USA > Ohio > Early history of the Disciples in the Western Reserve, Ohio : with biographical sketches of the principal agents in their religious movement > Part 15
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This was a word in season, fitly spoken ; yet, strange enough! "two days afterward he was per- suaded to tempt God by asking this sign. The sign appeared, and he was convinced that Mormonism was of God ! According to his own reasoning, therefore, Satan appeared to him as an angel of light. But he now imputed his former reasoning to pride, incredulity, and the influence of the Evil One."
The next Sunday Rigdon, accompanied by Pratt and Cowdery, went to Kirtland to his appointment. He attempted to preach ; but with the awful blas- phemy in his heart, and the guilt of so shameless an apostasy on his conscience, how could he open his mouth in the name of the insulted Jesus? The elo- quent lips which never stammered before, soon be-
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came speechless, and his tongue was dumb. The faithless watchman, covered with the shame of his fall, surrendered his pulpit and congregation to the prey of wolves. Cowdery and Pratt did most of the preaching ; and that day, both Mr. and Mrs. Rig- don, with many of the members of the church in Kirtland, were baptized into the new faith.
" Scenes of the most wild, frantic and horrible fanati- cism ensued. They pretended that the power of miracles was about to be given to all who embraced the new faith ; and commenced communicating the Holy Spirit, by laying their hands on the heads of the converts, which operation, at first, produced an instantaneous prostration of body and mind. Many would fall upon the floor, where they would lie for a long time, apparently lifeless. The fits usually came on during, or after, their prayer-meetings, which were held nearly every evening. The young men and women were more particularly subject to this delirium. They would exhibit all the apish actions imaginable, making the most ridiculous grimaces, creeping upon their hands and feet, rolling upon the frozen ground, going through all the Indian modes of warfare, such as knocking down, scalping, etc. At other times they would run through the fields, get upon stumps, preach to imaginary congregations, enter the water and perform the ceremony of baptizing. Many would have fits of speaking in all the Indian dialects, which none could understand. Again, at the dead hour of night, young men might be seen running over the fields and hills, in pursuit, as they said, of the balls of fire, lights, etc., which they saw moving through the atmosphere."- Mormonism Unveiled, pp. 104, 105.
These ridiculous practices were performed in Mr. Rigdon's absence. About three weeks after his adoption of the delusion, he went to Palmyra to see
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Smith. The prophet was rejoiced at his coming, and had a revelation all ready for him, just suited to his own purpose and Rigdon's vanity. The begin- ning of it is here transcribed :
" A commandment to Joseph and Sidney, December 7, 1830, saying: Listen to the voice of the Lord your God : I am Alpha and Omega. Behold ! verily, verily, I say unto my servant Sidney, I have looked upon thee and thy works; I have heard thy prayers, and prepared thee for a greater work: thou art blessed, for thou shalt do great things. Behold ! thou wast sent forth even as John, to prepare the way before me and Elijah, which should come, and thou knewest it not. Thou didst baptize with water unto repentance, but they secured not the Holy Ghost. But now I give unto you a commandment that thou shalt baptize with water and give the Holy Ghost by laying on of hands, even as the apostles of old. And it shall come to pass that there shall be a great work in the land, even among the Gentiles."
Mr. Rigdon tarried with Smith about two months, receiving revelations, preaching in the vicinity, and urging proofs of the new religion. His knowledge of the Bible enabled him to pervert many scriptures to this end. Soon after his return to Ohio, Smith and several of his relatives arrived. "This being the ' promised land,' in it their long cherished hopes and anticipations of living without work were to be real- ized. Thus, from almost a state of beggary, the fam- ily of Smiths were immediately well furnished with the ' fat of the land ' by their fanatical followers, many of whom were wealthy."
The new delusion immediately assumed an aggress- ive attitude. A hierarchy was formed consisting of
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several orders of priesthood and grades of eldership. New converts began to come up to the " New Jerusa- lem," to behold the miraculous wonders that busy ru- mor reported to be of daily occurrence, and to worship under the eye of the prophet of the "Latter Day Saints." Rigdon's reputation lifted it at once into notice. New members, with incredible haste, were solemnly ordained to the eldership by the high priests, and sent out every-where to propagate the faith. Their gravity and apparent candor, coupled with a degree of ignorance which was ostentatiously paraded as evidence that they were not deceivers, gave them great credit with a superstitious class of people who are ever ready to be duped by supernat- ural pretension.
