Faith in the Priesthood

My beloved brethren and sisters, as I stand before you this afternoon I desire an interest in your faith and prayers. I hardly know what I shall be able to say, but I thank the Lord for the faith that he has given me in the Gospel, of which we are participants. I thank him that I can look into the future with reliance and faith, believing that he stands back of the purposes of this Church, and that he will guide it through, that he will give those of us who are faithful and rely upon him the power and the capacity to carry on. ¶

I believe that there exists in this body of Priesthood that we have before us today, a peculiar power and virtue, a reservoir of power, from which we derive our authority in doing the things we do as representatives of this people. I believe that it is by virtue of that authority which is vested in the people that the officers of this Church conduct its affairs in all this world. ¶

I believe that you have authorized them to do so, and I believe that that authorization is borne 'out by God himself. ¶

There is a principle existent in the Church that the right to govern is derived from the common consent of those governed. That extends to all the offices of the Church. The bishop is appointed and approved by his ward; the stake president is appointed and approved by his stake; an apostle is appointed and approved by the Church; and the President of the Church is appointed and approved by the Church. And when he is so approved as a prophet, seer and revelator, he has the right to stand at the head of the Church and determine its policies and practices. ¶

We have before us the scriptures, to which reference has been made this afternoon; I am thinking especially of the Doctrine and Covenants. When the revelations in that wonderful book were given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, they were not all at once compiled and bound into their present form. The time came when that was done, and to make them effective and binding upon the body of the Church they were approved and accepted as the revelations of the Lord to the Church, and from then on we have deemed them as binding upon us. ¶

We must not forget, in this day of trial and tribulation and criticism that we are going through, that we have now at the head of the Church the very same authority that we had in those days, and that when the prophet of the Lord dictates a policy unto this people and that policy is approved by the body of the Church, it is just as binding upon.the Church today as at any time in its history; and no minority — no •matter how interested it may be in certain other practices that are not approved by these policies — has the right to set itself up in direct opposition to this body of Priesthood, the representatives of which we are who.are gathered here today. ¶

We are the Priesthood, and together with the Authorities who are placed over us, we control the destiny of this Church, and it is the duty of the rank and file of the Church to remember this one thing, that the Priesthood vested in the President authorizes him, when we support him, to dictate the policies that the time demands. ¶

I for one propose to stand back of the Authorities of the Church as long as God will give me power; and to support every righteous thing that they propose, especially when it is approved by the body of the Priesthood. ¶

There are certain changes that have been authorized and approved by the body of the Priesthood, which are meeting with opposition at this time and, it is my testimony to you that there is no legitimate ground for this opposition. ¶

I trust that the Lord will give us strength to see our duty, to see the right, to sustain and uphold the policies of this Church when they are founded upon this principle that I have enunciated, for I believe that is the principle that should govern the Church. The Lord has told us so in the Doctrine and Covenants, and the leaders of the Church have reiterated it from time to time; and in promulgating these policies they stand ¶

upon that principle, and no other. To me that is justice and right and common sense. ¶

I hope that the Lord will bless me with the power that I may carry on, that I may see my duty properly and correctly and be able to fulfill it completely. I trust that the same blessing may be meted out to every man who holds the Priesthood in this Church, that he may realize the tremendous responsibility that rests upon him when he accepts that Priesthood, for it is no idle thing to permit a servant of the Lord to lay his hands upon your head and ordain you to the Priesthood. You accept the responsibility and the duty, and it is your obligation to magnify that calling. ¶

We have different orders in the Priesthood, and the callings of all are not the same, but be they great or small, when we accept those callings we have no right to refuse to discharge the duties that devolve upon us under them. ¶

I hope that the Lord will bless us, that he will pour out his Spirit upon us, that he will give us the power to carry on properly. ¶

I was especially pleased with what Brother Richards said this afternoon about the conditions of the time, and I wish to say amen to his suggestion. In going out among the people I have learned that, almost without exception, those people who have obeyed the instructions that have so many times been given from this stand, who find themselves free of debt, are not suffering in this crisis. ¶

We are ambitious, it is true, and many of us desire the power that comes from large property holdings, and to get that power we have shouldered upon our backs obligations that we are now unable to fulfill; but I find that those people who are content with less, who were out of debt when this thing broke, are not suffering now like the people who found themselves heavily involved. ¶

I wish to bear my testimony of the truth of the work in which we are engaged, and to take my seat, praying that the Lord will bless me always with his Holy Spirit, and you as well. And I do it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