Joseph Smith and World Government
Hyrum L. Andrus
1998 Hyrum L. Andrus. All rights reserved.
Deseret Book Company
Preface
For some time I have had a deep interest in the social, economic
and political aspects of Joseph Smith's thought. That interest prompted me in
large measure to organize my graduate studies at
Since completing my doctoral studies in 1955, my interest in the above studies has continued. This volume is in large part the result of research since that time. It is, however, based in many ways upon my previous research and includes many of my former findings.
The material here presented is a part of a larger study I have had underway for several years-that of producing a work that will adequately define Joseph Smith's social, economic and political concepts in their religious setting, while placing the Prophet in context with the historical picture of his age. But because of the importance and nature of the information contained in the present volume, it seems proper to publish it at this time. I take full responsibility for the views herein set forth.
I wish to acknowledge the assistance of those who have aided
me in my studies over the past years. They include the members of my graduate
committee at
-THE AUTHOR
Introduction
This book is the first work published in modern times which
sets forth the concept of the government of God which was revealed through
Joseph Smith and shows the significance of that concept in the westward move of
the Latter-day Saints from
During the first half of the twentieth century the knowledge
of the General Council was virtually lost to the world, and it was only after
the publication of A Mormon Chronicle: The Diaries of John D. Lee, 1848-1876,
in 1955, that substantial progress was made in bringing the knowledge of this
political body to light in recent times. In the fall of 1955, J. Keith Melville
and I were on the faculty of
Until the publication of Lee's diaries, neither Melville or
I realized that the government of God was more than an ideal in early
Latter-day Saint thought-that there had been an actual political organ started
by Joseph Smith. During the fall quarter at
Beginning at that time, I started to gather and relate
information on the role of the Council of Fifty among the Latter-day Saints. In
the fall of 1956, I accepted a position on the faculty of the
Hyrum L. Andrus
Chapter I
The
A MIGHTY vision filled the mind of Joseph Smith, the Mormon Prophet: "I intend to lay a foundation that will revolutionize the whole world," he emphatically declared. "It will not be by sword or gun that this kingdom will roll on; the power of truth is such that all nations will be under the necessity of obeying the gospel."
Joseph Smith did not limit his concept of the Gospel program to the religious sphere of life. To him, it extended into the area of the social, where it pointed out correct doctrine an philosophy relative to such matters as education, recreation, and marriage; it gave to the world a divine system of economics, known as the Law of Consecration and Stewardship; and, finally, it gave promise of a political law that would emanate from the Priesthood, to govern the world in righteousness. So important was the latter program that the Prophet argued that the establishment of Zion's political program "is the only thing that can bring about the 'restitution of all things spoken of by all the holy Prophets since the world was'-'the dispensation of the fulness of times, when God shall gather together all things in one'" In anticipation of this future era, he wrote to Henry Clay: "I long for a day of righteousness, when 'He whose right it is to reign shall judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth'; and I pray God, who hath given our Fathers a promise of a perfect government in the last days, to purify the hearts of the people and hasten the welcome day."
It is an assumption within Mormon thought that Joseph Smith was privileged to lay the foundation of the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times mentioned above, in which the expected restoration of all things must eventually be brought about. By this own reasoning, then, the Prophet would not have completed his mission in life had he confined himself to the realm of the religious-had he not given by revelation the basic political principles and philosophy of the millennial government for which he sought.
On March 11, 1844, Joseph Smith organized a body of men as the nucleus of the new government. During the period of its existence, this political group was referred to by several names. At the time of its organization and immediately thereafter, the Prophet spoke of it as a "Special Council." Later, he termed it the "General Council"; and after his death this appellation was reduced to the "Council."
A popular name used to designate this body of men was the "Council of Fifty." This name is derived from the number of men composing the initial organization during the lifetime of Joseph Smith. George Miller, a prominent bishop in the Church at that time, noted that "up to the number of fifty three" men were given membership in the group. Miller's testimony is partially supported by Brigham Young, who said: "The Council was composed of about fifty members." Benjamin F. Johnson, another member of the group, although not as specific as Miller, later wrote that the Council "at times would exceed fifty in number." It should be noted that available sources nowhere indicate that this body was to be specifically made up of fifty men. There is some evidence that Brigham Young added considerably to its number. This being true, the name Council of Fifty could be somewhat misleading.
Since the council was considered as the nucleus of God's
future government on earth, it was also termed the "Council of the
Kingdom." This name may have originated from an unpublished revelation to
Joseph Smith on the subject of the political aspects of the
This is what we are in the habit of calling the
Another member of this body made a similar explanation. To quote:
This council alluded to is the municipal department of the Kingdom of God set up on the earth, from which all law emanates, for the rule, government and control of all nations, kingdoms, and tongues and people under the whole heavens, but not to control the Priesthood, but to council, deliberate and plan for the general good and upbuilding of the Kingdom of God on the earth.
From the above statements it can be seen that the term
Was the kingdom that the Prophets talked about, that should be set up in the latter times, going to be a Church? Yes. And a state? Yes, it was going to be both Church and State. . . .
The foundation of the
As an instrument of the priesthood, the Church was to play an important role in producing the Government of God. Said Brigham Young:
The Church of Jesus Christ will produce this government, and
cause it to grow and spread, and it will be a shield round about the Church.
And under the influence and power of the
Were the Church to fulfil its responsibility in establishing the Government of God all things would then be under the jurisdiction of the priesthood. Said John Taylor on this subject:
When the will of God is done on earth as it is in heaven, the priesthood will be the only legitimate ruling power under the whole heavens; for every other power and influence will be subject to it. When the millennium . . . is introduced all potentates, powers, and authorities-every man, woman, and child will be in subjection to the Kingdom of God; they will be under the power and dominion of the priesthood of God; then the will of God will be done on the earth as it is done in heaven.
