Difference between revisions of "Joseph Smith and the priesthood"
m
 
(80 intermediate revisions by 5 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
−
{{Articles FAIR copyright}} {{Articles Header 1}} {{Articles Header 2}} {{Articles Header 3}} {{Articles Header 4}} {{Articles Header 5}} {{Articles Header 6}} {{Articles Header 7}} {{Articles Header 8}} {{Articles Header 9}} {{Articles Header 10}}
+
{{Main Page}}  
−
{{JosephSmithPortal}}
+
{{Navigation:Joseph Smith}}{{blankline}}
−
=={{Criticism label}}==
 
−
*Critics claim that the restoration of the priesthood was "back dated" later by Joseph Smith to justify his desire to dominate the Church.
 
−
*Critics claim that no one seems to know "when or how" Joseph Smith received the Melchizedek priesthood.
 
  
−
{{CriticalSources}}
+
=What is the date of the restoration of the Melchizedek Priesthood?=
−
 
+
==There is a narrow May 15 to 30, 1829 ordination window==
−
=={{Response label}}==
 
−
 
 
−
Although historical documents do not give an exact date for the restoration of the Melchizedek priesthood we can pinpoint its occurrence to a 17 day window between the 15 and 31 of May, 1829.
 
−
 
 
−
===Aaronic Priesthood===
 
−
Joseph learned from Moroni in 1823 that “when [the golden plates] are interpreted the Lord will give the holy priesthood to some, and they shall begin to proclaim this gospel and baptize by water, and after that they shall have power to give the Holy Ghost by the laying on of their hands.”{{ref|Cowdery1}}  Two years later the first part of that pronouncement occurred when John the Baptist visited Joseph and Oliver:
 
−
 
 
−
:He said this Aaronic Priesthood had not the power of laying on hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, but that this should be conferred on us hereafter...The messenger who visited us on this occasion and conferred this Priesthood upon us, said that his name was John, the same that is called John the Baptist in the New Testament, and that he acted under the direction of Peter, James and John, who held the keys of the Priesthood of Melchizedek, which Priesthood, he said, would in due time be conferred on us...It was on the fifteenth day of May, 1829, that we were ordained under the hand of this messenger, and baptized.{{ref|Joseph1}}  We know that the Melchizedek priesthood therefore had not yet been given and must be given either later that day or sometime following that day.
 
−
 
 
−
Joseph and Oliver Cowdery were told to re-ordain each other to the priesthood after being baptized.  This was to follow proper rules of being a member before receiving the priesthood, but in their case they couldn't become members until having the priesthood to baptize each other.{{ref|JosephF1}}
 
−
 
 
−
===Melchizedek Priesthood===
 
−
Similar to this origination complication of baptism and membership, the ordination to the office of Elder via the higher priesthood could not occur until the church had been established.  After the church was officially established we have the following evidences that Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery had already received the higher priesthood:
 
−
 
 
−
# Aug 1830, the Lord spoke to the Prophet Joseph Smith of “Peter, and James, and John, whom I have sent unto you, by whom I have ordained you and confirmed you to be apostles, and especial witnesses of my name, and bear the keys of your ministry and of the same things which I revealed unto them.” {{scripture||DC|27|12}}
 
−
# Apr 1830, “And to Oliver Cowdery, who was also called of God, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to be the second elder of this church, and ordained under his hand.” {{scripture||DC|20|2-3}}
 
−
# “Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery sought after this higher authority, and the Lord gave it to them, before the rise of this Church, sending to them Peter, James and John. What for? To bestow upon them the Apostleship.” -Elder Parley P. Pratt {{ref|Journal1}}
 
−
# Hiram Page, a son-in-law of Peter Whitmer Sr., and one who was present on the day of the Church’s 6 April 1830 organization, later confirmed that “Peter, James and John” had come and bestowed the Holy Priesthood “before the 6th of April 1830.” {{ref|Hiram1}}
 
