A Rational Theology, As Taught Part 3

**Forgetfulness.** A condition of the Plan seems to be that the spirits, transferred to this earth, shall remain on earth in forgetfulness of an earlier existence. As in a dream, in moments of deep spiritual fervor, do we occasionally seem to recall our preexistent life. A veil has been drawn over the past; and, without the aid of memory, man fights his battle with the world of gross matter. This forgetfulness seems reasonable. The spirit of man accepted the earth-plan in detail, and if he remembered every step that led to this acceptance, and every detail of the Plan itself, there would not be much reason for the exercise of will in adhering to it. Left as he is, with little memory to steady him, he must exercise all his power, to compel surrounding forces to serve him in searching out the past and in prophesying for the future. By such vigorous exercise of his will he develops a more intimate acquaintances.h.i.+p with the things of the earth.

**Subject to Earth Conditions.** Intimacy with the conditions of earth, alone, will give a man final knowledge of them. Such information can not be obtained second hand nor by casual or superficial acquaintances.h.i.+p. For that reason, probably, man has been brought so completely under the subjection of gross matter, that he has no power over it beyond that which he gains as he obtains knowledge of it. Hence, on this earth, stripped of all power, and left, as it were, helpless in the midst of contending universal forces, man must search out the nature of the things about him and determine their laws before he acquires power over nature and thereby brings himself into a condition of joy. In the face of the impending change called death, man is possibly more determined to acquire the power that will lift him from the grave and give him an eternal a.s.sociation with all the elements of the universe, including his earthly body.

**Laws to be Obeyed.** To enter into the fullness of progressive joy, a man must, as has been said, naturally subject himself to the laws of the universe. In G.o.d's Plan for life on earth, is a system of laws, representing eternal realities, to which man must conform. Such a law, for instance, is faith, which, in its simple universal meaning, is man's certainty that in the universe is found everything he may desire for his upbuilding and advancement, and that the eternal relations of universal forces will prevail for his good. Another such fundamental law to which man must conform, is that of repentance, which in its larger sense, is merely faith made active. Pa.s.sive faith can do little for man's advancement. Yet another such law is that of baptism, which is essentially obedience to existing laws. And still another such law is that of the gift of the Holy Ghost, which perhaps means that a man may place himself in touch with the whole of the universe and to draw knowledge from it, including the beings of superior intelligence that it contains. These and other laws are given as guides for man. They sharpen his free agency; develop his habits of obedience to law, and establish for him communication with G.o.d. Moreover, a plan formulated by an intelligent Being must be composed of laws, for even the infinite relations.h.i.+ps of matter and energy fall naturally into groups of invariable laws. The laws of the Plan, like those above stated, are logical necessities, if the earth-plan is at all accepted.

**An Organization.** It follows of necessity that if there is a plan, there must also be an organization. The plan is not for one alone, but for many. All must be served and blessed by the Great Plan. Those, therefore, who subject themselves to the earth-plan with its laws, must needs group themselves so that the laws may be operative for all.

A person may be able to serve in the advancement of the whole race of man, only when there is a unity of purpose and effect, which can be secured only by organization. The question of organization involves those of priesthood, authority, and others, later to be discussed.

**All to Accept the Plan.** The earth-plan, fully completed, must be accepted or definitely rejected by all the spirits who have appeared on earth in conformity with their vote in the Great Council. That is fundamental. Those who enter upon their earth-careers may accept or reject the Gospel; but, since the full success of the Plan is based upon the advancement of all the spirits, it becomes necessary to use every possible effort to secure for the Plan a recognition of all those who accepted it in the spirit world, and who, therefore, entered upon the pilgrimage of earth. G.o.d's purpose in the Plan will be incomplete so long as one soul remains unconverted.

Life on earth deals directly with gross matter and the forces pertaining to it. The laws formulated for the guidance of man, are especially devised for earth conditions, and belong to the earth. For instance, baptism, the symbol of obedience to G.o.d and acceptance of his love, is not necessarily an ordinance that belongs elsewhere than on earth. More probably, water baptism is essentially an ordinance of and for this earth. It is unlikely that water baptism is practiced in a future estate. If it be true, then all who enter upon the earth-career, and who desire at the years of discretion the perfected joy derived from the Gospel, must have baptism on this earth. Should some of the spirits refuse, while on earth, to accept the Gospel, or fail to hear it, baptism, belonging to the earth, must be done for them, vicariously, on earth, so that they, having had the work done for them here, may accept or reject the ordinance in their life beyond the grave. This is the motive of the work for the dead. The earth ordinances must be done by or for every soul born upon the earth so that the earth experience may not be in vain, should the Gospel be accepted in the remotest day of eternity. This view becomes more important when it is recalled that ordinances of the earth, belonging primarily to the earth, stand for vast, eternal realities, indispensable to man's progress.

