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LDS (Mormon) Prophecy - Reasons for Preparedness

AMERICAN INDIAN NEWS TICKER!!!

LDS Prophets on "Survivalism"


The following is a sampling of quotes from leaders and prophets of The

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon) given on the

subject of preparedness, a year's supply of food and essentials, and

self-reliance. I am posting these here because I feel they give good

instruction, are pertinent to this newsgroup's interests, and would be

for the benefit of the m.s. readership. This post is rather long (I've

had to divide it into parts!), but I hope nonetheless that you might

read as much of it as you can. Feel free to look these speeches up and

study them in their entirety to ensure proper contextual meaning and to

derive a better understanding of the principles of self-reliance. They

truly are a goldmine of thought on "survivalism." I have put Ezra Taft

Benson's October 1973 General Conference address first because I feel it

is a good synopsis of LDS thought on this subject and thus a good

jumping-off point. The ones afterward are in order starting from the

oldest to the most recent. They are only a sampling, however, I'm sure

there are many talks which I have overlooked in my research. I only hope

to share with you the ones I have found so far. If you wish to have some

that are more recent, please e-mail me and I'll see what I can do. I

hope you enjoy them!

Ezra Taft Benson

(President Benson served as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture under Dwight

D. Eisenhower from 1953-1961. He was called to serve as an Apostle in

the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1943, which was the position he

held when he gave this talk. He later became President (i.e., Prophet,

Seer, and Revelator) of the Church and served in that position from

1985-1993.)

October Conference, 1973

What are some of the calamities for which we are to prepare? In section

29 [of the Doctrine and Covenants, a volume of LDS scripture - A.S.] the

Lord warns us of "a great hailstorm sent forth to destroy the crops of

the earth." (D&C 29:16.) In section 45 we read of "an overflowing

scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land." (D&C 45:31.)

In section 63 the Lord declares he has "decreed wars upon the face of

the earth..." (D&C 63:33.)

In Matthew, chapter 24, we learn of "famines, and pertilences, and

earthquakes...." (Matt. 24:7.) The Lord declared that these and other

calamities shall occur. These particular prophecies seem not to be

conditional. The Lord, with his foreknowledge, knows that they will

happen. Some will come about through man's manipulations; others through

the forces of nature and nature's God, but that they will come seems

certain. Prophecy is but history in reverse-a divine disclosure of

future events.

Yet, through all of this, the Lord Jesus Christ has said "...if ye

are prepared ye shall not fear." (D&C 38:30.)

...Here then is the key-look to the prophets for the words of God, that

will show us how to prepare for the calamities which are to come.

...For the righteous the gospel provides a warning before a calamity, a

program for the crisis, a refuge for each disaster.

...The Lord has warned us of famines, but the righteous will have

listened to prophets and stored at least a year's supply of suvival

food.

...The Lord desires his Saints to be free and independent in the

critical days ahead. But no man is truly free who is in financial

bondage. "Think what you do when you run in debt," said Benjamin

Franklin, "you give to another power over your liberty. "...pay thy debt

and live..." said Elisha. (2 Kings 4:7.) And in the Doctrine and

Covenants the Lord says, "...it is my will that you shall pay all your

debts." (D&C 104:78.)

For over 100 years we have been admonished to store up grain.

"Remember the counsel that is given," said Elder Orson Hyde, "...Store

up all your grain,' and take care of it!...And I tell you it is almost

as necessary to have bread to sustain the body as it is to have food for

the spirit; for the one is as necessary as the other to enable us to

carry on the work of God upon the earth." (Journal of Discourses, vol.

5, p. 17) And he also said: "There is more salvation and security in

wheat, than in all the political schemes of the world...." (JD, vol. 2,

p. 207.)

...As to the foodstuffs which should be stored, the Church has left

that decision primarily to the individual members. Some excellent

suggestions are available from the Church Welfare Committee. "All grain

is good for the food of man..." (D&C 89:16) the Lord states, but he

particularly singles out wheat. Dry, whole, hard grains, when stored

properly, can last indefinitely, and their nutritional value can be

enhanced through sprouting, if desired.

It would be well if every family have on hand grain for at least a

year.

