Revelation, 25 November 1834 [D&C 106]
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Source Note
Revelation, , Geauga Co., OH, 25 Nov. 1834. Featured version copied [ca. 25 Nov. 1834] in Revelation Book 2, p. 116; handwriting of ; CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for Revelation Book 2.
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Historical Introduction
On 25 November 1834, JS dictated this revelation explaining God’s will for , the older brother of . Warren Cowdery, who lived in , New York, had been into the sometime between May and September 1834. Before his baptism, he had sympathized with the Saints’ plight in Missouri. He had also opened his home to JS when JS and others came to Freedom in March 1834 to recruit members for the . Shortly after JS’s visit, a branch of the church was established in Freedom; when visited the area in April 1834, he noted that “a large Church” was there, “consisting of some forty members or more,” many of whom had been baptized by . Sometime after his own baptism, Warren Cowdery noted that the members of the church in Freedom were in need of “a preacher of our order” who could “do us good, by strengthening and building us up in the most holy faith.” Although he seemed to be calling for an to be sent to the , he may have meant that the branch needed a presiding authority, the position to which he was called in this revelation. In an October 1834 letter, he told Oliver that he “had thoughts of requesting you to enquire what is the will of the Lord concerning me,” stating that he sometimes thought he could be “useful in the vineyard of the Lord.” This revelation was apparently dictated after Oliver received Warren’s letter. In addition to designating Warren as a presiding in Freedom, the revelation gave admonitions and promises to him and provided instruction concerning the second advent of Jesus Christ.was likely not present when the revelation was dictated, because he wrote letters to from on 22 and 28 November. However, he may have come to , Ohio, shortly thereafter, because the Kirtland high council had determined in September 1834 that high priests were to be by that council, and there is no indication Warren Cowdery was a high priest before this revelation was dictated. Whatever the case, commentary in the December 1834 issue of the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate called him “the presiding elder of the church at Freedom, N. Y.,” indicating that by the time that issue was published, some action had been taken on this revelation’s instructions.The original of this revelation is not extant. Sometime after its dictation, recorded it in Revelation Book 2.
Footnotes
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1
Warren Cowdery, Freedom, NY, to Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, 14 Jan. 1834, in The Evening and the Morning Star, Jan. 1834, 127.
The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.
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2
JS, Journal, 9–12 Mar. 1834.
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3
Pratt, Autobiography, 121. A letter from Oliver Cowdery to Warren dated 29 April 1834 indicates that Warren was still not a member of the church at that time. (Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland Mills, OH, to Warren Cowdery, [Freedom, NY], 29 Apr. 1834, in Cowdery, Letterbook, 40–41.)
Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.
Cowdery, Oliver. Letterbook, 1833–1838. Huntington Library, San Marino, CA.
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4
Warren Cowdery, Freedom, NY, to Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, 1 Sept. 1834, in The Evening and the Morning Star, Sept. 1834, 189.
The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.
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5
Warren Cowdery, Freedom, NY, to Oliver Cowdery, [Kirtland, OH], 28 Oct. 1834, in LDS Messenger and Advocate, Nov. 1834, 1:22.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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6
Oliver Cowdery published the letter in the November 1834 issue of the Messenger and Advocate.
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7
Warren Cowdery, Freedom, NY, to Oliver Cowdery, [Kirtland, OH], 28 Nov. 1834, in LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1834, 1:35; “A Summary,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1834, 1:45.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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9
“A Summary,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1834, 1:45. The issue contains the notice of the death of a nine-year-old in Kirtland on 12 December 1834, meaning it was published sometime after 12 December. (Obituary for Cornelius Camfield, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1834, 1:41.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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