Since the Church was to play an important role in establishing the Government of God on the earth, the organization of the Church has been considered as the beginning of the latter organization. Orson Pratt viewed matters in this light, and in 1872 declared:
Forty-two years ago, on the 6th day of April, the Prophet Joseph Smith was commanded by the Lord Almighty to organize the Kingdom of God on the earth for the last time-to set up and make a beginning-to form the nucleus of a Government that never should be destroyed from the earth, or, in other words, that should stand forever. . . . There is now organized on the earth a Government which never will be broken as former Governments have been. This will stand forever. It began very small-only six members were organized in this Government on Tuesday the 6th day of April, 1830. . . .
Brigham Young has already been quoted as stating that the
constitution of the Government of God was given to Joseph Smith through
revelation. Evidently that revelation clarified the principles upon which the
new government was to rest, and how it was to be associated with the Church in
the full program of the
When the nucleus of the Government of God was first organized by the Prophet, Brigham Young reported that it had as members "several" men who "were not members of the Church." This fact of itself would indicate that the political organ was not to be identical with the Church. That this was right and proper Brigham Young explained:
. . . A man may be a legislator in that body which will issue laws to sustain the inhabitants of the earth in their individual rights and still not belong to the Church of Jesus Christ at all. And further though a man may not even believe in any religion it would be perfectly right, when necessary, to give him the privilege of holding a seat among that body which will make laws to govern all the nations of the earth and control those who make no profession of religion at all; for that body would be governed, controlled and dictated to acknowledge others in those rights which they wish to enjoy themselves.
Among others who understood Joseph Smith's views on this subject and expressed them from time to time was George Q. Cannon, who said:
We are asked, Is the Church of God, and the
This is the correct view to take. The
This concept of separation of Church and State was also emphasized when, following the death of Joseph Smith, George Miller and Alex Badlam wanted "to call together the Council of Fifty and organize the Church." In reply, "They were told that the Council of Fifty was not a Church organization, but was composed of members irrespective of their religious faith and organized for the purpose of consulting on the best manner of obtaining redress of grievances from our enemies, and to devise means to find and locate in some place where we could live in peace; and that the organization of the Church belonged to the Priesthood alone."
It should further be noted that, even though Joseph Smith and the Quorum of the Twelve were members of the General Council, those who were members, said Benjamin F. Johnson, did not include "all of the constituted authorities of the Church, for Presidents [Sidney] Rigdon, [William] Law or [William] Marks, the High Council, or presidents of quorums were not members of that council." The Council of Fifty was not merely a body of the leading authorities in the Church. Rigdon and Law were Joseph's Counselors in the First Presidency of the Church, and Marks was then president of the Nauvoo Stake.
According to Benjamin F. Johnson, the Prophet's "last charge" to the Quorum of the Twelve was made at a meeting of the General Council. At that time Joseph Smith indicated that the Church and the political kingdom were two separate bodies. Said Johnson of the Prophet:
. . . He stood before that association of his select friends, including all of the Twelve, and with great feeling and animation he graphically reviewed his life of persecution, labor and sacrifice for the church and the Kingdom of God, both of which he declared were now organized upon the earth, the burden of which had become too great for him longer to carry, that he was weary and tired with the weight he had so long borne, and he then said, with great vehemence: "And in the name of the Lord, I now shake from my shoulders the responsibility of bearing off the Kingdom of God to all the world, and here and now I place that responsibility, with all the keys, powers and privileges pertaining thereto, upon the shoulders of you the Twelve Apostles, in connection with this council; and if you will accept this, to do it, God shall bless you mightily and shall open your way; and if you do it not you will be damned.
Though the Church and the political government were held to be separate bodies, the fact that the latter was considered as growing "out of the Church" implies some sort of union between the two organizations. On the subject a prominent Mormon scholar wrote that "the Church must be regarded as part" of the political organization; "an essential indeed, for it is the germ from which the kingdom is to be developed, and the very heart of the organization." John Taylor also explained:
We talk sometimes about the
A study of Mormon thought in light of the above church and state relationship indicates that several factors were held to be important in bringing about the development of the political kingdom, as it was to grow out of the Church. First, the Church was not accepted as merely a religious body, but as a society with a socio-religious and economic program similar to the ancient Zion of Enoch where the people were said to be of "one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness," and had "no poor among them." To develop such a system of brotherhood and union, the cementing faith and uniting powers of the gospel were held to be important. Individual faith sufficiently strong to release the power of God's Spirit into the lives of the people was accepted as the initial step in developing the necessary union. Repentance was necessary to reconcile the individual to God, that he might be at peace with his neighbor. Baptism, with its holy covenant to serve both God and men, was important to dedicate the people to brotherhood. And, finally, reception of spiritual light and truth through the gift of the Holy Ghost, as bestowed upon each individual through the powers of a living priesthood, was accepted as a vital key in developing each person toward a knowledge of all truth and the realization of full and mature brotherly union.
Thus united through the assistance of religious and
spiritual forces, the society of
Behold, this is the preparation wherewith I prepare you, and the foundation, and the ensample which I give unto you whereby you may accomplish the commandments which are given you;
That through my providence, notwithstanding the tribulation which shall descend upon you, that the church may stand independent above all other creatures beneath the celestial world;
That you may come up unto the crown prepared for you and be made rulers over many kingdoms.
