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  2. Church Organizations, April 1834–September 1835

Church Organizations, April 1834–September 1835

General Officers
In 1834 and 1835, additional ecclesiastical positions were created and filled in the church. The expanded in December 1834 to include , , and as assistant presidents. The was the overarching authority of the church, overseeing the church’s other administrative bodies. The members are listed in the table in the order gave in the account of the meetings where he, , and were ordained. At times in 1835, this body was referred to as the “.” After the three members of the presidency of the came to , Ohio, in 1834 and 1835, they were sometimes included in meetings of the church presidency; these meetings were occasionally referred to as “a High Council of the Presidency” or “the Council of the Presidency of the Church.” Another general office of the church was , a position held by As part of this appointment, Smith blessed his family, church members without fathers, those whose fathers were not members of the church, and those whose fathers were members but did not live in the same area.
Presidency of the Church Patriarch
JS, President
, Assistant President
, Assistant President
, Assistant President
, Assistant President
, Assistant President
Other Officers
In addition to the general church leadership, specific officers led the church in , or , Missouri, and in , Ohio, the other center of church membership, which was designated as a “stake to Zion.” In 1834, JS established a , consisting of a three-person presidency and twelve , in both of these areas. The members are listed in the table in the order provided at their organizational meetings. These high councils were responsible for administrative affairs and for “settleing important difficulties which might arise in the church, which could not be settled by the Church, or the bishop’s council to the satisfaction of the parties.” The high council was specifically responsible for regulating “all the affairs of Zion” and for performing “the business of Zion”; the president of the high council——was also designated as the “President of the Church in Zion.”
Both of these high councils functioned according to a February 1834 constitution developed for the high council. According to this document, seven of the twelve counselors had to be present in order for the council to act. If a standing member was absent, the other counselors could “appoint other high priests whom they may consider worthy and capable to act.” When considering a matter, up to six counselors were designated to speak, depending on the difficulty of the case. For the most difficult disciplinary cases, three counselors spoke on behalf of the accused, and three spoke on behalf of the church. The least difficult cases had one counselor speak on each side. After the counselors had spoken, the accused and the accuser had a chance to speak, after which the president of the council issued the decision in the case. The counselors then provided their assent to the decision. It appears that the high councils sometimes used this format for administrative matters as well.
In addition to the high councils, the church in and the church in each had a and two counselors who helped in church administration. The bishop served as “a Judge in Israel” and was responsible for the church’s temporal concerns and for taking care of the poor. served as the bishop in , while was the bishop in .
In February 1835, JS and other church leaders appointed twelve men to serve as , as well as a number of men to serve as . The apostles are listed in the table as they were organized at a 2 May 1835 meeting, and the seventies are listed in the order provided in an 1836 broadsheet. The were designated as “a travelling, presiding high council” assigned to regulate the branches of the church outside of and its stakes. The Seventy were to assist the Twelve Apostles in their duties, and both groups were responsible for preaching “the gospel of Jesus Christ; . . . first unto the Gentiles and then unto the Jews.” The “Instruction on Priesthood” prepared by JS, likely with ’s assistance, sometime around spring 1835 states that the Twelve Apostles operated “under the direction of the presidency of the church” and that the Seventy were “under the direction of the twelve.” “The standing high councils, at the stakes of Zion” or in itself, were also “equal in authority, in the affairs of the church, in all their decisions,” to the Twelve. The Instruction on Priesthood also states that if the need arose, the seven presidents of the Seventy could call other men as seventies until there were “seven times seventy.” By August 1835, individuals were being called to the “2d 70,” although that quorum as a whole was not formed until February 1836.
, , , , and also served as officers in the church, with each group, according to a November 1831 revelation, being led by a president. It is unclear who served in those positions in , though appears to have been the president of the elders for at least part of 1835. The minutes of a general assembly of the church in 1835 listed presidents of the elders, priests, teachers, and deacons in , but because so many church officers were absent from at the time, it appears these were individuals acting for an absent president. The chart that follows lists those presidents.
Presidency of the High Council in High Council of Stake of Zion in Bishop and Counselors in
JS
Presidency of the High Council of High Council of Bishop and Assistants of
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
Presidents of the Seventy
Seventy
Levi Gifford
Elias Hutchings
Henry Beaman
Henry Shibley Jesse Huntsman
Salmon Warner
Darwin Richardson
Michael Griffith
Libbeus T. Coons
Charles Kelly
Daniel Stevens
David Evans
Hiram Stratton Joseph Winchester
Sherman Gilbert
Elders in Priests in Teachers in Deacons in
, president , president , president , president
In November 1831, six men—JS, , , , , and —were appointed “” over JS’s revelations, responsible for overseeing the publication of the revelations “& the concerns thereof.” Any profits resulting from the publication were to be used for the needs of those men and their families; the surplus was to be placed in the church’s storehouse. In March 1832, a revelation directed JS and others to further organize the church’s “Literary and Merchantile establishments,” and in April 1832, JS proceeded to do so, creating the . One component of the United Firm was known as the , which consisted of the six “stewards over the revelations.” The Literary Firm was responsible for overseeing W. W. Phelps & Co., which printed the church newspaper The Evening and the Morning Star and was also publishing JS’s revelations. Before publication of the book of revelations could be completed, the printing office in , Missouri, was destroyed by a mob in July 1833. In September 1833, church leaders created , which began operating a printing press in , Ohio. Because was part of this enterprise, he was likely added to the Literary Firm at that time. In April 1834, a revelation reorganized the United Firm, which, in large measure, ceased to function thereafter. The Literary Firm continued to operate, largely through F. G. Williams & Co., publishing the Doctrine and Covenants in September 1835 and continuing to publish two newspapers: the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate and the Northern Times. In September 1835, and were appointed agents to the Literary Firm. The firm’s members are listed here in the order in which they appear in the revelation that organized the group, adding , Whitmer, and Smith in the order they were appointed to the firm.
JS
, agent
, agent
Committee to Build the
In May 1833, , , and were appointed as a committee to raise money for the construction of the in , Ohio. The three were responsible for traveling to different branches of the church to solicit funds. By June 1835, they were also operating a store in They are presented here in the order in which they appear in the minutes of the meeting at which they were appointed.
Committee to Build the
  1. 1

