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| Source document in Mormon Publications: 19th and 20th Centuries online archive: Times and Seasons Vol. 5 |
| TIMES AND SEASONS | ||
| "TRUTH WILL PREVAIL" | ||
| Volume V. No. 7.] | CITY OF NAUVOO, ILL. APRIL 1, 1844. | [Whole No. 91. |
HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH.
Continued
The fore part of September was spent in making preparations to remove to the town of Hiram and re-commence the translation of the Bible. The brethren who were commanded to go up to Zion were earnestly engaged in getting ready to start in the coming October. On the 11th of September I received the following:
A Revelation given in Kirtland, September, 1831.
Behold, thus saith the Lord your God unto you, O ye elders of my church, hearken ye, and hear, and receive my will concerning you; for verily I say unto you, I will that ye should overcome the world: wherefore I will have compassion upon you. There are those among you who have sinned; but verily I say, for this once, for mine own glory, and for the salvation of souls, I have forgiven you your sins.
I will be merciful unto you, for I have given unto you the kingdom; and the keys of the mysteries of the kingdom, shall not be taken from my servant Joseph Smith, jr. through the means I have appointed, while he liveth, inasmuch as he obeyeth mine ordinances. There are those who have sought ocasion [occasion] against him without cause; nevertheless he has sinned, but verily I say unto you, I the Lord forgiveth sins unto those who confess their sins before me, and ask forgiveness, who have not sinned unto death. My disciples, in days of old, sought occasion against one another, and forgave not one another in their hearts, and for this evil they were afflicted, and sorely chastened: wherefore I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another, for he that forgiveth not his brother his tresspasses [trespasses], standeth condemned before the Lord, for there remaineth in him the greater sins. I the Lord will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men; and ye ought to say in your hearts, let God judge between me and thee, and reward thee according to thy deeds. And he that repenteth not of his sins, and confesseth them not, then shall ye bring him before the church, and do with him as the scriptures saith unto you, either by commandment, or by revelation. And this ye shall do that God might be glorified, not because ye forgive not, having not compassion, but that ye may be justified in the eyes of the law, that ye may, not offend him who is your Lawgiver.
Verily I say, for this cause ye shall do these things. Behold I the Lord was angry with him who was my servant Ezra Booth; and also my servant Isaac Morley; for they kept not the law, neither the comandment [commandment]; they sought evil in their hearts, and I the Lord withheld my Spirit. They condemned for evil, the thing in which there was no evil; nevertheless I have forgiven my servant Isaac Morley. And also my servant Edward Partridge, behold he hath sinned, and satan seeketh to destroy his soul; but when these things are made known unto them, they repent of the evil, and they shall be forgiven.
And now verily I say, that it is expedient in me that my servant Sidney Gilbert, after a few weeks, should return upon his business, and to his agency in the land of Zion; and that which he hath seen and heard may be made known unto my disciples, that they perish not. And for this cause have I spoken these things. And again, I say unto you, that my servant Isaac Morely may not be tempted above that which he is able to bear, and council wrongly to your hurt, I gave commandment that this farm should be sold. I willeth not that my servant Frederick G. Williams should sell his farm, for I the Lord willeth to retain a strong hold in the land of Kirtland, for the space of five years, in the which I will not overthrow the wicked, that thereby I may save some; and after that day, I the Lord will not hold any guilty, that shall go, with an open heart, up to the land of Zion: For I the Lord requireth e [the] hearts of the children of men.
Behold it is called to-day, (until the coming of the Son of Man) and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned (at his coming;) for after to-day cometh the burning: this is speaking after the manner of the Lord; for verily I say, to-morrow all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble: and I will burn them up, for I am the Lord of Hosts; and I will not spare any that remaineth in Babylon. Wherefore if ye believe me, ye will labor while it is called to-day. And it is not meet that my servants Newel K. Whitney and Sidney Gilbert should sell their store, and their possessions here, for this is not wisdom until the residue of the church, which remaineth in this place, shall go up to the land of Zion.
