LDS Doctrine and Covenants Slideshow 26: D&C 124-128

8/9/2019 LDS Doctrine and Covenants Slideshow 26: D&C 124-128

1/34

DOCTRINE andCOVENANTS

Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class

Sections 124126,

2, 127128


2/34

2

Far West

Commerce / Nauvoo

Quincy

IOWA TERRITORY


3/34

3


4/34

The Nauvoo Legion

4


5/34

We landed in the spring of 1840, as strangers in astrange land and penniless, but through the mercy ofGod we have gained many friends, established churchesin almost every noted town and city in the kingdom ofGreat Britain, baptized between seven and eight

thousand, printed 5,000 Books of Mormon, 3,000Hymn Books, 2,500 [copies] of theMillennial Star, and 50,000tracts, and emigrated to Zion 1,000 souls, established a permanentshipping agency which will be a great blessing to the Saints, and havesown in the hearts of many thousands the seeds of eternal truth,which will bring forth fruit to the honor and glory of God, and yet wehave lacked nothing to eat, drink or wear; in all these things Iacknowledge the hand of God. Brigham Young, April 1841

Mission to Great Britain, 184041

5


6/34

Female Relief Society, March 1842

6


7/34

We are going to do somethingextraordinarywhen a boat is stuck on therapids with a multitude of Mormons onboard we shall consider that a loud call forreliefwe expect extraordinary occasionsand pressing calls.

President Emma Smith, 17 March 1842

Female Relief Society, March 1842

7


8/34

8John Hamer bycommonconsent.com/author/johnhamer


9/34

Hyrum Smith

9

124:15. I, the Lord, lovehim.

November 1837: Called

as Second Counselor inthe First Presidency.

124:9193. Called as

Church Patriarch. 124:9496. Called as

Assistant Church

President.


10/34

John C. Bennett

10

124:1617. Three ifs.

Medical doctor.

Baptized September1840.

Instrumental in

Nauvoo city charter. Quickly rose to high

civic and religious

office.


11/34

John C. Bennett

11

Accused of sexualimmorality, practicing

spiritualwifery. Excommunicated

June 1842.


12/34

12


13/34

William Law

13

124:8791, 97102.

Irish immigrant,

baptized 1836 inCanada.

124:91. Called as

Second Counselor inthe First Presidency.


14/34

Sidney Rigdon

14

124:103110.

First Counselor in the

First Presidency. 124:104. Promises if he

was faithful.

October 1843: Josephwants to replace him inthe First Presidency.


15/34

Nauvoo

Temple

124:2755.

124:28.

Restore thefulness ofthepriesthood.

124:3839.Temples inall ages.

15


16/34

[Joseph] read the greater part of the 15th chapter ofCorinthians and remarked that the Gospel of Jesus Christbrought glad tidings of great joy, and then remarked thathe saw a widow in that congregation that had a son whodied without being baptized, and this widow in reading the

sayings of Jesus except a man be born of water and of thespirit he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven, and that not one jot nortittle of the Saviors words should pass away, but all should be fulfilled.He then said that this widow should have glad tidings in that thing. Healso said the apostle [Paul] was talking to a people who understood

baptism for the dead, for it was practiced among them. He went on tosay that people could now act for their friends who had departed thislife, and that the plan of salvation was calculated to save all who were

willing to obey the requirements of the law of God.

15 August 1840, Recollection of Simon Baker

(Words of Joseph Smith 49)

Baptism for the dead first taught

16


17/34

I presume the doctrine of baptism for the dead has erethis reached your ears, and may have raised some inquiriesin your minds respecting the same. I cannot in this lettergive you all the information you may desire on the subject;

but aside from knowledge independent of the Bible, I would

say that it was certainly practiced by the ancient churches.The Saints have the privilege of being baptized for those of theirrelatives who are dead, whom they believe would have embraced theGospel, if they had been privileged with hearing it, and who havereceived the Gospel in the spirit, through the instrumentality of those

who have been commissioned to preach to them while in prison.Without enlarging on the subject, you will undoubtedly see itsconsistency and reasonableness; and it presents the Gospel of Christ inprobably a more enlarged scale than some have imagined it.

15 December 1840 (History of the Church 4:231)

Epistle to the Twelve in England

17


18/34

A proper place

124:2932. For this ordinancebelongeth

to myhouse.

18


19/34

Those Saints who neglect it [baptism] inbehalf of their deceased relatives, do it at theperil of their own salvation.

