[Footnote A: See writings of Hitzig, Hyde, Faber, Goodsir, Higgins, Osborn, Levy, etc.]

1st. The belief in one great father G.o.d.

2d, The expectation of the coming of His Son to dwell in the flesh and redeem mankind.

3d. The belief in a resurrection, and in future rewards and punishments for acts done in this life.

4th. The observance of the rite of sacrifice.

5th. The doctrine of repentance, and in certain cases the ordinance of baptism.

We ask, when it is proved that all these principles were taught by the duly appointed servants of G.o.d in the earliest ages, where else but from them could the ancient Gentile races have obtained their knowledge thereof?

Men have been ever p.r.o.ne to apostacy; our fallen nature is at enmity with a G.o.dly life; sometimes in one way, sometimes in another, Satan led men from the right path and under the influences of a false or diabolic inspiration many errors were introduced; as well as through the natural corrupt ambition of men who sought to obtain power over their fellows by promulgating new theories in the name of G.o.d and under the auspices of religion. The "ologies" of to-day would have been impossible in the days of Pharaoh and Nimrod. The style of apostacy was necessarily fashioned by the condition of men's minds, their advance in civilization, and their understanding of physical laws. In the rudimentary condition of the nations who scattered at Babel, the easiest thing for them to do was to worship their dead ancestors and the heavenly orbs. In due course naturally followed the framing of idols, which at first only represented the being or thing worshiped, but which were afterwards regarded as G.o.ds themselves, and as such reverenced. The idea of G.o.d's anger at men's sins, a.s.sociated with the law of sacrifice, led mankind to believe that the more precious and beloved was the offering to him who offered it, the more acceptable would it be to heaven. As a result, men soon began to offer up their sons and their daughters to appease the wrath of their G.o.ds.

Abraham informs us:

"Now, at this time it was the custom of the priest of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to offer up upon the altar which was built in the land of Chaldea, for the offering unto these strange G.o.ds, men, women and children. And it came to pa.s.s that the priest made an offering unto the G.o.d of Pharaoh, and also unto the G.o.d of s.h.a.greel, even after the manner of the Egyptians. Now the G.o.d of s.h.a.greel was the Sun. Even the thank-offering of a child did the priest of Pharaoh offer upon the altar which stood by the hill called Potiphar's Hill, at the head of the plain of Olishem. Now, this priest had offered upon this altar three virgins at one time, who were the daughters of Onitah, one of the royal descent directly from the loins of Ham. These virgins were offered up because of their virtue; they would not bow down to worship G.o.ds of wood or of stone, therefore they were killed upon this altar, and it was done after the manner of the Egyptians."--Book of Abraham.

This practice of offering human sacrifices had become very general on the eastern continent in Abraham's day.

One peculiar phase of false doctrine with regard to the atonement had grown strong in the days of this Patriarch. It was "that the blood of the righteous Abel was shed for sins."[A] This was a very natural mental outgrowth among people who believed in the consequences of the fall of Adam and had been taught the necessity of a redeemer. It was a very easy thing to fall into the error that as Adam had transgressed, so his immediate son atoned by his blood for his father's act. And in the spread of this incorrect idea of Abel's atonement amongst the early peoples, may be found the origin of the many diversified legends of a sacrificed redeemer. This theory was taught at a day so early in the world's history, that it spread with the migrating races in every direction, so that traces of it can be found from Hindostan to Spain, from the Baltic to Ethiopia. Of course, every people in their own language had their peculiar name for this savior, and each race claimed him as theirs, as Abel certainly belonged as much to one as the other, having no posterity; and by degrees they wove many fanciful and mythical legends round his life and death, varying according to the tastes, imaginative power and environment of the different races.

This, to a very great extent, explains that enigma to Christians, who believe that Gospel truths were first taught by Jesus when in the flesh, how the knowledge of the principle of the atonement and the tradition of a Savior was so wide spread throughout the world before His actual coming.

[Footnote A: Inspired translation of Genesis, xvii, 7.]

There is another way by which the knowledge of these truths was taught. We refer to the extended preaching of such worthies as Melchizedec, Abraham, Jethro, Job, Jeremiah, Jonah and others; and above all to that of the Apostles after the Redeemer's death.

