Category: Church History

Documents and Dialogic Revelations

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Joseph Smith began his ministry with a wealth of visions and revelations. Many among these were what have been called dialogic revelations–answers given by God to Joseph Smith in response to questions or specific situations. Written documents phrased as God speaking through Joseph Smith have been treated with particular weight, both by early Latter Day Saints and their spiritual heirs today. For those of us in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, however, most of his successors to the presidency of the Church have not used the same method of giving voice to the will of God. With John Taylor being the major exception, most Church leaders since the death of Joseph Smith have expressed what they believed that God wants to be done through sermons, instructions and policy making, or through group decisions made in the Quorum of the Twelve and First Presidency. As the second president of the Church, Brigham Young set this trend: he very rarely dictated revelations, with what is now Section 136 in the Doctrine and Covenants being the main exception.  In a recent BYU Studies publication, Christopher Blythe (a Research Associate at the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship and a former historian/documentary editor for the Joseph Smith Papers project) shared a document that records a revelation given by Brigham Young much later in his ministry (see here). Brigham Young shared this revelation during a discourse given in St. George during…

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Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith, a Review

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Cover of Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith

Back in June, Clark Goble mentioned that he was going to write a review of Thomas G. Alexander’s new biography Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith. It’s one of many misfortunes among the great losses of Clark passing away that we never had the opportunity to read the review he was planning on writing about the book. As a direct result of Clark’s discussion of the biography, I read the book and thought I might share some thoughts. Thomas G. Alexander was the Lemuel Hardison Redd Jr. Professor of Western American History at Brigham Young University. Along with an illustrious career in teaching, he has published several works that are important to Latter-day Saint history, including the groundbreaking Mormonism in Transition: A History of the Latter-day Saints 1890-1830 as well as Things in Heaven and Earth: The Life and Times of Wilford Woodruff and Utah, the Right Place: The Official Centennial History. Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith was written by Alexander as a part of the Oklahoma Western Biographies series—a collection of short biographies written from published sources. The biography is a fast-paced overview of Brigham Young’s life, covering key events from his childhood, his conversion to the early Latter Day Saint movement, and onward through his time as the leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The heaviest emphasis is on his time in Utah Territory, both during his tenure as territorial governor and…

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First Vision Resources

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We were left with a bit of a cliff hanger at the end of general conference this year—the promise of a unique general conference next April celebrating the 200th anniversary of the year Joseph Smith said he experienced the First Vision. President Russell M. Nelson spoke briefly of various events in Church history, including the First Vision, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, the restoration of the Priesthood, and the foundation of various Church organizations. He then encouraged us to: “prepare for a unique conference that will commemorate the very foundations of the restored gospel.” Among that preparation was the suggestion to: “begin your preparation by reading afresh Joseph Smith’s account of the First Vision as recorded in the Pearl of Great Price” as well as the Book of Mormon resources that the Church is currently releasing. From that launching point, he encouraged us to: “Select your own questions. Design your own plan. Immerse yourself in the glorious light of the Restoration. As you do, general conference next April will be not only memorable; it will be unforgettable.”[1]   With this challenge to study in mind, I thought I’d put together a list of resources that focus on the First Vision that I have found insightful or interesting. In compiling this list, I have mostly focused on resources that are available online. The list is not comprehensive and I’m sure that there are plenty of valuable and interesting…

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A Word of Wisdom or a Commandment?

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The revelation that forms the basis of the Latter-day Saint dietary code refers to its contents as “a word of wisdom for the benefit of the Saints in these last days” (D&C 89:1). The Word of Wisdom was treated like its name implies during much of the nineteenth century—wide advise from God, but not a commandment. Today, however, parts of it are treated as a commandment—one that can result in being barred from the temple and Church callings if not followed. How did the Word of Wisdom become a commandment? It is surprisingly difficult to nail down a specific point in time in which this occurred. Three main options do emerge from my study of the issue, however: it was either always considered a commandment, the Latter-day Saints voted on and accepted it as a commandment, or it became a commandment when it began to be enforced. The first option is that the revelation was always considered a commandment. Many of the earliest Saints to receive it treated it as such—recollections of Kirtland and the eastern United States during the 1830s include many accounts where people threw their tobacco pipes in the fire or gave up coffee, tea and liquor for life like John Tanner did.  At a meeting of the Kirtland High Council on 20 February 1834, Joseph Smith declared “that no official member in this church is worthy to hold an office after haveing the words of wisdom…

