Church History Matters

In May 2023 Richard Turley and Barbara Jones Brown published a book through Oxford University Press entitled Vengeance is Mine, which documents the aftermath of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, including the efforts of Church and civic leaders in southern Utah to conceal their involvement in the atrocity through witness silencing and misinformation, as well as evading or stalling investigations by both government agencies and church organizations by lack of cooperation and political maneuvering. They also chronicle details about the nine individuals who were ultimately indicted, the five who were apprehended, and John D. Lee, who ultimately faced execution.

In this episode of Church History Matters, we sit down with both Richard Turley and Barbara Jones Brown to discuss their important book, to hear their informed insights and perspectives, and to consider what Latter-day Saints and others can learn from this tragedy and how we can productively move forward.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The unjustified slaughter of around 120 men, women, and children emigrants in Mountain Meadows Utah on September 11, 1857, was an unspeakable tragedy. For Latter-day Saints then and now, one of the many painful details about this event is that it was instigated under the direction of local LDS leaders in Iron County who served simultaneously as ecclesiastical, civil, and military leaders. 

On this episode of Church History Matters, we continue our discussion about the Mountain Meadows Massacre, with a focus on the aftermath of the atrocity. Specifically, we probe what we know of Brigham Young’s reaction to the massacre and where the erroneous idea came from that he ordered the attack. We walk through what we know about who was brought to justice for the massacre and what the eventual fate was of those who instigated and participated in this heinous tragedy.  

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The Mountain Meadows Massacre—easily the darkest and most violent episode in our Church’s history—happened on September 11, 1857, when a group of Latter-day Saints, aided by some Paiute Native Americans, participated in the wholesale slaughter of around 120 men, women, and children belonging to a wagon train of emigrants from Arkansas en route to California. 

This atrocity occurred against the backdrop of the 1857 Utah War when the feelings of Latter-day Saints were already set on edge. As federal US troops marched toward Utah with unknown intentions, Church leaders used defiant rhetoric and counseled the Saints—who had been victims of government-sanctioned violence before—to conserve their resources and be ready for anything. It was in this unfortunate atmosphere of hysteria that those in the Arkansas wagon train found themselves as they passed through Utah. So by the time these emigrants purportedly said and did offensive things toward some Latter-day Saints, the stage had already been tragically set for the highly irrational and totally unjustified violent response they received in return. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we walk through the details of how this atrocity unfolded under the direction of local Latter-day Saint leaders and think about what possible lessons we might glean from this darkest hour of our history.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

After the 1838 “Mormon War” and their official expulsion from Missouri, Latter-day Saints relocated to Illinois where they built up the city of Nauvoo and a number of other settlements in Hancock County. After a short time of relative peace, they were again embroiled in conflict with their enemies which culminated in the murder of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. This was followed two years later by the battle of Nauvoo and yet another expulsion from a US state with the blessing of its governor. Then it was off to the West where, not long after the Saints’ arrival in the Salt Lake Valley, conflicts began to arise with Native Americans. And by 1857 US President James Buchanan had ordered a force of 2,500 military personnel, under the command of Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston, to march to Utah to ensure that Brigham Young be replaced as the governor of Utah, which brought on the “Utah War.”  

Today on Church History Matters, we discuss all of this and of course trace Latter-day Saint involvment in the violence which occured along the way. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The fall of 1838 marked the first time the Latter-day Saints engaged in organized retaliation against their enemies. The setting was Northern Missouri and the situation was what is referred to as the “Mormon War.” Here the Saints marched on some nearby settlements that were supporting and equipping their enemies and conducted raids where they pillaged stores and torched buildings. Things only escalated from there and eventually culminated in the infamous “Extermination Order” of Missouri Governor Lilburn W. Boggs, the Hawn’s Mill massacre, the imprisonment of Joseph Smith and other Church leaders in Liberty Jail, and the wholesale removal of Latter-day Saints from the state of Missouri.  

On this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and I walk through the history of this tumultuous time and think about what the conflict of 1838 might teach us about the justified and unjustified use of violence among Latter-day Saints—and its consequences.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In November 1833, ruthless mobs of local settlers drove over a thousand Church members out of Jackson County, Missouri, plundering their property and burning their homes to dissuade them from ever returning. These battered and scattered saints took refuge that winter in various nearby counties while local Church leaders sent desperate letters to Ohio to seek the counsel of the prophet Joseph Smith. As the prophet petitioned the Lord’s guidance on the matter he was told, among other things, to have those scattered saints petition government leaders for help, which they did. In fact Missouri Governor Daniel Dunklin was quite sympathetic to the saints’ plight and expressed his willingness to provide a military guard to escort the saints back to their lands and property in Jackson County. The only problem, he said, was that he could not authorize a standing army to be stationed there for the ongoing protection of the saints.

This essential piece of news would soon factor heavily into the decision of Joseph Smith and over 200 saints from the East to march nearly a thousand miles to Missouri in what became known as Zion’s camp. Their aim was to join with the governor’s military escort of the saints into Jackson County and then become that standing army who would ensure the resettlement and safety of their scattered friends once Governor Dunklin’s troops withdrew.  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig in to some of the ins and outs of Zion’s Camp and discuss what the march of a quasi-military group of Latter-day Saints led by a prophet of God might teach us about peace and violence among Latter-day Saints.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In the late summer of 1831, select groups of Church members began settling on the far western frontier of the United States in Jackson County, Missouri. Earlier that year the prophet Joseph Smith had received a revelation identifying the area as “the land of promise” and “the place for the city of Zion,” and shortly afterward the gathering to Zion had begun. Tensions between Church members and the non-Latter-day Saint locals in Jackson County existed almost immediately. By the spring of 1832 Missouri locals began verbally threatening the saints and occasionally vandalizing their homes to intimidate them and get them to leave. By the summer of 1833 the hatred and fear of the locals erupted into full-blown violence against Church members culminating in their forcible expulsion from Jackson County. 

On this episode of Church History Matters, we take a close look at the various factors that led to this violent eviction of the Saints from Jackson County, the response of the Missouri governor to this illegal action in his state, and the revelations received by Joseph Smith responding to this severe treatment.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Did you know that one of the best selling books in Latter-day Saint history on Amazon.com was not written by a Latter-day Saint or a historian? It was a controversial book written by atheist Jon Krakauer in 2003 titled, Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith, which still tops the Amazon charts (in Kindle releases) in the category “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” And an adaptation of the book was released as a mini-series in 2022.

One of the major premises of the book is that religion is inherently violent. To illustrate this premise Krakauer combines stories from early Latter-day Saint history with the story of a tragic murder in 1984 committed by two former members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Now Krakauer’s work has already been repeatedly criticized as a gross caricature of Latter-day Saint history and of religious people in general, but considering the widespread reach and influence of his fundamental premise and the LDS history he chose to support it, we felt like this is a topic that might warrant further investigation.  

So today on Church History Matters, Casey and I begin our multi-episode exploration of this question: Does faith in general, and the faith of the Latter-day Saints in particular, lend itself to acts of aggression and violence? What does reflecting on our Church’s history—and specifically the violent episodes of our history—teach us about this important question? 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

From our brief survey of some of the various branches of the Restoration in this series, a few things have become apparent. First, it’s clear that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do not have a monopoly on a love of the Book of Mormon. Many of our Restoration cousins also deeply revere this sacred text, have their faith in Christ strengthened because of it, and draw near to God by abiding by its precepts. Second, and perhaps more puzzling to some Latter-day Saints, it’s also clear that we do not have a monopoly on God’s notice, God’s mercy, and God’s guidance in our Church. In spite of many key differences between us, God also seems to actively be at work among many in the other Restoration branches as they seek him in faith. So what are we to make of this? What does it mean for our Church if God is guiding others as well? 

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and I sit down with Dr. Christopher Blythe, a gifted historian, author, fellow podcaster, and Joseph Smith Papers editor. Together we briefly overview two additional branches of the Restoration—the Henrickites and Cutlerites—and then dig into the question about how we reconcile God’s involvement in other faiths with the generally shared belief among Latter-day Saints that ours is God’s one-and-only authorized Church (and not least because we got succession right!). We each share why we choose to continue our membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in spite of other attractive alternatives.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Most of the main branches of the Restoration were formed within roughly two decades of the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith. One clear exception, however, is the Mormon Fundamentalist movement. Here’s a little backstory: In 1890 President Wilford Woodruff issued a manifesto announcing the Church’s intention to submit to those laws recently passed and declared constitutional by the US Supreme Court forbidding plural marriage. Then in 1904, as a result of the Reed Smoot hearings before the US Senate and the national attention this brought to the continued practice of plural marriage in Utah, President Joseph F. Smith issued what is known as the “Second Manifesto,” which announced the Church’s policy to excommunicate anyone who continued to enter into new polygamous marriages. 

Yet some Church members felt that the manifestos of Presidents Woodruff and Smith were not inspired. Instead, they saw them as weak and uninspired capitulations to government demands rather than a continued courageous commitment to God’s commands in the face of persecution. Within a few decades, those who dissented against these manifestos or were excommunicated from the LDS Church for entering into additional plural marriages began to gather on the Utah/Arizona border at a place known as Short Creek. They believed in a 1912 statement by Lorin C. Woolley, who had been courier for President John Taylor, about an unpublished 1886 revelation of President Taylor wherein the Lord declared that the “New and Everlasting Covenant” had not been revoked, nor would it ever be. This was interpreted by those in this group to mean that plural marriage would never be withdrawn. They concluded therefore that President Taylor’s unpublished revelation (and their interpretation of it) overruled and superceded the first manifesto of President Woodruff in 1890 and the second manifesto of President Smith in 1904. They were staying true to this core fundamental element of Mormonism while the LDS Church was not.  

