Church History Gems - 14 August 2009

Morning of the Resurrection

"I quote a letter dated January the 17th, 1889. . . . It concerns my great-grandfather, who was the first of our line in the Church, and who died a few days later, Jonathan Taylor Packer. This letter was written by a daughter-in-law to the family.

"After describing the distress and difficulty he had suffered for several weeks, she wrote:

" 'But I will do all I can for him for I consider it my duty. I will do for him as I would like someone to do for my dear mother, for I am afraid I shall never see her again in this world.'

"And then she wrote this: 'Your father says for you all to be faithful to the principles of the gospel and asks the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob upon you all, and bids you all goodbye until he meets you in the morning of the resurrection.

" 'Well, Martha, I can't hardly see the lines for tears, so I will stop writing. From your loving sister, Mary Ann Packer.'

"I know that I shall see this great-grandfather beyond the veil, and my grandfather, and my father. And I know that I shall there also meet those of my ancestors who lived when the fulness of the gospel was not upon the earth; those who lived and died without ever hearing His name, nor having the invitation to be baptized."

Boyd K. Packer, "The Redemption of the Dead," Ensign, Nov. 1975, 99

Topics: Family History

Church History Gems - 12 August 2009

Provide Ordinances for Ancestors

"In [an] epistle, written one hundred and fifty years ago, Joseph Smith stated: 'The Saints have the privilege of being baptized for . . . their relatives who are dead . . . who have received the gospel in the spirit . . . through . . . those who have been commissioned to preach to them. . . . Those saints who neglect it in behalf of their deceased relatives, do it at the peril of their own salvation.' (History of the Church, 4:231; italics added.)

"The prophet Elijah committed the keys for vicarious work to Joseph Smith in the Kirtland Temple (see D&C 110:13–16) to fulfill the Lord's promise that 'he shall plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers' (D&C 2:2).

"Through further revelation to Joseph Smith and subsequent prophets, there has come an understanding of and provision for temple work and the family history effort that supports it. Every prophet since Joseph Smith has emphasized the imperative need to provide all ordinances for ourselves and our deceased ancestors."

Richard G. Scott, "Redemption: The Harvest of Love, Ensign," Nov. 1990, 5

Topics: Family History

Church History Gems - 29 July 2009

The Visitor in the Night

"The Perry family history records [a] remarkable event:

" 'On a beautiful farm in the state of New York, Gustavus Adolphus Perry and his good wife, Eunice Wing, with their three sons, Orrin Alonzo, Lorenzo, and Henry Elisha, and their four daughters, Rosalie Alvira, Alvina, Amanda, and Lucy, were living very peacefully and happily. Close to the year of 1830 (we do not know the exact date) one evening after a light snow had fallen, the family was all in for the night. It was dark and the latchstring was drawn in so no one could enter the house. Then suddenly without warning, a stranger walked into the home and greeted them with these words: "God bless you." He spent the night with them explaining the principles of the gospel and told them of a new book called the Book of Mormon and quoted passages from the same. He then told them on what pages they were to find the quotations and that elders would soon visit them. The messenger disappeared in the morning just as suddenly as he had appeared the night before, leaving no tracks in the freshly fallen snow. They inquired of their neighbors to see if anyone had seen him. They had not, and no trace of him could be found.'

"This good family was ready for the gospel when it came to them, and they joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1832."

L. Tom Perry, "The Value of a Good Name, New Era," Feb. 2009, 2

Topics: Family History

Church History Gems - 13 July 2009

History of Sacrifices

"The Perrys were like other families who joined the Church in the early 1800s. They moved from their home in upstate New York to Ohio, and then on to the gathering in Missouri. Forced from their Missouri home, they moved to Illinois. Again driven from their home, in the very cold winter of 1846, they made the painful trip across Iowa to settle in the Lake Branch at Winter Quarters. Here Gustavus served as a counselor in the bishopric until they were instructed in 1852 by Brigham Young to close the ward, join a wagon train, and make the long trek across the plains. . . .

"Each of us has these special accounts in our family histories of the sacrifices that were made for us to be blessed with a knowledge of the gospel. In some families, you may be the first member to join. You become its pioneer family. Therefore you have the obligation to record in your history who brought the converting power of the gospel to you."

L. Tom Perry, "The Value of a Good Name, New Era," Feb. 2009, 2, 4

Topics: Family History

Church History Gems - 19 June 2009

Morning of the Resurrection

"I quote a letter dated January the 17th, 1889. . . . It concerns my great-grandfather, who was the first of our line in the Church, and who died a few days later, Jonathan Taylor Packer. This letter was written by a daughter-in-law to the family.

"After describing the distress and difficulty he had suffered for several weeks, she wrote:

" 'But I will do all I can for him for I consider it my duty. I will do for him as I would like someone to do for my dear mother, for I am afraid I shall never see her again in this world.'

"And then she wrote this: 'Your father says for you all to be faithful to the principles of the gospel and asks the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob upon you all, and bids you all goodbye until he meets you in the morning of the resurrection.

" 'Well, Martha, I can't hardly see the lines for tears, so I will stop writing. From your loving sister, Mary Ann Packer.'

