Prophetic Statements
Ezra Taft Benson
When this nation was established, the Church was restored and from here the message of the restored gospel has gone forth-all according to divine plan. This then becomes the Lord’s base of operations in these latter days. And this base-the land of America—will not be shifted out of its place. This nation will, in a measure at least, fulfill its mission even though it may face serious and troublesome days. The degree to which it achieves its full mission depends upon the righteousness of its people. God, through His power, has established a free people in this land as a means of helping to carry forward His purposes.
It was His latter-day purpose to bring forth His gospel in America, not in any other place. It was in America where the Book of Mormon plates were deposited. That was no accident. It was His design. It was in this same America where they were brought to light by angelic ministry. [1]. It was here where He organized His modern Church, where He, Himself, made a modern personal appearance [2]; [3].
It was here under a free government and a strong nation that protection was provided for His restored Church. Now God will not permit America, His base of operations, to be destroyed. He has promised protection to this land if we will but serve the God of the land [4]. He has also promised protection to the righteous even, if necessary, to send fire from heaven to destroy their enemies [5].
No, God’s base of operations will not be destroyed. But it may be weakened and made less effective. One of the first rules of war strategy-and we are at war with the adversary and his agents-is to protect the base of operations. This we must do if we are to build up the kingdom throughout the world and safeguard our God-given freedom.
We must protect this base of operations from every threat-from sin, from unrighteousness, from immorality, from desecration of the Sabbath day, from lawlessness, from parental and juvenile delinquency.
We must protect it from dirty movies, from filthy advertising, from salacious and suggestive television programs, magazines, and books.
We must protect this base from idleness, subsidies, doles, and soft governmental paternalism which weakens initiative, discourages industry, destroys character, and demoralizes the people.
To protect this base we must protect the soul of America-we must return to a love and respect for the basic spiritual concepts upon which this nation has been established. We must study the Constitution and the writings of the Founding Fathers.
If we are to protect this American base, we must realize that all things, including information disseminated by our schools, churches, and governments, should be judged according to the words of the prophets, especially the living prophet. This procedure, coupled with the understanding which will come through the Spirit of the Lord, if we are living in compliance with the scriptures, is the only sure foundation and basis of judgment. Any other course of action leaves us muddled, despondent, wandering in shades of gray, easy targets for Satan. If we fail in these pressing and important matters, we may well fall far short of the great mission the Lord has proffered and outlined for America and for His divinely restored Church. [6]
I testify to you that this is a choice land, that God held this hemisphere, as it were, in the palm of His hand for hundreds, yea, thousands of years in order that the great mission of this land might be undertaken and might be accomplished. [7]
This is a great country and certainly this greatness was foreshadowed and foreseen by ancient prophets who lived here, prophecies made by the brother of Jared [8], by Lehi, by Jacob [9], and by Nephi of old [10]. It is enough to know that this nation has a prophetic history. All of the great events that have transpired here, including the coming of Columbus and of the Pilgrim fathers, were foreseen by ancient prophets [11]. It was predicted that those who came to this great land would prosper here, that they would humble themselves before the Almighty, that the power of God would be with them, and that this nation would move forward to its great destiny. [12]. [13]
I bear witness that America’s history was foreknown to God; that His divine intervention and merciful providence has given us both peace and prosperity in this beloved land; that through His omniscience and benevolent design He selected and sent some of His choicest spirits to lay the foundation of our government [14]. These men were inspired of God to do the work they accomplished. They were not evil men. Their work was a prologue to the restoration of the gospel and the Church of Jesus Christ. It was done in fulfillment of the ancient prophets who declared that this was a promised land, “a land of liberty unto the Gentiles,” and that is us [15]. [16]
I testify that America is a choice land. (See 2 Nephi 1:5.) God raised up the founding fathers of the United States of America and established the inspired Constitution. (See D&C 101:77–80.) This was the required prologue for the restoration of the gospel. (See 3 Nephi 21:4.) America will be a blessed land unto the righteous forever, and is the base from which God will continue to direct the worldwide latter-day operations of His kingdom. (See 2 Nephi 1:7.) 1
The restoration of the gospel and the establishment of the Lord’s Church could not come to pass until the Founding Fathers were raised up and completed their foreordained missions. Those great souls who were responsible for the freedoms we enjoy acknowledged the guiding hand of Providence. For their efforts we are indebted, but we are even more indebted to our Father in Heaven and to His Son, Jesus Christ. How fortunate we are to live when the blessings of liberty and the gospel of Jesus Christ are both available to us. 2
The coming forth of the Constitution is of such transcendent importance in the Lord’s plan that ancient prophets foresaw this event and prophesied of it. In the dedicatory prayer for the Idaho Falls Temple, President George Albert Smith indicated that the Constitution fulfilled the ancient prophecy of Isaiah that “out of Zion shall go forth the law” (Isaiah 2:3). 3
History is not an accident. Events are foreknown to God. His superintending influence is behind the actions of his righteous children. Long before America was even discovered, the Lord was moving and shaping events that would lead to the coming forth of the remarkable form of government established by the Constitution. America had to be free and independent to fulfill this destiny. 4
Before the gospel could again shine forth its resplendent light, religious and political freedom first had to be restored. This land had been preserved as a continent apart from the religious oppression, tyranny, and intolerance of Europe. In time, emigrants came to the new land and established colonies. By and large, they were a God-fearing people. A war was fought for their independence, and by God’s intervention, victory was achieved (see 1 Nephi 13:16–19). By that same omnipotent power the Constitution was born (see D&C 101:80), which guaranteed religious and political liberty (see D&C 98:5–8). Only then was the time propitious for the kingdom of God — that “stone cut out without hands” — to be restored (see Dan 2:34). 5
Socialist and Communist Statements
Sigmond Freud
America is a mistake, admittedly a gigantic mistake, but a mistake nevertheless.
