In the introduction to the History of the Church, B.H. Roberts sets the stage for the restoration of the Gospel and the last dispensation of the Gospel in the fulness of times. He demonstrates that the antiquity of the Gospel of Jesus Christ pre-dates the creation of the world, and that the Gospel was dispensed to Adam, and through him to his posterity. Thus the Church of Jesus Christ was established in ancient times, and the Ancient of Days himself was blessed by it. The Gospel was revealed in other dispensations after Adam as well. It was revealed to Enoch, who walked with God, to Noah, whom the Lord preserved from the flood, to Melchizedek who received tithes from Abraham, to Abraham, whose son Isaac was preserved by an angel of the Lord, and to Moses, the great lawgiver. From Moses to the time of John the Baptist, there were also special dispensations of the Priesthood to prophets such as Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and so forth. All of these dispensations foreshadowed and culminated in the dispensation of the meridian of time, wherein Christ was born, lived, ministered, and offered Himself as an Atoning sacrifice for all men who would repent and obey the Gospel. Christ's resurrection and subsequent ministries also took place in the dispensation of the meridian of time. This dispensation was made holy by the person and character of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and by His Atonement. Many of His followers also gave their lives as faithful witnesses of Jesus Christ.
Brother Roberts then explains the identity of the dispensation of the meridian of time in connection with the dispensation of the fulness of time. He sorts out truth from error, and explains Joel's great prophecy of the dispensation of the last days. He corrects several erroneous opinions concerning Daniel's prophecy of the rise of the kingdom of God in the last days, and he introduces the necessity for a restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the Prophet Joseph Smith after a period of apostasy. The section on the universal apostasy is noteworthy:
"This is a tremendous arraignment of all Christendom. It charges a condition of universal apostasy from God, especially upon Christendom that was dwelling in a fancied security of being the farthest removed from the possibility of such a charge; each division of the so-called Christian Church felicitating itself with the flattering unction that its own particular society possessed the enlightened fullness of the Christian religion. While the boldness of this declaration of the young Prophet is astounding, upon reflection it must be conceded that just such a condition of affairs in the religious world is consistent with the work he, under the direction of divine Providence, was about to inaugurate. Nothing less than a complete apostasy from the Christian religion would warrant the establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Of sects there were already enough in existence. Division and subdivision had already created of confusion more than enough, and there was no possible excuse for the introduction of a new Christian sect. But if men through apostasy had corrupted the Christian religion and lost divine authority to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, it was of the utmost importance that a new dispensation of the true Christian religion should be given to the world. It should also be observed at this point, that Joseph Smith, then but a boy, scarcely removed from childhood, was not himself pronouncing judgment upon the status of Christendom. It was not he who declared the sects to be all wrong, their creeds an abomination, and the professors thereof corrupt. He of all persons, both on account of his extreme youthfulness and his lack of general information, was among the least qualified to pronounce upon such a question. Indeed, he himself confesses his unfitness for such an office. His seeking knowledge from God upon this very question—"which of all the sects is right?" is a confession of his own inability to determine the matter. No human wisdom was sufficient to answer that question. No man in all the world was so pre-eminent as to be justified in proclaiming the divine acceptance of one church in preference to another. Divine wisdom alone was sufficient to pass judgment upon such a question; and there is peculiar force in the circumstance that the announcement which Joseph Smith makes with reference to this subject is not formulated by him nor by any other man, but is given to him of God. God has been the judge of apostate Christendom, Joseph Smith but His messenger, to herald that judgment to the world." (p. XL-XLI)
Brother Roberts then explains the identity of the dispensation of the meridian of time in connection with the dispensation of the fulness of time. He sorts out truth from error, and explains Joel's great prophecy of the dispensation of the last days. He corrects several erroneous opinions concerning Daniel's prophecy of the rise of the kingdom of God in the last days, and he introduces the necessity for a restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the Prophet Joseph Smith after a period of apostasy. The section on the universal apostasy is noteworthy:
"This is a tremendous arraignment of all Christendom. It charges a condition of universal apostasy from God, especially upon Christendom that was dwelling in a fancied security of being the farthest removed from the possibility of such a charge; each division of the so-called Christian Church felicitating itself with the flattering unction that its own particular society possessed the enlightened fullness of the Christian religion. While the boldness of this declaration of the young Prophet is astounding, upon reflection it must be conceded that just such a condition of affairs in the religious world is consistent with the work he, under the direction of divine Providence, was about to inaugurate. Nothing less than a complete apostasy from the Christian religion would warrant the establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Of sects there were already enough in existence. Division and subdivision had already created of confusion more than enough, and there was no possible excuse for the introduction of a new Christian sect. But if men through apostasy had corrupted the Christian religion and lost divine authority to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, it was of the utmost importance that a new dispensation of the true Christian religion should be given to the world. It should also be observed at this point, that Joseph Smith, then but a boy, scarcely removed from childhood, was not himself pronouncing judgment upon the status of Christendom. It was not he who declared the sects to be all wrong, their creeds an abomination, and the professors thereof corrupt. He of all persons, both on account of his extreme youthfulness and his lack of general information, was among the least qualified to pronounce upon such a question. Indeed, he himself confesses his unfitness for such an office. His seeking knowledge from God upon this very question—"which of all the sects is right?" is a confession of his own inability to determine the matter. No human wisdom was sufficient to answer that question. No man in all the world was so pre-eminent as to be justified in proclaiming the divine acceptance of one church in preference to another. Divine wisdom alone was sufficient to pass judgment upon such a question; and there is peculiar force in the circumstance that the announcement which Joseph Smith makes with reference to this subject is not formulated by him nor by any other man, but is given to him of God. God has been the judge of apostate Christendom, Joseph Smith but His messenger, to herald that judgment to the world." (p. XL-XLI)
Brother Roberts then sets out to accomplish the "melancholy task" of tracing the decline of the Christian religion, and all of this to set the stage for the restoration of the Gospel that will be described in the History of the Church.
I appreciated the boldness with which Joseph Smith, and B.H. Roberts, described the apostasy. Roberts explains that this boldness was a result of revelation from God, or in other words, Joseph Smith was not condemning the Christian sects of his time, it was God Himself who told him that:
"all their creeds were an abomination in His sight: that those professors were all corrupt; that they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; they teach for doctrines the commandments of men: having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof." (HOTC, vol. 1, p. 6)
One question that I had, however, concerned Robert's description of the Gospel as having been "formulated" (see. p. XXIV-XXV) before the foundations of the earth were laid. It makes sense that the Gospel was in effect long before Adam was placed on the earth, and even long before the world was created, but in my mind at least, it seemed to me that the Gospel is as eternal as are intelligences and spirits. It seems to me that the Gospel is as co-eternal with God as our intelligences are. Perhaps it makes sense to describe the Gospel as "formulated" in a way that it can be communicated to our spirits, but I simply wondered what was meant by the idea of God formulating the Gospel. Perhaps that is a point worth discussing. But the main point of the introduction is to prepare a description of the eternal context in which the History of the Church makes the most sense.
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