Thus united as a body of free men, the society of
Finally, by developing the society of
The Latter-day Saint concept of a theocratic government was said to have little relationship to many theocracies of the past. Brigham Young explained as follows:
What do the world understand theocracy to be? A poor, rotten government of man, that would say, without the shadow of provocation or just cause, "Cut that man's head off; put that one on the racl, arrest another, and retain him in unlawful and unjust dress while you plunder his property and pollute his wife and daughters; massacre here and there." The Lord Almighty does nothing of that kind, neither does any man who is controlled by his Spirit.
The theocratic government organized by Joseph Smith was held to be a perfect instrument. Said Orson Pratt of the newly organized political organ:
There is a nucleus of a government, formed since that of the
Brigham Young shared such views.
The implied relationship between the concept of government
under the Constitution of the
But the Constitution of the
. . . The Lord had a hand in framing [the] . . . Constitution. Why did not the Lord, at the time, introduce a perfect government-a theocracy? It was simply because the people were not prepared for it. . . . They were far from being prepared for the government of God, which is a government of union.
But will the government of the
The nucleus of such a government is formed, and its laws have emanated from the throne of God. . . .
It was for this purpose, then, that a republic was organized upon this continent, to prepare the way for a kingdom which shall have dominion over all the earth to the ends thereof.
It was with the concept of the
O
The new government was not to be founded upon principles
adverse to the Constitution of the
. . . All the great and glorious principles incorporated in
this great republic will be incorporated in the
It was Joseph Smith's contention, Benjamin F. Johnson reported, that all people would one day "learn war no more" by "adopting the God-given Constitution of the United States as a Paladium [sic] of Liberty and Equal Rights." "When the day comes in which the Kingdom of God will bear rule," Brigham Young also explained, "the flag of the United States will proudly flutter unsullied on the flag staff of liberty and equal rights, without a spot to sully its fair surface; the glorious flag our fathers have bequeathed to us will then be unfurled to the breeze by those who have power to hoist it aloft and defend its sanctity."
To establish the Kingdom of God in its political power, the Constitution of the United States was to be brought into association with Zion's socio-religious and economic society in such a way as to grant the appropriate priesthood councils in Zion the power to nominate men to political office, followed by a vote of approval or disapproval by the people over whom the officers were to have political jurisdiction. John Taylor explained:
The proper mode of government is this-God first speaks, and then the people have their action. It is for them to say whether they will have his dictation or not. They are free: they are independent under God. The government of God is not a species of priestcraft . . . where one man dictates and everybody obeys without having a voice in it. We have our voice and agency, and act with the most perfect freedom; still we believe there is a correct order-some wisdom and knowledge somewhere that is superior to ours: that wisdom and knowledge proceeds from God through the medium of the Holy Priesthood. We be-lieve that no man or set of men, of their own wisdom and by their own talents, are capable of governing the human family aright.
These are our opinions. We believe that it requires the same wisdom that governs the planetary system, that produces seed time and harvest, day and night, that organized our system, and that implanted intelligence in finite man-that it needs the same intelligence to govern men and promote their happiness upon the earth that it does to control and keep in order the heavenly bodies; and we believe that that cannot be found with man independently.
Since the Church, with its priesthood authority, was the
body out of which the political organ was to be developed, and, since the
priesthood was thereafter to have power to name men to political office, with
the consent of the people, the Government of God could be said to grow out of
the Church. But following the appointment of men to political office there was
then to be a constitutional separation of powers between
But few, if any, understand what a theocratic government is. In every sense of the word, it is a republican government, and differs but little in form from our National, State, and Territorial Governments; but its subjects will recognize the will and dictation of the Almighty. . . .
The Constitution and laws of the
A republican form of government reposes authority in the people who give their consent to be governed by representatives acting in their behalf and according to their best interests. The Government of God was to be founded upon this basic principle of republicanism. In addition, it was to recognize the ruling power of God. But since Mormon philosophy positively asserts that it is God's work and glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man, even the authority of God was to serve the best interests of the people. Thus, the Prophet's concept of theocracy, while adding a desirable element of righteous authority, was held to be republican in spirit. Brigham Young spoke of the new government as the only true government on earth, "that possesses all the true principles of republicanism." Since the Government of God was to be largely based upon the voice of the people, President Young also spoke of it as a "true democratic theocracy." In short, he declared that if the new government were set up the people would "find it a Republican Democratic Government."
The development of the Government of God on a theocratic basis would naturally eliminate the role of political parties as instruments for installing men in government office. Orson Pratt made this point clear in declaring, "There will be no party politicians." On another occasion he spoke of carrying out the principles of the Constitution, "according to the order of union and oneness which prevails among the people of God."
Excluding the church and state relationship conceived by
Joseph Smith, however, it should be noted that such a concept of government as
he held is similar to, if not almost identical with, the ideal sought by the
Founding Fathers of the United States Constitution. They, too, envisioned a
stable and united government that excluded political parties from affairs of
government. The Fathers did not intend that political parties should be
associated with government under the Constitution. In fact, they purposely
devised the machinery of government to minimize the influence of parties in
government operations. Thus,
The goal sought by the Founding Fathers was to establish a stable government that, again to quote the Father of the Constitution, could protect "the diversity in the faculties of man" (that is, man's freedom and his right to different interests) as its first object, regulate the "various and interfering interests" arising from such freedom and diversity by allowing "justice . . . to hold the balance between them," and finally, do all this without government itself being controlled or unduly influenced by a given party or group of parties. "To secure the public good and private rights against the danger of . . . faction," he declared, "and at the same time to preserve the spirit and the form of popular government, is then the great object to which our inquiries are directed." A person, Madison concluded, "will not fail . . . to set a due value on any plan which, without violating the principles to which he is attached, provides a proper cure for it [i.e., party spirit and its influence]."
