1877 Epistle

Just six days after the 1877 Epistle was published, Elder George Q. Cannon delivered an address in which he emphasized the need for revelation in the organization of the Church, a prominent theme in this epistle:

If it were not for the new revelations received from the Almighty, this people called Latter-day Saints would not be in existence. If it were not that the Lord has revealed in great plainness his mind and will unto his people, they would not be an organization, neither would his Elders have gone forth bearing testimony of the truths of the everlasting Gospel. The rock upon which this Church is built, and the foundation stone thereof, is new revelation from God to men…

In an address on October 7, 1877, Elder Orson Pratt clarified the role of Counselors in the First Presidency after the death of the President of the Church and taught the principles that led to John W. Young and Daniel H. Wells being sustained to assist President Taylor as Quorum President, as outlined in the 1877 Epistle:

I refer to the Counselors that may be left, when the President, the First President of the Church is taken away from our midst. We are informed that the Counselors that existed in the day of Joseph could not act as Counselors to Joseph after he was taken away; to be Counselors to him would be impossible, unless they themselves should go the other side of the veil. Hence when the President was taken away their duties as Counselors to the Prophet, the First President, ceased...So it was considered, in the days of the loss of our Prophet and Seer, Joseph Smith. The two Counselors that then existed had the privilege, if they chose to do so, of being associated with the Council of the Twelve to assist us in the work of bearing off the kingdom; not as members of the Twelve, but acting with and assisting them. The same order has again been carried out; and it is just as I believed it would be, when I was in Liverpool, after learning of the death of President Young. The question came up there, and I took the l iberty of instructing the Saints making the inquiries. I told them, that when the First Presidency left, the Twelve would lead forth the Church, until such times as the Spirit of God, and the desires of the people, universally, should be to select and set apart and sustain by their prayers and faith, a First Presidency again.

Speaking specifically of the need for revelation in reorganizing the First Presidency of the Church during the Sunday morning session of General Conference following President Young’s death, Elder George Q. Cannon spoke from his own experience of just a few weeks earlier:

Hear it, O Israel! and remember it. Have I the right to say who shall preside over this people? No. Although an Apostle, holding the keys with my brethren and being side by side with them, having equal authority with them. Why? Because I am not chosen by the Lord to be his mouthpiece to the Latter-day Saints; what I mean by this, to give them revelation. It is my right to instruct and teach, to labor and to counsel; but it is not my right to organize a First Presidency for this Church, neither is it the right of any other man, excepting him whom the Lord has chosen [as] the President of the Twelve…
Well but, says one, Why cannot you organize a First Presidency now, if the Twelve have this authority? Do you want to know the reason, brethren and sisters, why we do not take such a step? I suspect you would like to know why a man and his two Counselors are not singled out, called and set apart by the voice of the people at this Conference, as the First Presidency of the Church? The reason is simply this: the Lord has not revealed it to us; he has not commanded us to do this, and until he does require this at our hands, we shall not do it. For the present, it seems to be the mind and will of God, as manifested to us, that the Twelve should preside over the Church. And until he does reveal unto his servants that it is right and proper that a First Presidency should be organized again, we shall wait, we shall do nothing of that kind.

In the same address during the Sunday morning session of General Conference, Elder George Q. Cannon also reinforced the invitation to all members of the Church to seek revelation for themselves so they could “know the voice of the true shepherd, and not be deceived by pretenders” (Epistle, p. 4):

A day or two ago, a man came here and notified the President of the Twelve that he was to be the successor to Brigham...Whenever the voice of the Lord comes upon such a subject, it will come with the power and demonstration of the Holy Ghost and with much assurance, and every Latter-day Saint on the earth will receive it, because the Spirit of God will bear testimony to our spirits that it is from Him, so that we cannot be deceived. It is our privilege to so live that we know the voice of the true shepherd, and cannot be deceived by those who profess to have revelation and have authority, when they have it not. And every man and woman in this Church should so live that when they hear the true voice, they will know it as they would know the voice of their nearest friend, and not be deceived or led astray.

