THE
WRITER’S REPLY
Justice to the reader of these lines
demands that I first mention the fact that only a portion of the Adventists
accept Uriah Smith’s idea that this sanctuary was set up in the heavens in
1844. (See p. 622 above book.)
Friends: I personally consider the
above extracts of testimony to be of great value with one exception, which in
reality, spoils the whole. (1) We agree on the time (A.D. 1843-44) for the complete
fulfillment of this prophecy covering the restoration of Temple work; (2) This
work to be done in a “Holy Sanctuary”; (3) The work in the Sanctuary to include
a vicarious work for the dead; (4) Also for the living; (5) The reality of
Priesthood, Jesus Christ being a great High Priest; (6) The broad plan of
salvation that work is now going on for the dead. (Peter informs us that Christ
began this work for the dead during the three days His body was in the comb. I
Cor 15:29; I Peter 3:18-20; 4:4-6.) (7) The near approach of the coming of
Christ and His glorious Millennial Reign to take up a salvation work for the
living.
But here is where we divide. (1) Uriah
Smith places the restoration of this Sanctuary in the heavens, while the
Prophet Joseph Smith and 750,000 Latter Day Saints place its fulfilment on this
earth. Uriah Smith makes no claim to having received a revelation declaring
such a strange fulfillment of this prophecy. Whereas, Joseph Smith records
various revelations and visions, jointly seen by MANY OF HIS BRETHREN
pertaining to the heavenly beings who descended and restored the actual keys,
knowledge, and authority to establish this Temple work on earth.
(2) The building of certain Temples
has been foretold by prophecy; which has been fulfilled by their actual construction
on earth; so why should this certain one be constructed in the heavens? The one
referred to in the 37th chapter of Ezekiel, as previously quoted, is to be
restored among the Jews before the coming of Christ in the land that God gave
unto Jacob.
Now then, if the fulness of the Gospel
is to b restored unto the Gentiles first in the Latter Days, as previously shown,
then the setting up of a Sanctuary of Temple among them MUST PRECEDE the one to
be restored unto the Jews. Mal. 3:1-7.
(3) If this Temple work is to be
confined in the heavens for the dead only until the second coming of the Lord,
then I would like to show the reason for the second coming of Elijah as
promised to precede the second coming of the Lord, wherein, he is to “turn the
hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the
fathers.” Mal. 4:5, 6. Now to us this means: he was to come in person and
establish this temple work in the Sanctuaries for the living and the dead. This
mission and prophecy was fulfilled on April 3, 1836, in the Kirtland Temple.
The Lord, through Malachi, tells us:
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet
before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.” (4:5. I quote the
writings of Joseph Smith citing the above fulfillment:
13. “After this vision had closed,
another great and glorious vision burst upon us, for Elijah the prophet, who was
taken up to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said—14. Behold,
the time has fully come, which was spoken by the mouth of Malachi, testifying
that he (Elijah) should be sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord
come; 15. To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children
to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse. 16. Therefore the
keys of this dispensation are committed into your hands, and by this ye may
know that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the doors.” D.
C. 110:13-16.
The spirit of Elijah has since this
date covered the world. If you question it, go into your libraries, there you will
find thousands of men and women searching out their family genealogy. They are
not satisfied with the record of their great grand parents, but they go back
hundreds of years. Others, blessed with greater financial support, are spending
fortunes in publishing volumes of genealogy data. In the Latter Day Saints’
Temples over twelve million ordinances have been ceremonized to date.
Now, what is the sequence of all this
work? It resolves that when the eyes of the world are fully opened up and they
realize that Joseph Smtih was a Prophet of God, they will then be in a position
to do temple work for their people.
In the Spirit world, we are told, that
the spirits can accept the Gospel and its ordinances, but the ordinances must be
actually performed by the living on their behalf. Space prevents my citing thousands
of cases, which would require volumes to cover the miracles, wherein this work
has been miraculously made known to the living among the Latter Day Saints, and
the securing of the life records of the dead made possible.
For various other Temple blessings,
anointings, and sealings, the reader is referred to church publications covering
these subjects. We now return to our analysis of Mr. Uriah Smith’s interpretation
of this 1843 Temple restoration. (Francis M. Darter, “The Time of the End”:
Mysteries of Daniel Unveiled [Los Angeles: Wetzel Publishing Company, 1928],
204-7)