"I know that I shall see this great-grandfather beyond the veil, and my grandfather, and my father. And I know that I shall there also meet those of my ancestors who lived when the fulness of the gospel was not upon the earth; those who lived and died without ever hearing His name, nor having the invitation to be baptized."

Boyd K. Packer, The Redemption of the Dead, Ensign, Nov. 1975, 99

Topics: Family History

Church History Gems - 17 June 2009

Provide Ordinances for Ancestors

"In [an] epistle, written one hundred and fifty years ago, Joseph Smith stated: 'The Saints have the privilege of being baptized for . . . their relatives who are dead . . . who have received the gospel in the spirit . . . through . . . those who have been commissioned to preach to them. . . . Those saints who neglect it in behalf of their deceased relatives, do it at the peril of their own salvation.' (History of the Church, 4:231; italics added.)

"The prophet Elijah committed the keys for vicarious work to Joseph Smith in the Kirtland Temple (see D&C 110:13–16) to fulfill the Lord's promise that 'he shall plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers' (D&C 2:2).

"Through further revelation to Joseph Smith and subsequent prophets, there has come an understanding of and provision for temple work and the family history effort that supports it. Every prophet since Joseph Smith has emphasized the imperative need to provide all ordinances for ourselves and our deceased ancestors."

Richard G. Scott, Redemption: The Harvest of Love, Ensign, Nov. 1990, 5

Topics: Family History

Church History Gems - 1 June 2009

The Visitor in the Night

"The Perry family history records [a] remarkable event:

" 'On a beautiful farm in the state of New York, Gustavus Adolphus Perry and his good wife, Eunice Wing, with their three sons, Orrin Alonzo, Lorenzo, and Henry Elisha, and their four daughters, Rosalie Alvira, Alvina, Amanda, and Lucy, were living very peacefully and happily. Close to the year of 1830 (we do not know the exact date) one evening after a light snow had fallen, the family was all in for the night. It was dark and the latchstring was drawn in so no one could enter the house. Then suddenly without warning, a stranger walked into the home and greeted them with these words: "God bless you." He spent the night with them explaining the principles of the gospel and told them of a new book called the Book of Mormon and quoted passages from the same. He then told them on what pages they were to find the quotations and that elders would soon visit them. The messenger disappeared in the morning just as suddenly as he had appeared the night before, leaving no tracks in the freshly fallen snow. They inquired of their neighbors to see if anyone had seen him. They had not, and no trace of him could be found.'

"This good family was ready for the gospel when it came to them, and they joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1832."

L. Tom Perry, "The Value of a Good Name," New Era, Feb. 2009, 2

Topics: Family History

Daily Gems - 29 May 2008

Seeing God's Hand in Our Past

"Inspiring stories and anecdotes from our past punctuate [President Gordon B. Hinckley's] writings and sermons. As our living prophet, he consciously emphasizes the past and the future to help us live more righteously in the present. Because of his teachings, we understand that remembering enables us to see God's hand in our past, just as prophecy and faith assure us of God's hand in our future. President Hinckley reminds us how members of the early Church faced their challenges so we, through the grace of God, can more faithfully face our own. By keeping our past alive, he connects us to the people, places, and events that make up our spiritual heritage and, in so doing, motivates us to greater service, faith, and kindness."

Marlin K. Jensen, "Remember and Perish Not," Ensign, May 2007, 38

Topics: Family History, Pioneers

Church History Gems - 21 November 2007

Importance of Temple Work.

"Latter-day Saints are a chosen people, so appointed in the premortal world, to be in partnership with the Lord for the

"We learn by revelation from the Prophet Joseph Smith that 'these . . . principles in relation to the dead and the living . . . cannot be lightly passed over, as pertaining to our salvation. For their salvation is necessary and essential to our salvation. . . .

" 'For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect.' (D&C 128:15, 18; see also Heb. 11:39-40.)

"It would be difficult for one to find stronger language on a requirement to receive exaltation in the celestial kingdom.

"Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery had received the Melchizedek Priesthood under the hands of Peter, James, and John; however, it was necessary for the prophet Elijah to restore special keys, 'in order that all the ordinances may be attended to in righteousness.' (History of the Church, 4:211.) Thus, the sealing powers and ordinances necessary for the dead as well as the living were to be restored. This was accomplished by Elijah's visit to Joseph and Oliver on April 3, 1836, in the Kirtland Temple."

David B. Haight, "Temples and Work Therein," Ensign, Nov. 1990, 59-60

Topics: Temple, Family History

Church History Gems - 29 August 2007

Trace Your Genealogies As Far Back As You Can.

"Among the first in this dispensation to sow seeds of interest in family history were the brothers Orson and Parley P. Pratt, members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Their efforts resulted in a Pratt family genealogy and the performance of temple ordinances for about 3,000 of their ancestors.

"Yet there were many Church members who did not fully understand the responsibility for their own kindred. President Wilford Woodruff was so concerned that he made the issue a matter of fervent prayer. Then, at April 1894 general conference, he presented a revelation to the membership of the Church. From it I quote: 'We want the Latter-day Saints from this time to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents, and run this chain through as far as you can get it. . . . This is the will of the Lord to his people' (The Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, sel. G. Homer Durham [1946], 157)."

Russell M. Nelson,, "A New Harvest Time," Ensign, May 1998, 34

Topics: Family History