Remembering the pioneers
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May those today — who are the beneficiaries of the pioneers' courage and sacrifice — hold in remembrance not only the great individuals who gave so much, but also the principles and cause for which they sacrificed, said Elder Merrill C. Oaks July 24.
"Today we pay homage to our pioneer forefathers," said Elder Oaks of the Seventy and a counselor in the Utah North Area presidency. "They were men and women of courage and principle."
Speaking to more than 1,000 people gathered in the Tabernacle on Temple Square for the annual Days of '47 Sunrise Service, Elder Oaks said the pioneers are often remembered for hardship and suffering.
"Such experiences among the pioneers were not isolated and are remembered in many families as they pay tribute to their own ancestors," he said. "Death was a frequent visitor to pioneer camps and settlements. The questions may be asked why they would make the journey and what moved them with such dedication."
Elder Oaks said the answers can be found by examining Church history — beginning with Joseph Smith. With his family, he endured great persecution while organizing the Church and translating and publishing the Book of Mormon.
Early Church members moved from Fayette, N.Y.; to Kirtland, Ohio; to Independence and Far West, Mo., ultimately settling in Nauvoo, Ill.
"A temple was begun and Nauvoo became a major city as the saints became more numerous and gathered near this new headquarters. Political concerns of the local people added to the religious prejudice. This culminated in the arrest of Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith and their martyrdom by an armed mob at Carthage, Ill., June 27, 1844."
While the enemies of the Church expected the "Mormon problem" to end with the death of Joseph Smith, Elder Oaks said, an orderly succession of leadership occurred and Brigham Young became the leader of the Church.
"After a relatively brief period of peace, the ongoing violence and attacks made it clear that the saints would need to move again," he added.
The saints settled in Winter Quarters, and at a request of the U.S. Government, organized 500 volunteers to march to California, serving the U.S. Army in the hostilities with Mexico. Another group, consisting of 143 men, three women and two children, became the first group of Mormon pioneers to reach the Salt Lake Valley.
"Most people who made the trek to settle other parts of the West made their decision based on their own desires to receive something better, or adventure, or gold, but the Mormon Pioneers were basically expelled from their homes and many were not optimally prepared for the journey," said Elder Oaks. "If any opportunity had been available to remain and freely practice their religion, they would not have left their homes. In any of the places where they had lived, including Nauvoo, if they would have renounced their belief in the Book of Mormon, the calling of Joseph Smith as a prophet and the reality of the Restoration they would have been allowed to remain in peace."
Elder Oaks said by December 1847 more than 2,000 people had settled in the Salt Lake Valley, where they fought severe winters and short growing seasons.
With the Salt Lake Valley not yielding great crops, the gold fields and milder climate of California were a great temptation for many to move on. But Brigham Young would not be convinced. Heber C. Kimball prophesied in a public meeting that, within a short time, goods from the eastern United States would be sold in Salt Lake City cheaper than in New York, said Elder Oaks.
"The gold rush brought the fulfillment as prospectors found Salt Lake a convenient way station on the way to California. In their eagerness to lighten their load and get to the gold fields, they sold many things inexpensively they had carried to that point. . . . The prospectors also provided work for the saints as they needed repairs of their wagons and were also willing to pay good prices for fresh animals to continue their journey as quickly as possible.
"The gold rush was golden for the saints in a different way," said Elder Oaks.
In the Salt Lake Valley, Elder Oaks said, bishops were asked to care for the poor and needy. Immigrants continued to pour into the great Basin and families were called to go and settle new areas, often with great sacrifice in leaving the communities where they were already established.
"As I look out on this most unusual migration of our people who overcame great odds in traveling to and establishing themselves in what was then a difficult area, several things stand out to me," concluded Elder Oaks.
The first, was their desire to "sacrifice for their posterity."
The second, he said, was their "willingness to be obedient and follow the leaders whom they sustained as prophets."
The third, he continued, was their "feelings of responsibility to the group and not just to their own needs and desires."
Finally, he said he was impressed with their profound faith in God and the restoration of the gospel.
"They had the faith that God would care for them or reward them in the afterlife even if all their goals were not met here," Elder Oaks said of the pioneers. "They had an eternal perspective."
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