The "Spirit Prevails" by Joseph Morris
While the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the biggest church stemming from the restoration of Joseph Smith, there are still several different branches of the restoration. The Community of Christ, the Church of Jesus Christ, the Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and several others are still around with thousands of members each. In the past as well, there were different branches of the restoration. The Church of the firstborn was one of these branches.
Joseph Morris was an English convert to the LDS Church who migrated to Utah in 1853. In 1857, he reported receiving revelations from God where he claimed he was the seventh angel from the book of revelation. Morris sent several letters to Brigham Young containing his revelations and calls for change but got no reply. In 1860, he started gathering a group of followers known as Morrisites, teaching that James Strang was the true successor of Joseph Smith and that Morris succeeded him. They also taught a form of reincarnation and that Polygamy was against God's will. In 1860, Joseph Morris and seventeen of his followers were excommunicated from the LDS church. On April 6, 1861, Morris and his followers moved down to Kingston Fort, a fort abandoned in 1858. There be prophesied that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ was imminent and would be accompanied by a confrontation between the Morrisites and the Mormons.
By Spring 1862, food was getting hard to come by for the Morrisites and many members were becoming resentful. Morris kept proposing specific days for Christs Second Coming only to have nothing happen on those days. Each time that happened, a handful of members left the group. Arguments of ownership came up among the group, and eventually Joseph Morris took three former followers' captive for taking some wheat he thought did not belong to them. Eventually, the Utah Militia came to Kingston fort with five hundred men and five cannons on a mission to release the three prisoners. They arrived at the fort on June 13, 1862, demanding the surrender of the Morrisites. Shots were fired and when the dust settled, Joseph Morris was dead. Seven of the defenders of the fort were charged with murder but were pardoned by the Governer.
After this event, known as the Morrisite war, the group scattered. Many moved to Deer Lodge County, Montana, under the leadership of George Williams. But after Williams death in 1882, the group splintered again. Today nearly all Morrisite groups are defunct, with the only exception being the Order of Enoch.
Preface
It has been a pleasure for me to be entrusted with the responsibility of publishing the revelations of the departed prophet, Joseph Morris. For Twenty-four years, the revelations have been withheld from the people, (With the exception of a few copies that some of the brethren have had in their possession) notwithstanding that in Rev 88, par 7, given Aug 23rd, 1861, the clerks were commanded to copy for the press the revelations that have been given up at that time. The clerks accomplished their part of the work, but the revelations were not produced in printed form. I feel impressed that I, with the aid of many others, have been instrumental at this time in fulfilling the command; by presenting to the Weber Brethren the writings of Joseph Morris complete, in book form. Many of the brethren were opposed to their publication, believing that it would not be prudent to advance them to the world in their crude state: Some contending that the doctrines contained in them were fragmentary, and that most of the instruction was appertaining to local affairs: but I hope that their publication may result in the convincing many that the God of the prophets still speak.
The forty letters, or addresses, that were written to Brigham Young, contained many new principles, which have been made use of by leaders of the Old Church whenever they had an opportunity to present them to the saints as new truths which had had been retained until wisdom dictated that they should be made known.
The Prophet Called.
No. 1. Provo, Utah, Spring of 1857.
The First Revelation received by Joseph Morris, in which his calling as a Prophet was made known unto him
1. Verily, verily, verily, thus saith the spirit unto thee, my servant Joseph: I, the Lord, have beheld thy afflictions, and know the intentions of thy heart. And because thou art pure before me, I will give unto thee power over thine enemies; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord, and that I regard not the persons of men only in their obedience to me. And, now, I say unto thee, let thy heart be comforted, and know that I am with thee, and will be with thee, through thy faithfulness, unto the end.
2. And I say unto thee, my servant, that I have chosen thee from before the foundation of the world to be a mighty man, yea, — to be a prophet in Israel; and thou shalt prophesy to many nations, and peoples, and kings, and tongues. Yea, I say unto thee, that the mountains shall tremble at the uttering of thy voice; and men shall seek thy life from place to place, and thirst after thy blood as an ox thirsteth after water; but they shall not have power to take it before thy work is finished. __
3. Thou shalt be betrayed by friends and relatives, and even by thine own flesh and blood.
4. And I say unto thee, that I have chosen my servant Brigham, and also mine apostles to lead my people, Israel; and that power shall not be taken out of their hands only through transgression.
5. And I say unto thee that thy sacrifice has been accepted; and through it I have blessed thee and thy seed after thee throughout all their generations; and no privilege in my Holy Temple shall be denied thee and thy posterity forever. Thus, saith the’ lord by the voice of the spirit.
The deliverance of the People of God
No. 4. Utah, August 17th, 1860.
1. Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Alpha and Omega, even the beginning and the end.
2. I have uttered my voice, and it shall be obeyed, and I testify unto you, O, ye rebellious shepherds of my flock that I have given this revelation unto my servant Joseph, according to the commandment which I have received of my Father.
3. I have done my duty to you faithfully; but, notwithstanding all my pleadings with you, you have turned a deaf ear to me from the beginning. [I can do nothing with you. You have preferred your own judgment to mine, and thus you are going on destroying my Church.
4. The cries of my people have come up into my ears for redress, and, as I live, I will burst their bands asunder and give unto them an abundant deliverance. I will supply their needs both in food and raiment; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people; and I will leave them no more, for my bowels — have yearned with pity towards them.
5. O! ye saints who trust in me, let your hearts be comforted, — for I have raised up unto you a mighty deliverer, who shall lead you victoriously over all your enemies; and if you continue faithful unto me, you shall see no more affliction.