−
# “I know that Joseph received his Apostleship from Peter, James, and John, before a revelation on the subject was printed, and he never had a right to organize a Church before he was an Apostle.” -Brigham Young {{ref|Journal2}}
 
−
 
 
−
===Narrow Window===
 
 
Knowing that the prophet already had the Melchizedek priesthood prior to the organization of the church we can look at the following clues of the May 15 to 30, 1829 ordination window in order of progressively narrowed parameters:
 
Knowing that the prophet already had the Melchizedek priesthood prior to the organization of the church we can look at the following clues of the May 15 to 30, 1829 ordination window in order of progressively narrowed parameters:
−
# '''Year 1829''': There is a manuscript in Oliver Cowdery’s handwriting recording part of {{scripture||DC|18||}} saying, “Written in the year of our Lord & Saviour 1829.” {{ref|Cowdery2}}
+
# '''Year 1829''': There is a manuscript in Oliver Cowdery’s handwriting recording part of {{scripture||D&C|18||}} saying, "Written in the year of our Lord & Saviour 1829." <ref>Oliver Cowdery, "Written in the year of our Lord & Savior 1829—A true copy of the articles of the Church of Christ," MS 1829, Church Archives.</ref>
−
# '''June 1829''': In {{scripture||DC|18|9|}} we read “And now, Oliver Cowdery, I speak unto you, and also unto David Whitmer, by the way of commandment; for, behold, I command all men everywhere to repent, and I speak unto you, even as unto Paul mine apostle, for you are called even with that same calling with which he was called.”
+
# '''June 1829''': In {{scripture||D&C|18|9|}} we read "And now, Oliver Cowdery, I speak unto you, and also unto David Whitmer, by the way of commandment; for, behold, I command all men everywhere to repent, and I speak unto you, even as unto Paul mine apostle, for you are called even with that same calling with which he was called."
−
# '''Before June 14, 1829''': Oliver Cowdery wrote a letter to Hyrum Smith. The letter has some wording that quotes and refers to section 18 in the D&C. {{ref|Cowdery3}}
+
# '''Before June 14, 1829''': Oliver Cowdery wrote a letter to Hyrum Smith. The letter has some wording that quotes and refers to section 18 in the D&C. <ref>Letter of Oliver Cowdery to Hyrum Smith, 14 June 1829, Fayette, New York, Church Archives.</ref>
 
# '''Before June 1, 1829''':  
 
# '''Before June 1, 1829''':  
−
#* Joseph Smith said that he, Emma, Oliver and David Whitmer traveled to the home of Peter Whitmer Sr. “In the beginning of the month of June.” {{ref|History1}}
+
# Joseph Smith said that he, Emma, Oliver and David Whitmer traveled to the home of Peter Whitmer Sr. "In the beginning of the month of June." <ref>{{HoC | vol=1|start=48|end=49 }}; Papers of Joseph Smith, 1:293.</ref>
−
#* David Whitmer is quoted as saying “The translation at my father’s farm, Fayette Township, Seneca County, New York occupied about one month, that is from June 1, to July 1, 1829.” {{ref|Kansas1}} If those dates are exact then the Prophet was in New York during the entire month of June.
+
# David Whitmer is quoted as saying "The translation at my father’s farm, Fayette Township, Seneca County, New York occupied about one month, that is from June 1, to July 1, 1829." <ref>Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881.</ref> If those dates are exact then the Prophet was in New York during the entire month of June.
−
#* Orson Pratt asked David Whitmer, “Can you tell the date of the bestowal of the Apostleship upon Joseph, by Peter, James and John?” To which he replied: “I do not know, Joseph never told me.” From this we can tell that the visitation either:
+
# Orson Pratt asked David Whitmer, "Can you tell the date of the bestowal of the Apostleship upon Joseph, by Peter, James and John?" To which he replied: "I do not know, Joseph never told me." From this we can tell that the visitation either:
−
#*# Happened during the traveling when Joseph and Oliver were away from David and did not tell him about the occurrence (their trusted friend with whom they shared many other events).
+
## Happened during the traveling when Joseph and Oliver were away from David and did not tell him about the occurrence (their trusted friend with whom they shared many other events).
−
#*# Happened at another time than their travel from Harmony to Fayette.
+
## Happened at another time than their travel from Harmony to Fayette.
−
 
 
−
===Location===
 
−
 
 
−
Critics also raise the issue of ''where'' the Melchizedek priesthood restoration occurred.
 
