I have enjoyed greatly, my brethren and sisters

I have enjoyed greatly, my brethren and sisters, the addresses and the music of this conference. My soul has been fed. I always delight to know that I belong to an organization that speaks with authority, and I glory in the fact that those who stand at the head of this great Church exercise the right of their authority. May I add to President Grant's remarks that whenever we sing the hymn, "We thank thee O God for a prophet," we have in mind Joseph Smith, the prophet of the restoration, and also the living prophet whom we sustain and uphold, and who guides us, under God's inspiration, in his day. ¶

THE BEGINNING OF THE WORK ¶

Perhaps the most impressive thought that comes to me as I look over these vast congregations of Latter-day Saints and recall all that they represent in social and economic conquest and in rich spiritual living, is that all this has come out of a very simple beginning. A lad, seeking for truth, cried in the darkness for light. Out of that simple, humble beginning, has come this mighty work. In my reading I turn most frequently to the Prophet Joseph Smith's own story of his first vision, and I return invariably refreshed and strengthened, inspired and thrilled, by that simple story. Joseph Smith, not yet fifteen years of age, in the midst of contending religious opinions, set out to find the truth. To God, the author of truth, he stated his desire and the Father, in his graciousness, in his mercy, gave to the boy that for which he asked. ¶

THE FIRST VISION A LESSON TO ALL ¶

It seems to me that this Church has been given no greater lesson — one that should be remembered by the Church by all people and by every individual. Men cannot live by untruth or near truth. Spiritual contentment is won only when one has the full truth, or the truth just as fully as it may be available to him. Out of such individual desire and search for truth has come this great body of people, men and women, who know for themselves — they having gone to God in their search — that this is the truth. In this Church and kingdom we stand upon individual testimonies of the truth. We depend not upon the prophet, great though he may be, who guides the Church at this time, or upon any other man, but we, having a witness of the spirit, know for ourselves that this is the truth. Out of such training, desire and high knowledge has come a people the like of which has not been known before upon the face of the earth — a kingdom of priests and priestesses such as the prophets of old dreamed about and wrote about. ¶

TRUTH DEFINED ¶

In one of the great revelations given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, now known as Section 93, there is a splendid discussion of truth. In that section there is a comprehensive definition of truth. ¶

"Truth is knowledge of things as they are and as they were and as they are to come." ¶

ALL TRUTH ACCEPTED ¶

It is a happy claim, and may I say a proud claim on the part of Latter-day Saints, that they accept all truth, no matter whence it comes, or what its nature may be, whether it be scientific, philosophical or religious. If it be the truth, we accept it, and know that there is a place for it in the great plan of truth, known as the gospel of Jesus Christ. ¶

We Latter-day Saints welcome the great advances of these latter days. The remarkable conquests in pure and applied science: the telegraph, the telephone, the radio, the airplane, all the marvels of this day, we accept gladly and have no quarrel with them. Whenever the chemist discovers, as a few months ago, an element that had not been known before, we Latter-day Saints welcome that new knowledge, for we recognize that another step toward the ultimate conquest of nature, and of the universe, has been taken by man through the inspiration and good will of our Heavenly Father. When the astronomer tells us that a new star has been found in the high heavens, we are glad that more truth has come to us and therefore greater power. We support those who, in the laboratory or in the field, as earnest and honest searchers after truth, are seeking to unravel the mysteries of this great universe. As a Church we support such endeavors and sustain those who labor in the search of truth, no matter what the truth may be. ¶

RELATIVE VALUE OF TRUTH ¶

While Latter-day Saints understand that all truth is from God, and is desirable, and will be ours in time, yet we also know that all truth is not of equal value to humanity. Some knowledge is chiefly of physical help. It makes possible houses and roads and automobiles, and it feeds the body, thus making it easier for us to live on this earth. Another type of knowledge feeds the mind. Literature, art, and many other branches of knowledge contribute chiefly to the upbuilding of man's intellect. While we accept all these things, grateful for physical conveniences, glad to have the opportunity of mental development, yet Latter-day Saints understand that the truth of the greatest worth to humanity is that which controls and shapes human actions, that which interprets to us our relationship to God, our Maker, and to our fellowman; that which lays before us the great plan of salvation and explains why I am here, whence I came, where I am going and what I must do to conform to the greater laws of life. Such knowledge becomes the greater truth. Men frequently fail to understand the relative value of truth, and, therefore, set things that minister only to the physical world upon high pedestals, and place low the truth that deals with man's eternal journey, and with his eternal relationship to the greatest Being in the universe. It would not be quite wise or consistent for any one of us, no matter what views he may hold, to say that men of the type of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, of Moses, Elijah and John the Baptist and of other notables who knew little about the great discoveries of the last hundred years, were not so great in stature before God and before men as we are. They did possess the higher and more valuable knowledge and they were seekers also after the lesser knowledge; and in our day, were they here, they would stand as we do, lovers of all truth, but with a clear understanding, that some truths minister to man's greatest and others to his lesser needs. ¶

RELATIVE VALIDITY OF TRUTH ¶

Not only do Latter-day Saints distinguish carefully between the greater and the lesser truths, but they also recognize that not all truth has the same validity. We cannot accept all knowledge as being of equal certainty. Some knowledge I know to be absolutely certain, some appears to be true, and some I hope may be true. The man who looks through a microscope into the infinitely small is limited in his search for knowledge by the power of that instrument. He can go no further. The man who looks through a telescope into the starry heavens must guess at the things that hang just beyond the reach of the instrument: and the man who builds a theory out of observed facts builds only a ladder, a scaffolding, by which he hopes to rise into that greater truth for which he seeks. Therefore, Latter-day Saints are careful to examine the validity of the truths set before them. We make the satisfying claim that the truth of greatest validity, that of greatest certainty, is the truth that has come from the mouth of God by revelation to his children in this and in every age through the history of the world. Is the microscope a great instrument for the gaining of knowledge? Is the telescope a great instrument for the obtaining of knowledge? If they are, then man himself, with his immortal spirit, may be able to touch the unseen forces of life, to learn from the spirit of the Almighty, who is the greatest revealer of knowledge. Through the spirit of man God may speak with greater power and with greater conviction than through any man-made instrument. In this Church we stand firmly, before all the world, upon the doctrine that that which the Lord has revealed to his children directly is of the highest value and of the greatest validity. Upon revealed truth will be built, as the years go on, the whole structure of truth. ¶

READ SECTION 93 ¶

I delight to know that I can build in this manner the philosophy of my life; that I can thus accept the gospel of Jesus Christ, the existence of Almighty God, my relationship to him, and his words given to his prophets at various times in the history of mankind; and that beginning with such knowledge I can accept, step by step and fact by fact, all knowledge and all truth as they come through any channel here on earth and in the hereafter. I would suggest to all Latter-day Saints that they study section 93 of the book of Doctrine and Covenants, in which the truth, our eternal quest for it, its meaning, and the fundamental nature of the truths of heaven, are beautifully set forth. ¶

I am grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I thank God for the possession of it. I pray God to be with us and bless us, to be able to search out truth continually, to live it, to accept it, to make it a part of our lives, to grow in it daily, and yet to understand in our search clearly and reasonably the limitations placed upon us so that we may not be carried away by those who do not understand the full truth, and, having made a wrong beginning, may lead us to an incorrect end. ¶

God bless us and be with us continually, I pray, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