Zion's Advocate "And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day for they shall have the gift and power of the

Holy Ghost." 1st Nephi 3:124

VOLUME 2. INDEPENDEKCE, MISSOURI, AUGUST 15, 1925 NUMBER.

"AGREEMENT WITH THE CHURCH OF CHRIST"

'·One of the most important acts of the recent General Conference was the adoption of articles of agreement with the Church of Christ people of Independence, J\lis­souri. These articles are twenty-four in number and appear in full in the Herald for April 17. They are en-titled ' of ,yorking harmony.·

"The\· are the culmination. up to date. iJ1 a long series ;if conferences hetween committees and reprc­sentatin· men. Thn· are the fruits (Jf a spirit of har-111011y and agreement- that of late has g-rO\Yll Ycr_y strong -sufficiently strong to prompt mutual concess10ns and alhl\· ancient prejudices.

"ihc spirit of 'working harmony' is the important thing. The letter of the article,; is of secondary impor­tance and is chieih u:-;eful in clarifying the situation.

"It 1pay he franl~ly conceded that· pr~:\·iolb to the con­ference some members \H:re quite alarmed, or at least gra\·ely concerned, o\·cr n1mors presaging snch an ac­tion. There were many private arguments over the question in which both the pro and con found valiant champions.

"But the unanimitv characterizing· final action \Vas most gratifying. The"articlcs had pn\iunsly been adopt­ed bv the Church of Christ members i11 their annual conf(:rence on the Temple Lot. They \HT(' then sub­mitted to the consideration of a mass meeting of quor­ums of the high priesthood and finally canw before the conference itself. ~o our readers mav he sure that thev were suhm;ttcd to the closest scrutin}·· The Jina! actio;1 of the conference was practically unanimous, only one vote being noted on the ncgati\·c side of the question.

"This mean,;. of course, that all H?xed questions of doctrine. baptism. and prie,-,thood \Vere \Try carefully considered hy the best intelligence that the church could assemble at a General Conference. both among the priesthood and the delegates.

''Though arguments mig·ht be ach·;rnced upon hoth sides of the question. as is usually the cas(·, thi,-, as­sembly conceded that our Church of Christ brethren had established their claims so far as the\· mav he itJYOlYCd in tracing baptism and pricsthoocl hack to valid original sources. As an organization they haye held to the fundamental doctrines of the church and have been guilty of no moral lapse. In fact, in the face of adroit efforts to bribe and seduce from their trust thev have themselves clear from evil forces and designing men. Hence no charge of apostasy from the original faith could be supported. ,vere there any among us inclined at this time to make such a charge.

"In the aboYe we h,we attempted to summarize the feeling that seemed to exist among the priesthood and in the conference. It mav he that there will still be some among our readers i;clined to challenge the wis­<10111 of adopting these articles. But that matter is no longer a suhject for argument. The jury has returned its verdict. Or if that figure be not appropriate, in plain

term:; the quorums have spoken and the conference has spoken. The matter is settled, both by vote of the ciders and by n1te of the delegates sent up to the con­ference to repre:;ent all the ,people."-From an editorial bY Elbert ,\. Smith, appearing on the front page of "The Saints' Herald" fur April 24. 1918. Volume 65, K umber 17.

UNITY The \·isitor rnav be struck with the social aspect when

he comes to th(: Church of Christ services, exchange of g-reetiug,;, arms _extcucled over th~ ~boulders of others to :-;hake hands \Ylth some one, smilmg nods, acknowl­edging a friend espied in the congregation, chatting here and there, sometimes very earnest, but always pleasant. Occasionally, \\·e must confess, the one in charge of the meeting has a little difficulty getting the congregation to understand it is time to begin. Perhaps all this doC',; nut conform to the decorum that should be oh:--ern·d i11 church. and ncrhaps it is a little thoughtless, hut on the uthcr hand. it should be remembered that the,;e good people ha\-e gathered from \·arious quarters. They are glad to see one another. So many of our own congregation \\·en· once members of other congregations and ha\e not lo:-:t their hiye for their former associates, that it is a mutual pleasure \Yhen the visitors come. Indeed. our ,cervices often partake more of the nature of reunion nwetings. ! low we wish the gathereing and reuniting could go 011 and on until hy and by there would he 1w faction,; or di\·isions in :\Iormonism, but that all \\·ho han' embraced this latter clav \York might be one united band. one body in Christ. "imagine u;e effect of our preaching then! "Peace on earth, good ,vill to men" \\·ould mean sqmcthing then. besides a heautiful phrase to he chanted at Christmas time. But alas! The ideal mav never he realized so fulh· as ,ve could wish this sicJZ, of the millennium, but hrother,-;, sistns. unity should he our watchword. Scattered through the various divi­sion,.; of this latter clay \York there are people who think alike on \·ital questions. lt is your duty and our duty to forth effort to find them and them into one us remember. too. that there are good people among those who do not see things as we do. Let us try to win them, also. Let us guard the bitterness that developed after the death founder of the church when the flock broke up and scat­tered. and as time \Yent on became estranged from one another. not itself in this Let us work to win and and one.

How can we become one? In his sermon on the Tem­ple Lot Suml;:1y c.veGing, July 27th, Bro. T. 'W. Iiams, speaking on the "Basis of Fellowship," gave key-:--TR UTH. It was a fitting farewell effort. advice was full of ,visdom for those with whom brother has been laboring, and those who look to him for help in the solution of problems that have arisen. Truth! \Vhen the servants of God, under the power that will be bestowed upon them by the endowment,

Page 2 ZION'S ADVOCATE

go into all the world. TRCTH will he the means by Vihich the people ,Yill be gathered. l'reach111g the truth. proclaiming the truth. following the truth is the only under heayen of bring·ing about the

true children into one fuld. :\co Bro. said. Truth is the only basis upon \\·hich an

cm'.uring Christian fellowship can be establislwd. Strength In Unity

some one expre:-ses that the Church of Christ has nut grown faster it has :mch a The han, felt that the

Lot stands \\'(111ld not he brought about a more united con­

dition among Cod\ people . ( )11e uf the latter reYc­lations says that "the city :'\ cw crusalem shall he built

the · of the saints, at this en:n tlw the KLl.) In other \YOrds. the :'\ ew ernsalem would nut he hnilt until a gathering ui the :<iints ,;honld take place. lw­ginning at the Tempie L,,t. That is, the g·athcring slwuld begin at the Temple Lot. Tho;-,c acquainted with the history of the past kn()\\' that the Church of Christ has approaclicd utlwr factiun,; of the Church. trying tu a bun l a bcttn and a clo,;cr as,.cociatiu11 that CH'llt uate 111 the foltillment oi the pnimisc quoted abon'. ).°uw de­vcluplll('llb that \\·ere nut dreamed of in the pa,;t arc operating to\Yard the fulfillment oi that prumi,;e giH'll ninety three year,; ago.