−
 
 
−
The bestowal of the Melchizedek priesthood occurred in Harmony, Pennsylvania. {{ref|History2}}  The time of travel between Harmony, PA and the Whitmer farm would have been three days.  The likely hood of the men traveling back to Harmony at the same time as they did the following is near impossible:
 
−
:* Finished the translation
 
−
:* Secured the copyright on June 11
 
−
:* Oliver's letter to Hyrum on June 14
 
−
:* Joseph's details of how busy they were during this time period at the farm {{ref|History3}}
 
−
 
 
−
As shown above, after receiving the priesthood they were not yet allowed to ordain each other to the offices within that priesthood.  They were told to “defer this our ordination until such times as it should be practicable to have our brethren, who had been and who should be baptized, assembled together, when we must have their sanction to our proceeding to ordain each other.” {{ref|History42}}
 
  
−
There are many times{{ref|Miller1}} when Oliver confirmed without error that the sequence of events occurred as shown above.{{ref|Cowdery4}}
+
=Why did several years pass before Oliver Cowdery talked about the priesthood restoration?=
 +
==We don't know when Oliver first mentioned the priesthood restoration to anyone - we only know when he first put it in print==
  
−
===Other early mentions===
+
It should first be noted that many critics ignore versus in the Book of Mormon that refer explicitly to the priesthood:
  
−
Some have claimed that Joseph only began to mention apostolic ordination to the priesthood several years after the Church's organization. This claim is belied by the fact that in March of 1833, the Reverend Richmond Taggart wrote a letter to a ministerial friend, regarding the activities of Joseph Smith himself in Ohio: "The following Curious occurrance occurred last week in Newburg [Ohio] about 6 miles from this Place [Cleveland]. Joe Smith the great Mormonosity was there and held forth, and among other things he told them he had seen Jesus Christ and the Apostles and conversed with them, and that he could perform Miracles."{{ref|mar.1833}} 
+
* Alma 4:20 - Alma was "confined [to the] high priesthood of the holy order of God..."
 +
* Alma 5:3 - Alma the younger is consecrated to be a high priest over the church of God by his father, Alma, who had power and authority from God to ordain.
 +
*Alma 13 - an explication of the power and function of the High Priesthood of Melchizedek.
 +
* Mosiah 18:17 - only those baptized by the "power and authority of God" are added to the Church
 +
* 3 Nephi 11:25; 12:1 - the 12 Nephite apostles receive power and authority to baptize
  
−
Here, then, is a clear reference to Joseph Smith stating he had seen Jesus Christ.  Joseph’s ‘conversations’ with the Apostles could be a reference to having seen, spoken to, and been ordained to the Priesthood by the early Apostles Peter, James, and John.  Having received that Priesthood Joseph Smith was now qualified to perform healings, and other ‘miracles’.
+
These are the earliest printed mentions of the priesthood. We don't know when Oliver first mentioned the priesthood restoration to anyone - we only know when he first put it in print. But consider this: If Oliver was covering up a fraud on the part of Joseph Smith when he talked of receiving the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods, then why didn't he expose the fraud after he fell into disagreement with Joseph Smith and was excommunicated from the Church? Why, in fact, did Oliver continue to insist that the events related to the restoration of the Priesthood actually happened?
  