Behold it is said in my laws, or forbidden to get into debt to thine enemies; but behold it is not said at any time, that the Lord should not
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take when he please, and pay as seemeth him good: wherefore as ye are agents, and ye are on the Lord's errand; and what ever ye do according to the will of the Lord, is the Lord's business, and he has set you to provide for his saints in these last days, that they may obtain an inheritance in the land of Zion; and behold I the Lord declare unto you, and my words are sure and shall not fail, that they shall obtain it; but all things must come to pass in their time; wherefore be not weary in well doing, for ye are laying the foundations of a great work.-And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.
Behold the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and obedient shall eat the good of the land of Zion in these last days; and the rebellious shall be cut off out of the land of Zion, and shall be sent away and shall not inherit the land: for verily I say that the rebellious are not of the blood of Ephraim, wherefore they shall be plucked out. Behold I the Lord have made my church in these last days, like unto a judge sitting on a hill, or in a high place, to judge the nations: for it shall come to pass, that the inhabitants of Zion shall judge all things pertaining to Zion: and liars, and hypocrits [hypocrites] shall be proved by them, and they who are not apostles and prophets shall be known.
And even the bishop, who is a judge, and his counsellors [counselors], if they are not faithful in their stewardships, shall be condemned, and others shall be planted in their stead: for behold I say unto you that Zion shall flourish, and the glory of the Lord shall be upon her, and she shall be an ensign unto the people: and there shall be unto her out of every nation under heaven. And the day shall come, when the nations of the earth shall tremble because of her, and shall fear because of her terrible ones; the Lord hath spoken it: Amen.
On the 12th of September, I removed with my family to the township of Hiram, and commenced living with John Johnson. Hiram was in Portage county and about thirty miles south easterly from Kirtland. From this time until the forepart of October, I did little more than to prepare to re-commence the translation of the bible. About this time Ezra Booth came out as an apostate. He came into the church upon seeing a person healed of an infirmity of many years standing. He had been a Methodist priest for some time previous to his embracing the fulness [fullness] of the gospel, as developed in the Book of Mormon, and upon his admission into the church, he was ordained an elder; as will be seen by the foregoing revelations. He went up to Missouri as a companion to elder Morley; but when he actually learned that faith, humility, patience, and tribulation, were before blessing; and that God brought low before he exalted; that instead of "the savior's granting him power to smite men, and make them believe" (as he said he wanted God to do him;) he found he must become all things to all men, that he might peradventure save some, and that too by all diligence, by perils, by sea and land; as was the case in the days of Jesus, which appears in the 6th chapter of St. John's Gospel he said, "verily, verily I say unto you, ye seek me not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled." So it was with Booth, and when he was disappointed by his own evil heart, he turned away and as said before, became an apostate, and wrote a series of letters which by their coloring, falsity, and vain calculations to overthrow the work of the Lord exposed his weakne s [weakness] wickedness and folly, and left him a monument of his own shame, for the world to wonder at.
A conference was held, in which brother W. W. Phelps was instructed to stop at Cincinnati on his way to Missouri, and purchase a press and type, for the purpose of establishing and publishing a monthly paper at Independence, Jackson county, Missouri, to be called the "Evening and Morning Star." The first Sunday in October, Orson Hyde, a clerk in brothers Sidney Gilbert and Newel K. Whitney's store, in Kirtland, was baptized and became a member of the church. As he was soon after designated as one of the chosen men of the Lord, to bear his word to the nations, I feel a desire to notice him as he was and as he is.-He was, in his own words, left in his infancy, an orphan with none to look upon him with a father's eye, and feel for him with a mother's heart. The hand that wiped his infant tears was still; the breast that gave him suck was cold, and slumbered in the arms of death. He was thrust abroad upon the cold and friendless bosom of an unfeeling world, so that for twenty long years, he saw no one in whose veins flowed a drop of kindred blood, and consequently grew up as a wild and uncultivated plant of nature, and now had come into the new and everlasting covenant, to be renewed and receive grace for grace, and put himself under the fatherly care of Him whose yoke is easy, and whose burden is light; and who rewardeth his sons and daughters, who serve him faithfully to the end, with eternal life.
