Seymour B. Young

First Council of the Seventy (October 14, 1882 – December 15, 1924)

General Conference Addresses

• October 1924 General Conference
  • Final Testimony
    • “I testify to you today of the clean life and elegant conduct of my brethren who preside over the Church. I have known them all since they were boys, and I testify that no better men can ever live upon the face of the earth, no better Church organization has ever existed in the Church, than exists today.”
• April 1924 General Conference
  • Prosperity
    • “The prosperity which we experience today, the plenty with which we are surrounded, and the testimonies of the people who do not belong to the Church, all are convincing arguments to remind us that the Lord is blessing his people more abundantly today than ever before, and the testimonies of the brethren seem to be brighter and clearer than ever before, bringing to my mind and to my great satisfaction, that we are lovers of God more than lovers of pleasure.”
• October 1923 General Conference
  • Temples
    • “The divine mission of the Savior, the great mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, are facts brought to my mind as vividly and as earnestly and as truly as the thought and the knowledge of my own existence. I know today that God lives, I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world ; I know that Joseph Smith was divinely inspired as a prophet of God. May the Lord increase this knowledge for us all, I pray, and make our testimonies bright and real and sure, that we may be encouraged to go on with the great work in which we are engaged, until the redeeming power of the gospel of Jesus Christ shall reach the uttermost parts of the earth, and every one of our Father’s children shall have the privilege of receiving these great truths, and thus bring to pass their redemption.”
• April 1923 General Conference
  • Teaching the Gospel
    • “My brethren and sisters, I pray the Lord to bless you. I feel in my heart glad to be with you today, and I pray that the spirit of your mision, fathers and mothers, may rest upon you constantly, that you may be indeed not only parents to your children, but friends to them, and actual associates with them and get into the deeper recesses of their hearts by your kindness and your solicitation for their welfare, and let them feel that yott love them, that you love them dearly, and that you have their interest at heart all the day long, and thus you will easily bring your children into lines of greater perfection as they advance in life, preparing them for the great events that are to transpire in the future, and fitting them to take the places of their parents in the leadership and membership of the great societies of the Church, and thus making good your parentage in the rearing of your children in the fear of the Lord.”
• October 1922 General Conference
  • Colonizing the West
    • “Far be it from me to fail in paying a proper tribute to the great and good men who have succeeded President Brigham Young as leaders of this people. They, too, have each been under the inspiration of the Lord Almighty, in directing the affairs of the Church. President Heber J. Grant has been an inspiration to the people everywhere, and has done much to remove prejudice and to make friends for the Latter-day Saints.”
• April 1922 General Conference
  • A Visit to Nauvoo
    • “I testify to you today, my brothers and sisters, with what little experience I have had in the Church for lo, these eighty years or more; I say I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world, and that Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet of the living God, and that he has accomplished the purposes and the work assigned to him, organizing the Church of Jesus Christ once more upon the earth, and I am happy to say that I have a testimony within my heart today that I am a member of that Church.”
• October 1921 General Conference
  • The Martyrdom
    • “I am sure that sooner or later Governor Ford will be called to an account for that responsibility, and he with others guilty of this terrible crime will have to answer for it by paying the uttermost farthing. And so, with reference to the Savior of the world, Pontius Pilate is still held responsible for the crucifixion, and he has never been able to wash his hands of that crime.”
• April 1921 General Conference
  • Two of the Three Witnesses
    • “The testimony of those two men, I have always remembered, and as they bore them personally they seemed overwhelmed with grief and sorrow to think they had forfeited their membership in the Church and their rank and their standing as they had it at first. Men who receive the testimony of the gospel, men who receive the witness of the divinity of the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, men who receive a witness of the divinity of the Savior and his great mission, seldom see the way to repent after they have lost the faith, .but these two men seemed to be specially favored of the Lord, and the gift of repentance had not entirely been blotted out from their hearts, and according to their prayers they were restored again as members of the Church.”
• October 1920 General Conference
  • The Prophet Joseph
    • “After seventy years of experience in the Church, as a Church members, and as a laborer in this great work, responding to every call, I testify today that I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith was indeed God’s prophet inspired to bring before the world these great truths, and to plant the gospel again upon the earth, and to say to the world, God has again spoken from the heavens.”
• April 1920 General Conference
  • Great Testimonies
    • “My brethren and sisters, I am glad that I am present at this splendid conference. I have listened to some of the greatest testimonies during the sessions that have been held.”
• October 1919 General Conference
  • Lincoln
    • “Sacrifice seems to have been the law of those great hearts who have been the ministers of the world, who have produced results that have saved the world from time to time.”
