The Day the Devil Came to the Logan Temple

Marriner Wood Merrill was no stranger to the miracles of God. As a boy of nine years old growing up in New Brunswick, Canada he beheld a vision in which he saw into the future. Although he didn't understand everything at the time, in this vision he saw Joseph Smith, Brigham Young (both of whom he had never met), the Saint's journey to the west, and the practice of polygamy. 

In 1852 he was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by missionaries in New Brunswick. 

Soon after that he joined the Saints on their westward trek to Utah Territory. During this journey while on the plains he witnessed another miracle. While attempting to swim across the Platte River to retrieve strayed cattle he lost his strength and began to be pulled under by the heavy current. He was almost to the point of drowning when suddenly a sandbar formed beneath his feet. He stood there safely until someone was able to come and rescue him. Suddenly, the sandbar disappeared. Marriner felt confident that the hand of God had saved his life. 

Statues of the pioneers on their journey to the West.

Three years passed and he was now establishing himself in the Salt Lake Valley. On a cold day in January 1856, Marriner was loading five large logs that would be used to make houses onto a sled. The ground was very slippery. He had one log loaded and as he turned to load the second, the first shot out and struck him hard, pinning him atop the other logs. The log that pinned him down was ten inches in diameter and twenty-two feet long. He could scarcely breathe, let alone move. 

He was sure that he would die a cold death there on the mountain with no one else around. An earnest prayer poured from his heart as he plead with the Lord to help him in this dire situation. He continued the attempt to extricate himself, but to no avail. Within a short period of time he began to fade and lose consciousness. 

When he finally came to, he was about a mile down the trail and sitting atop an orderly stack of five logs. His ax was lodged in the top log and his whip lay at his side. The oxen pulled the load as if nothing strange had happened. Marriner attempted to move, but could not budge due to the soreness of his body.

Later in his autobiography he said: “Who it was that extricated me from under the log, loaded my sled, hitched my oxen to it, and placed me on it, I cannot say.” 

Many years passed and Marriner Wood Merrill dedicated his life to the building up of the church. He moved to northern Utah where he served as bishop in Richmond for eighteen years. He was successful in farming, raising stock and the milling industry. With this he supported his eight wives and forty-five children. 

In 1884 he became the first president of the Logan Temple, which was just a three-hour buggy ride from Richmond. In 1889 he was ordained an Apostle. 

Hattie Merrill Morrison Farmstead in Richmond, Utah.  Hattie is the daughter of Marriner,.

Marriner Wood Merrill.

During the days of polygamy raids, Marriner lived in his bedroom on the second floor of the west tower of the Logan Temple. There were periods when he didn't leave the building for several weeks. 

During this time he relied on his son, Marriner Wood Merrill Jr., to take care of things at home. You can imagine his despair when his son passed away from illness at the young age of forty-two. Marriner felt that God had betrayed him. He was busy doing the Lord's work and his son was taken when he needed him most. 

His attitude changed, however, when one evening his son appeared to him in his bedroom in the temple. “Pa,” he said, “I am where the Lord wants me to be. I have been called home to preach the gospel to the people you are doing the temple work for. This work is more important than anything I could be doing on earth, and it is not pleasing to the Lord for you to grieve as you are doing over my death.” 

Needless to say, Marriner never grieved again over his son's death, nor did he complain about hardships in life. His testimony of the work in the temple grew tremendously. 

Logan Temple.

Perhaps this experience prepared him for the next. During the final decade of his life President Merrill had an encounter in the Logan Temple that is unlike any encounter I've ever read about. The following is an excerpt from a work written on the first hundred years of the Logan Temple: 

“Logan Temple President Marriner W. Merrill was sitting in his office one morning in the early 1890's when he heard a commotion outside. Stepping to the window, he saw a great congregation of people coming up the temple hill, some on foot and others on horseback and in carriages. President Merrill's first thought was, 'What will we do with so many people? If we fill every room in the temple, it will not begin to hold them all.' 

“The riders tied their horses up on the hitching posts or turned them loose on the temple corrals, and walked complacently about the front grounds, without seeming to have much purpose in mind. They were a rather odd looking group, and were dressed quite shabbily. 

Sketch of Logan Temple.

“They made no effort to enter the temple, so President Merrill went out to greet them and see what he could do for the group. He said to the leader: 'Who are you, and who are these people who have taken possession of the temple grounds unannounced?' 

“He answered: 'I am Satan, and these are my people.' Brother Merrill asked: 'What do you want and why have you come here?' Satan replied: 'I don't like what is being done in the Logan Temple and have come to stop it.' That was a bit of shock to President Merrill, and he answered: 'No, we will not stop it. This is the work of the Lord and must go on. You know that you or anyone else cannot stop the work of the Lord.' 

“'If you refuse to stop it, I will tell you what I propose to do,' the adversary said. 'I will scatter this congregation of people throughout these valleys, and we will keep people from coming to the temple. We will whisper in their ears and discourage them from attending the temple. We will stop your temple work.' 

“President Merrill then used the power of the priesthood and commanded Satan and his followers to depart from holy ground. He said that within four or five minutes there was not a person, horse or buggy in sight. They just disappeared into thin air and were gone.” 

For the next ten to twelve years the work in the Logan Temple was very slow. Satan worked hard to thwart efforts of those going to the temple. There are several accounts of people intending to go, but at the last minute something happening so they couldn't. Still they pushed forward and often finished their journey to the House of the Lord. 

Nolan Olsen, writing on the first 100 years of the Logan Temple, put it this way: “The evil one's power and influence are real. He knows the value of temple work and would do anything in his power to keep people away. But he failed to recognize the faithfulness and devotion of the Saints in this area, for they were not easily discouraged.” ♠ 

 

Grave of Marriner Wood Merrill in Richmond City Cemetery.

 



Sources 

“Marriner Wood Merrill (biography),” Family Search, online. 

Merrill, Melvin Clarence. Utah Pioneer and Apostle Marriner Wood Merrill and His Family. Marriner Wood Heritage, 1980. 

Olsen, Nolan. Logan Temple: The First 100 Years. 1978. 

“Preaching to the Dead.” Family Search, online. (On “Memories” of Marriner Wood Merrill.)