Dispensation succeeded dispensation, as age succeeded age; time and time again the people apostatized, but each time some little remnant of divine truth remained with them. Jesus Christ was preached by name soon after the creation, as Cyrus was named by divine revelation about two hundred years before his birth. Thus, in some languages, we have accounts of great men of G.o.d or G.o.ds, as the case may be, whose acts are said to have been, in a greater or less degree, the counterpart of those of the Messiah when He tabernacled in the flesh; and whose names bear a most remarkable likeness to that of the Son of G.o.d. Hence we have Checsna or Chrishna of Hindostan, and Hesus of the Druids, both of which names bear a marked similarity to those of the Redeemer; the first to Christ, the second to Jesus. It appears altogether probable that the histories of these men are simply the shadowy traditions of the Savior, the faint recollection of the teachings of inspired men, which were localized to suit sectional vanity or pride of race; or that some ancient teacher of their own peoples has been clothed with the attributes and works of Christ, and during the lapse of ages the acts and deeds of the two lives have been intermingled in one, until at this day a rightful separation is impossible. This habit of mixing and mingling the great deeds of several distinct persons, and forming therefrom one grand, if not altogether harmonious whole is one well understood by those who have studied the traditions of mankind; it is not peculiar to any age or race, and even in our day we often find a certain anecdote, whether real or imaginary, told of various celebrities, some of whom may be yet living, while others are among the recent dead. The effects of this habit, when continued through long ages, amongst semi-civilized or barbarous nations, went far to fashion the history of their G.o.ds, and often to manufacture deities out of altogether imaginary personages.

Modern revelation has restored another most important key to unlock the mystery of the almost universal knowledge of the Redeemer and of the plan of the atonement. It is found in the statement that Jesus, after his resurrection, visited at least the inhabitants of two distinct portions of the earth, which could not have been reached through the ministry of His Jewish Apostles. These two peoples were the Nephites on this land, and the Ten Tribes in their distant northern home. The knowledge that the Mexicans, and other aboriginal races of America had, at the time of their discovery by the Spaniards, of the life of the Savior, was so exact, that the Catholics suggested two theories (both incorrect, however) to solve the mystery. One was that the devil had invented an imitation gospel to delude the Indians; the other, that the Apostle Thomas had visited America and taught its people the plan of salvation.

The story of the life of the Mexican divinity, Quetzalcoatl, closely resembles that of the Savior; so closely, indeed, that we can come to no other conclusion than that Quetzalcoatl and Christ are the same being. But the history of the former has been handed down to us through an impure Lamanitish source, which has sadly disfigured and perverted the original incidents and teachings of the Savior's life and ministry. Regarding this G.o.d, Humboldt writes: "How truly surprising is it to find that the Mexicans, who seem to have been unacquainted with the doctrine of the migration of the soul and the Metempsychosis _should have believed in the incarnation of the only Son of the supreme G.o.d, Tomacateuctli_. For Mexican mythology, speaking of no other Son of G.o.d, except Quetzalcoatl, who was born of Chimelman, the virgin of Tula (without man), by His breath alone, by which may be signified his word or will, when it was announced to Chimelman, by the celestial messenger, whom He dispatched to inform her that she should conceive a son, it must be presumed this was Quetzalcoatl, who was the only son. Other authors might be adduced to show that the Mexicans believe that this Quetzalcoatl was both G.o.d and man; that He had previously to His incarnation existed from eternity, and that He had been the Creator both of the world and man; and that He had descended to reform the world by endurance, and being king of Tula, was crucified for the sins of mankind, etc., as is plainly declared in the tradition of Yucatan, and mysteriously represented in the Mexican paintings."

The following brief extracts relating to Quetzalcoatl, are from Lord Kingsborough's "Antiquities of Mexico." Speaking of a certain plate, he observes: "Quetzalcoatl is there painted in the att.i.tude of a person crucified, with the impression of nails in his hands and feet, but not actually upon the cross." Again: "The seventy-third plate of the Borgian MS. is the most remarkable of all, for Quetzalcoatl is not only represented there as crucified upon a cross of Greek form, but his burial and descent into h.e.l.l are also depicted in a very curious manner." In another place he observes: "The Mexicans believe that Quetzalcoatl took human nature upon him, partaking of all the infirmities of man, and was not exempt from sorrow, pain or death, which he suffered _voluntarily to atone for the sins of man_."

Rosales, in his history, when speaking of the people of the extreme southern portion of America, states: "They had heard their fathers say, a wonderful man had come to that country * * * who performed many miracles, cured the sick with water, caused it to rain that their crops of grain might grow, kindled fire at a breath, healing the sick and giving sight to the blind; and that he spoke with as much propriety and elegance in the language of their country as if he had always resided in it, addressing them in words very sweet and new to them, telling them that the Creator of the universe resided in the highest place of heaven, and that many men and women, resplendent as the sun, dwelt with him."

