FAIR is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing well-documented answers to criticisms of the doctrine, practice, and history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Joseph Smith
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Contents
- 1 Joseph Smith, Jr.
- 1.1 Character of Joseph Smith
- 1.1.1 Character
- 1.1.2 The Hurlbut affidavits
- 1.1.3 "Amusing recitals" and "Tall Tales?"
- 1.1.4 Land speculation in Nauvoo
- 1.1.5 Personality and temperament
- 1.1.6 Boastful about the Church?
- 1.1.7 Joseph taught Porter Rockwell 'it was right to steal'?
- 1.1.8 Psychobiographical analysis
- 1.1.9 Was the Smith family lazy?
- 1.1.10 Joseph Smith's alleged narcissism
- 1.2 Treasure seeking, money digging and Joseph Smith, Jr.
- 1.3 Joseph Smith's First Vision
- 1.4 Joseph Smith, occultism and magic
- 1.5 Joseph Smith as a translator
- 1.6 Joseph Smith and miracles
- 1.7 Joseph Smith as a priesthood holder
- 1.8 Joseph Smith as a prophet
- 1.9 Joseph Smith and legal issues
- 1.10 Joseph Smith and finance
- 1.11 Joseph Smith, politics and government
- 1.12 Joseph Smith and polygamy
- 1.13 Death of Joseph Smith
- 1.14 Other critical claims related to Joseph Smith
- 1.15 Further reading
- 1.1 Character of Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith, Jr.
Character of Joseph Smith
Character
Summary: Critics claim that Joseph Smith was a disreputable person.The Hurlbut affidavits
Summary: Many critics cite a collection of affidavits from Joseph Smith’s neighbors which claim that the Smith family possessed a number of character flaws. Many of Joseph Smith’s friends and neighbors signed affidavits that accused him and his family of being lazy, indolent, undependable treasure-seekers."Amusing recitals" and "Tall Tales?"
Summary: Joseph Smith's mother reported that he told "amusing recitals" about the ancient inhabitants of the American continent well before he translated the Book of Mormon. Does this indicate that Joseph was simply a teller of "tall tales?"Land speculation in Nauvoo
Summary: Did Joseph Smith engage in "land speculation" in Nauvoo?Personality and temperament
Summary: Critics point to what they perceive as personal failings of Joseph Smith, such as his allegedly short temper, as evidence that he was not a true prophet of God.Boastful about the Church?
Summary: Why did Joseph Smith say that he had "more to boast of than ever any man had" and that he was the only man who had been "able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam?"Joseph taught Porter Rockwell 'it was right to steal'?
Summary: Did Joseph really teach Orrin Porter Rockwell that "it was right to steal?"Psychobiographical analysis
Summary: Is it possible to deduce Joseph Smith's thoughts and dreams years after his death? Some critics think so.Was the Smith family lazy?
Joseph Smith's alleged narcissism
Treasure seeking, money digging and Joseph Smith, Jr.
Treasure seeking
Summary: Was Joseph Smith's engagement in "money digging" or looking for buried treasure a blot on his character?Practitioner of occultism and magic?
Summary: Critics claim that Joseph Smith's spiritual experiences began as products of "magic," the "occult," or "treasure seeking," and that only later did Joseph describe his experiences in Christian, religious terms: speaking of God, angels, and prophethood.Joseph's early work as a farmhand
Summary: Critics wish to prioritize the role that treasure-seeking played in Joseph's like by claiming that it took precedence over any other work that he may have done, such as working as a hired farmhand.Joseph Smith's First Vision
First Vision
Joseph Smith, occultism and magic
"Magic" in Mormon history
- Jupiter talisman—
Brief Summary: Critics claim that Joseph Smith had a Jupiter Talisman on his person when he was martyred and cite this as proof of his fascination with the occult. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - The magician Walters as a mentor to Joseph Smith?—
Brief Summary: Did a "vagabond fortune-teller" named Walters who became popular in the Palmyra area pass his "mantle" to Joseph Smith? (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Jupiter talisman—
Joseph Smith as a translator
Joseph as a translator
Summary: Critics claim that Joseph Smith claimed to translate other texts or items, which can be checked against modern academic translations. They claim that this "cross-checking" proves that Joseph could not have translated the Book of Mormon or other ancient texts.Joseph's use of seer stones
Summary: What do we know about Joseph's seer stone? What is its relation to the "Urim and Thummim"? Did Joseph place his seer stone in his hat while he was translating the Book of Mormon?Joseph and the Greek psalter
Summary: Did Joseph Smith misidentify an ancient text of Greek psalms (a "psalter") as containing "reformed" Egyptian hieroglyphics?Book of Abraham
The Joseph Smith "translation" of the Bible and its relationship to the Book of Mormon
Summary: Some passages from the Bible (parts of Isaiah, for example) were included in the Book of Mormon text. However, the same passages were later revised for the Joseph Smith Translation of the Holy Bible. In some cases these passages are not rendered identically. Critics claim that if the JST was an accurate translation, it would match the supposedly more 'pure' Isaiah text possessed by the Nephites.Joseph Smith and miracles
Healings and miracles
Summary: Do we have any record of Joseph Smith performing healings or other miracles by the power of Christ's priesthood?Walking on water
Summary: Did Joseph pretend to walk on water?Joseph Smith as a priesthood holder
Date of the restoration of the Melchizedek priesthood
Summary: Critics claim that the restoration of the priesthood was "back dated" later by Joseph Smith to justify his desire to dominate the Church. Critics claim that no one seems to know "when or how" Joseph Smith received the Melchizedek priesthood.Joseph Smith as a prophet
No more prophets after Christ?
