Eagle Creek, Benton County, Tennessee.
Aphek & Azubah Woodruff,
Beloved & Respected Parents
With a heart raised to heaven
filled with gratitude towards God & the warmest desire for your salvation in the Celestial
Kingdom. I again take the responsibility upon me of addressing a few lines to you
& I ask my heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ to give me his spirit & inspire my pen
while I address you for I know neither your circumstances or situation I have but one main
motive in view in addressing you at this time & I would fain do it by word rather than by letter
had I the privilege & how long it will be before God will grant me the privilege I know not
suffice it to say that my motive in writing is because I most assuredly feel interested in your best
good which is salvation Eternal life & Immortal glory & that peradventure you may be found among
that number who shall be wise in your day & generation. Yea dear friends when I consider this
important momentious & august day, age & generation in which you stand I feel for you & all
my kinsman & my tears prayers & petitions are often offered that God may send some kind mes
senger to snatch you all as brands from the burning. What generation like this more than the
days of Lot & Noah yes in this generation God will shake heaven & Earth (& dire commotion
will seize all nations blood & war war will appal the stoutest heart kingdom on kingdom will be in hurld
in confusion. System on system throughout the world will be wreck'd. Sect against sect will
ingage in bloody strife. man against man will rage in single combat. AND every man that will not
take his sword agains his neighbour will be oblige'd to flee (whare) TO ZION FOR SAFETY as
said the Prophet Joel [Joel 3] (Not ownly war) but famine will waste the strength of men & Pestilence
seize its prey. Earthquakes with fury roar. This sun in sackcloth mourn. The moon turn to blood
The stars hurl'd from their spheres. System wreck'd on system & kingdom on kingdom
Earth's whole foundation to the centre nods and nature trembling feel the Power of God
[page torn] Michael will sound his trumpet while the Saints will come forth from their trembling
[page torn] [to] meet their God (as he) Jesus Christ desends in the clouds of heaven to take vengeanc
[page torn] [on] them that know not God and obey not the gospel O Babylon thy tortering kingdoms thy
deadly weapons will soon send up the cry accompanie'd by the smoke of thy crackling
spires ALAS ALAS thy perils will overtake [t]hee in an hour that ye think not. [Revelation 8:2]
Dear friends the above remarks are not idle tales but this generation will witness them
as true as God reigns in Israel And as a servent of God I testify of the true of the truth of the same
What though the world disbelieve's these things their unbelief will not make the
truth of God without affect the world Priest nor People with few exceptions do
not believe Mosses & the Prophets Christ nor the Apostles neither will they receieve
the servents of God that he send unto them but they heap to themselves teachers
having eaching ears & finally unbelief is what will damn the world according to the
words of Jesus Christ. The Lord is performing a marvelous ^work^ indeed in this generation &
although I sometimes mourn to look upon the a [page torn] earth & see the darkness error & pollution
that covers this generation & the destruction that awaits them yet I again rejoice to
see the Church of Christ travling out of the wilderness leaning upon her beloved Yea
it gives me Joy to know that the little stone cut out of the mountain that hath began
to roll forth in these last days will fill the whole earth & the Saints will possess
the kingdom and the wicked ^be^ ashes beneath their feet when two thirds are cut off & die
& one third is refined as saith the Prophet. The voice of God is come out of her O my
people that we be not partaker of the plagues of Babylon as saith the revelator & it
is a day of warning & not many words yea it is a day when God will make a short work on
the earth & while the Priest the blind guides of this generation are crying peace & safty
& have almost entered their malinaum millennium sudden desstruction is at their door
& allthough they may grasp at the Pillars of their tortering fabrick it will fall over their heads
{oh I much prefer it would be for them to come} out {and be saved rather than [welter in their own} own {[illegible shorthand]}
My friends I marvel at the wonderous work of God in this 19th century
which he is performing in the Earth & I have the greatest desire that
all my relatives may be benefited by the same. I know of a truth
that the Lord is giving to his Church yea to the Church of Latter Day
Saints the gifts blessings & grace that the Ancients possesed yea
he hath esstablished in his Church in these last days Prophets Apostles Evangel[i]st[s]
pastors, Teachers &c. & the signs follow the believers as they did anciently
persecution not excepted yea they speak with new tongues interpet
languages lay hands on the sick & they recover the lame walk
the blind see the deaf hear they preach the gospel to the poor they
have the Administeration of Angels, Dream, & see vishions & have
the heavens opened unto them as it was unto Stephen [Acts 7:55-56] & find Israels
God yet to be a God of revelation yea & shout O Earth & rejoice O heavens
for he is about to reveal himself & redeem his people. These are
not idleol specalations nor fancy's of the brain but they are Eternal
truths but no more true than the Book of Mormon yes that despised
stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim it is a good Book it is true it is
the word of God it will stand recorded on the ARCHIVES of heaven as the
[illegible] revelations of God [against] the lies of this Adulterous generation [burn mark]
swept from of the Earth by the voice of God of judgment & of burning
O my Beloved Parents I would to God that you would receieve the fullness
of the gospel of Jesus Christ that you might partake of the blessing
of the same they are great they are unspeakable & cannot be enjoyed
while out of the covenant yea the covenant which God hath Esstablished
in these la[st] days yes that covenant which hath lain breaken for centuries
on the part of man but God hath again renewed it by the administration
of Angels from heaven & bringing forth the fulness of the gospel contained
in the Book of mormon which is a fulfillment of the prophesys containd
