Church History & D&C Day 17

Thought: President Thomas S. Monson shared the experience of Jay Hess, an airman who was shot down over North Vietnam in the 1960s: “For two years his family had no idea whether he was dead or alive. His captors in Hanoi eventually allowed him to write home but limited his message to less than 25 words.” President Monson asks: “What would you and I say to our families if we were in the same situation—not having seen them for over two years and not knowing if we would ever see them again? Wanting to provide something his family could recognize as having come from him and also wanting to give them valuable counsel, Brother Hess wrote [the following words]: ‘These things are important: temple marriage, mission, college. Press on, set goals, write history, take pictures twice a year.’” What words would you write to your children if you had 25 words or less? (Rosemary Wixom, Ensign, May 2013

Book of the Week: Studies in Scripture Volume 1 (Millet and Jackson)

Section 76 - The greatest revelation the Lord, Jesus Christ, has ever given to man in the history of His Church, so far as record is made, was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith on the 16th of April (Feb.), 1832, known as the 76th section of the book of Doctrine & Covenants, commonly called for years and still known as "The Vision." I say, this to my mind is the climax of all wonderful revelations that have come from the Lord from the days of Father Adam until the present moment. (Melvin J. Ballard, Ogden Tabernacle, Sept. 22, 1922)

Because this section, called "The Vision," departed significantly from the mainstream Christian view of one heaven and one hell, it was not easily received by some at first. Brigham Young said, "My traditions were such, that when the Vision came first to me, it was so directly contrary and opposed to my former education, I said, wait a little; I did not reject it, but I could not understand it" (Deseret News, Extra, September 14, 1852, p. 24). Entire branches of the Church had the same problem. John Murdock and Orson Pratt, serving missions in Ohio at the time, struggled to help Church members there accept these new outlooks on eternity. Soon, however, most members believed and understood the concepts, and came to revere this vision as one of the most beautiful and awe-inspiring ever given.

Philo Dibble's account He said there were as many as 12 men present. "Joseph would, at intervals, say: ‘What do I see?’ Then he would relate what he had seen or what he was looking at. Then Sidney replied, ‘I see the same.’ Presently Sidney would say, ‘What do I see?’ and would repeat what he had seen or was seeing, and Joseph would reply, ‘I see the same.’ This manner of conversation was repeated at short intervals to the end of the vision, and during the whole time not a word was spoken by any other person. Not a sound nor motion made by anyone but Joseph and Sidney, and it seemed to me that they never moved a joint or limb during the time I was there, which I think was over an hour, and to the end of the vision. Joseph sat firmly and calmly all the time in the midst of a magnificent glory, but Sidney sat limp and pale, apparently as limber as a rag, observing which Joseph remarked, smilingly, ‘Sidney is not used to it as I am." Cook, Lyndon W. The Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1985. 157-158. 

"Eleven years after the vision (May 1843) Joseph Smith said, I would explain a hundred fold more than I ever have of the glories of the kingdoms manifested to me in the vision, were I permitted, and were the people prepared to receive them. It is possible that by then he had already revealed more than is recorded in D&C 76. Robert Woodford has suggested: his later writings 0on the resurrection, pre-earth life, astronomy, and the degrees within the celestial kingdom may all have reflected  some of the things he learned in this vision." (Dahl, Studies in Scripture V. 1 p. 282)

Calvinists (Whoever God chooses) Universalists (God chooses all), Methodists (God was mighty to save but would respect an individual's will to be saved or not).

The revelation contains a series of six visions: 

A. They see the Son of God on the right hand of God (verses 1-24)

Vs. 1-5 - 1 Savior, His works are infinite, he doesn't fail, He delights to bless us.

Vs. 6-10 - Note 9 blessings.

Vs. 15-17 - John 5:29 - Just and unjust replace life and damnation. 

