“Joseph
Smith explained the circumstances surrounding the restoration of the Aaronic
Priesthood (see JS-H 1:68-72), which took place along the bank of the
Susquehanna River near Harmony, Pennsylvania. Oliver Cowdery, who was with the
Prophet on this occasion, was filled with awe and wonder, for it was his first
experience with a heavenly messenger. He wrote:
“On a
sudden, as from the midst of eternity, the voice of the Redeemer spake peace to
us, while the vail was parted and the angel of God came down clothed with
glory, and delivered the anxiously looked for message, and the keys of the
gospel of repentance! – What joy! What wonder! What amazement! While the world
was racked and distracted – while millions were groping as the blind for the
wall, and while all men were resting upon uncertainty, as a general mass, our
eyes beheld – our ears heard.
“His voice,
though mild, pierced to the center, and his words, ‘I am thy fellow-servant’,
dispelled every fear. We listened – we gazed – we admired! ‘Twas the voice of
an angel from glory – ‘twas a message from the Most High! And as we heard we
rejoiced, while his love enkindled upon our souls, and we were wrapt in the
vision of the Almighty!
“Where was
room for doubt? Nowhere; uncertainty had fled, doubt had sunk, no more to rise,
while fiction and deception had fled forever……what joy filled our hearts and
with what surprise we must have bowed, (for who would not have bowed the knee
for such a blessing?) when we received under his hand the holy
priesthood.” (Times and Seasons, 1
Nov. 1840, p 202)
When I
joined the Church, I didn’t know very much about the Church, its’ organization or
most of its teachings. I just knew that I wanted the way of life I could have
in the Church and that one day I would have an eternal family. What I
understood the least was the priesthood.
When I
stepped into the waters of baptism at the tender age of 18, I did not expect to
experience my first encounter with the Holy Ghost who descended upon me so
forcefully when I came up out of the water that I wept uncontrollably. That was
my first experience with the priesthood of God and the powers of heaven and the
beginning of my journey with God. The priesthood gave me that.
How
godly You were
When
You planted the heavens
And
laid the foundations of the earth.
How
noble when you gave me hope
Of
salvation through the water’s gate.
I
now fly to You on my wings of faith.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
(Art: Upon You My Fellow Servants by Linda Curley Christensen)
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