Epistle to the Saints, 1 November 1839
TIMES AND SEASONS.
To the elders of the church of Jesus
Christ of Latter Day Saints, to the
churches scattered abroad, and to all
the saints.
We, the undersigned, feeling deeply
interrested in the welfare of Zion, the
up-building of the church of Christ, and
the welfare of the saints in general,
send unto you Greeting: and pray,
that "grace, mercy, and peace may
rest upon you, from God, our Father,
and from our Lord Jesus Christ."
But brethren, the situation of things,
as they have of late existed, have been
to us of a peculiar trying nature. Ma-
ny of you have been driven from your
homes, robbed of your possessions, and
deprived of the liberty of conscience;
you have been stripped of your cloth-
ing, plundering of your furniture, rob-
bed of your horses, your cattle, your
sheep, your hogs, and refused the pro-
tection of law; you have been subject
to insult and abuse, from a set of law-
less miscreants; you have had to en-
dure cold, nakedness, peril, and sword;
your wives and your children, have
been deprived of the comforts of life;
you have been subject to bonds, to im-
prisonment, to banishment, and many
to death, "for the testimony of Jesus,
and for the word of God." Many of
your brethren, with those whose souls
are now beneath the alter, are crying
for the vengence of heaven to rest up-
on the heads of their devoted murder-
ers, and saying, "how long O Lord,
holy and true, dost thou not judge and
avenge our blood on them that dwell on
the earth;" but it was said to them,
"that they should rest, yet for a little
season, until their fellow servants also;
and their brethren, that should be kill-
ed, as THEY WERE should be fulfilled."
Dear brethren, we should remind you
of this thing, and although you have
had indignities, insults and injuries
heaped upon you, till further suffering
would seem to be no longer a virtue
we would say, be patient, dear breth-
ren, for as saith the apostle, "ye have
need of patience, that after being tried
you may inherit the promise." You
have been tried in the furnace of afflic-
tion, the time to exercise patience is
now come; and "we shall reap, breth-
ren, in due time if we faint not." Do
not breathe vengeance upon your op-
pressors, but leave the case in the
hands of God, "for vengeance is mine,
saith the Lord, and I will repay."
We would say to the widow, and to
the orphan, to the destitute, and to the
diseased, who have been made so
through persecution, be patient you are
not forgotten, the God of Jacob has his
eye upon you, the heavens have been
witness to your sufferings, and they
are registerd on high; angels have gaz-
ed upon the scene, and your tears, your
groans, your sorrows, and anguish of
heart, are had in remembrance before
God; they have entered iuto the sym-
pathies of that bosom, who is "touch-
ed with the feelings of our infirmities,"
who was "tempted in all points, like un-
to you;" they have entered into the
ears of the Lord of Sabaoth; be patient
then, until the words of God be fulfill-
ed, and his designs accomplished and
then shall he pour out his ven-
geance upon the devoted heads of your
murderers, and then shall they know
that he is God, and that you are his
people.
And we would say to all the saints
who have made a covenant with the
Lord by sacrifice, that inasmuch as you
are faithful, you shall not lose your re-
ward, although not numbered among
those who were in the late difficulties
in the west.
We wish to stimulate all the breth-
ren to faithfulness; you have been tri-