Vs. 18-19 - They "marveled" & "meditated" (See JSH 12; 1 Nephi 11:1: D&C 138:1-2; Enos 3, 4; Helaman 10:2-3

Vs. 22-24 -What do we learn from their testimony?

B. They see how the devil and his followers rebelled and were cast down (25-49)

C. They see the Celestial Kingdom (50-70) - The Obedient, The Covenant Keepers

D. Terrestrial Kingdom (71-80) The Good

E. Telestial Kingdom (81-90) - The Bad

                  "One Latter-day Saint student became distraught upon learning than an idea taught in an earlier discussion of Doctrine and Covenants 76 was inaccurate. The teacher had interpreted vs. 89-the glory of the Telestial, which surpasses all understanding-by telling the students that Joseph Smith taught that one would commit suicide to inherit the telestial kingdom. That is not what the revelations say, nor what Joseph Smith apparently said, not is it consistent with the scriptures or Joseph's other teachings. How do such popular folk doctrines develop and gain widespread acceptance? In this case Lorin Farr reported in 1900 that some 60 years earlier he had heard Joseph say something like "If we knew the condition of the spirits in the spirit world, thousands would commit suicide to get there. Similarly, Charles Lowell Walker heard Wilford Woodruff refer to Joseph's teaching that if the people knew what was behind the veil, they would try by every means to commit suicide that they might get there, but the Lord in his wisdom had implanted the fear of death in every person that they might cling to life and thus accomplish the designs of their creator.  As best we can tell from these accounts, Joseph said nothing at all about the telestial kingdom. He spoke about spirits in the spirit world. He was explaining why humans have an innate fear of death. It is a gift from God that helps us remain on earth to finish our mortal probations. Otherwise we would move on the next stage the first time things got tough. Fragments of Joseph's teachings were captured, like a puzzle missing some of its key pieces. There the incomplete teachings were paraphrased. Then these corrupted versions were introduced out of context until many LDS have heard from someone somewhere and are pretty sure it was Joseph Smith who said the telestial world is so great we would commit suicide to get there. We need not impute meaning to verses 89. Let us be content to know for now that ever the world in which we live surpasses our present understanding." (Harper, Making Senses of the D&C p. 267-8)

F. Those who will inherit each of these degrees of glory; and they see the three kingdoms of glory compared (91-119).

Section 77- First of March - Revelation is one of the plainest books God ever caused to be written. “But [section 77] is not a complete interpretation of the book. It is a key. A key is a very small part of the house. It unlocks the door through which an entrance may be gained, but after the key has been turned, the searcher for treasure must find it for himself. …“The Lord has, in this Section, given His people a key to the book. … As Champollion, by the key furnished in the brief test on the Rosetta stone, was able to open the secrets of Egyptian hieroglyphics, so the Bible student should be able to read the Apocalypse with a better understanding of it, by the aid of this key.” (Smith and Sjodahl, Commentary, p. 478.)

Section 78 -Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Kirtland, Ohio, March 1, 1832. On that day, the Prophet and other leaders had assembled to discuss Church business. This revelation originally instructed the Prophet, Sidney Rigdon, and Newel K. Whitney to travel to Missouri and organize the Church’s mercantile and publishing endeavors by creating a “firm” that would oversee these efforts, generating funds for the establishment of Zion and for the benefit of the poor. This firm, known as the United Firm, was organized in April 1832 and disbanded in 1834 (see section 82). Sometime after its dissolution, under the direction of Joseph Smith, the phrase “the affairs of the storehouse for the poor” replaced “mercantile and publishing establishments” in the revelation, and the word “order” replaced the word “firm.”

Vs. 5-8 The goal of the Church

Vs. 14 - Independent-temporally, spiritually and doctrinally

Vs. 17-18 A message of hope when you are down. How about hymn #241

Vs. 19- another lesson on gratitude

UNITED FIRM NAMES - Following are: (a) an alphabetical list of names used to identify individuals and places without using the actual name of the person or place; (b) the real name or title listed in parentheses, and (c) the section(s) and verse)s) where these unusual names and titles are used. You will note that these names are used only in sections 78, 82, 92, 96, 103, 104, and 105.