• October 1918 General Conference
  • The Power of Faith
    • “The power of faith also that was in the heart of the Prophet Joseph Smith, prompting him to kneel in humility in the sight of heaven before his heavenly Father, away from the haunts of men—he wanted to be alone, in communion with his heavenly Father; he wanted to know of his existence; he wanted to know of his willingness to respond to a humble prayer of one of his humble children; and the Lord was never found to fail to respond to such prayer, and he gave the response in full measure.”
• October 1916 General Conference
  • Blessed Are The Believers
    • “The moment, my father testified, that he met the Prophet Joseph, he was inspired with the thought, with the great thought, that he had then the privilege of meeting and striking hands with a man that had stood face to face with his God, and who was in communication with him constantly by revelation.”
• October 1915 General Conference
  • Education
    • “I do not in this matter wish to be understood to have any censure for our district schools, for the high schools, for our splendid University of Utah, they are in their proper place and they are doing great good. But I wish to encourage the thought that our Latter-day Saint schools are very necessary for in them our children are taught to receive, in their youthful and innocent minds, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
• April 1915 General Conference
  • Zion’s Camp
    • “I think that in welcoming the Latter-day Saints to this land that has been prepared for their gathering, we can say we are all one nation, one people, that we are one in purpose of heart, that we are worshiping one God, and that we have one faith, one baptism, one Lord.”
• October 1914 General Conference
  • A Testimony
    • “I will close by saying that Joseph Smith, the occupant of that sacred grove, was ministered to by the power of God, and thus prepared by the ministration of the Holy Spirit to receive the presence of the Father and the Son and to be commissioned by Them to do a great work for the redemption of our Father’s children. The Prophet Joseph maintained his position as a chosen servant of God from that time through all the days of persecution and trials that he was called to pass, until the day of his martyrdom, sealing his testimony with his blood.”
• April 1914 General Conference
  • Testimony to a General
    • “I bear my testimony to you today, my brethren and sisters, that Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet of God. The Lord designated him as the Prophet of the last dispensation, and committed to him the keys of His kingdom. He stands as the president, prophet, seer and revelator of this the dispensation of the fulness of times. Although he suffered a martyr’s death, many years ago, the work of the Lord has continued in the hands of the able men who have been inspired by the same prophetic ministry, and today our leaders are inspired and blest with the spirit of their calling and mission. I testify to you that “Mormonism” is true, and that the glory of God’s Kingdom will be realized; and, if the people are faithful, they will be partakers of the excellent results that shall come to them by keeping the commandments of the Lord.”
• April 1913 General Conference
  • The Restoration
    • “In fact, I am reminded of one of old, who said, This people are spoken evil of everywhere: and yet they seem to prosper: they love each other: and they grow in strength, in power and in numbers. One said concerning the Apostles of Jesus, Let these people alone and, if their doctrine is of man, they will be scattered and. come to naught; but if their doctrine be of God, let them alone, lest perchance you be found fighting against God; a very wise and correct admonition.”
• October 1912 General Conference
  • The Pioneers
    • “They did not leave the city of Nauvoo to get away from the Constitution of the United States. They brought the love of the Constitution with them, and the record that you have heard quoted today, is proof, if any other proof were needed—and there is plenty of just such all through the history of the pioneers of this great country—that they loved the Constitution, and that they knew and had always taught and accepted it as a divine truth, that the Constitution was inspired of God.”
• October 1911 General Conference
  • The Lord Prepares His Servants
    • “So we know that the Lord can prepare the least of His servants or handmaidens for the labors and for the ministry that He places upon them.”
• April 1911 General Conference
  • The Bureau of Information
    • “Now, my brethren and sisters, it was for no ulterior or wicked purpose or plan that that magnificent structure was erected. It was reared by the faithful labor and toil of the Latter-day Saints; and, especially in the first few years of its progress, the building was continued by the help of the people while in extreme poverty, with very little means to push it forward. Hence its development was slow. But, at its completion we were satisfied, becatise testimonies were borne in that sacred building, during the dedicatorial services, that God had indeed accepted it, even as He accepted those temples that had been builded before. This fact was verified by the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord resting upon those brethren who testified that God had indeed accepted the labors of the Latter-day Saints, and sanctioned the placing of His name upon that sacred building.”
• October 1910 General Conference
  • Church Schools
    • “When they are graduated from the scientific department, the business department, and the literary department, they have, with that general education, a knowledge of the gospel, grounded into their hearts and souls, as an understanding that will remain with them while life lasts. Hence, they leave the Church schools with a testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ burning in their bosoms.”
    • “The Lord does not give unnecessary revelations. He does not require work from His children that is unnecessary, but He requires of them to accept His laws, to accept and to receive His commandments, and in good and honest hearts, with full purpose, carry out those commandments and keep those laws. Those are the requirements.”