Though coming into Ohio first among the disci- ples, and introduced to their attention in a well- planned and artful manner, very few of the leading members were for a moment deceived. After its first approach, it boasted of few converts from any of our churches. Rigdon, Pratt and Orson Hyde, the last two young and but little known, were the only preachers who gave it countenance.
The opposition to it was quick on its feet, in rank, and doing effective work to check the imposture. J. J. Moss, at the time a young school-teacher in the place, pelted them, but not with grass. Isaac Moore stood up, and became a shield to many. The vigi- lance of the Clapps prevented any serious inroads into the church of Mentor. Collins forbade its approach to Chardon, and it merely skulked around its hills. Alexander P. Jones was there also, young, shrewd, and skilled. In many an encounter he was left with-
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out a foe. But the misfortune governing the case was that many people, victims of excitement and credulity, and taught in nearly all pulpits to pray for faith, now found themselves met on their own grounds, and so finding an emotion or impulse an- swerable to an expected response from heaven, dared not dispute the answer to their own prayers, and were hurried into the vortex. The reason the delu- sion made little progress among the Disciples, save only at Kirtland, where the way for it was paved by the common-stock principle, is to be found in the cardinal principle every-where taught and accepted among them, that faith is founded on testimony. This is the law of faith, both in things divine and human. This fundamental principle of the " current reforma- tion," so rational, as well as so scriptural, was every- where proclaimed and accepted among the disciples. It constitutes the divergent truth lying at the basis of their views of conversion, and by which they are, on that subject, distinguished from other bodies of religious people. They never "pray for faith," since " faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Having obtained faith by the appropriate tes- timony, they pray, in the exercise of that faith, for all the rightful objects of petition.
No marvel, then, that when the Mormon preacher approached a disciple, with the proposition to pray for a sign, or evidence of the truth of his system, he was met with an intelligent refusal so to "tempt the Lord his God."
The venerable Thomas Campbell, hearing of the defection of Rigdon and the progress this silly delu- sion was making, came quickly to the front. He
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spent much of the winter in Mentor and vicinity. His wise counsels and great weight of influence in- terposed an effectual barrier against its encroachments. He addressed a communication to Rigdon so firm, so fatherly and characteristic, that the reader shall have the pleasure of perusing it. Its great length will apologize for the omission of a portion of it. Soon after his return to Kirtland, Rigdon fulminated a pompous challenge to the world to disprove the new Bible. On this Mr. Campbell wrote him, as follows:
" MENTOR, February 4, 1831. " MR. SIDNEY RIGDON,
"DEAR SIR :- It may seem strange, that instead of a con- fidential and friendly visit, after so long an absence, I should thus address, by letter, one whom for many years I have considered not only as a courteous and benevolent friend, but as a beloved brother and fellow-laborer in the gospel ; but, alas ! how changed, how fallen ! Neverthe- less, I should now have visited you, as formerly, could I conceive that my so doing would answer the important purpose, both to ourselves and to the public, to which we both stand pledged, from the conspicuous and important stations we occupy-you as the professed disciple and pub- lic teacher of the infernal book of Mormon, and I as a professed disciple and public teacher of the supernal book of the Old and New Testaments of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, which you now say is superceded by the book of Mormon-is become a dead letter ; so dead that the be- lief and obedience of it, without the reception of the lat- ter, is no longer available for salvation. To the disproof of this assertion, I understand you to defy the world. I here use the epithets infernal and supernal in their primary and literal meaning, the former signifying from beneath, the latter from above, both of which are truly applied, if
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the respective authors may be accredited ; of the later of which, however, I have no doubt. But, my dear sir, sup- posing you as sincere in your present, as in your former profession, neither yourself, your friends, nor the world are bound to consider you as more infallible in your latter than in your former confidence, any further than you can render good and intelligible reasons for your present cer- tainty. This, I understand from your declaration on last Lord's day, you are abundantly prepared and ready to do. I, therefore, as in duty bound, accept the challenge, and shall hold myself in readiness, if the Lord permit, to meet you publicly, in any place, either in Mentor or Kirtland, or in any of the adjoining towns that may appear most eligi- ble for the accommodation of the public. The sooner the investigation takes place the better for all concerned.
