ARTICLE THIRTY-SEVEN.

The Spirit World.

Not Heaven.-That there is a Spirit World, and that it is closely connected with the material world—the one we now inhabit-has been a tenet in the religious philosophy of wise and good men all down the ages. In the minds of many people, the Spirit World and Heaven are synonymous terms, indicating one and the same place. But in reality there is a wide difference between them. A state of rest, such as the spirit life is understood to be for the righteous though "rest" should not be interpreted as idleness or want of occupation-might easily pass for heaven, when contrasted with this life of pain, sorrow and trouble. But that is only relative. It is not saying too much-indeed it may be saying too little-to affirm that there is just as much difference between the spirit world and heaven, as between the mortal and the spiritual phases of man's existence.

Here on Earth.-According to Parley P. Pratt, the Spirit World is the spiritual part of this planet—or, to use his exact language: "The earth and other planets of a like order have their inward or spiritual spheres, as well as their outward or temporal. The one is peopled by temporal tabernacles, and the other by spirits." "As to its location," he says, "it is here on the very planet where we were born."a

All Things Before Created. The proposition that Earth has a spiritual as well as a temporal sphere is a reassertion of the doctrine of duality, embodied in ancient

a, Key to Theology. Chapt. 14.

and modern revelation, and particularly emphasized by Joseph the Seer. A careful reading of the Book of Genesis (the King James version) discloses, though somewhat vaguely, the fact of this duality, as applied to the works of creation. Thus, after giving an account of the earth and of all things connected therewith, the sacred writer

says:

"These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, and every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground."

"Not a man to till the ground”—and yet man had been created, as well as the plants and herbs that existed "before they grew." The apparent contradiction-apparent though not real-was explained by the Prophet when, by the Spirit of Revelation, he revised the Scriptures, giving a more ample account of the creation than the ordinary Bible contains. From that account the following sentences are taken:

"For I the Lord God created all things of which I have spoken, spiritually, before they were naturally upon the face of the earth. . . And I the Lord had created all the children of men; and not yet a man to till the ground. For in heaven created I them; and there was not yet flesh upon the earth, neither in the water, neither in the air... Nevertheless, all things were before created."

First Spiritual, Then Temporal.-In other words, . there were two creations-or rather, the creation had

b, Gen. 2:4, 5.

c, Moses 3:5, 7.

two phases, the first spiritual, the second temporal. When the Creator made man and beast and fish and fowl, he made them twice-first in the spirit, then in the body; and the same is true of the trees, the shrubs, the flowers, and all other created things. They were made spiritually and temporally, the spirit and the body constituting the soul.d

Not Far Away.-The Spirit World is not a thing afar off. Our thoughts need not sail away millions of miles into space to find it. According to the best evidence we possess, it is near to us-right around us. We have but tɔ emerge from the body, and we are in the spirit world. Out of it we came, and unto it we shall return. "The spirits of the just," says the Prophet Joseph, “are not far from us;" they "know and understand our thoughts, feelings and motions, and are often pained therewith.

Just and Unjust.-The spirits of the unjust likewise inhabit the spirit world, though they are separated from the righteous, and are not in a state of rest. Light and darkness divide that realm, each domain having its appropriate population. So far from being Heaven, part of the spirit world is Hades or Hell. Referring to the class who people that part, the Prophet says: “The great misery of departed spirits. . . is to know that they come short of the glory that others enjoy and that they might have enjoyed themselves; and they are their own accusers."

Jesus and the Penitent Thief. "In the spirit world," says Parley P. Pratt, “are all the varieties and grades of intellectual beings which exist in the present world. For instance, Jesus Christ and the thief on the cross both went

d, D. & C. 88:15; Moses 3:9.

e, Hist. Ch. Vol. 6, p. 52.

f, Ib. Vol. 5, p. 425.

to the same place." That is to say, they both went to the spirit world.

Jesus, it will be borne in mind, had been crucified between two thieves, one of whom derided him, insulting his dying agonies. The other, being penitent, prayed: "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom." To him the Savior said: "Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." Because of this utterance—which Joseph Smith declared to be a mistranslation, maintaining that "paradise" should read "world of spirits"h uninspired minds have drawn the conclusion that the penitent thief was promised immediate heavenly exaltation, for repenting at the last moment and professing faith in the Redeemer. This notion is still entertained. The criminal who has forfeited his life and is under sentence of death, because unfit to dwell among his fallen fellow creatures, is made to believe that by confessing Christ, even on the scaffold, he is fitted at once for the society of Gods and angels, and will be wafted to never-ending bliss.

A False Doctrine.-Jesus never taught such a doctrine, nor did any authorized servant of the Lord. It is a man-made theory, based upon faulty inference and misinterpretation. The Scriptures plainly teach that men will be judged according to their works, and receive rewards as varied as their deeds. It was best for the thief, of course, to repent even at the eleventh hour; but he could not be exalted until prepared for it, if it took a thousand ycars. When Christ said: "I go to prepare a place for you, that where I am there ye may be also," he was not

g, Luke 23:43.

h, Hist. Ch. Vol. 5, pp. 424, 425.

i, Rev. 20:12, 13.

j, D. & C. 76.

k, John 14:2, 3.