At 11:30 this forenoon I was ordained an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ ... Before proceeding with the ordination, President Smith asked President Lyman if he had anything to say to Bro[ther]. Talmage. ... He also said that he had instructed Bro[ther]. Talmage with respect to the necessity of his being in perfect accord with the brethren of the Twelve, informing him also that in all their private councils it would be his privilege to freely express his own individual views but that after doing so it would become his duty to be united with this brethren on the conclusions and decisions arrived at, even should the conclusions and decisions be contrary to his own views and judgment. ... Bro[ther]. Talmage now received his ordination which was as follows: [']Dear Brother James E. Talmage, as your fellow servants and as Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, in authority of the holy priesthood, which is after the order of the Son of God, we lay our hands upon your head, and ordain you an Apostle in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and also set you apart to be one of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and confer upon you all the keys, rights, privileges, blessings, ministries and authority, pertaining to this high and holy calling, to the end that you may be, as you have been heretofore, but more abundantly, a living witness to the divinity of the lord Jesus Christ'a special witness of Him unto all the world, knowing and understanding as though you had seen by the sight of your eyes, and heard by the hearing of your ear, that the Lord God Almighty, our Heavenly Father, sent forth His Son unto the world, to become the Savior and redeemer of mankind; and that He did come, that he did live and die and rise again, and ascend on high, and that He does now sit enthroned with power and dominion on the right hand of the Father, and He has chosen His own brethren from time to time to be his fellow-laborers in the world, to administer to the children of men for their own salvation & exaltation, and they and all mankind through them might be brought to a knowledge of the Father and the Son. 'Now our dear brother in the Lord, we bless you and ordain you, conferring upon you the holy Apostleship, with all that pertains to this high and holy calling; and we pray God to bestow upon you the spirit of this calling abundantly and continue unto you the spirit of humility and meekness even more abundantly than you have ever experienced it heretofore, that you may be most exemplary and most efficient in the performance of your duties, and be an honor to the cause of God.
'Father, bless this thy servant and accept of him and fill him with the light of truth, the gift of the Holy ghost, and the testimony of Christ, that he may labor diligently for the salvation of souls, and that his labors may be acceptable in thy sight. 'We seal upon you Brother Talmage, all these things, by authority of the Holy Priesthood vested in us; and this we do in the name of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, even so, Amen.' This being done President Smith and all the brethren present congratulated Brother Talmage, and extended to him the right hand of fellowship. (Signed) Geo[rge]. F. Gibbs The occasion is to me one of irrepressible reverence and sanctity. To me the calling of an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ has always been one of special sanctity requiring the unreserved devotion of the man so honored. It is a calling above any office, station or title that man can confer.
[James E. Talmage, Diary, as quoted in Minutes of the Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1835-1951, Electronic Edition, 2015]
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