Ahashdah (Newel K. Whitney) 78:9; 82:11; 96:2; 104:39, 40, 41

Alam (Newel  K. Whitney or Edward Partridge) 82:11

Baneemy  (mine elders) 105:27; originally Lyman Wight, reinterpreted by Orson Pratt as "mine elders" in 1876, perhaps corrupt Hebrew for “my sons”; also claimed as a title by Charles B. Thompson

Baurak Ale (Joseph Smith, Jr.) 103:21, 22, 35; 105:16, 27. This is a very clear Hebrew for barakh 'el (ברך אל) “blessed [of] El,” i.e., God.

Cainhannock (New York) 104:81, (cf. Enoch son of Cain)

Enoch (Joseph Smith Jr.) 78:1, 4; superscriptions to 96 & 104.

Gazelam (Joseph Smith, Jr.) 78:9; 82:11; 104:26, 43, 45, 46.

Horah (Oliver Cowdery or John Whitmer) 82:11

Laneshine house (printing office) 104:28, 29

Mahalaleel (Sidney Rigdon or A. Sidney Gilbert) 82:11

Mahemson (Martin Harris) 82:11; 104:24, 26

Olihah (Oliver Cowdery) 82:11; 104:28, 29, 34

Ozondah (mercantile establishment) 104:39, 40, 41

Pelagoram (Sidney Rigdon) 78:9; 82:11; 104:20, 22

Seth (Joseph of Egypt) 96:7

Shalemanasseh (Martin Harris, or WW Phelps) 82:11

Shederlaomach (Frederick G. Williams) 92:1, 2; 104:27, 29

Shinehah: Kirtland, Ohio (a word for the sun used in the Book of Abraham see also -hah)

Shinelah  (print) 104:58

Shinelane (printing) 104:63

Shule (ashery) 104:39

Tahhanes (the tannery) 104:20

Talents (dollars) 104:69, 73

United Order ( United Firm)

Zombre (John Johnson) 96:6; 104:24, 34

Section 79 - Carter, Jared 

Biography -14 June 18011–6 July 1849.2 Born at Killingworth, Middlesex Co., Connecticut.3 Son of Gideon Carter and Johanna Sims.4 Moved to Benson, Rutland Co., Vermont, by 1810.5 Married Lydia Ames, 20 Sept. 1823, at Benson.6 Moved to Chenango, Broome Co., New York, by Jan. 1831.7 Baptized into LDS church by Hyrum Smith, 20 Feb. 1831, in Colesville, Broome Co.8 Moved with Colesville branch to Thompson, Geauga Co., Ohio, May 1831.9 Ordained a priest, June 1831.10 Ordained an elder, Sept. 1831.11 Appointed to serve missions to eastern U.S., 22 Sept. 1831 and 12 Mar. 1832.12 Left to serve mission to Michigan, Dec. 1832.13 Appointed to serve mission to eastern U.S., Mar. 1833.14 Ordained a high priest, by May 1833.15 Appointed to obtain funds for Elders School, 4 May 1833.16 Member of Kirtland temple building committee, 1833.17 Appointed to first Kirtland high council, 17 Feb. 1834.18 Appointed to serve mission to Upper Canada, 20 Feb. 1834.19 Labored on Kirtland temple.20 Shareholder of Kirtland Safety Society, Jan. 1837.21 Appointed president of Kirtland high council, 9 Sept. 1837.22 Removed family to Far West, Caldwell Co., Missouri, 1837.23 Appointed member of Far West high council, 3 Mar. 1838.24 Prominent in Missouri Danite activities, 1838.25 Moved from Far West to Commerce (later Nauvoo), Hancock Co., Illinois, 1839.26 Member of Nauvoo Masonic Lodge.27 Affiliated with James J. Strang’s Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 1846.28 Excommunicated from Strangite movement, 8 Nov. 1846.29 Returned to LDS church.30 By June 1849, moved to DeKalb Co., Illinois, where he died.31

