Skip to main content

Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as Reported by Thomas Bullock

  1. Home > 
  2. The Papers > 

Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as Reported by Thomas Bullock

Source Note

JS, Discourse, [, Hancock Co., IL], 16 June 1844. Featured version inscribed [16 June 1844]; handwriting of ; five pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes docket.
Bifolium measuring 9¾ × 7⅞ inches (25 × 20 cm). The first three pages were ruled with printed blue lines (now faded). The first page was ruled with approximately twenty-seven lines; the second and third pages were ruled with approximately twenty-nine lines. The bifolium was turned 90 degrees and folded in half once vertically to create eight sections. After folding, the first two new leaves were separated along the fold at the top edge so that the pages could be turned, creating six usable sections. The third and fourth leaves remain connected at the top, and the two sections on the inside of those leaves (between pages [5] and [6]) remained blank, as they do not function as part of the text block of the makeshift booklet. The booklet was later folded in half horizontally and in half vertically for filing and storage.
The document was docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865. and Jonathan Grimshaw, who served as clerks in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department), presumably used this document sometime between 1854 and 1856 to draft the version of the sermon that was copied into volume F-1 of JS’s manuscript history. By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early docket, its use in preparing JS’s history, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection suggest continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  2. “Obituary of Leo Hawkins,” Millennial Star, 30 July 1859, 21:496–497; Historian’s Office, Journal, 7 June 1853; Wilford Woodruff, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to George A. Smith, 30 Aug. 1856, in Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, p. 364; JS, Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as reported by Thomas Bullock, draft, JS Collection, CHL; JS History, vol. F-1, 101–105; see also Source Note for and Historical Introduction to History, 1838–1856, vol. F-1. This draft version was also edited by Thomas Bullock.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

    Historian’s Office. Journal, 1844–1997. CHL. CR 100 1.

    Historian’s Office. Letterpress Copybooks, 1854–1879, 1885–1886. CHL. CR 100 38.

    Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

  3. See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

On the morning of 16 June 1844 in , Illinois, JS delivered a discourse responding to criticism about his teaching on Deity. As part of an address delivered at the ’s April 1844 , JS had taught about the nature of God—including that God had the form of a man and that God had once been a man and had incrementally advanced to godhood. JS also stated that men and women must similarly learn to become gods. Likely reacting to this conference address, on 7 June 1844 the publishers of the Nauvoo Expositor decried JS’s teaching on God and labeled it “plurality of Gods.” They called it “false and damnable,” denounced JS as an apostate for teaching it, and identified passages of scripture that they believed refuted JS’s beliefs about Deity.
JS responded to this criticism in his 16 June discourse to the Saints. Speaking from the in the east of the construction site while it rained, JS defended what he had earlier preached. JS appealed to scripture, possibly in response to those passages that were used against him in the Expositor. He also declared that he had received his ideas about God through a witness from the Holy Ghost and independent revelation.
At the conclusion of his sermon, JS said that he could have spoken to the Saints for another three or four hours had it not been for the rain. JS’s discourse was apparently well received by those in the congregation. noted that “a very large congregation” was present and that despite the rain, all “would stay and listen as long as he would stay and preach.”
recorded JS’s discourse, taking notes as he spoke. At an unknown date, two other versions of the sermon were inscribed by and . It is unknown if McIntire attended this sermon. He was assigned in April 1844 to proselytize and campaign in for JS’s presidential run. If McIntire was present, he could have created this account from notes taken during the sermon or, because his version is brief, inscribed it shortly thereafter from memory. McIntire wrote his account on a leaf that was presumably at one time bound in another notebook. At some point, this loose leaf was sewn onto the left side of the recto of one of the leaves of McIntire’s notebook that contains accounts of other discourses JS delivered in . McIntire prefaced his account of the discourse by indicating that it was JS’s “Last public Discorce on Doctrine.” At the bottom of the same page, McIntire wrote an inscription dated 27 June 1844 announcing the murders of JS and . Given this preface and the likelihood that McIntire penned the death announcement on or shortly after 27 June 1844, the sermon was also likely written down sometime on or very shortly after 27 June.
It is also unknown whether was present for this discourse. His undated account is part of a broader collection of JS’s teachings that Laub recorded sometime after 1 January 1845. In his notebook, Laub recalled that JS spoke to the Saints every Sunday and that the teachings were “nurishing to my soul as the food was and is to the hungary man,” which suggests that Laub could have been present for the 16 June sermon. If he was present, then his notebook account could have been created from notes taken during the sermon.
’s and ’s accounts are featured alongside ’s account because most of the information in their versions can be corroborated with Bullock’s eyewitness account. McIntire’s and Laub’s accounts also contain details that do not appear in Bullock’s report: a reference to Psalm 82 and instruction about the Holy Ghost. These either represent details that Bullock did not capture or are teachings from other JS sermons that McIntire and Laub erroneously incorporated into their accounts of the 16 June sermon.

