Why I'm Not Mormon
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MEMBERS of the CHURCH of JESUS CHRIST of LATTER-DAY SAINTS Bmby S-ER 26,1830 Ly Mmd
MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS BmBY S-ER 26,1830 Ly mmD. Platt On September 26,1830 at the second conference By her I had one son and two daughters. The Church of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints it was was not organized but soon after, April 6, 1830. A few days stated that there were sixty-two members, and that thrrty- afterwards] I was baptized in the waters of Seneca Lake by five of them had joined the church since the fist conference Joseph Smith." (0PH2599)It is possible that Solomon was on June 9th. This means that fiom April 6,1830 to June 9, baptized between April 8th and April 10th. As nearly all of 1830 there were twenty-seven people who joined the the baptisms talk place on Sunday during these initial Church, each of whom has been identified for many years, months, the fact that he was not part of the group baptized except fur two. The complete number of sixty-two members on Sunday, April 1 Ith, points to a date of the 8th, 9th or by September 26th has never been identifled prior to this 10th to quai@ for the "few days" noted in his article. autobiography. He had had to iraveI from his home in the vicinity of Lyons, Wayne. New York, just north of Fayette, Joseph Smith, Jr., Oliver Cowdery, and Samuel H. to be baptized, so it was not far. Smith were all initially baptized on May 15, 1829 (LMS:337). -
Joseph Smith Ill's 1844 Blessing Ana the Mormons of Utah
Q). MicAael' J2umw Joseph Smith Ill's 1844 Blessing Ana The Mormons of Utah JVlembers of the Mormon Church headquartered in Salt Lake City may have reacted anywhere along the spectrum from sublime indifference to temporary discomfiture to cold terror at the recently discovered blessing by Joseph Smith, Jr., to young Joseph on 17 January 1844, to "be my successor to the Presidency of the High Priesthood: a Seer, and a Revelator, and a Prophet, unto the Church; which appointment belongeth to him by blessing, and also by right."1 The Mormon Church follows a line of succession from Joseph Smith, Jr., completely different from that provided in this document. To understand the significance of the 1844 document in relation to the LDS Church and Mormon claims of presidential succession from Joseph Smith, Jr., one must recognize the authenticity and provenance of the document itself, the statements and actions by Joseph Smith about succession before 1844, the succession de- velopments at Nauvoo after January 1844, and the nature of apostolic succes- sion begun by Brigham Young and continued in the LDS Church today. All internal evidences concerning the manuscript blessing of Joseph Smith III, dated 17 January 1844, give conclusive support to its authenticity. Anyone at all familiar with the thousands of official manuscript documents of early Mormonism will immediately recognize that the document is written on paper contemporary with the 1840s, that the text of the blessing is in the extraordinar- ily distinctive handwriting of Joseph Smith's personal clerk, Thomas Bullock, that the words on the back of the document ("Joseph Smith 3 blessing") bear striking similarity to the handwriting of Joseph Smith, Jr., and that the docu- ment was folded and labeled in precisely the manner all one-page documents were filed by the church historian's office in the 1844 period. -
The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1922
University of Nevada, Reno THE SECRET MORMON MEETINGS OF 1922 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in History By Shannon Caldwell Montez C. Elizabeth Raymond, Ph.D. / Thesis Advisor December 2019 Copyright by Shannon Caldwell Montez 2019 All Rights Reserved UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA RENO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL We recommend that the thesis prepared under our supervision by SHANNON CALDWELL MONTEZ entitled The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1922 be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS C. Elizabeth Raymond, Ph.D., Advisor Cameron B. Strang, Ph.D., Committee Member Greta E. de Jong, Ph.D., Committee Member Erin E. Stiles, Ph.D., Graduate School Representative David W. Zeh, Ph.D., Dean, Graduate School December 2019 i Abstract B. H. Roberts presented information to the leadership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in January of 1922 that fundamentally challenged the entire premise of their religious beliefs. New research shows that in addition to church leadership, this information was also presented during the neXt few months to a select group of highly educated Mormon men and women outside of church hierarchy. This group represented many aspects of Mormon belief, different areas of eXpertise, and varying approaches to dealing with challenging information. Their stories create a beautiful tapestry of Mormon life in the transition years from polygamy, frontier life, and resistance to statehood, assimilation, and respectability. A study of the people involved illuminates an important, overlooked, underappreciated, and eXciting period of Mormon history. -