The Founding Fathers, said E. E. Schattschneider, held "a legalistic concept of government incompatible with a satisfactory system of party government." By so organizing government as they did, he continued, "it was hoped that the parties would lose and exhaust themselves in futile attempts to fight their way through the labyrinthine framework of the government, much as an attacking army is expected to spend itself against the defensive works of a fortress." This was to hold true in the case of majority as well as minority parties and interests.
"The Fathers," as Harry Elmer Barnes pointed out, "are conventionally held . . . to have been above party." But while some have considered them politically naive for espousing the ideal of government uncontrolled by parties, a deeper insight into their intentions reveals a view of political economy that lesser minds have failed to grasp. The truth of the situation is that "later generations have departed from what seems to have been their original intentions."
To achieve a stable government that could secure the rights
of the individual, administer justice, and preserve itself against the
influence of self-interested and aspiring groups, several devices were to be
operative. First, "a republic . . . promises the cure for which we are
seeking," said
The vertical separation of power between the federal, state,
and local levels of government also aids in controlling the influence of
political parties. Then, too, by organizing several states into a Federal
Union, Madison argued, "you take in a greater variety of parties and
interests," making "it less probable that a majority of the whole
will have a common motive to invade the rights of other citizens" or the
ability "to act in unison with each other" in achieving such
ambitions. The separation of power horizontally between the legislative,
executive, and judicial branches on both the state and the federal levels of
government also provides a means of preserving government against the power of
organized party interest. An organized party might gain control of one branch
of government, but seldom all three branches on both the state and federal
levels. In short, "in the extent and proper structure of the Union,"
as
In light of the ideal of government espoused by the Fathers, party spirit was to be abhorred. "Let me . . . warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the Spirit of Party, generally," President Washington emphatically declared in his Farewell Address. He then continued:
This Spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its roots in the strongest passions of the human mind.-It exists under different shapes in all Governments, more or less stifled, controlled, or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy. . . .
In governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged.-From their natural tendency, it is certain there will always be enough of that spirit for every salutary purpose,-and there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be, by force of public opinion, to mitigate and assuage it.-A fire not to be quenched; it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into flame, instead of warming, it should consume.
It was held that the
According to Joseph Smith, the Constitution was devised by
God from the beginning to be a document of universal application. God did not
intend it to be limited in its power and guarantee of liberty to
When he [God] establishes his kingdom it will protect all in their equal rights; I as a Latter-day Saint, will not have power to trample on my fellow-man who may not be orthodox in my opinion, because I am a Latter-day Saint; nor will my fellow-man to whom I am heterodox, have the power to trample upon me. Does not that look right? That is the kind of kingdom we have to contend for; that is the kind of kingdom we have to establish, and it is already provided for in the Constitution given unto us by God, and through the glorious labors of the fathers who laid the foundation of this government, who were inspired and raised [up] by our Almighty Father for this express purpose. there is no liberty that a human being can desire, neither is there a right that can be exercised properly, that we do not have under the Constitution of our land. It needs no amendment about it; it is broad enough, if interpreted in its true spirit, to cover the individual, the continent, and the entire globe and furnish freedom for all.
It was held that in some future day the
The law for the government of all nations will go forth from
As a world government based upon the United States Constitution, the government of God was to be a federal system that would include all nations of the earth, allowing each nationality and race the right to possess its own customs, religions, and cultural patterns. Each component unit, however, would be required to maintain a republican form of government. There would be power in the central organ to enforce this provision.
Organizationally, there will be as "many officers and
branches to that government" as there were in the government of the
We shall be under the necessity of having courts organized, unless all are in the Lord and all walk in his way; if that were the case, I do not know that we should want any sheriff, marshal, constables, magistrates, jurors, Judges or governors, because the word of the Lord would govern and control every person; but until that time arrives we shall want officers, so that we will be prepared to reckon with the transgressors, and we shall have transgressors in building this kingdom, for it will be some time you before all are in the Lord.
The Saints had their own views on such particulars as the length of one's
tenure in office and the remuneration he should receive. On the matter of
tenure, Brigham young declared that a clause limiting a president to two terms
should not be found in the Constitution of the
When it came to the renumeration of officers in government,
Joseph Smith set a fair example that emphasizes the basic Latter-day Saint view
on the subject. It is reported that in serving as a councilman for the city of
Let the people see to it that they get righteous men to be their leaders, who will labour with their hands and administer to their own necessities, sit in judgment, legislate, and govern in righteousness; and officers that are filled with peace; and see to it that every man that goes forth among the people as a travelling officer is full of the fear of the Lord, and would rather do right at a sacrifice than do wrong for a reward.
What would be the result, if this course was adopted by the
people of the
Brigham Young was speaking from experience when he dealt
with this subject. The theocratic procedure of
To establish the
On the other hand, those among the great masses of humanity might
be reluctant to enter and sustain a system where small and powerful minorities
might exercise influence and power over them. To cope adequately with such an
eventuality, the Prophet's system proposed two courses of action. First, the
preservation of the freedom of the individual and the political integrity of
each given unit was to be realized through the governmental system of the
To understand the second proposal, the role of the society
of
In keeping with her role as a standard of true social
organization, it was expected that
Wright's argument is in harmony with Joseph Smith's position
that a true society must uplift the individual while leaving him free. Written
laws must only punish transgressors. The uplifting power must be persuasion.
Here the society of
The great decisions of history are always moral. Technical accomplishments can be used either for good or for evil; some men must decide which it is to be. . . .
You cannot escape the moral choice. It lies in wait at the end of every path. For each new instrument we conquer intensifies the effects of our virtue or vices. Every new scientific achievement offers a further test of our spiritual powers.
