Welcome back to part 16 of our Joseph Smith Podcast with Dr. John G. Turner! In this episode, we cover chapter fifteen of John Turner’s new book titled “Joseph Smith: The Rise and Fall of an American Prophet” which covers 1834-1835 in Kirtland, Ohio and parts of Missouri. We discuss the rise of patriarchal blessings, the creation of new church offices –like the Twelve and the Seventy. We also discuss the challenges posed by critics like E. D. Howe and his problematic book published in 1834. These years were formative for Joseph Smith and the Latter-day Saint movement.
We explore such topics as:
-The publication of E. D. Howe’s Mormonism Unveiled
-The 1835 Doctrine and Covenants (and the Lectures on Faith)
-The creation of the Quorum of the Twelve and the Seventy
-The beginning of the Law of Adoption
-How Joseph Smith used blessings and promises to help people follow him
Did this first anti-Mormon publication get under Joseph Smith’s skin? What power did early church members believe they were receiving through blessings and ordinances? How did Joseph Smith transform crises into opportunities to strengthen his movement? Join us as we seek to answer each of these questions!