There i:,; ho\HYer. a p(,s,c;ibil tarding the gathering proces,;. the danger of din,rsiricd action. one man pursuing one course. another taking a different cour,;(·. The more di\·idcd \H' are. the ·,\-eakcr each unit 1Yil1 he. Tile quicker ,n· ,;cc the \1·i,;dom of comhining· our effort,; un the ha,;i,; of truth. the S•H>ner :-shall he alilc to

rni,;sionaries and ,;end out the men 11·hu have :-,u much to the from (·rrur ln,;tea(l

of multiplying publication,;, kt tb c()nsolidate. Instead of 11·orki11g indi1·idually. ()J' in group,;, kt u:,; \York unitedlv. \\'e can do it: we can get tugethn (in the ba:,;is u·f Truth. Let tb nut go bl ' until \\t:

han, a llHc:isage to offer. L<'t us not tear ,11·11 until we can prc,;cnt a \\·hich to build To get together and gi,·e a (lcmun,;tratiun of better wi]l preach louder and reach further than all the de­strnctin· critici,;rn,; that forceful oratorv can hurl. Let us unite our force,; and gin· a fuller e~cmplification of the truth that the restoration of the go:.;pel designed to

men. Let u,-; combine our efforts. and we shall more quickly achieve the things we desire in righteous­ness. In unity there is strength.

SUPREME DIRECTIONAL CONTROL IN OPERA­TION

The ink was scarcely dry on the records of the late General Conference vvhen a hastilv summoned Council of the Reorganization called by th~ Presidency let loose the Dogma of S.D.C. in all its fury. If at its birth it had only gums, it did not take long to .. grow teeth as the following will show: Elder Daniel MacGregor, April 27, 1925. Oyen, Alberta. Dear Brother MacGregor:

At a meeting of a Joint Council of the First Presi­dency, Quorum of Twelve, and ,Presiding Bishopric:

held in the Battery Block Saturday. April 24, 1925, your attitude toward the church at the present time camt for discn,;,;io11 and the \\·as offered and

":\lon:d and carried that this Council i,; oi the that I >aniel MacCrcgor slwuld be silenced as a nun­istcr of thi,; chnn:h."

ln 1in\· uf this actio,1 ,vc shall he glad if you will f"n,·anl your licen,;e as a mini,;ter to me at the

ahon· addres,; at your earliest con,-enience. truh· nmrs.

Ow,1·u1n of Twehe. ( Sign;d) James A. ( ;i!lc11

The al Hi\ c council did not sit on Elder MacGregor's case while he was in the cit\·. ~o. it ,1aitcd until he \\as (>llt uf town. until lw w;i:,; three runlc to hi~ \llwrta home. It ,nnild ncn:r martial him \\ hile he \\a,; in the hear oi the secret :.;itting. and in;;i,;t on tu lie heard in hi,; 1,,111 liehali. Thi,; would Elder :\lac<;regor',; reply 1,; a,; follo,,·,;:

( .. \lta, Bux 22. Elder J ,\. (;illrn. I :\Ji,;,;ouri. llcar Br1Jthn=

4. FJ25.

I am ju,;t in receipt of your letter of the 27th ult., a,-;king that I ionvard yon my liccn::'c liccau,.;e of the action uf the joint ( ouncil that l ,;lwuld be ,-ilenced.

The rea,;on as,;igncd f"r this yery abrupt and unex­pected action i:-. tu ,;ay the lca,;t, yery yague and in­dctinite. It is all couched in a few ,\·onb, namely, ··your attitude tu11·ard the Church at the prc,;ent time.''

l :,;huuld hZ' 1 crv glad if n!ll can :'ee n,nr wa1· clear to accornrnudate 1;1e' with a· rnore deli nit~· ,;tatem~:nt re-

the which tion. scT1·ice,; tu

,ne 1·ear,; of actin· hapt1,;ed h;111drerb. extending fmm tlw Pacific merit ,;ome slight courtesy upon

I ndecd. [ could han· wi:.;hcd that Council had r·xtcll(kd me the 1

al vuur I:: •

when the matter ui silencwg me 1va,; up. the uf vour action. In

haYc been more cun~istcnt with the eternal principle of jurisprudence that a man should llC\Tr he C(Jll\ icted until opportunity has been extended him to he heard in his own behalf. However, at this l;·tc date, ! ,;hall appreciate it, as a little souvenir of your mercy. if yon will submit the charge,; prompting your action.

Cpon hearing from you I will take intu consideration the matter of your request, that of turning in my license.

I am sending this by the hand of Brother or Sister Sheldon. asking that you will kindly place \Vith them yuur ,uitten reply,

\' ery respectfully yours, (Signed) Daniel MacGregor.

The answer of the Council: Independence, Missouri, May 25th, 1925.

Elder Daniel MacGregor, Oyen. Alta. Dear Brother l\facGregor:

This will acknowledge receipt of your letter of 4th, delivered by Brother T. J. Sheldon about a after that date.

