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Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 March 1836 [D&C 109]

Source Note

Minutes and Prayer of Dedication,
Kirtland Township

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
, Geauga Co., OH, 27 Mar. 1836. Featured version published in “Kirtland, Ohio, March 27th 1836,” Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate, Mar. 1836, 2:274–281. For more complete source information, see the source note for Letter to Oliver Cowdery, Dec. 1834.

Historical Introduction

The dedication of the
House of the Lord

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
in
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
, Ohio, on 27 March 1836 was the result of years of devoted effort. In summer and fall 1835, men and women worked side by side to complete the temple. Men generally did masonry work, drove cattle, and hauled rock, while women generally spun, knit, and wove clothes for workers, “us[ing] every exertion in their power to forward the work.”
1

Kimball, “History,” 26; Helen Mar Whitney, “Life Incidents,” Woman’s Exponent, 15 Aug. 1880, 9:42.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Kimball, Heber C. “History of Heber Chase Kimball by His Own Dictation,” ca. 1842–1856. Heber C. Kimball, Papers, 1837–1866. CHL. MS 627, box 2.

Woman’s Exponent. Salt Lake City. 1872–1914.

Women also worked on the veils, or curtains, that hung in the House of the Lord, and JS “pronounced a blessing upon the Sisters for the liberality in giving their servises so cheerfully.”
2

JS, Journal, 23 Feb. 1836; see also Plan of the House of the Lord, between 1 and 25 June 1833.


Men likewise found great satisfaction in their work building the religious edifice.
Newel Knight

13 Sept. 1800–11 Jan. 1847. Miller, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Knight Sr. and Polly Peck. Moved to Jericho (later Bainbridge), Chenango Co., New York, ca. 1809. Moved to Windsor (later in Colesville), Broome Co., New...

View Full Bio
, for instance, rejoiced in his labors because it had been “a long time since the Lord had a house on the Earth” and he believed that in the House of the Lord, the Saints would receive the promised
endowment

Bestowal of spiritual blessings, power, or knowledge. Beginning in 1831, multiple revelations promised an endowment of “power from on high” in association with the command to gather. Some believed this promise was fulfilled when individuals were first ordained...

View Glossary
of divine power.
3

Knight, Autobiographical Sketch, [4].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Knight, Joseph, Jr. Autobiographical Sketch, 1862. CHL. MS 286.

By late March 1836, the
building

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
and the
church

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

View Glossary
members were prepared for a dedicatory meeting. On 26 March, the day before the dedication, JS,
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
,
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
, and JS’s two scribes,
Warren A. Cowdery

17 Oct. 1788–23 Feb. 1851. Physician, druggist, farmer, editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Married Patience Simonds, 22 Sept. 1814, in Pawlet, Rutland Co. Moved to Freedom, Cattaraugus Co., New York, 1816...

View Full Bio
and
Warren Parrish

10 Jan. 1803–3 Jan. 1877. Clergyman, gardener. Born in New York. Son of John Parrish and Ruth Farr. Married first Elizabeth (Betsey) Patten of Westmoreland Co., New Hampshire, ca. 1822. Lived at Alexandria, Jefferson Co., New York, 1830. Purchased land at...

View Full Bio
, met in the president’s room on the attic floor of the temple to prepare for the dedication. Oliver Cowdery noted in his diary that at this meeting he “assisted in writing a prayer for the dedication of the house.” The text of the prayer, likely set in type on the printing press of the Messenger and Advocate that night, was printed as a broadside for JS to read at the dedication the following day.
4

Cowdery, Diary, 26 Mar. 1836; JS, Journal, 26 Mar. 1836; George A. Smith, in Journal of Discourses, 15 Nov. 1864, 11:9; Prayer, 27 Mar. 1836, in Prayer, at the Dedication of the Lord’s House in Kirtland, Ohio, March 27, 1836 (Kirtland, OH: 1836), copy at CHL [D&C 109].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Cowdery, Oliver. Diary, Jan.–Mar. 1836. CHL. MS 3429. Also available as Leonard J. Arrington, “Oliver Cowdery’s Kirtland, Ohio, ‘Sketch Book,’” BYU Studies 12 (Summer 1972): 410–426.

