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Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by Willard Richards

Source Note

JS, Discourse, [, Hancock Co., IL, 11 June 1843]. Featured version copied [ca. 11 June 1843] in JS, Journal, 1842–1844, bk. 2, pp. [240]–[251]; handwriting of ; JS Collection, CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS, Journal, 1842–1844.

Historical Introduction

On 11 June 1843 in the unfinished in , Illinois, JS preached a discourse urging the Saints to complete the sacred edifice so that they could perform salvific therein, including proxy for the dead. Since the early 1830s, many of JS’s revelations and teachings had emphasized the imperative for the Saints to to and its in order to build temples. An 1841 revelation designated Nauvoo as a “corner stone of Zion” where the Saints would build a temple, or a house “for the Most High to dwell.” By 1843, construction of the temple in Nauvoo had been ongoing for over two years, and when the building season began in April, the walls of the temple measured “4. to 12 feet above the floor.” The Nauvoo Neighbor reported in June 1843 that “the Temple is improving fast; the stones of that building begin to rise tier above tier; and it already begins to present a stately and noble appearance.”
The Neighbor stated that “a large concourse of people assembled at the ” on 11 June 1843 to hear JS’s discourse and noted that “the floor, as well as the walls, were literally covered with people.” Employing a common preaching technique, JS framed the discourse as an analysis and elaboration of Jesus’s teachings in Matthew 23:37: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” JS explained that the Saints’ salvation depended on gathering together and completing the temple—which was not progressing as quickly as he desired.
JS’s scribe inscribed an account of the discourse in JS’s journal. Richards presumably took rough notes on loose sheets of paper, which he later copied—with minimal polishing—into the journal. and recorded additional accounts of the discourse. also inscribed an undated discourse that parallels language in Woodruff’s account regarding the rejection of prophets by JS’s contemporaries. The polished nature of the accounts by Woodruff, Franklin D. Richards, and Burgess suggests that each was expanding contemporaneous notes or drawing from memory or both. Annotation that appears in Willard Richards’s version of the minutes is not repeated in corresponding locations in the other featured versions. All four versions are featured here.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    See Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57]; Revelation, 27–28 Dec. 1832 [D&C 88:119]; Letter to William W. Phelps, 11 Jan. 1833; and Revelation, 26 Apr. 1838 [D&C 115].

  2. [2]

    Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:2, 27].

  3. [3]

    JS, Journal, 6 Apr. 1843.

  4. [4]

    News Item, Nauvoo Neighbor, 14 June 1843, [2].

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  5. [5]

    News Item, Nauvoo Neighbor, 14 June 1843, [2].

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  6. [6]

    Designing a sermon around a passage of scripture rather than a topic was referred to among Christian preachers as expository preaching. (Sturtevant, Preacher’s Manual, 1:68; Stowe, “On Expository Preaching,” 384.)

    Sturtevant, S. T. The Preacher’s Manual; or, Lectures on Preaching. . . . 2nd ed. 2 vols. London: Richard Baynes, 1834.

    Stowe, Calvin Ellis. “On Expository Preaching and the Principles Which Should Guide Us in the Exposition of Scripture.” Biblical Repository and Quarterly Observer 5, no. 18 (Apr. 1835): 384–402.

  7. [7]

    For more information on Richards’s note-taking methodology, see Historical Introduction to Discourse, 4 July 1843.

  8. [8]

    Burgess’'s account is not dated, but it, along with another undated account of a discourse that follows it in his journal, was placed between accounts of JS’s discourses than can be securely dated 21 May and 23 July 1843. For a discussion of the known discourses JS delivered between these dates, see Historical Introduction to Discourse, between 11 June and 23 July 1843.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by Willard Richards
Journal, December 1842–June 1844; Book 2, 10 March 1843–14 July 1843 *Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by Wilford Woodruff *Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by Franklin D. Richards Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by Eliza R. Snow *Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by James Burgess History, 1838–1856, volume D-1 [1 August 1842–1 July 1843] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page [240]

Matt. 23.37.
Subject presented me since I came in this house.——
I a rough stone. the sound of the hammer & chisel was never hea[r]d on me. nor never will be. I desire the learning & wisdom of heaven alone.
Have not the least idea but if Christ should come and preach such rough thi[n]gs as he preahd [preached] to the Jews. but this generati[o]n would reject reject him for b[e]ing so rough. I never can find much to say in expou[n]ding a text. [p. [240]]
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Source Note

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Page [240]

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Discourse, 11 June 1843–A, as Reported by Willard Richards
ID #
1090
Total Pages
12
Print Volume Location
JSP, D12:380–385
Handwriting on This Page
  • Willard Richards

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS used a similar metaphor in a sermon he delivered three weeks earlier. (Discourse, 21 May 1843.)

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