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Hot Drinks and Cold Soda

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One aspect of the Word of Wisdom that has long been debated is whether or not all caffeinated drinks should be included under its umbrella. The original revelation specified that hot drinks should not be consumed, which was interpreted to mean coffee and tea. Throughout the twentieth century, the most common explanation for why was that the drinks contained an addictive substance—caffeine. Yet, other caffeinated beverages (i.e. soda drinks like Coca-Cola) were not added to the banned list, most likely because they aren’t too dangerous. This creates a bit of tension—with caffeine being the most compelling reason for banning coffee and tea, it could be argued that either there is no strong logical reasons known for banning them (other than obedience to the prophets) or the ban should be applied to all caffeinated beverages. Dr. Lester E. Bush provided insight into why the earliest Latter-day Saints may have believed that coffee and tea were unhealthy. Medical knowledge in the early and mid-nineteenth century was rudimentary, and it was often believed that diseases were manifestations of one underlying condition—an imbalance in vital nervous energy. This is a bit of an oversimplification, but too much energy was thought to lead to symptoms like fevers, inflammation, or indigestion while too little led to debility. Strong alcoholic beverages were acknowledged as the most dangerous stimulant in common use, but foods and drinks like coffee, tea, meat, and spices were also thought to contribute to…

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Cores and Corollaries of the Word of Wisdom

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The Church recently published some clarifications on issues related to our health code in the New Era magazine and gave them official status in a statement a few weeks later.[1] Essentially, vaping or e-cigarettes, marijuana and opioids, green and iced tea, and coffee-based products are officially prohibited. While we look to the 1833 revelation of Joseph Smith as the basis of that health code, the Church has been selective in enforcing it. In general, prohibition of alcohol, coffee, tea, and tobacco has been treated as the consistent core of the Word of Wisdom while other parts or potential additions have usually been treated as peripheral issues. Other additions are usually connected to this core in one way or another. The original revelation known as “A Word of Wisdom” was recorded on 27 February 1833. It contains both proscriptions and recommendations for consumption and use, as shown in Table 1. During the remainder of Joseph Smith’s lifetime, the proscriptions were discussed most often as alcohol, tobacco, coffee, and tea.[2] Very little else seems to have been discussed with any frequency, including the recommendations. On rare occasions, restricting meat consumption came up. For example, during one sermon in the 1840s, Hyrum Smith suggested that that Saints should “be sparing of the life of animals” (adding that they could be used “in times … of famine” because they would die anyway “and may as well be made use of by man, as not”).[3]…

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Handcarts and History

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In many ways, handcarts have come to symbolize the Mormon pioneer experience. There are a few reasons for this. With the tragic experiences of the Willie and Martin handcart companies of 1856, the handcart companies are among the easiest group of pioneers to dramatize. As a result, popular Latter-day Saint historical fiction books and movies frequently focus on handcarts and the stories of handcart companies seem to come up almost as often as the rest of the pioneer companies combined in our Church meetings. And, of course, the handcart experience is the least expensive (and least complicated) pioneer experience to reproduce and therefore the most common way for Latter-day Saint youth to reenact Mormon pioneer treks, both in the western United States and elsewhere.[1] We even have movies dramatizing the trek reenactment experience now. While retelling and experiencing these things can be good, there are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to historical accuracy while discussing the handcart pioneers. First, not all Mormon pioneers were handcart pioneers. Overland immigration in wagon trains to the Utah Territory occurred between the years 1847 and 1869 (when the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad rendered wagon trains obsolete). The handcart companies made up a small subset of this group, consisting of 10 companies during the years 1856 to 1860, and only accounting for approximately 4-10% of all Latter-day Saint pioneers.[2] By the time the first handcart pioneers entered the…

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Spanish Hymns and the Future Hymnbook