    Account of Meetings, Revelation, and Blessing, 5–6 Dec. 1834.

  2. 2

    Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107:21–22, 33].

  3. 3

    Revelation, ca. June 1835 [D&C 68:15].

  4. 4

    See, for example, Minutes, 19 Aug. 1835; Minutes, 26 Sept. 1835; and Letter to Quorum of the Twelve, 4 Aug. 1835.

  5. 5

    Patriarchal Blessings, 1:3–9, 17, 19.

    Patriarchal Blessings, 1833–. CHL. CR 500 2.

  6. 6

    Account of Meetings, Revelation, and Blessing, 5–6 Dec. 1834.

  7. 7

    Account of Meetings, Revelation, and Blessing, 5–6 Dec. 1834; Patriarchal Blessings, 1:9.

    Patriarchal Blessings, 1833–. CHL. CR 500 2.

  8. 8

    Revelation, 26 Apr. 1832 [D&C 82:13].

  9. 9

    Minutes, 17 Feb. 1834; Minutes, 3 July 1834.

  10. 10

    Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102:2].

  11. 11

    Letter to Church Officers in Missouri, 31 Aug. 1835.

  12. 12

    Minutes and Discourse, ca. 7 July 1834.

  13. 13

    Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102:6–7, 13–19].

  14. 14

    See Minutes and Discourse, ca. 7 July 1834; Minutes, 28 Nov. 1834; Minutes, 18 Jan. 1835; Minutes, 24 Feb. 1834; and Minute Book 2, 12 July 1834, 31 July–1 Aug. 1834.

  15. 15

    Revelation, 11 Nov. 1831–B [D&C 107:71–72]; Revelation, 9 Feb. 1831 [D&C 42:30–34].

  16. 16

    Revelation, 4 Feb. 1831 [D&C 41:9]; Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57:7]; Revelation, 4 Dec. 1831–A [D&C 72:8].

  17. 17

    Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 14–15 Feb. 1835; Minutes and Blessings, 28 Feb.–1 Mar. 1835.

  18. 18

    Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107:23–25, 33–38]; Minutes and Discourse, 2 May 1835–A.