In time these Mormon Fundamentalists fragmented into various groups, including the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or FLDS Church), the Apostolic United Brethren (or AUB), the Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days, among others. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and I sit down with Dr. Brian Hales, an expert researcher and author of several books on the Mormon fundamentalist movement, to discuss this fascinating branch of the Restoration. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Among many of those Nauvoo Saints who did not choose to follow Brigham Young and the Twelve Apostles into the mountains of Utah, there was an emerging hope that someone from the Smith family would step forward and begin a reorganization of the Church Joseph Smith Jr. had established. In 1851 a soft reorganization began and built up to that culminating moment of 1860 when the eldest son of Joseph and Emma Smith, Joseph Smith III, stepped forward at the age of 28 and was ordained president of what they referred to then as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or RLDS Church. Over time their method of succession in their presidency developed upon a different set of criteria than that of their Utah-based cousins, as did many of their practices, policies, programs, and governing principles. In 2001 the name of the RLDS Church was changed to Community of Christ, and today this is the second largest branch of the Restoration movement. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott sit down with Andrew Bolton, a friend and member of the Community of Christ who served in their Council of Twelve Apostles from 2007 to 2016. Together we take a deep dive into the details of how succession works in this movement, while also considering some key similarities and differences between our two Restoration branches today.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Following the murders of Joseph and Hyrum Smith in 1844, Sidney Rigdon, who had been Joseph’s 1st Counselor, made the claim to Church members in Nauvoo that he was the rightful successor to lead the Church as its guardian. After his falling out with the Twelve apostles, Sidney left Nauvoo and travelled to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania where he built up a church there separate and apart from the Church Brigham Young and the Twelve led to Utah. And, today, the only branch of the Restoration that claims its right of succession from Joseph Smith through Sidney Rigdon is The Church of Jesus Christ, also sometimes referred to as the “Bickertonites.” The Church of Jesus Christ is headquartered in Monongahela, Pennsylvania and is the third largest branch of the Restoration movement today.

On this episode of Church History Matters, Casey sits down with Josh Gehly, a friend and ordained Evangelist in The Church of Jesus Christ, to take a deep dive into the details of this movement.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Who was James J. Strang? And why were his claims so appealing to so many of those Latter-day Saints who did not follow Brigham Young and Twelve after the succession crisis of 1844? Why did his movement experience so much initial success but then dissipate so quickly? Some have made strong comparisons between James Strang and Joseph Smith, but how accurate are these comparisons really? 

On this episode of Church History Matters, we sit down with Dr. Kyle Beshears, a friend and expert researcher on the Strangite branch of the Restoration, to take a deep dive into the details of this movement.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

After the succession crisis of 1844, not every member of the Church chose to sustain and follow Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. And many of these members eventually formed or joined alternative restoration movements which became separate, distinct, and independent churches from one another. In fact, over the last 180 years there have actually been hundreds of Churches that have branched off from the same Joseph Smith-era restoration trunk. 

Today on Church History Matters, for reasons we will explain, Casey and I have chosen to consider three such Restoration branches—namely, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints (or Strangites); the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints (or Josephites), today known as the Community of Christ; and the Church of Jesus Christ (or Bickertonites). Our focus will be primarily on the question of how succession has developed and works today in each of these movements. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In the unlikely event that the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve all died simultaneously, how would that affect succession? In this hypothetical worst-case scenario, would the keys of the kingdom be lost? And, if an apostle came down with a debilitating health problem, is there any precedent for making him an emeritus apostle? 

And speaking of apostles, is there a set procedure in calling them, or does the method vary from Church president to president? Also, sometimes in the Church people speak of a special requirement for a man to become an apostle—the phrase “sure” or “special” witness of Christ comes up a lot. What’s true? Must a man have personally seen Jesus Christ in order to be fully considered an apostle?

On this episode of Church History Matters Casey and I are joined by a special guest, Dr. Daniel C. Peterson, to help us answer these and other great questions related to succession. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Between the presidencies of Lorenzo Snow in 1898 and Russell M. Nelson today, there have been a few key clarifications relative to the inner workings of Church government at the level of the Church presidency. And on today’s episode of Church History Matters we want to talk about them! The first of these clarifications deals with the confusion introduced during Joseph F. Smith’s presidency surrounding the role and position of the presiding Church Patriarch within the Church’s hierarchy. The second is regarding the important question about who can serve in the First Presidency? Is it entirely the prerogative of the President of the Church to choose who serves as his counselors, or are there constraints in place which he must abide by when doing so? And the third clarification deals with what happens when you have a Church president who is incapacitated due to poor health, and therefore cannot actively lead the Church? To what degree can his counselors lead the Church without him? And what, if any, restraints are there to their authority in this circumstance?  

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

From the history we’ve covered in this series so far, we know that the succession plan of having the most senior apostle become the next Church president took time to develop and wasn’t fully fleshed out in Joseph Smith’s lifetime. In fact, it was during the decades of President Brigham Young’s presidency that this plan was ultimately finalized … well, mostly. It turns out that prior to President John Taylor’s death, there was one young apostle who challenged this plan of succession one last time. 

In this episode of Church History Matters we walk through this history and talk about how apostle Wilford Woodruff settled this issue once and for all. We’ll also talk about the sacred experience Lorenzo Snow had after Wilford Woodruff’s passing which established the pattern we follow today of reorganizing the First Presidency immediately after a Church president’s death.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Who is next in line to become the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Today this is not a difficult question. It is well understood that whoever is the next most senior apostle to the current Church president will be the next president, should he live long enough. The singular issue is seniority. It all boils down to seniority. So, what determines seniority among the apostles? Again, today there is a ready answer to this question. But it was not always so. 

In fact, in this episode of Church History Matters, we walk through the winding path of how criteria for seniority in the apostleship has changed significantly from Joseph Smith’s day to our own. And we’ll talk about how Church presidents have responded to difficult seniority questions, such as, If two men are ordained apostles on the same day, who is the senior apostle? And, if a man is ordained an apostle but  never becomes a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, how is his seniority determined? Or say two men were ordained apostles, the one sometime before the other, but then the man ordained second becomes a member of the Quorum of the Twelve ahead of the man ordained before him. Which of the two men has seniority over the other? Or how, if at all, is a man’s seniority affected if he is an apostle who leaves the Church or is excommunicated for a time, but is then reinstated back into the Quorum of the Twelve? 

While these may seem like very technical questions, they have come from real-life circumstances. And the decisions made about each scenario have determined, more than once, who has become president of the Church. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Shortly after the Nauvoo Saints voted on August 8, 1844 to sustain the Twelve Apostles as the new leaders of Church, Sidney Rigdon was excommunicated (for reasons we will discuss in this episode). Then for more than three years, between 1844 and 1847, Brigham Young and the Twelve led the Church as a group of equals. Together they oversaw the completion of the Nauvoo temple and organized an exodus out of the United States. 

Yet after leading a vanguard company to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, Brigham Young became concerned about the Twelve collectively leading the Church and became persuaded (for reasons we will discuss) that it was time to reorganize the First Presidency. But his proposal was not uncontested by the Twelve. And so, in a spirited series of debates, with Orson Pratt leading the opposition, Brigham Young ultimately persuaded the majority of the Twelve to reestablish the First Presidency, which officially took place on 27 December 1847 at the Kanesville Tabernacle in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into the intriguing details of all of this. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Aside from a small handful of events, like the First Vision, the translation of the Book of Mormon, and the restoration of priesthood keys, it is possible that what happened in Nauvoo on August 8th, 1844 was the most critical, pivotal moment in our history forever shaping the trajectory of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This was the day Church members in Nauvoo voted on who would lead the Church following the deaths of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. And the stakes could not have been higher as they decided between Joseph’s first counselor, Sidney Rigdon, on the one hand, and the Twelve Apostles led by Brigham Young on the other, because the choice at hand was not just about who would lead the Church, but ultimately about what kind of Church that would be. Would the Church hold onto and perpetuate the Nauvoo doctrines and practices, or abandon them in favor of returning to a more Kirtland or even Fayette-era type church? With this vote, the future of the Church hung in the balance.  

On this episode of Church History Matters, we walk through the six days in August leading up to and including this meeting of August 8th. And we weigh into the controversy about whether or not God actually transfigured Brigham Young in front of the crowd to make him look and sound like Joseph Smith.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In August 1844, there were two major contenders to assume leadership of the church following the deaths of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. On the one hand was Sidney Rigdon, a gifted man who had been at Joseph Smith’s side as his confidante since 1830. Sidney initially proved quite effective as Joseph’s scribe and mission companion, and later as his first counselor. Over time, however, Joseph lost confidence in Sidney’s stability and, therefore, his ability to serve effectively as his counselor. Things came to a head in 1843 when, at a Church conference, Joseph officially sought to vote Sidney out of the First Presidency for his suspected role in a kidnapping attempt against Joseph to get him back to Missouri. And although they appear to have reconciled to some degree prior to Joseph’s death, the question remained: did Joseph intend for Sidney to preside over the Church following his death?

