Ezra
Taft Benson
13th President
1985–1994
The
United States
Constitution
The
Bill of Rights
Declaration
of
Independence
Survival
and the
American Way
of Life
Civic Standards
for
Faithful Saints
Righteousness
Exalteth A
Nation
Civic
Standards for the Faithful Saints
In
the fall of 1971 I was invited by Baron von Blomberg, president of the
United Religious Organization, to represent the Church as a guest of the
king of Persia at the twenty-five hundredth anniversary of the founding of
the Persian Empire by Cyrus the Great.
King
Cyrus lived more than five hundred years before Christ and figured in
prophecies of the Old Testament mentioned in 2 Chronicles and the book of
Ezra, and by the prophets Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Daniel. The Bible states
how "the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia." (2
Chr. 36:22.) Cyrus restored certain political and social rights to the
captive Hebrews, gave them permission to return to Jerusalem, and directed
that Jehovah's temple should be rebuilt.
Parley
P. Pratt, in describing the Prophet Joseph Smith, said that he had
"the boldness, courage, temperance, perseverance and generosity of a
Cyrus." (Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, Deseret Book,
1938, p. 46.)
President
Wilford Woodruff said:
Now
I have thought many times that some of those ancient kings that were
raised up, had in some respects more regard for the carrying out of some
of these principles and laws, than even the Latter-day Saints have in our
day. I will take as an ensample Cyrus. . . . To trace the life of Cyrus
from his birth to his death, whether he knew it or not, it looked as
though he lived by inspiration in all his movements. He began with that
temperance and virtue which would sustain any Christian country or any
Christian king. . . . Many of these principles followed him, and I have
thought many of them were worthy, in many respects, the attention of men
who have the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff,
pp. 315-16.)
God,
the Father of us all, uses the men of the earth, especially good men, to
accomplish his purposes. It has been true in the past, it is true today,
it will be true in the future.
Elder
Orson F. Whitney of the Council of the Twelve said:
Perhaps
the Lord needs such men on the outside of His Church to help it along.
They are among its auxiliaries, and can do more good for the cause where
the Lord has placed them, than anywhere else. . . . Hence, some are drawn
into the fold and receive a testimony of the truth; while others remain
unconverted . . . the beauties and glories of the gospel being veiled
temporarily from their view, for a wise purpose. The Lord will open their
eyes in His own due time. God is using more than one people for the
accomplishment of His great and marvelous work. The Latter-day Saints
cannot do it all. It is too vast, too arduous for any one people. . . . We
have no quarrel with the Gentiles. They are our partners in a certain
sense. (Conference Report, April 1928, p. 59.)
This
would certainly have been true of Colonel Thomas L. Kane, a true friend of
the Saints in their dire need. It was true of General Doniphan, who, when
ordered by his superior to shoot Joseph Smith, said, "It is cold
blooded murder, I will not obey your order . . . and if you execute these
men, I will hold you responsible before an earthly tribunal, so help me
God." (Joseph Fielding Smith, Essentials in Church History,
Deseret Book, 1971 ed., p. 201.)
We
honor these partners because their devotion to correct principles
overshadowed their devotion to popularity, party, or personalities.
We
honor our founding fathers of this republic for the same reason. God
raised up these patriotic partners to perform their mission, and he called
them "wise men." (See D&C 101:80.) The First Presidency
acknowledged that wisdom when they gave us the guideline a few years ago
of supporting political candidates "who are truly dedicated to the
Constitution in the tradition of our Founding Fathers." (Deseret
News, November 2, 1964.) That tradition has been summarized in the
book The American Tradition by Clarence Carson.
The
Lord said that "the children of this world are in their generation
wiser than the children of light." (Luke 16:8.) Our wise founders
seemed to understand, better than most of us, our own scripture that
states that "it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as
soon as they get a little authority . . . they will immediately begin to
exercise unrighteous dominion." (D&C 121:39.)
To
help prevent this, the founders knew that our elected leaders should be
bound by certain fixed principles. Said Thomas Jefferson: "In
questions of power, then, let no more be heard of confidence in man, but
bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution."
(Draft of the Kentucky Resolutions of 1798.)