  19. 19

    Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107:95–96]; Minutes and Discourse, 2 May 1835–A.

  20. 20

    Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835.

  21. 21

    JS, Journal, 3 Feb. 1836; Post, Journal, 1 Feb. 1836.

    Post, Stephen. Journals, 1835–1879. Stephen Post, Papers, 1835–1921. CHL. MS 1304, box 6.

  22. 22

    Revelation, 11 Nov. 1831–B [D&C 107:85–89]; see also Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107:85–89].

  23. 23

    Letters to John Burk, Sally Waterman Phelps, and Almira Scobey, 1–2 June 1835.

  24. 24

    A manuscript version of the minutes refers to the individuals as presidents; published versions in the 1835 Doctrine and Covenants and the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate call them acting presidents. (Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835; “General Assembly,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Aug. 1835, 1:161–164; “General Assembly,” Doctrine and Covenants, 1835 ed., 255–257.)

    Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.

  25. 25

    Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102:3].

  26. 26

    Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102:3]; Minutes, 28–29 Aug. 1834; Minutes, 24 Sept. 1834; see also Minute Book 1, 13 Jan. 1836.

  27. 27

    Revelation, 4 Dec. 1831–A [D&C 72:8]; Cahoon, Diary, 10 Feb. 1832.

    Cahoon, Reynolds. Diaries, 1831–1832. CHL. MS 1115.

  28. 28

    Minutes, 3 July 1834.

  29. 29

    Minutes, 3 July 1834; see also Minute Book 2, 6 Jan. 1836.

  30. 30

    Revelation, 4 Feb. 1831 [D&C 41:9]; Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57:7]; Minutes, ca. 3–4 June 1831.

  31. 31

    Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 14–15 Feb. 1835.

  32. 32

    Young, History of the Organization of the Seventies, 4.

    Young, Joseph, Sr. History of the Organization of the Seventies: Names of First and Second Quorums. Items in Relation to the First Presidency of the Seventies. Also, a Brief Glance at Enoch and His City. Embellished with a Likeness of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, and a View of the Kirtland Temple. Salt Lake City: Deseret News Steam Printing Establishment, 1878.

  33. 33

    Minutes and Blessings, 28 Feb.–1 Mar. 1835; Minutes, 7–8 Mar. 1835; Minutes and Discourse, 2 May 1835–A; Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835.

  34. 34

    Gilbert was ordained to the “2d 70” in August 1835. (Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835.)

  35. 35

    Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835.

  36. 36

    Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835.

  37. 37

    “General Assembly,” Doctrine and Covenants, 1835 ed., 255.

  38. 38

    Minutes, 17 Aug. 1835.

  39. 39

    Revelation, 12 Nov. 1831 [D&C 70:3–5, 7–8].

  40. 40

    Revelation, 1 Mar. 1832 [D&C 78:3]; Revelation, 26 Apr. 1832 [D&C 82:11–12].

  41. 41

    Minutes, 30 Apr. 1832; Notice, The Evening and the Morning Star, June 1832, [8].

    The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

  42. 42

    “‘The Mormons’ So Called,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Extra, Feb. 1834, [1].

    The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

  43. 43

    Minutes, 11 Sept. 1833.

  44. 44

    Revelation, 23 Apr. 1834 [D&C 104].

  45. 45

    Doctrine and Covenants, 1835 ed., title page; Notice, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Sept. 1835, 1:192; Notice, Northern Times (Kirtland, OH), 9 Oct. 1835, [4].

    Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.

    Northern Times. Kirtland, OH. 1835–[1836?].

  46. 46

    Note, 16 Sept. 1835.

  47. 47

    Revelation, 12 Nov. 1831 [D&C 70:1]; Minutes, 11 Sept. 1833; Note, 16 Sept. 1835.

  48. 48

    Minutes, 4 May 1833; see also Minutes, 6 June 1833.

  49. 49

    Editorial, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1835, 1:107–108.

    Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.

  50. 50

    “Cahoon, Carter & Co.,” Northern Times (Kirtland, OH), 9 Oct. 1835, [4].

    Northern Times. Kirtland, OH. 1835–[1836?].

  51. 51

    Minutes, 4 May 1833.

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