[17]
Scriptures
2 Nephi 10:10-15-19
But behold, this land, said God, shall be a land of thine inheritance, and the Gentiles shall be blessed upon the land.
And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles.
And I will fortify this land against all other nations.
And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God.
For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words.
Wherefore, for this cause, that my covenants may be fulfilled which I have made unto the children of men, that I will do unto them while they are in the flesh, I must needs destroy the secret works of darkness, and of murders, and of abominations.
Wherefore, I will consecrate this land unto thy seed, and them who shall be numbered among thy seed, forever, for the land of their inheritance; for it is a choice land, saith God unto me, above all other lands, wherefore I will have all men that dwell thereon that they shall worship me, saith God.
1 Nephi 13-14
And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld many nations and kingdoms.
And the angel said unto me: What beholdest thou? And I said: I behold many nations and kingdoms.
And he said unto me: These are the nations and kingdoms of the Gentiles.
And it came to pass that I saw among the nations of the Gentiles the formation of a great church.
And the angel said unto me: Behold the formation of a church which is most abominable above all other churches, which slayeth the saints of God, yea, and tortureth them and bindeth them down, and yoketh them with a yoke of iron, and bringeth them down into captivity.
And it came to pass that I beheld this great and abominable church; and I saw the devil that he was the founder of it.
And I also saw gold, and silver, and silks, and scarlets, and fine-twined blinen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlots.
And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine-twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots, are the desires of this great and abominable church.
And also for the praise of the world do they destroy the saints of God, and bring them down into captivity.
And it came to pass that I looked and beheld many waters; and they divided the Gentiles from the seed of my brethren. And it came to pass that the angel said unto me: Behold the wrath of God is upon the seed of thy brethren.
And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land.
And it came to pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of captivity, upon the many waters.
And it came to pass that I beheld many multitudes of the Gentiles upon the land of promise; and I beheld the wrath of God, that it was upon the seed of my brethren; and they were scattered before the Gentiles and were smitten.
And I beheld the Spirit of the Lord, that it was upon the Gentiles, and they did prosper and obtain the land for their inheritance; and I beheld that they were white, and exceedingly fair and beautiful, like unto my people before they were slain.
And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them.
And I beheld that their mother Gentiles were gathered together upon the waters, and upon the land also, to battle against them.
And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together against them to battle.
And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles that had gone out of captivity were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations.
And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that they did prosper in the land; and I beheld a book, and it was carried forth among them.
And the angel said unto me: Knowest thou the meaning of the book?
And I said unto him: I know not.
And he said: Behold it proceedeth out of the mouth of a Jew. And I, Nephi, beheld it; and he said unto me: The book that thou beholdest is a record of the Jews, which contains the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; and it also containeth many of the prophecies of the holy prophets; and it is a record like unto the engravings which are upon the plates of brass, save there are not so many; nevertheless, they contain the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; wherefore, they are of great worth unto the Gentiles.
And the angel of the Lord said unto me: Thou hast beheld that the book proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew; and when it proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew it contained the fulness of the gospel of the Lord, of whom the twelve apostles bear record; and they bear record according to the truth which is in the Lamb of God.
Wherefore, these things go forth from the Jews in purity unto the Gentiles, according to the truth which is in God.
And after they go forth by the hand of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, from the Jews unto the Gentiles, thou seest the formation of that great and abominable church, which is most abominable above all other churches; for behold, they have taken away from the gospel of the Lamb many parts which are plain and most precious; and also many covenants of the Lord have they taken away.
And all this have they done that they might pervert the right ways of the Lord, that they might blind the eyes and harden the hearts of the children of men.
Wherefore, thou seest that after the book hath gone forth through the hands of the great and abominable church, that there are many plain and precious things taken away from the book, which is the book of the Lamb of God.
