Memo #18 (Written November 1, 2001)

Memo 18 WRITTEN  November 1, 2001                                     

To: All Pratt adults and selected others

From: Dad, Grandpa etc. Richard Pratt

Re: World conditions at the Second Coming of our Lord.

The Lord God never does anything to and for his children here on earth without first telling them about it and what the results will be to them if they accept or reject that which he tells them. He communicates this knowledge thru holy men called Prophets. To them he reveals the past, the present, and the future as needed for the guidance of the conduct of all who will listen to them.

“Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7

Apostles and prophets are the foundation upon which the organization of the true church rests. (1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 2:20) Where there are no apostles and prophets there is no divine church. The inspired promise is that these officers will remain in the church “Till we all come to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God....”

The church of “Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints: is the ONLY church on the face of the earth currently claiming to have apostles and prophets. This always being the mark of the true church of God, automatically rules out all other religious bodies, both Christian and non-Christian as having any claim to being God’s church. It also rules out the “Latter-Day Saints” as being the true church UNLESS their works testify to the divinity of that church by their prophets harmonizing with all the prophecies of past prophets as revealed in the Holy Scriptures.

The first man, Adam, was also the first prophet for he walked and talked with God and three years before his death in a great conference of his believing descendants Adam stood up in the midst of them; and, notwithstanding he was bowed down with age, being full of the Holy Ghost, predicted whatsoever should befall his posterity unto the latest generation. (D&C 107:56)

Our first reaction is, “this would be impossible for it would take days to outline the future history of the world.” Not so: Example: In about 6 pages in the Old Testament, the great prophet Moses outlined in detail what would happen to Israel and especially the Jews down to the present moment in time. (About 3500 years) Deut. 28-31. He also tells them of their past even before the earth was formed. Deut. 32:6-8 (You can read it all in about 10 minutes.) 

God knows all things and always reveals the future via prophets to his believing children. Prophecy, defined then, is simply history foretold before it happens and is much more accurate than history. For history is told by mortal and biased men after it has happened and is often if not usually so distorted that it bares little resemblance to what really happened. So if you want to know what is going to happen on the earth and to it’s inhabitants in this generation search the scriptures, study the prophets then listen to and read the current news and watch events unfold along the prophetic forecasts.

God created all things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. Including us. So everything belongs to him including us. He is the only source of all light and all life. And the whole purpose of the creation is to give to his children happiness. He calls it “A fulness of Joy.” We are literally the children of Heavenly parents. He designated his first born son in the Spirit world to be the author or superintendent or the Savior of us all. 

Unfortunately most of the world has rejected him and having cut themselves off from the presence of God, the source of all life, they must perish. And be swept into the Spirit World into some kind 2

of confinement where a loving Father will continue to teach them until they accept some part or portion of the great “plan of Happiness” also called the Gospel. This is the fate of those who were drowned in what is called “Noah’s flood.” 

The history of the world is divided into 7 equal periods of 1000 years each. A 1000 years is called a millennium (Greek for 1000). We are just entering the 7th millennium. All who have rejected him will be swept off the earth by war and the natural causes of disease and violent disruptions of nature and the earth will be cleansed by fire.

The picture is not a pretty one so I will make it brief. All tho many 1000s of the disobedient will be swept off the earth by acts of nature such as earthquakes, violent storms and other phenomena that are increasing and will continue to increase in their frequency and violence by far the greatest part will die by their own hands in a war and other acts of violence that will destroy more souls than all wars of the past. John prophesied that 1/3 of mankind will perish in this third world war. Rev. 9:18-20 and the survivors will still not repent.

In final desperation, the nations will unite (one world government) and blame the Jews for all their problems. They will send a great army to Palestine to destroy every Jew of every age and sex. The prophets call this “the Battle of Armageddon”. Two mighty prophets will call down the powers of heaven and forestall this destruction for 3 ½ years. The Lord will then permit their death. They will lie unburied in the main intersection of Jerusalem for 3 ½ days while the wicked army destroy and loot the city. ( Rev. 9)

Then the Savior appears with a shout and the trumpets blowing with a great host of heavenly beings. The resurrection of the just takes place, they and the living saints will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. The wicked will be destroyed by the command of the Lord and the millennium of peace will be ushered in. The Lord and those with him will descend upon the cleansed earth and rebuild a glorious and peaceful civilization.