Egypt and Mormonism: Oriental Traits of the Latter-Day Saints
Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU Arrington Student Writing Award Winners Leonard J. Arrington Mormon History Lectures 12-7-2011 Egypt and Mormonism: Oriental Traits of the Latter-Day Saints Alexander Fronk Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/arrington_stwriting Part of the History of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Fronk, Alexander, "Egypt and Mormonism: Oriental Traits of the Latter-Day Saints" (2011). Arrington Student Writing Award Winners. Paper 7. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/arrington_stwriting/7 This Essay is brought to you for free and open access by the Leonard J. Arrington Mormon History Lectures at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Arrington Student Writing Award Winners by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 1 Egypt and Mormonism: Oriental Traits of the Latter-Day Saints Introduction In his lecture, Dr. Francaviglia presents a fascinating framework in which to understand American history and culture, as well as Mormons specifically. Orientalism was defined for the lecture as the assimilation or imitation of that which is oriental in religious or philosophical thought, or in art. Through various mediums, including architectural examples, quotes from Mormons and their detractors, and travel literature, Dr. Francaviglia demonstrates that not only Mormons were compared to Oriental peoples and assigned Oriental traits, but they also actively attributed such traits -
History of the Chapels in San Bernardino of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Nick-Name “Mormons,” Aka Latter-Day Saints, Saints, LDS)
History of the Chapels in San Bernardino of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Nick-name “Mormons,” aka Latter-day Saints, Saints, LDS) By Marilyn Mills Edited by John Bascom, President Mohahve Historical Society Latter-day Saints, nick-named Mormons, are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. From their beginning, they have been a temple building people. Their rst congregation was organized in 1830, and by 1836 they had completed a temple in Kirkland, Ohio. Mob violence drove them away from Ohio and into Illinois where they built the City of Nauvoo on the banks of the Mississippi River. By November of 1845, they had all but completed a second temple. Mob violence again drove them from their homes. They moved to the refuge and safety of the West and began building temples, the most famous of which is the Salt Lake City, Utah temple. For Latter-day Saints, a temple is a sacred place of religious learning, a place to make covenants with God. They are not chapels or Sunday places of worship. In contrast to their temple building eorts, the early congregations did not build chapels for weekly worship. They would meet in homes or public buildings or most times outdoors when the weather permitted. The same was true in the San Bernardino Valley in the mid 1800’s. The rst Latter-day Saints to arrive in the San Bernardino Valley were soldiers enlisted in the US Army. In 1847, a US Army battalion, comprised entirely of Latter-day Saint men and a few of their wives who enlisted as laundresses, arrived in California after a grueling 2,000-mile march from Iowa. -
“For This Ordinance Belongeth to My House”: the Practice of Baptism for the Dead Outside the Nauvoo Temple
Alexander L. Baugh: Baptism for the Dead Outside Temples 47 “For This Ordinance Belongeth to My House”: The Practice of Baptism for the Dead Outside the Nauvoo Temple Alexander L. Baugh The Elders’ Journal of July 1838, published in Far West, Missouri, includ- ed a series of twenty questions related to Mormonism. The answers to the questions bear the editorial pen of Joseph Smith. Question number sixteen posed the following query: “If the Mormon doctrine is true, what has become of all those who have died since the days of the apostles?” The Prophet answered, “All those who have not had an opportunity of hearing the gospel, and being administered to by an inspired man in the flesh, must have it hereafter before they can be finally judged.”1 The Prophet’s thought is clear—the dead must have someone in mortality administer the saving ordinances for them to be saved in the kingdom of God. Significantly, the answer given by the Prophet marks his first known statement concerning the doctrine of vicari- ous work for the dead. However, it was not until more than two years later that the principle was put into practice.2 On 15 August 1840, Joseph Smith preached the funeral sermon of Seymour Brunson during which time he declared for the first time the doc- trine of baptism for the dead.3 Unfortunately, there are no contemporary accounts of the Prophet’s discourse. However, Simon Baker was present at the funeral services and later stated that during the meeting the Prophet read extensively from 1 Corinthians 15, then noted a particular widow in the congregation whose son had died without baptism. -