Journal of Discourses. 26 vols. Liverpool: F. D. Richards, 1855–1886.

On Sunday morning, 27 March, a crowd of approximately one thousand people filled the
building

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
to capacity. Some of those unable to enter held a meeting in the adjacent
schoolhouse

Two-story structure measuring thirty by thirty-eight feet, built during fall and winter of 1834. Located immediately west of temple lot on Whitney Street (now Maple Street) in Kirtland. School of the Elders met here from winter 1834–1835 to Jan. 1836. Ground...

More Info
while others returned home to await a second dedicatory event.
5

JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836; Post, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

At nine o’clock,
Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
commenced the meeting with an opening prayer and preliminary remarks. Following a hymn, Rigdon addressed the congregation for two and a half hours on a variety of topics. Rigdon then presented JS’s name to the congregation as “Prophet and
Seer

The Book of Mormon identified a seer as a “revelator, and a prophet also,” specifying, however, that a seer was “greater than a prophet.” A seer could “know of things which has past, and also of things which is to come.” The work of a seer included translation...

View Glossary
,” followed by a systematic vote by each
quorum

An organized group of individuals holding the same office in the Melchizedek priesthood or the Aaronic priesthood. According to the 1835 “Instruction on Priesthood,” the presidency of the church constituted a quorum. The Twelve Apostles also formed a quorum...

View Glossary
of the church and others in attendance. All voted unanimously in the affirmative. In the afternoon session, JS addressed the congregation first. He presented the names of the church’s
First Presidency

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

View Glossary
“as Prophets and Seers” and the
Twelve Apostles

Members of a governing body in the church, with special administrative and proselytizing responsibilities. A June 1829 revelation commanded Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer to call twelve disciples, similar to the twelve apostles in the New Testament and ...

View Glossary
“as Prophets and Seers and special witnesses to all the nations of the earth,” and he invited the congregation to signify their support for these officers by rising. He then similarly presented the other quorums and officers. Each group was upheld separately by a systematic vote similar to the vote Rigdon presented in the morning session.
6

JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836; Post, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

After another hymn, JS stood at the pulpit and read the prayer of dedication—the first dedication of a temple in Latter-day Saint history.
The dedicatory prayer alluded to earlier revelations and events and petitioned both God and Jesus Christ for blessings, mercy, and deliverance for the Saints. In particular, the prayer referenced JS’s late December 1832 revelation commanding the Saints to build the “house of God,” and it also recounted the 1833 violence against the Latter-day Saints in
Jackson County

Settled at Fort Osage, 1808. County created, 16 Feb. 1825; organized 1826. Named after U.S. president Andrew Jackson. Featured fertile lands along Missouri River and was Santa Fe Trail departure point, which attracted immigrants to area. Area of county reduced...

More Info
, Missouri.
7

Revelation, 27–28 Dec. 1832 [D&C 88:1–126].


In the prayer, JS asked that the
House of the Lord

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
be accepted and that it be a place where the glory of God could rest down upon his children. JS also requested that God remember the oppression the Saints had faced in their efforts to follow his commandments. He pleaded for priesthood holders to be protected and empowered with spiritual gifts and power so that they might be better equipped to go out preaching. The prayer also expressed desire that the Saints might be blessed to grow up in the ways of God. All those in attendance unanimously accepted the prayer by vote.
Both the minutes of this meeting and accounts by Latter-day Saints who attended the dedication report miracles, heavenly visitations, and a spiritual outpouring.
Frederick G. Williams

28 Oct. 1787–10 Oct. 1842. Ship’s pilot, teacher, physician, justice of the peace. Born at Suffield, Hartford Co., Connecticut. Son of William Wheeler Williams and Ruth Granger. Moved to Newburg, Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, 1799. Practiced Thomsonian botanical system...

