies; but he was true to God, and continued in the face of all opposition to
maintain that he had received a revelation from him.

15. The First Visit of Moroni.—On the 21st of September, 1823, having
retired for the night, he betook himself to prayer to obtain the forgiveness of
his sins, and a manifestation that would enable him to know his standing
before the Lord. While thus engaged, the room began to be filled with light,
and presently a personage appeared by his bedside, standing in the air. [See
note 3, end of section.] He said that he was a messenger sent from the
presence of God, and that his name was Moroni. He announced to Joseph
Smith that the Lord had a work for him to do; and that his name would be
had for good and evil among all nations.

16. The Book of Mormon.—The angel informed Joseph of the existence of

the Book of Mormon, a record engraven upon golden plates, giving an
account of the ancient inhabitants of the American continent and their
origin. He said, also, that it contained the everlasting gospel as taught by the
Savior to the ancient inhabitants of this Western hemisphere. Deposited
with the record was a Urim and Thummim, consisting of two stones
fastened in silver bows, attached to a breast-plate. The Lord had prepared
this instrument for the purpose of translating the record. A vision of the hill
where the sacred plates were hidden was given to the prophet.

17. Ancient Prophecies Quoted by Moroni.—After relating these things,

the angel began quoting from the prophecies of the Old Testament. He first
quoted part of the third chapter of Malachi;[6] and then the fourth chapter.
The first verse of the fourth chapter he quoted as follows:

For, behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the
proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall burn as stubble; for they that
come shall burn them, saith the Lord of hosts; that it shall leave them
neither root nor branch.

The fifth and sixth verses he quoted:

 Behold, I will reveal unto you the priesthood by the hand of Elijah, the
prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
And he shall plant in the hearts of the children the promise made to the
fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers; if it
were not so, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at his coming.[7]

18. Moroni also quoted the eleventh chapter of Isaiah, and said the
predictions in it were about to be fulfilled. They relate to the glorious
restoration of the house of Israel from their long dispersion, and the reign of
peace and righteousness on the earth. He quoted also the twenty-second and
twenty-third verses of the third chapter of Acts:

For Moses truly said unto the fathers, a prophet shall the Lord your
God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear
in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to
pass, that every soul which will not hear that prophet, shall be
destroyed from among the people.

Moroni explained that the prophet here spoken of was Jesus Christ; but the
day when they who would not hear his voice should be cut off from among
the people had not yet come, but it would soon come.

19. The angel quoted from the twenty-eighth verse to the end of the second
chapter of Joel; and said that it was soon to be fulfilled. It predicts the
outpouring of God's Spirit upon all flesh; the signs in the heavens and the
earth which are to precede the glorious coming of Messiah; and foretells the
safety which shall be found in Mount Zion and Jerusalem in those troublous
times.

20. The Warnings of Moroni.—After making these and other explanations

the light within the room seemed to condense about the person of the angel
and he departed. Shortly, however, he returned and repeated what he had
said on his first appearance, and again withdrew. To Joseph's astonishment
he appeared the third time and again repeated his message.

21. In his first appearance that eventful night the angel told Joseph that
when he obtained the plates containing the record of the ancient inhabitants
of America, together with the breast-plate and the Urim and Thummim—
the full time for them to be given to him had not then arrived—he was to
show them to no person except those to whom he would be commanded to
show them. He was told that if he violated his commandment he would be
destroyed. At his third appearing that same night the angel cautioned
Joseph, saying that Satan would try to tempt him, in consequence of the
poverty of his father's family, to obtain the plates for the purpose of getting
rich. This he forbade him, saying that he must have no other object in view
in getting the plates but to glorify God, and must be influenced by no other
motive than that of building up his kingdom.

22. The Fourth Appearance of Moroni.—The whole night was consumed

in these interviews with the angel. In the morning of the day following,
Joseph went to his usual labors, but was so exhausted and faint that he
found himself unable to pursue them. His father, who was laboring with
him, observing that he was ailing, directed him to go home. In attempting to
climb the fence out of the field where he was working, his strength entirely
failed him and he fell unconscious to the ground. When he became
conscious, the angel who had visited him the night before was standing by
him calling his name. He repeated again the things of the night before, and
commanded Joseph to go and tell his father of them. This he did, and his
father testified that they were of God, and counseled his son to be obedient
to the heavenly vision.

23. Cumorah and its Treasures.—Joseph went immediately to the hill

Cumorah[8] where the ancient record was hidden. So vivid had been his
vision of the place the night before that he had no difficulty in recognizing
it. [See note 4, end of section.]

24. On the west side of the hill Cumorah, not far from the top, under a stone
of considerable size, lay the plates, deposited in a stone box. Removing the
soil from around the edges of the stone box, with the aid of a lever, he
raised it up and to his joy beheld the plates, the Urim and Thummim and
breast-plate, just as described by the angel. He was about to take these
treasures from the box when the messenger of the previous night again
stood before him, and told him again that the time for bringing them forth
had not yet arrived, and would not until four years from that date. The angel
instructed him to come to that place in just one year from that time and he
would meet with him, and that he would continue to do so until the time for
obtaining the plates for translation had come. Accordingly at the end of
each year Joseph went to the place appointed, and every time met the same
heavenly messenger, who gave him instruction and intelligence in respect to
the work of the Lord, and how the Christ's kingdom was to be conducted in
these last days.

