There were always a million things going on in the life of Mormonism’s founding prophet. But when Joseph Smith had time and secretaries, he set himself to work in matters from the mundane to the metaphysical. That’s certainly the case for the period from May-August 1842 (Joseph Smith Papers Documents, Volume 10, or D10), as he “introduced new religious rituals, directed missionary work, and struggled to organize resources for the hundreds of converts from the United States and England who continued to gather to Nauvoo, Illinois.”[i] Ranging from letters, newspaper selections, financial documents, revelations, and even Nauvoo city scrip (currency), D10’s editors have provided a marvelous set of 105 records for scholars to understand Smith’s chaotic life better.

A significant part of Smith’s time went to investigating the salacious rumors surrounding John C. Bennett, whose “spiritual wifery” had caused quite a stir in Nauvoo and its environs. It seems that Smith had introduced  Bennett to his sealing rituals but that Bennett had gone beyond proposing authorized sealings under the Church’s (Smith’s) authority. Bennett had arranged several sexual liaisons with Latter-day Saint women, whom he presided over as a member of the Church’s First Presidency (you can learn more about Bennett’s excommunication here).

Bennett was not only an “assistant President” to Joseph Smith but also held prominent civic positions. Smith seemed to have done his best to put the embarrassing situation away quietly, but Bennett had won over crucial church leaders such as Orson Pratt, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Smith eventually won Prattback to his side (the fallout had serious implications in the 1870s). But there was damage done. Bennett later published a book entitled History of the Saints, that, as the JSPP editors noted as they spoke with outlets like Juvenile Instructor, is valuable, but whose details cannot be taken at face value. Tracking down details related to History of the Saints showcase some of the things that the Smith Papers Project does best: contextualize and verify details that only a documentary editing project can do.

D10 shows how Smith’s actions could be preoccupied with the day-to-day operations of his Church as well as the soaring heights of his cosmology. For instance, as Elizabeth Kuehn pointed out, D10 features a notice dated 9 July 1842 for the return of an ox that a Latter-day Saint had tithed to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that had wandered off. These small details remind readers and scholars that Mormonism was on the edge of the frontier, cash-poor society and, in many ways, was barely keeping things together as they tried to take care of thousands of its members.

In contrast, on 1842 4 May, Smith introduced religious rites later known “as the endowment and that were eventually performed in the Nauvoo temple,” a building still under construction at the time.[ii] There are everyday sorts of documents related to the building of the temple, calling for donations, even an authorization for Latter-day Saint Thomas R. King access to the edifice’s baptismal font (27 August 1842). The liminal space between the sacred and the profane did not exist in Joseph Smith’s mind. Smith insisted that most goings-on should be documented in one way or another.  Those he didn’t authorize records concerning, such as the religious rites he was introducing, found their way into letters from the initiated to their spouses or fellow initiates. Smith taught that God had instructed that he keep a record. Those around him were glad to join in the cause.

Smith also escaped an extradition attempt by Missouri Governor Lilburn W. Boggs, who continually worked to bring Smith back to the Show-Me state to face trial. Time and time again, the Mormon prophet escaped these overtures (see Alex Smith’s article as well as Ben Park’s book for more on this).

I heartily recommend D10 to anyone trying to understand how Joseph Smith’s life reflected a multitude of responsibilities, tasks, and bursts of insight, what he would later call “sudden strokes of revelation.” Smith regularly interacted with those who called him a prophet and those who called him a fraud; he called for cattle to be captured and introduced rites that would later be performed in fonts resting on the back of carven oxen. He introduced rites that promised to transcend mortality as he fought for his legal rites and risked his life. Smith’s life was busy. And always interesting.

ODDS AND ENDS FROM THE JSPP EDITORS

The 27 July 1842 instructions on how to perform a plural marriage sealing are derived from a typescript. The LDS Church History Department has the original, but the provenance of the typescript is much easier to verify. There’s a second document with more personal details included.

The Anti-Mormon political party sent a letter asking some Latter-day Saints to vote for them. It, um, didn’t work.

Joseph Smith wrote several blessings while hiding from Boggs’ attempt to return him to Missouri.

Documents, Volume 11, is scheduled to come out in Fall 2020. It will cover September 1842-February 1843.

[i] Introduction to D10

[ii] Introduction to D10