• April 1910 General Conference
  • Building Temples
    • “You can imagine for yourselves, my brethren and sisters, occupants of a prison house, without the freedom that the Gospel brings, how they must rejoice when they learn that the ordinance of the Gospel has been performed vicariously for them, that will give them their freedom from the bonds of death, hell and the grave.”
• October 1908 General Conference
  • Live Close to the Lord
    • “The most successful officers in the Church are those who live closest to the Lord. This we see exemplified in these great gatherings,for we do know that our brethren who preside over us are devoted to the work of the Lord, and are determined to magnify the holy calling which has been laid upon them. They are exemplary in their lives, and we see it evidenced. When they stand before the people to proclaim the word of the Lord unto us, we know that it comes from their hearts which are pure and clean before Him.”
    • “Wherever we travel we generally find an opportunity to correct evil, and we should do so in a mild spirit, even the spirit of our Lord and Savior; not rail against evil but kindly call the attention of the trespasser to the fact that he is not alligned with the Spirit of the Gospel.”
• October 1907 General Conference
  • The Kirtland Temple
    • “The circumstances under which this first temple was erected were seemingly unpropititious for its completion, yet, by the faith of the Saints, and their united efforts, although but a handful, they did complete the house and dedicated it to the Lord, and the Lord accepted it.”
• April 1907 General Conference
  • A Testimony of the Work
    • “The Gospel net has gathered people from many nations of the earth, we are therefore a cosmopolitan people, and the mixture has produced a race of men and women gigantic in health and physical powers, as well as in moral and intellectual development, and their understanding of Gospel philosophy. There was no cold, dead response, no myth, no shadow in the answers on Gospel philosophy that were given this morning. Every man and woman knew what they were declaring. They understood the questions they were answering. They knew in their hearts that God lives, and that Jesus is the Christ. They also know that Joseph, the prophet, through the inspiration of the Almighty, brought to pass the organization of the Holy Priesthood upon the earth; that Zion is being built up, and Israel is being gathered, through the efforts of that mighty prophet and those who have followed him.”
• October 1906 General Conference
  • Prosper of the Church
    • “I appeal to you today to say if you have not witnessed a growth and development here that has fulfilled in a great degree the prediction and word of the Lord that was given to the Prophet in 1829. The wonderful part of it is, to those who do not see as we do, from a religious standpoint, that the work has prospered, that it has grown and strengthened notwithstanding the opposition that has always been brought to bear upon it, I will not say by our enemies, but by those who have misunderstood us, by those who have not comprehended the mission of the Church, and have not believed in the divine calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith, or of those brethren who have stood at the head of the Church since his martyrdom.”
• April 1906 General Conference
  • The Saints are Blessed
    • “We are certainly blessed of the Lord today; we have been blessed every day and every hour since we obeyed the Gospel, and entered into covenant with Him, provided we have kept that covenant. When I look over the statistical reports of our missionaries laboring in every land of the globe where they have been sent I rejoice exceedingly. The missions already established are growing in importance, the Seventies and the Elders are going out and unstintedly giving the best powers of their manhood to develop this cause, to proclaim the truth, and to scatter the seeds of the Gospel for the redemption of the human family far and wide in the nations of the earth.”
  • The Gospel of Peace
    • “My brethren and sisters, “Mormonism” is the Gospel of peace, life and salvation. It has never been a Gospel of war or contention. Contention does not belong to the Spirit of the Gospel or the faith of the Saints; but evil and temptation exist in the world.”
• October 1904 General Conference
  • Doing Our Duty
    • “He has kept His word; and we have among us today some of those choice spirits, and they are ruling and guiding and directing the destinies of this people and the destinies of mankind throughout the earth; for, in spite of opposition to the Church of Jesus Christ and the doctrines that lead to life eternal, the leaven of the Gospel is being felt from one end of Christianity to the other.”
    • “All these glorious principles, my brethren and sisters, are before us, and we are striving to live by them; and although the world does not endorse us, or love us, we must do our whole duty.”
• April 1904 General Conference
  • Jesus is the Christ
    • “We know today that in the ministry of our Lord and Savior there were but few who followed Him, as compared with the great mass of the people. His doctrine did not please the multitude. Very few received His word and believed that He was the Savior of the world, the promised Messiah, the expected King of the Jews. We note, too, that the persecution which came upon Him, His scourgings, His buffetings, and His final crucifixion, were not administered by the heathen, nor by those who had no promise in regard to the coming of the Messiah. It was His own race, the house of Judah, from which He sprang, that inflicted upon Him these cruel tortures, and finally put Him to death upon the cross.”