When the simple ordinances of the Gospel, as pertaining to the earth, have been done for the dead, then may the dead be judged as of the earth, and may receive the blessings of the obedient who conform to law.

**The Meaning of the Earth Plan.** The earth-plan, plan of salvation, or Great Plan, for the guidance of the spirits placed on earth, may perhaps be more clearly understood if it is compared to the great chart in the captain's cabin by which the vessel is steered. Life on earth is as the large and angry ocean. The chances of s.h.i.+pwreck and of being driven out of the set course, are many. If, however, the ocean is well charted, the mariners can better avoid the sunken reefs, and the dangerous places, and after the storm can more readily return to the course so that the destined port may be entered with a good bill of health. The Gospel is such a chart, on which the journey is outlined, showing the dangers of the journey, the havens of rest and the final destination. If a man accept the chart, and use it in his life's career, he will find the voyage pleasant and his arrival secure, and his life will be as that of one cast in pleasant places.

earth so that the earth experience may not be in vain, should the Gospel be accepted in the remotest day of eternity. This view becomes more important when it is recalled that ordinances of the earth, belonging primarily to the earth, stand for vast, eternal realities, indispensable to man's progress.

When the simple ordinances of the Gospel, as pertaining to the earth, have been done for the dead, then may the dead be judged as of the earth, and may receive the blessings of the obedient who conform to law.

**The Meaning of the Earth Plan.** The earth-plan, plan of salvation, or Great Plan, for the guidance of the spirits placed on earth, may perhaps be more clearly understood if it is compared to the great chart in the captain's cabin by which the vessel is steered. Life on earth is as the large and angry ocean. The chances of s.h.i.+pwreck and of being driven out of the set course, are many. If, however, the ocean is well charted, the mariners can better avoid the sunken reefs, and the dangerous places, and after the storm can more readily return to the course so that the destined port may be entered with a good bill of health. The Gospel is such a chart, on which the journey is outlined, showing the dangers of the journey, the havens of rest and the final destination. If a man accept the chart, and use it in his life's career, he will find the voyage pleasant and his arrival secure, and his life will be as that of one cast in pleasant places.

THE BEGINNING OF THE EARTH WORK

CHAPTER 10.

THE COMING OF MAN.

The decision arrived at in the Great Council was promptly carried out by those to whom the authority to do so was confided.

**Making of the Earth.** The first step, in carrying out the Great Plan, was to secure a place on which the desired experience might be gained. To accomplish this, the earth was made from materials, found in the universe, which, by the intelligent power of G.o.d, were collected and organized into the earth. The earth was not made from nothing, nor by the fiat of G.o.d, except as his will and words determined that the work should be undertaken. In the clumsy way of man, by adding stone to stone or material to material, the earth was not made; rather, great forces, existing in the universe, and set into ceaseless operation by the directing intelligence of G.o.d, a.s.sembled and brought into place the materials const.i.tuting the earth, until, in the course of long periods of time, this sphere was fitted for the abode of man. In the making of the earth, as in all other matters pertaining to the destiny of man, the work was done in complete and orderly harmony with the existing laws of the universe. The Mosaic six days represent successive stages in the earth's construction, each measured by ages of time. The forces of nature act steadily but slowly in the accomplishment of great works.

**The Builders.** The creation of the earth, the details of which are not known, must have been marvelously and intensely appealing in its interest to the intelligent beings who, because of their exalted knowledge, had the necessary power over the elements and forces of the universe to accomplish the forming of an earth. Three great intelligent Beings were in supreme authority in the building of the earth, namely, G.o.d, the Father, his Son, Jehovah, who became the Christ, and Michael, who became the first man, Adam. These three beings were naturally the ones concerned in the making of an earth for the sojourn of the spirits, for it was through the agency of G.o.d, the Father, that the spiritual bodies were started on the road of eternal progression; it was about the mission of Jehovah, the Son of G.o.d, that the differences of opinion raged in the Great Council, and, finally, it was Adam, or Michael, who was appointed to be the one to come upon the earth, and there to subject himself to death, so that the procreation of spirits in earthly tabernacles, might be started. These three beings, who are so vitally concerned in the destinies of the human race, had charge of the making of an earth which should be a suitable and a pleasant habitation for the earth-clad spirits.