To continue, in his own figure, he now stood before the world to feed the fowls of the Lord, in the same manner that he had done in early life, to feed the poultry of the gentlemen with whom he had resided; for says he when I
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poured the corn upon the ground, the fowls all came together en-masse, but after the corn was exhausted, and the stream stayed, the fowls all turned away, going in different directions, each one singing his own song. So with religion, while God poured out the stream of revelation upon the ancient church, they were all united and ate the living bread, but when he withheld revelations in latter times, because of the unbelief of men, they turned and went their own course, and sung their own song, some a Methodist song, some a Baptist song, some a Presbyterian song, &c; but if they had revelation they would have sung one of the songs of Zion. His further history will come in, in place hereafter. In the fore part of October I received the following:
Revelation on prayer, given October, 1831.
Hearken, and lo, a voice as of one sent down from on high, who is mighty and powerful, whose going forth is unto the ends of the earth; yea, whose voice is unto men, prepare ye the way of the Lord and make his paths straight. The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as a stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth; yea, a voice crying, prepare ye the way of the Lord, prepare ye the supper of the Lamb, make ready for the bridegroom; pray unto the Lord; call upon his holy name; make known his wonderful works among the people, call upon the Lord, that his kingdom may go forth upon the earth; that the inhabitants thereof may receive it, and be prepared for the days to come, in the which the Son of Man shall come down in heaven, clothed in the brightness of his glory, to meet the kingdoms of God which is set up on the earth:-wherefore, may the kingdoms of God go forth, that the kingdom of heaven may come, that thou O God may be glorified in heaven, so on earth, that thy enemies may be subdued; for thine is the honor, power and glory, forever and ever: Amen.
Soon after the above revelation was received I re-commenced the translation of the scriptures, in company with elder Rigdon, who had removed to Hiram to act in his office of scribe to me. On the 11th of October, a conference was held at brother Johnson's, where I was living, at which the elders were instructed into the ancient manner of conducting meetings, of which knowledge most of them were ignorant. A committee of six were appointed to instruct the several branches of the church. Elders David Whitmer, and Reynolds Cahoon were appointed as two of the said committee, with the further duty on their mission, of setting forth the condition of Br. Joseph Smith, jr. and Sidney Rigdon, that they might obtain means to continue translation. This conference was adjourned till the 25th of October, to meet at the house of Serems Burnett, in Orange, Cuyahoga county. On the 21st I attended a special conference to settle a difficulty which had occurred in Kirtland, on account that William Cahoon and Peter Devolve had abused one of brother Whitney's children. Myself and elder Rigdon were appointed to go to Kirtland and settle the difficulty, which we did. At the conference, on the 25th, at Orange, twelve high priests, seventeen elders, four priests, three teachers, and four deacons, together with a large congregation attended. Much business was done, and the four remaining committee, authorized by the conference at Hiram, on the 11th were appointed, and consisted of Simeon Carter, Orson Hyde, Hyrum Smith, and Emer Harris. At the request of William E. McLellen, I inquired of the Lord and received the following
Revelation given October, 1830.
Behold thus saith the Lord, unto you my servant William E. McLellin [McLellen] blessed are you, inasmuch as you have turned away from your iniquities, and have received my truths, saith the Lord your Redeemer, the savior of the world, even of as many as believe on my name. Verily I say unto you, blessed are you for receiving mine everlasting covenant, even the fulness [fullness] of my gospel, sent forth unto the children of men, that they might have life, and be made partakers of the glories, which are to be revealed in the last days, as it was written by the prophets and apostles of days old.
Verily I say unto you, my servant William, that you are clean, but not all; repent therefore of those things which are not pleasing in my sight, saith the Lord, for the Lord will show them unto you. And now verily I the Lord will show unto you what I will concerning you, or what is my will concerning you, behold, verily I say unto you, that it is my will that you should proclaim my gospel from land to land, and from city to city, yea, in those regions round about where it has not been proclaimed.
Tarry not many days in this place: go not up unto the land of Zion, as yet; but inasmuch as you can send, send; otherwise think not of thy property. Go unto the eastern lands; bear testimony in every place, unto every people, and in their synagogues, reasoning with this people
Let my servant, Samuel H. Smith go with you, and forsake him not, and give him thine instructions: and he that is faithful shall be
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made strong in every place, and I the Lord will go with you.
