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| − | ==Criticism==
| + | #REDIRECT[[Joseph Smith and the Word of Wisdom#Did Joseph Smith violate the Word of Wisdom by drinking tea?]] |
| − | Critics charge that Joseph Smith drank tea, violating the woWord of Wisdom, and proving he is not a prophet.
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| − | ===Source(s) of the criticism===
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| − | *{{CriticalWork:Tanner:Changing World|pages=471}}
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| − | ==Response==
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| − | Critics count on "presentism"—they hope readers will judge historical figures by the standards of ''our'' day, instead of ''their'' day.
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| − | The Word of Wisdom was enforced differently in the 19th century than today. It was not the strict test of fellowships that it is for the modern member.
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| − | {{main|Word of Wisdom}}
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| − | Critics also fail to point out that the fact that Joseph noted the use of tea shows that it was probably a unique event, worthy of note.
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| − | In consulting the journal entry, we read: "Saturday, March 11th Too cold last night as to freeze [p.332] water in the warmest rooms in the city. River filled with anchor ice. 8 1/2 o'clock in the office, Joseph said he had tea with his breakfast."{{ref|faulring.1}}
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| − | In Joseph's day, medical thinking held that "hot drinks" (such as tea and coffee) could heat the body and vital fluids. While this was usually regarded as a bad idea that would be dangerous to health, in a time of extreme cold, tea might be seen as a medicinal substance which would help maintain health. As a physician, Willard Richards (who wrote Joseph's journal for him) would have known this.
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| − | By analogy, a modern member would be in violation of the Word of Wisdom if he or she injected morphine as a "recreational" drug. But, if the same drug was administered for a medical reason, the member would not be in violation.
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| − | ==Further reading==
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| − | {{WoWWiki}}
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