Vs. 3 - Baptized 79 in 6 months and 2 days

Section 80 - Stephen Burnett and Eden Smith

 

What I Know and Don’t Know- Steven Harper

In 1985 Mark Hofmann killed two innocent people and nearly himself trying to cover his string of forged documents, many of which were calculated to cast church history in a suspicious, less than faithful light. Earlier that year (May 1985) the church published one of the forged documents in the Church News, a purported letter from Joseph to Josiah Stowell about using a fresh hazel rod to find buried treasure guarded by a clever spirit. At age fourteen, I read the letter in the Church News at the breakfast table and asked my father flippantly why they weren’t teaching me that at church. “I don’t know, “ he said. He explained that he didn’t understand the letter. He made no pretense to understand it. He then explained to me that he knew that the Book of Mormon was true because of his experience with it and with the Holy Ghost. It would be many years before I could understand that my father had given me a most effective epistemology for breakfast. At the time of the bombings, Hofmann had rumored that he could acquire documents created by controversial early apostle William McLellin if he could get funding. In June 1985, as part of his plot to defraud, Hofmann offered to donate the collection to the church. Ironically, the church had acquired many of McLellin’s papers in 1908. Leaders and archivists who knew of the acquisition had passed away and the church had lost consciousness of the documents. In March 1986, in the legal fallout following the bombings, archivists discovered letters that mentioned acquisition of McLellin’s papers, which led to the discovery of the papers. Rumors spread, meanwhile, that the church would suppress the McLellin documents. Instead, church leaders invited Jan Shipps, a renowned non-Mormon scholar of the Saints, to edit McLellin’s papers for publication by an academic press. She in turn collaborated with John W. Welch, editor-in-chief of BYU Studies, where I was working as an editorial assistant. I was assigned to help the editors compare McLellin’s original holograph journals to typescripts to ensure the accuracy of The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831-1836. I read those journals closely. They are evidence for Richard Bushman’s informed observation: “The closer you get to Joseph Smith in the sources, the stronger he will appear, rather than the reverse, as is so often assumed by critics.” That is my experience. I have held the first vision accounts in my hands and studied them very much. I know what they say and how they say it. A historian cannot prove or disprove whether the vision they describe was historical. I don’t know that the vision happened because the documents say it did. Rather, I find no reason in the historical record to disbelieve in the vision. I believe that it happened because I find the documents authentic. They speak to me spiritually. I don’t find the same inconsistencies or anachronisms or conspiracy in them that unbelievers have. Indeed, I recently read the journals of Benajah Williams, a Methodist itinerant in Mendon, NY, not far from Joseph’s Manchester, who documented a religious scene perfectly compatible to the one Joseph described. I have examined the Book of Mormon manuscripts and studied the extensive and complex historical record of its translation. The evidence is conclusive that Joseph produced the Book of Mormon between April and June 1829. Moreover, the historical record evidences that those who knew Joseph best in this period believed him most when he declared that he translated by the power of God. But I know that the Book of Mormon is true because I feel the Holy Spirit when I read it and abide by its precepts. The Book of Mormon makes me a better father and husband, a better follower of Jesus Christ. I know that about it. I am a student of Joseph’s revelation manuscripts. I was one of the editors of his revelation manuscript books. Joseph didn’t assume that his revelation texts were faxed from heaven. I don’t either. I share his sense that God spoke to Joseph in his language, which Joseph described as crooked, broken, scattered, and imperfect. In any communication the encoder sends signals to a decoder, the recipient. In the process there is always “noise” that impedes full and flawless receipt of the message communicated. I understand Joseph’s revelations as messages communicated by a divine encoder but received by a decoder or recipient limited by crooked, broken, scattered, and imperfect mediums. In this way of thinking, Joseph neither received the messages flawlessly nor had the power to re-communicate them perfectly, as he and other revelators have acknowledged. My faith in Joseph’s revelations rests on this understanding, and on the compelling evidence that those who knew Joseph best believed his revelations, that he could not produce them on demand, that he marveled at some of them, and that he sometimes confessed to having intentions and aspirations that differed, sometimes significantly, from what his revelations commanded him and others to do.I know the early reception history of Joseph’s revelation manuscripts. Those who were best positioned to know—the ones with whom he counseled, the ones who wrote as he dictated, the ones whose convenience and reputations were at stake, testified that they were “given by inspiration of God & are profitable for all men & are verily true” (Book of Commandments and Revelations, page 121). I know that the so-called Kirtland Egyptian Papers are not what critics have claimed them to be, and that critical explanations of the Book of Abraham obfuscate the historical evidence rather than rely on it. There is much that I do not know. I