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| | {{Resource Title|Joseph Smith and money digging}} | | {{Resource Title|Joseph Smith and money digging}} |
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| − | == ==
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| − | {{Criticism label}}
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| − | Joseph Smith participated in "money digging" or looking for buried treasure.
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| − | *Is this activity a blot on his character?
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| − | *Did Joseph "retrofit" his "treasure seeking" to have a religious explanation? For example, was Moroni originally conceived of as a treasure guardian by Joseph, and only later came to be seen as a divine messenger, an angel?
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| − | == ==
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| − | {{Conclusion label}}
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| − | Joseph and his family were involved in seeking for treasure. This was a common and accepted practice in their culture, though the Smiths do not seem to have been involved to the extent claimed by some of the exaggerated attacks upon them by former neighbors. The earliest documents strongly suggest, however, that Joseph and those close to him always understood Moroni as an angelic messenger, with a divine role.
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| − | == ==
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| − | {{Response label}}
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| − | {{Epigraph|If Mr. Smith dug for money he considered it was a more honorable way of getting it than taking it from the widow and orphan; but few lazy, hireling priests of this age, would dig either for money or potatoes.<br><br>— {{Book:Appleby:Mormonism Consistent|pages=1–24}}}}
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| − | {{parabreak}}
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| − | :''Was not Joseph Smith a money digger?''
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| − | :''Yes, but it was never a very profitable job for him, as he only got fourteen dollars a month for it.''
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| − | ::—Joseph's tongue-in-cheek response to one of a list of questions that were asked of him during a visit at Elder Cahoon's home. (''Elders' Journal'' 1/3 (July 1838): 43){{ref|money.digger.job}}
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| − | ==Historical context==
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| − | {{SeeAlso|Joseph_Smith%27s_%22treasure_hunting%22_trip_to_Salem|l1=Treasure hunting post-Church organization?|Joseph_Smith%27s_%22treasure_hunting%22_trip_to_Salem|l2=Treasure hunting trip to Salem?}}<!-- Yes, these are the same article-->
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| − | In the young Joseph Smith's time and place, "money digging" was a popular, and sometimes respected activity. When Joseph was 16, the ''Palmyra Herald'' printed such remarks as:
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| − | * "digging for money hid in the earth is a very common thing and in this state it is even considered as honorable and profitable employment"
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| − | * "One gentleman...digging...ten to twelve years, found a sufficient quantity of money to build him a commodious house.
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| − | * "another...dug up...fifty thousand dollars!"{{ref|herald1}}
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| − | And, in 1825 the ''Wayne Sentinel'' in Palmyra reported that buried treasure had been found "by the help of a mineral stone, (which becomes transparent when placed in a hat and the light excluded by the face of him who looks into it)."{{ref|mcgee1}}
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| − | Given the financial difficulties under which the Smith family labored, it would hardly be surprising that they might hope for such a reversal in their fortunes. Richard Bushman has compared the Smith's attitude toward treasure digging with a modern attitudes toward gambling, or buying a lottery ticket. Bushman points out that looking for treasure had little stigma attached to it among all classes in the 17th century, and continued to be respectable among the lower classes into the 18th and 19th.{{ref|gamble1}}
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| − | Despite the claims of critics, it is not clear that Joseph and his family saw their activities as "magical."
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| − | {{Detail|Joseph Smith/Occultism and magic}}
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| − | {{SourceOfMagic}}
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| − | ===Later changes in society's attitude===
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| − | The attitude of acceptance toward money-digging in general society changed later in the century, and certainly became a liability for Joseph among the educated and sophisticated, such as newspaper publishers and clergy. His use of a [[Joseph_Smith_and_seer_stones|seer stone]] provided further ammunition for his critics.
