the kingdom of God upon the wisdom of man, and not upon the spirit of truth, which God giveth severally as He will.

We warn the brethren faithfully to beware. Time rolls along with the accustomed celerity; but the signs of the times thickens around us with increased rapidity, and events will ere long transpire that will test the faithfulness of all, and they only will endure who are observing of the order of God, and who humble themselves before Him, by seeking to live by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. The mightiest struggle against the powers of evil is yet to come-fearful and tremendous will be the scenes that the present generations shall witness; but let the faithful "fear not, for it is their Father's good pleasure to give them the kingdom," while the trials of their faith and patience will all be found necessary to prepare them for the enjoyment of its triumph and glories.

Humanity is weak and powerless in this great struggle. Let the Saints ever maintain a consciousness of their weakness, that they may look to the strong for strength, and being in possession of the Spirit of God, be clothed upon with the canopy of heaven, to enable them to come off more than conquerors, through Him that hath loved them.

The "Unknown God" Revealed.

A Reply to a Georgia Editor's Urgent Appeal for a Restoration of the "Old Time" Faith in a Personal and Known God.

To the Editor of the Atlanta News:

DEAR SIR:-In a recent edition of your publication we observed the following able editorial, which we copy verbatim:

Our Modern Alters "To The Unknown God."

"As I passed by and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD."-St. Paul at Athens.

It is a painful and confusing thing to the Christian investigator to be convinced, as he must be, by the fact that millions of conventionally good people in our land, as in all civilized countries, are kneeling "To the Unknown God."

One cannot say how many professed Christians really have a conscious knowledge of the God whom they reverence and whose Son they believe Jesus, the Christ, to be. But one may know without much inquiry that very few of our Christian churchmen have what we may be allowed to call "a working knowledge of God." In other words, they have no definite mental or spiritual conception of the Personality of God. They attribute. to Him in a somewhat nebulous way certain characteristics in perfection, such as eternity, holiness, truth, love, mercy, patience, wisdom and power. But why and how these things constitute Personality and obtain manifestation in human affairs, is a riddle more profound than a Delphian oracle or a shadow interrogation point on the face of the Sphinx.

They have simply apprehended that "there must be a God," somewhat as the French cynic said, if none had ever been revealed Man would have invented one from necessity. They have been traind from infancy to think of an awful God and finally, by the religious impulse that always comes to a

man strongly at some point in his sentient career, they have professed a binding faith in that God-but still He remains practically and consciously "The Unknown God."

It is one of the most strenuous tasks of modern preaching to secure the serious, studious attention of men and women to the plain correspondence between the Scriptural revelations of God the Father with the know attributes and actions of Christ the Son.

Preachers themselves preach "The Unknown God" because they have not acquired the spiritual discernment to be satisfied that if Christ was "the express image of the Father," then, logically and indisputably "God was in Christ revealing Himself to the world." All through the labors of the apostles in the first age of the church runs the ceaseless insistence that men should not differentiate between the characters of God and Christ, but believe in Christ as an absolute manifestation of God in the flesh. If modern preachers would dwell upon that mighty truth with the same persistence the earth would soon be aflame with the knowledge and the love of God, and Christ would become the true Lord of millions who now do Him only lip service and of millions more who would suddenly see in Him "the fulness of the Godhead bodily."

It is scarcely to be wondered over that gold, society, pleasure, pride and gilded sin in myriad forms can so easily persuade and pervert so many in the modern Christian world, when we realize that they live in so great a fog of ignorance concerning the God whom they perfunctorily profess to believe in and acknowledge they ought to obey in all truth, righteousness and holy conversation.

We need in Atlanta-we need in Georgia-we need in America-the old time faith in a personal and known God, who is our Father in Heaven, who has given us His Son for a Savior.. A revival of the knowledge of God in Christ Jesus will level forever, in and out of the churches, countless thousands of altars "To the Unknown God."