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Recently, Walter van Beek wrote an interesting post on this blog about Global Mormonism. Globalization and decentralization are important topics in the Church right now. Even within the past few weeks, the gathering of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve in Rome has been portrayed as a hugely symbolic moment for the Church’s broadening its focus beyond Utah and the USA. When the new hymnbook was announced last year, Elder Erich W. Kopischke stated that one goal of the new edition was to “include some of the best hymns and songs originating in other languages that will then be translated into English and the other languages around the world.”[1] So far, the only hymn in the English hymnal to be written by a Latter-day Saint that had translated from another language is the stirring Restoration hymn “Sehet ihr Völker, Licht bricht heran!”, written in German but known in English as “Hark All Ye Nations!” The hymn was included in the English hymnal for the first time in 1985.[2] From there, it has spread around the world. As far as I can tell, the non-English hymn that stands the best chance of making its way into the new hymnal is the Spanish missionary hymn, “Placentero nos es trabajar.” One thing that must be faced to achieve the goal described by Elder Kopischke is that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has historically prioritized the hymns of English-speaking…

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Review: Foundational Texts of Mormonism

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Here’s the shortest review possible. If you’re even moderately interested in Church history or theology or even just in close reading of scripture you should get Foundational Texts of Mormonism. If it’s not already in your library, ask for it for Christmas.

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The Expanded Canon: A Review

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Several months ago, my wife Lissette gave a talk in sacrament meeting on the topic of modern prophets and continuing revelation. She wanted to provide something different, something the congregation could really chew on (no “theological Twinkies“). She ended up discussing how modern-day prophets model the process of revelation for us. Drawing on Elder Bednar’s analogy of revelation as light, she illustrated that revelation could come in a sudden burst of inspiration (like a light switch) or as more gradual, increasing discernment (like a sunrise). Yet, those singular, sudden revelatory events are often incremental steps in a bigger picture. What’s more, future revelations often shed even more light on past ones. As an example, she used Joseph Smith’s multiple accounts of the First Vision. “While Joseph Smith’s vision was a singular event (akin to Bednar’s example of the light switch),” she said, its significance and impact evolved with additional experience and revelation (much like Bednar’s sunrise). The four major accounts of the First Vision differ in their details, with perhaps the biggest one being Joseph’s interpretation of the visitation’s purpose. The 1832 account focuses on Joseph’s forgiveness of sins; a kind of personal conversion story. By 1838, the narrative shifted to concerns regarding religious confusion and the eventual establishment of the Lord’s church. While these purposes are not mutually exclusive, Joseph’s understanding of the experience nonetheless expanded over time. I believe that this example of gradual development should not be seen as an…

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Saints, Volume 1: A Review

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About a week ago, the first volume of the new official history of the Church was published. I finished reading through it this weekend, and I have to say that it is fantastic. The style of prose reads like a novel (many creative authors were employed as the writers or consultants for the book), but it is very much rooted in some of our best understandings of the events and people who lived in the early period of the Church. The combination of the two results in a very readable, but accurate history. The time frame that this volume covers is the early 1800s through 1846—the year the Latter-day Saints left Nauvoo to move west. There are a lot of controversial issues related to that period, but the book tackled most of them head on. Polygamy (including Joseph Smith’s relationship with Fanny Alger and a small amount about polyandry), seer stones, treasure seeking, Book of Mormon translation, Latter-day Saint pillaging and fighting during the Missouri Mormon War, Danites, the Council of Fifty, Joseph Smith defending himself with a gun in Carthage Jail, and teachings of theosis and a Mother in Heaven are all addressed. Joseph Smith’s character was shown in a more three-dimensional way than most official Church representations of him—his temper and his sense of humor are both shown, as are some of his struggles and missteps. Yet, the history is not one that focuses entirely on the men…

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The New LDS Hymnbook: Changes and Possibilities

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Recently, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that they were going to prepare a new hymnbook and children’s songbook for use in the worldwide Church. Specifically, the goal is to create unity in hymn numbers and selections that reflect the needs of a global organization. This is the first time in over thirty years that the official hymnbook for the Church has changed, and it is a matter of no small excitement for Mormon musicians and general membership. The current hymnbook is wonderful, but change can always bring new opportunities and improvements. Part of the excitement is that there is an unprecedented amount of involvement of general membership being made possible through online surveys and song submission opportunities. Based on trends within the Church, the history of hymnbooks in Mormonism, and the statements that have been made about the forthcoming books, what might the new hymn and song books look like? There are a number of faucets to examine in considering this question, including continuity with past hymnals, new LDS music available for use, what might be removed and changed, and the hymnbook and songbook’s relationships to the general Christian tradition of music, and the tunes being used. Let’s look at each of these in turn. Continuity During the latter half of the twentieth century, hymnbooks in the LDS tradition have been kept around the same physical size. The major consideration has been the size of hymnbook…

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