From the standpoint of food production, storage, handling, and the

Lord's counsel, wheat should have a high priority. Water, of course, is

essential. Other basics could include honey or sugar, legumes, milk

products or substitutes, and salt or its equivalent. The revelation to

store food may be as essential to our temporal salvation today as

boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah.

President Harold B. Lee has wisely counseled that "perhaps if we

think not in terms of a year's supply of what we ordinarily would use,

and think more in terms of what it would take to keep us alive in case

we didn't have anything else to eat, that last would be very easy to put

in storage for a year...just enough to keep us alive if we didn't have

anything else to eat. We wouldn't get fat on it, but we would live; and

if you think in terms of that kind of annual storage rather than a whole

year's supply of everything that you are accustomed to eat which, in

most cases, is utterly impossible for the average family, I think we

will come nearer to what President Clark advised us way back in 1937."

(Welfare conference address, October 1, 1966.)

...There are blessings in being close to the soil, in raising your own

food, even if it is only a garden in your yard and/or a fruit tree or

two.

...Those families will be fortunate who, in the last days, have an

adequate supply of each of these particulars.

...Concerning clothing, we should anticipate future needs, such as

extra work clothes and clothes that would supply warmth during winter

months when there may be shortages or lack of heating fuel. Leather and

bolts of cloth could be stored, particularly for families with younger

children who will outgrow and perhaps outwear their present clothes.

"The day will come," said President Wilford Woodruff, "when, as we

have been told, we shall all see the necessity of making our own shoes

and clothing and raising our own food...." (Discourses of Wilford

Woodruff, p.166.)

...In a message to the Saints in July of 1970, President Joseph

Fielding Smith stated that the pioneers "were taught by their leaders to

produce, as far as possible, all that they consumed...This is still

excellent counsel." (Improvement Era, vol. 73 [1970], p. 3.)

Wood, coal, gas, oil, kerosene, and even candles are among those

items which could be reserved as fuel for warmth, cooking, and light or

Some may be used for all of these purposes and certain ones would

have to be stored and handled cautiously. It would also be well to have

on hand some basic medical supples to last for at least a year.

...The Saints have been advised to pay their own way and maintain a

cash reserve. Recent history has demonstrated that in difficult days it

is reserves with intrinsic value that are of most worth, rather than

reserves, the value of which may be destroyed through inflation. It is

well to remember that continued government deficits cause inflation;

inflation is used as an excuse for ineffective price controls; price

controls lead to shortages; artificial shortages inevitably are used as

an excuse to implement rationing.

When will we learn these basic economic priciples? However, "...when

we really get into hard times," said President Clark, "where food is

scarce or there is none at all, and so with clothing and shelter, money

may be no good for there may be nothing to buy, and you cannot eat

money, you cannot get enough of it together to burn to keep you warm,

and you cannot wear it." (Church News, November 21, 1953, p.4.)

..."How on the face of the earth could a man enjoy his religion," said

Elder George A. Smith many years ago, "when he had been told by the Lord

how to prepare for a day of famine, when, instead of doing so, he had

fooled away that which would have sustained him and his family." (JD,

vol. 12, p. 142.)

And President Brigham Young said, "If you are without bread, how

much wisdom can you boast, and of what real utility are your talents, if

you cannot procure for yourselves and save against a day of scarcity

those substances designed to sustain your natural lives?...If you cannot

provide for your natural lives, how can you expect to have wisdom to

obtain eternal lives?" (JD, vol. 8, p. 68.)

l, and so wit ...When will all these calamities strike? We do not know the exact

time, but it appears it may be in the not-too-distant future. Those who

are prepared now have the continuing blessings of early obedience, and

they are ready. Noah built his ark before the flood came, and he and his

family survived. Those who waited to act until after the flood began

were too late.

Let us not be dissuaded from preparing because of a seeming

prosperity today, or a so-called peace.

I have seen the ravages of inflation. I shall never forget Germany

in the 1920's. In December 1923 in Cologne, Germany, I paid six billion

marks for breakfast. That was just 15 cents in American money. Today,

the real inflation concern is in America and several other nations.