do not know how to understand plural marriage. I have studied the complicated historical record of it diligently and there is very much that remains unclear. I don’t know exactly how to understand D&C section 132. I don’t know what to make of the problematic letter purportedly from Joseph Smith to Nancy Rigdon. I recently gave a talk at a leadership meeting. My topic was historical issues with which Saints sometimes struggle. I catalogued the historical problems, briefly describing each. While describing the received wisdom on plural marriage, I had a distinct and undeniable thought that came from outside me. “You do not know what you are talking about,” it said. It was right. I do not know how to think about plural marriage. I continue to thoroughly examine the historical record, seeking light and truth by study and also by faith. I do know, as a result of that process, that Helen Kimball and Lucy Walker both left testimonies that Joseph did not exploit them, and that they both testified that they received their own revelations, as Joseph invited them to do, before being sealed to him. In other words, I know that the historical record created by witnesses and participants does not match the sensational books and online material created by people who know less than I do. And I know that I don’t know. I am deeply saddened by reports of Saints losing their faith after becoming conscious of one or more controversial issues of the Mormon past. I wish I could give each of them the experiences I have had and help to educate their expectations and identify their assumptions and discern the difference between their interpretations of evidence and the evidence itself. Obviously, the historical evidence is not the determinant of belief or disbelief. Those who knew Joseph best believed him most. The historians who edit the Prophet’s papers believe. Many of the historians who know the historical record best are firm in the faith. They believe. I believe. I choose to believe and have not been disappointed as many have. I think that my resilience to the forces that have eroded the faith of so many was forged in my early, formative experiences with the historical record and a faithful father who handed me his epistemology—his way of knowing and coping with not knowing. I empathize with those whose experiences differ from mine and leave them feeling unable to believe. Stephen Burnett typifies many such individuals. He felt the Holy Spirit and a desire to take the gospel to his relatives. He led his parents into the church and responded successfully to mission calls. But by 1838 Stephen felt completely disillusioned. He tried but failed to regain the Holy Spirit. Finally he “proclaimed all revelation lies” and left the church. Stephen wrote candidly to Lyman Johnson, explaining his decisions. “My heart is sickened within me when I reflect upon the manner in which we with many of this Church have been led & the losses which we have sustained all by means of two men in whom we place implicit confidence,” Stephen wrote, referring to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon. He said that the foundation of his faith failed and the entire structure fell in “a heap of ruins” when he interpreted a statement by Martin Harris to mean that Martin and the other Book of Mormon witnesses had not really seen the plates. Stephen Burnett gave us a rich metaphor by describing his faith as a building whose foundation had been shattered, leaving only a heap of ruins. Those who share his experience know what he means. There are many coping strategies such souls adopt. Stephen chose to acknowledge that “Harris and others still believe the Book of Mormon,” but that he was “well satisfied for myself that if the witnesses whose names are attached to the Book of Mormon never saw the plates as Martin admits that there can be nothing brought to prove that any such thing ever existed for it is said on page 171 of the book of Covenants [D&C 17:5] that the three should testify that they had seen the plates even as J[oseph] S[mith] Jr & if they only saw them spiritually or in vision with their eyes shut—JS Jr never saw them in any other light way & if so the plates were only visionary.” I am struck by the three instances of if in Stephen Burnett’s statement. He built his interpretation of the witnesses on hypotheticals: if the witnesses never saw that plates as he believed Martin Harris had said, and if Joseph never saw them then they were only visionary. Hearing that train of thought, Martin asserted that the plates were not visionary. He did not wish to be understood as Stephen Burnett understood him. But Stephen had chosen to disbelieve and Martin’s testimony did not affect him. Evidence of an eyewitness was not the determinant of his faith. Rather, Stephen’s faith, or lack thereof, determined the way he interpreted the evidence of the eyewitness. I empathize with Stephen. Indeed my heart aches for him. But I do not see as he saw. The historical method I practice professionally and the spiritual life I enjoy have long since combined into a most blessed inheritance: my father’s confidence to choose faith precisely because of the mixture of what he knew and didn’t know. ———————————————-Steven C. Harper (M.A., Utah State University; Ph.D., Lehigh University) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Church History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University and a volume editor in the Joseph Smith Papers project. He previously taught at Brigham Young University-Hawaii, and among the honors he has received are the Juanita Brooks Award for Best Graduate Student Paper and the 1999 T. Edgar Lyon Award for the Best Article of the Year, both given by the Mormon History Association. Posted December 2010

