Consider a lesson from the past. There was another time, in the early days of the church, when the membership rolls swelled rapidly. While the Saints rejoiced in the successful proselytism, one of the consequences was not a happy one, as history testifies. In order to see how that experience might apply to us, it may be instructive to review the events and conditions that contributed to the ultimate persecution and expulsion of the Saints from Nauvoo. From the outset, the Saints had been well received by Illinois residents. Politicians, especially, were eager to court the Mormon vote. Since they tended to vote as a block, the political party that could please the Mormon leadership believed they would have the Mormon vote. The resulting competition among Illinois politicians resulted in some rather remarkable benefits for the Saints. For example, the Nauvoo city charter, granted by the Illinois legislature in Springfield, gave the city the power to muster a city militia — an unprecedented concession that was probably extra-constitutional, according to Elder Dallin Oaks. Nevertheless, it was granted with little political opposition since Mormons were seen as an asset to the state, one to be cultivated and developed. So to begin with, everything was rosy for the Saints of Nauvoo. Assistance and acceptance from pleasant Illinois neighbors seemed to come from every hand, in stark contrast to the rejection they had earlier suffered at the hands of Missourians. The new city soon experienced exceptional growth as the highly successful missionary work by the apostles in England sent converts by the boatload to the small Illinois settlement. The influx of converts overwhelmed the burgeoning frontier city. Joseph Smith and the brethren were hard put to find room for all of them. Nauvoo eventually became more populous than Chicago. At about the same time, Mormons began to field their own candidates for office. Joseph Smith himself ran for the office of U.S. President. The Illinois’ political establishment became alarmed at this turn of events. Neither party could any longer count on the Saints’ vote. They began to worry that the Mormons, rather than being a minority voting block, would become the new political power brokers in the state. This, they likely felt, was intolerable. Something had to be done. As Nauvoo, the beautiful city by the Mississippi, grew, so did tensions between the Saints and their neighbors. History was repeating itself. Every time the Prophet and his people established roots — New York, Kirtland, Jackson County and now Nauvoo — they were ultimately despised, hated and ejected by their neighbors. Of course, every Mormon knows the tragedy at the heart of this story. The friendly attitude of neighbors vanished and antagonism flourished. Governor Ford was unwilling to address the Mormons’ complaints. He was even intimately involved in the questionable arrest of the Prophet and the political and military maneuvering that ultimately resulted in his imprisonment and martyrdom. The eventual outcome was the expulsion of the saints from Illinois. Once again, they lost their lands, their homes and most of their personal belongings. Thus dispossessed, they began the epic march west under the able and inspired direction of President Young.
Posted on: Sat, 12 Jul 2014 03:07:52 +0000
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