...I have witnessed with my own eyes the ravages of hunger and

destitution as, under the direction of the president of the Church, I

p. 68.)

spent a year in war-torn Europe at the close of World War II, without my

family, distributing food, clothing, and bedding to our needy members. I

have looked into the sunken eyes of Saints, in almost the last stages of

starvation. I have seen faithful mothers carrying their children, three

and four years of age, who were unable to walk because of malnutrition.

I have seen a hungry woman turn down food for a spool of thread. I have

seen grown men weep as they ran their hands through the wheat and beans

sent to them from Zion - America.

Thanks be to God for a prophet, for this inspired program, and for

Saints who so managed their stewardship that they could provide for

their own and still share with others. What a marvelous way to become a

savior on Mount Zion!

...May we ever remember the Lord's promise: "...if ye are prepared ye

shall not fear." (D&C 38:30.)

...The days ahead are sobering and challenging. Oh, may we be prepared

spiritually and temporally....

Joseph Smith (first President of the Church, served from 1830-1844)

"Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith"

The time is soon coming, when no man will have any peace but in Zion

and her stakes.

I saw armies arrayed against armies. I saw blood, desolation,

fires....These things are at our doors.

...I do not know how soon these things will take place; but with a view

of them, shall I cry peace? No; I will lift up my voice and testify of

them. How long you will have good crops and the famine be kept off, I do

not know; when the fig tree leaves, know then that the summer is nigh at

hand.

Orson Hyde (Apostle from 1835-1878)

Quoted by Ezra Taft Benson

October Conference, 1980

There is more salvation and security in wheat than in all the

political schemes of the world.

Brigham Young (President of the Church from 1847-1877)

"Journal of Discourses"

epared

If you are without bread, how much wisdom can you boast, and of what

real utility are your talents, if you cannot produce for yourselves and

save against a day of scarcity those substances designed to sustain your

natural lives?

I have proven this many a time...I have plenty on hand, and shall

have plenty, if I keep giving it away. More than two hundred persons eat

from my provisions every day, besides my family and those who work for

me. I intend to keep doing so, that my bread may hold out, for if I do

not I shall come short. Do you believe that principle? I know it is

true, because I have proven it so many times." (Journal of Discourses,

vol. 3, pp. 332-33)

Brethren, learn. You have learned a good deal, it is true; but learn

more; learn to sustain yourselves; lay up grain and flour, and save it

against a day of scarcity. Sisters...aid your husbands in storing it up

7-1877)

"Jagainst a day of want, and always have a year's or two, provision on

hand. (Brigham Young, Discourses, 1943 ed., p. 293)

The time will come that gold will hold no comparison in value to a

bushel of wheat. (Brigham Young, in Journal of Discourses, vol. 1, p.

250, 1943 ed., p. 298.)

Brigham Young

"Journal of Discourses"

Quoted by Victor L. Brown

October Conference, 1980

I fear we today are somewhat like those referred to by President Brigham

Young in this quotation:

"We have seen one grasshopper war before this. Then we had two years

of it. We are having two years now. Suppose we have good crops next

year, the people will think less of this visitation than they do now;

and still less the next year; until in four or five years it will be

almost gone from their minds. We are capable of being perfectly

independent of these insects. If we had thousands on thousands of

)

"Journal of bushels of wheat, rye, and barley, and corn we might have said to them

[that is, the insects] 'you may go, we are not going to plant for you.'

Then we could have plowed up the ground, put in the manure, and let the

land rest, and the grasshoppers would not have destroyed the fruits of

our labors which could have been directed to the beautifying of Zion and

making our habitations places of loveliness." (In Journal of Discourses,

12:242.)

..."I believe the Latter-day Sants are the best people on the earth of

whom we have any knowledge. Still, I believe that we are, in many

things, very negligent, slothful, and slow to obey the words of the

Lord. Many seem to act upon the faith that God will sustain us instead

of our trying to sustain ourselves. We are frightened at seeing the

grasshopper coming and destroying our crops....I remember saying in the

School of the Prophets, that I would rather the people would exercise a

ses"

epalittle more sense and save means to provide for themselves, instead of

squandering it away and asking the Lord to feed them. In my reflections

I have carried this matter a considerable length. I have paid attention

to the counsel that has been given me. For years past it has been

sounded in my ears, year after year, to lay up grain, so that we might

have an abundance in the day of want. Perhaps the Lord would bring a

partial famine on us; perhaps a famine would come upon our neighbors. I

have been told that He might bring just such a time as we are now

having. But suppose I had not taken no heed to this counsel, and have

not regarded the coming time, what would have been my condition to-day.