ZION'S ADVOCATE Page 3

Thr action of the Joint Council withdrawing repres­entative rights from you was based on your expressed attitude to{,·ard the Church following the adoption of the action on church goyernment taken by the recent Gen­eral Conference. You -will remember that you stated your position in no uncertain terms on the flc;or of Gen­eral Conference and subsequently at the l l edrickite Church on the Temple Lot.

v\'ith regard to your request to be heard in your own defense. I mav cite vou to General Conference Resolu­tion 772 adopted Ap;·il 10, 1917. which says:

\\'hen anY ordained officer or minister is belin·ed to be guilty (:f immoral or unchristianlike conduct. the usual court procedure of the church adeq LJately protects his intere,;ts. llmYeYer. ministerial or official influence i1n-oh·es also such factors as reputation. ability. etc. Cpon the authorities of the priesthood and church offi­cers rests the duty of protecting the intere,.;b of the clrnrch ,dwn nece,;,.;ary by ,,·ithdrawing r('presentati\·e or ministerial right,.;, these rights or i11teresb of the i11diyidual concerned being :-:afcguarcled appeal through the administratiye line.

Since your silence was imposed by the Joint Council, of which the First Presidency form part, I do not see how further administrative appeal can be made in this instance. I! o,\·n·cr. if you wish to ,;o appeal. this should he !lied \Yith the !'residency without delaY. The silence will of cour,.;e he operative· in the interini.

\"ery sincerely your,;, (Signed) James ,\. (;ill en.

J t \\-ill be obsen·ed that the Council n·aded a11S\\Tri11g the leiendant's entreaty. that of submitting the par­ticular remarks uffensin' or othen\-ise. which mon:d the Council to their hast v action. The Defendant \\·as entirely in the dark a,; to· what particular "attitude'' of his ,,·as referred to in that frightful. and unforgiyahle charge---"yonr expres,;ed attitude to\\·ard the church fol­lowing the adoption of the action on ( "hurch go\"(Tll­ment.'' and "You stated your po,;ition i 11 110 uncertai 11 terms on the floor of General Conference.'' etc.

Hut \\·hateyer the remark which gaYe offense-one thing is clearly apparent. that the Joint Council with Supreme Control in the hands of the Presidency does not propo,;c to tolerate free ,;peech on the floor of General Conference.; that men uf different views must nut ex­press their "attitude" nor '':,tate their position'' ,vhen it comes in contact with the Presidencv.

\\'hat greater witness do ,ve nee;! to show that the Reorganization has fallen in evil days? Verily, it is a "government by priesthood," as expressed in the recently accepted innovation on Church Government. How any man with the red blood of an American. or that of an Anglo Saxon in his veins, whose sires resisted the crush­ing encroachments of an S.D.C. king at Runnymede, can stand for such a glaring affront to the principles of liberty inaintained by the Stars and Stripes and the ljnion Jack is more than we can tell. J\; ow for the summary of the facts:

1. A document ,vas suhmit~ed at the late General Conference of far reaching importance, claiming tG be a Revelation from God. This document was necessarilv s1'.hjected to the usual process of investigation. Elde°'r MacGregor took an active part in that investigation and vdth others expre,;;;ed himself-not. however. in har­rnony vvith the sentiments of that document. And this is made the bai.is of action against him.

Has it come to this that a man must not real views at a conference of the Church views are in opposition to the Presidency?

2. The cloistered Council which silenced Elder Mac­Gregor. a life 101,1g minister of the Church-was Star Chambered in its character, a twin sister of the Jesuit­ical Court of Rome. There was no notification sent to Elder .\lac(;regor nor any oral request that he be ent. All was conducted with the utmost secrecy. wasn't even a hint from any source that the bludgeon uf the !'resident was about to fall.

The accused was nut permitted to be present at the Council. Tu thi,; hour he does not know who his ac­cusers \\-ere, nor yet the specific accusation that was urged. He \\·as a,; a culprit in the medieval days of l<urne. dragged in before the Court of Holy Inqnisition after hi,; sentence had been fixed; ur as a red skinned pri;;oner of 1Yar. hound. blind-folded and gagged, per­mitted only to hear hi,.; ,;entence of death from his Apa­che captor:'.

The ,;cntence of ",;ilence" haYing been passed in that clandestine chamber of espionage, one would have thought that the ]'resident',; Council would at least have extended to the condemned man a detailed statement of the charg(·s. e,·en though they refu,;ed to permit him to hear the testimonv that ,vas taken. The veriest vil­lian that rnounts the· ,;ca ff old is permitted out of human dccency the right of not only hearing the charges but ab,) e,Tn· \\-on! ,hat may he said in the course of his trial. 11 ~, is granted the, opportunity of presenting his ;-;iclc of tlw case in ,;elf defence. Ye:-:; and even after the verdict is reached he is allowed to make a statement lwfurc ,;entcnce i,, declared bv the court. But not so \Vith thi;; Inquisitorial Com;cil of the Reorganized Church.

Supreme l )irecti< ma] ( ·ontrol brooks 1w opposition, vields no considnation. turn,; a deaf ear to entreaty, ~rnd like the J uggcrnaut car of the East rolls on in its llnrclenting way. crunching all that may he in its path.

5. The reader \\·ill not fail to obserye the Council's declaration as to the entertainment of an appeal. It is ~o brutal it is almost unbelie\·ahle. "Since vour silence \\a,- impo,.;ed by the Joint Council of whi[h the First Presidency form;; a part I do not see how further ad­minist rati \'e appeal can be made in this il!stance ." But the Clerk of the Court was not entirely void of sym­pathy---he mercifully adds a palliatin~ as hopeless as it is helpless-" If you wish to appeal this should he filed with the Presidency without delay.·' This comes from a Council of First and Final action. No appeal is pos­sible ,.;ince "The First Presidency" formed a part of that Council. In other words, we are told that when the First l'residencv take,; a hand in an aJvcrse action against a brother ;n a select Council of his own callin~­a council that knows no place in the law, that the act10n oi said council. eYen though it he hut the primary pro­ceedings against the accused, is final and forever.

Brother. Sister, of the Reorganization, do you stand for such proceedure, or will you, like the rest of us, rise up in active protest?

But what must strike the reader as a piece of un­paralleled audacity is the presumption of the Council to step into the Church of Christ. and proceed to silence her representative. her missionary in general charge. \\'as there an ulterior purpose in this?