6. The cries of the fair daughters of my people have come up before me, and I will heal up their wounds. Oh, ye afflicted saints! hearken to the words of the Lord your God and prepare for that which is coming upon you; for I am about to separate the sheep from the goats, and if you are prepared for it, it will be well with you.
7. And, inasmuch as I have sent a warning voice unto the chief shepherds of my flock, which they have partially rejected, I require a sacrifice to be made by them; and unless this sacrifice is made, there is no salvation for them; for when men enter into a covenant with me to become mine apostles, and take an oath of the Holy Priesthood, and pledge their word-and honor to uphold that Priesthood, and to live by every word that proceeds from my mouth, and afterward turn a deaf ear to my commandments, they cannot be saved only by the shedding of their blood.
8. Therefore, O, ye shepherds! I say unto you, prepare yourselves for that which is coming upon you; for I will shorten your lives—you shall satisfy the demands of justice. My wrath and indignation are kindled against you; and I will visit you in a day that you are not aware of.
9. And now, I say unto you, my servant, that I will make up unto you for all the disappointments which you have endured through their rebellion.
I now add no more. I am he who holds the keys of death and hell, even Jesus Christ. Even so, Amien and Amen.
The Great Comet
No. 6 Utah, September 6, 1860.
A Revelation of Jesus Christ giving an explanation of that great comet that has been seen of late.
1. Verily I say unto you, my servant Joseph, that inasmuch as you have inquired of me to know concerning it, I will make it known to you. It is the seventh star spoken of by John the Revelator, representing the seventh angel that has come forth; and the tail that was attached to it is a representation of the army of heaven that was to follow the seventh angel.
2. Behold, I am Jesus Christ, and I testify unto all men that dwell upon the face of the earth that I have sent forth the seventh angel to preside over my Church upon the earth. and it will be woe unto them if they do not humble themselves and obey my gospel, for I will cut off until there is none left upon the Earth to clumber it.
3. As concerning this star before mentioned, there has never been the like of it seen upon this Earth for magnitude and greatness, nor will there be again until the seventh angel comes forth upon another Earth like unto this; Therefore, O ye saints prepare for that which is coming upon you, or you will be caught in a snare, and it will be woe unto you if you are cast out of my Church, therefore hearken unto My words which are quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword; and behold I come quickly. Even so. Amen.
The Rod of Moses
No. 17. Utah, September 24th, 1860.
1. This rod proceeded forth from the first God of all, and it is as endurable as God himself. He placed his superscription upon it, and he is sworn to sustain that man who is called to use it, and it cannot be used by any person but the seventh angel, or those whom he shall appoint; for the seventh angel is always the president of that world in which he dwells. It is his duty to preside over the dispensation of the fullness of times, and he is sustained by all the Gods of eternity, who number millions. And I say unto you, my servant Joseph, that I will place the rod of Moses in your hand, for you are worthy; therefore, prepare yourself to receive it.
2. ‘To every quorum of the Gods there is a world like unto this passing through a state of mortality; and to the creations of the great King of Kings and Lord of Lords there is no end.
3. Behold, I am Jesus Christ, and I testify unto all the inhabitants of the earth that I have opened the seventh seal. Therefore, I say unto you, O ye inhabitants of the earth, prepare yourselves for that which is coming upon you; for I will lay the wicked low, for my wrath is kindled, and it will never be appeased until I have avenged the blood of all my saints and servants that has been shed upon the earth since the world began.
4. And, behold, I say’ unto you, my servant Joseph, that I have raised you up, that through you I might make manifest mine almighty power in the defense of my chosen people. ‘Therefore, my son, be of good courage, and I will be with you, and no power shall stand before you unto the end; for the hand that is raised against you shall wither, and the tongue that lies against you, shall consume away in its mouth; and I will bless you above all men with an abundance of blessings, for I have chosen you.
I now add no more. I am he that was, and is, and is to come, even Jesus Christ. Even so. Amen and Amen.
The Destruction of the False Shepards
No. 25. Utah, November 13th, 1860.
1. VERILY I say unto you, my servant Joseph, be not fearful, nor faint-hearted; but be of good courage, for I am with thee, and I will make known unto thee the course which I am about to take with mine enemies.
2. Inasmuch as I have sent a warning voice unto the chief shepherds of my flock, and they have rejected it, I will cut both them and their seed off first, and afterwards I will continue until I shall have cut off all the responsible men in my Church, who are now acting under their influence, until there shall not be a false shepherd left among my people, neither large nor small.
3. And from them I will go to mine enemies who have come into the midst of my people, and I will not leave one of them alive; and inasmuch as I could not separate the shepherds of my flock from the enemy which has deceived them, they shall all die together in one day.
4. Nevertheless, I will save alive of my people as many of the pure in heart as I can; and I will save alive sufficient faithful men to organize my Church according to mine own pattern.
5. And inasmuch as thou hast, of late, been visited by mine enemies, who have laid a trap for thee, I will move thee out of their way before the time which they have appointed to ensnare thee has come; and I will take them in their own snare.
6. Therefore, get thee ready, and go to some secret place, and give the command; and I will go forth from that very hour. And as soon as thou hast given the command, hearken out, and be ready to go forth to fake thy place; for thou shalt walk the Streets without fear. And, for thy satisfaction, I say unto thee, that if I do not fulfill this promise, I will require no more at thy hands; but I will take thee out of the midst of this people that very hour. Thou shalt soon prove me in these things. I shall give unto thee no more revelations upon this subject until I shall have fulfilled this promise and satisfied thy feelings.
I now add no more. I am Jesus Christ. Even so. Amen. Amen.
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