Preserving the Temples and the Home

In Official Declaration 1, the announcement of the end of plural marriage being practiced by members of the Church, President Wilford Woodruff told of the revelations which he had received concerning this matter. He related a question which he felt the Lord wanted him to ask to the Latter-day Saints at the time to help them to see that the course he was taking, ending the practice, was the right one for the Church. This is the question: “Which is the wisest course for the Latter-day Saints to pursue—to continue to attempt to practice plural marriage, with the laws of the nation against it and the opposition of sixty millions of people, and at the cost of the confiscation and loss of all the Temples, and the stopping of all the ordinances therein, both for the living and the dead, and the imprisonment of the First Presidency and Twelve and the heads of families in the Church, and the confiscation of personal property of the people (all of which of themselves would stop the practice); or, after doing and suffering what we have through our adherence to this principle to cease the practice and submit to the law, and through doing so leave the Prophets, Apostles and fathers at home, so that they can instruct the people and attend to the duties of the Church, and also leave the Temples in the hands of the Saints, so that they can attend to the ordinances of the Gospel, both for the living and the dead?” I love that the Lord here is seeking to reason with His people and helping them to think through the very difficult situation the members were in at this time. He wanted them in this situation, and surely us in our difficulties, to use careful judgment in thinking through the consequences of certain actions. So perhaps the first lesson from this declaration for us is that as we take difficult situations to Him, we should first attempt to think through carefully the various options we have and try to use our wisdom to determine the best course of action. We should consider the ramifications of different choices: where does this lead? Then “by the Spirit and power of God” He can confirm it or give different direction. We should not expect the Lord to always give us answers without diligent effort on our part to determine the best course.

             The other thing that impresses me about this question that the Lord posed to the Saints in 1890 are the reasons He suggested for ending the practice. At this time the persecution against members of the Church was intense and many men were spending time in prison over the practice. The temples were in jeopardy over plural marriage as the government was “threatening to confiscate the temples in Logan, Manti, and St. George” under the Edmunds-Tucker Act. Many faithful members, nonetheless, were willing to see it through with the conviction that it was God’s will for the people despite the terrible opposition. But the Lord had clear reasons for why He was ending the practice, and I see two main themes in this question He asked the people: we must retain our temples and fathers must remain in the home with their families. The Lord was willing to have His people submit to the law and end the practice so that the great work for the salvation of the dead could be continued and so that on this side of the veil families could stay together in the home. While surely the Lord could have stopped the enemies of the Church from taking the temples or even imprisoning the men, He chose not too as He honored the agency of these persecutors. And so He accepted the sacrifice of His people and inspired His prophet to end the practice so the more important work of salvation on both sides of the veil could continue unabated. Perhaps what He said about the Saints’ efforts to build Zion and a temple in Jackson County could be applied here as well: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, that when I give a commandment to any of the sons of men to do a work unto my name, and those sons of men go with all their might and with all they have to perform that work, and cease not their diligence, and their enemies come upon them and hinder them from performing that work, behold, it behooveth me to require that work no more at the hands of those sons of men, but to accept of their offerings” (Doctrine and Covenants 124:49). So many of those faithful Saints had indeed given their all to obey His command and live in plural marriages, and the enemies were hindering their work. And so He accepted their offering and required it no more at their hands. Perhaps then another lesson for us as we consider our own challenges, whatever those may be, is that we must also prioritize the temple and the family. We should never let those get pushed aside for something else—we must continue the great work of the redemption of the dead at all costs and we must strengthen our families with fathers and mothers in the home. With those two top priorities in mind our decisions on many issues should become clear as we make sacrifices to give our best to the temple and the home.