"The proposition that I have assumed, and which I mean to assume and defend against Mormonism and every other ism that has been assumed since the Christian era, is the all-sufficiency and the alone-sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, vulgarly called the Bible, to make every intelligent believer wise to salva- tion, thoroughly furnished for any good work. This prop- osition, clearly and fully established, as I believe it most certainly can be, we have no more need for Quakerism, Shakerism, Wilkinsonianism, Buchanism, Mormonism, or any other ism, than we have for three eyes, three ears, three hands, or three feet, in order to see, hear, work, or walk. This proposition I shall illustrate and confirm, by showing-
" I. That the declarations, invitations and promises of the gospel, go to confer upon the obedient believer the great- est possible privileges, both here and hereafter, that our nature is capable of enjoying.
" 2. That there is not a virtue that can happify, or adorn the human character, nor a vice that can abase and dis- happify, which human heart can conceive, or human lan-
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guage can express, that is not most clearly commanded or forbidden in the Holy Scriptures.
" 3. That there are no greater motives that can possibly be expressed or conceived, to enforce obedience, or dis- courage and prevent disobedience, than the Scriptures most clearly and unequivocably exhibit.
" These propositions being proved, every thing is proved that can effect our happiness here or hereafter."
He next tells Mr. Rigdon the course he proposes to pursue in exposing the claims of Mormonism :
I. By examining the character of its author and his ac- complices ;
2. Expose their pretensions to miraculous gifts, and the gift of tongues ; and will test them in three or four for- eign languages ;
3. Expose their assertion, that the authority for adminis- tering baptism was lost for fourteen hundred years till re- stored by the new prophet, by showing it to be a contra- diction to Matt. xvi : 18;
4. That the pretended duty of " common property " is anti-scriptural, and a fraud upon society ;
5. That re-baptizing believers is making void the law of Christ; and the pretension of imparting the Holy Spirit by imposition of hands, is an unscriptural intrusion on the exclusive prerogative of the primary apostles ;
6. That its pretentious visions, humility and spiritual perfection, are nowise superior to those of the first Shakers, Jemima Wilkinson, the French prophets, etc.
" In the last place we shall examine the internal evi- dence of the book of Mormon itself, pointing out its evi- dent contradictions, foolish absurdities, shameless preten- sions to antiquity, restore it to its rightful claimant as a production beneath contempt, and utterly unworthy the reception of a school-boy."
He concludes :
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" I remain, with grateful remembrances of the past, and best wishes for the future, your sincere friend and humble servant, THOMAS CAMPBELL."
Mr. Rigdon read a few lines of this communication, and then hastily committed it to the flames !
Perhaps in no place, except Kirtland, did the doc- trines of the " Latter Day Saints" gain a more per- manent footing than in Hiram. It entrenched itself there so strongly that its leaders felt assured of the capture of the town. Rigdon's former popularity in that region gave wings to their appeal, and many peo- ple, not avowed converts, were under a spell of won- der at the strange things sounded in their ears. The following communication from Bro. Symonds Ryder, living in the midst of the scenes he describes, will be read with interest, especially by those who knew the high and indubitable integrity of the writer :
" HIRAM, February 1, 1868. " DEAR BRO. HAYDEN :
". . . To give particulars of the Mormon excitement of 1831 would require a volume-a few words must suffice. It has been stated that from the year 1815 to 1835, a period of twenty years, ' all sorts of doctrine by all sorts of preach- ers had been plead ;' and most of the people of Hiram had been disposed to turn out and hear. This went by the specious name of 'liberal.' The Mormons in Kirt- land, being informed of this peculiar state of things, were soon prepared for the onset.
" In the winter of 1831 Joseph Smith, with others, had an appointment in the south school-house, in Hiram. Such was the apparent piety, sincerity and humility of the speakers, that many of the hearers were greatly affected, and thought it impossible that such preachers should lie in wait to deceive.