View Full Bio
reported that a “Holy Angel of God” entered the
temple

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
during the prayer of dedication. Following the prayer,
Brigham Young

1 June 1801–29 Aug. 1877. Carpenter, painter, glazier, colonizer. Born at Whitingham, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of John Young and Abigail (Nabby) Howe. Brought up in Methodist household; later joined Methodist church. Moved to Sherburne, Chenango Co., New...

View Full Bio
“gave a short address in tongues.” At the conclusion of the day’s events, JS “blessed the congregation in the name of the Lord” and ended the meeting “a little past four P. M.”
8

JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.


The importance the Saints placed on attending the dedication of the
House of the Lord

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
is manifest in participant accounts. For example, according to
Benjamin Brown

View Full Bio

and
Eliza R. Snow

21 Jan. 1804–5 Dec. 1887. Poet, teacher, seamstress, milliner. Born in Becket, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts. Daughter of Oliver Snow and Rosetta Leonora Pettibone. Moved to Mantua, Trumbull Co., Ohio, ca. 1806. Member of Baptist church. Baptized into Church...

View Full Bio
, one woman could not find anyone with whom to leave her two-month-old child so that she could attend the dedication. She implored
Joseph Smith Sr.

12 July 1771–14 Sept. 1840. Cooper, farmer, teacher, merchant. Born at Topsfield, Essex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Nominal member of Congregationalist church at Topsfield. Married to Lucy Mack by Seth Austin, 24 Jan. 1796, at Tunbridge...

View Full Bio
to allow her to enter the House of the Lord with her child even though young children were not allowed at the meeting. Upon this request, Joseph Smith Sr. reportedly said to the doorkeepers on duty, “Brethren we do not Exercise faith[;] my faith is this child will not cry a word in the House to day.” Brown observed, “On this the woman & child entered and the child did not cry a word from 8 till 4 in the after noon. But when the saints all shouted Hosana the child was nursing But let go & shouted also when the saints paused it paused when they shouted it shouted for three times when they shouted amen it shouted also for three times then it resumed its nursing without any alarm.”
9

Benjamin Brown to Sarah Mumford Brown, [ca. Apr. 1836], Benjamin Brown Family Collection, CHL; Tullidge, Women of Mormondom, 94–95.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Benjamin Brown Family Collection, 1835–1983. CHL. MS 17646.

Tullidge, Edward W. The Women of Mormondom. New York: Tullidge and Crandall, 1877.

According to participants, the events following the dedicatory meeting included an outpouring of spiritual gifts similar to that experienced by the apostles in the New Testament on the day of Pentecost.
10

See Acts 2:1–18.


JS requested that “all
official members

Male church members ordained to a priesthood office. Records of conferences occasionally listed the number of official members present. In March 1836, a gathering of priesthood quorums and councils met in the House of the Lord in Kirtland, Ohio, and approved...

View Glossary
,” meaning men who had been
ordained

The conferral of power and authority; to appoint, decree, or set apart. Church members, primarily adults, were ordained to ecclesiastical offices and other responsibilities by the laying on of hands by those with the proper authority. Ordinations to priesthood...

View Glossary
to the
priesthood

Power or authority of God. The priesthood was conferred through the laying on of hands upon adult male members of the church in good standing; no specialized training was required. Priesthood officers held responsibility for administering the sacrament of...

View Glossary
, meet again in the
House of the Lord

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
that evening for instruction “respecting the
ordinance

A religious rite. JS taught that ordinances were covenants between man and God, in which believers could affirm faith, gain spiritual knowledge, and seek blessings. Some ordinances were considered requisite for salvation. The manner in which ordinances were...

View Glossary
of
washing of feet

An ordinance following the pattern set by Jesus in the New Testament, symbolizing unity and bestowing purification and spiritual power. At the first meeting of the School of the Prophets in January 1833, JS washed the feet of the elders present and pronounced...