These
wise founders, our patriotic partners, seemed to appreciate more than most
of us the blessings of the boundaries that the Lord set within the
Constitution, for he said, "And as pertaining to law of man,
whatsoever is more or less than this, cometh of evil." (D&C
98:7.)
In
God the founders trusted, and in his Constitution—not in the arm of
flesh. "O Lord," said Nephi, "I have trusted in thee, and I
will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; .
. . cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his
arm." (2 Ne. 4:34.)
President
J. Reuben Clark, Jr., put it well when he said:
God
provided that in this land of liberty, our political allegiance shall run
not to individuals, that is, to government officials, no matter how great
or how small they may be. Under His plan our allegiance and the only
allegiance we owe as citizens or denizens of the United States, runs to
our inspired Constitution which God himself set up. So runs the oath of
office of those who participate in government. A certain loyalty we do owe
to the office which a man holds, but even here we owe just by reason of
our citizenship, no loyalty to the man himself. In other countries it is
to the individual that allegiance runs. This principle of allegiance to
the Constitution is basic to our freedom. It is one of the great
principles that distinguishes this "land of liberty" from other
countries. (Stand Fast by Our Constitution, Deseret Book, 1962, p.
189.)
"Patriotism,"
said Theodore Roosevelt, "means to stand by the country. It does not
mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly
to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. . . .
"Every
man who parrots the cry of `stand by the President' without adding the
proviso `so far as he serves the Republic' takes an attitude as
essentially unmanly as that of any Stuart royalist who championed the
doctrine that the King could do no wrong. No self-respecting and
intelligent free man could take such an attitude." (Theodore
Roosevelt, Works, vol. 21, pp. 316, 321.) As Latter-day Saints we
should pray for our civic leaders and encourage them in righteousness.
".
. . to vote for wicked men, it would be sin," said Hyrum Smith. (Documentary
History of the Church, vol. 6, p. 323.)
And
the Prophet Joseph Smith said, ". . . let the people of the whole
Union, like the inflexible Romans, whenever they find a promise
made by a candidate that is not practiced as an officer, hurl the
miserable sycophant from his exaltation. . . ." (DHC, vol. 6,
p. 207.)
Joseph
and Hyrum's trust did not run to the arm of flesh, but to God and correct
eternal principles. "I am the greatest advocate of the Constitution
of the United States there is on the earth," said the Prophet Joseph
Smith. (DHC, vol. 6, p. 56.)
The
warning of President Joseph Fielding Smith is most timely: "Now I
tell you it is time the people of the United States were waking up with
the understanding that if they don't save the Constitution from the
dangers that threaten it, we will have a change of government." (Conference
Report, April 1950, p. 159.)
Another
guideline given by the First Presidency was "to support good and
conscientious candidates, of either party, who are aware of the great
dangers" facing the free world. (Deseret News, November 2,
1964.)
Fortunately
we have materials to help us face these threatening dangers in the
writings of President David O. McKay and other Church leaders. Some other
fine sources by LDS authors attempting to awaken and inform us of our duty
are: Prophets, Principles, and National Survival (Jerreld L.
Newquist), Many Are Called But Few Are Chosen (H. Verlan Andersen),
and The Elders of Israel and the Constitution (Jerome Horowitz).
But
the greatest handbook for freedom in this fight against evil is the Book
of Mormon.
This
leads me to the second great civic standard for the Saints. For in
addition to our inspired Constitution, we have the scriptures.
Joseph
Smith said that the Book of Mormon was the "keystone of our
religion" and the "most correct" book on earth. (DHC,
vol. 6, p. 56.) This most correct book on earth states that the downfall
of two great American civilizations came as a result of secret
conspiracies whose desire was to overthrow the freedom of the people.
"And they have caused the destruction of this people of whom I am now
speaking," says Moroni, "and also the destruction of the people
of Nephi." (Ether 8:21.)
Now
undoubtedly Moroni could have pointed out many factors that led to the
destruction of the people, but notice how he singled out the secret
combinations, just as the Church today could point out many threats to
peace, prosperity, and the spread of God's work, but it has singled out as
the greatest threat the Godless conspiracy. There is no conspiracy theory
in the Book of Mormon—it is a conspiracy fact.