The Prophet, Joseph Smith, sums up all the prophecies on world conditions today in the following: 

“The world presents one great theater of misery, woe, and distress of nations with perplexity...that man is not able to govern himself to legislate for himself, to protect himself, to promote his own good, nor the good of the world.”

The time is soon coming, when no man will have any peace but in Zion and her stakes.

“I saw men hunting the lives of their own sons, and brother murdering brother, women killing their own daughters, and daughters seeking the lives of their mothers. I saw armies arrayed against armies. I saw blood, desolation, fires. The Son of Man (Jesus) has said that the mother shall be against the daughter and the daughter against the mother. These things are at our doors... Satan will rage, and the spirit of the devil is now enraged. I know not how soon these things will take place; but with a view of them, shall I cry peace? NO; I will lift up my voice and testify of them. How long will you have good crops, and the famine be kept off, I do not know; when the fig tree leaves, know then that the summer is nigh at hand.” Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith pages 160-161---Simply a summation of Old and New Testament Prophets. Matthew 24:11-14 gives us the final clue as to the end:

11.“and many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 

12. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

13. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

14. AND THIS GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM SHALL BE PREACHED IN ALL THE WORLD FOR A WITNESS UNTO ALL NATIONS; AND THEN SHALL THE END COME.” or the destruction of the wicked which is the end of the world.” 

I know what I have written is true and I so testify in the Name of Jesus Christ Amen.

How can we prepare? Those who are prepared need not fear! Read all about it in December’s memo #19

I love you~

Dad, Grandpa etc. Richard Marden Pratt

excerpt from Grandma Adaline and Grandpa Richard’s Iowa mission journal:

March 19, 1984 ...as the elders travel on bicycles during the summer they received some rather humorous and otherwise safety instructions. Part of it was a movie put out by National Bicycle Safety Council and narrated by Bill Cosby. Among other things he said. “Knowing the rules is not enough, we must obey them every time we ride a bike.” I thought, “how true that is of everything governed or controlled by law! And then I thought, “all things are governed and controlled by law therefore we need to know the law and obey it to have the enjoyment of safely riding a bicycle or any other facet of life. 

I believe when an individual can learn this one lesson and that means do it, then that person is on the way to peace and happiness in this life and no worries about eternal life. Or as the Prophets have said: “Learn the truth and the truth shall make you free.” or “He that is prepared shall not fear.” 

And the next thought is, “No one can learn for someone else.” This is one area that cannot be accomplished by proxy, not even by God in behalf of us, It is a do it yourself project or never enjoy the “bike ride.”

There are many ways we can help someone to learn to ride a bicycle. We can orally instruct them. We can give them written instructions; we can prepare their bike with training wheels; we can even run alongside and support them, but in the end after all we or God can do they must launch off by themselves and following their instructions learn to do by doing....God’s way is “you do” Satan’s way is “I do”

The following was written by Roger Rowbury: As we approach the Thanksgiving season my thoughts are turned to the many things for which to be thankful. We need to be throughly grateful to those pilgrims who risked life and limb (many lost both) to journey from the old country to America to escape religious persecution. Months of cold, seasickness, disease, enduring extremely cramped quarters and a vast array of other discomforts had to be  endured in order to make the journey.

When they arrived in the “promised land,” their trials were not over or for that matter even diminished. The weather was cold and miserable. There was little food for them to eat. The seeds which had been brought had to be saved to plant crops in the spring. Had it not been for friendly Indians, most if not all of them would have died of starvation. Even so many did perish that first winter. 

Enough did survive, however, to colonize and be the nucleus of starting this great nation and other nations. The next fall they had the first Thanksgiving feast and invited the friendly Indians to join them. 

Out of this meager beginning was born a mighty nation which allowed religious freedom and eventually the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through a modern day Prophet, even Joseph Smith.

The early Saints suffered much persecution and hardships as they were pushed from one place to another in order to find Zion or their place of refuge. Like the pilgrims from the Old Country, many died of diseases, malnutrition, cold even massacre and murder to give us the heritage we now enjoy.

I am so thankful for those who sacrificed all they did that we can have what we now have. I fear however, that we have become complacent. In the last days with its calamities and problems prophesied in the scriptures, we too will be required to face many hardships. We need to be ready and willing to face them with the courage exhibited by our forefathers.