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" During the next spring and summer several converts were made, and their success seemed to indicate an im- mediate triumph in Hiram. But when they went to Mis- souri to lay the foundation of the splendid city of Zion, and also of the temple, they left their papers behind. This gave their new converts an opportunity to become acquainted with the internal arrangement of their church, which revealed to them the horrid fact that a plot was laid to take their property from them and place it under the control of Joseph Smith the prophet. This was too much for the Hiramites, and they left the Mormonites faster than they had ever joined them, and by fall the Mor- mon church in Hiram was a very lean concern.
" But some who had been the dupes of this deception, determined not to let it pass with impunity ; and, accord- ingly, a company was formed of citizens from Shalersville, Garrettsville, and Hiram, in March, 1832, and proceeded to headquarters in the darkness of night, and took Smith and Rigdon from their beds, and tarred and feathered them both, and let them go. This had the desired effect, which was to get rid of them. They soon left for Kirt- land.
"All who continued with the Mormons, and had any property, lost all; among whom was John Johnson, one of our most worthy men ; also, Esq. Snow, of Mantua, who lost two or three thousand dollars.
" SYMONDS RYDER."
The subsequent history of this modern imposture of most blasphemous pretension, is before the world. It is not a little curious that it has become the ground- work of many publications and much romance. A very full and complete history of it, full of incident and personal allusion, came out a few years ago in France, in two elegant volumes. Its research is mi- nute and extensive, giving with remarkable accuracy
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and fullness sketches of many leading actors, with accounts of the religious societies from which they deflected. A copy of the work is in the library of Congress, at Washington, as I learn by a note from Gen. Garfield, who writes: "It was published in French, at Paris, in 1860, and about the same time in English, in London. The London edition is en- titled ' A Journey to Great Salt Lake City, by Jules Remy and Julius Brenchley.' It is published at Lon- don by W. Jeffs, 15 Burlington Arcade-imprint, 1861."
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CHAPTER X.
The Church in Chardon-Wm. Collins-Pastors-The Church in Munson-Leading Men-The Cause established in Burton.
T HE Baptist church at Chardon was formed Oc- tober 1, 1817. On the eleventh of that month the church met in the court-house, and appointed Elders Hank and Rider to represent them in the Grand River Conference, and act for them in form- ing the Grand River Association.
Mr. Campbell's visit to Chardon at the ministers' meeting, June, 1824, produced a marked and perma- nent effect. The ground principles of all this grand movement-that the Bible is a self-interpreting book ; that it is not to be interpreted in the interests of any party, or any received system of theology ; that a correct and faithful use of it would lead back the di- vided saints into the original apostolic "unity of the spirit in the bond of peace," a glorious consumma- tion, and so bring about the long prayed for union of God's people-these views, so clear, so desira- ble, and so in harmony with the Holy Scriptures, were warmly cherished and much discussed. Mr. Campbell's " Christian Baptist," several copies of which were taken and critically read, kept alive the discussions, and added very much to the power and boldness with which they were asserted and de- fended. Lucius Smith was in the habit of taking his copy of it to the neighbors and reading it to
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them. He came frequently to John C. Collins', father of Elder Wm. Collins, who was brother-in-law to the brothers King, where many an evening was profita- bly spent in searching the Scriptures. It must not for a moment be supposed that the truth gained an easy victory. So far from it, many of its early and life-long supporters arrayed themselves at first against the alleged innovations, and yielded their opposition only when they could withstand no longer. Zadok and George King were among the earliest and firmest opponents.
The hymns reflected the doctrine of the day. There were few more popular than the following : -
" Awaked by Sinai's awful sound, My soul in bonds of guilt I found, And knew not where to go ; Alas ! I read and saw it plain The sinner must be born again, Or sink to endless woe !"
All the points in the process of conversion passed through the most thorough ordeal of analysis and examination. That the Law of Moses was ever de- livered to any nation but the Jews, or that it was ever intended to bring repentance, was questioned, doubted, denied. But " the law is our school-master to bring us to Christ," was quoted triumphantly by preacher, deacon, and disputant. " It does not read so," says one in the audience. "Take that man out, he disturbs the meeting."