At a meeting in the Provo meetinghouse just over a month after the 1877 Epistle was issued, President John Taylor also testified that the organization of the Church was under the direction of the Lord by way of revelation to those who held the keys of the priesthood:

We have and have had various organizations of the holy Priesthood. We have had a First Presidency, and sometimes we have not. It was sometime before a First Presidency was organized in the early days of the Church, and then it was quite a number of years before the Twelve Apostles and the several quorums now in existence were organized...There was no difficulty in the matter [of succession following Joseph Smith’s death]; it was understood that the duty rested on the Twelve. Why? The revelation stated that the Twelve were to hold the keys of the kingdom in connection with the First Presidency, which were handed down under various circumstances...When President Young was taken away the same condition of things were presented again, the circumstances being similar. There is no contention, strife or difficulty, because we all understand the principles that God has ordained for the government of his people...Now a second time it devolves upon the Twelve to take the presidency of the Church. Will there be anything else? I cannot say; there may be, when the Lord deems it necessary. We should feel as Jesus did when he exclaimed, “Lord, not my will, but thine be done.” It devolves upon the Twelve to attend to the duties the Lord has placed upon them, but they need the faith and confidence of the Saints and the sustenance of the Almighty, for they will not be able to do anything of themselves.

Without citing the 1877 Epistle directly, B.H. Roberts clearly quotes from it verbatim to highlight the principles of unity and revelation that prevailed during the transition after Brigham Young’s death:
“With humble, contrite and saddened hearts [the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles then present] earnestly sought to learn [the Lord’s] will concerning themselves and the Church. The Lord blessed them with the spirit of union, and revealed to them what steps should be taken…” (See The Life of John Taylor (Bookcraft: 1963), pp. 326-327).

Carrying on the quarterly stake conferences mentioned in the 1877 Epistle proved to be a great benefit for the Church during a difficult time of persecution:

To increase the Saints’ understanding and conviction of the gospel, President Taylor scheduled quarterly stake conferences throughout the Church. Whenever possible, he attended these conferences. If he could not, he sent a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. Referring to this practice, Elder B. H. Roberts of the Seventy recorded: “The Saints received much teaching and instruction from the Apostles, more perhaps than at any previous time in the history of the Church. The result was a great spiritual awakening among the Saints.”

The 1877 Epistle reinforced an earlier teaching of the Prophet Joseph Smith that “the heavenly Priesthood are not idle spectators” ("Times and Seasons, 2 May 1842," p. 776, The Joseph Smith Papers, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/times-and-seasons-2-may-1842/10 , accessed June 3, 2021). While expressing sorrow over the passing of Joseph Smith’s successor, the Epistle stated that “Brigham Young has gone from us to join the prophet Joseph and the host of the holy and the pure who are behind the vail; but we do not therefore lose the benefit of his labors. He is now in a position to do more for that work which he loved so well, and for which he labored so ardently, than he could possibly do in the flesh” (Epistle, p. 2). A month after this Epistle was published, President John Taylor reiterated that “the Priesthood is not confined to this earth alone, but that, after having performed our various duties here and passed away, we shall be called upon to operate for the same grand purpose in another sphere...brother Joseph, brother Brigham, brother Heber C. Kimball, brother Geo. A. Smith and others who held the holy Priesthood and have passed away, and are operating with [the heavenly priesthood] in behalf of fallen humanity, in behalf of the people who live now on the earth and the myriads of dead who have left us. We are engaged in a work that nothing but the combined action of the Priesthood on the earth and in the heavens can bring about” (October 14, 1877, https://jod.mrm.org/19/137 , accessed June 3, 2021; see Revelation 4:1-6; also McConkie, Joseph F. (1986), “Premortal Existence, Foreordinations, and Heavenly Councils,” in Apocryphal Writings and the Latter-day Saints, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs, pp. 174–98). Other Presidents of the Church, such as Gordon B. Hinckley, have felt the strength, comfort, and support of this heavenly council in their assignments here in mortality:

After President Hunter’s funeral, President Hinckley found comfort in the temple. Alone in the meeting room of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve in the Salt Lake Temple, he pored over the scriptures and meditated on what he read. He reflected on the life, ministry, and Atonement of Jesus Christ. Then he studied the portraits on the wall, depicting all the Presidents of the Church from Joseph Smith to Howard W. Hunter. He recorded this experience in his journal:
“I walked around in front of these portraits and looked into the eyes of the men there represented. I felt almost as if I could speak with them. I felt almost as if they were speaking to me and giving me reassurance. … I sat down in the chair which I have occupied as first counselor to the President. I spent a good deal of time looking at those portraits. Every one seemed almost to come alive. Their eyes seemed to be upon me. I felt that they were encouraging me and pledging their support. They seemed to say to me that they had spoken in my behalf in a council held in the heavens, that I had no need to fear, that I would be blessed and sustained in my ministry.”