the mission of the apostles—miraculous opening of their way to the old world—ordination of willard richards—special labors of each apostle—the first immigrants to zion—joseph's letters of instruction and comfort to elders and saints abroad.
they "went forth weeping, bearing precious seed;" but they "have returned with rejoicing bearing their sheaves with them."
this is what the prophet says of the apostles and the other missionaries who first went out from nauvoo. the details of the sublime work, which then was resumed with such unparalleled vigor and which resulted in such a marvelous increase to the church, will soon be published in another work of this series. there is only space in this volume for a recognition of the general movement and its success, as joseph observed it and as it brought many precious souls to restore the numerical strength and the prosperity of the saints.
we have seen how the apostles went out from the poverty of nauvoo and montrose. no man who reads the history of that mission, undertaken at such a time, can doubt that they and their fellow-missionaries were inspired; for no mere zealot, without the absolute consciousness of divine direction and divine protection, would have joined the movement.
we shall now see how these men triumphed over that which to human understanding was impossible. briefly told:
departing from nauvoo ill and penniless, they made their way across the country, scattering the seeds of truth on every hand. and before they had reached the sea coast some of the harvest was ready to gather. their way was miraculously opened to them in this land, that they might have means to pursue their voyage to another. elders taylor and woodruff reached england on the 11th of january, 1840, in company with elder theodore turley. elders young, kimball, parley p. and orson pratt, and george a. smith, accompanied by elder reuben hedlock, landed at liverpool on the 6th day of april, 1840, just ten years from the day of the church's organization. the brethren found there elder willard richards and ordained him to the apostleship in obedience to the revelation. they scattered among the honest-in-heart, and each one of them achieved a quick and lasting victory for the faith. in the name of jesus christ they went forth healing the sick, restoring the lame and opening the eyes of the blind. in all their labors they gave evidence of such personal humility, bearing such a strong testimony to the truth of the gospel that the honest-in-heart flocked by hundreds to the standard which they reared.
every one among those brethren performed some special labor or occupied some special field. elder woodruff made the proclamation of the truth in staffordshire and afterwards in herefordshire, which yielded a wonderful harvest of fruit. elder taylor organized a large branch of the church in liverpool and established the gospel in ireland and the isle of man. elder heber c. kimball who had been so successful on his previous mission in proclaiming the gospel in lancashire, opened the work in london; in this labor he was accompanied by elders wilford woodruff and george a. smith. in this conference the faithful and talented young elder, lorenzo snow, now an apostle, soon became president. elder george a. smith followed elder woodruff into staffordshire, in which field he continued to labor after elder woodruff went to herefordshire. elder smith set apart and directed elder william barratt for a mission to south australia; and about the same time william donaldson, an english convert, was ordained and blessed to perform a mission in the east indies. elder willard richards labored principally in lancashire, though he spent some time with elder woodruff in herefordshire. elder orson pratt carried the work to scotland. elder parley p. pratt, under the direction of president brigham young and the other brethren of the twelve, began the publication of the millennial star. president brigham young directed the printing of the book of mormon, hymn book and other works, and traveled and preached as opportunity offered, being looked up to and sustained by his brother apostles as their president.
as early as the 6th of june, 1840, a company of saints sailed from england to make their way to nauvoo. this party consisted of forty-one people, the first to emigrate from a foreign land to join the cause of jesus christ in this last dispensation. three months later the ship north america sailed with two hundred saints. from this time on the work of immigration has been too vast to be followed in the brief space now at command.
the greatness of the work which the brethren were to perform in england was revealed to joseph by the spirit, and he was impressed to extend the missionary movement still further. on the 6th day of april, 1840, elder orson hyde, one of the twelve apostles, was directed to take a mission to jerusalem. he left his home in commerce on the 15th of the month, and in due time he reached his field and offered a prayer to heaven from the mount of olives as an introduction to his work.
the preaching of the gospel in the old world was a marvelous work and a wonder. from the time of the first mission, elders joseph fielding, willard richards and william clayton, with many other faithful brethren, had kept open the source of the stream by their noble efforts; but when the apostles landed there again in obedience to divine revelation, and put forth their hands, the little stream became an on-rushing river bearing triumph for the church upon its bosom.
from their labor the work spread into every land and has gathered up its tens of thousands of heroic and self-sacrificing souls.
such a foundation was laid that when the majority of the apostles were called home, the work continued, and it has continued up to the present time.
joseph's appreciation of their labor is evinced in a letter which he addressed to them in october, 1840. he says:
beloved brethren:
may grace, mercy and peace rest upon you from god the father and the lord jesus christ. * * * *
be assured, beloved brethren, that i am no disinterested observer of the things which are transpiring on the face of the whole earth; and amidst the general movements which are in progress, none is of more importance than the glorious work in which you are now engaged; consequently i feel some anxiety on your account, that you may, by your virtue, faith, diligence and charity, commend yourselves to one another, to the church of christ, and to your father who is in heaven; by whose grace you have been called to so holy a calling; and be enabled to perform the great and responsible duties which rest upon you. and i can assure you, from the information i have received, i feel satisfied that you have not been remiss in your duty; but that your diligence and faithfulness have been such as must secure you the smiles of that god whose servants you are, and also the goodwill of the saints throughout the world. the spread of the gospel throughout england is certainly pleasing.