On the other hand there was Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve apostles. It seemed that at the same time Sidney’s star was falling, that of Brigham Young and the Twelve was rising. As time passed, their leadership only proved more and more vital and trustworthy. From leading the frantic exodus out of Missouri to Quincy, Illinois while Joseph was in Liberty Jail, to leading crucial missions to England where thousands of converts were brought into the Church, the Twelve, under Brigham Young’s leadership, were proving to be not only reliable but critical to the success and growth of the Church. And following his death, multiple members of the Twelve attested to a private meeting Joseph held with them that previous Spring wherein he officially commissioned and empowered them to lead the Church should his enemies kill him.  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we explore all of this in detail and set the stage for the watershed Church meeting held on August 8 1844 where Church members get to vote on who they will follow.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The immediate aftermath of the tragic murders of Joseph and Hyrum Smith in 1844 was marked by shock and grief within the Church, and in the weeks that followed an ecclesiastical crisis arose concerning who should be Joseph Smith’s successor as president of the Church. As it turns out, Joseph Smith had never publicly and unambiguously designated a clear successor to the presidency of the Church. The confusion arose not because Joseph had never addressed the issue directly but because he had made several statements at various times which seemed to open up multiple succession options—eight, to be exact.  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we’ll walk through the eight possible succession paths that were either explicitly laid out by Joseph Smith, or were viewed as entirely plausible based on certain interpretations of statements Joseph made or actions he took. In addition to being historical interesting, these eight plausible paths help us understand why succession in the presidency wasn’t immediately cut and dry in the minds of many Church members in 1844 and the basis on which several other branches of the Restoration exist today outside of the one initially led by Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. 

We are excited to announce our next series—beginning next week on Tuesday—where we will be dealing with the history surrounding succession in Church leadership, beginning with the crisis of 1844 which grew out of the immediate aftermath of the tragic murders of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. In next week’s first episode, Casey and I will walk through no less than 8 possible succession paths that were either explicitly laid out by Joseph Smith or were viewed as entirely plausible based on certain interpretations of statements Joseph made or actions he took. It was a fun episode to record together and it really helps us to understand why succession in the presidency wasn’t immediately cut and dry in the minds of many Church members in 1844 AND to understand the basis on which several other branches of the Restoration exist, even today, outside of the one initially led by Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles out to Utah. So we hope you will join us next week as we begin what promises to be a fascinating in-depth series on Succession in the Presidency. 

Welcome to our final episode in this series where we’ve been exploring all things related to the history of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. Today on Church History Matters Casey sits down with Sam Weston, a docent at the Church History Museum who has been seriously researching the martyrdom at Carthage Jail in meticulous detail for the last 15 years. They discuss the event of the attack at Carthage from something of a forensic crime scene investigation perspective—both challenging and confirming prior scholarship on the topic. 

In 1952 book entitled, The Fate of the Persecutors of the Prophet Joseph Smith, was published by N. B. Lundwall. Within its pages, among other things, Lundwall presented various stories describing how many of those who played significant roles in the persecution of Joseph Smith met with unfortunate ends in unnatural and sometimes gruesome ways, underscoring the idea of divine justice and retribution. Unfortunately, the historical credibility of most of these stories is seriously lacking since they are based on unverifiable hearsay rather than well-documented and corroborated records. These morbid tales are thus the stuff of legend and folklore rather than a robust documentary record. But they do stimulate the question: What do we know about what actually happened to those involved in the deaths of Joseph and Hyrum Smith? Were they ever brought to justice? Did they live long lives? Did any of them meet a tragic mortal end?  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we investigate the answers to these questions based primarily in the solid historical research of Marvin S. Hill and Dallin H. Oaks.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Consider the following Carthage controversy questions: Was Governor Thomas Ford complicit in the murders of Joseph and Hyrum Smith? When Joseph fired back at the Carthage attackers, did he kill anyone? Also, does the fact that Joseph fired back at the mob somehow take away his status as a martyr for his religion? Did Joseph and his friends in Carthage Jail drink wine together? Also, were they not wearing their temple garments in jail? Were Joseph Smith’s last words a Masonic Cry for help? Are the death masks of Joseph and Hyrum Smith an accurate representation of them? Is John Taylor’s account of how his pocket watch was damaged during the attack accurate? Who actually wrote Doctrine & Covenants 135?

In this episode of Church History Matters we are tackling these and other “Carthage Controversies.”

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

It was near midnight on June 24 that Joseph Smith, his brother Hyrum, and over a dozen members of the Nauvoo City council arrived in Carthage, Illinois to answer, for a third time, the charge of “riot” for their destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor press. Although the case for this charge had already been heard and dismissed by two separate judges, Governor Thomas Ford insisted that they needed to be tried in Carthage specifically in order to prove to the general public that they were willing to be governed by law. And in response to Nauvoo leaders’ resistant fears of being tried in the extremely unsafe environment of Carthage due to the number of their enemies prowling about there, Ford “pledged his faith as Governor and the faith of the State [of Illinois] that [they] should be protected, and that he would guarrantee [their] perfect safety.” And so they had now arrived in Carthage, reluctantly throwing themselves “under the immediate protection of Governor Ford, … to trust … his word and faith for [their] preservation.” Within three days Joseph and Hyrum were dead. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we carefully walk through a play by play from the historical record of what happened from the time Joseph, Hyrum, and the city council arrived at Carthage on June 24 under the supposed protection of Governor Ford to the time of the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum on June 27. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In the wake of Joseph Smith and the Nauvoo City Council’s fateful decision to destroy the Nauvoo Expositor press several things unfolded in rapid succession. Charges were pressed against them for riot, brazen calls to violence against them were published in Tom Sharp’s Warsaw Signal, and Missourians began eagerly gathering to Illinois with a vow to exterminate the “Mormons;” meanwhile, Joseph wrote urgent letters to Illinois Governor Thomas Ford and US President John Tyler outlining what was unfolding and asking for their aid. Joseph had very good reason to fear for his safety and that of the saints. In an effort to diffuse the danger of the situation for all involved he and Hyrum and a few others secretly slipped away across the river intending to go either to Washington DC, the West among the native americans, or both. However,he and they ultimately decided to return to Nauvoo and to voluntarily go to Carthage—the hotbed of their enemies—to be tried for the charge of riot. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dive headlong into the drama that unfolded between June 10 and June 24, 1844. In particularly, we try to answer the question: Why did Joseph and Hyrum choose to go to Carthage, when it seemed that certain danger awaited them there?

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The first and only publication of the Nauvoo Expositor was issued on June 7, 1844. It was an expose sheet published by seven recently excommunicated dissenters of the church in which they lay bare their grievances against Joseph Smith as a prophet and politician in the most blistering, malignant, exaggerated, and provocative ways they could invent. This move was a calculated trap set to force the hand of Joseph and those close to him to take action against the Expositor’s printing press, which would open them up to legal charges that could get him to the county seat of Carthage where he could be killed.

On this episode of Church History Matters, we take a close look at the details of that single published edition of the Nauvoo Expositor to understand just what was so inflammatory and untenable in it that Joseph and the city council determined to take action against it despite the clear risks of doing so. We also look at questions about the legality (and wisdom) of their actions.   

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Six months before his death the prophet Joseph said to a group of trusted friends, “I am exposed to far greater danger from traitors among ourselves than from enemies without, … and if I can escape from the ungrateful treachery of assassins I can live as Caesar might have lived were it not for a right hand Brutus…. All the enemies upon the face of the earth may roar and exert all their power to bring about my death; but they can accomplish nothing, unless some who are among us, enjoying our society, [who] have been with us in our Councils, participated in our confidence, taken us by the hand, called us brother, [and] saluted us with a kiss, join with our enemies, turn our virtues into faults, and by falsehood and deceit, stir up their wrath and ​in​dignation against us, and bring their united vengeance upon our heads.” And then he said, “Judas was one of the Twelve Apostles … and thro​ugh his treachery, the crucifixion [of Christ] was brought about, and we have a Judas in our midst.” (source)

In this episode of Church History Matters, we discuss what we know about those trusted Church members who treacherously turned on Joseph Smith and conspired to bring about his death—one of whom, like Judas of old, was an apostle and counselor to the prophet.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith was among the most tragic and defining moments in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and it continues to reverberate deeply in the hearts and minds of Latter-day Saints around the world. Hyrum was 44 years old and Joseph was 38 and a half when they were murdered in cold-blood in Carthage Jail on June 27, 1844. Many have read the brief account of the events of that day outlined in section 135 of the Doctrine and Covenants and wondered what more there was to know about this poignant event in our history. Like, how did they come to be incarcerated in Carthage Jail in the first place? What were the charges against them? Who had the motivations to kill Joseph Smith and why? Was Joseph betrayed by insiders or was this entirely an outside job? Who were those in the mob who actually pulled the trigger, and were they ever brought to justice? 

On this episode of Church History Matters, we begin a new series where we seek to begin pinning down answers to these and other related questions about this highly significant event. Specifically we will take a close look today at what we know about some of the external factors—especially political ones—that led to the martyrdom. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

What do we know about the purposes and function of the Holy of Holies? And do all temples have one? The word “seal” or “sealing” seems to have multiple meanings. What are those meanings? Also, has the Church’s teachings on wearing garments changed over time? And is there anything doctrinal about the length of garments? Since the garment length has changed in the past to accommodate changes in modern clothing styles, could we expect them to change again as styles continue to change? Furthermore, how do we reconcile examples of clear covenental changes in the endowment ceremony with the common narrative that the covenants don’t change?