Church History & D&C - Day16

Thought: D&C 58:26-29 "Usually the Lord gives us the overall objectives to be accomplished and some guidelines to follow, but he expects us to work our most of the details and methods. The methods and procedures are usually developed through study and prayer and by living so that we can obtain and follow the promptings of the Spirit. Less spiritually advanced people, such as those in the days of Moses, had to be commanded in many things. Today those spiritually alert look at the objectives, check the guidelines laid down by the lord and his prophets, and then prayerfully act-without having to be commanded 'in all things.' This attitude prepares men for godhood.... Sometimes the Lord hopefully waits on his children to act on their own, and when they do not they lose the greater prize, and the Lord will either drop the entire matter and let them suffer the consequences or else he will have to spell it out in greater detail. Usually, I fear, the more He has to spell it out, the smaller is our reward." (ETB, CR April. 1965, pp.121-122)

Book of the Week: A Companion to Your Study Of The Doctrine And Covenants, Daniel Ludlow 2 volumes

Section 68 - Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Hiram, Ohio, November 1, 1831, in response to prayer that the mind of the Lord be made known concerning Orson Hyde, Luke S. Johnson, Lyman E. Johnson, and William E. McLellin. Although part of this revelation was directed toward these four men, much of the content pertains to the whole Church. This revelation was expanded under Joseph Smith’s direction when it was published in the 1835 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants.

Church History by the Year - Orson Hyde (D&C 68:1, 7 ; 75:13; 100:14; 102:3, 34; 103: 40; 124:129)

