Temple Work

I have learned by experience that it is necessary for the congregation to be very quiet in order to hear what is said from this stand. I sat in the congregation yesterday at the singing contest, and it was with great difficulty that I could hear the speakers. Brother George Q. Cannon made a short address, and though he has an excellent voice to make people hear, it was with difficulty that I heard all he said. Perhaps, however, I am accounted a little hard of hearing. ¶

I have been much edified and instructed in the remarks that have been made during the conference thus far. I looked upon the remarks of President Snow this morning as being very choice. They were but few, but they were to the point, and to me had a great deal of meaning in them. He alluded in his closing words to the subject of working for the dead. To me this is a very important subject for Latter-day Saints to consider. Our Elders go abroad to the different nations of the earth and preach the Gospel, and gather up a few people, “one of a city and two of a family,” and bring them to Zion. It is on this principle that this congregation is here. There are people here from the various nations of the earth. Some of these have availed themselves of the opportunities afforded in laboring in the interest of their dead kindred. But I have thought sometimes that this subject was not so seriously considered by the Latter-day Saints as it ought to be. Our President, Brother Wilford Woodruff, has labored a great many years in the temples; has done more work, perhaps, than anybody else in the Church for his kindred and others who have passed away. To me it is a certainty that beyond the veil is a reality as much as here, and it is a certainty that our kindred on the other side are watching anxiously over our movements in this direction. We have in operation four temples in the church. Some of them have been in operation quite a number of years, and all have had work done in them for some time. But we have not done a great deal of work yet compared to the amount that we have to do. For your information I might read the statistics of the work that has been done in the temples up to the last of last year, and you find that it has not been so extensive as it should have been. The Salt Lake Temple has probably been well filled since it was opened; but other temples in the Church have been very slimly attended, and I believe it has been a consideration on the part of the Presidency of the Church whether it would be wise to keep all the temples open during all the year. I do not know that they have considered it very seriously, but I have heard remarks of that kind. The baptisms that have been performed up to December 31st of last year (1894) only amount to 773,737—a little over three quarters of a million. This comprises the work in all the temples from the beginning, not including, however, the Endowment House. Of course, there was quite an amount of work done in the Endowment House; but we have found that a great deal of that work has been duplicated, from the fact that people did not keep a record of the work themselves, and the records of the Endowment House in times past were not available to everybody. ¶

The Prophet Joseph, to whom the Lord revealed this work in the first instance, had great concern about it. He impressed the importance of it on the minds of the Saints in the latter art of his ministry among the people. I believe it would not be out of place to read an extract or two from the sayings of the Prophet Joseph in relation to this subject. He felt that the Saints should have interest in it and go to with all their might and labor in the interest of their kindred dead, and he talked to them frequently about it. In speaking in regard to the Saints becoming saviors upon Mount Zion, the Prophet Joseph said thus to his brethren: ¶

But how are they to become saviors on Mount Zion? By building their temples, erecting their baptismal fonts, and going forth and receiving all the ordinances, baptisms, confirmations, washings, anointings, ordinations, and sealing powers upon their heads, in behalf of all their progenitors who are dead, and redeem them that they may come forth in the first resurrection and be exalted to thrones of glory with them; and herein is the chain that binds the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, which fulfills the mission of Elijah. ¶

He further says: ¶

The saints have not too much time to save and redeem their dead, and gather together their living relatives, that they may be saved also, before the earth will be smitten, and the consumption decreed falls upon the world: ¶

And again: ¶

The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead. ¶

The Apostles say that they without us cannot be made perfect. It is necessary that the sealing power should be in our hands, to seal our children and our dead. ¶