−
=={{Conclusion label}}==
+
The implication is that Oliver was dishonest, yet his associates during the time that he was a lawyer ''after'' leaving the Church viewed his character as "irreproachable". Harvey Gibson, a political opponent of Oliver's, and another lawyer (whose statue now stands in front of the Seneca County courthouse) wrote:
 +
<blockquote>
 +
Cowdery was an able lawyer and [an] agreeable, irreproachable gentleman. <ref>"Letter from General W. H. Gibson," Seneca Advertiser (Tiffin, Ohio) 12 April 1892.</ref>
 +
</blockquote>
  
−
When all the circumstantial evidence is studied, the approximate time of the Melchizedek priesthood' restoration can be plausibly narrowed down. Although the exact date is not known, the window that is known is small enough to preclude a later fabrication of events by the Prophet to "increase his authority."
+
Webster's 1828 dictionary defines "irreproachable" as "That cannot be justly reproached; free from blame; upright; innocent. An irreproachable life is the highest honor of a rational being." <ref>Webster's Dictionary, {{link|url=http://1828.mshaffer.com/d/search/word,irreproachable}}</ref>
  
−
=={{Endnotes label}}==
+
Oliver wrote the following to Phineas Young two years after Joseph's death, well ''after'' he had left the Church:
−
#{{note|Cowdery1}} As quoted by Oliver Cowdery in a letter to W. W. Phelps printed in {{MAfairwiki|vol=2|num=1|date=October 1835|start=199}}.
+
<blockquote>
−
#{{note|Joseph1}} {{scripture||JS-H|1|70-72}}
+
I have cherished a hope, and that one of my fondest, that I might leave such a character, as those who might believe in my testimony, after I should be called hence, might do so, not only for the sake of the truth, but might not blush for the private character of the man who bore that testimony. I have been sensitive on this subject, I admit; but I ought to be so—you would be, under the circumstances, '''had you stood in the presence of John, with our departed Brother Joseph, to receive the Lesser Priesthood—and in the presence of Peter, to receive the Greater, and looked down through time, and witnessed the effects these two must produce''',—you would feel what you have never felt, were wicked men conspiring to lessen the effects of your testimony on man, after you should have gone to your long sought rest. <ref>Oliver Cowdery to Phineas Young, 23 March 1846, Oliver Cowdery Collection, "Scriptory Book of Joseph Smith Jr." (kept by George W. Robinson), 22, Church Historical Department (published in Scott H. Faulring, ed, ''An American Prophet's Record.— The Diaries and Journals of Joseph Smith'' (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 1989), emphasis in original; cited in Scott H. Faulring. "The Return of Oliver Cowdery", FARMS Featured Paper, no date.</ref>
−
#{{note|JosephF1}} Joseph Fielding Smith, Essentials in Church History, 27th ed. (1974), 58.
+
</blockquote>
−
#{{note|Journal1}} {{JDfairwiki|author=Orson Pratt|vol=16 |start=294|end=295|disc=40}}
 
−
#{{note|Hiram1}} Letter of Hiram Page to “Brother Wm. [William E. McLellin],” 4 March 1848, Fishing River, Missouri, Second Part, RLDS Archives, Independence, Missouri.
 
−
#{{note|Journal2}} {{JDfairwiki|author=Brigham Young|vol=1|start=137|disc=22}}; emphasis added.
 
−
#{{note|Cowdery2}} Oliver Cowdery, “Written in the year of our Lord & Savior 1829—A true copy of the articles of the Church of Christ,” MS 1829, LDS Church Archives.
 
−
#{{note|Cowdery3}} Letter of Oliver Cowdery to Hyrum Smith, 14 June 1829, Fayette, New York, LDS Church Archives.
 
−
#{{note|History1}} {{HoC | vol=1|start=48|end=49 }}; Papers of Joseph Smith, 1:293.
 
−
#{{note|Kansas1}} Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881.
 
−
#{{note|History2}} {{scripture||DC|128|20}}; {{HoC | vol=1|start=40|end=41 }}
 
−
#{{note|History3}} {{HoC | vol=1|start=51|end=51 }}
 
−
#{{note|History4}} {{HoC | vol=1|start=60|end=61 }}; emphasis added.
 
