From FAIRMormon
Criticism
Orson Spencer wrote a letter in Nauvoo, Illinois in 1842 to a non-LDS clergyman that said Joseph Smith's "first" spiritual manifestation was of an angel - not the Father and the Son.
Source(s) of the criticism
- Jerald Tanner and Sandra Tanner, The Case Against Mormonism, (Salt Lake City: Modern Microfilm Co., 1967), 98.
Response
Orson Spencer's letter - which was written on 17 November 1842 - was first published in the Nauvoo Times and Seasons newspaper on 2 January 1843 [1] and then reprinted in the British Millennial Star newspaper in June 1843.[2]
As demonstrated by the following references, shortly before Orson Spencer penned his letter, the First Vision story had been made available three separate times, in printed form, to the citizens of Nauvoo. In each instance the First Vision was clearly described as having occurred before Joseph Smith's encounter with the angel.
- Aug. 1841. Orson Pratt's pamphlet called An Interesting Account of Several Remarkable Visions was advertised for sale in Nauvoo. It was advertised in the Times and Seasons that “[t]his . . . work will be found to contain information of great importance, as it will save the traveling elders the labor of constantly relating, over and over again, those things in which every new enquirer is so deeply interested, and upon which he is so very anxious to obtain correct information.” [3]
- Aug.-Sept. 1841. The same advertisement and note were repeated for An Interesting Account of Several Remarkable Visions in the two subsequent editions of the Times and Seasons.[4][5]
- Mar. 1842. The Wentworth Letter was published in the Times and Seasons on 1 March 1842. In this article, Joseph Smith states that he "was enwrapped in a heavenly vision and saw two glorious personages who exactly resembled each other in features, and likeness, surrounded with a brilliant light which eclipsed the sun at noon-day." [6]
- Mar.-Apr. 1842. Part 1 of the 1838 First Vision recital was published in the Times and Seasons on 15 March 1842, and Part 2 was published on 1 April 1842.[7][8]
- Jun. 1842. Parts 1 and 2 of the 1838 recital - “From the ‘Times and Seasons’” - were reprinted in England in June 1842.[9]
With this information publicly and readily available months before he wrote his letter, it seems highly unlikely that Spencer was claiming that Joseph Smith's meeting with the angel was his first encounter with a divine being. It should be noted that in the 7th letter that Spencer wrote to the non-LDS clergyman—on 28 August 1847—he spoke again about Joseph Smith seeing the angel but indicated that he (Orson Spencer) was familiar with some written source on the subject. This fact narrows the possibility that Spencer was claiming that the angel was the "first" spiritual manifestation enjoyed by the Prophet. Indeed, a closer look at Spencer's 1842 statement makes this suggestion even more unlikely. It says,
- "Joseph Smith, when the great designs of heaven were first made known to him, was not far from the age of seventeen."
Orson Spencer may simply be referring in this quote to what the angel told Joseph Smith about "the great designs of heaven." The angel said,
- "the covenant which God made with ancient Israel was at hand to be fulfilled, that the preparatory work for the second coming of the Messiah was speedily to commence; that the time was at hand for the gospel, in all its fulness to be preached in power, unto all nations that a people might be prepared for the millennial reign. I was informed [by the angel] that I was chosen to be an instrument in the hands of God to bring about some of His purposes in this glorious dispensation." (Wentworth Letter).
Conclusion
The general populace of Nauvoo had the orthodox story of Joseph Smith's early spiritual experiences readily available to them. It is not reasonable to try to pass off a claim that is clearly contradicted by public, contemporaneous, and authoritative documents.
Endnotes
- [back] Orson Spencer,"LETTER OF ORSON SPENCER.," Times and Seasons 4/4 (2 January 1843): 56–57. off-site GospeLink
- [back] Joseph Smith, Jr., "," Millennial Star 4/2 (June 1843): .
- [back] Anonymous,"Books! Books! Books!!!," Times and Seasons 2/19 (2 August 1841): 502. off-site GospeLink emphasis added.
- [back] Anonymous,"Books! Books! Books!!!," Times and Seasons 2/20 (16 August 1841): 518. off-site GospeLink
- [back] Anonymous,"Books! Books! Books!!!," Times and Seasons 2/21 (1 September 1841): 534. off-site GospeLink
- [back] Joseph Smith, Jr.,"CHURCH HISTORY.," Times and Seasons 3/9 (1 March 1842): 706–707. off-site GospeLink
- [back] Joseph Smith, Jr.,"HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH.," Times and Seasons 3/10 (15 March 1842): 727–728. off-site GospeLink
- [back] Joseph Smith, Jr.,"HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH.," Times and Seasons 3/11 (1 April 1842): 748–749. off-site GospeLink
- [back] Joseph Smith, Jr., "," Millennial Star 3/2 (June 1842): 21–23.
