LETTER TO BROTHER J. DAVIS:
From Zion's
Trumpet, page 93-97
10 May, 1849
"Vitium alitur tegendo."
DEAR BROTHER DAVIS, : Your
third question, in the April TRUMPET, is, "How much good did Roberts from Rhymni, and Davies from Dowlais,
do by lecturing against the Saints?" Much good, I say, in many ways and means. Together with the scores in Merthyr and Dowlais who can
testify that the above two were instruments in opening the eyes to perceive the
truth of the Saints, there are several in Aberdare,
among which, with grateful spirit, I count myself; and I can testify boldly in
the day of judgemnt that it was the Review of brother
Capt D. Jones, on the Lecture of Roberts from Rhymni,
that was the means of convincing me of the deceit of the religion that I professed,
and, like Saul, which I followed with great zeal. I knew practically nothing about the Saints,
or their religion, until the Rev. W. R. Davies came to Aberdare,
to show their deceit; but to the surprise of my mind, the more he shouted,
pounding the Bible and the pulpit, "Great deceit, infernal hypocrisy, and
pitiful darkness of the latter-day Satanists," all the greater shone the
principles of the Saints, like rays of godly truth, until I was caused to begin
to believe, that if these men were Satanic, that his satanic majesty had more of the godly truth of the Bible, than did
the religion that I professed. He
intended to destroy the principles of truth, by maligning the characters of
those who professed them, with the witnesses of their enemies. In my opinion this was nothing but stupidity,
and those who would believe them were stupid; for there are sufficient facts to
teach us that the witnesses of enemies are nothing less than deceit and
lies. His fury at the pulpit showed that
he was their deadly enemy. I myself
decided not to believe, or judge, until I could obtain a better basis than the
assertions of my friend, whose patience was no doubt softened by the fire of
the indignant passion which was working to the point of boiling the frothy
sweat of his forehead, which, if given a fair chance to judge without bias,
would possibly have been an adornment to the truth.
The Reverend Mr. Roberts, Rhymni, came after him.
Davies had opened the windows so wide to the light of the truth, as it
was in Jesus, to shine its heavenly beam into the dark prison of the traditions
of stupidity where I had been for nearly twenty years. But I completely failed to break the chains
of ignorance, the sectarian seal, and the strong door of shame, until the Rev.
E. Roberts came out with his treatise against Mormonism, to give it a martyr's
death and bury it forever in the land of oblivion; but eternal reverence to his
name, he broke the chains of his sect from around me, which at last would have
taken me captive to perdition, for teaching, as did the Pharisees of old, the
commandments of men as doctrine, ignoring the counsel of God. It is true that I had been baptized, said the
sect to which I belonged; but that was now nothing less in my sight than "You
met a thief (having in his possession character and authority that did not
belong to him), and you agreed with him;" for, by then, Roberts had opened the
way for me to escape from the clever fowler's net of Gehenna,
to the castle of the kingdom of Mormonism, to be one of the happy subjects
eternally safe forever and ever, despite the rebuke of the world, flesh, and
the devil, together with all his religious subjects. "Ex veritate causa pendetur."
It is true that the conduct
of the religious reverends of the age for years by now, has had such an
influence on my mind, to the point of cooling off the love I had for them, and
the faith I had in them as servants of God, although their behavior toward
their flock of poor people, proved them similar to wolves, &c. I was worry, while I was with them, to see
their greed for money. For example, the
Rev. ????, Dowlais, told me once, "If offered, in
some other place, five pounds a year more than I am enjoying at present, I
would leave this place immediately."
What, I say, can this be, but loving the fleece more than the flock, the
gold in the temple more than the temple, the gift on the altar more than the
altar! No concern for the flock, the
temple, or the altar in Dowlais, except to get five
pounds more in some other place. You
diligent, hard, troubled workers of Dowlais, is such
a man worthy of your trust, while according to his own testimony (as judgement
day will testify), five pounds a year is more to him than your souls, your
temples, and your altars. Sad to think
that altars and temples of God, and immortal souls, are worth less in the sight
of their teachers, than five pounds a year!
What, say I in surprise, would the hundredth part of young pigs be worth
more than all the souls, temples, and altars of the teachers of the people in Dowlais! Is there an
example of such a thing among the Pharisees, on whom the Savior pronounced
eternal woes? Many colleges have the
poor people kept for three years, to teach the doctrine of Theology from
creation to the day of judgment, English grammar, a little Greek, Hebrew, and a
little Latin; all very well, so far. I
would love to have the teaching advantage myself, but not at the cost of the
poor, and not at the cost of saying afterward, "I shall not preach the gospel
cheaply to the poor, even though I have hundreds of pounds per year." I would rather break the rocks of the road,
than do that.
