In his 1948 book, Treasures to Share, Melvin Westenskow wrote the following, showing that, for there to be a “Great Apostasy” is not contingent upon every single person being in a state of apostasy:
While John was
abandoned upon the Isle of Patmos (tradition has it that he returned from
Patmos about 96 A.D.) he was given a vision or revelation, an account of which
is recorded in the Book of Revelation. In the first verse of the first chapter
it says:
The revelation of
Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which
must shortly come to pass. (Revelation 1:1.)
John later recorded:
And I stood upon the
sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and
ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of
blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were
as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as a mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave
him his power, and his seat, and great authority. (Revelation 13:1-2.)
Who is this dragon
that gave the beast “his power and his seat, and great authority”? And the
great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which
deceiveth the whole world” (Revelation 12:9.) The dragon is the devil.
Therefore, this beast is a servant of the devil, because it is from him that he
(the beast) receives his “power and his seat, and great authority.” Again:
And I saw one of his
heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the
world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power
unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast?
who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking
great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty
and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to
blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it
was given unto him to make war with the saints and to overcome nations. And all
that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the
book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Revelation
13:3-8.)
The beast was to make
war with the Saints and was to overcome them. He was to have power “over all
kindreds, tongues, and nations.” This would seem to indicate that the apostacy
was to be quite universal. All who dwell upon the earth were to worship the
beast except those whose names were written in the Lamb’s book of life. That
there were those who remained true to the faith during this war between the
Saints and the beast is certain. But this does not discredit the idea
that the apostacy was complete. While these individuals remained
true, the time soon came when all of them passed away, either through persecution
or by natural death. This not only left the beast in control of “All kindreds,
tongues, and nations,” but also it left no individual upon the face of the
earth who was recognized by God as having authority to carry on his work. (Melvin
Westenskow, Treasures to Share: Dedicated to All Who are Seeking Religious
Truth [Salt Lake City: The Deseret News Press, 1948], 11-12, emphasis added)