[Apostle Wilford Woodruff Journal] 8th Sunday morning At 6 oclock the Bishops repaired with the Twelve + to the streams of water for the purpose of Baptizing & Confirming the whole Camp who had not been [baptized] since we came into the valley. We felt it our privilege to be baptized & to Baptize the Camp of Israel for the remission of our sins & to renew our covenants before the Lord. Brothers Lewis, Godard, Everett Shumway Snow & H C Kimball baptized & the Twelve Confirmed them. There were 224 Baptized & Confirmed this morning 99 of which I Confirmed with my own hands making 288 in all that have been baptized in the camp during the last 3 days.
The Camp assembled as usual at 10 oclok for meeting And was addressed as usual by H C Kimball who had the spirit of speaking unto edifycation. I followed him And was never blessed with greater liberty of speach in addressing a congregation. I was edifyed myself & those that herd.
In the afternoon we met again & pertook of the Sacrament. Br Lorenzo Young addressed the people & was followed by Br Brigham Young who was feeble in health. He gave good Council & we were edefyed. At the Close of the meeting the men were Called up to go onto the Doby yard. 76 volunteered & they thought that would answer for A commencment. +
The following are some of the remarks made by W Woodruff in his address to the Saints in the fore part of the day written by Thomas Bullock clerk: I have been much edifyed in the teaching given by Elder Kimball & have reflected much since I came into this valley concerning our situation, our calling, & the work that is required at our hands. And the words of one of the Apostles will apply well to our case "that when we have done the will of God we have need of patience that we may obtain the blessings, & though it tarry long we should obtain it if we continued faithful." Of all people that ever lived we have the greatest reason to be faithful & exercise Patience & not be weary in well doing for we have the greatest work to perform & Blessings promised accordingly.
The day has come when the Lord has set his hand with full purpose of heart to esstablish his Kingdom on the earth, gather Israel build up Zion & Jerrusa-lem make an end of sin & cause all nations to bow the Knee & every tongue to confess that Jesus is the Lord & has a right to reign on the earth. And ye are the people ye Elders of Israel & Latter Day Saints that are moved upon & Called & Chosen to do this work. Who is sufficient for these things, & what maner of persons ought ye to be?
I rejoice that I enjoy the society of so many of the Saints this day in this glorious valley which has not been pelluted by the ungodly gentiles & that I can speak with freedom without being trammled by wicked men. The difference in the society Between the Saints & the gentiles in the United States can ownly be Contrasted between Heaven & Hell in comparison. For let an elder of this church depart from New York & travel to Saint Louis & let the people know who he is & He would be in Hell all the time & there is A cause. For he is A Prophet Seer & Revelater. Patriarchs & Apostles have been raised up in there midst. The Church & kingdom of God has been planted among them, the gospel preached & salvation freely offered unto all & what have they done? They have stoned the Prophets & killed them. Poured out their Blood like water upon the earth, have burned their dwellings & given their goods to the flames, have driven the Apostles with the keys of Eternal life & salvation with the entire Church & Kingdom of God out of their midst into the wilderness & the mountains & they have turned the last key that has sealed & locked fast their condemnation that lingereth not & there damnation that slumbereth not. And this is the reason why they are full of hell & desire to destroy every thing that retaines any portion of the spirit of Gods.
But if it requires all the martered Saints in Heaven from righteous Abel to Joseph to go forth from the temple in Heaven & pour out all the vials of the last plagues upon the United States & open the seals upon them in order to avenge the Blood of the Prophets & Saints which they have spilt, it will be done for that Blood Shall spedily be avenged. Yea vary Spedily.
The Prophet Joseph, The Twelve Apostles, with many of the Elders of Israel & Saints Have been called to pass through seenes of sufferings & privations that would have discouraged an Allexander. They have had to combat earth and Hell, wicked men & devils, Sickness & death, Burnings Drivings & persecutions. But have we been discuraged? No. The greater the difficulties the more we have been stimulated to Action.
What has sustained us & inspired us to action in the midst of these difficulties? We have been upheld by the power of God that we might fulfill his purposes. Our spirits have been stired up by the [-] Blood of the Martered Prophets which still cries from the ground [to?] heaven for vengance & will not rest neither let us untill it is avenged.
We have also been moved upon by the spirits of our fathers & Progenitors whose bodies have lain in the dust for many generatons who recieved not the gospel in the flesh not having it prooffered unto them, but are now waiting for the redemption of their bodies After salvation shall be sealed upon them through the instru[ment]ality of their sons who should embrace the gospel in the fulness of times.
We are also moved upon by the Holy Ghost to accomplish the [-] work of the last days & fulness of times in preparing the earth for the reign of Christ, & to fulfill the promises which was made to the Ancient Prophets & Patriarch which promises they drew from the Heavens by their faith & faithfulness before the Lord & saw the work that lies before us by the spirit of inspiration revelation dreams & the visions of Heaven.
Thus it has been that A Combination of Causes of eternal & important Consequences has stimulated the Proph[et] Apostles & Elders to action untill they have resolved in their hearts that for Zions sake they would not hold their peace & for Jerrusa-lem Sake they would not rest, untill their righteousness goes forth as Brightness & Salvation as A Lamp that Burneth.
Yea the time has Come for the Lord to esstab-lish his kingdom on the earth & to make A short work of it & overthrow the Kingdom of the devel, for He has held dominion on the earth for many generations & in one instance undertook to claim his right to all the Kingdoms of the world before the Lord when He showed the Savior all the kingdoms of the world & proffered to give them to him if He would fall down & worship him, when in fact the Poor Devil + did not own one foot of land on the earth.
I feel also that the time has come when we Can no more preach salvation to those of the gentiles who have rejected the Prophets & killed them & cast the saints & the gospel out of their midst. The last time I was through the United States I Could not Preach salvation to the people but I could have the spirit of God to preach damnation to them for they were worthy. I tried to preach a gospel sermon in the Temple in Nauvoo to many of the world who were present But it was hard work to do it. But I could tell them about their spilling the Blood of the Prophets & the judgments that must follow them & that they had not got done with Joseph Smith but he would yet rise in judgment against them & condemn them.
I will close by relating A circumstance that transpired when I was in the eastern States on my return from England. I went to the state of Connecticut (my native place) to get my father to bring to Zion. I thought if Joseph was Justifyed in giving Commandment to have his bones taken to be buried in Canaan, that I was Justifyed In taking my living father & gathering him with the Saints & while At his house I was visited by my Fathers Sister Avill Wheeler who was naturly a good woman & A strenuous Prysbeterian. While conversing about our leaving & going so far off she asked me with tears in her eyes if I supposed we Could find any Christian society to associate with. I replyed for Gods Sake & our sake I hope not. She gazed at me with Amazement & wondered why I should fe
el so. I replyed that the Christians of this generation in the United States had persecuted us to all intents & Purposes had burned our dwellings, given our goods to the flames had murdered our Brethren, Sisters, wives & Children had martered our Prophets, Patriarchs, & Apostles & driven the remainder of us from their midst & Should we now desire their society & seek their religion! No. I would rather be in the midst of the griselly bears of the rocky mountains, or mingle with the society of the Savages of the forest, than to longer mingle with such Christians or longer bear the fruits of their religion.
[source: Wilford Woodruff's Journal: 1833-1898 Typescript, Volumes 1-9, Edited by Scott G. Kenney, Signature Books 1993, http://amzn.to/newmormonstudies]
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