Mrs. Lucius Smith was no less interested than her husband in the clearer views of gospel light ad- vocated in the " Christian Baptist." She was a Pres- byterian, a person of clear apprehension, and of
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much independence of character. She saw the truth in regard to the law, and usually replied to the argu- ment by quoting correctly : "The law was our school-master," and asking, "What have we, under the gospel, to do with the law ?" Quoting further : " The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." The people were walking on the sharp edge of the controversy about legal and evangelical repentance ; about saving faith, evangel- ical faith, historic faith, and many such needless dis- tinctions unknown to the gospel, and which served only to confuse the mind, and render the way of sal- vation a mystery.
Nathan Porter, who not long before had come from the East, young, ardent, ready in speech, and ready to learn, took hold with fresh avidity of the new principles. He was commended for ordination, and was formally set apart to the work of the min- istry, June, 1824. He was prompt to publish and defend the teaching of the Holy Scriptures touching the points under discussion, little caring what the doctrinal standards taught.
WILLIAM COLLINS, familiarly known as "Elder Col- lins," was born in Enfield, Connecticut, September 24, 1799, but brought up in Suffield. His parents were Pres- byterians. When he was about fourteen years of age an extensive religious awakening arose among the Baptists in Suffield. Many turned to the Lord, and young Collins, in the language of that day, become "hopefully con- verted." Like Timothy of Derbe (Acts xvi : 1) he began at once to exercise his gift of exhortation. His zeal im- pelled him forward. It is related of him that when the tide of feeling was high in the community, he arose in a
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crowded evening assembly, and stretching both arms side- ways to full length, he cried out : " Jesus of Nazareth is passing by !" His voice was full and clear, and the speech produced a profound sensation. He followed with an exhortation twenty minutes, so pertinent, earnest, and persuasive, that many made note of it as preluding emi- nence in the Christian ministry. In the year 1816, when he was some seventeen years old, his father, John C. Col- lins, emigrated to Ohio, and settled in Chardon. John King, father of Zadok, George, and Harvey King, and father-in-law of John C. Collins, had removed to Chardon from Connecticut the year before, and settled on "King Street." The land was all a wilderness. Teams of oxen and horses brought their families and their few necessary " goods" all the way, and their own axes underbrushed the way many miles for their wagons. These firm, perse- vering men brought excellent muscle for the clearing off of the forest, and laying the basis of the agricultural wealth of the country. Their moral and religious prin- ciples, in which they were equally heroic, was the ground- work of a future eminently noble society, in which were secured the right culture and development of their chil- dren's children. The writer of these memoirs was not born out of due time to see and converse with grandfather and grandmother King. George King, long an elder and active member, died June 8, 1862, at nearly sixty-nine years of age. Harvey King, unexceptionable in upright- ness and piety, died joyfully, December 15, 1872, at sev- enty-five years ; while " uncle" Zadok still survives, a veteran of three generations, like a tree with its root in one, its trunk and bloom in another, and its ripe fruit in the third.
Wm. Collins was employed in industrial pursuits for several years. In the winter of 1821-2, Chardon was vis- ited by a deep religious revival. Elder Warner Goodall, of Mentor, was the mover in it, a man of plain, broad
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common sense, of no mean abilities, widely esteemed for his godly behavior. He so preached that a large part of the Presbyterian membership came like Jesus the blessed, and exchanging the bowl for the Jordan, followed their leader into it. Collins had never lost the impressions produced in old Suffield. He came also, and on the 17th of March, 1822, he was baptized by Elder Goodall. Again his tongue was loosed. He was young, ardent, de- votedly pious, of brilliant imagination, commanding a copious flow of language, and of manners that awakened great hopes of his future usefulness. He was licensed by the Baptist church, November 3, 1822, when about twenty-three years of age. He was warmly commended to prepare for the ministry in their theological school at Hamilton, New York. Elder Rufus Rider, the Baptist minister, was active in securing these advantages for him. This outlay of means yielded a rich harvest ; though probably not precisely in the channel of the counsels which urged him to Hamilton-the only difference, yet important, consisting in the fact that he returned to preach the gospel as he read it in the New Testament, not as it is interpreted in the confession of faith.
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