What The Church�Teaches About�The U.S. Constitution

Agenda

1. What the Scriptures teach about the U.S. Constitution
2. What the Prophet Joseph Smith taught about the U.S. Constitution
3. What Other Modern Prophets have taught about the U.S. Constitution
4. What the Founding Fathers said about the U.S. Constitution
5. What the Living Prophets have taught about the U.S. Constitution

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What The Scriptures�Teach About�The U.S. Constitution

Christopher Columbus and Pilgrims

• 1 Ne 13: 12 And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land.
• 15 And I beheld the Spirit of the Lord, that it was upon the Gentiles, and they did prosper and obtain the land for their inheritance.
• 16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them.

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Background for D&C sections 98 and 101

• In 1833, the Saints who had gathered in Missouri were suffering great persecution
• A mob destroyed Church property, tarred and feathered two Church members, and demanded that the Saints leave Jackson County
• By December 1833, mobs had driven the Saints from their homes and they moved to nearby counties, but persecution followed them
• The Saints had lost household furniture, clothing, livestock, and other personal property; and many of their crops had been destroyed.
• It was in these times that Joseph Smith received D&C sections 98 and 101

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• D&C 98:5 And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me.
• 6 Therefore, I, the Lord, justify you, and your brethren of my church, in befriending that law which is the constitutional law of the land.
• 8 I, the Lord God, make you free, therefore ye are free indeed; and the law also maketh you free.
• 9 Nevertheless, when the wicked rule the people mourn.

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• D&C 101:76 It is my will that they should continue to importune for redress, and redemption, by the hands of those who are placed as rulers and are in authority over you—
• 77 According to the laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles;
• 80 And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood.

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• A few years later, at the dedication of the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, March 27, 1836, Joseph Smith offered this prayer which was given to him by revelation
• “Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever.” (D&C 109:54)

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What the Prophet Joseph Smith Taught About the U.S. Constitution

• In the winter of 1838-1839, Joseph Smith was unjustly incarcerated in a cold, underground jail cell in the town of Liberty, Missouri
• Despite his circumstances, he bore his testimony of the divinity of the Constitution:
• “The Constitution of the United States is a glorious standard; it is founded in the wisdom of God. It is a heavenly banner.”
• History of The Church, ed. B. H. Roberts, 3:304.

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• Joseph Smith said:
• “Even this nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground, and when the Constitution is upon the brink of ruin, this people will be the staff upon which the nation shall lean, and they shall bear the Constitution away from the very verge of destruction.”
• 19 July 1840, as recorded by Martha Jane Knowlton Coray

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• In a Pioneer Day celebration in Ogden, Utah in 1871, Eliza R. Snow said:
• “I heard the prophet say, ‘The time will come when the government of these United States will be so nearly overthrown through its corruption, that the Constitution will hang as it were by a single hair, and the Latter-day Saints—the Elders of Israel—will step forward to its rescue and save it.’”
• Journal History, MSF 143 #28, July 24, 1871.
• Orson Hyde’s account includes and “if.” “If the constitution be saved at all, it will be by the Elders of this Church.” (JD, 6:150.)

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• In June 1844, angry mobs had begun again to threaten Joseph Smith and the Latter-day Saints
• Joseph was also still fighting extradition to Missouri where he was wanted in connection with crimes he did not commit
• Joseph believed they were losing many of the most basic rights guaranteed by the Constitution and said:
• “I call upon all the volunteers who feel to support the Constitution from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean to come with their arms, ammunition, and defend the Constitution.”

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What Other Modern Prophets Have Taught About The U.S. Constitution

• “To me the Constitution is a part of my religion. In its place it is just as much a part of my religion as any other part. It is a part of my religion because it is one of those institutions which God has set up for His own purposes, and, as one of the brethren said today, set up so that this Church might be established, because under no other government in the world could the Church have been established as it has been established under this government.”
• President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., First Counselor in the First Presidency of the Church, Conference Report, October 1942

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• In 1986, Church President Ezra Taft Benson quoted former British Prime Minister William Gladstone who said the U.S. Constitution is “the most wonderful work ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man.”