Summary: Most of Christianity today claim that there are not supposed to be any more prophets after Christ's day.Prophecies
Summary: Critics claim that Joseph Smith was not a true prophet, and that he made "false prophecies."Personages who appeared to Joseph Smith
Summary: A list of known personages who appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith or who were seen by him in vision. The list does not include instances where he only heard supernatural voices.Joseph Smith: Status in LDS belief
Summary: Do members worship Joseph Smith or treat him as more than a man?Joseph Smith and legal issues
Legal issues
Summary: What can you tell me about Joseph Smith's problems with the law?- 1826 glasslooking trial—
Brief Summary: Joseph Smith was brought to trial in 1826 for "glasslooking." Didn't Hugh Nibley claim that if this trial record existed that it would be "the most damning evidence in existence against Joseph Smith?" (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- 1826 glasslooking trial—
Joseph Smith and finance
Kirtland Safety Society
Summary: Joseph established the Kirtland Safety Society, which later failed. Many left the Church because they thought that Joseph's involvement and his calling as a prophet would guarantee its success. When the bank failed, many thought that Joseph was a fallen prophet.Joseph Smith, politics and government
Politics
Summary: Critics charge that Joseph Smith's decision to run for President of the United States in 1844 shows him to be either a megalomaniac bent on amassing ever more power, or a fanatic with delusions of grandeur.City of Nauvoo
Joseph Smith and polygamy
Joseph Smith and polygamy
Death of Joseph Smith
Martyrdom
- Joseph fired a gun—
Brief Summary: Was Joseph Smith actually not a martyr because, while in jail, he had a gun and he had the temerity to defend himself? Did Joseph kill two men by firing at the mob? (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Hiding Joseph's gun?—
Brief Summary: Critics claim that the Church has tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered Hyrum and was soon to kill him, despite the fact that the gun is on display at the Church History museum. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Nauvoo Legion to rescue Joseph?—
Brief Summary: Did Joseph panic at Carthage Jail, and write an order to Jonathan Dunham (head of the Nauvoo legion), telling him to have the Legion attack the jail and "save him at all costs?" (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Masonic distress cry—
Brief Summary: Just before he died, did Joseph Smith begin to give the Masonic cry of distress? (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Removed garments prior to leaving for Carthage—
Brief Summary: Critics have claimed that Joseph and others with him removed their garments prior for leaving for Carthage in order to avoid identification as polygamists. What was the real reason for this? (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Joseph fired a gun—
Joseph Smith and the "office of the Holy Ghost"
Summary: Did certain Church leaders say that Joseph Smith was the Holy Ghost or that he "held the office of Holy Ghost?"What is Joseph Smith's role in LDS belief?
Summary: Did Church leaders claim that Joseph had the right to "approve whether or not someone gets into heaven," rather than Jesus Christ? Do Latter-day Saints worship Joseph Smith, as critics claim?Joseph Smith and inhabitants of the moon
Summary: Did Joseph claim that the moon was inhabited?Garden of Eden in Missouri
Summary: Is it true Mormons believe the original Garden of Eden was located in Missouri? What can you tell me about this?