It is sad to go on, and tell my experience further while among them; but
it is better to tell the truth, for the day of detailed accounting is near; and
if I do not tell the truth, their blood will be required at my hands, just as
the blood of their congregations will be required at their hands. Besides, brother Davis, you know that they delight in circulating all manner
of lies about us; let them do so: we will also circulate the truth about them,
and time will crown the latter, as usual, with the wreath of victory. Many times have I thought, while hearing and
reading their lies, the one about the other, in the monthly publications of the
age, that their conscience has been seared, as with a hot iron, so that I am
not surprised that such who could accuse each other publicly I nthe publications of the age, with every name and lie, :
are completely free to do the same thing now on the characters of the
Saints. This shows to the people their
character in its proper shape and color.
When in their midst, I was
like Lot in Sodom, in a tired spirit, as I saw their inflated and boastful
spirits, so full of self love, until I was afraid they would burst, like the
toad that reached the size of a bull.
Before every welcome, their pride and their ingratitude were so great,
that is caused me and my life's partner to believe they were
deserving the character of being ungodly, unloving, &c. Who of all the poor of Wales, that have
sustained the values of timeless 'propriety' with thousand of meals, despite
being without many times : who amongst them all can testify having received as
much as one meal in return? When traveling,
hungry, and thirsty, and tired, have they dared to call on those reverends who
had so many times feasted at their table?
Goodness gracious! The look of the reverend's wife would be sufficient
to break one's heart, and make the tired traveler choose to go hungry until
arriving at his old cottage, believing that the hospitality of the bishop (like
the spiritual gifts and godly powers) are something of the past, that no longer
exist; when the former, perhaps, would receive a welcome, some reverend would,
with his flattering smiles, with some dubious story, fish for a shilling from
the poor man for "a good and worthy cause," while at the same time proclaiming
his anathema on those whom they call Jacks, setting their character out with
the greatest scorn and disregard, because they extract money from the poor
people and eat them up! Has such a
perfect likeness ever been portrayed
of the similarity that exists between the thought, opinion, and life of the
reverends of the age, and the description of them in the last days as portrayed
by the apostles of Jesus eighteen hundred years ago? Are they not like the false teachers of old,
praying for a sign, and like Belial asking for a miracle, even from their
pulpits, shouting in the next breath that miracles no longer exist. Then the next word in the prayer is to pray
to their God for "success, and for him to bare his strong arm now as
before." What is that except to show his
power in a supernatural manner now as before?
Then "heal the sick, feed the widows and orphans, now as before. It is very dry, and the fields are crying for
rain; command it to come down now, as before; or, it is very wet, and the fruit
of the earth is rotting; secure the clouds, and command the sun to shine now as
before; for thou are the unchangeable God, and thy power is the same, and thou mayest simply say the word, &c. The dreadful plague is ravaging our
inhabitants at our side; O, may thou stay the plague now as before,"
&c. O, Wales, who are the hypocrites, the deceivers, the stupid
ones, whose stupidity the little children are beginning to perceive
clearly? In a crisis praying for God to act now in a
miraculous manner as before, as good in his speech as one of the Saints. The Spirit of God showed to his early
servants, the character of such teachers in the last days, "trucebreakers,
false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more
than lovers of God; having a form of
godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away," which we
have done, and which I shall do with the help of the everlasting God. Deus protector noster. And
if you permit, our worthy Star will
shine their portrayal, with its trumpeting,
not from Cardiff to Holyhead, but through every
neighborhood, and on every hill where there be a Welshman, with eyes to see the
portrayal, and ears to hear their verdict, if they do not repent soon, and
believe the gospel, and give obedience to its laws, and receive their baptism
for remission of their sins, as they received the gift of the Holy Ghost;
because for their comfort, the word is true that Jesus Christ has come to try
to save sinners, of which the foremost are such who have been portrayed. I was in their midst having the same
character, with everyone praising me for my generous spirit, &c; but,
thanks be, now I have received mercy, for having unknowingly persecuted the
people of God, by believing their lies.
About eighteen months ago, I had the unspeakable honor of receiving
membership in the church of Jesus Christ, among the Saints, who receive spiritual nourishment,
the godly blessings Jesus promised to all members of his glorious body; and
from my former friends, I have received plenty of persecuting lies and every
unkind word. I have baptized over 100,
all having a certainty of faith, and many of them preaching the gospel in the fulness (sic) of its blessings.
Yours, in the bonds of the
everlasting covenant,
Aberdare,
May 10, 1849 Wm.
HOWELLS.