..."View the actions of the Latter-day Saints on this matter, and their

neglect of the counsel given; and suppose the Lord would allow these

insects to destroy our crops this season and the next, what would be the

d exercise aresult? I can see death, misery, and want on the faces of this people.

But some may say, 'I have faith the Lord will turn them away.' What

ground have we to hope this? Have I my good reason to say to my Father

in heaven, 'Fight my battles,' when He has given me the sword to wield,

the arm and the brain that I can fight for myself? Can I ask Him to

fight my battle and sit quietly down waiting for Him to do so? I cannot.

I can pray the people to hearken to wisdom, to listen to counsel; but to

ask God to do for me that which I can do for myself is preposterous to

my mind. Look at the Latter-day Saints. We have had our fields laden

with grain for years; and if we have been so disposed, our bins might

have been filled to overflowing, and with seven years' provisions on

hand we might have disregarded the ravages of these insects, and have

gone to the canyon and got our lumber, procured the materials, and built

xercise a up and beautified our places, instead of devoting our time to fighting

and endeavoring to replace that which has been lost through their

destructiveness. We might have made our fences, improved our buildings,

beautifed Zion, let our ground rest, and prepared for the time when

these insects would have gone. But now the people are running distracted

here and there....They are in want and in trouble, and they are

perplexed. They do not know what to do. They have been told what to do,

but they did not hearken to this counsel." (In Journal of Discourses,

12:240-41.)

President Young goes on to say: "We must learn to listen to the

whispering of the Holy Spirit, and the counsels of the servants of God,

until we come to the unity of the faith. If we had obeyed counsel we

would have had granaries today, and they would have been full of grain;

and we would have had wheat and oats and barley for ourselves and for

e a

ses"our animals, to last us for years." (In Journal of Discourses, 12:241.)

Quoting further from President Young: "When Moses was on the mount

they [the Israelites] went to Aaron and inquired where Moses was, and

demanded gods to go before them. And Aaron told then to bring him their

ear rings and their jewelry, and they did so, and he made of them a

golden calf; and the people ran around it, and said these be he gods

which brought us out of the land of Egypt. Home much credit was due to

them? Just as much as to us, for not saving our grain when we had an

abundance, and when grasshoppers come, crying, 'Lord turn them away and

save us.' It is just as consistent as for a man on board a steamboat on

the wide ocean to say, I will show you what faith I have, and then to

jump overboard, crying, 'Lord save me.' It may not seem so daring; but

is it any more inconsistent to throw away and waste the substance the

r

e a Lord has given us, and when we come to want, crying to Him for what we

have wasted and squandered? The Lord has been blessing us all the time,

and He asks us why we have not been blessing ourselves." (In Journal of

Discourses, 12:243.)

Brigham Young

(Discourses of Brigham Young, p.469)

Will the Constitution be destroyed? No; it will be held inviolate by

this people; and, as Joseph Smith said, "The time will come when the

destiny of the nation will hang upon a single thread. At this critical

juncture, this people will step forth and save it from the threatened

destruction." It will be so. 7:15.

Wilford Woodruff (President of the Church from 1889-1898)

"Journal of Discourses"

The day will come when if this people do not lay up their bread they

will be sorry for it. (President Wilford Woodruff in "Journal of

Discourses," vol. 18, p. 127.)

waste the substance So far as our temporal matters are concerned, we have got to go to

work and provide for ourselves. The day will come when, as we have been

told, we shall all see the necessity of making our own shoes and

clothing and raising our own food, and uniting together to carry out the

purposes of the Lord....I therefore say to you, my brethren and sisters,

prepare for that which is to come....(President Wilford Woodruff,

"Discourses" [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1946], pp. 16-77.)

