Page:History of Utah.djvu/117

 By the spirit of prophecy and revelation it is done. The rise of the church of Jesus Christ in these last days is on the Gth of April, 1830, at which date the church was organized under the provisions of the statutes of the state of New York by Joseph Smith junior, Hyrura Smith, Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, Samuel H. Smith, and Peter Whitmer. Joseph Smith, ordained an apostle of Jesus Christ, is made by the commandment of God the first elder of this church, and Oliver Cowdery, likewise an apostle, is made the second elder. Again the first elder falls into worldly entanglements, but upon repentance and self-humbling he is delivered by an angel.

The duties of elders, priests, teachers, deacons, and members are as follow: All who desire it, with honesty and humility, may be baptized into the church; old covenants are at an end, all must be baptized anew. An apostle is an elder; he shall baptize, ordain other elders, priests, teachers, and deacons, administer bread and wine, emblems of the flesh and blood of Christ; he shall confirm, teach, expound, exhort, taking the lead at meetings, and conducting them as he is taught by the holy ghost. The priest's duty is to preach, teach, expound, exhort, baptize, administer the sacrament, and visit and pray with members; he may also ordain other priests, teachers, and deacons, giving a certificate of ordination, and lead in meetings when no elder is present. The teacher's duty is to watch over and strengthen the members, preventing evil speaking and all iniquity, to see that the meetings are regularly held, and to take the lead in them in the absence of elder or priest. The deacon's duty is to assist the teacher; teacher and deacon may warn, expound, exliort, but neither of them shall baptize, administer the sacrament, or lay on hands. The elders are to meet in council for the transaction of church business every three months, or oftener should meetings be called. Subordinate officers will receive from the elders a license defining their authority; elders will