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it is likewise very satisfactory to my mind, that there has been such a good understanding between you, and that the saints have so cheerfully hearkened to counsel, and vied with each other in the labor of love, and in the promotion of truth and righteousness. this is as it should be in the church of jesus christ: unity is strength. "how pleasing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." let the saints of the most high ever cultivate this principle, and the most glorious blessings must result, not only to them individually, but to the whole church—the order of the kingdom will be maintained, its officers respected, and its requirements readily and cheerfully obeyed.
love is one of the chief characteristics of deity, and ought to be manifested by those who aspire to be the sons of god. a man filled with the love of god is not content with blessing his family alone, but ranges through the whole world, anxious to bless the whole human race. this has been your feeling, and caused you to forego the pleasures of home, that you might be a blessing to others, who are candidates for immortality, but strangers to truth; and for so doing, i pray that heaven's choicest blessings may rest upon you.
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let the saints remember that great things depend on their individual exertion, and that they are called to be co-workers with the holy spirit in accomplishing the great work of the last days; and in consideration of the extent, the blessings and glories of the same, let every selfish feeling be not only buried, but annihilated; and let love to god and man predominate, and reign triumphant in every mind, that their hearts may become like unto enoch's of old, and comprehend all things, present, past and future, and come behind in no gift, waiting for the coming of the lord jesus christ.
the work in which we are unitedly engaged is one of no ordinary kind. the enemies we have to contend against are subtle and well skilled in manoeuvring; it behooves us to be on the alert to concentrate our energies, and that the best feelings should exist in our midst; and then, by the help of the almighty, we shall go on from victory to victory, and from conquest to conquest; our evil passions will be subdued, our prejudices depart; we shall find no room in our bosoms for hatred, vice will hide its deformed head, and we shall stand approved in the sight of heaven, and be acknowledged the sons of god.
let us realize that we are not to live to ourselves, but to god; by so doing the greatest blessings will rest upon us, both in time and in eternity.
and to the saints scattered abroad the prophet wrote:
beloved brethren:
we address a few lines to the church of jesus christ, who have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which has been delivered to them by the servants of the lord, and who are desirous to go forward in the ways of truth and righteousness, and by obedience to the heavenly command, escape the things which are coming on the earth, and secure to themselves an inheritance among the sanctified in the world to come.
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the work of the lord in these last days is one of vast magnitude and almost beyond the comprehension of mortals. its glories are past description, and its grandeur unsurpassable. it is the theme which has animated the bosom of prophets and righteous men from the creation of this world down through every succeeding generation to the present time; and it is truly the dispensation of the fullness of times, when all things which are in christ jesus, whether in heaven or on the earth, shall be gathered together in him, and when all things shall be restored, as spoken of by all the holy prophets since the world began; for in it will take place the fulfillment of the promises made to the fathers, while the displays of the most high will be great, glorious and sublime.
the purposes of our god are great. his love unfathomable, his wisdom infinite, and his power unlimited; therefore the saints have cause to rejoice and be glad, knowing that this god is our god forever and ever, and he will be our guide until death. having confidence in the power, wisdom and love of god, the saints have been enabled to go forward through the most adverse circumstances, and frequently when, to all human appearance, nothing but death presented itself, and destruction inevitable, has the power of god been manifest, his glory revealed and deliverance effected; and the saints, like the children of israel, who came out of the land of egypt and through the red sea, have sung an anthem of praise to his holy name. this has not only been the case in former days, but in our days, and within a few months have we seen this fully verified.
having, through the kindness of our god been delivered from destruction, and secured a location upon which we have again commenced operations for the good of his people, we feel disposed to go forward and suit our energies for the up-building of the kingdom and establishing the priesthood in their fullness and glory. the work which has to be accomplished in the last days is one of vast importance and will call into action the energy, skill, talent, and ability of the saints, so that it may roll forth with that glory and majesty described by the prophets, and will consequently require the concentration of the saints, to accomplish works of such magnitude and grandeur.
the work of the gathering spoken of in the scriptures will be necessary to bring about the glories of the last dispensation. it is probably unnecessary to press this subject on the saints, as we believe the spirit of it is manifest, and its necessity obvious to every considerate mind; and everyone zealous for the promotion of truth and righteousness is equally so for the gathering of the saints.
dear brethren, feeling desirous to carry out the purposes of god to which we have been called, and to be workers with him in this last dispensation, we feel the necessity of having the hearty co-operation of the saints throughout this land and upon the islands of the sea; and it will be necessary for them to hearken to counsel and turn their attention to the church, the establishment of the kingdom, and lay aside every selfish principle,—everything low and groveling.
during the remaining years of his life the subject of missionary work was very near to the prophet's heart. he desired that all men might have the privilege of hearing the truth. the gospel was proclaimed in many lands, including the distant isles of the sea, during his lifetime; and a plan was laid for the most comprehensive and unselfish system of proselyting since the day when jesus christ said to his apostles: "go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."