| 794 Presbyterian priest said, 'the common enemies of mankind.' Now all this means something. The Savior said: 'Blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake.'
One thing is certain. Mormonism troubles this generation as much as Israel troubled Egypt, and about in the same way. Pharaoh and his tax gatherers, (Pharaoh means tax gatherer,) wants the Latter day Saints to make brick without straw; but mark the saying, the saints will see the State Governments crumble to fragments; the Union crack to pieces like heated glass, and the people vanish like frost before a June sun, and then they will not do it. In the last days Israel is the head and not the tail.
Congress may give Mormon petitions a genteel 'good by;' Legislatures may enact and 'repeal' laws to frustrate the 'union' of Mormons; and periodicals may give the Latter-Day Saints a 'popular silence;' but remember there is a God in heaven, who notes all these things;-and when his wrath begins to smoke, then if the 'popularity' of this nation does not get singed, and the hypocrites of Babylon burned up, there is no truth in prophecy, or safety in religion, that's all.
The whole amount of Christians, mixed together, affords but a faint assurance that religion, as practiced by the sects, does much towards bringing in the millinium [millennium]: only about four million , of all sorts, out of twenty: (one in five)-is cold comfort. Now there are, about one thousand, or at least nine hundred millions of inhabitants on the Globe, and none more Christianized, than America, and does any rational man believe that an hundred million are fit for paradise? No! alas, No!
DEDICATION OF THE SEVENTIES HALL.
Thursday December 26th, A. D. 1844.
The services commenced under the direction of Pres. Joseph Young, who organized the meeting in the following order:
The stand was occupied by the seven presiding Presidents of the seventies, and the Twelve or as many of them as were present. The senior President of each Quorum was seated on the right, the Choir of singers on the left and Brass Band in front. The second and third Quorums in order, with their families, occupied the other seats for the day. Each day afforded a new congregation, that all the seventies, with their families, might in turn, participate in the privilege of the dedication, according to their respective Quorums, there being fifteen Quorums, whose claims were equal, two of which convened in the Hall each day, beginning with the second and third.
The excellent melody of the Choir and Band, mingling with the devout aspirations of a congregation of all saints, gave the commencement of their services an air of interest, felicity and glory, at once feeling, touching, pathetic, grand, sublime.
A hymn, composed by Elder W. W. Phelps, for the dedication, entitled 'A voice from the Prophet: Come to me,' was sung; and a supplication to the throne of grace made.
The dedication prayer by President Brigham Young, was in substance as follows:
Thou God who dwellest in the midst of thine own kingdoms, and doeth thy pleasure in the midst of the same. We realise [realize] that we are thy children, although we have long wandered from thee. Yet we feel that it is thy good pleasure to bless us, when we come unto thee with hearts of humility. Therefore we desire to present ourselves before thee as dutiful children to an earthly parent, knowing that we are thine and ask thee for those things we need. We feel, our Father, that we are in a world of darkness, and trouble, and death, where we cannot behold thy glory; yet we come unto thee in the name of Jesus Christ, thy son, and ask thee to forgive our sins and past offences [offenses]. Fill us with thy spirit, and accept our praise, while we dedicate ourselves unto thee, and as we have approximated to behold this beautiful morning, the day in which begins a new year, do thou, our heavenly Father, look down in compassion upon us, the creatures of thy care and protection, who dwell upon thy footstool. Increase our knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, that we, thy servants, may be enabled to administer salvation to thy people, even as thou hast committed a dispensation of the same unto us; and while we call on thy name we desire union in thy presence, our Father, to dedicate unto thee this hall, the ground upon which it stands, and all things that appertain unto it. We ask thee to let thy blessing rest upon thy servant Edward Hunter, our beloved brother, who has donated to us the ground upon which this sacred edifice has been erected. We pray the [thee] to enrich him and his family, not only with the good things of this world, but with the riches of eternity also. We ask thee, our Father, to accept the dedication of our hearts this morning, and may we feel the prelude of that power and authority with which thy servants shall be clothed, when they shall go forth and open the door of salvation to the nations and kingdoms of the earth; even thy servants, the seventies, upon whom the burden of thy kingdom does rest, and to whom
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