And after these plain and precious things were taken away it goeth forth unto all the nations of the Gentiles; and after it goeth forth unto all the nations of the Gentiles, yea, even across the many waters which thou hast seen with the Gentiles which have gone forth out of captivity, thou seest—because of the many plain and precious things which have been taken out of the book, which were plain unto the understanding of the children of men, according to the plainness which is in the Lamb of God—because of these things which are taken away out of the gospel of the Lamb, an exceedingly great many do stumble, yea, insomuch that Satan hath great power over them.
Nevertheless, thou beholdest that the Gentiles who have gone forth out of captivity, and have been lifted up by the power of God above all other nations, upon the face of the land which is choice above all other lands, which is the land that the Lord God hath covenanted with thy father that his seed should have for the land of their inheritance; wherefore, thou seest that the Lord God will not suffer that the Gentiles will utterly destroy the mixture of thy seed, which are among thy brethren.
Neither will he suffer that the Gentiles shall destroy the seed of thy brethren.
Neither will the Lord God suffer that the Gentiles shall forever remain in that awful state of blindness, which thou beholdest they are in, because of the plain and most precious parts of the gospel of the Lamb which have been kept back by that abominable church, whose formation thou hast seen.
Wherefore saith the Lamb of God: I will be merciful unto the Gentiles, unto the visiting of the remnant of the house of Israel in great judgment.
And it came to pass that the angel of the Lord spake unto me, saying: Behold, saith the Lamb of God, after I have visited the remnant of the house of Israel—and this remnant of whom I speak is the seed of thy father—wherefore, after I have visited them in judgment, and smitten them by the hand of the Gentiles, and after the Gentiles do stumble exceedingly, because of the most plain and precious parts of the gospel of the Lamb which have been kept back by that abominable church, which is the mother of harlots, saith the Lamb—I will be merciful unto the Gentiles in that day, insomuch that I will bring forth unto them, in mine own power, much of my gospel, which shall be plain and precious, saith the Lamb.
For, behold, saith the Lamb: I will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; and after thy seed shall be destroyed, and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thy brethren, behold, these things shall be hid up, to come forth unto the Gentiles, by the gift and power of the Lamb.
And in them shall be written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation.
And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.
And it came to pass that I beheld the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the book of the Lamb of God, which had proceeded forth from the mouth of the Jew, that it came forth from the Gentiles unto the remnant of the seed of my brethren.
And after it had come forth unto them I beheld other books, which came forth by the power of the Lamb, from the Gentiles unto them, unto the convincing of the Gentiles and the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the Jews who were scattered upon all the face of the earth, that the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true.
And the angel spake unto me, saying: These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, and shall make known the plain and precious things which have been taken away from them; and shall make known to all kindreds, tongues, and people, that the Lamb of God is the Son of the Eternal Father, and the Savior of the world; and that all men must come unto him, or they cannot be saved.
And they must come according to the words which shall be established by the mouth of the Lamb; and the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; wherefore they both shall be established in one; for there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth.
And the time cometh that he shall manifest himself unto all nations, both unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles; and after he has manifested himself unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles, then he shall manifest himself unto the Gentiles and also unto the Jews, and the last shall be first, and the first shall be last.
Founders Statements
John Quincy Adams
Is it not that in the chain of human events, the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior? – that it forms a leading event in the progress of the Gospel dispensation? Is it not that the Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the Redeemer’s mission upon earth? – That it laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity? 6
Supporting Statements
- ↑ Book of Mormon Introduction
- ↑ D&C 20:1
- ↑ Joseph Smith-History 1:17
- ↑ Ether 2:12
- ↑ 1 Nephi 22:17
- ↑ Ezra Taft Benson, Title of Liberty, pp. 88-91; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 571
- ↑ Ezra Taft Benson, CR October 1954, Improvement Era 57 [December 1954]: 922; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 574
- ↑ Ether 13:8
- ↑ 2 Nephi 10:18-19
- ↑ 1 Nephi 13:13-20
- ↑ 1 Nephi 13:12-13
- ↑ 1 Nephi 13:15-19
- ↑ Ezra Taft Benson, “Responsibilities of Citizenship,” BYU, Provo, Utah, 22 October 1954; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson p. 575
- ↑ D&C 101:80
- ↑ 2 Nephi 1:7
- ↑ Ezra Taft Benson, This Nation Shall Endure, p. 23; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 578
- ↑ Remark to Ernest Jones as quoted in The Life and Work of Sigmund Freud : Years of maturity, 1901-1919 (1957) by Ernest Jones, p. 60
- Ezra Taft Benson, “I Testify”, General Conference, October 1988
- Ezra Taft Benson, Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson 604; from an address given at the Bicentennial Ball, Salt Lake City, UT, 18 Sep 1987
- Ezra Taft Benson, CHB 16; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson 595
- Ezra Taft Benson, CHB 10; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson 587
- Ezra Taft Benson, This Nation Shall Endure 116; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson 109
- John Quincy Adams, Independence Day speech, Newburyport, MA, July 04, 1837
