Mormonism Exposed (Hancock)/Chapter 20
"Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant." Luke 19: 22. We now purpose to show by the Book of Mormon that the devil is the foundation of the Mormon church. "And it came to pass that I saw among the nations of the Gentiles the foundation of a great church. And the angel said unto me, Behold, the foundation of a church, which is most abominable above all other churches, which slayeth the saints of God, yea, and tortureth them, and bindeth them down, and yoketh them with a yoke of iron, and bringeth them down into captivity. And it came to pass that I beheld this great and abominable church; and I saw the devil that he was the foundation of it. And I also saw gold and silver, and silks and scarlets, and fine twined linen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlots."—B. of M., pp. 20, 100–103.
All Mormons hold that this great and abominable church is the Roman Catholic ecclesia. It is a fact however that the Roman Catholic and the Mormon churches are built upon the same foundation. To the church in Pergamos the Lord said, "So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate." Rev. 2: 15. In order to understand what was in the Nicolaitan doctrine it is only necessary to analyze the term. It is a compound term from nicho and laitos. Nicho, from the root niche, means to get the ascendency. Laitos is simply the people. We have, hence, in that word or doctrine, what is known in the ecclesiastical world as the clergy and laity. It is there alone that we find a class that hold the ascendency, and talk of the people as the laity. There were some in the apostles' day that were seeking in the spirit of Diotrophes, to get the ascendency, that they might be as lords over the masses. This is what the Lord hates, and the reason is apparent. In the kingdom of the Christ we have a kingdom in which each citizen is a member of the royal family. They constitute, hence, a kingdom of priests, with equal rights and privileges, in all that pertains to the worship of God. In that kingdom there are no dignitaries to lord it over the masses. See Rev. 1: 6; I. Pet. 2: 9. Each member in that family is born of royal parentage. They are all children of God, and are hence, joint heirs with the King immortal. The holy place of the tabernacle that was erected by Moses, under the immediate directions of the Almighty, was given as a type of the institution of God in Christ. In that holy place all met as consecrated priests of God—all were sanctified to the same service—all within that institution were equal, had equal privileges in all the services therein. In Ezekiel's vision of the temple of God the same lesson is taught that is given in the tabernacle. In that vision is given a picture of a building composed of many rooms, each room the same size, and each room just the size of the entire building, and each worshipper in that building filled the same measure.
In the institution of God the Nicolaitan doctrine is positively prohibited, for that doctrine subverts the will of God, enslaves the masses, and keeps them from the light of God. In Rome we have a kingdom of the clergy. In that institution we find, hence a self constituted priesthood that has the ascendency over and rule of the people. In that institution, hence, we find the Nicolaitan doctrine, that which the Lord hates. In the Roman ecclesia there are ecclesiastical dignitaries of various sizes, and a centralization of power on earth. There we see the pope, the prelates, the cardinals, the arch-bishops, the diocesan bishops, the priests, etc., with a centralization of power at Rome; and if we should call attention to her demoniacal features we would mention the Hermits, the Dominican Friars, the Inquisition, etc.
In Mormonism there is the first presidency, the patriarchs, the apostles, the seventies, the high priests, the bishops, the elders, the priests and the deacons. And should we call attention to its especial demoniacal features we would mention the Whittling deacons, the Danite Bands, Celestial Marriages, etc., etc., and all know that from its incipiency Mormonism proposed a centralization of power on earth. Thus it is clearly seen that Mormonism closely apes Romanism, and has the Nicolaitan doctrine in its fulness. We give the following:
- Romanism being founded upon the devil, any church modeled after the Roman pattern has the devil for its foundation.
- But the Mormon church is modeled after the Roman pattern.
- Therefore the Mormon church has the devil for its foundation.
Again,
- A church built upon the Nicolaitan doctrine, the doctrine of clergy and laity is something the Lord hates.
- But the Mormon church, having the doctrine of clergy and laity, is built upon the Nicolaitan doctrine.
- Therefore, the Mormon church is something that the Lord hates.
We will now show that genuine Mormonism is polygamous. That Joseph Smith was the oracle of Mormenism—its true representative and expounder will not be denied by any representative of Mormonism.
