Discourse, 6 April 1837
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Source Note
JS, Discourse, [, Geauga Co., OH], 6 Apr. 1837. Featured version published in “Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:487–488. For more complete source information, see the source note for Letter to Oliver Cowdery, Dec. 1834.
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Historical Introduction
On 6 April 1837, the seventh anniversary of the organization of the , the , , and other priesthood holders gathered in the in , Ohio, for a . This gathering occurred just over a year after the solemn assembly that followed the dedication of the House of the Lord in March 1836.On the morning of the 1837 solemn assembly, each priesthood quorum met in the to perform the of and to prepare “to receive instruction from the Presidents of the church.” The First Presidency met separately with the Quorum of the in the upper room of the temple to confirm and bless new members of the Seventy, who had been anointed prior to the solemn assembly. They also met to address questions of authority and to correct inconsistencies in who had been called as quorum presidents. Previously, some presidents of the Seventy had been called from among the , but according to minutes of the meeting, “It was decided by President Joseph Smith, that the seventies were not High priests as they had been previously taught.” Reminiscent accounts by and noted that there was tension between the quorums over which had authority over the other. These concerns resulted in the removal and replacement of some of the presidents of the Seventy. It appeared that six of the seven presidents of the Seventy (the exception being Joseph Young) had already been as high priests when they were appointed presidents of the Seventy and had not been chosen from the Quorum of the Seventy as set out in the 1835 “Instruction on Priesthood.” noted that the practice of appointing high priests as leaders of the Seventy “was declared to be wrong, and not according to the order of heaven.” To resolve the matter, the presidents who were thought to have been ordained high priests were removed as presidents of the Seventy and new men were appointed from the Quorum of the Seventy to serve as quorum presidents. The five former presidents who were at the meeting, as well as other seventies who had been ordained high priests, were then asked to join the high priests quorum.After all the priesthood quorums gathered for instruction, they were addressed by members of the church presidency—JS, , , and . JS’s discourse, featured here, is extracted from ’s synopsis of the proceedings of the solemn assembly. In his address, JS discussed the duties and roles of each of the priesthood quorums and explained the “grades of the different quorums” without clarifying which quorum had the higher authority.After JS finished speaking on the topic of priesthood, he spoke on the temporal affairs of the church. He informed the assembled priesthood holders that the city of must be developed and that the Saints should gather there and purchase land intended for them. and also spoke in the solemn assembly regarding the church’s financial situation. Hyrum chastised members who were giving new arrivals unauthorized advice about purchasing land; their actions contradicted guidelines established by church leaders the previous December to govern Saints wanting to move to Kirtland. He also rebuked those members of the church who were taking the money of newly arrived Saints rather than directing them to purchase land from church leaders, who had gone into considerable debt to acquire property for church settlement. Hyrum also told members to support the for the benefit of the church and its members. In his remarks, Rigdon named the three most significant debts of the church, identifying $6,000 related to the Saints being driven from , Missouri; $13,000 for building the in Kirtland; and an unspecified amount for land purchases in Kirtland. Building on JS’s earlier comments, Rigdon emphasized the principle of gathering and instructed the to tell church members that there was “a place for them” in Kirtland and that “it is the will of God that they should come.”
Footnotes
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2
“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:486.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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3
Record of Seventies, bk. A, 17.
Record of Seventies / First Council of the Seventy. “Book of Records,” 1837–1843. Bk. A. In First Council of the Seventy, Records, 1837–1885. CHL. CR 3 51, box 1, fd. 1.
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4
Record of Seventies, bk. A, 9, 18. Elias Smith prepared these meeting minutes using the journal of Hazen Aldrich. Wilford Woodruff wrote that a reorganization of the leadership of the Seventy was required because of the “difference in the authority and office of the quorums of high Priesthood & Seventies.” (Woodruff, Journal, 6 Apr. 1837.)
Record of Seventies / First Council of the Seventy. “Book of Records,” 1837–1843. Bk. A. In First Council of the Seventy, Records, 1837–1885. CHL. CR 3 51, box 1, fd. 1.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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5
Young and Coltrin noted that members of each quorum argued that theirs held greater authority. Young wrote in 1878 that the debate developed “with so much warmth that it amounted to jealousy.” Coltrin’s account, recorded by L. John Nuttall in 1879, specified that the debate began between Benjamin Winchester and Jared Carter: “Bro. W[inchester] A Seventy and Bro Jared [Carter] a High Priest got to contending which held the highest office. Carter was rebuking him on account of his folly, which he said he had not right to do. as he held a higher Priesthood than he did. and Jared contended that he didn’t because [he] was a High Priest.” Coltrin wrote that the debate came to the attention of Joseph Smith Sr., who then informed JS. (Young, History of the Organization of the Seventies, 4–5; Nuttall, Diary, 31 May 1879.)
Young, Joseph, Sr. History of the Organization of the Seventies: Names of First and Second Quorums. Items in Relation to the First Presidency of the Seventies. Also, a Brief Glance at Enoch and His City. Embellished with a Likeness of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, and a View of the Kirtland Temple. Salt Lake City: Deseret News Steam Printing Establishment, 1878.
Nuttall, L. John. Diary, 1876–1884. L. John Nuttall, Papers, 1857–1904. BYU.
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6
Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107:93].
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7
“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:486.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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8
The six men who were removed as presidents of the Seventy were Hazen Aldrich, Leonard Rich, Zebedee Coltrin, Lyman Sherman, Sylvester Smith, and Levi Hancock. The six men appointed to fill the positions were James Foster, Josiah Butterfield, John Gould, John Gaylord, Daniel S. Miles, and Salmon Gee. (Young, History of the Organization of the Seventies, 5.)
Young, Joseph, Sr. History of the Organization of the Seventies: Names of First and Second Quorums. Items in Relation to the First Presidency of the Seventies. Also, a Brief Glance at Enoch and His City. Embellished with a Likeness of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, and a View of the Kirtland Temple. Salt Lake City: Deseret News Steam Printing Establishment, 1878.
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9
Levi Hancock, who was removed at this meeting and replaced by John Gould, was not in Kirtland at the time of the meeting. When Hancock returned to Kirtland, he informed church leaders that he had not been ordained a high priest and should not have been removed from his position. It was decided that Hancock should retain his position as a president of the Seventy, and John Gould was removed. (Minutes, 3 Sept. 1837.)
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10
“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:486.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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11
In contrast to the other members of the presidency, Oliver Cowdery spoke on proselytizing and teaching. (“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:488; Woodruff, Journal, 6 Apr. 1837.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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13
“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:488; Minutes, 22 Dec. 1836.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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14
Woodruff, Journal, 6 Apr. 1837.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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15
“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:488. The losses for Jackson County were likely much higher than Rigdon’s figure; on the amount of debt for the House of the Lord, see Historical Introduction to Mortgage to Mead, Stafford & Co., 11 July 1837; for more information on the land purchases in Kirtland, see Historical Introduction to Mortgage to Peter French, 5 Oct. 1836.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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16
“Anniversary of the Church of Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1837, 3:489, italics in original.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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