We have been admonished to have food, clothing, and where possible money to see us through tough times. If we will do this, we can avoid many of the calamities which would otherwise not be survivable. 

During this season, let us be thankful for those who have provided the examples of courage and bravery to survive unsurmountable times. Let us learn from their example and mistakes to be prepared. If we are prepared we need not fear.

In Loving memory of Bobby Mock 

Bob married Carolyn Joyce Pratt Law February 20, 1988 in the Jordan River temple and came into our family in such an awesome way. He was and is a gentle, generous, kind man. All of us enjoyed his cute sense of humor. Even when he was in pain and nearing the end of his life he responded with humor. Roger was visiting Bob and said, “Bob, I came to play a game with you, what game would you like to play?” (Hint neither of them really like to play games very much!)

Bob appeared to be asleep a minute passed and then one faint word passed his lips, “football” and a brief glimmer of a smile. This good natured man kept the faith to the very end. We thought it most appropriate to include his testimony here. “Bob’s testimony that he wrote to one of our guides when we were in Miami, Florida.” “Dear David, here is the Book of Mormon we said we would send you. I would like you to know that this book is true. Read it with an open mind and pray about what you read. Ask the Lord if it is true. I know it is true. I know that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior, that he suffered and died on the cross for our sins. I know he is the Son of God, and the only way that we can get back into the presence of God is through Him. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Later day Saints is the only true church, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and that we have a prophet at the head of the church now. Ever since I was a little boy, I knew that there was a God, but I did not know how important it was, until I became active in the LDS Church. When you really need help in your life, there is only one person that can help, and that is the Lord, Jesus Christ. So when you read this book, ask God, in the name of Jesus Christ, if it is true and He will manifest it to you....I love my family very much and I am thankful for each one of them. They are all good people, and I am very proud of everyone of them. I pray that my descendants will read the Book of Mormon, so that they can each gain their own testimony, that the Savior    lives and that the Gospel is true. 

With love from Bobby, (son-in-law, Dad, Grandpa, and great grandpa, uncle, brother) Mock 

Bobby was the builder of wonderful wooden trains, spinning wheels etc. and now will build beautifully in paradise. 

Memo #16 (Written September 1, 2001)

Memo 16, September 1, 2001         

To: All Pratt adults and selected others

From: Grandpa, etc. Richard Marden Pratt

Re: The Second Coming Preceded by Apostasy

  Apostasy is a “turning away from” as a traitor turns away from his country and sells out to the enemy so an apostate sells out to Satan. And as the penalty for a traitor in times of war, is death so also the penalty for apostasy is death, Spiritual death, for they separate themselves from God.

The history of this world from Adam to the present has been one continuous turning away from God and embracing all that Satan stands for with the resultant misery, poverty, hate, violence and suffering attendant there to. Scattered thru the world during its history the Lord has tried to maintain little islands of righteousness but at times even these islands have been swept away by the floods of iniquity. The worst period of total apostasy when few or no islands were left was during that period of time called by the world, itself, “the dark ages” roughly 325 AD to 1300 AD or about 1000 years. But even from 1300 to 1820 AD the few islands that were established were done so by good men but men who had no authority to act in God’s name. 

So it was that on an early spring day in 1820, a 14 year old boy, Joseph Smith,  asked God which church was right, which church was his church, which church should he join?

Where upon the Lord, Jesus Christ, in person answered, “join none of them, for they were all wrong.....all their creeds were an abomination in his sight;.....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.”

Many good and sincere men among these “self-styled” preachers of God did do much good. The Bible in part was preserved in lonely monasteries, and until modern times was the only source, vague as it was, of the moral principles that has made our modern civilization possible. Without those principles of decency taught by the Bible the world would soon destroy itself. And that is the fate now pending unless we can swing the pendulum back to “love thine enemies, do good to those who despitefully use you etc.”

“God never rules tyrannically except when men so corrupt themselves that they are unfit to live. Then under such conditions, it is the story of all his dealings with mankind that he sends judgement upon them and wipes them out and destroys them.” (Source unknown)

And so it is today, with millions murdered before they are even born, with the filthiness of homosexuality, and the destruction of the family, with violence of man toward man and nation against nation, there is only one hope, and that cry is going out: God is speaking through his Prophets and announcing that there are now on the earth men authorized of God to teach righteousness and perform the saving ordinances by which a person publicly declares his allegiance to God.

