May I say by way of introduction to the few words I wish to give this afternoon as a message, that the call of Elder Mark Petersen to be an apostle of our Lord and Savior receives our hearty support and love.

Elder Petersen is a high type of man, a Christian gentleman in every particular. What a fine work he is destined to do as a disciple of our Lord!

COMMENT BY AN EMINENT ARCHITECT ABOUT THE TABERNACLE

On entering these sacred grounds this morning, I saw the dentils that surround the cornice of this building. It is the dentils, and there are hundreds of them, that give beauty to the simple and unadorned cornice of the Tabernacle. You will note them just under the roof if you will look closely. They were recently the inspiration for comment by the great American architect, Thomas E. Tallmadge in his Story of Architecture in America. He had been telling about the influence of Greek ideals on early American architecture and says: "Up and down the Atlantic seaboard, through the Western Reserve, along the Gulf of Mexico, up the Mississippi, and over the plains, the Greek revival spread. I have noticed that the famous tabernacle built in Salt Lake City by that extraordinary man, Brigham Young, has the tell-tale Greek profiles in its mouldings and cornices." Dr. Tallmadge refers to the dentils, which give to this building a beauty relieving the cornice of its extreme unadornment. One famous artist said that the dentils remind him of a beautiful piece of old lace. THE ANGEL ON THE TEMPLE

The angel on the center tower of the temple also looked very beautiful this morning, bathed as it was by the gold light of the morning sun. I almost imagined bearing John the Revelator himself speaking to me his exquisite words as he peered into the future:

And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and, tongue, and people,

Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters  Rev. 14:6-7

THE PURPOSE OF MONUMENTS AND BUILDINGS

Then I passed the gull monument, the creation of our own Mahonri Young. It is in honor of the gulls in their saving the wheat fields in 1848, when they were being destroyed by the locusts. The south bronze of the monument was pronounced by Rodin, the most noted sculptor of France, as one of the outstanding pieces of American sculpture.

I speak of these things because they represent so much in our history. They are the creations of great men—great souls. Only a deeply religious people could create a building like this tabernacle; only a good people could construct a building like yonder temple. A religious leader of India once wrote above the portal of a temple in Kashmir, India, these words: "O God, in every temple, I see people who see Thee." These buildings involved the human constants, common to humanity throughout the ages—hunger and labor, seed-time and harvest, love and death, faith and prayer—all operated to produce the noble things you see on these sacred grounds.

THE STANDARD WORKS OF THE CHURCH

My brethren, I often feel that we fail to see the beauty that lies all about us; we fail to realize that the three great characteristics of creation are truth, beauty, and goodness. God is behind all truth, beauty, and goodness, and there is nothing so noble for the soul, so uplifting as to be able to find beauty in all truth. In fact, it was the poet Keats who said: "Beauty is truth, truth beauty." These statements apply to our Church works: The Holy Bible, the "Holy" Book of Mormon, the "Holy" D&C, and the "Holy" Pearl of Great Price. I freely use the adjective "Holy," because all these four standard Church works are sacred. The Prophet Joseph Smith's entire life was devoted to discovering and having revealed to him the truths of God. These are the forces that made his life what it was—a life of refinement and appreciation for the beautiful.

I believe, my brethren, that if we as missionaries will present the word of the Lord as contained in the standard works of the Church in a manner that will bring out the beauty of them, people will begin to read them as never before. Take the Holy Bible. When I read the first words as contained in the Book of Genesis:

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; . . . And God said, Let there be light; and there was light. . . So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him  Gen. 1:1,3,27

I feel thankful for prophets and revelators.

These words plant in our hearts the truth of truths. God is there in the heavens as our Father, the creator and ruler of the universe. It causes every soul to reach out to Him and strive for eternity. Could any words be more beautiful? The Holy Bible is the book of God's words and teachings.

As an example of beauty in the Book of Mormon, I commend to you the twenty-ninth chapter of Alma, which reads in part:

O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!

Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth  Alma 29:1-2

The entire chapter is a lyric of great beauty. The Book of Mormon is full of such lyrics. Some day this holy book will be sung into the hearts of humanity.

The one hundred and ninth section of the D&C is one of my favorite chapters of that divine and holy book. It is the prayer offered at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple on March 27, 1836, in which the Prophet Joseph Smith asks God, "in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of Thy bosom, in whose name alone salvation can be administered to the children of men, we ask thee, O Lord, to accept of this house, the workmanship of the hands of us, thy servants, which thou didst command us to build"  D&C 109:4 And then are uttered words of admonition to train our minds and understanding. Says the Prophet:

Call your solemn assembly . . . seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith. Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God  D&C 88:117-119

Thoughts are precious seeds of life, and here we are taught to become thinkers. The Prophet Joseph founded a School of the Prophets and encouraged the study of the classical languages including Hebrew. He himself worked hard at the Hebrew language and set us an example of what it means to cultivate the mind, for "a great soul is strong to live as well as strong to think." The Prophet founded schools and the University of Nauvoo.

Then there is the Pearl of Great Price in which you find the beautiful Articles of Faith. Why this book is so neglected, I do not know. It is a perfect reservoir of truth, and in it as in all the others I have mentioned, we can read about God directly, and become deeply moved by His holy words. There is an Arabian proverb which says: "A fig tree, looking upon a fig tree, becometh fruitful." When we recite the Articles of Faith let us speak from the depths of our souls, particularly when we repeat the words: "We believe in God, the Eternal Father; and in His Son, Jesus Christ; and in the Holy Ghost"  A of F 1:1 We go to our holy books for life, for more life and keener life, for life as it crystallizes into higher and deeper significance. They create within us a sense of absolute truth, beauty and goodness. They impart to us the spirit of learning and wisdom and truth. They tell us which way we must go to find our God who leads us by our faith to the unity of the perfect life. May God bless us all and help us daily to understand His great truths, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.