Conference Address

Brethren and sisters : You cannot know the thrill which goes through my being today in beholding again, for the first time in five years, this glorious sight, a Conference of the members of the Church. I pray for the inspiration of the Lord in that which I might say today, for I feel that my responsibility is great, and I am keenly aware that those things should be emphasized which will be of profit and benefit to this congregation. ¶

I bring you the greetings, brethren and sisters, of a small band of people, Czecho-Slovaks, who know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is indeed the most priceless possession which they have ever had. They are living in a war-torn country which has been ravaged, robbed and plundered. They are existing under the most adverse of conditions, but none-the-less they live the Gospel to such an extent as would put many of us to shame. Perhaps we need adversity, in order to fully appreciate the commandments and the blessings coming from the Gospel which we have. ¶

I want to say a word, too, about the splendid missionaries which you have sent us during the past three and a half years. We have had the finest men upon the face of the earth, to carry these glad tidings to thousands upon thousands of people residing in that nation. The work has not been easy. Programs have been projected and ¶

plans have been brought into being, only to meet with disappointment because of incidents and situations beyond the power of men to control. ¶

These Elders have evacuated twice. They have come back more determined than ever to see that the Gospel should not perish in Czecho-Slovakia. They have done a mighty work. I bear testimony to you today, brothers and sisters, that these young men whom you have sent out into the field abroad, have been willing to go the limit in bringing the Gospel of peace, joy and happiness to a war-torn Europe. My heart goes out in praise and gratitude to my Heavenly Father for the opportunities which these young men have had, as well as for the opportunities which they, through their work, have been able to afford those much less fortunate than you and I. ¶

Members of the Church in Central Europe have learned to know the deep meaning of the Gospel. They have learned to know that its core and essence is to be found in the admonition of Jesus : "Love thy neighbor even as thyself." ¶

A short time after almost two million German troops had marched across the borders of Czecho-Slovakia — during that time of tension and terror, which inevitably resulted — a young German officer, a fine, straight, clean-looking fellow, walked through the door of our meeting hall in Prague. We thought : Certainly, this is the end for us. The Secret Police have probably sent some one here to close the Mission. Coming up he said : "My name is Brother R. (for obvious reasons it is felt unwise to give his name.) I am an officer in the German Army. As soon as I had completed my official duties here in Prague, the first thing I set out to do was to find this Branch of the Church in Czecho-Slovakia." With your permission, I would like to say just a word to this congregation. I replied: "Certainly, Brother R., we shall be happy to hear from you." ¶

He stood up, and in a language which most of the people of Czecho-Slovakia detested, German, he had this to say to the members of the Church and to the friends who were present : ¶

Brothers and sisters, I come here not on an appointment of my own choosing. I come here as a servant of my government. I know we have brought you considerable distress and dismay. We have caused already much suffering. Nevertheless, you and I have something in common, something which oversteps the boundaries of race, language, and color. You and I have the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Despite the fact that I speak German and you Czech, yet because of the Gospel we still speak in common terms. The time is coming when we shall know this better than ever before. ¶

I wish I had time to tell you all he said. Tears streamed down the faces of those Czecho-Slovakian people. As he walked down the aisle they stood up and put their arms around him and wept upon his shoulder. Every available Sunday — he believed in keeping the Sabbath — he was at the Branch hall, doing his best to make the Gospel of Jesus Christ a living thing among a subjugated people. ¶

That is what the Gospel of Jesus Christ does for a man. When ¶

it touches him it changes him, and he knows, as President Hugh B. Brown has already said, that all mankind come of common blood, and that we are brothers and sisters in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, all having but one Father. These are momentous things, brothers and sisters. They are truths which cannot be equalled any place in the world, outside the plan of the Gospel. ¶

We regretted having to leave our members in Czecho-Slovakia. Had we been able to leave them in the hands of a successor, we should have felt good about coming home, but conditions would not permit that. Nevertheless it is my testimony to you that some thirty thousand members of the. Church who have been left in Europe, who are now carrying on for themselves — despite the fact that they must suffer, and perhaps have want of the necessities of life — are being protected by the hand of the Lord. ¶

If I may have just a moment or two I should like to relate a story, one of several within our experience, which to me is an evidence of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and of the protecting power and goodness of God. ¶

A young Ukrainian, Tarnawskyj by name, who had been studying for the ministry in the Greek Catholic Church, was on his way from Warsaw, Poland, to New York City, there to attend a graduate school for the ministry of that church. He came by the way of the city of Prague. As he was going down the street he saw the sign, "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.1" He noticed that we were holding a meeting at that time. He thought to himself : "I have learned of those people in my studies. I am curious. I think I will go in and see what they have to say." ¶

He entered, dressed in his black robe and white collar, and sat in the back. He was a young man about twenty-eight or thirty years of age. Two of our missionaries stood up and explained some of the principles of the Gospel. They bore their testimonies. Since he spoke Ukrainian, which is kindred to Czech, he understood them. After the meeting he came up and asked : "When do you hold the rest of your services?" We enumerated the meetings of the week and he came to all of them, even including the Relief Society. In a few weeks he made this request : "Brother Toronto, I would like to be baptized into this Church." ¶

"Now, Brother Tarnawskyj, you know you can't make your living in this Church. Our missionaries sustain themselves, either from their own sayings or through the sustenance which their folks send them." ¶