Your appeal for the restoration of "the old time faith in a personal a:¿ known God" impels us to respond to your editorial by offering you the very faith for which you so earnestly contend. Your exposition of the personalities, character and attributes of God is true, and your evidence is conclusive and invulnerable. There is no argument to offer in rebuttal, and preachers of so-called Christendom will look in vain for one iota of proc{ to support the contrary. Their inconsistent, not to say ridiculous, doctrine that God is "incomprehensible without body, parts or passions," in the light of all sound reason and prophetic testimony, must stand alone a self-evident fact of the uninspired source from which it sprang. The "unknown God” whom modern Christians do ignorantly worship, in times past revealed His mind and will to His children upon the earth. And, not only did He mauifest Himself in revelation, but in actual person did He converse face to face with certain of His chosen representatives. Between Heaven and earth the channel of communication was constantly open, excepting only, when, through disobedience and transgression men cut themselves off from this privilege of divine favor. God's people expected these manifestations of His kindness. To be led by an inspired man—a prophet of the Almighty-and to receive through him counsel and law, with the seal of divine authority "Thus saith the Lord" attached thereto, was as natural to them as it was to live, because to them, their Father in Heaven was a liv

ing, active, comprehensive personal Being. This was a part of the "old time" Faith.

In the meridian of time, Jesus Christ the Son of God, established His Church among men; and when His labors were ended and He returned unto His Father, He left His diciples in possession of the Holy Ghost which was "to guide them into all truth," "bring things past to their remembrance," and to reveal unto them the things of the future; in fact, this messenger was, in the absence of Christ in person, the medium through which God made known His will unto His children upon the earth. No argument is needed to convince any one of the fact that the disciples did enjoy the operations of that Spirit, for the whole New Testament is, in and of itself, proof positive and conclusive, of the literal fulfillment of that promise. One of the "gifts" of the Holy Ghost is prophecy, and upon whomsoever the Lord desired, He conferred this gift, and hence prophets were found in His church. And especially did those at the head enjoy this manifestation because they were God's mouthpieces, and it belonged particularly to their office and calling. The enjoyment of the actual companionship of the Holy Ghost then, together with its perceptible workings, were also parts of that "old time" Faith.

Again: At the head of His Church, Jesus placed a quorum of Twelve Apostles, Peter, James and John standing chief among them. "Ye have not chosen me," said He, "but I have chosen you and ordained you." He called and ordained also, Seventies, Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons to fill certain positions in His Church, all of whom Paul says God himself placed therein in order that He, through them, might edify and perfect the Saints and also to protect them from being tossed to and fro by every wird of doctrine taught by man; and further, that He might accomplish the work of the ministry. These officers, according to the same author's authoritative testimony were to remain in the Church until the world should come to a unity of the Faith and to a perfect knowledge of God. To have in their midsts these divinely called and inpsired men bearing authority direct from God, was another part of the "old time" Faith of the Saints. No word from God has ever been recorded that these offices and callings were unnecessary and useless creations in His Church organization, or that they were in time to be done away and destroyed. All Scripture proves the contrary most clearly and most emphatically. Furthermore, such a contention simply reduces the solemn and deliberate acts of Jehovah to mere folly and idle child's play, and destroys the confidence and faith of man in Him as a Being possessed of that infinite intelligence and wisdom attributed to Him. God placed these officers in the Church, and no one but God can legally remove them. But they have been removed. Their offices have been dstroyed. Yes, but unauthorized man and not God is responsible! The modern Christian doctrine advocating the uselessness and nonessentiality of the Apostles and Prophets and other inspired men of God as were formerly set in the Church of Christ, is a companion inconsistency with that of a bodiless, passionless God, and also owes its existence to

modern unauthorized and uninspired man. Certainly it was not a part of the "old time" Faith.

Another thing: The men whom Jesus called into His ministry, were sent out "two by two" to preach the Gospel, "without purse or scrip." Taxed pews, contribution boxes, and salaried preachers were unknown among them. These things belong to the modern "profession" of the popular Christian ministry and had nothing whatever to do with the "old time" "calling" of God unto His work. To be sure, the Church had a system of revenue by which the poor were supported and the necessary expenses of maintaining the organization were met, but this was known as the "law of tithing," of which not one penny went to pay a preacher. This custom and practice is another invention of man, ingeniously applied in merchandizing a man-made gospel by a self-called clergy, and that, too, in bold contradiction of Holy Writ, which unmistakably declares it to be entirely foreign to the "old time" Faith.