View Glossary
.”
11

JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.


That evening meeting “was designed as a continuation of our pentecost,” wrote participant
Stephen Post

3 Jan. 1810–18 Dec. 1879. Schoolteacher, blacksmith. Born in Greenwich, Washington Co., New York. Son of Samuel Post and Mary Sprague. Moved to Sparta Township, Crawford Co., Pennsylvania, after 1830. Married Jane Force, ca. 1835. Baptized into Church of ...

View Full Bio
, and according to his journal, “Angels of God came into the room, cloven tongues rested upon some of the servants of the Lord like unto fire, & they spake with tongues and prophesied.”
12

Post, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

In another description of the evening meeting,
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
wrote, “The spirit was poured out—I saw the glory of God, like a great cloud, come down and rest upon the house, and fill the same like a mighty rushing wind. I also saw cloven tongues, like as of fire rest upon many, (for there were 316 present,) while they spake with other tongues and prophesied.”
13

Cowdery, Diary, 27 Mar. 1836.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Cowdery, Oliver. Diary, Jan.–Mar. 1836. CHL. MS 3429. Also available as Leonard J. Arrington, “Oliver Cowdery’s Kirtland, Ohio, ‘Sketch Book,’” BYU Studies 12 (Summer 1972): 410–426.

Levi Jackman

28 July 1797–23 July 1876. Carpenter, wainwright. Born at Vershire, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Moses French Jackman and Elizabeth Carr. Moved to Batavia, Genesee Co., New York, 1810. Married first Angeline Myers Brady, 13 Nov. 1817, at Alexander, Genesee...

View Full Bio
similarly declared, “I believe that as great things were heard and felt and seen as there was on the day of Pentecost with the apostles.”
14

Jackman, Diary, 17.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Jackman, Levi. Diary, 1835–1844. Microfilm. CHL.

Writing to his wife, Sarah Brown,
Benjamin Brown

View Full Bio

recorded that on the evening of the dedication, “one saw a pillar or cloud rest down upon the house bright as when the sun shines on a cloud like as gold, two others saw three personages hovering in the room with bright keys in their hands.”
15

Benjamin Brown to Sarah Mumford Brown, [ca. Apr. 1836], Benjamin Brown Family Collection, CHL; see also Harper, “Pentecost Continued,” 4–22.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Benjamin Brown Family Collection, 1835–1983. CHL. MS 17646.

Harper, Steven C. “Pentecost Continued: A Contemporaneous Account of the Kirtland Temple Dedication.” BYU Studies 42, no. 2 (2003): 5–22.

On Thursday, 31 March, JS and the
First Presidency

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

View Glossary
again performed the dedicatory ceremonies “for the benefit of those who could not get into the house on the preceeding Sabbath.” According to JS’s journal, the services that day were “prosecuted and terminated in the same manner as at the former dedication and the spirit of God rested upon the congregation and great solemnity prevailed.”
16

JS, Journal, 31 Mar. 1836.


There are two extant versions of the minutes of the 27 March dedication, one in manuscript and the other in print. JS’s scribe
Warren Parrish

10 Jan. 1803–3 Jan. 1877. Clergyman, gardener. Born in New York. Son of John Parrish and Ruth Farr. Married first Elizabeth (Betsey) Patten of Westmoreland Co., New Hampshire, ca. 1822. Lived at Alexandria, Jefferson Co., New York, 1830. Purchased land at...

View Full Bio
made a record of the meeting that he copied into JS’s journal.
17

JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.


Though not credited,
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
created the official minutes, featured here, which were then published in the Messenger and Advocate.
18

Cowdery, Diary, 27 Mar. 1836.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Cowdery, Oliver. Diary, Jan.–Mar. 1836. CHL. MS 3429. Also available as Leonard J. Arrington, “Oliver Cowdery’s Kirtland, Ohio, ‘Sketch Book,’” BYU Studies 12 (Summer 1972): 410–426.

