Once more, Joseph Smith on religious liberty — and the current threats to it

Last updated on: September 8, 2017 at 1:00 pm by Dan Peterson

Once more, Joseph Smith on religious liberty — and the current threats to it 2017-09-08T13:00:15-06:00 Dan Peterson

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For its 268th consecutive week of publishing at least one article every Friday, Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture put this short item up:

“The Power is In Them”

It’s a pretty open and unashamed request, albeit obliquely expressed, for more volunteers and, yes, more donations.

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Another passage from Joseph Smith’s impassioned 11 April 1844 sermon to the Council of Fifty on the topic of intolerance and religious liberty:

“In all governments or political transactions a mans religious opinions should never be called in question. A man should be judged by the law independant of religious prejudice, hence we want in our constitution those laws which would require all its officers to administer justice without any regard to his religious opinions, or thrust him from his office. There is only two or three things lacking in the constitution of the United States. If they had said all men born equal, and not only that but they shall have their rights, they shall be free, or the armies of the government should be compelled to enforce those principles of liberty. And the President or Governor who does not do this, and who does not enforce those principles he shall lose his head. When a man is thus bound by a constitution he cannot refuse to protect his subjects, he dare not do it. And when a Governor or president will not protect his subjects he ought to be put away from his office.”

I’ve published other quotations from this sermon at “Newly published thoughts from Joseph Smith on religious freedom and tolerance” and, before that, at “A previously unknown comment from Joseph Smith on religious liberty.”

The sermon is cited by Gerrit J. Dirkmaat, “Lost Teachings of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and Other Church Leaders,” in Matthew J. Grow and R. Eric Smith, eds., The Council of Fifty: What the Records Reveal about Mormon History. (Spelling, grammar, and punctuation retained from the original notes of William Clayton.)

Joseph was obviously reacting to the treatment of the Latter-day Saints in Missouri and to the troubles brewing in Illinois, which would cost him his life (and that of his beloved older brother, Hyrum) within about two and a half months.

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Joseph Smith’s insistence that there should be no religious tests for citizenship and for service in public office may be growing more relevant in the United States with each passing day:

“Dianne Feinstein Attacks Judicial Nominee’s Catholic Faith”

“Democrats Are Increasingly Comfortable with Religious Tests”

But not only in the United States. My friend and colleague Ralph Hancock calls our attention to the following rather horrifying item:

“What’s changed in Britain since same-sex marriage?”

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