1805-Jan. 8	Born in Oxford, Conn. son of Nathan & Sally Hyde.  1 of 9 sons & 3 daughters.
1812	Mother or Father died- Family scattered- Orson taken in charge by Nathan Wheeler
1819	Moved to Ohio
1823	After various jobs, from carder to iron founder, to Clerk w/ Gilbert & Whitney
1827	Joined Methodist Church and was made a class leader
1830	Heard about golden Bible-"Who knows but that it may break up our religion & change its whole features & bearing
1830-Oct. 30	Baptized into Campbellite church.  Founded several congregations. Made pastor
1831-Fall	Opposed BoM in addresses, felt reproved by Spirit. Prayed & baptized by Sidney.
1831-Oct. 25	Ordained High Priest by Oliver Cowdery
1831-Nov. 1	D&C 68:8
1832	Mission w/ Samuel Smith to N.  York, Mass, Maine  & Rhode Island - 2000 miles walking.
1833-June 6	Clerk to 1st Presidency. Recorded Kirtland revelations from 1831-34
1834-Feb. 17	Member of 1st High Council
1834	Marched in Zion's Camp- Married Marinda Johnson
1835-Feb. 15	Ordained an apostle
1837-8	Mission to England
1839-May 4	Released from 12-for following Thomas B. Marsh. Restored to 12 on June 27, 1839
1840-41	Left for Jerusalem. Traveled through England & Germany, Constantinople, Cairo, Alexandria. On Oct. 24, 1841 dedicated Palestine for the return of the Jews.
1844-June 27	In DC - He felt very heavy & sorrowful in spirit, & knew not the cause. He retired to the end of the hall alone & walked the floor, tears ran down his face, He never felt so before, & knew no reason why he should feel so then.
1846	Supervised completion of Nauvoo Temple -then sent to England to oversee Church
1847-Dec. 27	President of the 12 for 27 years
1852	Migrated to Utah- legislature, regent UofD, Helped settle Carson Valley (Nevada)
1875-April 10	Quorum of the 12 Apostles Seniority reordered
1860-77	Presided  ecclesiastically & civically over Sanpete-Sevier district
1878-Nov. 28	Died in Spring City, Utah in Sanpete County

Memorized Bible in English, German and Hebrew

Vs. 1 - See History- He was a traveler

              "From the context of the revelations, 'congregations of the wicked' does not appear to meal that all of the inhabitants of that area were guilty of gross wickedness, as defined in the D&C, but rather that they were living outside the covenant-without knowledge of the saving ordinances and principles of the restored gospel. The missionaries were thus called to invite all to repent of their sins and partake of the atonement of Christ by baptism into the 'only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth' (D&C Reference Companion p. 682)

Vs. 4 - See 2 Peter 1:21; 2 Tim. 3:16

"Some of the General Authorities have had assigned to them a special calling; they possess a special gift; they are sustained as prophets, seers, & revelators, which gives them a special spiritual endowment in connection with their teaching of the people. They have the right, the power & authority to declare the mind & will of God to his people, subject to the overall power & authority of the President of the Church. He alone has the right to receive revelations for the Church, either new or amendatory, or to give authoritative interpretations of scriptures that shall be binding on the Church, or change in any way the existing doctrines of the Church" (J. Reuben Clark, Jr. Address to Seminary & Institute Faculty, July 7, 1954. Quoted in Ludlow p. 360-1)

Vs. 13-24- Instructions on the calling of bishops. See also D&C 107:59-100..

Vs. 25-27- A check-list for parents (and grandparents) 1) Repentance (Mike) 2) Faith in Christ 3) Baptism & receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost 4) Pray 5) to walk uprightly before the Lord 6) Observe Sabbath 7) Idle not 8) not seeking the riches of eternity, and 9) not to be greedy'

Section 69- Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Hiram, Ohio, November 11, 1831. The compilation of revelations intended for early publication had been passed upon at the special conference of November 1–2. On November 3, the revelation herein appearing as section 133, later called the Appendix, was added. Oliver Cowdery had previously been appointed to carry the manuscript of the compiled revelations and commandments to Independence, Missouri, for printing. He was also to take with him money that had been contributed for the building up of the Church in Missouri. This revelation instructs John Whitmer to accompany Oliver Cowdery and also directs Whitmer to travel and collect historical material in his calling as Church historian and recorder.

It is not a safe trip. 900-1000 miles in the wilderness with a priceless document and $ for the Saints in Mo. Oliver is told to take John Whitmer along as a companion. John is advised to make sure he doesn't neglect his responsibilities as Church Historian.

Section 70- At the conclusion of the Nov. 1831 conference the Lord gave stewardship of all official Church literature & its publication to Joseph, Oliver, Sidney, John Whitmer and Martin. These men in their stewardship were known as the Literary Firm. They were to take proceeds from the sale of the Book of Commandments for their temporal needs & give an account of their stewardship. Publications were to include the JST, Hymnal, Church Newspaper in addition to the Book of Commandments.