Today on Church History Matters we sit down with Dr. Richard Bennett, one of the world’s foremost scholars on LDS temple development during the 19th century, to discuss these and other great questions. And, by the way, we apologize in advance for some difficulties with the audio recording of Dr. Bennett. For whatever reason, several times during this interview his audio didn’t record properly and so it was sadly unusable. But we hope you’ll enjoy what we were able to capture from the responses of this great Latter-day Saint scholar. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

1904 marked the beginning of what would become a grueling 4-year-long senate hearing of US sentator and apostle Reed Smoot. It is intriguing—and important—to learn how this crucible of intensive government examination into every aspect of the Church led to a posture of much greater openness about the temple to outsiders. In fact those hearings, followed by a backfired blackmail attempt by a man who threatened to release illicit pictures he had taken of the interior of the Salt Lake Temple, led Church leaders—really for the first time—to go on the offensive and proactively tell our own story about LDS temple beliefs and practices. 

In this episode of Church History Matters we’ll talk about the Smoot hearings and the blackmail attempt; as well as dig into the origin of temple garments, their symbolism, and changes made to their design over the years. We’ll also discuss major innovations in how the temple endowment was presented (which included some help from Walt Disney studios), a cool floating temple boat idea that never happened, as well as how President Gordon B. Hinckley’s temple innovations and prolific temple-building ministry became an inflection point which set the Church on a trajectory to build thousands of temples in the years to come.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Beginning in 1846, thousands of Latter-day Saints left Nauvoo, Illinois and trekked over one thousand miles west to the Salt Lake Valley.  Having, of necessity, abandoned the Nauvoo Temple for which they had worked so hard and sacrificed so much, they were now a temple-centered people without a temple. Now they certainly would go on to build more temples—the first of which was the Saint George Temple, completed in 1877—but how would the saints do temple related work in the meantime?

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott walk through the unique story of how temple work continued during that 30-year season of no temples, where Church leaders used Ensign Peak, a multi-purpose building called the Council House, a one-of-a-kind building called the Endowment House, and administrative offices for these purposes. We’ll also highlight some important take-aways from Church leaders’ response to the crushing government legislation they faced in the late 1880s forcing the decision between losing all temples or ending the practice of plural marriage.  

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

During the last years of his life, the prophet Joseph Smith gave multiple public sermons dealing with 2 Peter 1, wherein the apostle Peter encourages his readers to “give diligence to make your calling and election sure” (vs. 10). Commenting on this phrase the prophet explained that to have one’s “calling and election” made sure meant to “obtain a promise from God for yourselves that you shall have eternal life.” And he explained that such a promise could be mediated through the keys restored by Elijah. By “this power of Elijah,” he said on one occasion, “we are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. [And] to obtain this sealing is to make our calling and election sure.” In another sermon he confirmed, “the power of Elijah is sufficient to make our calling and election sure.” 

In 2 Peter 1, Peter also speaks of obtaining the “more sure word of prophecy” (vs. 19), a phrase the prophet Joseph similarly interpreted to mean “a man’s knowing that he was sealed up unto eternal life … through the power of the Holy priesthood.”  

This was the theology—the possibility of being sealed up unto eternal life under the keys restored by Elijah. 

Then came the practice. 

Beginning in 1843 in Nauvoo, the prophet introduced a sacred ordinance to his most trusted associates wherein, using the keys of Elijah which he held, husbands and wives were sealed up unto eternal life. This was not the marriage ordinance. This was more, given to those already married. It was an ordinance sometimes referred to in the historical record as “the second anointing.” 

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott discuss what they know about the theology and early practice of the second anointing. We also discuss the early—and now discontinued—sealing practice called “the law of adoption” wherein men and women were sealed into the families of Church leaders as their children. They also briefly touch on the now extinct practice of temple-like prayer circles that were conducted outside of the temple for many years in our history. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The prophet Joseph Smith’s final years in Nauvoo, IL constituted a season of rich theological and ritual convergence. It was a time when various threads of biblical and revealed theology gave birth to the Latter-day temple rituals that would enable us to enact that very theology. It was in Nauvoo that the picture became clear. Every revealed ordinance builds with deep meaning to the next, until finally reaching the pinnacle ordinance of sealing wife and husband together for eternity. All theological and ritual threads come together at this point. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into when and where the ritual of marriage sealings first began in the Church and explore the tight weave between this ordinance and the theological threads of God’s true nature, the existence of Heavenly Mother, and mankind’s created purpose and destiny. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Welcome to our special bonus episode where Casey and I interview a friend of our show Lon Tibbitts. In our previous episode we discussed at length the relationship between masonry and the development of the temple endowment in Nauvoo—a topic a lot of people have questions about. So we thought you might enjoy hearing from Lon Tibbitts who has served both as an LDS ward bishop and as a Master of his Masonic lodge in Utah. Lon is a keen student of both masonic and LDS history, and in this interview he sheds light on the origins of freemasonry; on why so many Nauvoo Latter-day Saints joined the fraternity; on connections between masonry and the endowment, the Relief Society, and the martyrdom of Joseph Smith; as well as the later fraught relationship between freemasons and Latter-day Saints in Utah. We hope you enjoy it. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

What Latter-day Saints today call the Temple Endowment was first given by the prophet Joseph Smith in 1842, two years prior to his death, to a small group of nine of his trusted associates in Nauvoo, Illinois. It was a key piece of the larger vibrant temple liturgy then developing in Nauvoo. But where did this temple endowment come from? What was its relationship to the prophet’s previous revelations? And what, if anything, was its relationship to masonry which Joseph Smith had joined only two months before administering that first endowment to his nine friends (who, by the way, were all masons as well)? 

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott dig into the details of what we know (or think we know) about the origins of the Temple endowment ritual. They discuss several of what they believe are primary source materials the Prophet Joseph drew from as he formulated this important ordinance under inspiration. And they also offer a Nauvoo angle to the meaning of the word “Restoration.”

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

As the climax of the Kirtland endowment on April 3, 1836, Joseph Smith received sacred keys in rapid succession from Moses, Elias, and Elijah. This was the primary purpose for which the Kirtland Temple was built! Joseph had now received all that was necessary for the next phase of temple building which he hoped would take place in Northern Missouri at the settlements of Far West and Adam-Ondi-Ahman. But, due to heinous persecution, neither of these temples ever came to be and the saints found themselves in 1839 as refugees in a swampy, milaria-infested peninsula in Illinois that the Prophet would name “Nauvoo.” It was there over the next few years that the theology, the rituals, and those Kirtland keys, like pieces of a puzzle, began to come together to reveal the stunning purpose of the Nauvoo temple and every temple that would be built thereafter. The Lord referred to this temple-purpose as restoring “the fulness of the priesthood.” The prophet Joseph referred to it as “the restoration of the priesthood” or as the work of connecting “the priesthood.” But what does this mean? And how would the ordinances given to men and women, living and dead, constitute the work of restoring “the priesthood”?   

In this episode of Church History Matters we’re excited to talk about all of this! 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In 1831 the Lord promised the New York saints that if they would gather together with Church members in Ohio they would there “be endowed with power from on high.” Trusting this promise most of them moved to Ohio in expectation of receiving this endowment, or gift, of power from on high. But what exactly was this endowment? What “power” was given from on high? Was it one thing, or several things? And how was this gift (or gifts) of power received in the Kirtland temple so crucial in the unfolding story of the development of Latter-day Saint temple worship in general and to our personal temple experience today? 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into the surprising yet satisfying answers to these important questions.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Temples: It’s difficult to overestimate their importance in the Latter-day Saint movement. In fact, it could be said that what is accomplished inside Latter-day Saint Temples is at the beating heart of the purposes of the Restoration. 

In today’s episode of Church History Matters we begin a new series exploring the Development of Latter-day Saint Temple worship. We’re starting at the very beginning and probing questions such as, how early on did Joseph Smith understand the temple-centric nature of his prophetic mission? What is the meaning of the word “endowment”? Which was the first temple commanded to be built in our day, and which temple was actually built first? How are we to make sense of what appears to be a failed prophecy in D&C 84 about the building of the Missouri temple in the first generation of the Church?  

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Why did the Church file 13f documents with separate shell companies if there was no tax advantage for doing so? Could there be more to the story than simply saying Church leaders listened to "bad legal counsel" in the context of the recent SEC fine? 

What’s the latest on the story of James Huntsman who is currently suing the Church to get over 5 million dollars of his tithing returned to him?

Should Church leaders be more transparent with Church members about Church assets? Why or why not? And what about the size of the Church’s multi-billion dollar reserve? How can we best situate or contextualize that amount compared to other large organizations? And with so much money, does the Church even need our tithing dollars anymore? 

How effective is the Church at humanitarian work? Like, if we wanted to donate to humanitarian aid, would we be better off giving our money to the Church or some other other humanitarian organization? 

And finally, is capitalism compatible with consecration and zion building? 

All of these questions and more coming your way on this episode of Church History Matters.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Doctrine & Covenants 119 directs Church members to pay essentially two tithings—the first tithing being a one-time donation of all of their surplus property (meaning whatever they don’t have immediate need of), and the second tithing being an ongoing payment of one-tenth of what they would make in interest annually if they invested their total net worth at 6%. So, when did we shift in the Church away from the payment of tithing in that two-part way to the more general approach today of really only one type of tithe as 10% of our income? Also, who are the Danites and what role did they play in early tithing collection in Far West?

Furthermore, how is it okay for some full-time Church leaders today to receive a financial stipend or allowance? Is that historically justified in the revelations and early practice of the Church? Also—related question—is it considered priestcraft for people to receive money for their efforts to build Zion?  