They are saying to men and women of all faiths, “bring the truth that you already have and we will add to it until you have the fulness of truth and the power to save yourself from a dying world, an apostate world that has cast God out and have sold their allegiance to Satan.

There are two great divisions in so called modern Christianity: Catholic versus Protestantism of which there are hundreds if not thousands of different sects all claiming to be God’s true church. 

The highest ranking official in the Catholic Church put it this way to President David O. McKay on a visit in President McKay’s Salt Lake Office. Said he, “President McKay, you don’t know the strength of your position, for only one of two churches could be God’s true church, either the Catholic church is right by direct line of authority from Peter as we claim or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the only true church by direct revelation from God as you claim. None of the Protestant churches can even make a claim to being the true church of Christ. For as the word “Protestant” means they simply protested against some of the practices of the Catholic church.”

President McKay smiled and answered, “Yes we know the strength of our position and we are right and are the true representatives of God and we invite Catholics and Protestants alike to bring their goodness with them and let us add to it that all might enjoy salvation from a dying world and exaltation in the presence of God forevermore.”

From the earliest times the Saints have hoped that they were living in the day of the second coming of the Lord. Enoch, 4th great grandson of Adam and, Adam was still alive, had a face to face confrontation with the Lord and learned some astonishing things. “He saw angels descending out of heaven crying: Wo, Wo be unto the inhabitants of the earth. And he saw Satan; and he had a great chain in his hand, and it veiled the whole face of the earth with darkness; and he looked up and laughed, and his angels rejoiced.....and the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept.”

Enoch was startled by the Lord’s weeping and asked why he would weep over one little world when his creations were so vast that man could not count them all. The Lord answered, among all the innumerable (to man) worlds I have created, none have been so wicked as this one. Wouldn’t you weep if you were their Father. All I have asked them to do is to love one another and choose me as their Father. But instead they hate each other and have chosen Satan as their Father, and misery shall be their doom, and the whole heavens shall weep over them. Wherefore should not we weep seeing these shall suffer. 

These will perish in the flood; I will shut them up; a prison have I prepared for them.

And Enoch called unto the Lord saying: Wilt thou not come again upon the earth? And the Lord said unto Enoch: As I live, even so will I come in the last days, (now) in the days of wickedness and vengeance,  to fulfill the oath which I have made unto you concerning the children of Noah (all of us).

And the day shall come that the earth shall rest, but before that day the heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall cover the earth; and the heavens shall shake and also the earth; and great tribulation shall be among the children of men, but my people will I preserve.

But before that day Enoch saw great tribulations among the wicked;....and mens hearts failing them, looking forth with fear for the judgements of the Almighty God, which should come upon the wicked. 

And the Lord showed Enoch all things, even unto the end of the world; and he saw the day of the righteous the hour of their redemption, and received a fullness of joy.

(Source: Moses chapter 7)

To be continued in Memo 17   I actually posted the second half on the blog in August 2013! I love rereading Dad's memos. Hope you do too.

Special Christmas Edition

SKETCH 12: Special Christmas Edition By David Pratt (Richard’s youngest brother)

In many ways Grandma Anna Nell Daykins Shirk Peterson was the glue that held our early family together. She was the first of my maternal line to accept the full gospel of Jesus Christ and be baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I do not remember her as I was only 3 when she died, but to me she will always be a Saint of the latter days. I share with you the words of my brother Richard and the impact she had on his conversion.