The original minutes are no longer extant, and, unlike other minutes Oliver Cowdery kept in this period, these minutes were never copied into Minute Book 1. The lack of an original copy and minute book entry may be accounted for by the timely publication of the minutes. Substantive differences between the two extant versions are noted below.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Kimball, “History,” 26; Helen Mar Whitney, “Life Incidents,” Woman’s Exponent, 15 Aug. 1880, 9:42.

    Kimball, Heber C. “History of Heber Chase Kimball by His Own Dictation,” ca. 1842–1856. Heber C. Kimball, Papers, 1837–1866. CHL. MS 627, box 2.

    Woman’s Exponent. Salt Lake City. 1872–1914.

  2. [2]

    JS, Journal, 23 Feb. 1836; see also Plan of the House of the Lord, between 1 and 25 June 1833.

  3. [3]

    Knight, Autobiographical Sketch, [4].

    Knight, Joseph, Jr. Autobiographical Sketch, 1862. CHL. MS 286.

  4. [4]

    Cowdery, Diary, 26 Mar. 1836; JS, Journal, 26 Mar. 1836; George A. Smith, in Journal of Discourses, 15 Nov. 1864, 11:9; Prayer, 27 Mar. 1836, in Prayer, at the Dedication of the Lord’s House in Kirtland, Ohio, March 27, 1836 (Kirtland, OH: 1836), copy at CHL [D&C 109].

    Cowdery, Oliver. Diary, Jan.–Mar. 1836. CHL. MS 3429. Also available as Leonard J. Arrington, “Oliver Cowdery’s Kirtland, Ohio, ‘Sketch Book,’” BYU Studies 12 (Summer 1972): 410–426.

    Journal of Discourses. 26 vols. Liverpool: F. D. Richards, 1855–1886.

  5. [5]

    JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836; Post, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.

    Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

  6. [6]

    JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836; Post, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.

    Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

  7. [7]

    Revelation, 27–28 Dec. 1832 [D&C 88:1–126].

  8. [8]

    JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.

  9. [9]

    Benjamin Brown to Sarah Mumford Brown, [ca. Apr. 1836], Benjamin Brown Family Collection, CHL; Tullidge, Women of Mormondom, 94–95.

    Benjamin Brown Family Collection, 1835–1983. CHL. MS 17646.

    Tullidge, Edward W. The Women of Mormondom. New York: Tullidge and Crandall, 1877.

  10. [10]

    See Acts 2:1–18.

  11. [11]

    JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.

  12. [12]

    Post, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.

    Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

  13. [13]

    Cowdery, Diary, 27 Mar. 1836.

    Cowdery, Oliver. Diary, Jan.–Mar. 1836. CHL. MS 3429. Also available as Leonard J. Arrington, “Oliver Cowdery’s Kirtland, Ohio, ‘Sketch Book,’” BYU Studies 12 (Summer 1972): 410–426.

  14. [14]

    Jackman, Diary, 17.

    Jackman, Levi. Diary, 1835–1844. Microfilm. CHL.

  15. [15]

    Benjamin Brown to Sarah Mumford Brown, [ca. Apr. 1836], Benjamin Brown Family Collection, CHL; see also Harper, “Pentecost Continued,” 4–22.

    Benjamin Brown Family Collection, 1835–1983. CHL. MS 17646.

    Harper, Steven C. “Pentecost Continued: A Contemporaneous Account of the Kirtland Temple Dedication.” BYU Studies 42, no. 2 (2003): 5–22.

  16. [16]

    JS, Journal, 31 Mar. 1836.

  17. [17]

    JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836.

  18. [18]

    Cowdery, Diary, 27 Mar. 1836.