−
#{{note|Miller1}} Reuben Miller Journal, 21 Oct. 1848, MS 1392, LDS Church Archives.
 
−
#{{note|Cowdery4}} Statement of Oliver Cowdery to Samuel W. Richards, 13 Jan. 1849, quoted in Deseret Evening News, 22 March 1884, 2.
 
−
#{{note|mar.1833}} Richmond Taggart to the Reverend Jonathan Goings, 2 March 1833, 2, Jonathon Goings Papers, American Baptist Historical Society, Rochester, New York, quoted in {{Book:Vogel:EMD|vol=1|pages=205}} See also {{Book:Prince:Power From On High|pages=8}}
 
  
−
=={{Further reading label}}==
+
=''Painesville Telegraph'' (1830): "Cowdry claims that he and his associates are the only persons on earth who are qualified to administer in his name. By this authority, they proclaim to the world"=
 +
''Painesville Telegraph'', 7 December 1830:
 +
<blockquote>
 +
Mr. Oliver Cowdry has his commission directly from the God of Heaven, and that he has credentials, written and signed by the hand of Jesus Christ, with whom he has personally conversed, and as such, said Cowdry claims that he and his associates are the only persons on earth who are qualified to administer in his name. By this authority, they proclaim to the world, that all who do not believe their testimony, and be baptized by them for the remission of sins . . . must be forever miserable.<ref>''Painesville Telegraph'', 7 December 1830</ref>
 +
</blockquote>
  
−
==={{FAIR wiki articles label}}===
+
=''Painesville Telegraph'' (1830): "The name of the person here, who pretends to have a divine mission, and to have seen and conversed with Angels, is Cowdray"=
−
{{ApostasyWiki}}
+
''Painesville Telegraph'', 16 November 1830:
−
{{PriesthoodWiki}}
+
<blockquote>
 +
About Two weeks since some persons came along here with the book, one of whom pretends to have seen Angels, and assisted in translating the plates. He proclaims the destruction upon the world within a few years,--holds forth that the ordinances of the gospel, have not been regularly administered since the days of the Apostles, till the said Smith and himself commenced the work . . . . The name of the person here, who pretends to have a divine mission, and to have seen and conversed with Angels, is Cowdray."<ref>{{Periodical:Painesville Telegraph:16.nov.1830}}</ref>
 +
</blockquote>
  
−
==={{FAIR web site label}}===
+
=''The Palmyra Reflector'' (1831): "Jo Smith had now received a commission from God...Cowdery and his friends had frequent interviews with angels"=
−
{{ApostasyFAIR}}
+
''The Palmyra Reflector'', February 14, 1831:
 +
<blockquote>
 +
They then proclaimed that there had been no religion in the world for 1500 years,--that no one had been authorized to preach &c. for that period—that Jo Smith had now received a commission from God for that purpose . . . . Smith (they affirmed) had seen God frequently and personally—Cowdery and his friends had frequent interviews with angels.<ref>''The Palmyra Reflector'', February 14, 1831.</ref>
 +
</blockquote>
  
−
==={{External links label}}===
+
=Reverend Taggart (1833): "Joe Smith...told them he had seen Jesus Christ and the Apostles and conversed with them, and that he could perform miracles"=
−
{{ApostasyLinks}}
+
Reverend Richmond Taggart to Reverend Jonathan Goings, Cleveland, Ohio, March 2, 1833:
−
{{PriesthoodLinks}}
+
<blockquote>
 +
The following Curious occurrence occurred last week in Newburg about 6 miles from this Place [Cleveland, Ohio]. Joe Smith the great Mormonosity was there and held forth, and among other things he told them he had seen Jesus Christ and the Apostles and conversed with them, and that he could perform miracles.<ref>Reverend Richmond Taggart to Reverend Jonathan Goings, Cleveland, Ohio, March 2, 1833.</ref>
 +
</blockquote>
  