We now give attention to the question, Was Joseph Smith, the reputed prophet of latter day saints, the author of celestial marriage? It will, it must be admitted that if Joseph Smith was the author of celestial marriage, he was the author of polygamy as practiced by the Utah church. This being so, polygamy is a tenet of, and belongs to genuine Mormonism. Such being the case, none can be genuine Mormons and reject polygamy. Smith was highly favored by the inspiration that guided him. He could hence, have a revelation granted him for any and every emergency. It mattered not as to the nature of any project that he might have on hand, nor the moral features of any practice that he wished to indulge in, he could have a revelation that would justify his course. Notwithstanding the Book of Mormon condemned polygamy, when Smith wanted to justify plural marriages, the same inspiration that had condemned such could, at Smith's request, authorize, yea command it, and threaten all who opposed it with eternal damnation! Hence, the following wonderful revelation:
"1. Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you my servant Joseph, that inasmuch as you have enquired of my hand, to know and understand wherein, I, the Lord, justified Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as also Moses, David and Solomon, my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having many wives and concubines: Behold! and lo, I am the Lord thy God, and will answer thee as touching this matter: Therefore prepare thy heart to receive and obey the instructions which I am about to give unto you; for all those who have this law revealed unto them must obey the same; for behold! I reveal unto you a new and everlasting covenant; and if ye abide not in that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can reject this covenant, and be permitted to enter into my glory; for all who will have a blessing at my hands shall abide the law which was appointed for that blessing, and the conditions thereof, as was instituted from before the foundation of the world; and as pertaining to the new and everlasting covenant it was instituted for the fulness of my glory, and he that receiveth a fulness thereof must and shall abide the law or he shall be damned saith the Lord.
"2. And verily I say unto you that the conditions of this law are these: All covenants, contracts, bonds, obligations, oaths, vows, performances, connections, associations, or expectations that are not made and entered into and sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, of him who is anointed, both as well for time and for all eternity, and that too most holy by revelation and commandment, through the medium of mine anointed whom I have appointed on the earth to hold this power, (and I have appointed unto my servant Joseph to hold this power in the last days, and there is never but one on the earth at a time on whom this power and the keys of this priesthood are conferred) are of no efficacy, virtue or force in and after the resurrection from the dead; for all contracts that are not made unto this end have an end when men are dead."
It may be well to take this document by sections, that we may when we reach the end, have an understanding of the whole; and enjoy the fulness thereof! It is evident that the world never would have been favored with such a revelation had not Joseph been directly concerned, and hence importuned the Lord that he might know just how polygamy could be justified! Mormons talk of a new and everlasting covenant, and of Mormonism affording the fulness of the gospel. They have been challenged many times to give one idea pertaining to the gospel of Christ that is not found in the New Testament, and to show in what the fulness of the gospel consisted, as exhibited in Mormonism. They will never be enabled to comply with this request, nor to point to a law that embodies a new covenant until they endorse this polygamous document! It does claim to give a new and everlasting covenant to give the law embodying that covenant. It is, however, a law governing and justifying a plurality of wives! They are wont to say that the fulness of which the religious world had been deprived consists in the miraculous endowments that have been restored by the introduction of Mormonism. They argue that the true saints of God are not found where these miraculous endowments are wanting. In this, however, they show the Book of Mormon to be false. It is a fact that is conceded by all intelligent students of ecclesiastical history that miraculous gifts disappeared with the ending of the apostles' ministry. Mormons have asserted, and yet say, that they disappeared because of apostasy, and because, hence, the saints had ceased to exist. The quotation, however, from the Book of Mormon, with which we began this article, says that the Roman ecclesia, necessarily a few hundred years after the apostles, did slay and torture the saints of God. Truly, the legs of the lame are not equal.
This revelation answered Joseph's purpose in another respect. It made Joseph dictator over the entire Mormon fraternity. No contract, civil or religious, and, of course, that included marriage vows, was binding without the seal of the Holy Spirit affixed by him who had the key of that authority!! We now know what the new and everlasting covenant is, as revealed to Joseph. It was a law authorizing polygamy, and establishing Smith's right as an absolute monarch! We understand now how Mormonism, through its oracle, gave the fulness of the gospel! I wonder by what blood this covenant was dedicated?! One is made to wonder whether the founders of Mormonism ever saw a book that is called the New Testament? Yet we know that they had, for otherwise they could not have stolen the amount from it that they did in making the Book of Mormon. But, gentle reader, they had about as much respect for its authority as a true servant of Jesus Christ can have for the authority of such a miserable blasphemer as Joseph Smith was. That wonderful revelation continues:
"3. Behold! Mine house is a house of order, saith the Lord God, and not a house of confusion. Will I accept an offering, saith the Lord, that is not made in my name? Or, will I receive at your hands that which I have not appointed? And will I appoint unto you, saith the Lord, except it be by law, even as I and my Father ordained unto you before the world was? I am the Lord thy God, and I give unto you this commandment, that no man shall come unto the Father but by me, or by my word which is my law, saith the Lord; and everything that is in the world, whether it be ordained of men, by thrones, or principalities, or powers, or things of name, whatever they may be, that are not by me or my word, saith the Lord, shall be thrown down and shall not stand after men are dead, neither in nor after the resurrection, saith the Lord your God; for whatsoever things remaineth are by me; and whatsoever things are not by me shall be shaken and destroyed."
This will do for one mess, so we pause.