Elohim and Jehovah in Mormonism and the Bible
Elohim and Jehovah in Mormonism and the Bible Boyd Kirkland urrently, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints defines the CGodhead as consisting of three separate and distinct personages or Gods: Elohim, or God the Father; Jehovah, or Jesus Christ, the Son of God both in the spirit and in the flesh; and the Holy Ghost. The Father and the Son have physical, resurrected bodies of flesh and bone, but the Holy Ghost is a spirit personage. Jesus' title of Jehovah reflects his pre-existent role as God of the Old Testament. These definitions took official form in "The Father and the Son: A Doctrinal Exposition by the First Presidency and the Twelve" (1916) as the culmination of five major stages of theological development in Church history (Kirkland 1984): 1. Joseph Smith, Mormonism's founder, originally spoke and wrote about God in terms practically indistinguishable from then-current protestant the- ology. He used the roles, personalities, and titles of the Father and the Son interchangeably in a manner implying that he believed in only one God who manifested himself as three persons. The Book of Mormon, revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants prior to 1835, and Smith's 1832 account of his First Vision all reflect "trinitarian" perceptions. He did not use the title Elohim at all in this early stage and used Jehovah only rarely as the name of the "one" God. 2. The 1835 Lectures on Faith and Smith's official 1838 account of his First Vision both emphasized the complete separateness of the Father and the Son. -
Joseph Smith and Diabolism in Early Mormonism 1815-1831
Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 5-2021 "He Beheld the Prince of Darkness": Joseph Smith and Diabolism in Early Mormonism 1815-1831 Steven R. Hepworth Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd Part of the History of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Hepworth, Steven R., ""He Beheld the Prince of Darkness": Joseph Smith and Diabolism in Early Mormonism 1815-1831" (2021). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 8062. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/8062 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. "HE BEHELD THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS": JOSEPH SMITH AND DIABOLISM IN EARLY MORMONISM 1815-1831 by Steven R. Hepworth A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in History Approved: Patrick Mason, Ph.D. Kyle Bulthuis, Ph.D. Major Professor Committee Member Harrison Kleiner, Ph.D. D. Richard Cutler, Ph.D. Committee Member Interim Vice Provost of Graduate Studies UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY Logan, Utah 2021 ii Copyright © 2021 Steven R. Hepworth All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT “He Beheld the Prince of Darkness”: Joseph Smith and Diabolism in Early Mormonism 1815-1831 by Steven R. Hepworth, Master of Arts Utah State University, 2021 Major Professor: Dr. Patrick Mason Department: History Joseph Smith published his first known recorded history in the preface to the 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon. -
Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham You from Me.”2 the Same Principle Can Be Applied to the Book of Abraham
Book of Abraham Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham you from me.”2 The same principle can be applied to the book of Abraham. The Lord did not require Joseph The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints em- Smith to have knowledge of Egyptian. By the gift and braces the book of Abraham as scripture. This book, a power of God, Joseph received knowledge about the life record of the biblical prophet and patriarch Abraham, and teachings of Abraham. recounts how Abraham sought the blessings of the On many particulars, the book of Abraham is con- priesthood, rejected the idolatry of his father, covenant- sistent with historical knowledge about the ancient ed with Jehovah, married Sarai, moved to Canaan and world.3 Some of this knowledge, which is discussed lat- Egypt, and received knowledge about the Creation. The er in this essay, had not yet been discovered or was not book of Abraham largely follows the biblical narrative well known in 1842. But even this evidence of ancient but adds important information regarding Abraham’s origins, substantial though it may be, cannot prove the life and teachings. truthfulness of the book of Abraham any more than ar- The book of Abraham was first published in 1842 chaeological evidence can prove the exodus of the Isra- and was canonized as part of the Pearl of Great Price in elites from Egypt or the Resurrection of the Son of God. 1880. The book originated with Egyptian papyri that Jo- The book of Abraham’s status as scripture ultimately seph Smith translated beginning in 1835. -