Finally, after Joseph Smith’s martyrdom, was there significant disagreement between Brigham Young and Emma Smith regarding Church financial assets? If so, what role did that play in their turbulent relationship over the next decades? 

All of these questions and more coming your way on this episode of Church History Matters with Dr. Elizabeth Kuehn and a surprise guest we brought on last minute (we think you'll like him).

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

How does the Church justify putting over one billion dollars into building a mall in downtown Salt Lake City? And did they use tithing money to do so? Also, is it true that the Church has over 100 billion dollars in reserve? Why won’t Church leaders just disclose exactly how much they actually have? If it’s anywhere near that number, is it ethical for the Church to continue to ask its members—especially its poorer members—to tithe? Furthermore, what’s the deal with the Church paying a 5 million dollar fine to the SEC last year? What did they do wrong? Were they caught doing something nefarious?   

All of these questions and more coming your way on today’s episode of Church History Matters.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Zion has been defined as God’s people being of one heart and one mind, dwelling together in righteousness, and having no poor among them. Since Joseph Smith’s day Latter-day Saints have made continuous efforts toward this Zion ideal, including not only assisting the poor and needy, but going even further to help them eliminate poverty from their lives by becoming self reliant.    

In this episode of Church History Matters we want to trace the fascinating story of our current Church system for helping the poor—beginning at its origins where it was serendipitously born of necessity in the mind of a Stake President amidst the Great Depression, to its current multi-pronged offerings where, though most of it goes unseen, it quietly blesses countless lives.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In his July 1838 tithing revelation, the Lord both affirmed the law of consecration and modified the ongoing way in which the saints were expected to consecrate of their money and property. Rather than following the 1831 system outlined in D&C 42 of legally deeding all of their property to the bishop and receiving back from him a legal lease of property known as a stewardship, the Lord asked the saints instead to follow a tithing system of paying “one-tenth of all their interest annually” (D&C 119:4). Only months after this tithing revelation was received, however, the saints were violently expelled from Missouri and, just over a year later, found themselves as refugees settling a swampy piece of land in Illinois they would call Nauvoo. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we begin by diving into what consecration looked like in Nauvoo and then trace the practice into Utah. And rather than seeing a clean linear break from the D&C 42 financial consecration system of stewardship to the D&C 119 consecration system of tithing, we instead see in the historical record what appears to be various forms of overlap between and hybridization of these two systems. We’re talking about united orders and business cooperatives Brigham City, Orderville, how the federal government broke up these cooperatives, and finally how we as a Church came to settle more exclusively on the tithing system. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In the aftermath of the significant 1837 failure of the Church’s banking business in Kirtland, Ohio and the subsequent fallout with several Church leaders—including death threats—Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon fled Ohio to be with Church members in Far West, Missouri. Shortly thereafter, in April 1838, the Lord commanded the saints to build the Far West temple, but charged them not to go into more debt to do so. Church leaders were then already steeped in debts from Kirtland as it was. So in response to Joseph’s prayerful plea in July of that year as to how to fund the various needs of the Church, the Lord revealed what we now know as the law of tithing.  

In this episode of Church History Matters we discuss several of the fascinating details from this history and grapple with a few fundamental and slightly controversial questions about tithing.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today owns and operates several successful for-profit businesses, from livestock and agriculture to publishing and digital media to real estate and many others. This has caused some to wonder, does a Church focused on bringing people to Christ have any business getting involved in business? Are business ventures like these compatible with the mission of the Church generally and the founding principles of consecration specifically? 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we go back to the beginning of the Church to discuss its very first consecration-based business ventures—the Literary Firm and the United Firm, or United Order. Specifically, we’re interested in the founding revelations that justify these ventures and how the principles found in these have paved the way for the Church’s very successful business ventures today.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In the last few years the finances of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have been in the media spotlight—and not always in positive ways. It’s no secret that the Church today has amassed an impressive financial reserve to ensure the accomplishment of its purposes. But it was not always so. There have been some narrow straits through which the Church has had to pass to get to where it is financially today. It is quite compelling history actually—which is why we wanted to dedicate a whole series to exploring this fascinating and important topic.  

In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott go back to the beginning of Church finances to explore the undergirding principles in the original revelations that have gotten us to where we are today. And among them all there is one particular principle that looms larger and is more responsible for the Church’s financial success than any of the others, and that is consecration—a law shrouded with some degree of mystery and confusion in the minds of many. So, we want to at least begin dissecting what it is and what it isn’t in this episode.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

What kind of thinking skills do we need to develop in order to gain and maintain the kind of robust faith we desire? This question is the central subject of a book by Dr. Anthony Sweat entitled, “Seekers Wanted, the Skills You Need for the Faith You Want.” In this book Dr. Sweat offers keen insights into many of the principles of truth-seeking we have been exploring throughout this series as well as many others we didn’t cover! 

Casey and I were excited to interview Dr. Sweat for this episode of Church History Matters to discuss his book and to dig deeper together into what good thinking looks like—especially regarding doctrinal seeking. And, as usual, we were not disappointed.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In this episode of Church History Matters, we are joined by special guest Dr. Keith Erekson, a Church Historian. Dr. Erekson wrote an important book entitled “Real vs. Rumor: How to Dispel Latter-day Myths.” It embodies many of the principles of truth-seeking we have been exploring throughout this series … and then some! Casey and I were excited to interview Dr. Erekson about his book and to invite him to demonstrate what those principles look like in practice by inviting him to grapple on-air with some challenging Church History questions. And we were not disappointed.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Church History Matters! We'll see you next week :)

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for,” Hebrews 11:1 reads, “the evidence of things not seen.” Hmm. Faith is the evidence of things not seen. Does this mean faith is the evidence we have of things not seen? Or could we say it this way: faith is the level of confidence we feel toward a truth-claim or proposed reality which we have not seen based on the degree of evidence we have accumulated of its truthfulness and existence? 

If so, is this why the Lord’s prescription in D&C 88:118 for those who “have not faith” is for them to seek learning? Is he suggesting that by diligently studying wisdom from the “best books” we will find evidences of the unseen that will enlarge our faith?

Today on Church History Matters Casey and Scott explore this idea of evidence-based faith-seeking as a way to understand each of the thinking skills and mental frameworks they've explored throughout this series. Could it be that for some of us at least, the best way to strengthen our faith is to gather evidences of the unseen by combining good thinking tools with a study of great source material? Quite possibly. But as today’s discussion makes plain, there is also a deep need to add to this approach a few crucial attributes as well. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Facts don’t interpret themselves. People interpret facts. And the people best equipped to most accurately interpret facts are those who understand the contexts in which those facts were originally embedded. This is especially important in understanding Church History because a fact—especially a potentially shocking or scandalous sounding fact—isolated from its context is a fact certain to be misunderstood. This reality is too often leveraged by critics against Church members as a weapon of mass deception which has troubled many a testimony.

This is why in this episode of Church History Matters we discuss the crucial skill of properly contextualizing facts so we know what kind of meaning to give them and how to feel about them. We then demonstrate how this skill works with some real-life, potentially shocking examples.  

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

A fundamental moment in all good learning is that moment where we modify our assumptions about the world as a result of acquiring new and more accurate knowledge. This in turn hopefully primes us to make better decisions. On one level, it’s what learning is all about. Sounds pretty basic right? Well, it is. But it isn’t always easy. Church History can teach us that modifying one’s assumptions can be a challenge for some when it requires them to rethink their ideas about God, prophets, and the Church. 

In this episode of Church History Matters we’re going to carefully look at this skill of humbly revising our assumptions in light of better or more accurate information—a skill we’re calling “mental flexibility”—and then take a look at key moments in the lives of a few people in our Church’s history that show us why this skill is so crucial for durable discipleship.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

How can we confidently discern the difference between a reliable historical claim and an unreliable one? This is what Casey and I discussed in our last episode where we introduced five source critical questions we can all ask to carefully assess the reliability of a historical truth claim.  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we’re going to practice putting these five questions to work by actually using them to measure and evaluate various historical truth-claims about the witnesses of the Book of Mormon—a very high stakes topic with conflicting claims in the historical record.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

How can we know what actually happened in the past? Whose stories are true? Piecing together accurate history can be tricky business. People in the past, like people today, were diverse. Some were honest. Some were not. Some were straight shooting truth tellers who gave honest (though subjective) accounts of what happened. Others emphasized or omitted specific details in ways that would serve their particular agenda. So, how should we think about and evaluate the reliability of historical claims and assertions to discern what is historically accurate from what is mistaken or misleading?

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into the basic toolbox trained historians use in their efforts to be “source critical.” And being source critical essentially means caring about where our information is coming from and being honest about what that information can and cannot tell us. It means we recognize that not all historical claims are created equal and so we aim to use only the best data to inform our understanding of the past. And while we cannot always protect ourselves from deception, developing the skill being source critical will greatly reduce the odds that we will be misled. So, in short, today is our crash course in learning how to think like a historian. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

How can we confidently determine what is and what is not reliable doctrine so we can decide what to believe? This is what Casey and I discussed in our last episode where we introduced what we called the Three Doctrinal Lenses, or criteria, by which we can assess the doctrinal reliability of a truth claim.  