Then
Moroni speaks to us in this day and says, "Wherefore, the Lord
commandeth you, when ye shall see these things come among you that ye
shall awake to a sense of your awful situation, because of this secret
combination which shall be among you. . . ." (Ether 8:24.)
The
Book of Mormon further warns that "whatsoever nation shall uphold
such secret combinations, to get power and gain, until they shall spread
over the nation, behold they shall be destroyed. . . ." (Ether 8:22.)
This
scripture should alert us to what is ahead unless we repent, because there
is no question but that as people of the free world, we are increasingly
upholding many of the evils of the adversary today. By court edict godless
conspirators can run for government office, teach in our schools, hold
office in labor unions, work in our defense plants, serve in our merchant
marines, etc. As a nation, we are helping to underwrite many evil
revolutionaries in our country.
Now
we are assured that the Church will remain on the earth until the Lord
comes again—but at what price? The Saints in the early days were assured
that Zion would be established in Jackson County, but look at what their
unfaithfulness cost them in bloodshed and delay.
President
Clark warned us that "we stand in danger of losing our liberties, and
that once lost, only blood will bring them back; and once lost, we of this
church will, in order to keep the Church going forward, have more
sacrifices to make and more persecutions to endure than we have yet known.
. . ." (CR, April 1944, p. 116.) He also stated that if the
conspiracy "comes here it will probably come in its full vigor and
there will be a lot of vacant places among those who guide and direct, not
only this government, but also this Church of ours." (CR,
April 1952, p. 80.)
Now
the third great civic standard for the Saints is the inspired word of the
prophets—particularly the living president, God's mouthpiece on the
earth today. Keep your eye on the captain and judge the words of all
lesser authority by his inspired counsel.
The
story is told how Brigham Young, driving through a community, saw a man
building a house and told him to double the walls. Shortly afterward a
flood came through that town, resulting in much destruction, but this
man's walls stood. While putting the roof on his house, he was heard
singing, "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet!"
Joseph
Smith taught that "a prophet was a prophet only when he was acting as
such." (DHC, vol. 5, p. 265.)
Suppose
a leader of the Church were to tell you that you were supporting the wrong
side of a particular issue. Some might immediately resist this leader and
his counsel or ignore it, but I would suggest that you first apply the
fourth great civic standard for the faithful Saints. That standard is to
live for, to get, and then to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
A
number of years ago, because of a statement that appeared to represent the
policy of the Church, a faithful member feared he was supporting the wrong
candidate for public office. Humbly he took the matter up with the Lord.
Through the Spirit of the Lord he gained the conviction of the course he
should follow, and he dropped his support of this particular candidate.
This good brother, by fervent prayer, got the answer that in time proved
to be the right course.
We
urge all men to read the Book of Mormon and then ask God if it is true.
And the promise is sure that they may know of its truthfulness through the
Holy Ghost, "and by the power of the Holy Ghost [men] may know the
truth of all things." (Moro. 10:5.)
We
need the constant guidance of that Spirit. We live in an age of deceit.
"O my people," said Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, "they who
lead thee cause thee to err and destroy the way of thy paths." (2 Ne.
13:12.)
The
Lord holds us accountable if we are not wise and are deceived. "For
they that are wise," he said, "and have received the truth, and
have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been
deceived—verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast
into the fire, but shall abide the day." (D&C 45:57.)
And
so four great civic standards for the faithful Saints are, first, the
Constitution ordained by God through wise men; second, the scriptures,
particularly the Book of Mormon; third, the inspired counsel of the
prophets, especially the living president, and fourth, the guidance of the
Holy Spirit.
God
bless us all that we may use these standards and by so doing bless
ourselves, our families, our community, our nation, and the world.
Jesus
Christ Joseph Smith
Jr.
Brigham Young
John Taylor
Wilford Woodruff
Lorenzo Snow
Joseph F. Smith
Heber J. Grant
George A. Smith
David O. McKay
Joseph F. Smith
Harold B. Lee
Founding
Fathers Spencer Kimball Howard Hunter
Gordon Hinckley First Presidency Elders
Citizens
Rule Book