in the Bible also by esstablishing the priesthood again that priesthood
that is after the order of Melchisedec the same priesthood that the Apostles
stood in in the days of Christ & being ordained under his hand they
were prepared to administer in the ordinances of the gospel as Christ
was a high Priest himself which qualified him to ordain others to
the same priesthood. Now men have again authority to baptize & administer
in all the ordinances of the house of the Lord & now those who come
foreward & are baptized for the remishion of their sins by those who have
authority they receieve the gift of the holy Ghost by the laying on of hands as did Peter
& other Apostles [Matthew 10:1]
I cannot but believe but ^that^ what my relatives in the east will receieve the gospel
when they have the privilege of investigating the subject for themselves yea
I have confidence to believe to believe they will & I expect that most of them will
have the privileg the ensuing season the endowment hath taken place I do not know
whether you have all understanding of the endowment & state of the church or not but
the first Elders of the Church were commanded of God by revelation to assemble &
tarry at Kirtland Ohio untill they were endow'd with Power from on high (as the ancient)
were on the day of Pentecost their was five hundred Elders (or about that number present
besides a multitude of other Saints at the time of the endowment their blessings
that they receieved were great & probably as much so as on the day of Pentecost cons
dering the number Present the holy ghost sat upon them as cloven tongues & they
had much of the spirit of prophesy revelations of angels visions &ce God hath
chosen 12 Apostles by revelation to bear his name to the nations of the earth as did
the ancients one of them Elder David Patten is travling with me at this time he
will labour with me for a while what length of time I know not. the Lord hath
chosen 70 Apostles Also & other 70 from the first ^both^ to be special witnesses & miesse
ngers to the nations of the earth ^to^ both Jew & Gentile & as their is several hunder
[ed] [page burned] [com]ing east this season I much desire that you may have the privilege of [page burned]
[page burned] yourselves if any should come within your reach I would like you to hear t[hem] [page burned]
candidly & invite them home & freely question them on any points of the gosp[el] [page burned]
or of the Church untill you are satisfied for yourseves & why I make these
remarks is because I believe my Paren[ts] [page burned] & most of my relatives to be republicans
& possessing to much sens to judge a matter of such momentious weight. before
hearing it or frorm the rport that comes from the liar, the drunkard, the adulterer
the professer the Priest's the Press all equally ingaged in flooding the land with falshood
against the Church of Latter Day Saints that Proves to a demonstration that they all partake
of one spirit as the opposers did in the days of John, Christ, & Paul & as the cry was
anciently great is the god^d^ess Diana so in this generation [Acts 19:28] every engine is put in operation against
the Church of God because their craft is in danger but it will fall & with it all their
gain because God hath set his hand this last time to recover Israel & no greater Joy
could fill me bosom than to know that all my fathers household would receieve the
gospel & be gathered with the Saints & partake of that glory that is to cover Israel
and may God grant it for Christ sake.
I have many things more I would like to say
had I room & time & it is with the best of feeling & motives that I have made this address
to you. Nothing but duty to God & my fellow men has caused me to leave all my relatives
& resk my life among all manner of men but greater light than I ever expected to see in
mortality is bursting forth I have tasted of the same God hath seen fit to call me to bear his
name to the nations of the earth as one of the 70 Seventy to Jew & Gentile therefore I
know ^my^ mishion it is to Europe's shores & the Islands of the sea Babylon must fall Israel will be free
I know my call to be of God therefore I cannot withhold I do not know at this time when
I shall visit my relatives but I believe that God will yet grant me that ^priveleg^ I expect to spend next
winter in school (if alive) Probably at Kirtland Ohio I wish to be remembered to
Sister Eunice Br Asahel & all other relatives who inquire of my wellfare & I pray God through
Jesus Christ they with you may become Saints for in the cause we are ingaged in you wil
not find darkness, error, nor damnation, but life, light, health, & salvation. Saith your Son Willford Woodruff
I wrote a letter to Brother Asahel a while since I
would like to hear from him I have paid for your
papers the ensuing year I hope you get them when
you write let me know they contain many interesting
things. I bid you farewell for the present may peace
feath & prosperity attend you—{is the prayer of your son Wilford Woodruff}
I am enjoying the best of health
& have been since I began to travel
I have not herd from any of my
relatives for a long time I had
a letter from you about one
year since & one from Brothr
Asahel since yours is all
the intelligence I have
receieved since I have
been in the South
a Letter from you
or any of my friends
would be receieved
with thanksgiving
W. W.
[sideways text]
Wilford Tennessee
To Aphek & Azubah
Woodruff
Chalk Level Ten
[page torn]
25
Mr Aphek Woodruff
Colebrook Litchfield County
Connecticut
[end of sideways text]
[upside-down text]
I do not know what length of time I
shall spend in this country we have
a conference to attend to the
last of this month when I shall
decide where I shall spend
the summer if you write
to me Please direct your
Letter to Chalk Level
Post office Benton
County Tennessee
I much desire to
hear from you.
Willford Woodruff
When you write to me give me the news of the day
with you the death of any of my friends if any there
should be I would like to hear from Brother Azmons
family their circumstances &c. if you should know
about them Uncle Ozem Woodruff's family Also Aunt
Cossetts family & all the friends By so doing you will bestow
a great favor upon me as I feel anxious to hear from
you all I have written a number of Letters to you &
to other friends in the East I cant say they have been receieved
[end of upside-down text]
[sideways text]
Aphek & Azubah
Woodruff
Willford Woodruff
Sister Eunice
write some
do me if
you ple
ase.
[end of sideways text]