Further reading
FAIR wiki articles
| | First Vision wiki articles
|
- Claims about the 1832 First Vision account
- Claims about other members and the First Vision
| | Joseph Smith other visionary issues wiki articles
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FAIR web site
- FAIR Topical Guide: The First Vision FAIR link
- D. Charles Pyle and Cooper Johnson, "Did early LDS leaders really misunderstand the First Vision?" FAIR link
- Craig Ray, "Joseph Smith's History Confirmed," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, August 2002) FAIR link (Key source)
| | Joseph Smith other visionary issues FAIR links
|
- Craig Ray, "Joseph Smith's History Confirmed," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, August 2002) FAIR link
External links
| | First Vision on-line links
|
Primary sources
Articles about the First Vision
- Richard L. Anderson, "Circumstantial Confirmation of the First Vision through Reminiscences," Brigham Young University Studies 9:3 (1969): 1–27. PDF link
- Milton V. Backman Jr., "Awakenings in the Burned-over District: New Light on the Historical Setting of the First Vision," Brigham Young University Studies 9:3 (1969): 301. PDF link
- Milton V. Backman, Jr., "Confirming Witnesses of the First Vision," Ensign (January 1986): 32. off-site
- Milton V. Backman, "First Vision," Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 4 vols., edited by Daniel H. Ludlow, (New York, Macmillan Publishing, 1992), 2:515–516. ISBN 002904040X. off-site off-site off-site
- Milton V. Backman, Jr., "Joseph Smith's Recitals of the First Vision," Ensign (January 1985): 8. off-site
- Richard L. Bushman, "The First Vision Story Revived," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 4:1 (Spring 1969): 82–93. off-site
- Eugene England, "Orson Scott Card: The Book of Mormon as History and Science Fiction (Review of Homecoming, vols. 1-5; A Storyteller in Zion: Essays and Speeches; by Orson Scott Card)," FARMS Review of Books 6/2 (1994): 59–78. off-site PDF link
- Dean C. Jesse, "Early Accounts of Joseph Smith (1831–1839)," Brigham Young University Studies 9:3 (1969): 275–294. PDF link
- Dean C. Jesse, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, revised edition, (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 2002), 9–20. ISBN 1573457876. off-site (Key source)
- Elden Watson, "Joseph Smith's First Vision—A Harmony";—complete text of all Joseph Smith's accounts on-line off-site (Key source)
- Elden Watson, "Joseph Smith's First Vision (introduction)" off-site
| | Joseph Smith other visionary issues on-line links
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- Dean C. Jesse, "Early Accounts of Joseph Smith (1831–1839)," Brigham Young University Studies 9:3 (1969): 275–294. PDF link
- David L. Paulsen, "The Doctrine of Divine Embodiment: Resotration, Judeo-Christian, and Philosophical Perspectives," Brigham Young University Studies 35:4 (1995–96): 6–94. PDF link (Key source)
Printed material
| | First Vision printed works
|
- James B. Allen, "The Emergence of a Fundamental: The Expanding Role of Joseph Smith’s First Vision in Mormon Thought," Journal of Mormon History 7 (1980): 437–461.
- James B. Allen, "Eight Contemporary Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision–What Do We Learn From Them?," Improvement Era (April 1970): 4–13. GospeLink
- Richard L. Bushman, Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism (Urbana and Chicago, Illinois: University of Illinois Press; Reprint edition, 1987), 56–. ISBN 0252060121.
- Richard L. Bushman, Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling (New York: Knopf, 2005), 30–56. ISBN 1400042704
- James B. Allen and John W. Welch, "The Apperance of the Father and the Son to Joseph Smith in 1820," in Opening the Heavens: Accounts of Divine Manifestations 1820–1844 (Documents in Latter-day Saint History), edited by John W. Welch with Erick B. Carlson, (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press / Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 2005), 35–75. ISBN 0842526072. See also BYU Studies version: PDF link
- Milton V. Backman, Joseph Smith’s First Vision: The first vision in its historical context (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1971).
- Milton V. Backman Jr., Joseph Smith’s First Vision: Confirming Evidences and Contemporary Accounts, 2nd ed. (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1980).
- Dean C. Jesse, "The Earliest Documented Accounts of Joseph Smith's First Vision," in Opening the Heavens: Accounts of Divine Manifestations 1820–1844 (Documents in Latter-day Saint History), edited by John W. Welch with Erick B. Carlson, (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press / Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 2005), 1–33. ISBN 0842526072. (Key source) See also BYU Studies version: PDF link
- Dean C. Jesse, The Early Accounts of Joseph Smith's First Vision (Mormon Miscellaneous reprint series) (Mormon Miscellaneous, 1984).
- Dean C. Jessee (editor), The Papers of Joseph Smith: Autobiographical and Historical Writings (Vol. 1 of 2) (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1989), 6–7, 127, 272–73, 429–30, 444, and 448–49.. ISBN 0875791999
- Dean C. Jesse, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, revised edition, (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 2002), 5–6, 75–76, 199–200, 213. ISBN 0877479747. Rev. ed. off-site
- Hugh W. Nibley, Tinkling Cymbals and Sounding Brass: The Art of Telling Tales About Joseph Smith and Brigham Young (Vol. 11 of the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley), edited by David J. Whittaker, (Salt Lake City, Utah : Deseret Book Company ; Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1991), 55–101. ISBN 0875795161. GospeLink
| | Joseph Smith other visionary issues printed works
|
- Hugh W. Nibley, Tinkling Cymbals and Sounding Brass: The Art of Telling Tales About Joseph Smith and Brigham Young (Vol. 11 of the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley), edited by David J. Whittaker, (Salt Lake City, Utah : Deseret Book Company ; Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1991), 1. ISBN 0875795161. GospeLink
