Divine Guidance for a Stubborn Man in Cardiff
Published October 24, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Contributed by
Zion's Trumpet Research
On February 24, 1850, an interested man in Cardiff who had long attended meetings but refused to be baptized was struck down while leaving a meeting, falling as if dead. When he regained consciousness, he repeatedly called out for water. The officers interpreted this as a divine signal for baptism. He was taken to be baptized immediately and became a faithful member.
In Their Own Words
“Need For water.—There was a man in Cardiff who regularly came to listen to the Saints, and believed in them; but there was no way to persuade him to obey, although his relatives tried along with everyone else. Sunday, the 24th of February, as he was leaving the Saints’ meeting, he was overcome by something that caused him to fall down near the door, as one who was dead. The deacon took hold of him immediately; and after the man came to, the first thing he was heard to say was, “Water—water—river—river.” The officers understood the suggestion, and he was taken at that hour to receive baptism for the remission of his sins, and he is now a faithful member. May something similar come over all the stubborn people of the world, to force them to repent.—J. Ellis. — Udgorn Seion (Zion's Trumpet), March 1850 (English translation by Ronald D. Dennis)”
Sources & References
Ronald D. Dennis, trans. and ed., Zion's Trumpet: 1850 Welsh Mormon Periodical (Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University), March 1850 issue. https://rsc.byu.edu/sites/default/files/pub_content/pdf/Zions_Trumpet_1850/March.pdf (account extracted verbatim from the published English translation PDF; research confidence: high)
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