Table of Contents
False Prophets
Joseph Smith
I have translated a portion of them, and find they contain the history of the person with whom they were found. He was a descendant of Ham, through the loins of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and that he received his kingdom from the Ruler of heaven and earth.
Joseph Smith, History of the Church, vol 5, page 372
I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet.
Joseph Smith, History of the Church, Vol. 6, pp. 408-409
Brigham Young
Brigham Young died with the name Joseph upon his lips. He spoke of him and his work in these words: “I honor and revere the name of Joseph Smith. I delight to hear it; I love it. I love his doctrine” (JD 13:216 [17 July 1870]). “I feel like shouting hallelujah, all the time, when I think that I ever knew Joseph Smith, the Prophet whom the Lord raised up and ordained” (JD 3:51 [6 October 1855]). “I am bold to say that, Jesus Christ excepted, no better man ever lived or does live upon this earth. I am his witness” (JD 9:332 [3 August 1862]).
James E. Foust, Brigham Young: A Bold Prophet, BYU Speach
Commentary
I well remember the last time I spoke with my dear Grandmother. She was dying, and she knew it. She cried out, I can’t go to Jesus; I don’t know if I did enough! I am told the dying wife of a former Mormon Bishop did the same. This is so sad.
At the hour of my Grandmother’s death, she could only be consoled when she believed her long-dead sister appeared to her. My Mormon family views these visitations as miracles.
I, on the other hand, see only tragedy (2 Corinthians 11:14). From my deathbed, let me be searching for the face of my God; let me reach for the hand of my Lord; let me praise the name of Jesus even with my last quivering breath.
John Taylor
Sometime after dinner we sent for some wine. It has been reported by some that this was taken as a sacrament. It was no such thing; our spirits were generally dull and heavy, and it was sent for to revive us. I think it was Captain Jones who went after it, but they would not suffer him to return. I believe we all drank of the wine, and gave some to one or two of the prison guards. We all of us felt unusually dull and languid, with a remarkable depression of spirits. In consonance with those feelings I sang a song, that had lately been introduced into Nauvoo, entitled, ‘A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief’, etc.”
John Taylor, History of the Church, Vol. 7, p 101
I shall never forget the deep feeling of sympathy and regard manifested in the countenance of Brother Joseph as he drew nigh to Hyrum, and, leaning over him, exclaimed, `Oh! my poor, dear brother Hyrum!’ He, however, instantly arose, and with a firm, quick step, and a determined expression of countenance, approached the door, and pulling the six-shooter left by Brother Wheelock from his pocket, opened the door slightly, and snapped the pistol six successive times; only three of the barrels, however, were discharged. I afterwards understood that two or three were wounded by these discharges, two of whom, I am informed, died…
John Taylor, History of the Church, Vol. 7, pp 101-2
Heber J. Grant
My boy, you always keep your eye on the President of the Church, and if he tells you to do something wrong, and you do it, the Lord will bless you for it.
Heber J. Grant, as quoted by Apostle Marion G. Romney in “The Covenant of the Priesthood,” Ensign, July 1972, p. 98
N. Eldon Tanner
We must turn all this about. We cannot serve God and mammon. Whose side are we on? When the prophet speaks the debate is over.
N. Eldon Tanner. The Debate is Over. First Presidency Message. August 1979
Commentary
The Bible speaks of a people who, upon hearing the words of Paul, began the debate. The Bible calls these people “more noble.“
As a Mormon, I had never heard of these people. In an effort to find out why, I consulted several Mormon instruction manuals and discovered that their story had been repeatedly redacted.
I invite you to learn of the Bereans and be noble as they once were (Acts 17:11).
Ezra Taft Benson
The living prophet is more vital to us than the standard works.
Ezra Taft Benson, Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet, February 26, 1980 • BYU Devotional
Dallin H. Oaks
Government or corporate officials, who are elected directly or indirectly or appointed by majority vote, must expect that their performance will be subject to critical and public evaluations by their constituents. That is part of the process of informing those who have the right and power of selection or removal. The same is true of popularly elected officers in professional, community, and other private organizations. I suppose that the same is true even of church leaders who are selected by popular vote of members or their representative bodies. Consistent with gospel standards, these evaluations—though critical and public—should be constructive.
Dallin H. Oaks. Criticism. address to Latter-day Saint Student Association fireside in the Salt Lake Tabernacle on 4 May 1986. https://www.lds.org/ensign/1987/02/criticism?lang=eng
A different principle applies in our Church, where the selection of leaders is based on revelation, subject to the sustaining vote of the membership. In our system of Church government, evil speaking and criticism of leaders by members is always negative. Whether the criticism is true or not…
Evil speaking of the Lord’s anointed is in a class by itself. It is one thing to depreciate a person who exercises corporate power or even government power. It is quite another thing to criticize or depreciate a person for the performance of an office to which he or she has been called of God. It does not matter that the criticism is true.
Dallin H. Oaks. Criticism. address to Latter-day Saint Student Association fireside in the Salt Lake Tabernacle on 4 May 1986. https://www.lds.org/ensign/1987/02/criticism?lang=eng
It’s wrong to criticize leaders of the Church, even if the criticism is true…
Dallin H. Oaks, http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/elder-oaks-interview-transcript-from-pbs-documentary
Commentary
Voltaire said, “If you want to know who rules over you, just look for who you are not allowed to criticize.“
In Acts 17:11 God directed us to test every word from those who claim to be church leaders. The Bible, which the Mormon church claims, has been corrupted, and Voltaire oppose a professing apostle. Both are sources of truth that must be considered.
Jeffrey R. Holland
Either the Book of Mormon is what the Prophet Joseph said it is, or this Church and its founder are false, a deception from the first instance onward…Joseph must be accepted either as a prophet of God or else as a charlatan of the first order…
Jeffrey R. Holland, “Christ and the New Covenant,” Ensign, September 2002
Church Publications
The conclusion, therefore, is that the Chicago plate is indeed one of the original Kinderhook plates, which now fairly well evidences them to be faked antiquities.
https://www.lds.org/ensign/1981/08/kinderhook-plates-brought-to-joseph-smith-appear-to-be-a-nineteenth-century-hoax?lang=eng