In today’s episode of Church History Matters, we’re going to practice putting these three lenses to work by actually using them to measure and evaluate various theological truth-claims to determine the level of confidence we have in them. So, welcome to Scott and Casey’s doctrinal workshop! 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Just before he left home for college, eighteen year old Henry Eyring, the future world renowned LDS scientist, was invited by his father, Edward Eyring, to sit down for some fatherly counsel. After sharing his firm conviction that Joseph Smith was a true prophet whom God used to restore his church, Edward said to his son, “Now, there are a lot of other matters which are much less clear to me. But in this Church you don’t have to believe anything that isn’t true.”

In this Church you don’t have to believe anything that isn’t true. Hmm. This echoes President Dieter F. Uchtdorf’s teaching when he declared, “Latter-day Saints are not asked to blindly accept everything they hear. We are encouraged to think and discover truth for ourselves. We are expected to ponder, to search, to evaluate, and thereby to come to a personal knowledge of the truth.” 

So, how do we do this when it comes to theological or doctrinal truth? How can we confidently determine what is and what is not reliable doctrine so we can decide what to believe? 

In this episode of Church History Matters we dive into this very question and explore three vital questions to ask when evaluating all doctrinal truth claims.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

What is truth? What does it mean to really “know” something? And what are the best methods and tools to come to know a thing? 

In today’s episode of Church History Matters, we begin our new series on Good Thinking where we explore the important role our brain and intellect play in truth seeking and the life of faith. Specifically in this series we want to explore what mental moves are made, or what frameworks of thinking are used by intelligent, critically thinking Latter-day Saints whose faith is strengthened rather than damaged by diving deeply into our Church’s history and doctrine. So this should be fun.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

There was in 2nd Century BC Egypt an indisputable multicultural sharing of religious ideas between Jews, Greeks, and Egyptians. How should that fact influence how we evaluate Joseph Smith’s interpretations of the Abraham facsimiles in general and individual hieroglyphics on the facsimiles specifically? 

On a related note, some of Joseph’s descriptions of Facsimile #2 contain temple themes, saying more will be revealed about those in the temple. Can Egyptologists today read those hieroglyphs? And are they actually connected in any way to what we learn about in our modern temples? 

Also, Dr. Robert Ritner is an Egyptologist who has critiqued LDS scholarship on the Book of Abraham. Has he been adequately responded to? 

And finally, what are the top three most solid intellectual evidences for the book of Abraham having ancient connections which Joseph Smith could not have known about?

In today’s episode of Church History Matters, we dive into all of these questions and more with Dr. Kerry Muhlestein, an Eyptologist and scholar on the Book of Abraham. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

So, the Book of Abraham is the touchpoint of some serious controversies—and we’ve talked about some of those in our last two episodes and we’ll probably talk about them more next week as well. But, to be clear, the Book of Abraham is also the source of some dazzling doctrinal gems which validate and expand upon other key restoration teachings. 

So, in this episode of Church History Matters we leave the controversial to bask, however briefly, in what makes the book of Abraham beautiful to us. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In Joseph Smith’s interpretations of the facsimiles found in our Pearl of Great Price he ties all three of them to Abraham; yet, when some modern Egyptologists look at those same facsimiles today they say they have nothing to do with Abraham: one is simply an embalming scene, one a disk representing the eye of Horus, and one a judgment scene from an Egyptian book of the dead. So, is this an either or, sudden-death scenario? Must we, in the name of honesty and rationality, pick a side? Must we either throw out modern Egyptologists by choosing to stand with the prophet Joseph on the one hand, or throw out Joseph by choosing to align with modern Egyptologists on the other? Or is there a reconciliatory third path in which both interpretations can be true at the same time?  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we tackle this important question by looking at some of the best scholarship on the issue. And on our way, we’ll also briefly look at something called the Kirtland Egyptian papers and discuss a minor controversy associated with those.   

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The book of Abraham, Joseph Smith’s final translation project, is easily one of the most controversial books of scripture in the Latter-day Saint canon. And we want to talk about it.

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into the fascinating story of how the exploits of a 19th century grave robber in Egypt ended up expanding our scriptural canon! We look at where in Egypt the papyri from which the Book of Abraham was purportedly translated came from and how Joseph Smith came to possess both this papyri and a couple pair of mummies. We examine three theories of what source material Joseph Smith translated from and how he did it. And we trace what we know of what happened to the papyri after Joseph’s death, how much has survived to this day, and what modern Egyptologists think about the surviving fragments—which is the source of the two biggest controversies regarding the Book of Abraham.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Because of our location in time and good record keeping, we are privileged to have an up close and personal view of the production of modern scriptural canon. And it’s a bit of a rollercoaster! From its first publication in 1835 to its current version today the Doctrine and Covenants has undergone major additions, deletions, rearrangement, and textual changes to its contents. 

In this episode of Church History Matters we’ll take a ride through the history of this iterative production of the Doctrine and Covenants from its earliest 1833 version known as the Book of Commandments, to its 1835 version which added new revelations and 7 major theological lectures known as The Lectures on Faith, to the 1844 version which added a few crucial revelations and was the last version most of branches of the Restoration agreed upon after Joseph’s death, to the 1876 version which contained MASSIVE additions and rearranging, to the 1921 version which de-canonized the Lectures on Faith, and finally to the version we use today which underwent revisions as recently as 2013. So please keep your arms and legs inside at all times as we as we now embark on our tour of the ongoing story of the Doctrine and Covenants!

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

One of the biggest criticisms of scripture generally is the extent to which humans were involved in its production. On the one hand, we can’t really expect scripture to be effortlessly beamed down from heaven to flawed and imperfect humans and then interpreted flawlessly and recorded perfectly, can we? But on the other hand, how “divine” and trustworthy can scripture be if flawed humans were involved in writing it, compiling it, editing it, and publishing it?  

In this episode of Church History Matters, we discuss an important, albeit not fool-proof, process to mitigate against human weakness and error in scripture. And that’s called “canonization.” We look at the difference between scripture, scripture canon, and what we call “the harmonized scripture canon.” We discuss why these distinctions matter, what’s involved in the process of scripture canonization, and how the production of the Doctrine and Covenants itself offers us a window into this important process.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Did Joseph Smith ever consider his Bible translation work finished? Will the JST ever be canonized and replace the King James Version as the official Latter-day Saint Bible? Why haven’t any other of our prophets since Joseph Smith engaged in similar translation work? How can we reconcile Joseph Smith’s Bible revision work with Deuteronomy 4:2 and Revelation 22:19 which actually warn against adding to the Bible? Is there any evidence whatsoever that Joseph Smith consulted any outside sources in his Bible translation work? Does the fact that Joseph Smith’s Bible translation started out with massive amounts of new and significant revealed text and then tapered off at the end with only minor revisions support the narrative that Joseph became a fallen prophet? If not, how else can we make sense of this timeline?

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dive into all of these questions and more with Dr. Kent Jackson, a scholar on Joseph Smith’s Bible translation. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In his Bible translation project did Joseph Smith plagiarize the work of a prominent British scholar named Adam Clarke? Or, if you don’t want to call it plagiarism, did Joseph Smith “borrow” or appropriate phrases and ideas from Adam Clarke’s Bible commentary (without attribution) which are found in our JST footnotes today? This is the question at the heart of the biggest modern controversy surrounding Joseph Smith’s Bible Translation.

In this episode of Church History Matters, we trace the origins of this controversy back to a series of interviews and articles by BYU Professor Thomas Wayment and his research assistant Hailey Wilson-Lemmon beginning in 2017 and culminating in a book chapter published in 2020. And as we are inclined to do with all things related to Joseph Smith’s Bible translation, we’ll look to expert Kent Jackson for his take on the claims of Wayment and Wilson-Lemmon in an article he published as a critique and refutation of their research. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Because there are no explicitly stated purposes of Joseph Smith’s Bible translation project—either by him or in any of his revelations—all explanations offered about or criticisms leveled at his Bible translation are based on assumptions and best guesses at best.

But then, there’s nothing wrong with educated best guesses so long as we are not overly dogmatic and we humbly recognize the tentativeness of our position. The current best evidence from the best scholarship on the topic proposes that the Joseph Smith Translations of the Bible was intended to be and to do several things, rather than just one thing.

On this episode of Church History Matters we’ll review these potential purposes and offer another possibility about what we believe may be the PRIMARY purpose behind Joseph’s Bible translation—what we call the revelatory springboard effect.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Aside from his Book of Mormon translation project, Joseph Smith engaged in at least three other scripture production projects that we know of. The first was his ambitious Bible translation project we now know as the Joseph Smith Translation, the second was the printing of his own revelations which we now know as the Doctrine and Covenants, and the third was his project of translation which commenced after he acquired papyrus scrolls from Egypt which we now know as the Book of Abraham. Throughout this new series we will consider each of these fascinating projects in turn, including the points of controversy connected with each. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we begin our exploration of Joseph Smith’s translation of the Bible, or the JST for short. When did it begin? Why didn’t we get this into Latter-day Saint Bibles until 1979? What does the word “translate” mean in this context in light of the fact that Joseph Smith didn’t know Hebrew or Greek during this project? And what are some assumptions Church members often bring to the text of the JST that may not be warranted?

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Some people see a connection between the Church’s past restrictive policy towared blacks in the Church and the Church’s current restrictive policy toward gays in the Church—specifically prohibiting gay temple marriage. In what ways are these two issues similar and in what ways are they different? How can church members reconcile (a) the teaching that the prophet / president won't ever lead the church astray with (b) the fact that church presidents for over a century taught false doctrine about blacks? How might the scriptural basis of the Lamanites being cursed with a “skin of blackness” (2 Ne 5:21) have influenced early church leaders’ thoughts on justifying the initial priesthood and temple restrictions? And what should we make of that curse anyway? Why didn't God clearly communicate earlier to his prophets that it was His will that ALL His children would receive the blessings of the priesthood and the temple?