Lay your hands upon the sick and they shall recover. Return not till I the Lord shall send you. Be patient in affliction. Ask and ye shall receive. Knock and it shall be opened unto you. Seek not to be cumbered. Forsake all unrighteousness. Commit not adultery, a temptation with which thou hast been troubled. Keep these sayings for they are true and faithful, and thou shalt magnify thine office, and push many people to Zion, with songs of everlasting joy upon their heads Continue in these things, even unto the end, and you shall have a crown of eternal life at the right hand of my Father, who is full of grace and truth.-Verily thus saith the Lord your God, your Redeemer, even Jesus Christ: Amen.
I returned from the conference at Orange, to Hiram, and as Oliver Cowdry [Cowdery] and John Whitmer were to start for Independence, Missouri, a special conference was appointed for the first of November, at the which I received the following revelation.
Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say, hearken ye people from afar, and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together; for verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape, and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated; and the rebellious shall be pierced with much sorrow, for their iniquities shall be spoken upon the house-tops, and their secret acts shall be revealed; and the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples whom I have chosen in these last days, and they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them.
Behold this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given them to publish unto you O inhabitants of the earth: wherefore fear and tremble, O ye people, for what I the Lord have decreed, in them, shall be fulfilled. And verily, I say unto you, that they who go forth, bearing these tidings unto the inhabitants of the earth, to them is power given to seal both on earth and in heaven, the unbelieving and rebellious; yea, verily, to seal them up unto the day when the wrath of God shall be poured out upon the wicked without measure; unto the day when the Lord shall come to recompense unto every man according to his work, and measure unto every man according to the measure which he has measured to his fellow man.
Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear: prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh: and the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth: and the arm of the Lord shall be revealed: and the day cometh, that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets, and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people: for they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken my everlasting covenant; they seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall:
Wherefore I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, jr. and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments; and also gave commandments unto others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets: the weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh, but that every man might speak in the name of God, the Lord, even the savior of the world, that faith might also increase in the earth; that mine everlasting covenant might be established: that the fulness [fullness] of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple, unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers.
Behold I am God and have spoken it: these commandments are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding: and inasmuch as they erred it might be made known: and inasmuch as they sought wisdom, they might be instructed; and inasmuch as they sinned they might be chastened, that they might repent; and inasmuch as they were humble, they might be made strong, and blessed from on high, and receive knowledge from time to time: and after having received the record of the Nephites, yea, even my servant Joseph Smith, jr. might have power to translate through the mercy of God, by the power of God, the Book of Mormon: and also, those to whom these commandments were given, might have power to lay the foundation of this church, and bring it forth out of obscurity,
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out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth. with which I the Lord am well pleased, speaking unto the church collectively and not individually; for I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance: nevertheless he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord, shall be forgiven, and he that repents not, from him shall be taken even the light which he has received, for my Spirit shall not always strive with man, saith the Lord of hosts.
And again, verily I say unto you, O inhabitants of the earth, I the Lord am willing to make these things known unto all flesh, for I am no respecter of persons, and willeth that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh, the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion: and also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon Idumea, or the world.
Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophesies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.
What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself, and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice, or by the voice of my servants, it is the same: for behold, and lo, the Lord is God, and the Spirit beareth record, and the record is true, and the truth abideth forever and ever: Amen.
To the Editor of the Times and Seasons.
Nauvoo, March, 1844.
Elder Taylor:-
Dear sir-On the 25th of October, last, we left this place for Mississippi; we arrived at Vicksburg on the 4th of November, proceeded back in the country fifty miles, where we had the pleasure of getting in company with brother Benjamin L. Clapp, who had just recovered from a long and severe attack of fever. We remained there a few days; three of us then started together; brother Clapp for Tuscaloosa, Alabama; we, for Pleasant Spring, Kemper County, where we arrived on the 20th of November. Brother Clapp stopped with us, intending to stay but a few days, the weather however being very unfavorable and an immense quantity of rain falling; caused trvelling [traveling] impossible; he then come to the conclusion to remain until the weather become more favorable. We began to preach, and had very large and attentive congregations, and more calls in a short time than could possibly be attended to by us. In a few days we had a Methodist minister to make an attack upon us: being ready, determined, and as he thought, able, to put us down, not knowing anything about the doctrine we preached, or the principles we held forth: he came out in full array, and perfectly full of everything but the spirit of God and truth.