As eyeryone knows, Elder MacGregor transferred his i:·.embership to the Church of Christ. This was done

Page 4 ZION'S ADVOCATE

Zion•s Advocate issued on the 15th of each month in the interests of the

Church of Christ at Independence, Missouri

Address all communications to

Zion's Advocate Temple Lot Independence, Missouri

Published under the direction of the Board of Publication, Offices on Temple Lot, at Independence, Missouri

EDITORS Daniel ~1acgregor .................................................. Independence, :>Io. Thomas J. Sheldon ............. .1416 \\. \\'alnut, Independence, :>lo. Clarence L. \\'heaton ....... .1225 S. Delaware, Independence, :>fo.

BUSINESS MANAGER Alma 0. Frisby, Route 1, Box 218, lndepenclence, :,[issouri

Subscription is $1.00 per year in l:nited States and $1.25 in ioreign countries

the late General Conference, the S. D. C. The Joint l·ouncil can not

oi this fact. lt was in the daily paper,;. Thu,; he thereby cea,;ed to he a ot the Reorganized Church and \\ a:-: minister in the Church uf Chri;;t.

The right of tran,;fcrring one's legally recognized and pnl\·idl·d ior Agreement'' mutually accepted the and the Church (1f Chri,;t. l\nt S. D. C. l! put it mer the

( · c·unference ibd ,;up-

ot it,; contn ,l, !le\\.

cunquer. The Church uf Christ was the next at lle,;ides. there \\·a,; a

under the ddeat of of Uui:'t \\·ith her and fearing a reaction that the Reorganization \\·ho tiun 011 S. ). C.. it ,va.s

hlo1\· at her mi,;,,ionan· deterring ,;care uther; dime. Hut the :-care

theatre. right

~- !). C Bull uf Excummunicatiun.

-l )aniel -------+-

NEWS ITEMS The speakers for the last month h,ive been Elders C.

L. \\'heaton, T. J. Sheldon, and H. E. Moler, of the Church of Chri,;t. Elders James Da,-is. E. E. Long and T. \\'. \Villiam;c; of the Reorganization.

Our Sunday School is a wide a1,·ake and interesting part of our church \\·ork. Hoth junior and senior depart­ment,; haYe gr0\\'11 so that the junior department is nnv: occupying the luwer rooms of our building. \Ve ha1·e capable, earne,;t teachers. and eyeryone seems to

enjoy the Sunday ,;chool. As we pen these ,nJrds. \Villiam Jennings Bryan is

laid to rest in Arlington l\'ational Cemetery. \Vith the rest of the citizens of this nation we bow our heads

in tributed to a man who was a moral force in the country; a man ,d10 stood for lofty ideals.

There come,; to us a favorite maxim of his which he said his father taught him in boyhood, viz., that it was better to be with the minority and be right, than to be with the majority and be wrong. Perhaps that was the secret of his greatness.

LETTERS Dear Advocate: \\/e like the name, "Zion's Advocate,"

even though to adYocate has been the highe,;t of our attainment. \Ve cherish the name and memorv of those ·who ha\·e dune so for a hundred vears. Until ~vc can do :,;umething more ,;ubstantial we n;tbt ,;till advocate. But if the writer t111derstands the revelation,;, in the near inture there must be a people ,vho will attain a higher grade than that of just advocating. 1 have this to say to the readers of your paper. that living the law of Zion will be the sirnpk,;t thing in the ,vorld for a people ·who are and an utter impossibility for tho,;e who, no matter h(m· cultured and learned. admire the world and her E,·cr since the LDrd rai,;ed up wise men tu frame our constitution the a venue has been wide

for men not onlv tu adn>eate. hut to live the law the cele,;tial kingdo;n. The ,ffelllle i,; still open. \\'hen

,,e get the true yj,;ion of Christian hr()therhond v,·e will nut concern our:,eh·es as to ,,:hat this church or that

: we ,;hall he too demon-ideab. .\s lrnYe mm-cd tr()m the

duing more and more after the manner ha\·e thought ,Ye ,n·re makin.t;

:strife and contention ha,; drin:n mi(bt. If we were keeping the law of fulnc,;,; would "renounce war'· and peace," and ,;Jwu!d ha\ e no need to be di,;turhed or afraid when the \\·icked around us t to war, for the Lord would our battle,;.

\\-ho are to he the cliildnsn of Zion nni,;t ,;111,;. , do thi,; 1m1,-t rirst acknowledge t i:; nothing ,;hort of to preach the

1:rn oi the celestial kingdom to \\·hen we have our 01\·n ,;elri,;hness and worldlines,;. endowment until a pure. hone,;t are established (111 the of

The Lord has ,;aid. ''Becau,;e tlwv in temporal therefore the worl;l

,an. That applie,; to us as to the ,vorld. \\' e are nut excused because to be-lien" the and preach it. Human enthusiasm can not take of the spirit of God. \Ve have need to a,;k our,;eh-es. "\Vhat mu,.;t we do to he saYecl ?''

To me the indicatiun,; are that there will he a people who will repent and receive the endowment. The poor­est of men han:· the priYilege. and it is qnite likely that from thi,; cla,;s the example will go forth to the world. :!\1en can then back up their preaching and not have to make inconsi,;tent excuses, which is folly. Inasmuch as \H' are ach·ocating Zion I \\·ant to .suggest some work­able rule,;. If we desire in our hearts to know what we

to do, ( ~od is true to his promises, and he will tl::i the we need. Bv the same

vn' c~u be directed to others who desire to the whole law. \Vhen \\·e find them, we need ha\·e no hesi­tann· about ,vith them. It will not be a diffi~ult thing to determine what the Lord of us when we have his love in our hearts. If we DC)Ssess two acres, and there is a ,vorthy brother who

ZION'S ADVOCATE Page S

have even a garden :'lpot, the spmt that is within us will not need to be told what to do. \Ve will find some way to help the brother. He, in turn, will be moved upon to rise aboYe selfishness, and will be stirred to sacrifice for others. Should we feel any temptation to do that we may be seen of men. we may he sure that a wrong spirit is leading us.

