During a year in which the Church will celebrate the life of Joseph Smith, President Gordon B. Hinckley asked Latter-day Saints to honor, with their own performance, the Prophet through whom God revealed so much.

Photo by Jason Olson/Deseret Morning News

Spring flowers adorn Temple Square to please the eye and gladden the heart during conference.

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President Gordon B. Hinckley

"The sun rose on Joseph's life on a cold day in Vermont in 1805. It set in Illinois on a sultry afternoon in 1844. During the brief 38 1/2 years of his life there came through him an incomparable outpouring of knowledge, gifts and doctrine. Looked at objectively, there is nothing to compare with it. Subjectively, it is the substance of the personal testimony of millions of Latter-day Saints across the earth."

Speaking Sunday morning during the Church's 175th annual General Conference on April 3, President Gordon B. Hinckley spoke of truths revealed through Joseph Smith. He noted that in December, he had reminded the worldwide congregation that the Church would commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Prophet's birth.

"In anticipation of this, I have felt as 15th in succession from his great pinnacle of achievement, to offer my testimony of his divine calling," said President Hinckley.

As part of his tribute, President Hinckley held up Lucy Mack Smith's narrative of her son's life, "a precious little book" published in Liverpool, England, by Orson Pratt in 1853. The book recounts Joseph's various visits with the Angel Moroni and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon.

"The book tells that upon hearing of Joseph's encounter with the angel, his brother Alvin suggested that the family get together and listen to him as he detailed 'the great things which God has revealed.' "

President Hinckley said he took that statement as the subject of his talk — "the great things which God has revealed through Joseph the Prophet." He then recounted "a few of many doctrines and practices which distinguish us from all other churches, and all of which have come of revelation to the youthful Prophet."

"They are familiar to you, but they are worth repeating and reflecting on," said President Hinckley.

• First, President Hinckley said, is the "manifestation of God Himself and His Beloved Son, the risen Lord Jesus Christ."

  "This grand theophany is, in my judgment, the greatest such event since the birth, life, death and resurrection of our Lord in the meridian of time," he said.

  When Joseph saw and spoke to God and Jesus, two separate Beings, he "learned more concerning Deity than all of the scholars and clerics of the the past. In this divine revelation there was reaffirmed beyond doubt the reality of the literal resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

  "This knowledge of Deity, hidden from the world for centuries, was the first and great thing which God revealed to His chosen servant. And upon the reality and truth of this vision rests the validity of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."

• Second is the knowledge that the Bible — which came forth by the hand of the Lord and is true as long as it is translated correctly — does not stand alone. There is another witness of "significant and important truths" — the Book of Mormon.

  "The Book of Mormon has come forth by the gift and power of God. It speaks as a voice from the dust in testimony of the Son of God. It speaks of His birth, of His ministry, of His crucifixion and resurrection, and of His appearance to the righteous in the land Bountiful on the American continent.

  "It is a tangible thing that can be handled, that can be read, that can be tested. It carries within its covers a promise of its divine origin. Millions now have put it to the test and found it to be a true and sacred record."

  President Hinckley noted that in the past 10 years alone, 51 million copies of the Book of Mormon have been distributed. It is now available in 106 languages and has been named to a list of 20 most influential books published in America.

• Another great thing that came through Joseph Smith is the restored priesthood, said President Hinckley. "Priesthood authority came from the only place it could come, and that is from heaven," he said. "It was bestowed under the hands of those who held it when the Savior walked the earth."

  First, President Hinckley said, was John the Baptist who conferred the Aaronic Priesthood. This was followed by a visitation of Apostles Peter, James and John, who conferred upon Joseph and Oliver Cowdery the Melchizedek Priesthood, which had been received by these apostles under the hands of the Lord Himself.

  "How beautiful is the unfolding of the pattern of restoration which led to the organization of the Church in the year 1830, 175 years ago this week. The very name of the Church came of revelation. Whose Church was it? Was it Joseph Smith's? Was it Oliver Cowdery's? No, it was the Church of Jesus Christ restored to earth in these latter days."

• An additional revelation given to the Prophet Joseph was the plan for the eternal life of the family, said President Hinckley.

  "The family is a creation of the Almighty," he said. "It represents the most sacred of all relationships. It represents the most serious of all undertakings. It is the fundamental organization of society."

  Through Joseph Smith came the doctrine and authority under which families are sealed together not only for this life, but also for all eternity, said President Hinckley.

• The innocence of little children is another revelation which God gave through Joseph Smith, he said.

  "The general practice is the baptism of infants to take away the effects of what is described as the sin of Adam and Eve. Under the doctrine of the Restoration, baptism is for the remission of one's individual and personal sins. It becomes a covenant between God and man. It is performed at the age of accountability when people are old enough to recognize right from wrong. It is by immersion in symbolism of the death and burial of Jesus Christ and His coming forth in the resurrection."

• President Hinckley spoke of the provision in the Church for those beyond the veil to receive the same blessings afforded the living. "This pattern under which one man can act in behalf of another is carried forward in the ordinances of the house of the Lord. Here we serve in behalf of those who have died without a knowledge of the gospel. Theirs is the option to accept or reject the ordinance which is performed. . . . The dead are given the same opportunity as the living."

• President Hinckley also discussed the eternal nature of man, as revealed to Joseph Smith. "We are sons and daughters of God. God is the Father of our spirits. We lived before we came here. We had personality. We were born into this life under a divine plan. We are here to test our worthiness, acting in the agency which God has given to us. When we die we shall go on living."

• Finally, President Hinckley talked about the principle of modern revelation.

  "A growing Church, a Church that is spreading across the earth in these complex times, needs constant revelation from the throne of heaven to guide it and move it forward. With prayer and anxious seeking of the will of the Lord, we testify that direction is received, that revelation comes and the Lord blesses His Church as it moves on its path of destiny."

  President Hinckley said "on the solid foundation of the Prophet Joseph's divine calling and the revelations of God," the Church moves forward. "I rejoice in the opportunity of association with you as we go forward in faith. The burden is at times heavy, as you well know. But let us not complain. Let us walk in faith, each doing our part."