Preface to Doctrine and Covenants, 17 February 1835
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Source Note
JS, , , and , Preface, , Geauga Co., OH, 17 Feb. 1835; in Doctrine and Covenants, 1835 ed., [iii]–iv. For more complete source information, see the source note for Doctrine and Covenants, 1835 edition.
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Historical Introduction
On 17 February 1835, the committee appointed to compile JS’s revelations for publication produced a preface to that compilation explaining the contents of the book and the reasons for its publication. The publication of an earlier volume of JS’s revelations, known as the Book of Commandments, was aborted in July 1833, when violence against church members in , Jackson County, Missouri, resulted in the destruction of the and major damage to the press on which was printing the book. Thereafter, church leaders in , Ohio, decided to obtain a new press, which purchased in , New York, and had shipped to Kirtland; it arrived there by December 1833. On 24 September 1834, the Kirtland appointed a committee consisting of JS, Cowdery, , and to “arrange the items of the doctrine of Jesus Christ for the government of the church of Latter-Day Saints” for publication as a book. The volume, which was later titled the Doctrine and Covenants, was to contain selected items from “the bible, book of mormon, and the revelations which have been given to the church.” However, rather than select passages from the Bible and the Book of Mormon, the committee chose to include doctrinal lectures, later known as the Lectures on Faith, that were given to the in Kirtland in winter 1834–1835. The compilation also included approximately one hundred of JS’s revelations, intended “for the regulation of the church.”Addressing the preface of the volume to members of the church, the committee explained that the book had been compiled to present church members’ beliefs, in part because the church was “evil spoken of in many places—its faith and belief misrepresented.” This was a matter of some concern. The Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate had recently published several letters from missionaries, some of which depicted the opposition they encountered from “enemies to the cause of truth.” In his year-end summary for 1834, also published in the Messenger and Advocate, noted that there was great prejudice against the church and its teachings in many places. He wrote, “No sooner have the elders of the church of the Latter Day Saints set foot in any place, among any people, than an alarm was sounded, and every professor, liar, drunkard, false swearer, infidel, or atheist, was exerting his influence to hinder others from hearing.” In the February 1835 Messenger and Advocate, another series of letters addressed the concerns mentioned in the preface to the Doctrine and Covenants. John Badger, an proselytizing in , wrote, “A multitude of priests, professors, and people of every order, sect, party, denomination, and grade, are striving with all the combined powers of darkness to stop the progressive work of the King of kings.” Carvel Rigdon, writing from Alleghany County, Pennsylvania, similarly stated, “The people in our own neighborhood continue to believe the evil reports which are circulating through the country, and will not let us have an opportunity of telling them what we do believe; and they prevent every person they can from hearing for themselves.” According to Cowdery, the committee assembled this new volume to give all “a perfect understanding of the doctrine believed by this society.”JS, , , and filed a copyright for the Doctrine and Covenants on 14 January 1835. The work of publishing the volume moved slowly after the copyright filing, but by 17 February, the date this preface was written, all the materials to be published had been selected. The volume itself, however, was not available until September 1835.It is not known who drafted this preface or the process by which it was refined and approved, although it was signed by the committee appointed to compile the book, including JS. The earliest extant version, featured here, is the version published in the 1835 Doctrine and Covenants.
Footnotes
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1
For the history of the Book of Commandments, see Historical Introduction to Book of Commandments.
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2
Minutes, 11 Sept. 1833; Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, to Warren Cowdery, Freedom, NY, 30 Oct. 1833, in Cowdery, Letterbook, 1; Frederick G. Williams, Kirtland, OH, to “Dear Brethren,” 10 Oct. 1833, in JS Letterbook 1, p. 58; JS History, vol. A-1, 358.
Cowdery, Oliver. Letterbook, 1833–1838. Huntington Library, San Marino, CA.
JS History / Smith, Joseph, et al. History, 1838–1856. Vols. A-1–F-1 (original), A-2–E-2 (fair copy). Historian’s Office, History of the Church, 1839–ca. 1882. CHL. CR 100 102, boxes 1–7. The history for the period after 5 Aug. 1838 was composed after the death of Joseph Smith.
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4
“A Summary,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1834, 1:43–46.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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5
Oliver Cowdery, “The Closing Year,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1834, 1:47.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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6
“A Summary,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Feb. 1835, 1:75–76.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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7
Editorial, LDS Messenger and Advocate, May 1835, 1:122.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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8
Copyright for Doctrine and Covenants, 14 Jan. 1835, Copyright Records, Ohio, 1831–1848 (Department of State), unnumbered vol., Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress, Washington DC.
Copyright for Doctrine and Covenants, 14 Jan. 1835. Copyright Records, Ohio, 1831–1848 (Department of State). Unnumbered vol. Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress, Washington DC.
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9
Historical Introduction to Doctrine and Covenants, 1835.
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1
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