\iv'hen we cultivate brotherly love among us we shall give evidence of regeneration. and the causes that make for trouble and sorrow will \·anish. Burdens that the adversary has placed upon those who folio,\· the way,; of Babylon will loosen and fall from us. \Ye will choose officers to distribute the growing consecrations. and make provision for a storehouse in all real branches of the Church, as the Lord has commanded.

Don't \Yorry about fabe policie,-. must die a natural death. In fact, unworkable polic·ie,.; are getting sick now, and toss on a feveri,;h pillow.

Please accept the money I send tu pay fur my sub­scription, and apply the re,;t that ,;ome one else may read the paper. \\'e ,;hall nut he ,;ati,;fied with a monthly paper'. \:cw life \\·ill not let u,; a,; \\e a(h·;rnce to the next gTade. There arc sume mighty en­couraging things happening these day,;, '"I

Sincerely, \\'ilber F. Yates.

Anuther \Hite,;: '"The idea of a t-ir,;t a superfluity ans\Yer,; a which has troubled me long, growing out uf Paul's stat(·ment that "( hath set some in the church. fir,;t " not a pres­idency. \\"hv did Chri,;t the cumrni,;,;iun uf C\ ang(·-lizati:m to tl{e cln·(·n in,;tcad uf to the · wa,.; to lie such an ufl-icc at the head , Christ's d('parture? at the head. Chri-t k,l\·ing the i11c,m1plete Comforter wa,; tu take Chn,;t's truth,'' and klling of tu c, ,me"

"l )ocurnent,; ha\·e taken the 111. entln1~-iasm the place of in:-;piration, standardizati, ,n and ,social progres,; seem to he the main j,;,;ues. equality has been changer! to read to cfficiencv.'' and the great \York , heen halte(I."

\\"e hav,· permis:;ion to testirnony from a letter

I nm:;t te 11 vou of a \ \"hen l recei ;-eel vour,; brother yestercla v Ira thcr

0

before the post;1ffice to a hotel to I first read nmr letter. then hi:-;. read hi:-; tears of joy' came intu my eyes. and I had of the Spirit; and. as has been my when an que::-t. a decision. I l/Jok , Cnd. and vision l l sec before me an hi,; fu{ger. saving. this is the Churd; of Cl;rist that Bro. in his letter. So I knew . .right

, I haYe was going to do. But. you know. the up later and says. ''You had better been praying further. and <:an from the Lord but the first one,

an:S\Yer, t,, join in with

ce: last night I young man again, and

you brethren. Xow, another had a dream. I thought I wa::; a

I wa,; about to become engaged to a young lady of ster­ling qualities. A woman represents the Church. This i;:;, to me, further confirmation that I should come in."

One brother writes:. "If the Church of Christ is not right, then the whole restoration is a fake, and a clever trick that has deceived thousands. Well, I hope we can keep the Church of Christ clean, and do only what the Lord want,; his people to do."

The same brother a,;ked the privilege of preaching in a church where he was acquainted: He received this an,;wer: "c\m sorry you have apostasized from the true faith. \\'e could not let you preach in our church while you are in apostasy. Return to the father's house, and we will \Yelcome you."

:'I. :.;ister \nite,;: \\' e felt sure our little church here was al way,; open to everyune, but was surprised when our branch pre,;ident said, ''Xo, it's not open to the Church of Christ people. This is only the work of the devil to get me in bad."

:\ hn1ther say,;: "I h,we surely been made to rejoice s1uce stepping out frum under the rod of suppression, and that we shall once more be ahle tu hear the true of the angel's message .. ,

AN 0.PEN LETTER To John D. \Vhite, District President of the :\'orthern

·aliiornia di,;trict of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Chr;st oi the Latter Day Saints. ! kar :rutlwr:

\ \ e the former members of the Reorgan-Church. transfered to the

lrnrd1 uf 1..·hri,;t. Temple Lot. ;,I here-that onr names ll\· dn uf

( ·1iurch. · a ( ·,

authorit\·

of and

of l'hri,-t. and is,;uc <1i lic(·11se

;,nd ccnil1catc <,f a·ppointrncnt. hc('ll made of .the Central ( ·1iurch a matt<'r of n·c<>rd llll the book,;

;,t .\lo. Thi,; or

Re-

\ to the Church of Chri,;t is \\ dl underst,,ud and clearlv :;et f,,rth in a committee

l're,;idcnt !:'rederick :\I. Smith and \\'al-rnith. and to the Ceneral ( ·onference

of :\pril 17, 1918. l n section 24. of an article uf '·

ing Harmony,'' which ·was signed rick :'.v1. Smith and \\.alter V\'.

\\'ork­Fred-

the ( ;eneral Conference of the Reorganization 1 he f'(!llal auth, ,rity of the two churches is mutually

to as ,;et forth in section 24, of the

that wlwrc>a,; the Church of and Re, Church of Jesus Chri,;t of Latter Day

um,.;ist 01 memhers who haYe been baptized . conferred

the sen·ants of God. called during 5mith. who remained true

n1,; stand for and same fundamental doctrine and

and have the same purpose and ideals in church gov-ernment and work; therefore. be it mutually agreed,

Page 6 ZION'S ADVOCATE

that each recognize the standing of the other as rep­resenting Christ, the Master, and the priesthood of each as legally constituted, and the administration of each as equally binding before God, when done m accordance with the la\v." Either the Reorganization recognizes the equal au­

thority of the Church of Christ, and the administration of the priesthood as equally binding. or the aboYe Gen­eral Conference Resolution by the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the most cunning piece of deception and hypocrasy, intended together ·with the committee report cited above to lure the mem­bers of the Church of Christ into transferring to the Re­organization, that thereby the Reorganization might get possession of the treasured Temple Lot. ·

!'\ ow that they han failed in this and the greed of their leaders for power has raised a barrier in the shape of Supreme Directional Control Yestcd in the Presidency, the furn1<:'r ideab of church government ha\·iog been destroyed, and a system of church government foreign to these ideals, and whollv unwarranted in the Bible and Book of Mormon. has taken its place, the Reorgan­ization appears ready no\\" to treat as a "scrap of paper'' a sulemn agreement entered into just a few years ag·o when the "ideals'' of the two churches \\' E.RE con­sidered identical.

