Discourse, 3 October 1841, as Reported by Willard Richards
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Source Note
JS, Discourse, , Hancock Co., IL, 3 Oct. 1841; handwriting of ; five pages; Historian’s Office, General Church Minutes, CHL.Two bifolia, each measuring 7⅞ × 5¾ inches (20 × 15 cm). The discourse is written in very faint graphite, making significant portions of the text illegible.The discourse is part of a larger collection of general church minutes created or collected by scribes affiliated with the Church Historian’s Office. It is uncertain exactly when this discourse was included in the general church minutes. However, worked on JS’s history as early as 1842. Likely around that time, he added his records of JS’s sermons and writings to a compilation of documents about JS and the church. The featured document has likely remained in institutional custody since its creation.
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Historical Introduction
On the morning of 3 October 1841, at a session of a general in , Illinois, JS gave a discourse on the doctrine of for the dead, whereby church members were baptized vicariously for their deceased relatives. attended this meeting and wrote down fragmentary notes from JS’s sermon in an apparent attempt to capture the church ’s words as he spoke. The text featured here is one of two extant versions of JS’s 3 October 1841 discourse; the other is a printed, more polished version found in the 15 October 1841 issue of the Times and Seasons. The printed version, along with additional historical context and annotation, is found in Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 October 1841.
Footnotes
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1
For more on the October general conference, see Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841; for more on the doctrine of baptism for the dead, see Minutes, 3–5 Oct. 1840.
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1
Document Transcript
Footnotes
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1
See Obadiah 1:21.
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2
See Minutes and Discourse, 3–5 Oct. 1840; and Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:29–32].
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3
This may be a reference to Christian Universalism, which taught that regardless of action, all human souls would ultimately be saved and reconciled with God because of His divine love and mercy. (See Skinner, Series of Sermons, 209; Hatch, Democratization of American Christianity, 41; and Holifield, Theology in America, chap. 10.)
Skinner, Otis A. A Series of Sermons in Defence of the Doctrine of Universal Salvation. Boston: Abel Tompkins, 1842.
Hatch, Nathan O. The Democratization of American Christianity. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989.
Holifield, E. Brooks. Theology in America: Christian Thought from the Age of the Puritans to the Civil War. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003.
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4
See 1 Peter 3:19.
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5
See Hebrews 12:23; and Vision, 16 Feb. 1832 [D&C 76:69].
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6
An instruction on priesthood given in October 1840 discussed the doctrine of translation. (See Instruction on Priesthood, ca. 5 Oct. 1840.)
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7
See Matthew 27:52–53; and Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 187–188, 503 [Mosiah 15:21–22; 3 Nephi 23:9–12].
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8
See Matthew 16:19.
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9
See Revelation 20:12.
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10
This may be a reference to JS’s brother Alvin, who died before JS recorded having received knowledge about the kingdoms of glory. (See Visions, 21 Jan. 1836 [D&C 137:5].)
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11
In a March 1838 document entitled “Motto of the Church of Christ of Latterday Saints,” JS and others similarly wrote, “Wo to tyrants, Mobs, Aristocracy, Anarchy and Toryism.” The use of Tory or Toryism in the motto referred to sympathizing with a group’s enemies and may have the same connotation here. (See Motto, ca. 16 or 17 Mar. 1838; and “Tory,” and “Toryism,” in American Dictionary.)
An American Dictionary of the English Language; Exhibiting the Origin, Orthography, Pronunciation, and Definitions of Words. Edited by Noah Webster. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1845.
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12
See Matthew 9:17; Mark 2:22; and Luke 5:37.
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13
Martin Luther was a German theologian who opposed the Roman Catholic Church’s teachings and emerged as a central figure in the Protestant Reformation of the early 1500s. Alexander Campbell led a sizable religious group in the United States known as the Disciples of Christ. Campbell was an ardent opponent of JS and the teachings of the Latter-day Saint faith. (Bainton, Here I Stand, chap. 4; Brady, German Histories, 146–152; “Delusions,” Millennial Harbinger, 7 Feb. 1831, 85–95; Campbell, Delusions, 6–11; Letter to Oliver Cowdery, 24 Sept. 1834.)
Brady, Thomas A., Jr. German Histories in the Age of Reformations, 1400–1650. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
Millennial Harbinger. Bethany, VA. Jan. 1830–Dec. 1870.
Campbell, Alexander. Delusions. An Analysis of the Book of Mormon; with an Examination of Its Internal and External Evidences, and a Refutation of Its Pretences to Divine Authority. Boston: Benjamin H. Greene, 1832.
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14
This likely refers to the second chapter of Acts in the New Testament, which contains verses about the gift of the Holy Ghost.
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15
See Ephesians 1:10; and Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:41].
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16
See Malachi 4:5; and Visions, 3 Apr. 1836 [D&C 110:13–16].
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17
The printed version of this discourse clarifies, “Those saints who neglect it”—meaning baptism for the dead—“in behalf of their deceased relatives, do it at the peril of their own salvation.” (Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841.)
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18
In accordance with instruction given in a January 1841 revelation, JS announced, “There shall be no more baptisms for the dead, until the ordinance can be attended to in the font of the Lord’s House,” referring to the Nauvoo temple, “and the church shall not hold another general conference, until they can meet in said house.” (Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841; see also Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:29–32].)