"Oh, Brother Toronto," he replied, "I know all about that. Your missionaries have been teaching me the Gospel.'" Continuing, he said : "I have found the most priceless thing in all the world. I want the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have been seeking it for years in the universities and the divinity schools of many lands, and I have never found anything that can equal this." ¶

I said : "All right. As soon as we instruct you a little more fully ¶

in the .Gospel we shall be happy to have you as a member of the Church." He was subsequently baptized. Upon accepting baptism a great characteristic of truth took hold of him, that of wanting to tell somebody else about it. Of course, those he thought of first were his loved ones back in Poland. He wrote them a long letter, in which he declared : "I have found the greatest thing in life. I want to tell you something of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that you, too, might enjoy the blessings which flow from it." ¶

I met him a few days later. He wore a long face and was very dejected. "What on earth has happened to you, Brother Tarnawsyj ?" "I just received a letter from my folks in Poland. They tell me here : 'Dear Son and Brother: If you do not immediately renounce this thing you call Mormonism we shall cease to send you one penny of support, which you know is your only means of livelihood; and furthermore, we shall disown you as a son and a brother !' " ¶

"What is your answer, Brother Tarnawskyj ? You are at the cross-roads. You have a grave decision to make." ¶

"Oh, Brother Toronto, you know what my answer is : 'Dear loved ones, I cannot renounce the thing I hold dearest in life, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I pray God that you, too, at some future time, through my efforts or the efforts of others, might also come into this Church.' " ¶

From that day until this, so far as I know, he has not received one penny or one word from his people. He found himself in Czechoslovakia, a foreigner, unable to secure employment. ¶

During these troublesome times the subtle political forces in Central Europe had operated to break down the Czecho-Slovakian Republic, so that Slovakia gained its freedom, as well as the little province of Ruthenia or Sub-Carpathian Russia, far to the east, hardly larger than the County of Salt Lake. Brother Tarnawskyj finally proposed : "Brother Toronto, many of my countrymen are out there in Ruthenia, a large group of Ukrainians among whom I could work. Since I am an educated man, I think I could get a position as an Inspector in the Ministry of Education. Can you help me get there? I want to become a self-sustaining citizen." "All right. We will help you get to Ruthenia, if you think you can succeed." ¶

Upon his arrival in this new autonomous state, he filed his application for a position in the ministry. It went through the various hands and much red tape through which such things have to pass, and finally reached the Minister himself. Up to this point all went well. When it reached the Minister there was great delay. Finally our brother wrote me a letter and said : "Brother Toronto, I don't know what the trouble down here is. I am qualified for the position, and I have pulled every string I know. And I have prayed. The Lord God knows I am hungry. He knows I need a place to rest my head. I have tried to live the Gospel since I joined the Church. From the earnings on little jobs I have secured here and there I ¶

have set aside my tithing, and as soo-.i as the mails go through I will send it on to you. Why, oh why does the Lord persecute me like this?'"' But in conclusion he added: (I wish I had the letter here to read to you :) "Perhaps it is all for the best." ¶

A card came a few days later : "I am going to take a job out in the little town of Perecyn as a humble school teacher, where I can make enough to at least buy me a few crusts of bread.'" ¶

He was employed there for three days, when that tiny state of Central Europe, Sub-Carpathian Russia, was drenched in blood by the Hungarian hordes which swept over it. Men, women and children by the hundreds were left dying in the streets. He and nine of his Ukrainian companions were routed out of bed at five o'clock one morning and thrown into prison. After twenty-four hours of intense suffering they were called before a military court consisting of one man in the uniform of a Hungarian officer. He had the sole right to say, "You live," or "You die." The ten men came before him. They were asked two questions : "How long have you been in this country?" and "What is your religious affiliation?" ¶

Our brother led the others. To the first question he replied that he had been there so and so many weeks. "What is your religious affiliation?" ¶

"I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Sometimes they call us 'Mormons.' " ¶

"Mormons ? Mormons ? I have heard of you folks. I have read of you in the newspapers of Budapest. I hear your people have done some good in this world." A tense moment of hesitation and then, "You go free." ¶

His nine companions came up after him. They were asked the identical questions. Being no more guilty than he himself, they were nevertheless condemned to death, and shot down in cold blood before the sun went down that day. ¶

This brother finally got out of the country, and wrote me another letter. "Brother Toronto," he said, "I know the Lord does move in a mysterious way His wonders to perform. The Gospel is the most priceless thing I have in the world. I know the Lord has preserved my life, that I may be a beacon light to my fellow men. He has not only preserved my life, in the way I have described to you, but He has also protected me, for had I received the position of Inspector in the Ministry of Education I today would have been sitting in the concentration camps of Hungary, subjected to some of the most terrible torture known to humankind. I owe all I have to the Gospel of Jesus Christ." ¶

Our faithful members will be protected, brothers and sisters. Were this the only incident I might be skeptical in thinking that it was perhaps a chance occurrence. But we have seen many cases of providential care and protection. Some of the Jewish members of our Church, despite the anti-Semitic programs, have been preserved, ¶

and we have seen it. The Gospel of Jesus Christ means everything to them." Does it mean everything to you? ¶

Go home tonight. Get down on your knees. Thank the Lord your God that you live in a "land choice above all others," in this land of freedom and happiness. And thank the Lord again that you have been privileged to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Covenant anew that you will keep the commandments of the Lord as never before. ¶

I know that God lives and it has been a testimony to me to live among these people who placed their trust in Him. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of the Lord, even as they know it. I give you this testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. ¶