−
==={{Printed material label}}===  
+
{{FMEBar
−
{{ApostasyPrint}}
+
|category=Priesthood/Restoration
−
{{PriesthoodPrint}}
+
|subject=More evidence related to the restoration of the priesthood
−
{{Articles Footer 1}} {{Articles Footer 2}} {{Articles Footer 3}} {{Articles Footer 4}} {{Articles Footer 5}} {{Articles Footer 6}} {{Articles Footer 7}} {{Articles Footer 8}} {{Articles Footer 9}} {{Articles Footer 10}}
+
}}
  
−
[[fr:Priesthood/Restoration/Melchizedek/Date]]
+
{{Critical sources box:Mormonism and priesthood/Restoration/Melchizedek/Date/CriticalSources}}{{blankline}}
 +
{{endnotes sources}}
 +
<!-- PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE ANYTHING BELOW THIS LINE -->
 +
[[Category:An Insider's View of Mormon Origins]]
 +
[[Category:Becoming Gods]]
 +
[[Category:Letter to a CES Director]]
 +
[[Category:MormonThink]]
 +
[[Category:Oliver Cowdery/Priesthood]]
 +
[[Category:Questions]]
 +
[[Category:The Changing World of Mormonism]]
 +
[[es:Fuente:Painesville Telegraph:16 nov 1830:Cowdery pretende tener una misión divina y conversado con ángeles]]
 +
[[es:Fuente:Painesville Telegraph:7 dic 1830:Cowdry reclamaciones ... Por esta autoridad, proclaman al mundo]]
 +
[[es:Fuente:Reverend Richmond Taggart:2 marzo 1833:Joe Smith...había visto a Jesús Cristo y los Apóstoles y conversado con ellos]]
 +
[[es:Fuente:The Palmyra Reflector:14 feb 1831:Cowdery y sus amigos tenían entrevistas frecuentes con los ángeles]]
 +
[[es:Pregunta: ¿Cuál es la fecha de la restauración del Sacerdocio de Melquisedec?]]
 +
[[es:Pregunta: ¿Por qué pasan varios años antes de que Oliver habló sobre la restauración del sacerdocio?]]
 +
[[pt:Fonte:Painesville Telegraph:16 Nov 1830:Cowdery finge ter uma missão divina e conversou com anjos]]
 +
[[pt:Fonte:Painesville Telegraph:7 dezembro 1830:Cowdry afirma ... por esta autoridade, eles proclamar ao mundo]]
 +
[[pt:Fonte:Reverend Richmond Taggart:2 março 1833:Joe Smith...tinha visto Jesus Cristo e os Apóstolos e conversou com eles]]
 +
[[pt:Fonte:The Palmyra Reflector:14 Feb 1831:Cowdery e seus amigos tinham entrevistas frequentes com anjos]]
 +
[[pt:Pergunta: Por que se passaram vários anos antes de Oliver falar sobre a restauração do sacerdócio?]]
 +
[[pt:Pergunta: Qual é a data da restauração do Sacerdócio de Melquisedeque?]]
 +
[[de:Mormonismus und Priestertum/Wiederherstellung/Melchisedek/Datum]]
 +
[[es:El Mormonismo y el sacerdocio/La restauración/Melquisedec/Fecha]]
 +
[[pt:Mormonismo e sacerdócio/A restauração/Melquisedeque/Data]]

Latest revision as of 23:21, 19 May 2024
Articles about Joseph Smith
Life and Character
Youth
Revelations and the Church
Prophetic Statements
Society
Plural marriage (polygamy)
Death

What is the date of the restoration of the Melchizedek Priesthood?