The third benefit to be derived from Joseph Smith's proposal for a new world government under the Kingdom of God was that through this means the spiritual powers reposed in Zion could then be extended into the political sphere of society. The Prophet held that revelation and guidance from God must be used to direct the political affairs of men, if the world is to have peace. In a brilliant analysis of man's inability to govern himself and to promote his own happiness, Joseph Smith reviewed the record of history and picture of tyranny, oppression, and misrule among the nations of the earth in his day. In summarizing the many examples of man's inability to govern himself aright, he declared: "All, all, speak with a voice of thunder, that man is not able to govern himself, to legislate for himself, to protect himself, to promote his own good, nor the good of the world." To properly govern the world, he declared, "it needs the wisdom of God, the intelligence of God, and the power of God."
Said Brigham Young of the power of spiritual forces as they were to exist in the Government of God:
The kingdom that the Almighty will set up in the latter days will have its officers, and those officers will be peace. Every man that officiates in a public capacity will be filled with the Spirit of God, with the light of God, with the power of God, and will understand right from wrong, truth from error, light from darkness, that which tends to life and that which tends to death. They will say, "We offer you life; will you receive it?" "No," some will say. "Then you are at perfect liberty to choose death: the Lord does not, neither will we control you in the least in the exercise of your agency. We place the principles of life before you. Do as you please, and we will protect you in your rights, though you will learn that the system you have chosen to follow brings you to dissolution-to being resolved to native element."
All the above factors and others were inherent in the Prophet's proposal for a world government. But while the Saints were considered as having their peculiar responsibilities in establishing and maintaining the Government of God, the immediate basis of agreement upon which all men were expected to accept and sustain the new political system was to be its guarantee of individual freedom. Thus the work of establishing the new government and spreading its powers abroad was looked upon as a co-operative effort on the part of members and non-members of the Church alike. In this light, the Quorum of the Twelve wrote, in 1847:
Come then, ye Saints; come then, ye honorable men of the earth; come then ye wise, ye learned, ye rich, ye noble, according to the riches and wisdom, and knowledge of the Great Jehovah; from all nations, and kindreds, and kingdoms, and tongues, and people and dialects on the face of the whole earth, and join the standards of Emmanuel, and help us to build up the Kingdom of God, and establish the principles of truth, life and salvation. . . .
The Kingdom of God consists in correct principles; and it mattereth not what a man's religious faith is, whether he be a Presyterian, or a Methodist, or a Baptist, or a Latter-day Saint or "Mormon," or a Catholic, or Episcopalian, or Mohammedan, or even pagan, or anything else, if he will bow the knee and with his tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ, and will support good and wholesome laws for the regulation of society,-we hail him as a brother, and will stand by him while he stands by us in these things; for every man's religious faith is a matter between his own soul and his God alone; but if he shall deny Jesus, if he shall curse God, if he shall indulge in debauchery and drunkenness, and crime; if he shall lie, and swear, and steal; if he shall take the name of the Great God in vain, and commit all manners of abominations, he shall have no place in our midst. . . .
It was not expected that there would necessarily be a wholesale conversation to the religious principles of the Latter-day Saints to such extent that other faiths would cease to exist when God's political kingdom was established throughout the world. Said Brigham Young by way of explanation:
If the Latter-day Saints think, when the
The establishment of the
The establishment of the
In interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's dream, Daniel explained that the Babylonian monarch had been shown the rise and fall of future world powers from the then existing kingdom of Babylon to the modern era of the national state system that came fully into being about the beginning of the nineteenth century. In the days of these latter-day kingdoms, Daniel declared, "shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break into pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever." The Hebrew prophet portrayed God's Kingdom of the latter days as a stone that would roll forth and fill the earth, following a period of international conflict that would eventually make a full end of all nations.
In the minds of the Latter-day Saints, the
The kingdom that Daniel saw will push forth its law, and that law will protect the Methodists, Quakers, Pagans, Jews, and every other creed there ever was or ever will be, in their religious rights. . . . The kingdom that Daniel saw will actually make laws to protect every man in his rights, as our government does now, whether the religions of the people are true or false.
An analysis of Mormon thought leads one to conclude that Joseph Smith and his associates did not necessarily expect the new world order to be ushered in immediately. "Is man prepared to receive that government?" Brigham Young inquired in 1859. "He is not," he concluded. "I can say to these Latter-day Saints, you are not prepared to receive that government." It would take a millennial people to establish a millennial government. Nor could the new government be established throughout the world without the co-operation of the peoples of the earth. Should they fail to give the necessary consideration to God's plan for universal peace, the Prophet held there would develop an era of warfare and international destruction that would eventually "make a full end of all nations." Then, if not before, the peoples of the world would turn to the program he had been instrumental in initiating and co-operate in developing its blessings and powers throughout the earth. Meanwhile, it was hoped that an understanding of the principles and responsibilities of the latter-day kingdom would grow in the hearts and minds of the people. Said Brigham Young:
The principles, doctrines, germ, and, I may say, marrow of that Kingdom are actually planted on the earth, but does it grow to perfection at once? No. When wheat is planted and germinates, you first see the blade, and by and by the head forming in the boot, from which in due time it bursts forth and makes its appearance.
The basic concept of the
Footnotes
1. History of the Church, VI, 365. Hereafter this work will be cited as D.H.C., with the appropriate volume and page number.
2. D.H.C., V, 64 (Italics added by the writer).
3. Under date of May 13, 1844.
4. "The
Minutes of the Council of Fifty," Saturday, April 10, 1880, City Hall,
The date given in these minutes is no doubt an error, as Joseph Smith was engaged throughout the day in activities of a non-political nature. March 11, 1844, is the date the Prophet and Brigham Young gave for the organization of this council. It is also confirmed by other evidence to be given hereafter.
