Joseph Smith Papers-Journals

I always believed that Joseph Smith Jr. was a good man because in order to be a prophet of God one has to be. But I didn’t read many writings that came directly from his heart. He is truly an inspiring man of God. I found from his writings that he is very aware of his heart, desires to be in good standing with God, cares deeply for the safety of his family, depends on the Lord, speaks kindly of others, and is patient and trusts God with all of his heart.

                It strikes me that Joseph Smith would include prayer, his pleas to the Father, in his journal writings. I’m not really sure to what purpose he did that, but I think he just had an intense desire to do the will of God; therefore, he prayed to align his heart with God. He prays to be delivered from temptation. I don’t think he meant so that he didn’t have a trial of faith but rather, that he feared so strongly that he would err with God. He truly feared God more than man. I also gather from his writing down of his prayers that he truly believed that God would answer them. This unwavering trust in God is something I feel I must strive for every day of my life. Because of the frequency of these prayers, I don’t see Joseph as a man that was concerned at all with the things of the world. Rather, his entire heart was set upon doing the will of God. This prayer continues with his plea to have his heart filled with wisdom and understanding. I find it interesting that he asked for his heart to be filled rather than his mind. That is, I believe, because Joseph didn’t care for worldly knowledge.

“I feel very well in my mind the lord is with us but have much anxiety for my family”. I love this statement because, aside from the genuine concern that he expresses for his family, it tells me that even the prophet of God had fears. I don’t think this weakens his testimony or faith in any way. He knew that God would watch over them and that everything would turn out for their good, but he recognized that trials would come and they would not be easy. I have often thought that if I had fears it meant that I didn’t have enough faith, but now I don’t think that is entirely true. As long as we are righteous and humble and trust in God, fear, though not from God, may still creep into our hearts. It is not whether we fear or not that is a test of our faith, but how we react to our fear. Do we turn to God in prayer and ask that we may be granted the strength to trust in His plan? Or do we become angry with the Lord? I know from personal experience that Satan will try to put these feelings into our heart, but if we look to the light then we will not be filled with darkness. Though we may fear, we can be filled with hope and peace.

                I found many times in Joseph’s journal writings that he prayed for safety in travel or for the safety of his family. This is truly inspiring to me because I often take for granted these things and forget to pray verbally for them. This tells me that Joseph depended on the Lord for all things showing his humility. It is when life is going well that we forget to pray for these little things or don’t feel the need to. But in truth, we should pour out our hearts to God always or else we cannot be true servants of God. If we only come to Him when it is convenient for us or when we need His help than we have not given our hearts to God and we have not learned to depend upon Him. I feel that the best way to improve our relationship with our Heavenly Father is to pray to him fervently in times of joy as well as in times of despair. Joseph Smith most surely had a close relationship with our Father in Heaven. He knew the importance of this in leading His church.

                I am so grateful that we are able to study the life of Joseph Smith today and learn from his example. I feel that my testimony of this church, although not dependent on this man, has been strengthened by learning about his commitment to God. Overall, I am not surprised by his strength of character. But it is so inspiring to read his personal writings and come to understand just how strong.

Witnesses to the Book of Mormon

In my Joseph Smith and the Restoration class, we have 4 papers to write over the course of the semester. I decided to upload them here because I have found that I have learned so much in writing on these topics.

I don’t personally feel the need for the account of the three witnesses in order to have a testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. I have read it myself and prayed to know if it is truly the word of God. I have received my own witness to its truthfulness and I cannot deny it. But, I do find comfort in the Lord’s statement, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established” (2 Corinthians 13:1) similar to the comfort that Joseph Smith felt when his friends were allowed to see the plates and the vision of the angel that accompanied it. It gives me comfort especially as I will soon leave to teach the people of São Paulo, Brazil, to know that I will never be alone when I speak the truth. However, I am also grateful for the 11 witnesses to the Book of Mormon, because they provides a solid foundation when Satan’s doubts start to creep into my mind. We cannot doubt that they saw the plates, they saw the angel Moroni, and they heard the voice of God.

I find it so powerfully persuasive that when it was suggested that David Whitmer had denied his previous witness to the Book of Mormon, he responded with the publication of a pamphlet to make a public statement “that the world may know the truth”. And “in the fear of God” he declared that he has never and could never deny that testimony. For someone to go to that much effort simply to be sure that there is zero misunderstanding of his statements on the matter reveals to me that David Whitmer knew what he saw and heard. That he would fear God’s judgment to come upon him because of a misinterpretation of his words proves Whitmer’s testimony of the sacredness of the book and the importance of the work as viewed by God. David Whitmer knew that his ability to testify of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon was directly related to the promise that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against [him]” (D&C 17: 8).

Professor Harper explains the difference between first-hand and second-hand statements by saying that the latter are hearsay. That is to say that they are unverifiable due to their inconsistency and lack of credibility. Harper explains that their only value comes from their ability to reveal how people of the time felt and thought about the events that occurred. This distinction is important because as people look for answers to their questions concerning the Book of Mormon from many different sources they may get discouraged by the number of accounts that go against the book whether they say the same thing or not. But as we view these sources as hearsay, we can turn to the first-hand accounts and feel the power that they have to declare truth. These are stories of actual people who saw with their own two eyes and felt with their own two hands things that they are now bound to testify of truthfully. 

William McLellin’s testimony seems especially worth considering because he had left the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; and therefore, would receive no personal gain for testifying that the Book of Mormon was true. He said what he said because he knew without a doubt that it was true; he couldn’t deny it. He explains that he has yet to find any evidences toward the falseness of the Book of Mormon higher than his own evidences of its truth. It seems to me that a man would be more honest in a personal letter feeling that no one except the intended reader would read his words than any other circumstance. However, this man who had apparently found some reason to be outside of the church, did not use this opportunity to speak anything against it, but rather, to declare its truthfulness with all of the power inside him. Further, if any man had credibility to testify of the Book of Mormon, McLellin did. Not only had he read the book several times thus receiving his own personal witness to its truthfulness by the whisperings of the Holy Spirit, but he also knew personally several of the first-hand witnesses to the plates. He spoke with them and heard their testimony and hasn’t experienced any other statement powerful enough to disclaim their truth.

From reading the testimonies of the witnesses of the Book of Mormon, I have gained my own personal testimony to the wisdom of God. I believe that He gives us all that we need to have faith as small as a grain of mustard seed. He gives us people who know something to be true and He gives us the gift to believe on their words. Although it is up to us to build upon this faith that we may withstand the trials of life, He does not leave us alone in this process. He has provided for us prophets and apostles who continue to testify of Jesus Christ today, the scripture of prophets who testified of the miracles of God in the past, and furthermore, the testimony of these 11 witnesses and others of their time whose testimonies we may lean on until we can say of ourselves that we know these things to be true.