There is a narrow May 15 to 30, 1829 ordination window

Knowing that the prophet already had the Melchizedek priesthood prior to the organization of the church we can look at the following clues of the May 15 to 30, 1829 ordination window in order of progressively narrowed parameters:

  1. Year 1829: There is a manuscript in Oliver Cowdery’s handwriting recording part of D&C 18: saying, "Written in the year of our Lord & Saviour 1829." [1]
  2. June 1829: In D&C 18:9 we read "And now, Oliver Cowdery, I speak unto you, and also unto David Whitmer, by the way of commandment; for, behold, I command all men everywhere to repent, and I speak unto you, even as unto Paul mine apostle, for you are called even with that same calling with which he was called."
  3. Before June 14, 1829: Oliver Cowdery wrote a letter to Hyrum Smith. The letter has some wording that quotes and refers to section 18 in the D&C. [2]
  4. Before June 1, 1829:
  5. Joseph Smith said that he, Emma, Oliver and David Whitmer traveled to the home of Peter Whitmer Sr. "In the beginning of the month of June." [3]
  6. David Whitmer is quoted as saying "The translation at my father’s farm, Fayette Township, Seneca County, New York occupied about one month, that is from June 1, to July 1, 1829." [4] If those dates are exact then the Prophet was in New York during the entire month of June.
  7. Orson Pratt asked David Whitmer, "Can you tell the date of the bestowal of the Apostleship upon Joseph, by Peter, James and John?" To which he replied: "I do not know, Joseph never told me." From this we can tell that the visitation either:
    1. Happened during the traveling when Joseph and Oliver were away from David and did not tell him about the occurrence (their trusted friend with whom they shared many other events).
    2. Happened at another time than their travel from Harmony to Fayette.

Why did several years pass before Oliver Cowdery talked about the priesthood restoration?

We don't know when Oliver first mentioned the priesthood restoration to anyone - we only know when he first put it in print

It should first be noted that many critics ignore versus in the Book of Mormon that refer explicitly to the priesthood:

  • Alma 4:20 - Alma was "confined [to the] high priesthood of the holy order of God..."
  • Alma 5:3 - Alma the younger is consecrated to be a high priest over the church of God by his father, Alma, who had power and authority from God to ordain.
  • Alma 13 - an explication of the power and function of the High Priesthood of Melchizedek.
  • Mosiah 18:17 - only those baptized by the "power and authority of God" are added to the Church
  • 3 Nephi 11:25; 12:1 - the 12 Nephite apostles receive power and authority to baptize

These are the earliest printed mentions of the priesthood. We don't know when Oliver first mentioned the priesthood restoration to anyone - we only know when he first put it in print. But consider this: If Oliver was covering up a fraud on the part of Joseph Smith when he talked of receiving the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods, then why didn't he expose the fraud after he fell into disagreement with Joseph Smith and was excommunicated from the Church? Why, in fact, did Oliver continue to insist that the events related to the restoration of the Priesthood actually happened?

The implication is that Oliver was dishonest, yet his associates during the time that he was a lawyer after leaving the Church viewed his character as "irreproachable". Harvey Gibson, a political opponent of Oliver's, and another lawyer (whose statue now stands in front of the Seneca County courthouse) wrote:

Cowdery was an able lawyer and [an] agreeable, irreproachable gentleman. [5]

Webster's 1828 dictionary defines "irreproachable" as "That cannot be justly reproached; free from blame; upright; innocent. An irreproachable life is the highest honor of a rational being." [6]

Oliver wrote the following to Phineas Young two years after Joseph's death, well after he had left the Church:

I have cherished a hope, and that one of my fondest, that I might leave such a character, as those who might believe in my testimony, after I should be called hence, might do so, not only for the sake of the truth, but might not blush for the private character of the man who bore that testimony. I have been sensitive on this subject, I admit; but I ought to be so—you would be, under the circumstances, had you stood in the presence of John, with our departed Brother Joseph, to receive the Lesser Priesthood—and in the presence of Peter, to receive the Greater, and looked down through time, and witnessed the effects these two must produce,—you would feel what you have never felt, were wicked men conspiring to lessen the effects of your testimony on man, after you should have gone to your long sought rest. [7]