Charles W. Nibley

Conference Report, October 1922, p.40

My brethren and sisters, I hope that we will go home from this

conference determined as a great body of people, to stand for law,

order, righteousness, justice and peace on earth and good will among all

men. I believe as the Prophet Joseph has written, that the day would

come when there would be so much of disorder, of secret combinations

he substance thtaking the law into their own hands, tramping upon Constitutional rights

and the liberties of the people, that the Constitution would hang as by

a thread. Yes, but it will still hang, and there will be enough of good

people, many who may not belong to our Church at all, people who have

respect for law and for order, and for Constitutional rights, who will

rally around with us and save the Constitution. I have never read that

that thread would be cut. It will hang; the Constitution will abide and

this civilization, that the Lord has caused to be built up, will stand

fortified through the power of God, by putting from our hearts all that

is evil, or that is wrong in the sight of God, by our living as we

should live, acceptable to him.

Charles W. Nibley

Conference Report, October 1923, p.62

Brethren and sisters, let me say in closing that we have it of

record, that the prophet Joseph Smith said the time would come when,

through secret organizations taking the law into their own hands, not

being governed by law or by due process of law, but becoming a law unto

themselves, when, by those disintegrating activities, the Constitution

of the United States would be so torn and rent asunder, and life and

property and peace and security would he held of so little value, that

the Constitution would, as it were, hang by a thread. But he never said,

so far as I have heard, that that thread would be cut. I believe, with

Elder Richards, that this Constitution will be preserved, but it will be

preserved very largely in consequence of what the Lord has revealed and

what this people, through listening to the Lord and being obedient, will

help to bring about, to stabilize and give permanency and effect to the

Constitution itself. That also is our mission. That also is what we are

here for. I glory in it. I praise God with all my heart and soul that I

am a member of it.

Melvin J. Ballard

Conference Report, April 1933, p.127

I believe that it is the destiny of the Latter-day Saints to support

the Constitution of the United States. The Prophet Joseph Smith is

alleged to have said--and I believe he did say it--that the day would

come when the Constitution would hang as by a thread. But he saw that

the thread did not break, thank the Lord, and that the Latter-day Saints

would become a balance of power, with others, to preserve that

Constitution. If there is--and there is one part of the Constitution

hanging as by a thread today--where do the Latter-day Saints belong?

Their place is to rally to the support of that Constitution, and

maintain it and defend it and support it by their lives and by their

vote. Let us not disappoint God nor his prophet. Our place is fixed.

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

(Apostle from 1933-1961; Second counselor to President Grant, 1933;

I

am a membeFirst counselor to President Grant, 1934; First counselor to President

George Albert Smith, 1945; Second counselor to President David O. McKay,

1951; First counselor to President McKay, 1959-1961)

April Conference, 1937

At the April 1937 general conference of the Church, President J.

Reuben Clark, Jr., of the First Presidency, asked: "what may we as a

people and as individuals do for ourselves to prepare to meet this

oncoming disaster, which God in his wisdom may not turn aside from us?"

President Clark then set forth thoses inspired basic principles of the

Church welfare program:

"First, and above and beyond everything else, let us live

righteously....

"Let us avoid debt as we would avoid a plague; where we are now in

debt, let us get out of debt; if not today, then tomorrow.

"Let us straitly and strictly live within our incomes, and save a

little.

to resident Gra "Let every head of every household see to it that he has on hand

enough food and clothing, and, where possible, fuel also, for at least a

year ahead. You of small means put your money in foodstuffs and wearing

apparel, not in stocks and bonds; you of large means will think you know

how to care for yourselves, but I may venture to suggest that you do not

speculate. Let every head of every household aim to own his own home,

free from mortgage. Let every man who has a garden spot, garden it;

every man who owns a farm, farm it." (Conference Report, April 1937, p.

26)

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

"The Deseret News," February 8, 1941

We are approaching troublesome times. I have been talking about them

for years. They seem to be upon us. We shall have a period-how long I

know not-of what we shall call prosperity; and then there will be

something else. I have felt from the time this plan was put into

operation that what we were really doing here was not alone caring for

our people at this time, where there were so many other avenues open for

them to get their help, but we were building for future times when we

might need all of our experience, all of our training and skill, all of

our intelligence to preserve ourselves and those who might be less

fortunate among us than we ourselves may personally be.