Section 71 -(Dec. 1, 1831) A response to Ezra Booth's 9 letters published in the Ohio Star. Joseph & Sidney commanded to stem the tide of lies. Lay aside the JST for a while and defend the faith.

Vs. 9-10- The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing, persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth, boldly, nobly and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept ever country and sounded in every ear, til the purposes of God have been accomplished and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done. (DHC 4:540)

Section 72 -Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Kirtland, Ohio, December 4, 1831. Several elders and members had assembled to learn their duty and to be further edified in the teachings of the Church. This section is a compilation of three revelations received on the same day. Verses 1 through 8 make known the calling of Newel K. Whitney as a bishop. He was then called and ordained, after which verses 9 through 23 were received, giving additional information as to a bishop’s duties. Thereafter, verses 24 through 26 were given, providing instructions concerning the gathering to Zion..  See the 5 A's of Stewardship by Russell M. Nelson, Ensign, April 1972. (What was Russell Nelson doing in 1972?)

Vs. 1-8- NK Whitney's call

Vs. 9-26- The duties of Bishop

No wards until Nauvoo

Vs. 3-4 - A great reminder

              "How to accelerate performance---When we deal in generalities, we shall never succeed. When we deal in specifics, we rarely have a failure. When performance is measured, performance is improved. When performance is measured and reported, the rate of performance accelerates"  Thomas S. Monson

Section 73 - What do we do while waiting for the Conference to start?

Vs. 1 - While waiting-do something. (Conference was to be Jan. 25, 1832)

Vs. 3- Resume translating (See Section 71)

Section 74 - Revelation given to Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Wayne County, New York, in 1830. Even before the organization of the Church, questions had arisen about the proper mode of baptism, leading the Prophet to seek answers on the subject. Joseph Smith’s history states that this revelation is an explanation of 1 Corinthians 7:14, a scripture that had often been used to justify infant baptism.

“When the unbelieving husband had his way, which in that day would be usual, it would too often have the effect of causing the children to give heed to the Jewish tradition which their father followed (vs. 4), the result being that they, too, would not believe the Gospel of Christ. Hence the children became ‘unholy’—that is to say, they became unholy according to the false Jewish tradition which prevailed at the time, for the tradition of the Jews was that little children were unholy (vs. 6). It was for this cause, the Lord continues (vs. 5), that Paul wrote to the Corinthians giving them his own opinion, not the Lord’s, that a member of the Church (‘believer’) should not be united in marriage to an unbeliever, unless the Law of Moses was renounced or done away by them. Then the children of a given couple would not have to be circumcised as the Law of Moses required, and the false tradition of the Jews that little children are unholy could be gradually eliminated.” (Sperry, Compendium, p. 328.)

Section 75 - Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Amherst, Ohio, January 25, 1832. This section comprises two separate revelations (the first in verses 1 through 22 and the second in verses 23 through 36) given on the same day. The occasion was a conference at which Joseph Smith was sustained and ordained President of the High Priesthood. Certain elders desired to learn more about their immediate duties. These revelations followed..

Vs. 4- What we are to preach

Vs. 6-8 - See D&C 66:7-8= William had gone on a mission wish Samuel Smith. They serve about 1 month.  Wm. said he became ill. Samuel's account said, "We went a short distance, but because of disobedience, our way was hedged up before us. Wm. is here told to go with Luke Johnson. During that mission McLellin's mind was filled with doubts and he debated whether his call to preach was by man or by the fountain of all wisdom. He ended his mission Seymour Brunson was called to take his place.

Vs. 10-11 - Good advice for all of us.

Vs. 20-21- Samuel Smith story

Vs. 24- Our duty to support the families of those who are called to serve.

Vs. 29- See 1 Timothy 5:8 - "But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."