He made a perfect failure, as all do, when they come in contact with the truth, by error and falsehood; he however succeeded finally in opening the door of disgrace and falsehood to his heart, and his followers many of them saw it very plain, that he was a wolf in sheep's clothing; and that he had been teaching for hire; that when they heard the true principles of the gospel set before them, by those that were authorized and commissioned to do it, they immediately saw the error of their ways, repented, and were baptized for remission of sins, and hands laid on them for the reception of the Holy Ghost.
We all three continued to preach in the surrounding country, having calls on the right and left, until the last of January. During this time we organized two branches of the church: one consisting of twenty-two members, known as the Kemper county branch at Pleasant Spring, in which we ordained three elders, one priest, one teacher, and one deacon: and also a branch of thirty-seven members; three elders, one priest, one deacon, known as the Running Water Branch, in Noxubee county.
There was a spirit generally manifest through the country to hear preaching. There were some few priests that would stay at a distance and howl, but would not come up like men of God, and if they found they were in possession of errors, trade them off for truth which would make them free.
Notwithstanding many that had embraced the gospel, had evidence to satisfy them of the truth of the work they had embraced, and some enjoying the gifts of the gospel, yet this was not sufficient to convince them of the error of their ways. But we are pleased to be able to say that many more were believing the doctrine, while those that had obeyed were enjoying its blessings.
We left brother Clapp industriously engaged among the people, and with a prospect of many more joining the church. He was of the opinion when we left him, that the prospects were more flattering than he had had in any former mission.
So Sir, you will see, notwithstanding there has been comparatively but few elders as yet
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gone south, that the people there are disposed to hear and obey the truths of the gospel, and we hope ere long that many more will have an opportunity of hearing and obeying the fullness of the gospel of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.
Respectfully, your brothers
in the new and everlasting
covenant, W. Huitt,
S. Gully.
To the Editor of the Times and Seasons.
Brother Taylor:-I spent with my family the last winter in Tazwell county, Illinois, three miles south of Pekin, where we engaged in spiritual and temporal labors. On the 4th day of February, fifteen came forward for baptism, all in the bloom of life; ten of them young men of first rate abilities. It was a glorious sight and a refreshing season. On the next Sunday three more young men came forward. The branch now numbers forty members, who have resolved to gather, in obedience to the commandments. I now find myself a citizen of your beautiful and prosperous city, on Warsaw street, one block south of Mulholland street, where I indulge a hope of being useful in my profession.
H. TATE, M. D.
Nauvoo, Illinois, April, 1, 1844.
From the Cross and Journal.
=BAPTISM BY IMMERSION.
Now for testimony on this subject, we will call on some of the most pious, most learned, and most elevated pædo-baptists that have ever written.
Dr. Witsius, of North Holland-born 1708, learned in the oriental languages. So learned and eminent divine, that he was chosen professor of divinity, 1st, at Franeker, after at Utrecht, last at Leyden. He testifies as follows:
"It cannot be denied that the native signification of baptein and baptizein is to plunge, to dip. So that it is doubtless, more that epipolazein, which is to swim light on the surface: but less than dunein, which is to go down to the bottom, to be destroyed. Yet I have observed, that katadusis is frequently used by the ancients, with reference to baptism. "To baptize means to plunge, to dip; not to swim lightly-not to sink to the bottom, to destroy."-But it means to dip in, and take out again.
Salmasius, an eminent French scholar; educated at Paris Heidleberg-his knowledge of language extensive-succeeded Scaliger in the university at Leyden. Salmasius-Baptism is immersion; and was administered in ancient times, according to the force and meaning of the word. Now it is only rhantism or sprinkling; not immersion or dipping.