Furthermore: The Gospel, as Jesus and His disciples taught it, embraced four fundamental principals, namely: faith, repentance, baptism by immersion "for the remission of sins," and "the laying on of hands" for the "gift of the Holy Ghost." The faith here spoken of constituted more than a dormant or passive belief. It went further than mere mental assent, and embodied deeds of righteousness. He that had faith was stirred to repentance from his evil ways. That is, he ceased to commit forbidden practices, and instead performed such acts of righteousness as the Gospel required. One of these requirements was to be baptized in water for the remission of sin. The claim that this ordinance was not essential is disproved, not only by the teachings of the Savior and His disciples, but also by their practices. Jesus Himself set the example, and afterwards commanded His disciples to preach in all the world the Gospel, "baptizing them (who believed) in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost," and also declaring that those who would not believe and be baptized "should be damned." This is not strange at all, when we fully realize that baptism is "the counsel of God," and that it was the preceding step requisite to the companionship of the Holy Ghost which was given "by the laying on

of hands."

Paul declared to the Hebrew Saints that these four principles and ordinances were "the doctrine of Christ," and John writes that "whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ he hath both the Father and the Son." To the consistent mind there should be not the least shadow of doubt as to the fact that the doctrines here laid down belonged to and were an essential part of the "old time" Faith.

But this is not all. There was a power, an active perceptible force f divine origin, which, through the faith of the Saints, manifesed itself in speaking in and interpretation of tongues, prophesy, and healing of the sick. These manifestations were the "gifts of the Holy Ghost." Jesus called them "signs," and promised that they should "follow them that believe," the literal fulfillment of which is attested by one continuous stream of ex

amples running all through the New Testament times. God placed them in the Church anciently; the Saints then enjoyed them; and nowhere has He ordered them to be withdrawn or announced that they should cease. However, they are not to be found in so-called Christian churches today, and what more, without one word of Scriptural support, the preachers of modern times maintain that they are superfluous and are no longer needed. Superfluous? Why? No longer needed? Why? Simply because they are not manifest among them, and that this kind of doctrine in a measure explains away the reason for their absence; besides it conforms best to their man-conceived idea of a god without body, parts or passions. They get from their god exactly what he is capable of giving them—absolutely nothing. To be sure such a being could not speak. He has no mouth. He could not hear, for he has no ears. He could not hate or love, because he has no passions. Summed right down to the actual thing which the definition conveys, the only conclusion is that such a god is no god at all. And since this is the subject of their worship, it isn't unnatural or unreason.able that he or it, or whatever name by which the nonentity might be designated, bestows no signs or gifts upon its worshipers because it is manifestly powerless to act. But one thing sure and certain, these very "gifts" and "signs" were a part of the "old time" Faith. They were the blessings of an Heavenly Father poured out upon those of His children who obeyed the Gospel of His Son Jesus Christ. They came from the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob; the same who conversed with our father Adam in the Garden of Eden; the same whose voice at sundry times was heard, and whose person—but not in His mortal consuming glory-on many occasions was seen by nearly all of the prophets spoken of in Holy Writ; the same whose express image, character and personality were duplicated in the person of His Only Begotten Son in the flesh-Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world!

This, kind sir, sets forth in brief, the component parts of the "old time" Faith of the ancients, only one principle of which was contende for in your able editorial copied above. This very faith, we are pleased to declare unto you, is now upon the earth. That same "personal and known God who is our Father in Heaven," in company with His Son Jesus Christ, together in person, visited this earth and conversed face to face with one whom they chose to represent them among men. They gave him authority to act in their names; revealed unto him every principle of the Gospel necessary to man's salvation, and instructed him how to re-establish their Church in the world; and as a startling and invincible testimony of the truth of these things, that Church stands today just as complete in structure, in doctrine and in practice as was the Church organized on the sanie principle-revelation in Jerusalem nearly two thousand years ago. That Church is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and that man, whom the courts of heaven honored by making him the instrument c: restoration, was Joseph Smith, the latter day prophet of the true and the living God!