| 414 Early in May, 1865, the Presidency and Twelve held a joint session and published the result of their deliberations as follows:-
"Extract of minutes of a council of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, held at the residence of Bishop I. L. Rogers, near Sandwich, in Kendall County, Illinois, on the 1st, 2d, 3d, 4th, and 5th of May, 1865.
"Present of the First Presidency, Joseph Smith and William Marks. Of the Quorum of the Twelve, Zenos H. Gurley [Sen.], James Blakeslee, Samuel Powers, W. W. Blair, Reuben Newkirk, John Shippy, and Charles Derry.
"President Smith was requested to take the chair, and Charles Derry to act as clerk.
"The following resolutions were considered and adopted unanimously:-
"Resolved, that the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve declare to the church that the doctrine of sealing, as relating to marriage for eternity, is a heresy, and hence not taught or sanctioned by the law of God.
"That the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve reaffirm the article published in the Herald on the 1st of May, 1863, entitled 'Loyalty of the Saints.' [See this volume, p. 316.]
"That the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve, declare that the choice seer spoken of in the Book of Mormon, second chapter of the Second Book of Nephi, is Joseph Smith the Martyr.
"That Isaac Sheen be appointed Librarian to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
"That Isaac Sheen be authorized to receive subscriptions of money and of books for the Church Library.
"That the several branches of the church be instructed to report to the district conference to which they belong and the districts to the General Conference.
"That Hiram P. Brown preside over the part of Iowa comprising seven tiers of counties west of the Mississippi and four south of the Minnesota line.
(page 414) |