“It was wonderful to hear Grandma sing. She especially did so while preparing breakfast, which she started about 5 a.m. The men were already gone doing chores and would be in about seven hungry as a pack of wolves. Not only was breakfast a full fledged meal but Grandma would also bake four or five pies for the dinner and supper meals….One morning in my attic bed, I was awakened by Grandma’s beautiful singing. I shivered out of bed into my overalls and down the stairs. Seated on the bottom step, I would finish dressing. The sun shone warm and cheerfully through the window on to the step. Just to the side of the window the teakettle was humming on the kitchen stove from which came the delicious odors of breakfast. Every physical sense was being courted and caressed .At the table Grandma was working with flour, at this point there would always be a dab on the side of her nose and flour up to her elbows. She didn’t seem to be aware of me. I just sat there and reveled in the complete security of sound, smell, taste, hearing, and feeling. Grandma was singing, “I’ll Take You Home Again Kathleen.” I would often cry at its sadness but loved the song. Suddenly she stopped right in the middle of the song, cast her eyes ceiling ward and hands still in the dough exclaimed in a hushed and reverent voice, “Oh, how I love my Lord Jesus!” Her face seemed to shine with a radiance of pure joy. In awe I pondered her words, and thought, “If my Grandma loves someone called, ‘my Lord Jesus,’ then I love him too. Yes, I do love him and what an anchor to my soul that sermon has been now for nearly three quarters of a century. Thank you, Grandma.”

May it still be an anchor to all who belong to the Peterson, Pratt and Shirk Family. I wish you a very old fashioned Christmas as the surviving patriarch of the Pratt/Shirk side of the family. May God bless you always. I bless you to be true to your glorious heritage in the name of our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, amen.

Memo #15 (Written August 1, 2001)

Memo #15 August 1, 2001 (blogged December1, 2013)

To: All Pratt Adults and Selected Others

From: Dad, Grandpa etc. Richard Marden Pratt

Re: The Roles of Jesus Christ in our Salvation

Yes, I know that in memo 14 I promised that memo 15 would be the beginning of a dissertation on the second Coming of Jesus Christ. But much meditation has convinced me that to better understand the Second Coming we need to understand the major roles of Jesus in our individual Salvation and hopefully Exaltation.

Those roles are four in number...1.) AS our Creator, 2) Our Savior, 3) Our Redeemer, and 4) Our Judge. These titles, without elaboration, suggest that we wouldn’t even BE without HIM. In short, everything about us even our very flesh and the breath we breathe several times a minute is all due to HIM. Or as the prophet Mosiah said,

“...If you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice....   

I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.....Ye cannot say that ye are even as much as the dust of the earth; yet ye were created of the dust of the earth; but behold, it belongeth to him who created you.” Mosiah 2:20-24

In my 14^th year I had an experience that all ought to have for it taught me to appreciate a Savior. In a swimming accident I was sucked out into the mighty Columbia River into an eddy or whirlpool, one so powerful that no person, even the strongest swimmer, couldn’t survive. Without hesitation two men dove into the water and swam to my rescue, my Dad and my Uncle Lawrence Folsom. Neither were strong swimmers and both said afterwards that they knew they could not rescue me but they would not let me die alone. Through a series of mighty miracles we all survived.

My Aunt Daisy begged four or five strong men on shore to do something. They very curtly told her we were goners and they didn’t intend to lose their lives hopelessly. Then she spied a large drift wood tree intact with branches, partly imbedded in the sand. She pleaded with them to help her launch it. They told her how silly she was for we were now a hundred feet or more off shore and being swept rapidly down stream.

Miracle #1; Unaided by human hands that small woman pulled that several ton tree free from the sand and pushed it into the river.

Miracle #2; As tho propelled by a motor and guided by a helmsman, that tree shot right out to and alongside the three of us. By this time I was unconscious and the two men, taking turns holding me up, were exhausted. They managed to push my body upon the tree trunk between some limbs but, too weak to climb up, they just hung on. But now we were accelerating down the river at a rapid rate, to the falls which would surely finish us off, tree or no tree.

Miracle #3; Aunt Daisy spied a small row boat, which had not been there before. She again appealed to the me for one or two of them to get in the boat and save us from the falls. Again a flat “NO” for the falls would claim them all.

Miracle #4; Two boys in their early teens came along, heard her pleadings, saw us disappearing down stream, leaped into the boat, (neither had ever rowed a boat before) and sped to our rescue. Dad and my uncle transferred my body from the tree into the boat and then hanging onto the boat themselves, the two boys were able to reach shore just short of the fatal rapids.

The feelings I have for those four ( I knew the boys), but especially for my Dad and Uncle, is impossible to describe for the English language is not sufficient to do so. And over the years this feeling continues to increase. I LOVED them true. But the feelings cannot be described by such a weak word. A better description is “Awesome Wonder” that they offered their lives that I might have a few more years of mortality. And if they could come to me now and request me to do something, I would do it. Because these past 70 years that they have given me is worth anything they might ask me to do.

