Skip to main content

Note, circa 24 May 1839

  1. Home > 
  2. The Papers > 

Note, circa 24 May 1839

Source Note

JS, Note, , Hancock Co., IL, ca. 24 May 1839. Featured version copied [between 29 May and 30 Oct. 1839] in JS Letterbook 2, p. 47; handwriting of ; JS Collection, CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS Letterbook 2.

Historical Introduction

On or around 24 May 1839, JS created a note approving recent items of business in , Illinois. First, he sanctioned a statement from the concerning recent proceedings of the Quorums of the , which acted under the direction of the Twelve. Consequently, the apostles, who acted under the direction of the , brought the proceedings of the seventies to JS for review.
Second, JS indicated his approval of the proposed mission of the apostles to Europe. During the general of the church on 4–5 May 1839 and a meeting for leaders on 6 May, the Saints approved resolutions that the apostles, along with some seventies and , should embark on a mission to Europe. Seven of the apostles—, , , , , , and —had recently returned from , Missouri, where on 26 April 1839 they met at the , as directed by revelation, in preparation for undertaking their transatlantic mission.
The date of JS’s note is uncertain. dated the note 24 May 1839 when he copied it into JS Letterbook 2. JS’s journal indicates that JS dictated letters and “attend[ed] to the various business of the Church” from 20 to 24 May, which aligns with Mulholland’s dating. However, the journal entry dated 25 May states that JS “met in conference with the twelve, and others of the church.” Because the text of the note suggests it was drafted as a result of a council meeting or conference, the note was perhaps created in response to proceedings of the 25 May conference, for which there are no minutes. JS’s original note, which is apparently not extant, may have been misdated, or Mulholland may have made an error when he copied the note into the letterbook. Several elements in the text indicate JS authored the note. These elements include the note’s reference to “myself”; the inclusion of JS’s full name—possibly a signature in the original—after the first approved item; and his initials at the end of the second approved item. It is unknown whether he drafted the original himself or dictated it to a scribe. It appears that Mulholland copied the original note when he inscribed the text in Letterbook 2 between 29 May and 30 October 1839.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107:34].

  2. [2]

    Minutes, 4–5 May 1839; Minutes, 6 May 1839.

  3. [3]

    Historian’s Office, General Church Minutes, 26 Apr. 1839; Letter to Heber C. Kimball and Brigham Young, 16 Jan. 1839; see also Revelation, 8 July 1838–A [D&C 118:4–5].

    Historian’s Office. General Church Minutes, 1839–1877. CHL

  4. [4]

    JS, Journal, 20–24 May 1839.

  5. [5]

    JS, Journal, 25 May 1839. Woodruff indicated that on 25 May, five of the twelve apostles traveled from Montrose, Iowa Territory, to Commerce and “spent the day in Council with Joseph.” While no minutes from that council meeting are extant, various sources indicate that the meeting included the reinstatement of William Smith to full fellowship, discussion of the recent publication of Lyman Wight’s letters in the Quincy Whig, and considerable instruction from JS. (Woodruff, Journal, 24–25 May 1839; Letter to Lyman Wight, 27 May 1839.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  6. [6]

    Mulholland copied his own 29 May 1839 letter to Edward Partridge on page 15 of JS Letterbook 2, making that the earliest likely copying date for documents he subsequently copied but that had dates preceding 29 May.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Note, circa 24 May 1839
Letterbook 2 History, 1838–1856, volume C-1 [2 November 1838–31 July 1842] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 47

May 24th 1839 Ill.
Statement made by the of the proceedings of the , Satisfactorily to myself and therefore Sanctioned.
Joseph Smith Jr
of the .
Also approve of the Twelve going to &c, J. S. [p. 47]
View entire transcript

|

Cite this page

Source Note

Document Transcript

Page 47

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Note, circa 24 May 1839
ID #
1618
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
JSP, D6:476–477
Handwriting on This Page
  • James Mulholland

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    The Quorums of the Seventy met in council on 12, 14, and 19 May 1839. The proceedings mentioned in this note could have been a report of any or all of these meetings, since members of the Twelve were present at all three. At these meetings, participants discussed regulations for foreign and domestic missions, the necessity for quorum members to keep their families in order, and financial support for the presidents of the Seventy. The apostles may have presented to JS the seventies’ 12 May resolutions to select some of their members to accompany the apostles on the mission to Europe and to provide those men with letters of recommendation. (Quorums of the Seventy, “Book of Records,” 71–78.)

    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.

  2. [2]

    A revelation JS dictated on 8 July 1838 directed the apostles to go on a mission “over the great waters” in 1839. It appears that the elders intended to travel first to England, where Kimball and others preached in 1837, and from there expand their proselytizing to other European countries. Woodruff used “England” and “Europe” interchangeably when referring to the missionaries’ destination, and James Mulholland addressed a letter of recommendation to his Irish relatives for “those of the European Mission who shall visit Ireland.” JS’s journal entry on 7 July describes the 1839 mission broadly as “this most important mission. viz to the nations of the earth, and the Islands of the sea.” (Revelation, 8 July 1838–A [D&C 118:4]; Woodruff, Journal, 4 May 1839; 8 and 17 June 1839; James Mulholland, Letter of Introduction, Commerce, IL, 10 July 1839, CHL; JS, Journal, 7 July 1839; see also Recommendation for Heber C. Kimball, between 2 and 13 June 1837.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

    Mulholland, James. Letter of Introduction, Commerce, IL, for Heber C. Kimball et al., 10 July 1839. CHL.