Painesville Telegraph (1830): "Cowdry claims that he and his associates are the only persons on earth who are qualified to administer in his name. By this authority, they proclaim to the world"

Painesville Telegraph, 7 December 1830:

Mr. Oliver Cowdry has his commission directly from the God of Heaven, and that he has credentials, written and signed by the hand of Jesus Christ, with whom he has personally conversed, and as such, said Cowdry claims that he and his associates are the only persons on earth who are qualified to administer in his name. By this authority, they proclaim to the world, that all who do not believe their testimony, and be baptized by them for the remission of sins . . . must be forever miserable.[8]

Painesville Telegraph (1830): "The name of the person here, who pretends to have a divine mission, and to have seen and conversed with Angels, is Cowdray"

Painesville Telegraph, 16 November 1830:

About Two weeks since some persons came along here with the book, one of whom pretends to have seen Angels, and assisted in translating the plates. He proclaims the destruction upon the world within a few years,--holds forth that the ordinances of the gospel, have not been regularly administered since the days of the Apostles, till the said Smith and himself commenced the work . . . . The name of the person here, who pretends to have a divine mission, and to have seen and conversed with Angels, is Cowdray."[9]

The Palmyra Reflector (1831): "Jo Smith had now received a commission from God...Cowdery and his friends had frequent interviews with angels"

The Palmyra Reflector, February 14, 1831:

They then proclaimed that there had been no religion in the world for 1500 years,--that no one had been authorized to preach &c. for that period—that Jo Smith had now received a commission from God for that purpose . . . . Smith (they affirmed) had seen God frequently and personally—Cowdery and his friends had frequent interviews with angels.[10]

Reverend Taggart (1833): "Joe Smith...told them he had seen Jesus Christ and the Apostles and conversed with them, and that he could perform miracles"

Reverend Richmond Taggart to Reverend Jonathan Goings, Cleveland, Ohio, March 2, 1833:

The following Curious occurrence occurred last week in Newburg about 6 miles from this Place [Cleveland, Ohio]. Joe Smith the great Mormonosity was there and held forth, and among other things he told them he had seen Jesus Christ and the Apostles and conversed with them, and that he could perform miracles.[11]

See FAIR Evidence:
More evidence related to the restoration of the priesthood


Source(s) of the criticism
Critical sources

Notes

  1. ↑ Oliver Cowdery, "Written in the year of our Lord & Savior 1829—A true copy of the articles of the Church of Christ," MS 1829, Church Archives.
  2. ↑ Letter of Oliver Cowdery to Hyrum Smith, 14 June 1829, Fayette, New York, Church Archives.
  3. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 1:48–49. Volume 1 link; Papers of Joseph Smith, 1:293.
  4. ↑ Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881.
  5. ↑ "Letter from General W. H. Gibson," Seneca Advertiser (Tiffin, Ohio) 12 April 1892.
  6. ↑ Webster's Dictionary, off-site
  7. ↑ Oliver Cowdery to Phineas Young, 23 March 1846, Oliver Cowdery Collection, "Scriptory Book of Joseph Smith Jr." (kept by George W. Robinson), 22, Church Historical Department (published in Scott H. Faulring, ed, An American Prophet's Record.— The Diaries and Journals of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 1989), emphasis in original; cited in Scott H. Faulring. "The Return of Oliver Cowdery", FARMS Featured Paper, no date.
  8. ↑ Painesville Telegraph, 7 December 1830
  9. ↑ “The Golden Bible,” Painesville Telegraph (Ohio) (16 November 1830).
  10. ↑ The Palmyra Reflector, February 14, 1831.
  11. ↑ Reverend Richmond Taggart to Reverend Jonathan Goings, Cleveland, Ohio, March 2, 1833.
Retrieved from "https://www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/answers/index.php?title=Joseph_Smith_and_the_priesthood&oldid=260007"