Now Jesus is offering us Everlasting Life just as our Creator. For as the scriptures say He has created all things, both the Heavens and the Earth and everything that in them is. In other words, under the direction of God our Father, Jesus is the Superintendent of Construction. He, Jesus the Creator, is saving us from the “rapids” which is Death. ~ He is offering to redeem us from our mistakes (called sins). A redeemer is someone who pays the debts for someone who can’t pay them. The Father says that every sin has a price, and His Law of Justice decrees that the price must be paid by all, equally and alike. There will be no favorites.

But Jesus, by prearrangement with the Father, can exercise the Law of Mercy...which is where someone else can pay for the sins of each of us providing we meet certain conditions. Jesus is the only person who has the power to pay the price. He received that power by completely complying with all that His Father asked Him to do. He literally paid for our sins with His blood and His sufferings in the Garden of Gethsemane and on that awful cross. Yes, I stand in “Awesome wonder” that He did this for me and in turn I joyfully will do all things that He asks me to do. What a tiny price to pay for eternal life, eternal family, eternal love and happiness.

And finally, He will be our judge. In order for His Mercy to pay the claim of God’s Justice, each one of us must stand at the judgement bar of God and give an accounting of our mortal lives and each one of us will be judged equally and alike. If we meet the conditions of mercy, which is OBEDIENCE to God’s laws, Jesus will pay for our sins. If not, then we must pay for them personally which is to suffer as He suffered, which suffering is so terrible that Jesus says only those who experience it can know how terrible it is. No right thinking person would ever want to experience it.

Ignorance will not be an acceptable excuse. For the Gospel is sounding in every ear both on earth and in the world of spirits. The books will be opened; our Book of Life will be opened and we will find that we had every opportunity to hear, to read, to think and to accept! And if our judgement is to be suffering we will weep and our Savior will weep for us and with us.

Yes, I stand in Awesome wonder that three men offered their lives for mine. the first two for just a few short years of mortality, but the last one, even Jesus Christ, has offered me all that the Father has to give. How can I turn such an offer down, I can not and I will not! And I invite you, my loved ones, to follow me as I follow Our Savior, My Savior Jesus Christ into the fullness of Everlasting Life and JOY!

I love you,

Dad, grandpa, etc. Richard Marden Pratt

PS.  Thursday Feb. 25^th journal entry:

Following are some thoughts I have had on Faith lately.

1. Faith must be based on truth or it has no power.

2. Faith is the assurance of existing truth not perceivable by the five mortal senses.

3. Without knowledge of the true and living God there could be no faith, therefore an individual’s faith is in direct ratio to his knowledge of the true and living God.

4. Without faith in the true and living God it is impossible to please Him. (Hebrews 11:6)

5. Faith is acquired by accepting unseen truth, nothing doubting, and then acting as though it was already a reality at the same time continuing to acquire more knowledge and petitioning the source of all truth in prayer.

6. Finally, Faith is dreams of proven but unseen realities, and we so live as to make our dreams come true because they are supported by proven substance not visible or delectable to the mortal powers.

Quotable Family Quotes

I Can’t a poor pale puny imp too lazy to work and from all duties does shirk!

I Can a giant, unbending he stands. And he can conquer who thinks he can, in spite of the throngs that doubt him!    Often quoted by Richard’s Grandpa Peterson

Memo #14 (Written July 1, 2001)

To: All Pratt Adults and selected others

From: Richard Marden Pratt

Re: The Purpose of the Church

God has said: “This is my work and my glory ~ to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” Moses 1:39. He has further stated that not even one hair of our head will be lost. In order to accomplish this colossal work, in the beginning, in the days of Adam, thru prophets (Adam being the first), God established the Church of Jesus Christ upon the earth...to teach His great laws and to make covenants with all believers that by obedience they may return to live in His presence and to live like Him and to be like Him. This great gift is called exaltation. Those who make and keep all the covenants will become gods in their own right and in their own place.

To gain membership in the Kingdom of God requires:

1. Faith in Jesus as our Savior, Creator, Redeemer and Judge.

2. Repentance of our wrong doings and

3. To seal this by the covenant of Baptism and Confirmation which covenant must be performed by an authorized servant of God. But this is just the beginning of the covenants one must enter into and keep to receive the Fulness of Joy. Most of the other covenants are made in a special building designated by God as a Temple. The final covenant being the sealing of husbands to wives and children to parents. There can be no eternal family relationships without this sealing covenant by an authorized servant of God.

