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:Elder George A. Smith was appointed at General Conference to be the new Church Historian. | :Elder George A. Smith was appointed at General Conference to be the new Church Historian. | ||
− | ''' | + | '''9 August 1855''' |
− | :Elder George A. Smith wrote to the editor of the ''Deseret News'' on 9 August 1855 and gave permission to publish a short Church history that was originally requested for inclusion in a non-Mormon publication about extant religions, but ultimately did not appear in print. When Elder Smith told the First Vision story in this history he said that Joseph Smith beheld "two glorious Beings" during the experience. The capitalization of "Beings" indicates that the two individuals were considered to be Deity. Elder Smith then went on to tell the story of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon which, he said, was instigated by an "angel" who was commissioned of God. (''Deseret News'', vol. 5, no. 26, 5 September 1855 | + | :Elder George A. Smith wrote to the editor of the ''Deseret News'' on 9 August 1855 and gave permission to publish a short Church history that was originally requested for inclusion in a non-Mormon publication about extant religions, but ultimately did not appear in print. When Elder Smith told the First Vision story in this history he said that Joseph Smith beheld "two glorious Beings" during the experience. The capitalization of "Beings" indicates that the two individuals were considered to be Deity. Elder Smith then went on to tell the story of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon which, he said, was instigated by an "angel" who was commissioned of God. (''Deseret News'', vol. 5, no. 26, 5 September 1855, 2). |
'''15 August 1855''' | '''15 August 1855''' | ||
− | :The First Vision account as found in the Wentworth Letter was published in Salt Lake City in connection with the official ''History of the Church''. Since Elder Smith was the Church Historian at this time he likely would have known of the content of this publication.{{ref|fn1}} | + | :The First Vision account as found in the Wentworth Letter (1 March 1842) was published in Salt Lake City in connection with the official ''History of the Church''. This account speaks of "two glorious personages" and then later speaks of the single "angel" who was involved in revelaing the existence of the Book of Mormon plates. Since Elder Smith was the Church Historian at this time he likely would have known of the content of this publication.{{ref|fn1}} |
'''6 August 1862''' | '''6 August 1862''' | ||
− | :Elder George A. Smith's short Church history (see | + | :Elder George A. Smith's short Church history (see 9 August 1855 above) was reprinted on the pages of the ''Deseret News''. In this First Vision account Elder Smith referred to "two glorious Beings" and then later spoke of the "angel" who was involved in the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. (''Deseret News'', vol. 12, no. 6, 6 August 1862, 2). |
'''15 November 1864''' | '''15 November 1864''' | ||
− | :Elder George A. Smith quoted directly from the official First Vision account, which was first published in the ''Times and Seasons'' newspaper on 1 April 1842. Elder Smith quoted the line, “This is my Beloved Son, hear Him” – leaving no doubt | + | :Elder George A. Smith quoted directly from the official First Vision account, which was first published in the ''Times and Seasons'' newspaper on 1 April 1842. Elder Smith quoted the line, “This is my Beloved Son, hear Him” – leaving no doubt that he knew the specific identities of the two "personages" who appeared to Joseph Smith during the First Vision.{{ref|fn2}} |
'''15 November 1868''' | '''15 November 1868''' | ||
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#{{note|fn1}} See {{DN1|vol=5|num=23|date=15 August 1855|start=1}} | #{{note|fn1}} See {{DN1|vol=5|num=23|date=15 August 1855|start=1}} | ||
− | #{{note|fn2}} {{JD1|vol= | + | #{{note|fn2}} {{JD1|vol=11|start=2|author=George A. Smith}} |
#{{note|fn3}} {{JD1| vol=12|start=334|author=George A. Smith}} | #{{note|fn3}} {{JD1| vol=12|start=334|author=George A. Smith}} | ||
#{{note|fn4}} {{JD| vol=13|start=77|end=78|author=George A. Smith}} | #{{note|fn4}} {{JD| vol=13|start=77|end=78|author=George A. Smith}} |
Critics claim that Apostle George A. Smith said on two separate occasions that Joseph Smith's First Vision was of an "angel"—not of the Father and the Son.
Historic documents appear to verify the claim that on two different occasions George A. Smith spoke of an angel appearing during Joseph Smith's First Vision. But this does not mean that Brother Smith was not aware of the Father and the Son appearing to the Prophet at the time that he made his anomalous remarks. The following timeline demonstrates that the Prophet's cousin was well aware of the official version of events. His out-of-place comments need to be evaluated from that perspective.
7 April 1854
9 August 1855
15 August 1855
6 August 1862
15 November 1864
15 November 1868
20 June 1869
1869
20 November 1870
The pattern that can be seen in the above timeline is that George A. Smith was accurate in First Vision details when he had a text to read from or was writing formal history texts, was mostly accurate when he was talking extemporaneously, and then corrected himself after he delivered erroneous verbal remarks.
The argument that George A. Smith was simply not aware of a Father-and-Son First Vision account when he made his "angel" statements is utterly unconvincing since it can be shown from a documentary standpoint that he did indeed have prior knowledge of such a thing. An argument of ignorance is also untenable in light of the fact that Brother Smith's close associates in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles had published orthodox recitals of the First Vision on eight different occasions long BEFORE he made his verbal missteps at the pulpit: (Orson Pratt - 1840, 1850, 1851); (Orson Hyde - 1842); (John Taylor - 1850); (Lorenzo Snow - 1850); (Franklin D. Richards - 1851, 1852).
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