Report of the Swiss and German Mission

Never before, my brethren and sisters, have I felt so keenly the necessity of the Spirit of the Lord to direct me as at the present time. I am very thankful, however, for this opportunity of making a few remarks upon the conditions that exist in the Swiss and German mission. I am thankful for the opportunity I have had of laboring among the people in the nations embraced in that mission. I am thankful because it has helped me to appreciate more than ever my beloved parents, my brethren, and my sisters. I always did love my father and my angel mother, but never before have I fully sensed the blessing that it is to a son, or to a daughter, to have such noble parents ; and if any credit is due me for the labors that have been accomplished during the past three years in the mission field, I wish today, before you, my brethren and sisters, to give the honor to my noble father and to my angel mother. I thank my Father in heaven for such parents. I love, also, and appreciate my brothers and my sisters for the influence that they have had upon me. ¶

I appreciate the brethren upon this stand. I am sorry, too, and have not yet become accustomed to being in a Conference here without seeing our beloved Patriarch, John Smith, upon the stand. This is the first Conference that I have ever attended without seeing him here, and also our beloved president, John Henry Smith. I am reminded, by the changes during the past three years, that the responsibility of carrying this work forward will soon devolve upon the young men and the young women of this Church. ¶

I thank my Father in heaven for the privilege I have had of associating, during the past three years, with such noble young men as we have had in the Swiss and German mission. Your sons, over four hundred of them, passed through the mission office while I was there ; and I am pleased to bear testimony to the integrity, the honesty, and the loyalty of these young men. ¶

They are pure; they are living moral lives. Out of over four hundred and twenty young men who have labored there, only two have not been able to receive honorable releases, and one of them, since he has returned, is making good. I am pleased that I can make such a report. I am pleased also to state that, through the efforts of these young men, and the other young men who have been there before, and especially through the efforts of such men as Presidents Arnold H. Schultess, Hugh J. Cannon, Serge F. Baliff, Levi Edgar Young, and others who have presided over that mission, the mission today is in splendid condition. During the last three years over two thousand five hundred souls have been added to the Church. ¶

It is true we are having some trouble in some of the cities in Germany, but this trouble, I believe, has been exaggerated. The people at home do not quite understand just what a "banishment," for example means. Some of the mothers who have sons there, think, perhaps, of Siberia when they read that word "banishment ;" but I wish to correct that impression. My brethren and sisters, we are better protected in Germany today than the Elders are in Great Britain, or than the Elders are in our own America. The officials of the German government are not personally opposed to our missionary work. It is true they banish us once in awhile, but they do it because of complaints that are made against our missionaries, by some ministers, so-called. The officials who must act upon the complaints, as a rule, treat our missionaries quite courteously; in fact, they sometimes apologize for having to banish them. I wish to say also that because of this trouble many of these officials, today, are investigating the Gospel. Our missionaries have been polite, courteous and pleasant to these officials. They have borne testimonies to them, and have given them our literature; and today many of these officials are doing all they can to favor our missionaries. As one told me, who had become acquainted with two of our missionaries who were banished, he said : "I have learned, through this investigation, that your young men here are the most moral young men with whom I have ever come in contact. Through their example I have become interested in your Church, and I wish to tell you, Herr McKay," taking my hand in both of his, as I said good-by, "that I will do all in my power to assist your missionaries and your members in their work in this nation. They are doing a good work. I would to God," he said, "that all our people were like your members in this country of ours." ¶