Because of wickedness there have been times when the Lord’s church was taken from the earth to be restored at a later time. This is the last time, and the purpose of the church in this last time is to prepare the world for the Second Coming of the Savior in power and glory...which event is right at our door. 

The Church has a three fold purpose:

1. To perfect the Saints. When the scriptures speak of Saints, they refer to those who have accepted Christ by being baptized into His church and none else. And many baptized members are not saints because they do not keep their covenants. 

“And He gave some apostles; and some prophets; and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers;

For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ;

Til we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ;

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every word of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.” Ephesians 4:11-14

2. With the perfecting of the Saints comes the responsibility to Proclaim the Gospel.

For the prophet has said; “No unhallowed hand can stop the work from proceeding. The word of the Lord must go forth until it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear. Until the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the Great Jehovah declares, the work is done.”

        And the purposes of God are that everyone of his children will hear the “Good News” , and using their agency will accept it and enter into the Covenants that will exalt them back into His presence ~ or reject it and be relegated eternally to a lesser blessing, without family, or as the Lord has said, “What doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift?...He rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift.” D & C 88:33 So we will all receive what we choose to receive. It is all a matter of choice. In order to choose, each and everyone must hear.

Thus the great missionary plan of the Church. Currently nearly 70,000 missionaries are carrying the “good news”(NOTE: WOULDN’T DAD BE EXCITED WITH THE MISSIONARY PROGRAM NOW IN 2013!) To the ends of the earth with fantastic success. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the fastest growing church in the world. Members now number over 11 million. (NOTE: 15 MILLION IN 2013!) 

When I went on my first mission in 1931-32, there were only 1600 missionaries and about ½ million members. We reached our first million in 1944 (as I remember). Now we are adding a million new members in about 3 years and snowballing rapidly.

I have spent 6 years as a missionary; Adaline spent 4 (my cousins, Max and Peggy and spouses Marge and Jim have served more than that) and we would go again if health would permit. Which brings us to the third purpose of the Church and that is to take the gospel to those who have died and never heard of the great plan. Which leads me to believe that Adaline is now engaged in a great mission as she teaches in the world of Spirits...and my daughter Kay and cousin Max also.

3. The third purpose of the Church is to see that all who have died without the “Good News” also called “the great plan of happiness” or the “Gospel of Jesus Christ” have an opportunity to hear the Gospel. In the wold of spirits which is being taught them by faithful Saints who have passed thru the gate or great adventure we call death.

Or as the prophet said: “All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the Celestial Kingdom of God.” D & C 137:7.

Also, “For this cause was the Gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the Spirit.” 1 Peter 4:6

But the ordinances of the Gospel cannot be performed in the Spirit world. The dead may accept the gospel but their baptism, eternal marriage, and other covenants must be performed here on earth by “proxy”. “Proxy” means someone doing something for someone else that they can’t do for themselves. Jesus, for example, is proxy for all mankind in overcoming death that all may be resurrected to a perfect body.

God has commanded special buildings to be built called Temples, wherein mortals acting as proxies can redeem the dead. That’s why I am spending four days a week, 4-6 hours a day in the Provo Temple as an officiator with authority from God to perform some of the ordinances of exaltation for the dead using the living as their proxies. Example: last week Susann Rowbury (my grand daughter) acted as proxy for ten deceased females; I baptized Susann for and in behalf of each one. “Jane Doe” of course can accept or reject it. But every soul that has lived or will yet live upon the earth must accept or reject it. But every soul that has ever lived or will yet live upon the earth must be taught and have the opportunity to accept or reject part or all of the perfect plan of a loving Father.

In conclusion, the Three-fold mission purpose of the Church is:

1. To Perfect the living Saints.

2. To Proclaim the Gospel to the living.

3. And to Redeem the dead.

What a perfect plan by a perfect God, our Heavenly Father, who will give to each of His children all that they are willing to receive.

To these truths I add my signature in testimony.

Richard Marden Pratt 

                         (also known as Dad, Grandpa, Great Grandpa, brother, uncle & friend)