In this episode of Church History Matters, we dive into all of these questions and more with Dr. Paul Reeve, as scholar on race in Latter-day Saint history.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Paul Reeve recently wrote: 

In June 1978, President Spencer W. Kimball received a revelation which returned the Church to its universal roots and restored what was lost, priesthood and temple admission to people of African descent. This … did not mark something new as much as it reestablished a commitment to the founding principles of the Restoration. [It] reconfirmed the Church’s original universalism, that the human family in all of its diversity is equal in God’s sight, that Jesus Christ claims “all flesh” as his own, that he is “no respecter of persons,” (D&C 1:34-35; 38:16) and that “all men are privileged the one like unto the other, and none are forbidden” (2 Nephi 26:28).

In this episode of Church History Matters, we take a close look at the details surrounding this watershed revelation of reversion and repair. Both out on the peripheries of the Church and at heart of Church headquarters within the presiding councils we’ll see the Lord gently influencing circumstances toward the fulfillment of his purposes. Yet he waited with divine patience until all of the apostles were unified in approaching him with a desire to lift the ban—then he made his will known with power. The story we trace today of how they get there under President Kimball’s gentle leadership is instructive on so many levels.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In 1907, the First Presidency codified the Church’s official policy about black African participation in both priesthood and temple declaring that, “No one known to have in his veins negro blood, (it matters not how remote a degree) can either have the Priesthood in any degree or the blessings of the Temple of God; no matter how otherwise worthy he may be.”

By contrast, in 2020 Church President Russell M. Nelson reminded all church members that, “Your standing before God is not determined by the color of your skin. Favor or disfavor with God is dependent upon your devotion to God and His commandments and not the color of your skin.”

The major catalyst shifting the Church away from that discriminatory 1907 policy and toward the marvelous inclusivity encapsulated in President Nelson’s words, was the Lord’s revelation to Church leaders in 1978. But this revelation didn’t come all of the sudden nor out of the blue; in fact, it was decades in coming and grew out of the convergence of real-world circumstances in which Church leaders found themselves and the Church. 

In today’s episode of Church History Matters, we take a look at some of the relevant historical developments in the Church during the 70 year period from 1908-1978—from the decades-long season of racial hardening and exclusion, to a softening and relaxing of certain Church policies under President David O. McKay in the 1950s and 60s, to disharmony and divergence of views among the apostles in the 60s, and finally to the unexpected call of Spencer W. Kimball as Church president in 1973. So today we set the stage for next week's climactic episode all about the details of the 1978 revelation itself.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Once people come to terms with the uncomfortable idea that Brigham Young committed an error in endorsing a priesthood ban on church members with black African ancestry, a puzzling question naturally follows: “If the ban was an error, then why didn’t it get corrected earlier than 1978?! There were nine Church presidents between Brigham Young and Spencer W. Kimball and 101 years between President Young’s death in 1877 and President Kimball’s revelation in 1978. So why did it take so long to correct this mistake and again offer full privileges to black Africans in the Church as they had enjoyed in Joseph Smith’s day?”    

In today’s episode of Church History Matters, we attempt to offer at least the beginning of an answer to this question by tracing the key moments and decisions in the leadership councils of the Church when, instead of correcting this error, they came to conclusions that led to an unfortunate hardening in place of the priesthood ban. In this episode, the years 1879, 1904, 1907, and 1908 will sadly be added alongside the year 1852 as we piece together both the timeline and the reasoning behind this ban.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

The historical record shows that Joseph Smith did not implement or endorse any practices or policies which specifically prevented Church members with black African ancestry from fully participating in priesthood offices or temple worship. But in 1847, only three years after Joseph’s death, attitudes and teachings of some church leaders began to shift away from full inclusion of blacks, to partial exclusion—until only five years later, in 1852, President Brigham Young first publicly articulated a priesthood restriction on blacks in the church. 

In today’s episode of Church History Matters, we probe what exists in the historical record to learn what happened between 1847 and 1852 to precipitate this divergence in attitudes and teachings about blacks away from Joseph Smith’s more inclusive teachings and practices. 

We’ll then look at the context and content of Brigham Young’s first public articulation of the priesthood restriction and attempt to answer the very important question, “Was Brigham Young inspired by God to institute the priesthood ban, or is this an example of an uninspired error?”

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In the broader American culture in which Joseph Smith lived and led the growing Church of Jesus Christ, white attitudes and beliefs about the inferiority of black Africans dominated the scene. In this pre-Civil War context, exactly half of the states in the Union had legalized slavery and built their economies on it, while the other half did not. Yet fears were shared on both sides about what might happen to the country (and to the purity of the white race) if all slaves were set free and allowed to be social equals with whites—chief of which being the fear of inter-racial marriage.   

In this episode of Church History Matters, we take a close look at how Joseph Smith led the Church while navigating within this racially fraught culture, and what specific factors were at play as he did so. For instance, how did the expulsion of the saints from Jackson County, Missouri influence the Church’s approach to missionary work going forward? How did Joseph respond to Church members in the Northern United States who were calling for the excommunication of all slave holding Church members in the southern states? And how did Joseph’s public teachings on slavery change once Church headquarters moved to Nauvoo, Illinois and Church members were no longer in Missouri? 

And, importantly, did Joseph Smith ever implement or endorse any practices or policies which specifically prevented Church members with black African ancestry from fully participating in priesthood offices or temple worship? 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

There was a season in our Church’s history when members with black African ancestry were unevenly barred from both priesthood and temple privileges. This overtly discriminatory practice is one of the most challenging aspects of our history and, for many, is one of the most difficult to understand. How could something like this happen in a Church led by living prophets and apostles? It’s a fair question. And the truth is, the answer is impossible to really get at without understanding the prevailing attitudes and beliefs about black Africans in the broader American culture at the time the Church was established and into the century that followed. 

In this episode of Church History Matters, we begin our series on Race and Priesthood by exploring the racial climate in antebellum America in the 1800’s and probing the three major factors responsible for how it got that way. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Did Joseph Smith have any regrets about plural marriage? Like, with full hindsight, if he could go back and change anything about the way he implemented plural marriage, what might he do differently? Also, more and more people are denying that Joseph Smith ever practiced polygamy or that he lied about doing so. Is there even a shred of truth to either of these claims? Did Joseph ever send men on missions and marry their wives while they were gone? Were there any women who denied Joseph’s proposals for plural marriage? If so, what happened to them? What was Emma’s relationship to plural marriage after the saints left Nauvoo for Utah? And is there any truth to the idea that plural marriage exists because there are more faithful women than men?

In today’s episode of Church History Matters we tackle all of these questions and more with our special guest, Dr. Brian Hales!

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In 1852, only eight years after Joseph Smith’s death, Church leaders in Utah publicly announced to the astonished world what some had suspected—that Latter-day Saints did indeed practice the principle of plural marriage. But now that it was out there in the open, it could be openly challenged and attacked. And it was. Relentlessly. For decades.  

In today’s episode of Church History Matters we’ll walk you through the history of how plural marriage came to a rocky end under the draconian legislation and crushing pressure of the United States government. We’ll dive into the George Reynolds trial, President Wilford Woodruff’s Manifesto, the Reed Smoot trials and the Second Manifesto, the resignation of the two members of the Quorum of the Twelve over this, the beginning of the FLDS Church, and more!   

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In June and July of 1843 tensions ran high in the marriage of Joseph and Emma Smith. After she had tried but failed to embrace the principle of plural marriage earlier that May, and after Hyrum Smith had tried but failed to convince her of the rightness of plural marriage even with a copy of Doctrine and Covenants 132 in hand, records indicate that Emma became for a time rebellious, bitter, resentful, and angry. In fact from July through September of 1843 Emma became confrontational to Joseph’s other wives trying (sometimes successfully) to drive them away from him. 

In this episode of Church History Matters we dive into the details of this challenging time as well as the reconciliatory place Joseph and Emma ultimately seem to come to on this. We’ll also dig into how Joseph’s practice of plural marriage was a major factor behind the conspiracy which ultimately led to his martyrdom.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

As Joseph Smith quietly practiced plural marriage in Nauvoo in 1842 and 43, all was not well. Three people in particular complicated things for Joseph. The first was John C. Bennett, a highly gifted convert who’s meteoric rise to civic and church leadership in Nauvoo abruptly ended when he was exposed for his secret practice of “spiritual wifery,” which was nothing more or less than illicit serial adultery. Bennett’s defamatory opposition to Joseph after his excommunication was fierce and directly impacted Joseph’s own private practice of plural marriage.

Surprisingly, Joseph’s own brother and member of the First Presidency, Hyrum Smith, was openly opposed to polygamy during this time and sought to use his influence to put down any hint of it in Nauvoo, all the while suspecting that his own brother and others of the apostles may be living it. Yet amidst his opposition, in one key moment, everything changed for Hyrum.

Joseph’s wife Emma Smith was the third and most important person in his life to complicate his practice of plural marriage. Although she sought for a time to embrace it, Emma struggled mightily with this practice on many levels—to the point that it almost ended their marriage. 