    Cowdery, Oliver. Diary, Jan.–Mar. 1836. CHL. MS 3429. Also available as Leonard J. Arrington, “Oliver Cowdery’s Kirtland, Ohio, ‘Sketch Book,’” BYU Studies 12 (Summer 1972): 410–426.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. Prayer of Dedication, 27 March 1836 [D&C 109] Journal, 1835–1836 Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 March 1836 [D&C 109] Prayer of Dedication, 27 March 1836, as Recorded in Kimball, Journal and Record [D&C 109] History, 1838–1856, volume B-1 [1 September 1834–2 November 1838] Journal, 1835–1836 *Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 March 1836 [D&C 109] History, 1838–1856, volume B-1 [1 September 1834–2 November 1838] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 279

people, even cloven tongues as of fire, and the interpretation thereof. And let thy
house

JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...

More Info
be filled, as with a rushing mighty wind, with thy glory.
22

The day of Pentecost is depicted in Acts 2:1–18.


Put upon thy servants the testimony of the covenant, that when they go out and proclaim thy word, they may seal up the law, and prepare the hearts of thy saints for all those judgements thou art about to send, in thy wrath, upon the inhabitants of the earth, because of their transgressions, that thy people may not faint in the day of trouble.
And whatever city thy servants shall enter, and the people of that city receive their testimony, let thy peace and thy salvation be upon that city, that they may gather out of that city the righteous, that they may come forth to
Zion

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

View Glossary
, or to her
stakes

Ecclesiastical organization of church members in a particular locale. Stakes were typically large local organizations of church members; stake leaders could include a presidency, a high council, and a bishopric. Some revelations referred to stakes “to” or...

View Glossary
,
23

For more on Zion and its stakes, see, for example, Revelation, ca. 7 Mar. 1831 [D&C 45:65–67]; Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57:1–3, 14]; Revelation, 1 Nov. 1831–A [D&C 68:26]; and Revelation, 2 Aug. 1833–B [D&C 94:1].


the places of thine appointment, with songs of everlasting joy,—and until this be accomplished let not thy judgments fall upon that city.
And whatever city thy servants shall enter, and the people of that city receive not the testimony of thy servants, and thy servants warn them to save themselves from this untoward generation, let it be upon that city according to that which thou hast spoken, by the mouths of thy prophets; but deliver thou, O Jehovah, we beseech thee, thy servants from their hands, and cleanse them from their blood. O Lord, we delight not in the destruction of our fellow men: their souls are precious befere thee;
24

See Revelation, June 1829–B [D&C 18:10].


but thy word must be fulfilled:—help thy servants to say, with thy grace assisting them, thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours.
We know that thou hast spoken by the mouth of thy prophets, terrible things concerning the wicked, in the last days, that thou wilt pour out thy judgments, without measure: therefore, O Lord, deliver thy people from the calamity of the wicked; enable thy servants to seal up the law and bind up the testimony, that they may be prepared against the day of burning.
We ask thee, holy Father, to remember those who have been driven by the inhabitants of
Jackson county

Settled at Fort Osage, 1808. County created, 16 Feb. 1825; organized 1826. Named after U.S. president Andrew Jackson. Featured fertile lands along Missouri River and was Santa Fe Trail departure point, which attracted immigrants to area. Area of county reduced...

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, Missouri, from the lands of their inheritance, and break off, O Lord, this yoke of affliction, that has been put upon them. Thou knowest, O Lord, that they have been greatly oppressed, and afflicted, by wicked men, and our hearts flow out in sorrow because of their grievous burdens. O Lord, how long wilt thou suffer this people to bear this affliction, and the cries of their innocent ones to ascend up in thine ears, and their blood to come up in testimony before thee, and not make a display of thy power in their behalf?
25

Several earlier revelations chastised the Saints for their disobedience but promised a future redemption of Zion. (See, for example, Revelation, 24 Feb. 1834 [D&C 103:4–9]; and Revelation, 22 June 1834 [D&C 105:2–9]; on violence against the Saints in Missouri and their expulsion from Jackson County in November 1833, see “Joseph Smith Documents from February 1833 through March 1834;” see also “A History, of the Persecution,” Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839–Feb. 1840, 1:17–20, 33–36, 49–50.)


