General Church Officers, September 1842–February 1843
The following charts identify the general leadership of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; local church leadership in
, Illinois, and
Europe; city officials in Nauvoo; and the
officers of other relevant organizations between 1 September 1842 and 28
February
1843.
First Presidency
Throughout the period between 1 September 1842 and 28
February 1843, JS served as of the church, with and as counselors and
as associate president. Hyrum had been a
counselor in the presidency, but shortly after he succeeded his father
as patriarch in 1840, a January 1841 revelation indicated that Law should take his place in the
presidency and that Hyrum should have the “blessing and glory, and honor
and priesthood and gifts of the priesthood, that once were put upon . .
. .” Cowdery
had received the keys of the priesthood in connection with JS, had been
sustained as “Second Elder of the Church” on 6 April 1830, and had
served in the church’s presidency from December 1834 to April 1838 under
the titles “assistant president” and “assistant Councillor.” The January
1841 revelation that called Hyrum Smith as church patriarch also
identified him as “a prophet and a seer and a revelator,” and Hyrum
continued to serve in the presidency. Later church historians applied
the term “associate president” to Hyrum Smith’s unusual position.
Although this title was not used during his lifetime, it seems to
accurately describe his role in relation to JS.
In early February 1843, JS proposed to make a “councillr to the fir[s]t Presidency,” possibly
to replace , who was estranged from JS at the
time. Although JS and Rigdon met and
reconciled several days later, with Rigdon expressing that “he & his
family were willing to be saved,” Lyman apparently retained his
appointment as a counselor in the First Presidency, and at the end of
February, JS appointed him to take charge of the new Latter-day Saint
settlement at ,
Illinois. There is no record of Lyman being ordained or
sustained to a position in the First Presidency, but evidence suggests
he was subsequently considered a member of the presidency. In April
1843, he addressed a special conference of the church—with his remarks
subsequently published in full by the Times and
Seasons—and at a July 1843 conference, listed Lyman’s name alongside JS’s other
counselors, Rigdon and .
| 1 September 1842–ca. 4 February 1843 | ca. 4–28 February 1843 |
| Joseph Smith, president | Joseph Smith, president |
| , associate president | , associate president |
| , counselor | , counselor |
| , counselor | , counselor |
| , counselor |
Patriarch
was appointed of the church in 1834 and served in that position
until his death in September 1840. Prior to his
death, Smith ordained his son as his successor. In January
1841, JS dictated a revelation that appointed to the First
Presidency so that Hyrum Smith could “take the office of priesthood and
patriarch, which was appointed unto him by his father by blessing and
also by right.” That same revelation appointed him, as patriarch, to
hold the sealing power and to be “a prophet and a seer and a revelator
unto my church as well as my servant Joseph.”
Hyrum Smith functioned in this office for the remainder of his life.
| 1 September 1842–28 February 1843 |
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
When the was
originally organized in 1835, the group included the first six men on
the right-hand column below. By December 1841, the
other six members of the original quorum had died or become
disaffected. The final six men on
the second list joined the quorum between December 1838 and April 1841
to replace those members. In summer 1842, difficulties
arose between and JS as rumors spread that JS had proposed marriage to Pratt’s
wife, ,
while he was serving a mission in . These difficulties
led to a four-day meeting between Pratt and a council consisting of the
three other apostles then living in . On
20 August, after Pratt refused to “recall his sayings against Joseph,”
the council concluded that he should be “cut off” from the church, and
they ordained in his stead. On 20 January 1843, JS and
the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles reviewed Orson Pratt’s case and
restored him to his position within that quorum. While Lyman was not formally removed
from the body, he was added as a counselor to the instead of actively functioning in the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
| 1 September 1842–20 January 1843 | 20 January–28 February 1843 |
Presidents of the Seventy
Three of the were organized in 1835 and
1836, but by 1837 all seventies were included in one quorum. Unlike most quorums in the
church, which were presided over by a presidency consisting of one
president and two counselors, the Quorums of the Seventy were presided
over by seven presidents. Throughout the period between 1 September 1842
and 28 February 1843, the same seven men served as presidents of the
Seventy. The order in which they are listed reflects the order in which
they were named in an 1841 revelation regarding the church in .
| 1 September 1842–28 February 1843 |