**The Coming of Man.** The earth at last was finished. Adam, the first man, and his wife, Eve, then appeared on earth. The statement that man was made from the dust of the earth is merely figurative, and means that he was made of universal materials, as is the earth.

Likewise, the statement that G.o.d breathed into man the breath of life is only a figure of the existence of the spirit within the body. The exact process whereby man was placed upon earth is not known with certainty, nor is it vital to a clear understanding of the plan of salvation. We may rest a.s.sured that the first man and the first woman were eternal beings, who subjected themselves to life on this earth, so that the process of clothing eternal spirits with mortal bodies might begin on the earth. Adam and Eve, in view of the great sacrifices they made to make the Great Plan a reality, are the great hero and heroine of human history.

**The "Fall."** Biblical lore and traditions among all of the races of man, tell of the "fall" of the first parents from the grace of G.o.d.

An event called the fall did occur, but it was a necessary part of the Great Plan. Adam and Eve were eternal beings, and were not under the ban of mortal death. Subject to death they must become, however, if their posterity should inherit corruptible bodies. The fall then was simply a deliberate use of a law, by which act Adam and Eve became mortal, and could beget mortal children. The exact nature of this event or the exact manner in which the law was used is not understood.

The Bible account is, undoubtedly, only figurative. There was no essential sin in the fall, except that the violation of any law, whether deliberately or otherwise, is always followed by an effect.

The "fall" of Adam and Eve was necessary, for without it, there would have been no begetting on the earth of spirits with mortal bodies, and the Plan proposed and confirmed in the Great Council would have remained inoperative. "Adam fell that man might be."

**The First Blessing.** The curse, so-called, p.r.o.nounced by G.o.d upon Adam as he went out of the Garden of Eden, that in the sweat of his brow he should earn his bread, is possibly the greatest of all human blessings, and it is a simple extension of a great eternal law. From the beginning of the dim past, when man slumbered with only a feeble thought of his possible vast future, the great law of his progress has been that only personal effort can achieve desirable things. The price to be paid for advancement is vigorous self-effort. The active will precedes every step of progress. To exercise the will means labor, which may well be represented by "the sweat of the brow." The so-called curse, however, carries with it the magnificent promise that man, by the exercise of his powers, may subdue the earth, and make it serve all his needs. In a universe controlled and directed by the intelligent G.o.d, there can be no question but that, ultimately, the intelligent will shall control for its own use not only the things of this earth but all the forces of the universe. The subjection to which the earth will be brought depends entirely upon the degree to which man exercises his will, that is, the degree to which he accepts the benefits of the first blessing.

**The Garden of Eden.** The first days on earth of the first man and the first woman are of intense interest to every student of the subject, and it is to be regretted that so little knowledge of those early times has survived the vicissitudes of time. In the Garden G.o.d walked with man and taught him the living truth. According to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Garden of Eden, the first home of Adam and Eve, was located near the city known as Independence, Missouri. To the north and east of Independence, some scores of miles, is probably the place where Adam dwelt after he had been driven out of the Garden. The State of Missouri, and the country around it, is, therefore, of tremendous interest to those who accept the Gospel as restored in the latter days.

**A Wise Beginning.** In all matters pertaining to the beginning of man's earth career, it may be observed that proper preparations have been made. There has been no blind destiny working out unknown purposes; instead, intelligent forces have provided for man from beginning to end, so that the whole scheme of man's life, here and hereafter, is one of order and system.

CHAPTER 11.

THE COURSE OF THE GOSPEL ON EARTH.

The Great Plan provided that man should come upon earth with the memory of his past taken from him, so that, beginning his earth-life as a child, he might repeat on earth the efforts that earned for him progress in the pre-existent life. Even Adam and Eve forgot the details of their previous lives, for it was necessary that all be under the same law, and that no improper strength be derived, by anyone, from the pre-existent experiences.

**Adam Hears the Gospel.** The only rational thing that could be done to spirits so placed on earth was to teach them fully the story of man's origin and destiny and the meaning and duties of the earth-life.