Thus we see that in the tradition's with regard to this especial G.o.d, we have an almost complete life of the Savior, from the announcement of His birth to His virgin mother by an angel, to His resurrection from the grave. Had we s.p.a.ce, other extracts could be given, showing that there were many details, not above mentioned, ascribed to Quetzalcoatl, that relate to incidents in the life of Christ. The Book of Mormon alone explains the mystery. The account there given of Christ's ministrations amongst the forefathers of these peoples makes the whole thing plain. We understand, through that record, how and by what means they obtained this great knowledge, and can also readily perceive how the unworthy descendants of those whom the Savior visited, gradually added much childish rubbish to the original facts; making their story, like almost all other mythology, an unseemly compound of heavenly truth and puerile fable. But, in view of these facts, when all things are considered, it is almost a wonder that so much of the truth was retained to the days when America became known to Europeans.

We find, in the mythology of the Northmen, certain traditions that lead us to imagine that it is possible that the visit of the Savior to the Ten Tribes was by some means communicated to them. But this is simply a conjecture. However, it is a.s.serted that they claimed that Woden, one of their princ.i.p.al deities, was a descendant of King David, a very curious circ.u.mstance, that it is difficult to explain, only on the supposition of Christ's visit, and that Woden, with them, occupied the place that Quetzalcoatl did with the Mexicans.

There is yet another source from which the ancients obtained their ideas of the life and mission of the Son of G.o.d. It is to be found in the translation of Enoch and his city. The fact of Enoch's translation was generally known by the people who lived immediately after the flood. It had occurred so short a time before, that it was almost a matter of personal recollection with the sons of Noah. They must also have been acquainted with the fact that others were caught up by the power of heaven into Zion, and it would appear strongly probable that Melchizedec and many of his people were also translated. Revelation does not state this in so many words, but the inference to be drawn from what is said, points clearly in that direction. The fact of these translations, the frequent visits of angels to men holding the Priesthood, and the manifestation of G.o.d's power over the elements of nature made manifest through His servants, laid a foundation for many of the fables of ancient mythology; some of which, if we were to change the names and localities to those of Bible history, would not be as far from the truth as many suppose. This era of inter-communication with the holy beings of the other world was easily magnified and distorted into the Golden Age when G.o.ds dwelt with men, a.s.sociated with much of earth life, and were swayed by pa.s.sions very much as were their mortal companions. And, as before remarked, the simplicity of these traditions was greatly changed as the ages rolled around, until they were completely overlaid and hidden by abominable and monstrous fables, invented, taught and used by the priests and their a.s.sociates for their own sinister and unholy purposes.

From the whole of these statements, we gather that while men, who have written in relation to the various G.o.ds, or virgins who have, each in her turn, conceived and borne a G.o.d or a messiah, would argue that the accounts of the birth, ministry, death, resurrection, etc., of the Savior, were simply a backing up and resuscitating of some of the old legends of heathen mythology which had been in existence in ages long antecedent to His advent, and that, therefore, the account of the life and works of the Redeemer was simply an act of priestcraft, to introduce another messiah, and another establishment of religion in the interests of the projectors, and that Christianity was simply a copy of the old paganisms that had exhibited themselves in the forms above referred to, whereas the reverse is clearly demonstrated in the foregoing chapters on the atonement. The fact is clearly proved, instead of Christianity deriving its existence and facts from the ideas and practices of heathen mythologists, and from the various false systems that had been introduced by apostacy, unrecognized pretensions and fraud, that those very systems themselves were obtained from the true Priesthood, and founded on its teachings from the earliest ages to the advent of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; that those holy principles were taught to Adam, and by him to his posterity; that Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and the various Prophets had all borne testimony of this grand and important event, wherein the interest and happiness of the whole world were concerned, pertaining to time and to eternity. The Gospel is a system, great, grand and comprehensive, commencing in eternity, extending through all time, and then reaching into the eternities to come; and the ideas with regard to these disjointed materials, that are gathered together from the turbid waters of heathen mythology, are so much clap trap and nonsense, calculated only to deceive the unwary, superst.i.tious and ignorant, and are as far below those great and eternal principles of heavenly truth which permeate through all time, penetrate into the heavens, and are interwoven with all the interests, happiness and exaltation of man, as the earth is below the heavens above. The object of placing this statement before our brethren, is to prove and demonstrate, what was stated in the commencement, that these truths should "grow together unto the confounding of false doctrines, and laying down of contentions."