5. See D.H.C., VI, 260-1, 263, 264.
6. See ibid., pp. 274, 343, 356, etc. This was not the first use of the term "General Council" in Mormon history, as we find special bodies referred to by this name before the organization of the 1844 group.
7. John D. Lee,
A Mormon Chronicle: The Diaries of John D. Lee, 1848-1876, ed. Robert Class
Cleland and Juanita Brooks (San Marino: Huntington Library, 1955), Vol. I, p.
89. The Journal History also refers to this body as "The Council" or
"Our Council" during the early
8. This name was
also abbreviated to the "Fifties." See Heman Hale Smith, "The
Lyman Wight Colony in
9. George Miller, Sr. and George Miller, Jr., A Mormon Bishop and His Son, Fragments of a Diary kept by George Miller, Sr., Bishop in the Mormon Church, and some records of incidents in the life of G. Miller, Jr., Hunter and Pathfinder, ed. H. M. Mills (London, England; nd) p. 48.
10. "History of Brigham Young," Millennial Star, XXVI, 328-9.
11. Benjamin F. Johnson, "An Interesting Letter," unpublished letter from Johnson to George S. Gibbs, April to July, 1903, Brigham Young University Library, p. 9.
12. Miller, op cit., pp. 28-9.
13. See ibid., p. 49.
14. Part of this revelation is quoted in the "Minutes of the Council of Fifty," op. cit. See also Lee, op. cit., pp. 97-8, for another citation from this revelation where the above name is given.
15. J. D., XVII, 156.
16. Lee, op. cit., p. 80. The writer has taken the liberty of editing this quotation by supplying some needed punctuation marks and correcting misspelled words. Later quotations from Lee's diaries-published and unpublished-will also be edited in a similar manner.
17. J.D., V, 23-5.
18. D.H.C., V, 256-9.
19. J.D., II,
317. The term
20. Ibid., VI, 25.
21. Ibid., XV, 44-5.
22. D.H.C., VII, 381-2.
23. Lee, op. cit., p. 80.
24. "History of Brigham Young," pp. 328-9.
25. D.H.C., VII, 382.
26. Ibid.
(Italics by the writer). Here again the term
27. Millennial Star, XXV, 136. Lyman Wight also evidenced a similar lack of understanding on this point. In contending that Joseph, the son of the Prophet should have been ordained to succeed his martyred father, Wight said:
". . . what should be done? I will here state the first
thing to have been done would have been to have called the fifties together
from the four quarters of the earth, which contained all the highest
authorities of the church. As you will readily see, that had not the fifty
constituted the highest authorities, it would have been a species of weakness
to have ordained all the highest authorities into that number. The fifties
assembled should have called on all the authorities of the church down to the
lay-members from all the face of the earth, as much as was convenient, and
after having taken sweet counsel together, in prayer and supplication before
God, acknowledged our sins and transgressions which had caused our head to be
taken from our midst; and then have called on young Joseph, and held him up
before the congregation of Israel to take his father's place in the flesh! Then
should he have received intelligence of our forgiveness of our sins and
transgressions, and we had then gone on and finished the temple according to
[the] revelations of God, and the word of his servants-then should we so have
done-then should the fifty have sallied forth unto all the world, and built up
according to the pattern which Bro. Joseph had given; the Twelve to have acted
in two capacities, one in opening the gospel to the world, and organizing
churches; and then what would have been still greater, to have counseled in the
Grand Council of heaven, in gathering in the house of Israel and establishing
Zion to be thrown down no more forever. In this way the church might have moved
smoothly on, and onward, until the final redemption of
28. Johnson to Gibbs, p. 9. There may be a question whether Sidney Rigdon was a member of the council or not. On date of March 19, 1844, Joseph Smith reported that Rigdon with others met with the council. D.H.C., VI, 267; Millennial Star, XXVI, p. 329. Sidney Rigdon was later nominated by this council to be Joseph Smith's running mate in the 1844 campaign. See D.H.C., VI, 356.
29. Johnson to Gibbs, p. 10. (Italics by the writer.) A statement by Orson Hyde seems to confirm Johnson's report that the Prophet's charge was made during a meeting of the General Council. Hyde declared that Joseph Smith made this charge "in the presence of about sixty men." J.D., XIII, 180.