The plea of ignorance would not then be valid. Consequently, soon after the first parents had been driven out of the Garden of Eden, an angel appeared and taught Adam the story of man from the first to the last day. The plan of salvation, including the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, the organized Church, the purpose and powers of the priesthood and the rights and duties of man upon earth, whether within or without the Church, was fully unfolded. Adam, the first earth-pupil of G.o.d, was taught, as his first lesson, the great philosophy overshadowing the existence of man. When Adam had been taught all this, and had accepted the truth, he was baptized, even as men are baptized today, and he entered into all the other ordinances of the Gospel and was given full authority through the Priesthood conferred upon him to officiate in G.o.d's name in all matters pertaining, under the Great Plan, to the welfare of man.

**The First Dispensation.** As children and children's children came to Adam he taught them carefully all that had been taught him, so that the knowledge of the law might remain upon the earth. The ordinances of the Gospel were practiced, the righteous were organized into the Church, even as today, and the authority of the Priesthood was transmitted by Adam to his children, and by them to their children, so that the precious gift might not be lost. In those days the Church was probably fully organized, according to the patriarchal order; at least in the days of Enoch, the seventh from Adam, it seems quite clear that the Church was established with all of its essential parts. The activity in behalf of the Gospel which began with Adam and continued until Noah, at the time of the great flood, is ordinarily known as the first dispensation of the Gospel.

**The First Apostasy.** From the beginning of his earth-career, Adam retained his free agency. G.o.d, directly or through agents, might teach and command, but Adam, a free agent, had the right to accept or reject as seemed him best. Adam's children, likewise, though taught by the patriarch of the race of the way of righteousness, could accept or reject for themselves whatever was taught them. Free agency was with man in that early day as it is now.

The descendants of Adam soon began to exercise their free agency, some for, and many against, the Great Plan. Cain exercised his free agency in the murder of Abel. As time went on, large numbers departed from the truth concerning man's place in the universe as taught by Adam, and refused to accept the Gospel. Concurrently with the establishment of the Church in the first dispensation there was, therefore, a first great apostasy. It is ever so, it has ever been so, and will ever be so, that in a world of intelligent beings, possessing free agency, some will accept and some will reject the truth. No doubt, in the process of time, truth will triumph, and all may be brought to understand the will of G.o.d, but the conquest is attended by many temporary departures from the truth. Nevertheless, Adam and those who remained true to his teachings, continued, faithfully, to teach to others the eternal truth, so that they might perchance be made to return to the great truth which they had so lightly cast aside.

**The Later Dispensations.** The first apostasy culminated in the flood, which was sent because of the violence of the first apostasy and the corruption of men. As far as known, only Noah and his immediate family were preserved. In them, however, was represented all the blood of the world. To the new race Noah explained fully that the flood was due, entirely, to the wicked hardness of the hearts of the people, and their refusal to accept eternal truth or to respect the authority of G.o.d, and that it was necessary, should calamity be avoided, to live in accordance with the Great Plan. To them all, the Gospel was taught in its purity. Nevertheless, it was only a short time before apostasy again occurred among many. The free agency of man can not be curbed. Yet, probably, there has not been, since the flood, such utter corruption as prevailed during the first apostasy.

From the days of the flood, G.o.d or his messengers have appeared on earth, at various times, to restore the truth or to keep it alive in the hearts of the faithful, so that man might possess a full knowledge of the Gospel and that the earth might never need to be without the story of the Great Plan and the authority of the Priesthood. For instance, Melchizedek, the high priest, possessed a full measure of the authority of the holy priesthood. To Abraham, G.o.d and his angels appeared, and endowed him with the authority of G.o.d. So on, down the course of time, there are numerous instances of the appearance of G.o.d to men to help the children of men to a perfect understanding of the great truths that must be understood and obeyed, if men are to continue in their progressive development. It is not known how many men and women at various times have received such visitations, but it is probable that hosts of men and women at various times, even when the Church has not been organized, have received and used the truth of life as embodied in the Great Plan.

**The Dispensation of the Meridian of Time.** In the course of human history and in accordance with the Great Plan, Jesus the Son of G.o.d, appeared on earth, to atone for the act of Adam and Eve, who "fell"

that men might be. This is called the dispensation of the meridian of time. Jesus did live on earth, and gave his life so that mortal bodies may rise from the grave and pa.s.s into an eternal existence, beyond the reach of corruption. During the sojourn of Jesus on earth, he devoted himself to a restatement of the Gospel, including the story of the past and the present and the hope of the future. At no time since the days of Adam, had the Gospel been so fully taught and made so simply clear to the understanding as in the days of Jesus. Under the teachings of the Savior, the Church was re-established in order and completeness.