May 2005 New
THE MAY 2005 SPECIAL ISSUE: THE TIMES AND SEASONS OF JOSEPH SMITH The New Era Magazine oseph Volume 35, Number 5 oseph May 2005 Smith . Official monthly publication J Jhas done for youth of The Church of Jesus Christ more, save of Latter-day Saints Jesus only, for The New Era can be found the salvation in the Gospel Library at www.lds.org. of men in this world, than Editorial Offices: any other man New Era any other man 50 E. North Temple St. that ever lived Rm. 2420 Salt Lake City, UT in it” (D&C 84150-3220, USA 135:3). E-mail address: cur-editorial-newera In this @ldschurch.org special issue, Please e-mail or send stories, articles, photos, poems, and visit the ideas to the address above. Unsolicited material is wel- places where come. For return, include a the Prophet self-addressed, stamped the Prophet envelope. Joseph Smith To Subscribe: lived, and feel By phone: Call 1-800-537- 5971 to order using Visa, the spirit of MasterCard, Discover Card, or American Express. Online: all he Go to www.ldscatalog.com. By mail: Send $8 U.S. accomplished check or money order to Distribution Services, as the first P.O. Box 26368, Salt Lake City, UT President of 84126-0368, USA. The Church of To change address: Jesus Christ of Send old and new address information to Distribution Latter-day Services at the address above. Please allow 60 days Saints. for changes to take effect. Cover: Young Joseph Smith begins the great work of the Restoration. -
The Sting of the <Em>Wasp</Em>: Early Nauvoo Newspaper—April
BYU Studies Quarterly Volume 22 Issue 4 Article 7 10-1-1982 The Sting of the Wasp: Early Nauvoo Newspaper—April 1842 to April 1843 Jerry C. Jolley Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/byusq Recommended Citation Jolley, Jerry C. (1982) "The Sting of the Wasp: Early Nauvoo Newspaper—April 1842 to April 1843," BYU Studies Quarterly: Vol. 22 : Iss. 4 , Article 7. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/byusq/vol22/iss4/7 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in BYU Studies Quarterly by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Jolley: The Sting of the <em>Wasp</em>: Early Nauvoo Newspaper—April 1842 the sting of the rasapasawasp early nauvoo newspaper april 1842 to april 1843 jerry C jolley the wasp an early mormon periodical was one of many small newspapers striving to make a place and a name in an era called by many the golden age of american journalism newspapers were the most popular of american reading materials in the 1840s almost all growing frontier communities sought to establish a small press and more populous areas often had a dozen or more the boom of newspaper publishing throughout the country caused a jump from 800 such papers in 1830 to 1400 in 1840 1 the motives behind the eager interest shown by the common man for newspapers in the 1840s were social political religious and literary one author has suggested -
Journal of Mormon History Vol. 20, No. 1, 1994
Journal of Mormon History Volume 20 Issue 1 Article 1 1994 Journal of Mormon History Vol. 20, No. 1, 1994 Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/mormonhistory Part of the Religion Commons Recommended Citation (1994) "Journal of Mormon History Vol. 20, No. 1, 1994," Journal of Mormon History: Vol. 20 : Iss. 1 , Article 1. Available at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/mormonhistory/vol20/iss1/1 This Full Issue is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Mormon History by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Journal of Mormon History Vol. 20, No. 1, 1994 Table of Contents LETTERS vi ARTICLES PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS • --Positivism or Subjectivism? Some Reflections on a Mormon Historical Dilemma Marvin S. Hill, 1 TANNER LECTURE • --Mormon and Methodist: Popular Religion in the Crucible of the Free Market Nathan O. Hatch, 24 • --The Windows of Heaven Revisited: The 1899 Tithing Reformation E. Jay Bell, 45 • --Plurality, Patriarchy, and the Priestess: Zina D. H. Young's Nauvoo Marriages Martha Sonntag Bradley and Mary Brown Firmage Woodward, 84 • --Lords of Creation: Polygamy, the Abrahamic Household, and Mormon Patriarchy B. Cannon Hardy, 119 REVIEWS 153 --The Story of the Latter-day Saints by James B. Allen and Glen M. Leonard Richard E. Bennett --Hero or Traitor: A Biographical Story of Charles Wesley Wandell by Marjorie Newton Richard L. Saunders --Mormon Redress Petition: Documents of the 1833-1838 Missouri Conflict edited by Clark V. Johnson Stephen C.