Calvin, John, known and read of all men, says "the word baptize, signifies to immerse; and the rite of immersion was observed by the ancient church.
Beza-a Catholic-1543 went to Geneva and publicly abjured popery. After he accepted a Greek professorship in Lausanne, which he filled for ten years, and returned to Geneva. Here he became a colleague to J. Calvin, through whom he was appointed rector and theological professor. He succeeded Calvin, at his decease, in his offices and influence, and was thence considered the head of the Calvinistic church.
Beza says "Christ commanded us to be baptized, by which word it is certain immersion is signified. Baptizesthai in this place is more than Kerniptein; because that seems to respect the whole body, this only the hands. Nor does Baptizein signify to wash, only by consequence; for it properly signifies to immerse for the sake of dyeing. To be baptized in water, which is the external ceremony of baptism. Baptizo differs from the verb dunai, which signifies to plunge into the deep and to drown." So he says it does not mean to drown, but it does mean to immerse.
Calmet. "Generally people (speaking of the Jews) dipped themselves entirely under water; and this is the most simple and natural notion of the word baptism."
Martin Luther. "The term baptism is a Greek word. It may be rendered a dipping when we dip something in water, that it may be entirely covered with water. And that custom be entirely abolished among the generality (for neither do they entirely dip children, but only sprinkle them with a litle [little] water) nevertheless they ought to be entirely immersed, and presently to be drawn out again; for the etymology of the word seems to require it. The Germans call baptism tauff from the depth, which they call tieff in their language: as if it were proper those should be deeply immersed, who were baptized. And, truly, if you consider what baptism signifies, you shall see the same thing required: for it signified, the old man, and our nativity, that is full of sins, which is entirely of flesh and blood, may be overwhelmed by divine grace. The manner of baptism, therefore, should correspond with the signification of baptism, that it may show a certain and plain sign of it."
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For the Times and Seasons.
TO PARENTS.
(Concluded.)
One grand principle in the government of children is, for the parent to have equally as much or more interest for the welfare and happiness of his children, than they themselves have. Another is, to convince them by an example of virtue, and the display of superior wisdom, that he is competent to stand as their counsellor [counselor], and worthy to rule in their conduct: and a third is, to administer justice and judgment with an even temper, and an equal hand in all cases under his parental jurisdiction and power. These are three important principles in the administration of all governments where the good of mankind is contemplated, but more particularly in that of families-and by the exercise of which, children may begin to be influenced to willing obedience, due respect, and living pleasure, in parental authority, even before they are able to lisp their own mother tongue; and thus the more safely led on, in the practice of virtue, and to tread the pathway for usefulness in riper years.
The minds of children are more flexible and attractive, while in infancy, and may then be more easily and successfully influenced to the love and practice of correct principles; and no time need be lost for want of age, for all their infant sports and amusements may be made so many instruments of instruction to their tender minds; and their toils and disappointments, and their numerous changes and mischievous experiments to which they often resort, are no less than so many opportunities to begin to plant in their minds the deeds of true nobility and greatness; for it is by the convincing power of experience, in connexion [connection] with appropriate instructions in every passing incident that comes under their notice in these early hours, that their character and notion of things begins to be contracted. The parent, therefore, whose mind is well fortified against the powers of fashion and indifference, by a true sense of his obligation, and a proper understanding of his duty, will in no wise let the golden moment of infancy pass from the head of their offsprings without sealing to their minds every possible token of the faithful discharge of the same.
Parents should therefore, not only possess an interest for their children, but let it be manifest sufficiently to secure their confidence that no good thing will be withholden that is possible for them to have. The performance of this part of parental duty calls for a liberal exercise of the attributes of love and kindness which awaken the spirit of affection and forbearance in the mind, and overlooks the errors and faults of children, and also gives patience an pleasure to listen to their numberless little inquiries, and to serve their innocent demands. The faults of children however, should not always be overlooked, neither should they be put to the whip for encouraging a reckless and petulent [petulant] disposition, and punished when they cannot otherwise be rendered faithful and obedient. When children are punished, it should always be attended with a perfect subjection of the will; and when forgiven, with counsel and reproof; and no fault should be forgiven, that the child will not confess, nor punishment inflicted without a sense of guilt; and thus children will be always penitent when punished, and greatful [grateful] when forgiven, while the tie of parental love and kindness will serve, not as abusing it, to kindle the flame of vanity and dissipation, but as a mighty engine to bind their affections more closely to the arm of correction and the sound of reproof.