**The Great Apostasy.** After the ascension of Jesus, the Church remained, for some time, fully organized. Thousands flocked to it, and the people lived in accordance with the doctrines taught by the Savior. Soon, however, history repeated itself. In the right of their free agency, men refused, in many cases, to obey the laws and ordinances of the Gospel, and more often changed them to suit their own convenience. Such departures from the truth became more numerous and more flagrant as time wore on, until error permeated the whole Church. At last, about six hundred years after Christ, the Gospel laws and ordinances had become so completely warped that it was as if the Church had departed from the earth. The authority of the Priesthood no longer remained with the Church. This was the great apostasy. From that time, complete darkness reigned for many centuries. In those days, however, many honest men could see that the truth was not upon the earth, and hoped that the simple principles of the Gospel might again be correctly practiced by man. Among such men were Luther and many others, who used their best endeavors to show the people that error ruled. At last many were awakened, and the days of the Reformation began. The Reformation was a period of preparation for the last restoration of the Gospel on earth. Many years were required before the darkness of centuries could be lifted from the souls of men.

**The Restoration.** Finally, as men broke through the darkness, as intelligence became diffused among all men, and as liberality of thought grew and became respected, the world was ready for the eternal truth. Again the Gospel was restored with the authority of the Priesthood and the organization of the Church. On an early spring day, in the year 1820, in the woods of western New York, G.o.d the Father, and G.o.d the Son, appeared to a fourteen-year-old boy named Joseph Smith, who had faithfully asked for divine help. Through the instrumentality of this boy, guided constantly by G.o.d, the Church was re-established, the authority of the Priesthood again conferred upon many men, and a fulness of knowledge pertaining to man's place in the universe offered to all who would listen. In time the Church was organized precisely as was the primitive Church, and more fully than at any other time in the history of the world. This was the great restoration.

**The Vital Facts.** The Gospel was fully taught to the first man, who in turn taught it to others. The Church was organized from the beginning. As apostasy dimmed men's knowledge of the Gospel and undermined the Church, the full truth was repeatedly restored. At least four times has a complete statement of the Great Plan been made to the people of the earth--at the time of Adam, of Noah, of Jesus Christ and of Joseph Smith. Consequently, the Gospel has been on the earth and within the reach of men practically during the whole course of the earth's history. The fundamental truths of the Great Plan were taught to Father Adam and since that time have been scattered broadcast over the earth. This wide dissemination of the truth, in all ages, explains the fact that practically every life philosophy proposed by man contains some of the truths of the Gospel. In every system of theology and in every sect there is a certain measure of truth, for all have drawn from the one fountain. All, no doubt, seek for truth, and believe that they have found it; but, in fact, they have only fragments, picked up here and there and worked into a system. The full truth must encompa.s.s the complete philosophy of man and the universe, including the authority to act for G.o.d in the working out of the Plan. Those who thus accept the whole Plan, const.i.tute the Church of Christ. In the churches of the world there is much of truth and consequently none is wholly wrong, though at times the truth has been so warped that it appears worse than untruth. In the matter of full truth, and of authority, however, do the Church and its imitators differ absolutely. There can be no duplicate set of truth, and no double seat of authority.

It is clear that free agency, for which the heavenly battle was waged, is in full operation upon the earth. At first sight it may seem that Lucifer's plan would have been best, for by it all men, in spite of themselves, would have been given the earth-experience and kept in the righteous path that leads to salvation. Yet, the origin of man, and the doctrine that he can advance only by self-effort, make it unthinkable that he should allow himself to be, as it were, blindfolded and then compellingly directed by some greater power. Men are directed, no doubt, by beings of higher intelligence, but in that directing our wills must be allowed to play their part. There can be no real satisfaction, if it were possible, in advancement which has been forced upon man Lucifer's plan was impossible.

It must also be remembered, that men are not necessarily evil because they do not accept the Gospel. Some find it impossible to understand the truth because their hearts are so set upon other things, and others have been led by their free agency in one direction, whereas the Gospel would lead them in another. Nevertheless, though men are not evil because they refuse to accept the Gospel, they r.e.t.a.r.d themselves of necessity, when they fail to obey the law; and thereby they invite upon themselves the punishment that comes without fail to all who are not in full harmony with the great, controlling universal laws.

MAN AND G.o.d.

CHAPTER 12.