The treatment of former members of the H.eorganiza­tion at Fresno. California, \Yill determine the sincerity of the Reorganization when entering into the agreement with the Church of Christ. For 110 doubt. the man be­hind the moye to form a basis of agreement, that is, President Fredrick }I. Smith. \\·ill instruct the officials of this district as to just what the procedure should he.

l t now apppear,; that the Supreme l I cad uf the Re­organization has instructed his underlings tu proceed against us for the officials of the Reorganization pre­sume to exercise authority (ffer us by attempting to "labor'' \\·ith us as though it were an unchristian act to transfer to another church of equal ;;tanding and au­thority before Cod. For it is for this cause and no other that such "labor" is attempted. And this too. long after our transfer had been periected and a Con­gregation of the Church of Christ organized among us. Our presiding Elder, haYing transferred. was giYcn an appointment and authority to preach the Cospel and establish the Church of Christ in the city of Fresno on the 16th day of May, 1925. Almost two months later, on July 12, officials of the Reorganization presumed to silence him. And now other members of the priesthood of our Congregation are in line for the same hypocritical gesture.

\Ve resent such imposition and solemnly declare that we will submit to no "labor" by officials of an organ­ization with which we are no longer affilliated, and we will recognize no church authority save that of the Church of Christ only. We han lawfully and agreeably transferred to the Church of Christ, having satisfied the Elders and membership of that organization of our good purpose. our standing, and christian deportment, There­fore, we demand that the officials of the Reorganization let us alone and cease to attempt to perform \,labor" or other official acts among us except that of dropping our names from the record of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Signed: Samuel Vv ood ct. al.

The original of which this is a copy, will he presented

to the District President, signed" by 22 members, 111-

cluding an elder, priest, teacher and deacon. ~--CREATION OR EVOLUTION, WHICH?

Hy .:\Iargaret .MacGregor. 1 n the beginning a great controversy arose in Heaven

o\·er the creation of man. Two plans were presented before the Great I Am. The first. make man an ir­responsible creature. devoid of agency, that he might never fall. and the race would he safe; the glory would he mine, for my wonderful plan. The second: '' Father, send me. Thy will he done. and the glory he thine f(,renr.'' Ccn. 3 :1-5, l. T. The Bible tells us the first plan was rejected and the second accepted, and that out of this decision arose a war in heaven which resulted in the downfall of <me third of the angel::; of heaven.

The controver;;y is still going on. As in the former ,;truggk. the enemy is attacking the nearest approach to the angelic host he can find-the young. l n the first instance the discussion ffas oyer how man should he made. The present day cuntrcl\·ersy centers aronnd the question of how man was made. In th~ tirst instance the word of Cod was set aside and Lucifer offered his own pla11 instead. So in our da\· the word of God is sidetracked by the theories of· would be ,;cientists taught as facts in high schools and colleges, and sent broaclca;;t from pulpit and press.

The question is not Evolution, or Creation; it is more. It is a question of Christianity, or intidelitY. Some \Vho accept the theory of evuluti(;n say, "It dZ1es not lessen 111.r faith in God ~o believe that we reached present existence by en>lutwn." That may he. but if so. one of t\,·(1 things i;; trne; either the,· h,~d Yerv little faith to C<,mnwn~·c \\·ith. or they ha\'; not tho~1ght deeply on the snhJect. lf the ,;tory of creation as related in ( ;enesis is not correct. then the whole s,·stem of re­demption through Christ is a nwth. and the sooner Christianity is forgotten. the hett;r.

The Bible Story of Creation. L'pon that storv. and that story alone, resb the whole

fabric of Christi,inity. Destroy· the Bible account, and you undermine the whole super;;tructure of Christian teaching. Read the first chapter of Genesis in either translation and you \,·ill learn. 1st. God created the hcan"n;; and the earth. ''and God saw that it wa;; good." 2nd. The living creatures in the following orde;, fish, fowls, beasts, and lastly, man. "God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he them."

This is the story of the origin of the human race, the last and best of the spiritual creation, made in the image of God. "And God saw evervthmg that he had made and behold. it was very good.'~ Gen. 1 :31. '

In the physical creation ( Gen. 2.) the order was re­versed. Whereas in the spiritual the order was fish birds, beasts, fowl and man, in the natural creation ma~ comes first, and the beasts, fowl, and fish follow in re­Yersed order, that the "first -shall be last and that the last shall be first in all things, whatsoever I have created by the word of my power, which is the power of my Spirit ; for by the power of my Spirit, created I them; yea. all things both spiritual and temporal; firstly my ,vork." D. C. 28 :8. spiritual, secondly temporal, which is the beginning of

"And I. the Lord God, formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; a11d man became a living soul; the first flesh upon the earth. the first man also." Gen. 2 :8, I. T.

ZION'S ADVOCATE Page 7

Man's First Estate ··ye were abu 111 the with the Father; th<,t

which is :\Tan \\·as also in the "EYery spirit oi beginning.''

l J. C. 90 :4-6. \\"here d<,e:; God Jin:? 1 n cek:-tial realm,;. If man

were with God. \\·here ,,·as lw? .\bu in cde:-tial realm:-. \Vhcn the earth and it,; inhabitant,; rollz-d )llJ the

hand of the Creator in what condition were l.'n-hesitating·]y I a11:i\\er. in celestial l 11 what uther glory cut;!(! they lie? l )id nut God pruHotmce the ,n1rk of hi,; hand,;, including the earth. "\-cry ,ud" 0

l )id the earth nut hear all the of a cele,-;tial planet? );u thi,;tle". ur l,riar,;: n" cur,-;c The Tree of life and the animal creation. with man at in pean· \\·ith each other. Eternal liie e\ern1hen·. :\either birth ur death wa,; kno11·11 in a1{d the ( ;od oi hea\Tll it

ith his pr(',;cncc. ( )f thi,c; cundition L<"hi ". \nd all things which 1,erc crcatvd, mu,-;t kt1·c n:mained in tlw ,-;ame state 11·hich 1n-rc. aitcr thvv v;ere created: and thn· m u:st ha n: remained furn er. a 1{d had 1w end." 2 :\cphi' l :112.