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| − | Claims that Joseph "retrofitted" his visions with religious trappings after the fact often beg the question, and ignore crucial evidence. In fact, the earliest accounts treat the matter as religious; this is true even of skeptical newspaper reports, as well as a Smith family letter which shows that Joseph or his father considered Moroni "the Angel of the Lord" as early as 1828.{{ref|moroni1}}
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| − | Joseph and those around him may have also seen some aspects of Moroni in a "treasure guardian" role (and he certainly did guard something of both material and spiritual value—the gold plates) but this seems to have been a secondary conclusion, as they interpreted Joseph's experience through their own preconceptions and understanding.
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| − | However, Moroni's status as an angel and messenger from God, is well attested in the early sources. Interestingly, the "treasure guardian" motif becomes more common and distinct in later sources, especially those gathered by enemies of Joseph, who sought to discredit him through ridicule and association with the (increasingly disreputable) practice of "treasure digging."{{ref|digging1}}
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| − | The [[Forgeries related to Mormonism/Mark Hofmann|Hofmann forgeries]] gave great emphasis to the "money-digging" and "occult" aspects of Joseph's experience, and they unfortunately shaded a good deal of the initial scholarly discussion surrounding these issues. Hofmann's documents made the case "air-tight," so to speak, and so other clues along the way were given more weight. When the Hofmann documents collapsed, some authors were not willing to abandon the shaky interpretive edifice they had constructed.{{ref|hofmann1}}
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| − | =={{Endnotes label}}==
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| − | #{{note|money.digger.job}} {{Periodical:Elders Journal|vol=2|num=3|date=July 1838|author=Joseph Smith|pages=43}} Also reproduced in ''Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith'', 120; ''History of the Church'' 3:29; ''Discourses of the Prophet Joseph Smith'', 271.
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| − | # {{note|herald1}}''Palmyra Herald'' (24 July 1822); cited in Russell Anderson, "The 1826 Trial of Joseph Smith," (2002 FAIR Conference presentation.){{fairlink|url=http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2002_1826_Trial_of_Joseph_Smith.html}}
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| − | #{{note|mcgee1}} "Wonderful Discovery," ''Wayne Sentinel'' [Palmyra, New York] (27 December 1825), page 2, col. 4. Reprinted from the ''Orleans Advocate'' of Orleans, New York; cited by {{Ashurst-McGee-Thesis|start=170|end=171}}
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| − | #{{note|gamble1}} Richard L. Bushman, "Joseph Smith Miscellany," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, 2005 FAIR Conference){{fairlink|url=http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2005_A_Joseph_Smith_Miscellany.html}}
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| − | {{SourceOfMagicRefs}}
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| − | #{{note|moroni1}} {{FR-18-1-5}} {{NB}}
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| − | #{{note|digging1}}{{FR-17-1-4}} {{NB}}
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| − | #{{note|hofmann1}} {{BYUS1|author=Stephen E. Robinson|article=Review of D. Michael Quinn ''Early Mormonism and the Magic World View (1987)''|vol=27|num=4|start=88|date=Date?}}{{pdflink|url=http://byustudies.byu.edu/Products/MoreInfoPage/MoreInfo.aspx?Type=7&ProdID=2053}}; see also {{FR-12-2-15}}; {{FR-12-2-16}}; {{FR-12-2-17}}
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| − | {{FurtherReading}}
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| | [[de:Joseph_Smith_als_Schatzsucher]] | | [[de:Joseph_Smith_als_Schatzsucher]] |
| | {{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}} | | {{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}} |
: Did Joseph "retrofit" his "treasure seeking" to have a religious explanation? For example, was Moroni originally conceived of as a treasure guardian by Joseph, and only later came to be seen as a divine messenger, an angel?
: It is claimed that Joseph Smith's spiritual experiences began as products of "magic," the "occult," or "treasure seeking," and that only later did Joseph describe his experiences in Christian, religious terms: speaking of God, angels, and prophethood.
: Some people wish to prioritize the role that treasure-seeking played in Joseph's like by claiming that it took precedence over any other work that he may have done, such as working as a hired farmhand.
: Was Joseph Smith commanded by the Lord to go to Salem, Massachusetts to hunt for treasure in the cellar of a house? Upon arriving there, the treasure was nowhere to be found.
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