Hence appears the necessity of the principle of virtue for example, and of wisdom to direct, without which parental kindness and love could not secure the end intended, for no council would be given, however productive of good, and no pleasure refused, however productive of evil. But when the lenient feelings of the heart are directed by the exercise of wisdom, and polished by the practice of virtue, this danger subsides, and true merit and excellence is seen springing up on every hand.-Where then is wisdom, and where is the virtuous life? Open the doors and come in ye pearls of purest luster, and shake terribly the powers that bind the understanding of the sons and daughters of Adam's line; and break the fetters from their feet. Arise ye children of the blest; ye parents, awake, behold the Lord hath crowned you with blessings; and treasures fill your borders; for, lo, children are an heritage of the Lord, and blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. Awake then, rise up and shake off the trembling power of the fashions, and the binding chains of indifference, and listen to the voice of wisdom, for she crieth in the gates, and her voice is unto the children of men. Hear, for she speaketh excellent things, and the words of her mouth are truth and righteousness, and there is nothing froward [forward ?] or perverse in them. She dwelleth with prudence, and virtue is in her companion, and length of days are in her hand. Wisdom hath builded her house, and her habitation is in the midst of the treasures of knowledge. Blessed are they that walk in her ways; watching daily at her gates for instruction, and refuse it not. Lay hold upon her munition, ye fathers, and resort to her strong hold ye mothers, that your
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children may see it, and fly to your arms for safety, and seek your power for protection-that justice and judgment may bring forth-that your labors may be crowned with success. For notwithstanding, that in love and kindness, is possessed the spirit of indulgence and forgiveness; and virtue and wisdom is able to direct and reprove; yet without judgment and justice, all the reproofs and councils, and the forgiveness and indulgences that may be given to children would fall fruitless to the ground; so far as their willing obedience and faithfulness; and their happiness and welfare contemplated: for, the reproofs of the virtuous, and the counsels of the wise would be trampled down with impunity; and the excess of indulgences and pardons, that mercy and affection would lavish out, could find a consummation of their work only in dissipation and ruin. But, by the additional and united exercise of justice and judgment, all the evils consequent from the want of power, would meet with a deserved end; and the judicious allotment of a proper degree of love and kindness, and the councils and reproofs that virtue and wisdom dictate, be aided by the just and legal enforcement of every requirement, until by patient endurance in the faithful exercise of every principle in the line of parental duty, the father may gain the unspeakable reward of living to see his sons rise up and fill their different places of honor and usefulness in society; and the mother to behold her daughters shining like the polished stones of a palace, fitted and adorned with virtue and intelligence, to shed forth the cheering rays of civil and religious prosperity and happiness over the face of the whole earth; and the name, and the glory, and the honor thereof shall roll onward for ages, and ages, and ages to come.
HEMONI
THE LAST HOUR OF THE FALSE PROPHET.
The signs of the speedy fulfilment [fulfillment] of the predictions against Mohammedanism, are multiplying every day. At the present time, anarchy and confusion prevail throughout the Turkish Empire, and the attempts of the European power to support her, hasten her ruin. An intelligent traveler thus writes of his country.
"Turkey is in the agonies of dissolution, and will soon be a mere corpse. One of the provinces under her protection, Servia, has been lately revolutionized, and its reigning prince dethroned. The government at Constantinople acquiesces, because it is too feeble to oppose the revolution. In Syria is the same anarchy. The Druses and Christians of Mount Lebanon are prey to perpetual wars, and obey no superior authority. No law, no safety, no security for property in this unhappy country. What does the Sultan do? He promises to act against the rebels, but does not. Is it not a sign that the last hour has come for the followers of Mohammed?"