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• Pres Benson continued, “I heartily endorse this assessment, and I would like to pay honor—honor to the document itself, honor to the men who framed it, and honor to the God who inspired it and made possible its coming forth.”
• The Constitution—A Glorious Standard, 16 September 1986

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• Church President Ezra Taft Benson said:
• “I reverence the Constitution of the United States as a sacred document. To me its words are akin to the revelations of God, for God has placed His stamp of approval on the Constitution of this land. I testify that the God of heaven sent some of His choicest spirits to lay the foundation of this government, and He has sent other choice spirits to preserve it.”
• The Constitution—A Glorious Standard, 16 September 1986

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What the Founding Fathers said about the U.S. Constitution

• In 1877, Wilford Woodruff was visited by “the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and fifty other eminent men, making one hundred in all, including John Wesley, Columbus, and others.”
• They said to him: “We laid the foundation of the government you now enjoy, and we never apostatized from it, but we remained true to it and were faithful to God.” (Journal of Discourses, 19:229)

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• “The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon.”
• “The Constitution that we have is an excellent one, if we can keep it where it is.”
• The Constitution “will demonstrate as visibly the finger of Providence as any possible event in the course of human affairs.”
• “I wish the constitution, which is offered, had been made more perfect; but I sincerely believe it is the best that could be obtained at this time.”
• George Washington, President of the Constitutional Convention, first President of the United States

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• “We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge or gallantry would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution is designed only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for any other.”
• John Adams, first vice-president and second president of the United States

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• “The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases. The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first.”
• Thomas Jefferson, principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and third president of the United States

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• “I have so much faith in the general government of the world by Providence that I can hardly conceive a transaction of such momentous importance [as the framing of the Constitution] ... should be suffered to pass without being in some degree influenced, guided, and governed by that omnipotent, omnipresent, and beneficent Ruler in whom all inferior spirits live and move and have their being.”
• Benjamin Franklin, helped draft the Declaration of Independence and delegate to the Constitutional Convention

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• “The happy Union of these States is a wonder; their Constitution a miracle; their example the hope of Liberty throughout the world.”
• “We have staked the whole future of our new nation, not upon the power of government; far from it. We have staked the future of all our political constitutions upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves according to the moral principles of the Ten Commandments.”
• “The future and success of America is not in this Constitution, but in the laws of God upon which this Constitution is founded.”
• James Madison, drafted the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and fourth President of the US

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• “We the people are the rightful masters of both Congress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.”
• “Let [the Constitution] be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in primers, spelling-books, and in almanacs; let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation.”
• Abraham Lincoln, 16^th President of the United States, Ended Slavery

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What the Living Prophets Have Taught About the U.S. Constitution

• “I close by citing Thomas Jefferson, who wisely said, “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free . . . it expects what never was and never will be.” How grateful we are for Founding Fathers. “Honest, wise, and good men” raised up by God, “unto this very purpose,” to establish the Constitution of this land. These principles of freedom, “honorably and nobly defended,” are “for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles.” They are part of the Lord’s blessing to His precious sons and daughters everywhere.”
• Elder Gerrit W. Gong, “Things Expedient to Understand”, 20 Oct 2020

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• “I am concerned when much of the discussion is an attack on faith and belief, often reframing and distorting our history. Some, intentionally or not, are trying to undermine our country’s founding history and the United States Constitution. Whether by intention or by myopia, both effects are regrettable.”
• Elder Quentin L. Cook, 24 Aug 2020

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• “The United States Constitution is the oldest written national constitution still in use. It has served Americans well, enhancing freedom and prosperity during the changing conditions of more than 200 years. Frequently copied, it has become the United States’ most important export. After two centuries, every nation in the world except six have adopted written constitutions, and the United States Constitution was a model for all of them. Consequently, if we abandon or weaken its fundamental principles, we betray our own national ideals and we also weaken our global neighbors.”
• Elder Dallin H. Oaks, “Fundamentals of Our Constitutions” 17 Sep 2010

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• “I will suggest five responsibilities that I believe are appropriate for all citizens—whatever their religious or philosophical persuasion. 1. Understand the Constitution. All citizens should be familiar with its great fundamentals: the sovereignty of the people, the structure of federalism that divides powers between the state and the federal government, the individual guarantees in the Bill of Rights, and the principle of separation of powers among the various branches of government. We should take alarm at and consider how to oppose any action that would infringe these fundamentals.”
• Elder Dallin H. Oaks, “Fundamentals of Our Constitutions” 17 Sep 2010

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Thank you for viewing this presentation. I created this for my children, so they would know the importance of the Constitution and have courage to support it as they grow into voting adults. I add my witness to the others quoted here, that the U.S. Constitution was inspired by God. We need good people everywhere, especially those who know of its divine source, to uphold and defend the Constitution.�-Jimmy Smith�JimmySmith.org