30. James E. Talmage, Articles of Faith (Salt Lake City, 1942), p. 366.
31. J.D., XVIII, 137.
32. Moses 7, 18-21.
33. D.H.C., I, 269.
34. D&C 78:13-5. (Italics by the writer.)
35. J.D., VI, 346-7.
36. Ibid., III, 71-2.
37. Ibid., VII, 8.
38. Ibid., V, 329-30.
39. Ibid., XXI, 31.
40. Ibid., II, 170.
41. Ibid., VII, 215.
42. Ibid., III, 71-3. See also, The Seer, I (October, 1853), 147-8.
43. The Seer, I (October, 1853), 149.
44. J.D., XIII, 125-6.
45. Johnson to Gibbs, p. 8.
46. J.D., II, 317.
47. Ibid., IX, 10.
48. Ibid., VI, 342. (Italics added by the writer.)
49. Moses 1:39.
50. J.D., VII, 8.
51. Ibid., VI, 346.
52. Ibid., VII, 8. He further explained:
"The question, What is a true Republican government? is
easily answered. It is a government or institution that is perfect-perfect in
its laws and ordinances, having for its object the perfection of mankind in
righteousness. This is true Democracy. But Democracy as it is now is another
thing. True Democracy or Republicanism, if it were rightly understood, ought to
be the Government of the
53. The Seer, II, 266-7.
54. The
55. See
56. E. E. Schattschneider, Party Government (New York, 1942), pp. 6-10. In explaining this fact, he further states:
"Everyone who has thought about it at all has
recognized that the parties and the law are nonassimilable. The extra-legal
character of political parties is one of their most notable qualities. In a
highly legalistic system of government such as the government of the
57. Harry Elmer Barnes, History and Social Intelligence (New York, 1926), pp. 342-6.
58. Edward Stanwood, A History of the Presidency (Boston and New York, 1898), p. 10.
59. The Federalist, No. 10.
60. Idem.
61. Idem. Lord Acton has more recently stated:
"Of all checks on democracy, federation has been the
most efficacious and the most congenial. . . . The federal system limits and restrains
the sovereign power by dividing it and by assigning to Government only certain
defined rights. It is the only method of curbing not only the majority but the
power of the whole people." Cited in Friedrich A. Hayek, The Road to
Serfdom, with foreword by John Chamberlain (
62. J.D., XX, 204. Cannon stated that Joseph Smith set the pattern for the views he then expressed.
63. D&C 98:5; 101:77-80. (Italics by the writer.)
64. J.D., XX, 204. (Italics by the writer.)
65. According to
a revelation to Joseph Smith, this city is to be built at
66. The Seer, II (May, 1854), 266-7.
67. See Parley
P. Pratt "Proclamation of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints," published by Wilford Woodruff, at
68. J.D., VII, 142.
69. See D.H.C., VI, 197-209, in which Joseph Smith discussed the subject. See also J.D., VII, 13, for a statement by Brigham Young.
70. J.D., 316, XV, 161.
71. Ibid., XV, 161.
72. Ibid., VII, 11, 14.
73. Ibid., VI, 345.
74. John Henry Evans, Joseph Smith, an American Prophet (New York, 1946), p. 256.
75. J.D., VII, 11-2.
76. See D&C 42:30. See also sections 51, 78, 82, 96, 104, 105.
77. See David McCord Wright, Democracy and Progress (New York, 1950), p. 25.
78.
79. D.H.C., V, 61-66.
80. J.D., VI, 345-6.
81. Millennial Star, X, 81-88.
82. J.D., XI, 275.
83. Matthew 6:10.
84. J.D., XVII, 156.
85. Daniel 2.
86. The Seer, II (August, 1854), 310. See also ibid., I (October, 1853), 148; J.D., 86, for other statements by Orson Pratt.
87. J.D., II, 189. See also ibid., I, 202-3; XIII, 125, for other statements by Brigham Young. For a good statement by Wilford Woodruff, see, ibid., XIII, 164.
88. Ibid., VII, 142.
89. D&C 87.
90. J.D., II, 309.
Chapter II
Organizing the Government of God
THE STORY of the organization of the political department of
the
I instructed the Twelve Apostles to send out a delegation and investigate the locations of California and Oregon, and hunt out a good location, where we can build a city in a day, and have a government of our own, get up into the mountains, where the devil cannot dig us out, and live in a healthful climate, where we can live as old as we have a mind to.
The immediate incentive to commence organizing the
Government of God came with Joseph Smith's effort to move the Saints to the
West. In this effort he and others claimed the assistance of divine revelation.
Contrary to what is sometimes supposed, however, it required thought, exertion,
and the consideration of several alternatives before the picture of precisely
where to locate the Saints in the West was made clear. God's injunction to
first "study it out in your mind" was still in force. Revelation on
matters pertaining to the exodus of the Saints was not considered as being
automatic, any more than the revelation process Joseph Smith claimed to utilize
in the translation of the Book of Mormon. Thus, we find the Mormon leader
studying things out and considering several programs and alternatives for
planting his followers in the West. One plan he considered was to colonize a
portion of
During the early 1840's, a group of men known as the Black
River Lumber Company had been located at
The Prophet's comment that the Spirit of the Lord was in the pineries as well as at Nauvoo implies that he recognized the suggestions on the part of the above group to be generally in accord with his own inspiration to look toward the West. The removal of the Saints to the West, however, was not a function to be carried out by the Church as a religious body. For this reason the Prophet commenced organizing the Government of God. The fact that he did so indicates the limitations he set to the powers of the Church and the separate and distinct functions of the Church and the political organ he developed.
The Prophet's account of the organization of the latter body is as follows:
Present-Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Brigham Young, Heber C.
Kimball, Willard Richards, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, John Taylor, George A.
Smith, William W. Phelps, John M. Bernhisel, Lucien Woodworth, George Amos
Fielding,
In his report of the organization of this council, Brigham Young also noted that it was to be an organ concerned with political matters. It had as its objective, he said, the task of determining "the best manner to settle our people in some distant and unoccupied territory; where we could enjoy our civil and religious rights, without being subject to constant oppression and mobocracy, under the protection of our own laws, subject to the Constitution. We held a number of sessions," he continued, "and investigated the principles upon which our national government is founded; and the true foundation and principles of all governments."
It is very probable that during one of the above mentioned meetings Joseph Smith dictated the revelation giving the constitutional principles of the new government.
The General Council also prepared several memorials to
Congress for redress of grievances. One such memorial was delivered to the
Federal government by Heber C. Kimball and Lyman Wight, who left Nauvoo for
that purpose on May 20, 1844. But the main task of the council was to settle
the Saints in the West. We shall see later how this body of men initiated and
carried out the exodus and the colonization of the
Meetings of the General Council were held almost daily for
some time after its organization. On March 14th, Joseph Smith reported that
Lucien Woodworth had been "sent on a mission to
Miller's statement that
In a letter dated June 12, 1849, Miller wrote:
In the spring of 1844, Joseph organized a council of fifty.