These sayings are just as true as the sayings of President Woodruff on this subject. The Lord recognizes in His servants the right and the authority to advise and counsel the Saints in these matters. We quote from Peter, and we quote from James and John, and other prophets, and we have the same right to quote from the Prophet Joseph, or from the Prophet Brigham, or from the Prophet Wilford. In fact, to me the living oracles of the Church are more important, if we should make any difference at all, than the written word. It is a good thing to have the Bible, the Book of Mormon and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants; but it is a little better in my mind to have the living oracles of God in our midst. The Lord deals with His people according to circumstances and conditions. He reveals to them from time to time His mind and will. We never have had the promise of having everything at once. But we have the promise of having line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. Hence the importance of the living oracles of the Church, who are in harmony and fellowship with the heavens. These servants of God have had the spirit of Joseph in continuing the work that was commenced by the Prophet in the erection of temples, and millions of dollars have been spent by the Latter-day Saints in the building of temples, and I suppose some few non-Mormons have contributed also for this purpose. There is an object in all this, and the Latter-day Saints should consider the purposes for which the temples of the Lord are erected. We cannot get along without them now, we have had too much experience. If we had not built those temples, the Lord might have rejected us. The Saints in all parts of the land should consider seriously these matters. You want your children sealed to you, you want your wives sealed to you, and wives want their husbands; you want your folks that have gone beyond the veil officiated for. We have only just commenced this work. We have not baptized a million yet out of the hundreds of millions that have lived and died. It is a subject that we ought to be awakened to. You and I will die after a little while; we do not know how long. I do not know that I will ever have the privilege of standing here again. I may, and I may not. It is the same in your case. You know not unless God has revealed it to you, that these times and opportunities will be lengthened out to you to officiate for your kindred; and you are going to meet them someday, which may not be far distant, on the other side, and perhaps they will ask you what you have done for them. Have you done anything for them? A great many people in the Church have not done anything yet. Only a comparatively few people in the Church have seemed to have much interest in this work; and I will venture to say here that there are plenty of people that have contributed liberally towards building the temples and they have not entered into them yet. I find people of this kind almost every day. They say they have helped build the temple, but they have not had time yet to go in and officiate. “But I must take time,” is what they will exclaim. ¶

Brethren and sisters, to me this is important. It is important to you also. It is a responsibility that the Lord has placed upon us, and His servants have carried out His designs in relation to these things. The opportunities are placed within our reach wherein the hearts of the fathers may be turned to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers. In fulfillment of the words of the Lord. I thought I would treat for the few moments allotted to me on this particular point, because I have interest and have labored now for some time in this direction, and realize the importance of the work. The Presidency of the Church hold the key to this work. They direct its affairs; and as I said to you, perhaps the Lord has not revealed everything to them yet, but He will reveal line upon line, as He did to the Prophet over a year ago the propriety of extending the sealing ordinance farther than we had previously done. Of course, that added a little more work to the temples. So other things may be revealed by and by. But suffice it to say, we have a great many things revealed that we have not done anything about yet. A great many of us have not yet baptized for our kindred and friends, and they are numerous on the other side of the veil. We have more relatives and friends on the other side than we have here, and when we go there, we will meet them. Some people spend their time and their means to spend their time and their means to search out the genealogies of their fathers, and some are wanting for the genealogies to come to them. The counsel that I have given to the Saints in this regard is this: do for those that you have. Some will say, “I am waiting till I get a few more names before I go to the temple.” But do not wait for that. Go and officiate for those you have, and then in humility seek the Lord that the way may be opened for you to obtain more records. The Lord is moving upon quite a number of people in the world to write records and genealogies—more so at present than ever before. People are searching after these things, and perhaps they know now why; but the Lord is moving in this direction, and a great many people can obtain their records through this channel, if they will manifest an interest in it. Of course, it takes a little time and perhaps a little means to accomplish this. But we are here to do this work. The Lord requires it at our hands, and it is important that we should give it consideration, and not let our lifetime pass away without availing ourselves of the opportunities that are presented to us. It is said that everybody cannot get a recommend to go to the temple. If there are any that cannot get a recommend, they are in fault themselves perhaps, and I would advise all the Saints to straighten themselves up, humble themselves before the Lord, repent and turn unto the Lord, and accomplish this work that is required at our hands. Your kindred are looking anxiously to you to do this. Let not the day of the opportunity pass by; but seek with all diligence to accomplish what you can in your lifetime in the interest of your kindred. Our time is only short here; just a few years and we have got through. We hear of people that have lived seemingly quite a long time amongst us; but it is really only a few days and they pass away. So it will be in our case. In a hundred years from now perhaps there won’t one of us be here, but we will be numbered among those that were. Therefore, avail yourselves, my brethren and sisters, one and all, of the opportunities of officiating for your kindred of the house of the Lord. God bless you. Amen. ¶