• April 1903 General Conference
  • Devotion and Progress
    • “The brethren and sisters have awakened to a sense of their condition, and have renewed their diligence in paying their tithes and offerings. I see the blessings of heaven showered down upon the people, and I know it Is the result of their obedience to the principle that has been so sacredly observed by them, especially in the last few years. Since they have obeyed that law more faithfully the blessings of the Lord have been more abundantly poured out upon them from one end of the land to the other.”
    • “Some men are naturally weak, and soon succumb to opposition; while others are made of sterner stuff and meet all opposition with unswerving integrity, especially if they know for themselves that they art engaged in the cause of right and truth; for this knowledge to any man brings a power and a reliance that is not easily overcome.”
    • “As a people we have not seen our Savior and talked with Him face to face; our prophets have that high honor and privilege, as far as the Lord designs they should have; but the Saints generally have received the impress and the power of the Holy Spirit; and although most of them have not seen the Lord face to face yet they testify that Jesus is the Christ. How? By the power of the living God, and by the witness of that Holy Spirit which He gives to every earnest and faithful believer.”
• April 1902 General Conference
  • Personal Purity
    • “You go out to represent a good people, who are virtuous, honest, and upright before the Lord. Do not let your actions tarnish that good name. Do not do anything that shall prevent you, when you return, from receiving the embrace of that loving mother that Brother Kimball mentioned this morning: but be in that condition that when you look your loved ones in the face you can do so without your cheeks burning with shame, or without your eyes quailing through a consciousness of misconduct.”
• October 1901 General Conference
  • A Bright Future
    • “I rejoice in the principles of the Gospel, because they are saving in their nature.”
    • “We must be a tried people; we must overcome temptation, and prove to the Lord whether through evil and through good report we will be faithful to His cause. We must be taught to shun the very appearance of evil, and we must teach our children to do the same. Our words and our actions must tend to the welfare of our fellow men, to the redemption of Zion, to the spread of the Gospel and the upbuilding of His kingdom in the earth, that a rule and reign of righteousness and purity may come to the earth—not through the absence of temptation, but through the power of His children to overcome and trample under foot all temptation.”
    • “The kingdom of God must come upon the earth. Peace must reign supreme. But before the kingdom of God can come, before peace can prevail, the people must be trained to love peace and union, to love the Lord, to love each other. They must love their neighbors as themselves, and their God above all. They must keep His laws, in order that this spirit of peace and brotherly love may be disseminated abroad from the rivers to the ends of the earth, and the way be prepared for Jesus to come and reign as Kings of kings and Lord of lords. The Gospel must be preached to every creature, for a witness, before the end of unrighteousness can come.”
• October 1899 General Conference
  • Redemption of Zion
    • “Shortly after the death of the Prophet, the Lord declared, through Brigham Young—and I am inclined to believe that here again it was necessary to awaken the people, who, from their sorrow, had fallen almost into a condition of lethargy—the Lord declared through Brigham Young, the leader of the Church then, and the successor to the Prophet Joseph Smith, that unless the brethren and sisters laid hold of the work again in prosecuting their labors upon the Temple in Nauvoo, and finished it, tliat it might be dedicated to the Lord, they would be cut off with their dead. This aroused the Saints again to a sense of their duty to God and His cause, and they went to with their might, with their faith and works, never ceasing until they had completed that house and dedicated it, renewing, under the direction of President Brigham Young, the ordinances of God’s holy house and Temple, for the redemption of the living and the dead.”
    • “Therefore, this proves to me, my brethren and sisters, beyond the power of contradiction, that the Lord is ready to redeem Zion and to make His people a great power, and the head and front in the earth, through His grace, whenever they are prepared for it.”
• April 1898 General Conference
  • Duties of the Seventies
    • “But we want to impress upon the minds of our brethren who preside over these quorums and those who are members of the same, and also upon the minds of the Elders the necessity of us all preparing ourselves to be better missionaries in the future than we have been able to send out in the past. We desire an improvement all the time.”
    • “We all need to repent every day of our lives, and we all need the spirit of repentance, and we all ought to cultivate this spirit of forgiveness one to another.”
    • “If you cannot get them to act with you, go to them and meet with them in their own houses and labor with them by their own firesides in the spirit of meekness and love unfeigned, seeking their welfare and salvation, and only desiring that through their repentance they may be forgiven, and learn to lay hold of the spirit of the Gospel.”
• October 1897 General Conference
  • The Missionary Field
    • “I said that it did not require the wealth of great religious denominations, or the wealth of individuals, to spread the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ; that one living witness, with a testimony of the truth in his heart, could go forth and win his way among the people, and preach the Gospel to thousands; and the few that would embrace these principles, in their turn became witnesses for God; and the Gospel was continuously spread in this manner. Granting that to be true, said he, how much greater is your chance for spreading the Gospel with twelve hundred missionaries constantly in the field.”

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