Have mercy, O Lord, upon that wicked mob, who have driven thy people, that they may cease to spoil, that they may repent of their sins, if repentance is to be found; but if they will not, make bear thine arm O Lord, and redeem that which thou didst appoint a
Zion

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

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unto thy people!
And if it can not be otherwise, that the cause of thy people may not fail before thee, may thine anger be kindled and thine indignation fall upon them, that they may be wasted away, both root and branch from under heaven; but in as much as they will repent, thou art gracious and merciful, and will turn away thy wrath, when thou lookest upon the face of thine annointed.
26

See 2 Chronicles 6:42; and Psalms 84:9; 132:10.


Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth: have mercy upon the rulers of our land: may those principles which were so honorably and nobly defended: viz, the constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever.
27

For an earlier revelation concerning the U.S. Constitution, see Revelation, 16–17 Dec. 1833 [D&C 101:77–80].


Remember the kings, the princes, the nobles, and the great ones of the earth, and all people; and the churches: all the poor, the needy and the afflicted ones of the earth, that their hearts may be softened when thy servants shall go out from thy house, O Jehovah, to bear testimony of thy name, that their prejudices may give way before the truth, and thy people may obtain favor in the sight of all, that all the ends of the earth may know that we thy servants have heard thy voice, and that thou hast sent us, that from among all these thy servants, the sons of Jacob, may gather out the righteous to build a holy city to thy name, as thou hast commanded them.
We ask thee to appoint unto Zion other
stakes

Ecclesiastical organization of church members in a particular locale. Stakes were typically large local organizations of church members; stake leaders could include a presidency, a high council, and a bishopric. Some revelations referred to stakes “to” or...

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besides this one, which thou hast appointed,
28

At the time of this prayer, Kirtland was the only appointed stake of Zion. (See Revelation, 2 Aug. 1833–B [D&C 94:1]; and Revelation, 11 Sept. 1831 [D&C 64:21–22].)


that the gathering of thy people may roll on in great power and majesty, that thy work may be cut short in righteousness.
Now these words, O Lord, we have spoken before thee, concerning the [r]evelations and
commandments

Generally, a divine mandate that church members were expected to obey; more specifically, a text dictated by JS in the first-person voice of Deity that served to communicate knowledge and instruction to JS and his followers. Occasionally, other inspired texts...

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which [p. 279]
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Page 279

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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 March 1836 [D&C 109]
ID #
9648
Total Pages
8
Print Volume Location
JSP, D5:188–209
Handwriting on This Page
  • Unidentified

Footnotes

  1. [22]

    The day of Pentecost is depicted in Acts 2:1–18.

  2. [23]

    For more on Zion and its stakes, see, for example, Revelation, ca. 7 Mar. 1831 [D&C 45:65–67]; Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57:1–3, 14]; Revelation, 1 Nov. 1831–A [D&C 68:26]; and Revelation, 2 Aug. 1833–B [D&C 94:1].

  3. [24]

    See Revelation, June 1829–B [D&C 18:10].

  4. [25]

    Several earlier revelations chastised the Saints for their disobedience but promised a future redemption of Zion. (See, for example, Revelation, 24 Feb. 1834 [D&C 103:4–9]; and Revelation, 22 June 1834 [D&C 105:2–9]; on violence against the Saints in Missouri and their expulsion from Jackson County in November 1833, see “Joseph Smith Documents from February 1833 through March 1834;” see also “A History, of the Persecution,” Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839–Feb. 1840, 1:17–20, 33–36, 49–50.)

  5. [26]

    See 2 Chronicles 6:42; and Psalms 84:9; 132:10.

  6. [27]

    For an earlier revelation concerning the U.S. Constitution, see Revelation, 16–17 Dec. 1833 [D&C 101:77–80].

  7. [28]

    At the time of this prayer, Kirtland was the only appointed stake of Zion. (See Revelation, 2 Aug. 1833–B [D&C 94:1]; and Revelation, 11 Sept. 1831 [D&C 64:21–22].)

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