I was one of that number. The question arose in regard to settling those Saints
in the South, that were making lumber in
In the same light, Brigham Young and Willard Richards wrote
from Nauvoo to Reuben Hedlock, in
There are several matters that must be considered along with
the
Following the release of Santa Anna, the Mexicans promptly repudiated the treaty of Velasco and thereafter kept up a series of threats, intrigues with the Indians, and petty raids aimed at destroying the new republic. Matters would have been worse had it not been that the antagonists were separated from each other by an uninhabited strip spreading northeastward from the Rio Grande and varying in width from about one hundred and twenty miles at the coast to over six hundred at its upper end.
The
During the forepart of 1843, an armistice was agreed upon by
Back at the center of Mormon activities in Nauvoo, Joseph
Smith reported that on May 2, 1844, Lucien Woodworth returned from
. . . Woodworth returned from
Miller's statement implies that the plan to move the Church
to
The reasons why Joseph Smith decided to run for the Presidency will not be discussed here. Suffice it to say that foremost among those reasons was his desire to bring the cause of the Saints before the nation and thus gain redress for the wrongs that had been perpetrated upon them. This objective might have been achieved without winning the election.
The Prophet was aware that should he be elected it would
only be by the greatest possible effort and through the favor of fortune. Said
George Miller: "It was thought and urged by the council that so great an
undertaking would require, in order to insure success, the entire and united
effort of the official members of the church." Accordingly, the Quorum of
the Twelve made arrangement for a series of conferences to be held in strategic
places throughout the Union, terminating at Washington, D. C. the following
September 7th through the 15th. Besides the twelve, nearly 340 of the most
capable men in the Church were also sent out to work in the Prophet's interest
throughout the
In general council from 10 till 12, and from 2 to 5, when they adjourned sine die, after appointing a State Convention to meet in Nauvoo on 17th May. The council then dispersed to go abroad in the nations.
During the period of his negotiations with the
On May 13th, Joseph Smith attended a meeting of the General
Council, at which time two letters from Orson Hyde were read. In the first,
dated April 25th, Hyde reported that Congress appeared "deeply interested
in the
. . . Most of the settlers in
Your superior wisdom must determine whether to go to
To Hyde, the
In his second letter, dated April 26th, Hyde reported that
the Mormon delegates in
Finally, in a letter dated April 30, 1844, Hyde reviewed the
various alternatives, one of which the Saints might choose in locating
themselves in the West. Among other things, he mentioned the possibility of
establishing a stake of
From the above evidence, it is plain that the plan to move
the Church to
What Joseph Smith would have done about
There should be no particular odium attached to the fact
that the Prophet gave consideration to this latter alternative. It is a
fundamental proposition upon which legitimate governments are founded that all
men have the inherent right to provide for their political welfare-to establish
justice and provide for their domestic transquility. Brigham Young, in
officially organizing the State of
It should be noted that in his effort to lay the necessary
plans for such an eventuality, the Prophet came very near entering the field of
international politics. On May 6, 1844, Joseph Smith recorded that he met with
the General Council all day. During this meeting it was "voted to send
Almon W. Babbitt on a mission to France and Lucien Woodworth to
We are glad to hear a door is open in
A study of Babbitt's activities thereafter, however, shows
that he never departed on this mission. It may be that Orson Hyde's letter from
The death of Joseph Smith, the changing political scene, and
the existing need to consolidate affairs under new leadership altered the plans
that had been partially made concerning the
After the death of Joseph Smith, when it seemed as if every
trouble and calamity had come upon the Saints, Brigham Young, who was President
of the Twelve, then the presiding Quorum of the Church, sought the Lord to know
what they should do, and where they should lead the people for safety, and
while they were fasting and praying daily on this subject, President Young had
a vision of Joseph Smith, who showed him the mountain that we now call Ensign
Peak, immediately north of Salt Lake City, and there was an ensign fell upon that
peak, and Joseph said, "Build under the point where the colors fall and
you will prosper and have peace." The Pioneers had no pilot or guide, none
among them had ever been in the country or knew anything about it. However,
they travelled under the direction of President Young until they reached this
valley. When they entered it, President Young pointed to the point and, said
he, "I want to go there." He went up to the point and said,
"This is
But to such men as George Miller and Lyman Wight the previous proposals were still to be carried out. Miller later wrote that he suggested that the appropriate authorities get together and "clothe" themselves "with the necessary papers, and proceed to meet the Texas Congress as before Joseph's death agreed upon". Continuing, he explained:
Woodworth and myself waited on Brigham, requesting him to convene the authorities so that the proper papers might be made out, and so we could be able to complete the unfinished negotiations of the treaty for the territory mentioned in my former letter. To my utter astonishment Brigham wholly refused to have anything to do in the matter, saying that he had no faith in it, and would do nothing to raise means for an outfit or expenses. Thus all hopes were cut off of establishing a dominion of the kingdom at a time when there seemed to be a crisis, and I verily believed that all that we had concocted in council might so easily be accomplished. I was really cast down and dejected.
Meanwhile, said Miller, "Lyman Wight became disaffected
towards his brethren of the Twelve." When the Black River Lumber Company
returned to Nauvoo, he, "ever fond of authority, placed himself at the
head of this company, and as it had been announced by the Twelve from the stand
that Joseph had laid out a work that would take twenty years to accomplish,
Lyman averred that he would commence his work then, and solicited me to take my
place and go with him to locate the Black River Company." Although Miller
reluctantly followed the leadership of Brigham Young for a time, Wight set out
for
Footnotes
1. D.H.C., VI, 222.
2. D&C 9.
3. D.H.C., VI, 256, 258.
4. Miller, op. cit., 48.