Category: Joseph Smith, Jr.
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Where Did the Mormon Doctrine of Polygamy Come From? Emma Knew.
On July 12, 1843 Joseph Smith recorded what Mormons believe was a revelation from God “relating to the new and everlasting covenant, including the eternity of the marriage covenant, as also plurality of wives” (Introduction to D&C 132). In this section of what is now Mormon scripture, Joseph’s wife, Emma, is called out and told…
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Joseph Smith’s Death Not Inherently Significant?
As part of a discussion here at Mormon Coffee about Joseph Smith’s alleged “I am going like a lamb to the slaughter” comment, one of our Mormon commenters wrote, “Joseph Smith never claimed that his blood would atone for sins, and neither have his followers,… Joseph never claimed to be giving his life and blood…
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“Imminent Martyrdom”
At the October 2009 General Conference LDS Apostle Jeffrey Holland gave a talk titled, “Safety for the Soul.” This talk has been closely examined and critiqued in a series of videos posted by FlackerMan on You Tube. In video #2 (of 5) FlackerMan examines Mr. Holland’s claim of Joseph Smith’s dying testimony of the Book…
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Joseph’s Orb: Undeniable Sign of Truth?
I am at a loss. I can’t find the logic in a statement found in Mormon Times (or the article that follows it). Maybe the Mormon Coffee community can suss this out and make some sense of it for me. Mormon Times reported that at the BYU Studies Symposium a couple of weeks ago Paul…
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Joseph Smith Jr. Index
PropheciesCivil War predictionRocky Mountain prophecyPrediction of Second ComingDoes the Bible contain Prophecies of Joseph Smith?Joseph the ManNEW!
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The First Vision’s Slow Entrance Into the LDS Story
When addressing the subject of Joseph Smith’s personal encounter with God the Father and Jesus Christ, Gordon B. Hinckley, the fifteenth president of the LDS Church, stated, “There’s no other event in all recorded history that compares with it, not even at the baptism of the Savior” (“Testimony of the First Vision,” Church News, July 1,…
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Joseph Smith did more than any man who has ever lived…
I understand that Mormons respect and revere Joseph Smith. I get that. I really do. Yet sometimes the way he’s talked about, even in an official sense, seems a bit over the top. In the February 2009 Ensign magazine former Seventy F. Burton Howard wrote, “If Joseph saw what he claimed to have seen, and…
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Fruits of the First Vision
In this month’s First Presidency Message (February 2009), Dieter F. Uchtdorf wrote of how Joseph Smith’s First Vision blesses people’s lives. He wrote, “Through his [Joseph Smith’s] work and sacrifice, I now have a true understanding of our Heavenly Father and His Son, our Redeemer and Savior, Jesus Christ, and I can feel the power…
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Joseph Smith and Folk Magic
The post focuses on Joseph Smith’s involvement in magical practices, particularly surrounding the autumnal equinox and their significance in the origins of the Book of Mormon, as examined through various scholarly reviews.
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Movie Review: Emma Smith: My Story
Reviewed by Bill McKeever When I first saw the billboards along Interstate 15 advertising Emma Smith: My Story, I wondered how much of “Emma’s story” was going to actually be told. When the trailers for the film started airing on local Salt Lake television stations and I saw that much of the film appeared to…
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Joseph Smith’s 1832 Handwritten History
One hundred and seventy-six years ago yesterday (that is, on July 20, 1832) Joseph Smith began writing a history of his life. This was his first attempt at recording his history. He worked on it for several months while living in Kirtland, Ohio, but abandoned the project in November of the same year. The account…
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Early Mormon Leaders on the Inhabitants of the Sun and Moon
By Bill McKeever and Aaron Shafovaloff
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Are You “Scared” or “Weak-Minded” Over the Father Having a Father? Joseph Smith Has a Word For You
On June 16, 1844—just 11 days before his death—Joseph preached just east of the Nauvoo temple in a grove probably very near (or even the same place as?) where he gave his sermon at King Follett’s funeral. Many people think of the King Follett Discourse as Joseph Smith’s last great sermon, and indeed, some have…
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LDS Apostle Explains the Purpose of Life
The official web site of the LDS Church has posted a transcript of the interview Apostle Dallin H. Oaks gave to Helen Whitney, maker of the PBS documentary “The Mormons” which aired earlier this year. Mr. Oaks told Ms. Whitney, “Before the close of his ministry, in Illinois, Joseph Smith put together the significance of…
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“Mormonism’s king was dead.”
On 27 June 1844 Mormonism’s founding prophet, Joseph Smith, was killed. Much has been written about the death of Joseph Smith, accounts written from every perspective imaginable. In 1994 historian D. Michael Quinn, a former BYU professor and former Mormon, published The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power. In this book, Dr. Quinn carefully documented the…
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Joseph Smith on Humility, Innocence and Truth
One hundred and sixty-three years ago tomorrow (June 7, 1844) the one and only issue of The Nauvoo Expositor was published in Nauvoo, Illinois. The newspaper was intended to be the voice of the Reformed Mormon Church, a dissident religious group led by former counselor in the LDS First Presidency, William Law.The members of the…
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Joseph Smith for President
There’s another movie about Mormonism in the works. A French magazine reports, A Mormon President, the first documentary film to explore the Mormon Prophet, Joseph Smith’s campaign for the US Presidency and its implications for the candidacy of another Mormon, Mitt Romney, has begun production and is slated for a fall 2007 release. Filmmaker Adam…
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Book Review: Early Mormonism and the Magic World View
Author: D. Michael Quinn Signature Books, 1998 Reviewer: Eric Johnson Introduction
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Movie Review: Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration
Reviewed by Bill McKeever Despite the fact that Article 13 in the LDS Articles of Faith states that Mormons are to be honest, the LDS Church refuses to be completely truthful when it comes to its history, especially when the subject is Joseph Smith. As part of its celebration of the 200th anniversary of the…
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The King Follett Discourse
Introduction The King Follett Discourse was a funeral sermon preached by Joseph Smith on behalf of Elder King Follett, an early convert to Mormonism, who, on March 9, 1844, was crushed to death when a bucket of rocks fell on him as he was walling up a well. According to the “Documentary History of the…
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