There shall be no more baptisms for the

dead, until the ordinance can be attended toin the Lords House; and the Church shall not holdanother General Conference, until they can meet in

said house.For thus saith the Lord! 3 October 1841 (History of the Church 4:426)

A proper place

19


20/34

20

1848 sketch by Henry Lewis

Baptismal font in the basement of the

Mormon Temple, Nauvoo

Longer

Pavement inclining to the center


21/34

Epistles on baptism for the dead

D&C 127 & 128. Written in hiding atNauvoo, 1 & 6 September 1842.

127:69. The requirement of arecorder.

128:18. The doctrinal reason behind

salvation for the dead.

21


22/34

And so we have two great churches, one inheaven, the other upon the earth. They aremoving along parallel lines, and the templeof God, it appears to me, is the connecting

link that connects the heavens with theearth, because it is through the temple that we will beable to reach our dead, and not otherwise. To pray forthe dead may not be of any real assistance to them. Toactually help them we must do a work for them.

President Rudger Clawson, April 1933

The doctrine of salvation for the dead

22


23/34

A new ordinance revealed

124:28. The restoration of thefulness of the priesthood.

D&C 124:34. In the temple are thekeys of the holy priesthood ordained.

124:4042. Ordinanceswhich havebeen kept hid from the before thefoundation of theworld.

38:32. You shallbe endowed withpower from on high.

23


24/34

The Quorum of the Anointed

4 May 1842: 9 men.

June 1844: 66 men

and women. December 1845

February 1846:

5,634 endowmentsgiven in theNauvoo Temple.

24


25/34

What is anendowment?

Dower: A gift (from God or ahusband).

Endow: To enrich or furnish withanygift.

Endowment: That which is given or

bestowed upon the person or mind bythe creator.

Webster, 1828Dictionary25


26/34

There arebut few, very few of the Elders of Israel,now on earth, who know the meaning of the wordendowment.

Let me give you the definition in brief. Your

endowmentis, to receive all those ordinances in theHouse of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you havedeparted this life, to enable you to walk back to the presence ofthe Father, passing the angels who stand as sentinels, beingenabled to give them the key words, the signs and tokens,

pertaining to the Holy Priesthood, and gain your eternalexaltation in spite of earth and hell.

Brigham Young, April 1853(Journal of Discourses 2:31)

What is theendowment?

26


27/34

Ritual drama

The endowment ceremony

27

CovenantsSigns

TokensKey words


28/34

The ordinances of the endowment embody certain obligationson the part of the individual, such as covenant and promise toobserve the law of strict virtue and chastity, to be charitable,benevolent, tolerant and pure; to devote both talent andmaterial means to the spread of truth and the uplifting of the[human] race; to maintain devotion to the cause of truth; and

to seek in every way to contribute to the great preparation thatthe earth may be made ready to receive her King,the Lord Jesus Christ.With the taking of each covenant and the assuming of each obligation apromised blessing is pronounced, contingent upon the faithful observanceof the conditions.

Nojot, iota, or tittle of the temple rites is otherwise than uplifting andsanctifying. In every detail the endowment ceremony contributes tocovenants of morality of life, consecration of person to high ideals, devotionto truth, patriotism to nation, and allegiance to God.

Elder James E. Talmage (The House of the Lord, 100)

Temple covenants

28


29/34

Ritual drama

The endowment ceremony

29

CovenantsSigns

TokensKey words


30/34

Brother Joseph turned to me and said:Brother Brigham this is not arranged right, butwe have done the best we could under thecircumstances in which we are placed, and I

wish you to take this matter in hand andorganize and systematize all these ceremonies with thesigns, tokens, penalties and key words. I did so and eachtime I got something more; so that when we went through

the Temple at Nauvoo, I understood and knew how toplace them there. We had our ceremonies pretty correct.

Brigham Young, February 1877(Diary of L. John Nuttall)

The development of the endowment

30


31/34


1. Joseph used familiar symbols andrituals.

31


32/34

The connection to Freemasonry

Fraternal organization of stoneworkers, c. 16th17th century.

Many Nauvoo men wereMasons.

Ritual drama, signs,passwords, handshakes,clothing, symbols.

Outward similarities; different goalsand meanings.

32


33/34


1. Joseph used familiar symbols andrituals.

2. The presentation of the endowmenthas been modified to meet thechanging needs of Latter-day

Saints.

33


34/34

DOCTRINE andCOVENANTS

Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class

Next week:Sections 129131

LDS Doctrine and Covenants Slideshow 26: D&C 124-128

Documents

Transcript of LDS Doctrine and Covenants Slideshow 26: D&C 124-128