Thi,;, then. \\·a,, an eternal condition \1·hik the law wa,; kept. and it 11a,; in the pn·,;ence uf (;,)(!. li thi,; i" not celestial glory, tell me 11·hat cekstial lrv i,? Th(' prc,.:c11ce ui l tlwn. i,-; l)(JW, and ah,·a\< will he cclc:-tial 11·h" d11·ell in hi,; pre,;e{1ce are the church of :-t·i· as ar,: ,;cen. and know Thi,, \\·a,; the ,;tatc. both ly, "i man 11·he11 lw wa,.; created. that man 11·a,; "to the rnanur hurn :" a:-: a rckstial creature. companion of ( ;ud. li thi,; ll()t trll(_>, h, could he regain an c,.:tate he ll\'HT had: Te rc,kt~lll n1c·a11:-,

hack that v:a~ ,,-;,;ec,,;cd. ( ;od man a little io,ver than the the

lir,;t, and he \\·uuld fall Cod the 111eans fur hi,, retnrn t,, hi,.: funner (',.ctatc

man to in his

life: he d feet earth:

one thing man lacked in Ede11. an,! En·n Cud could Jlut him

a(h·isc. and thi,; he (Jr d i,;1 . a:- he c huosc.

c,;tak man had celc,;tial ,n : ctnnal in the presence uf Cod; ahod(' ·on a per-

enjoyed lrn11.,1an ,-chiJ>: had agcnc_, : a i intelligence; had acce:-:-' to the Tre\'

of Life: 1\·,i::; cung-enial \\·ork: relations 1,·ith the ;rnima! kingdom, o\'er the earth and all that wa,-; in it.

To thi,; highly intelligent. respomible man God gave commamlments. The man under,;tood them and the consequences of breaking them. I le wa,; a responsible being; the law of right and wrong was establi,;hed for his observance, and he was held to account for any breach of it.

The Fall From this exalted cundition man fell by partaking

of the forbidden fruit. and with him fell the earth on which he lived and everything in it. From the hour of his expulsion from the pre,;cnce of Goel. he and all his surroundings were smitten ,vith death. They had drop­ped from an eternal condition to a temporal condition, from the spiritual to the carnal. from life everlasting to death unending-death spiritual, and death physical, for we read:

"Thi,; fk,-,h must have laid clo\vn to rot and to crumble tu its m1Jl her earth, to rise no more ...... ,,:\nd our llllbt han: become like unto him. ( the dn·il we be-come dn ii,;. to a devil. to be shut out from the p1 e,;c·11cc o i and tu remain with the father of lies and like unto him,;elf.'' 2 .'.\"ephi 6:18-21.

The Redemption Tll(·n· ,\·a,; Jll, need of a Redeemer so

r remained true to their trust in \\ hen man. disui,edience fell. and was 011t frum the presence of Gud, then came the

our But

thru,;t

for a Redec·mc·r, ,;()me one tt, pav rnan 's of fring him back into the presence of c;ud. '.\ utice that thi,; \\a ,;the I thing Cud ner promised man, a return to tnc ion irom which lie fell. The wurk oi the ;:-;a\·iur \\·as to redeem. restore. reconcile. ,\11 of \\ hich mean,- a return to a funner :,tall' and I ie11n· if man 1\·a" n"t in cele:-tial in Ede11. tLc fall. he will 11c1 n reach that ,-,tate the future, f(lr we ha,e ll(> pn,mis<· uf a future exaltation that p\>S:-'cs,;cd 111 the \\.hen man returns to ccle,-;tial

Le \\ il with him liut Dne he did not lid( En·n l e,;u;; ,r himself

( a to hi,-; forn{cr cu11ditiu11. "(; tb,n rnc with thine (J\\·n self \Vith the o·lun· which had \\1th thee l,ef,,re the world \\as." 1(:lm ·11:s.

uticc the sequence of e\·enb: ( )ur s1;irits \HTe made in the of (;ud and (l\vdt in his ( )ur hudics wen· ( ;od. \\' e are

, which is to d,\ ell in the same .:\lan had hi:-- and

eternal life: the a perfect accc,,,; tu the tree of

\York: relation:- \1·ith the animal ,rn, nmrh (Jf h1" durniniun (,Yer tlw earth. This

,rk "f the dn ii. J ()hu telb us. ·· F()r thi,-; pu,-,e thZ' ~on "f ( 1(,d 11·a,; manifrstc;l that l I e destroy the works of the devil."

\\.ith the cur,-;e ,mJUJKecl upun man. the earth. and th(' snpl'nt. ,1 a,.: lmked the ui a 1-:l'deemer, and thi,-; i,_ the lir,-t time he i;; mentioned to .\dam. f i the l{edel'rner wa" t,) de,tn i\· the \\"(Jrks of the dn·il, \1·hat 1n,nld h(' han· tu du; · 11e \H1uld han· to re:-tore to

all that man ]u"t in the fall. Read the 2bt the 22nd <Jf Rc\elati(,!lS, and nm will find the new

in detail to the ~arth a,; tirst lo,;t the fall 1s

the the river of water.

that unto which he wa,; created. . eternal life. the presence of God, a

of the Tree man ,-;hall , eele,;tial

congu1ial human companionship, agency. access to the Tree of Life. pleasant occupation. peaceable relations with the animal kingdom, and dominant over the earth.

Th:,; i;; the stun: of the Bible from Genesis to Revela­tions, and it is f;ithful]y corroborated the Book of Mornmn. and latter da,; re\'elation. The creation, the fall, ,i.nd the redemption:' are the three great links in the chain. Take a·way any one of them and the other two are useless. Thi,; ·is a harmonious plan. a scheme where­in cause and effect blend beautifully together to produce the must perfect results. Only God ct:')uld han, ,-;uch a scheme, and onlv He could carrv it to a suc­cessful conclusion. It i,:' a plan which wi~s the admira­tion and love of man for his Maker. It humbles the creature and exalts the Creator. It deyelops man and

Page 8 ZION'S ADVOCATE

glorifies God. Men having this understanding of God instinctively worship him for he appeals to the best that is in them. Compare the wonderful Bible story of the origin of man, his fall, and the plan of redemption provided, with the theory of evolution, and ask yourself which is the more logical, the more probable, and which makes the stronger appeal to your soul.