25. Translation and Publication of the Book of Mormon.—On the 22nd

of September, 1827, the plates, together with the Urim and Thummim and
breast-plate, were given into the hands of Joseph Smith by the angel
Moroni, with a strict charge to keep them safe, saying that he [Joseph]
would be held responsible for them; that if he should carelessly, or through
any neglect of his, let them go, he would be cut off; but if he would use his
best endeavors to preserve them, they should be protected. He soon learned
the necessity of the strict charge given to him by Moroni, for no sooner was
it learned that he had the plates than every kind of device, not even omitting
that of violence, was employed to wrest them from him. He guarded them
safely however, and in the midst of much persecution and many difficulties,
succeeded by the help of the Lord and the assistance of Martin Harris, a
well-to-to farmer, Oliver Cowdery, a young school teacher, who acted as his
scribe in much of the work of translation, and the Whitmer family—with
this assistance he succeeded in completing the translation and publishing
the work in the year 1830.

26. The Witness.—In the course of the work of translation, Joseph and
those assisting him, learned from the record itself that it would be hidden
from the eyes of the world, that the eyes of none might behold it except
three witnesses that should see it by the power of God—besides him to
whom the record would be given to translate—and a few others who should
view it that they might bear witness of the work of God to the children of
men.[9]

27. Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris desired to become
the three witness named, and obtained that privilege from the Lord. Some
time in June, 1829, the promise that they should have a view of the plates,
the Urim and Thummim and breast-plate was fulfilled. The angel Moroni
appeared unto them, exhibited to them those sacred things, and commanded
them to bear witness of their existence to the world. This they did, and their
testimony is published in all copies of the Book of Mormon.

28. The plates were exhibited by Joseph Smith to eight other witnesses
whose testimony and names are also published in all copies of the Book of
Mormon.

NOTES.

1. The Fullness of Times.—Now the thing to be known is, what the

fullness of times means, or the extent and authority thereof. It means this,
that the dispensation of the fullness of times is made up of all the
dispensations that have ever been given since the world began, until this
time. Unto Adam first was given a dispensation. It is well to know that God
spoke to him with his own voice in the garden, and gave him the promise of
the Messiah. And unto Noah also was a dispensation given. * * * And from
Noah to Abraham, and from Abraham to Moses, and from Moses to Elias,
and from Elias to John the Baptist, and from them to Jesus Christ, and from
Jesus Christ to Peter, James and John, the apostles all having received their
dispensation by revelation from God to accomplish the great scheme of
restitution, spoken by all the holy prophets since the world began, the end
of which is, the dispensation of the fullness of times in which all things
shall be fulfilled that have been spoken of since the earth was made.—
Joseph Smith, Mill. Star, vol. XVI, p. 220.

2. The Name of Joseph Foretold.—The Book of Mormon contains a

remarkable prophecy by Joseph, the favorite son of Jacob, by which the
name of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and of his father were foretold. The
Prophet Lehi, who, it will be remembered, left Jerusalem six hundred years
B. C., and who was acquainted with the Jewish scriptures, says, in blessing
his son Joseph: "For Joseph (the one sold into Egypt by his brother) truly
testified saying: A seer shall the Lord my God raise up, who shall be a
choice seer unto the fruit of my loins. * * * Behold that seer will the Lord
bless; and they that seek to destroy him shall be confounded. * * * And his
name shall be called after me [Joseph]; and it shall be after the name of his
father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing which the Lord shall
bring forth by his hand by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto
salvation."—II Nephi, ch. iii.
3. Description of Moroni.—He had on a loose robe of most exquisite
whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anything earthly I had ever seen; nor
do I believe any earthly thing could be made to appear so exceedingly white
and brilliant; his hands were naked, and his arms also, a little above the
wrist; so also, were his feet naked, as were his legs a little above the ankles.
His head and neck were also bare. I could discover that he had no other
clothing on but this robe, as it was open, so that I could see into his bosom.
Not only was his robe exceedingly white, but his whole person was glorious
beyond description, and his countenance truly like lightning.—Joseph
Smith, Pearl of Great Price, p. 89,

4. Description of Cumorah.—As you pass on the mailroad from Palmyra,

Wayne County, to Canandaigua, Ontario County, New York, before arriving
at the little village of Palmyra, you pass a large hill on the east side of the
road. Why I say large, is because it is as large, perhaps, as any in that
country. The north end rises quite suddenly until it assumes a level with the
more southerly extremity, and I think I may say, an elevation higher than at
the south, a short distance, say half or three-fourth of a mile. As you pass
towards Canandaigua it lessens gradually, until the surface assumes its
common level, or is broken by other smaller hills or ridges, water-courses
and ravines. I think I am justified in saying that this is the highest hill for
some distance round, and I am certain that its appearance, as it rises
suddenly from a plain on the north, must attract the notice of the traveler as
he passes by. The north end, (which has been described as rising suddenly
from the plain) forms a promontory without timber, but covered with grass.
As you pass to the south you soon come to scattering timber, the surface
having been cleared by art or wind; and a short distance further left, you are
surrounded with the common forest of the country. It is necessary to
observe that even the part cleared, was only occupied for pasturage; its
steep ascent and narrow summit not admitting the plough of the
husbandman with any degree of ease or profit. It was at the second
mentioned place, where the record was found to be deposited, on the west
side of the hill, not far from the top down its side; and when myself visited
the place in the year 1830, there were several trees standing—enough to
cause a shade in summer, but not so much as to prevent the surface being
covered with grass, which was also the case when the record was found.—
Oliver Cowdery.