In this episode of Church History Matters we discuss each of these three individuals—John C. Bennett, Hyrum, and Emma Smith—and how each factored in to the complexities and troubles of living plural marriage in Nauvoo.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Did you know that Joseph Smith’s first attempt to obey the Lord’s command to him to practice plural marriage ended quite badly and ended up straining his relationships both with his first wife Emma and with his close friend Oliver Cowdery? And have you ever heard that Joseph was sealed to several women who already had living husbands? Was this a scandalous practice, or was something else going on? And have you heard that Joseph was also sealed to Helen Kimball, who was only 14 years old at the time? You might be both surprised and relieved to learn the reason behind this. And have you ever wondered if Joseph had any children with any of his other 35 wives besides Emma?

In this episode of Church History Matters we do a deep dive into all of these topics and more as we trace Joseph Smith’s creative trial and error approach to personally living the practice of plural marriage, including some innovative uses of the sealing power to accomplish God’s will the best he understood it.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

Plural marriage—a form of religious polygamy (or polygyny to be technical)—is one of the most controversial and faith-challenging aspects of the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was difficult when it was first introduced in the early Church and, although it was discontinued over 130 years ago, it is still a difficult issue for many both within and outside of the Church to reckon with. 

So why was it introduced into the Church in the first place? When did Joseph Smith first learn that this practice would be restored? Why did he delay practicing it? How did he and others who were asked to live it initially respond? And what were the four theological reasons given by the Lord in the Doctrine and Covenants to justify the practice of plural marriage? 

In this episode of Church History Matters we explore the best sources to answer these and related questions. And while we know that learning the answers to these questions may not fully remove one’s wrestle with this issue, we believe it can sure help.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/ 

The more carefully one studies the production process of the Book of Mormon, the more interesting the questions become. For example, since Joseph Smith never could read the original base language engraven on the plates, what did he mean when he said he “translated” the Book of Mormon? And was his translation best characterized as a “tight” translation, a “loose” translation, or something else entirely? And if the Book of Mormon was translated correctly the first time, why did Joseph Smith make changes and adjustments to the text for subsequent editions years later? Also, did Joseph translate with one seer stone or two? And just how common was seer stone use in New England in Joseph Smith’s day? And when did their use die off in both US and Church culture?   

In this episode of Church History Matters Scott and Casey sit down with Dr. Michael MacKay, one of the world’s foremost scholars on Seer Stones and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, to discuss these and other great questions.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/ 

Aside from the text of the Book of Mormon itself and a personal witness from God’s Spirit, what is the best evidence for the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon? Different people might answer this question in different ways, but in today’s episode of Church History Matters Casey and Scott propose that the very best external evidence for the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon is the collective testimony of the Three and Eight Witnesses. Their experiences appear to have been premeditated, anticipated, and orchestrated by God in order to help the rest of us have reason to pause and take seriously both Joseph Smith’s testimony and, most importantly, the primary evidence of the text of the Book of Mormon itself. In every copy of the Book of Mormon ever published, the written witnesses of these three and eight have been printed for all to consider.

And it’s true that several of these eleven men either left the Church because of difficulties with Joseph Smith or were excommunicated from it, yet none of them ever denied the reality of their experience as a Book of Mormon witness. In this episode we discuss why this matters. 

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/ 

What would you say if somebody told you that a 23 year old farm boy dictated to a scribe a sacred text of 531 pages while looking down at stones placed in the bottom of his hat? And what would you think if they then told you that this book was dictated and written in one pass—from beginning to end—in approximately 60 days without any punctuation and with little to no revising? And what if they then showed you countless examples of how this book contains a high degree of literary and semitic complexity, suggesting highly skilled and detail-oriented authors who wrote in ancient Hebrew writing forms? Would you be open to accepting the proposition that this book was the product of a genuine miracle? If so, you’re not alone. And if not, you’re also not alone. In fact, several alternative naturalistic theories about the Book of Mormon’s origins have been put forth by those who reject the possibility of the miraculous. 

In this episode we examine all of this—the speed of the Book of Mormon translation, the complexity of the text itself, and the naturalistic theories of the Book of Mormon’s origins.

For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/ 

If we had video footage of the translation process of the Book of Mormon, what would we see? What would we actually watch Joseph Smith “do” during a translation session? Now of course we don’t have video footage, but we do have perhaps the next best thing—multiple eyewitness accounts of those who saw the process up close first hand. And what they said they saw was a  decidedly non-secular, non-academic, one-of-a-kind translation method involving a young 22 and 23 year old Joseph looking at seer stones in a hat—a process many of these witnesses described as truly miraculous. 

In today’s episode we take a closer look at what we can know from the historical record about Joseph Smith’s translation process. We’ll also briefly explore the New England subculture in Joseph’s day in which some believed that people with certain spiritual gifts could use special objects—like seer stones or divining rods—to channel divine power to do things like find lost objects or find underground water sources. 

We’ll also discuss the fascinating details of what we know about how and when Joseph came upon two seer stones in addition to those that came with the plates and were bound together in silver bows, and what we know about his using these during the Book of Mormon translation.

For show notes and more go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/ 

After four years of waiting, learning, and personal refinement, 21 year old Joseph Smith was finally entrusted by the angel Moroni with the ancient record that for centuries had lain in waiting in a stone box embedded in a hill near his home. Recalling this time years later, Joseph said that almost as soon as he had received the plates “the most strenuous exertions were used to get them from me. Every stratagem that could be invented was resorted to for that purpose. The persecution became more bitter and severe than before, and multitudes were on the alert continually to get them from me if possible.” In today’s episode we take a closer look at what we know of these efforts to get the plates from Joseph and the surprising supernatural means his antagonists resorted to in their attempts to do so. 

We also dive into Joseph’s initial creative efforts in 1828 to get the record translated, including creating an Egyptian alphabet from the engravings on the plates, as well as sending Martin Harris to New York to recruit linguistic experts to help in translating the book. And although these secular translation efforts ultimately failed, the lessons learned through this experience continue to offer value to us today.  

About three and a half years after his “first vision,” Joseph Smith experienced his “second vision.” It occurred on the evening of the 21st of September 1823 in Palmyra, New York, when Joseph was only seventeen years old. In this vision he met a stunning angelic messenger named Moroni who delivered an even more stunning message: that the preparatory work for the second coming of the Messiah was soon to commence, and that the fulness of the Gospel was soon to be preached in power to all nations to prepare a people for his Millennial reign and to fulfill an ancient covenant between God and the house of Israel. Joseph was informed by this messenger that there was a sacred record in the form of ancient plates buried in a hill near his home that was somehow connected to fulfilling this joyful news.  In this episode we discuss Joseph’s second vision and explore the ups, the downs, and the insights of those preparatory years between his first meeting with Moroni at age 17 and when he was finally trusted with the sacred record at age 21.

For show notes for this episode go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

The more carefully one studies Joseph Smith’s First Vision and the context of his world at that time, the more interesting the questions become. For example, if Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ in a vision, does that mean he didn’t actually see them in reality? And what are we to make of the fact that other people around the time of Joseph Smith’s vision also claimed to have had visions of God (many of whom were Methodists)? And how might the form of these Methodist conversion narratives at the time have impacted how Joseph Smith recorded his vision? Furthermore, what is the interplay between Joseph Smith’s memory of his First Vision and the various contexts in which he recalled it and recorded it? In this episode we sit down with Dr. Steven C. Harper, one of the world’s foremost scholars on Joseph Smith’s First Vision, to discuss these and other great questions.

Thousands of people heard Joseph Smith’s testimony first hand. Some of those testimonies included him telling about his First Vision experience. Some of those people who heard his witness wrote down the details of what they heard. Luckily, a few of those handwritten accounts have survived until today and some of them contain even more details about Joseph’s vision which add to our understanding of what happened in 1820 in the Sacred Grove in Palmyra, New York. In today's episode we explore three of these second hand accounts and then one bonus third-hand account which contains a significant detail that no other account ever mentions.

Did you know that the first time the story of Joseph Smith’s First Vision was ever printed was in a pamphlet written by apostle Orson Pratt and published in Scotland while Pratt was on a mission there in 1840? Intriguingly, Pratt's language from this pamphlet was used by Joseph Smith himself two years later, in 1842, when writing the story of his First Vision for a non-Latter-day Saint newspaper editor named John Wentworth. Pratt’s pamphlet also heavily influenced another insightful telling of Joseph’s vision written by his fellow apostle Orson Hyde which was published in Germany in 1842. In today's episode we dive into all three of these accounts.

In 1835, Joseph Smith shared his second recorded account of his First Vision with an eccentric visitor to Kirtland, Ohio who claimed to be a Jewish minister. How did this fact that Joseph believed he was speaking with a Jewish man shape and influence the details he chose to share and the language he used to tell about his experience?  Also, three years later in 1838, after moving to Far West, Missouri in the aftermath of sever persecution in Ohio, Joseph began to record his official history with the help of several scribes, which begins with the account of his First Vision. What are the unique details of this account and why does it make sense to be the only “official” account of Joseph’s vision canonized in LDS scripture? And what are we to make of perhaps the most controversial line of this 1838 account where Jesus said of the Christian sects of the day that “they were all wrong” and “that all their creeds were an abomination” to him. What did this mean? And what did this NOT mean? 

Joseph Smith’s First Vision is foundational to our narrative of the Restoration today, but it was not always so from the Church’s beginning. So how did the First Vision go from what began as a very personal experience of Joseph’s, to growing in institutional significance for the whole Church as it has today? Also, given that there are unique differences in Joseph Smith’s 4 separate accounts of his First Vision, what role does our personal “hermeneutic” play in how we make sense of these? And what might a letter Joseph wrote from Indiana to his wife Emma tell us about the context of his 1832 account of his vision?