In Hungary, which is also a part of our mission, we have freedom,and I wish to say also that that freedom was gained, very largely, through the influence of a young man who was at first prejudiced against us, and became interested in order, as he thought, to protect his sister. She was an "Israelite," as she called herself, a bright young woman who became interested in the Gospel, attended our meetings, and attended our choir practices. She and her brother were living together — orphans. Her brother became alarmed, and called her to task for visiting these "Mormon" meeting so often. She asked him, "Why do you object to my going to these meetings?" "Why," he said, "haven't you heard what kind of people the 'Mormons' are ?" "Yes," she said, "I have." "Well, then, why do you continue to go?" She said, "Where did you get your information regarding them ?" "Why, I have read about them." "Who wrote those articles," she said, "friends or enemies of the 'Mormons'?" "Why," he said, "I read an attack that was written by a minister who has lived among them." "Do you believe," she said, "all the stories that have been written about us as Jews? Would it not be better for you to come to these young men personally, and visit their meetings, and find out for yourself what kind of people they are ?" He said, "I will do so." The result was that he became interested in our meetings, and in the missionaries. After the first meeting he came to the missionaries and said : "Why don't you hold these meetings publicly? The people don't understand you ; they are laboring under wrong impressions." He was told that we did not have the privilege of holding public meetings, that they had to be held as private meetings. He wanted to know the reason. The result was he made an investigation. He was a young lawyer, and through his efforts we obtained — and the efforts also, I may state, of our American consul — we received our freedom in Brossau, on the boundary line between Hungary and Roumania. This young man, who is now an attorney corresponding to our district attorney, made a trip from Brossau to Budapest, a twelve hours' ride, and would not take one penny for his services. ¶

Other examples could be given to show you that the officials of these nations are not personally opposed to the "Mormon" missionaries. I wish to state also that our American consuls throughout Europe, or that part of Europe belonging to the mission — Roumania, Austria-Hungary, Switzerland and France — treat us as American citizens, and, as many of them have told me, "It makes no difference to us whether you are Jews, Gentile, Mormon, or what your religion is, we will treat you as American citizens." In Budapest we have our main Hungarian branch. Through the efforts of Elder Hill, who labored there, a number of tracts have been translated into that language, and a number of our songs ; and the work is being carried on, now that Brother Hill is released, by Elders Spry, Parker and Johansen. These three young Elders are learning, and Brother Spry has made great progress in the Hungarian language. I am also pleased to state that progress is being made in France. We have a branch in Lyons, southern France, and several Elders in Menz ; and now in Paris we hold regular services on Sundays, sacramental meetings for students and friends ; and each Thursday evening a public lecture is given, and a musical program by our students. On Washington's birthday, there were fifteen of our people gathered at our meeting place in Paris. Elder Barker of the B. Y. University is rendering great services for us in Paris. ¶

The work in Germany is progressing, especially in the last two years, largely through our Sunday schools and choirs. In one of our Sunday schools, one of the last I visited, there were two hundred and twenty-two present, and out of that number seventy-five were children of non-members. These children become interested ; they are placed upon the program, on the reviews and their parents attend ; in this way we meet the parents, and many of them are investigating the Gospel. Our choirs are making good progress, we have one organized in nearly all of our branches. I am pleased that I can make this report, and also to report that the people there, especially our members, are taking care of the Elders, and the members are paying tithing. I was told by one of the brethren, who had looked over the record, that our mission has a larger percentage of members upon the tithing record than any other mission or ward in the Church. The people are honest, and when they accept the Gospel they try to live it, and because of that they are being blessed and prospered. We are trying to keep them where they are ; and because the majority of them are remaining, our branches today are larger than the average ward at home — that is, many of our branches. In at least fifteen branches we never have less than two hundred present at the meetings, and ninety per cent of our members attend the meetings. ¶

I am thankful for the associations that I have had, especially with these four hundred and twenty young men. They have strong testimonies ; they know, as I know, my brethren and sisters, that this Gospel is true ; they know, as I know, that Jesus is the Christ. Thousands are asking the question today, and among them many so-called ministers : ' 'Did Jesus ever live?" or, "Is Jesus the Christ?" My testimony to you, my brethren and sisters, is that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ. I know it as I know that I live. I know further that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the true and the living God, and that Joseph F. Smith, who is at the head of the Church today, is also a prophet of God. I thank my Father in heaven for this testimony, because I have received it from Him, through inspiration; and for that testimony, my brethren and sisters, I am ready not only to spend six years in the mission field, but to devote my life in order to show Him my thankfulness. ¶

God bless you, my brethren and sisters ; God bless our missionaries, and those who have returned, that they may remember always that they are missionaries, representatives of the Church of Jesus Christ. God bless you all. Amen. ¶