The Theory of Evolution Rememher Evolution is termed only a "theory", even

by its strongest ach-ocates, for the reason that they can­not pro,·e it to be true. Otherwise it wonld he placed among the sciences. lt is the opposite of the Bible story from start to finish. They fine! the lowest form of life-a one celled animal, a tiny speck of jelly with just life enough to ab,;orb food to keep itself alive. It has no head, lungs. hack bone, legs, arms, eyes, cars, etc. which endow the higher forms of life. From this cell they snrmisc that all life began. The senseless piece of jelly with its one life cell. ,,·e are told, began to stretch itself, imperceptibly at first, in order to get food. Thi,; stretching process \\·ent on for ag·es .and as it alwavs stretched the one wav ( ?) it finallv hecarne long<·r than it ,,·a,; ,,·ide, and· as centuries n;llcd hy a head began to form. l ts exertions continued until it began to feel some thing stiff running lengthwise along its body. and lo. a hack hone \\'as forming.

But the struggle for existance continued until parts of its body were padding out in little lumps underneath, and to its great satisfaction it found that legs \\'ere en>lv­ing. and soon it \\·as decorated with no less an ornament th,~11 a tail. The process of den·lopment \\'ent 011 Jeaying on its trail tadpole,;. reptiles, fish, birds, and beasts of every kind until finally the acme of pericctio11. so far as it had yet appeared, was attained when a real man arose and stood on two legs and reached ont his ham] for a stone to break a cocoanut. or perhaps he threw it at an animal less ad\·anced in eYolution than himself. This was all the first man kne,Y.

This first man had no intelligence to lmild a house, prepare his food. or resist an eYil. 11 e had no moral responsibility bnt ]i,-ed promiscnonsly with hi,.; kind. dwelt in a caYe, or climbed a tree when he went to re;;t. In appearance he had a sloping forehead. terrible ja\\'S and teeth. ungainly arms a11d legs. and ,vas covered with hair. I-I e was the first human product from a long line of beastlv ancestors.

Gradually it dawned npon him that by taking a stick in his hand he could drive a mammoth across the plains, and from one experience to another he grew until his forehead straightened up. his receeded, his teeth became shorter and smaller. and his arms and limbs took on their present appearance. and he finds himself in a Professor's chair telling a bunch of young· folks the story of their forefathers from the little speck of proto­

to their present beautiful and exalted dignity. the students accept it all for facts and say in their

hearts, "\Ve are fearfullv and wonderfullv made." This exalted product , of a million miracles, each of

which was more marvelous than the Bible story of Crea­tion, also tells his youthful <md unsuspecting class, that there is no standard of morals. \\'hat ,,;as right ten thousand years ago is wrong today, and vvhat is right today will be wrong in future generations. The deci­sion of present society is the only standard of right and wrong, we need no other, and that is ever changing. One timid little maiden who remembers her mother's instructions ventures to ask. "Is not the Bible a stand­ard."? but is told, "Oh, no! there is no standard. The

manner in which man shall conduct himself is a mat­ter of eyo]ution." For this evolution man is "a law unto himself."

·what a pity that our young people must be filled with this ··theory" in order to obtain an education in the ,;chools supported by their parents who pay their taxes yearly that the young of the country may have the advantages of a liberal (?) education! Mark the heart rending astonishment of parents when these young people come home and scoff at the Bible story of Crea­tion, mock at the miracles of the Bible, and scorn the immaculate birth of Christ. Ko ,vonder ,ve have our jails and penitentia;ies filled ·with such youths as Leopold and Loeb who enjoyed the notoriety their fiendish crime brought them, and scoffed at the idea 0~)1aving to ans­wer for their deed before the great white throne when the Judge of all the earth shall call them to account.

.'.\ote how well thi;; "theory" corresponds with the plan of Lncifer presented in the beginning. He clesired to create 111?u1 an irresponsible being with no moral ohligation, and hence needing no Redeemer, a creator \Yho recognized 110 law a,; a standard for his life. He rnu:-;t he a law unto himself. The Evoluti~mist comes along and repn·S<·nb ju,;t such a man. For the hrain­Je,;s ,\m(i°eba. from which they claim he e\·oh·ed, is the

_most irre,;ponsihle thing living, and this represents the only created part of man according to the Theory.

Ceolog·y is cited as supporting· thi,; The01T, hut all geologi,;ts do not agree as will he seen by the· following from George ~1 cCready !'rice. ~I. A. Professor of Geo­logy. Pacific L.'nion College. California:

"The supreme question of modern science, by all odds the must important problem before the scientific world. is. thi,;:

"Does Geology really prove that there has been a successi01-l of different types of life on the globe in a definite order"?

"I cont:! nmltiply testimony from such high class ,;cientists as 11 nxley. Spencer. :t\ ocholson, Suess. etc., candidly acknowledging that the reality of these relatiYe age,; has neyer heen prm·ed by geology, but that in alt geological writings. these relative ages are merely as­sumed. There is in reality no possible way of proving one kind of fossil older than another, or older than the human race. For human remains are fonncl fossil, just the same as the ancient relics of plant and animal life; and it is mere pseudo-science that would seek to say that these plants and animals lived and died ages before the human race appeared on the globe.

" There is absolutelv no scientific reason, not a ghost of a respectable argument, for ar­ranging the fossils in any order whatever of alleged relati\·e age for the world as a whole. The current method of arranging the fossils in a tlefinite series resenting alleged successive ages is the most elaborate piece of nonsense that I know of in our modern world. That educated people still believe in it, is

"All manner of twists and turns have been tried the Church to meet this rejttvenated form of heathen philosophy masquerading as modern science, the natural and obvious plan of taking the record the Flood, and consequently the record of Creation, fully and literally. just as they read."

-Poisoning Democracy, P. P. 123-131. Many other scientists could be quoted, but my article

is already too lengthy. " To which shall we lend our support, Creation, or Evolu­tion?