I for one can visualize a condition, it may or may not come, when

the best of us today will be not much better off than the poorest of us

are now, I do not want to seem too pessimistic, but the world faces one

of the greatest crisis in its history, and no mortal man, without the

inspiration of the Lord, can tell where it will lead.

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.,

Conference Report, October 1942, p.58

You and I have heard all our lives that the time may come when the

Constitution may hang by a thread. I do not know whether it is a thread,

or a small rope by which it now hangs, but I do know that whether it

shall live or die is now in the balance.

Spencer W. Kimball

(an Apostle from 1943-1973, President of the Church from 1973-1985)

Funeral Sermon, Arizona, 1943

Though food be scarce, and starvation stalks abroad, men will still

share their portion, give succor to the afflicted, sympathy to the

bereaved, and help to the unfortunate. Though cities be bombed, families

separated, the meaning of sympathy and understanding and brotherhood

will not change. Courage is not dead, ambition is not slain, love is not

replaced. The bombed cities shall rise again, the grain that was burned

shall be replanted, the fountain that evil has polluted shall flow pure

again, the battered forests will shoot forth new foliage and the grass

will spring forth anew to obiterate traces of war, Even though a

thousand times they shall afflict the earth, a thousand times will it

come forth again and men will survive to plant the ground and build upon

it. The conditions of life in this chaotic situation are changed, but

the meaning of the fundamentals of life have not changed.

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

Address delivered to welfare workers at the

Grant Ward Chapel, Cottonwood Stake, May 9, 1944

Man is so constituted that he must be either provident or

improvident. Sometimes the Latter-day Saints have been criticized, for

being provident. Man is what I would call a seasonable animal, by which

I mean that his living comes from things that are produced only a part

of the year. We produce in the summer, and we consume in the winter. We

are like bees and the squirrels. The improvident hive perishes. The

improvident squirrel dies, and the improvident man, except for the help

which he gets, perishes.

Now, there is no excuse for calling a man a hoarder because he is

provident enough to put away in the summer what he must needs have in

the winter; and remember, that has been the thesis that we have talked

about during all the time that we have had the welfare plan.

Recently the report came to us that some man had said to his wife,

"Well, we have put away food now for several years, something in the

summer to keep us in the winter. Nothing happened. We will try it once

more; and then if famine does not come this is the last time. That will

prove that the General Authorities [leaders of the Church - A.S.] did

not have any inspiration."

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

"Church News," March 2, 1946

Now there are several classes of unfortunates and I think if I were

a bishop at the present moment, facing the problems that seem to lie

ahead, there are certain things which I would do. Before developing

that, may I say this: If in 1936 we had told the Saints, "You would

better prepare, because the time is coming when"-remember, in 1936 the

problem was money,-there was always enough to buy, but the problem today

is something to buy, not money-if we had told you then that the time

would come when you could not buy all the meat you wanted, and perhaps

not any at times; that you could not get butter, and that you could not

get sugar, and that you could not get clothing, and that the farmers

could get no machinery, and so on down the whole list of things that you

can not get now and that therefore you should prepare for a stormy day,

we would have been laughed to scorn. But I say to you again, the advice

then given is good today, and you would better prepare for the times

ahead, that you may not be like the five foolish virgins with no oil in

your lamps. [Ever wonder where I got my screenname? ;D - A.S.]

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

"Church News," April 20, 1946

Now I want to say another word. I have said this often. Cash is not

food, it is not clothing, it is not coal, it is not shelter, and we have

got to the place where no matter how much cash we have, we cannot secure

those things in the quantities which we may need. So notwithstanding,

you men of affairs, how much money you have in the bank, you cannot buy

all the butter you want if you are very much of a butter eater; you

cannot get all the meat you want, and so on through the whole list of

things. All that you can be certain you will have is that which you

produce; and I say again, as I have said before, it will not surprise

me, if times get harder and tighter, if somewhere along the line you

will be required to give up what you yourselves have or part of it in

your cellars. It will be fortunate if you have put away enough so that

you can spare some and still be able to live.

continued 

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