Charles C. Rich

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (February 12, 1849 – November 17, 1883)

General Conference Addresses

• April 1880 General Conference
  • The Saints Are Blessed
    • “There are no people on the earth that I know anything about who have been so highly favored as we kave been. We have had the word of the Lord from the beginning of this Church until the present time in relation to what we should do to build up the kingdom of God on the earth. We have had his servants that have said to us “verily, thus saith the Lord,” do this thing, and that thing in our temporal as well as spiritual affairs that we might perform our duties in a manner acceptable to the Lord our God.”
  • A Great Conference
    • “Whenever difficulties arise between neighbors, families, or settlements, the first step to be taken by all the parties concerned should be to amicably settle the same, and from that time seek to do better, to be more respectful to another’s feelings, and to really become united as Saints of the Most High in the bonds and the covenants of peace.”
• April 1875 General Conference
  • The Gathering
    • “In the Gospel we find a remedy for every evil. A faithful observance of its principles will eventually free and deliver us from the consequence of every evil practice; and the principles of the Gospel we believe in are easy to adopt, and they are as applicable to a community as to an individual.”
• October 1874 General Conference
  • Guard Against Temptation
    • “When has there been a time when the Saints have trusted in God and been disappointed? Never; inasmuch as we have done our part, the Almighty has never failed to do his and fulfill his promises.”
    • “Salvation is revealed in the Gospel, and that salvation commenced to be received by us when we obeyed it. We can be freed from our sins when we learn and obey the truth, for in the Gospel there is deliverance from sin if we will but apply its principles to our lives.”
• April 1867 General Conference
  • Labor To Build Up The Kingdom
    • “When we are united in all things, the Lord will be able to use us in very deed for the building up of His Kingdom; until then, He can use us only as we are willing to be used. We say we are the people of God, and that we are laboring to build up His Kingdom, but when we come to think of it, we only do that which we can persuade ourselves to do.”
• April 1863 General Conference
  • Building the Temple
    • “We are a people that profess to be the people of God; and, if we are, we cannot be divided, for his people are always one, and if we are one, of course we will act upon the principle of oneness, and in all things do as we are directed, working for that which will be for our best good both for the present time and for the future.”
• October 1862 General Conference
  • Principles of Truth
    • “We have now the power to embrace the principles of life, because they are presented to us by those having the authority to teach. The principles of our religion have emanated from our Father and God, with whom there is no variableness, nor the least shadow of turning; and these principles have been revealed for the express purpose that we might embrace and practice them and thereby bring about our own salvation and secure that happiness which is promised to the faithful sons and daughters of God.”
    • “Happiness is what we are striving for in this life, and this is what we want in the life which is to come. That happiness is obtainable upon the principles of truth and right that have been and that will be revealed from heaven. As I before remarked, we are in a school, and it is our business to be industrious in that school. It is our business to work diligently to learn that which is taught in the school of Christ, to make ourselves acquainted with the principles of salvation as far as revealed unto us.”
    • “It is our business as Saints to put away from us everything that is wrong, that tends to corrupt the people of God.”
• October 1857 General Conference
  • Sufficiency of the Gospel
    • “I feel, as has been expressed by some of the brethren who have spoken from this stand, that this Gospel contains all that I desire; consequently, I have no feelings nor desires to go outside of it, simply because it bestows upon you and me everything that will do us good and that will save us. All that is outside of it will damn us in time and in eternity; consequently, we have no need of that which is outside of this kingdom.”
    • “When we have learned one truth, we are prepared to learn another; for every truth seems to unfold some other truth. When a matter is presented to a person who has a knowledge of a great many truths, let him compare it with the many truths that he knows, and they will agree; for all truth will agree. If it is not truth, it will come in contact; therefore, the more truths we are in possession of, the more keys we have to test other truths by; and the longer we live in this way, the more we know of our Father and the principles that pertain to his kingdom, and the less disposition we will have to do wrong: we will be more inclined to do right, and to carry out the principles of his government. We will do this because it is the safest and best course to pursue: hence, if we have a disposition to be blest and saved, we shall be disposed to take this course.”

Other Recorded Talks

• Saints Should Be Whole-Hearted, Discourse in Salt Lake City, May 12, 1877
  • “We are told by revelation that all blessings are to be enjoyed upon the principles by which his kingdom can be built up, and upon no other. It would be in vain for us to imagine that we are going to enjoy the blessing of the celestial world by adopting any principles we may choose, or that may be suitable to our own peculiar ideas and feelings. Then the first lesson for us to learn is how we can best become acquainted with the wishes of our Father, how we can best use our time and our talents to subserve the interests of his cause here upon the earth.”
  • “When we reflect that we live in this important age, when God our heavenly Father has again spoken to the children of men, revealing to them his designs and purposes and the only way to be saved, it is time for us to awake to a sense of duty and prepare ourselves in all readiness, for he does not speak in vain; all must be fulfilled even as it is written, whether we individually take part in it or not.”
  • “Some people imagine that when we pass from this stage of our being we shall all be in a condition to receive truth whether we received or rejected it while upon this earth. It is by reason of our agency that we reject truth and accept evil; and we will find when we go hence that we shall still be possessed of the same agency; and if we were not willing to receive the truth in this world, what assurance have we that our agency will not lead us to reject truth hereafter. If Latter-day Saints cannot endure to the end, if they cannot in their hearts receive as well as practice all of the principles of the Gospel as they are made known to them by his servants, it is folly in the extreme for us to allow ourselves to believe that by rejecting certain principles here we will be able to practice them in the world to come.”
  • “There is one matter that has received a great part of my attention particularly of late, that is the conforming of my will to the will of God, not only pertaining to things spiritual but also to things temporal associated with my everyday life. And it appears to me that we as a people have now reached that stage of the latter-day work when this same question is brought right home to the minds of all who claim membership in the Church and kingdom of God. There is one thing he will require of us, that is to prove by example as well as precept that we love him beyond any and everything else; he will require that we establish beyond a doubt that our affections and hearts are his, and that to do his bidding and further the interests of his cause is our greatest and fondest desire.”
• Privileges Better Appreciated By Absence, Remarks in Salt Lake City, June 14, 1857
  • “We have embraced the everlasting Gospel in different countries, and immigrated to this country, for the purpose of obtaining salvation; and truly there is nothing to hinder us in obtaining it, if we only embrace the Gospel as it should be embraced; for if we embrace the Gospel as we should, we embrace the salvation that pertains to it; that is, it will save us all the time.”
  • “Truly we can embrace these principles of salvation which have been revealed to us in the Gospel; we can live them: but we have seen that at present we cannot do it in any other land than this. Consequently, this is a choice land to us; and we have much reason to rejoice in the blessings we enjoy.”

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