Footnotes

  1. Discourse, 7 Apr. 1844; “Preamble,” and “Resolutions,” Nauvoo Expositor, 7 June 1844, [2]; see also “Joseph Smith Documents from 16 May through 28 June 1844.”

  2. In this discourse, JS also returned to topics found in discourses he gave on 8 April and 12 May 1844. (Discourse, 8 Apr. 1844; Discourse, 12 May 1844.)

  3. Heward, “Sketch of the Life of Elizabeth Terry Heward,” 15; JS, Journal, 16 June 1844; William Clayton, Daily Account of JS’s Activities, 14–22 June 1844; Berrett, Sacred Places, 3:169–170, 174–175; see also Brigham Young et al., “An Epistle of the Twelve, to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in All the World,” Times and Seasons, 15 Jan. 1845, 6:779. The stand was a portable speaker’s platform. JS gave this discourse as part of a Sunday worship meeting. Bullock reported that the meeting opened with Newel K. Whitney praying and the choir singing “Mortals, awake!” (Thomas Bullock, JS Sermon Notes, 16 June 1844, JS Collection, CHL; Hymn 12, Collection of Sacred Hymns, 19–20.)

    Heward, Elizabeth Terry. “A Sketch of the Life of Elizabeth Terry Heward,” 1853–1860. Typescript. CHL.

    Berrett, LaMar C., ed. Sacred Places: A Comprehensive Guide to Early LDS Historical Sites. 6 vols. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1999–2007.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

  4. Heward reported that she attended JS’s sermon but recorded neither its content nor her individual reaction to it. (Heward, “Sketch of the Life of Elizabeth Terry Heward,” 15.)

    Heward, Elizabeth Terry. “A Sketch of the Life of Elizabeth Terry Heward,” 1853–1860. Typescript. CHL.

  5. “Special Conference,” Times and Seasons, 15 Apr. 1844, 5:504–506; see also JS, Journal, 9 Apr. 1844.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

  6. In his autobiography, McIntire mentioned that he attended and took notes on JS’s sermons during winter 1840–1841. Thus, it is possible that, as was his custom for those sermons, McIntire was present for and took notes on JS’s 16 June discourse. (McIntire, Autobiography, [62].)

    McIntire, William Patterson. Autobiography. In William Patterson McIntire, Daybook, 1840–1856, pp. 57–67. BYU.

  7. McIntire originally indicated that the sermon was given on 26 June 1844 but corrected the error by inscribing a “1” over the “2.” (McIntire, Notebook, [21].)

  8. See Laub, Reminiscences and Journal, front cover flyleaf, 1.

    Laub, George. Reminiscences and Journal, 1845–1857. CHL. MS 9628.

  9. Laub, Reminiscences and Journal, 12–13.

    Laub, George. Reminiscences and Journal, 1845–1857. CHL. MS 9628.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as Reported by Thomas Bullock
*Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as Reported by William P. McIntire *Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as Reported by George Laub History, 1838–1856, volume F-1 [1 May 1844–8 August 1844] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page [1]

Go to next page 2
<​ E of 16 June 1844​>
The Prophet read the 3rd. Rev.
text 6th. v. & made us K[ings] & P[riests] unto God & his Fa[the]r. to him be glory & dom[inion] for evermore—
It is altog[ethe]r. correct in the translat[io]n.— now you know that of late some have sprung up & apostat[ized]: & they declare that the Pro[phet] bel[ieves]: in a plurality of Gods— & lo & behold a very great secret they cry it has been my intent[io]n. to take up this subj[ec]t. & shew what my Faith is in the matter— I have contemplated the saying of Je[sus] as it was in the days of Noah so shall it be at his 2nd. coming & if it rains ill [I’ll] preach— the plurality of Gods— I have selected this text I wish to declare I have allways— & in all congregatns. when I have preached it has been the plurality of Gods it has been preachd 15 years— I have always decl[are]d. God to be a distinct personage— J. C. [Jesus Christ] a sep[arate]: & distinct pers from God the Far., the H. G [Holy Ghost] was a distinct personage & a Sp[irit] & these 3 constit[ute] 3 distinct personages & 3 Gods— if this is in accordance with the New Test[ament]— lo <​&​> behold we have 3 Gods any how & they are plural any how— our text says the apost[le] have disc[overe]d. that there were Gods above— God was the Far. of our L[or]d. J. C.— my object was to preach the Scrip[tures]— & preach the doctrine there being a God above the Far. of our Ld. J. C.— I am bold to declare I have taut. all the strong doctrines publicly— & always stronger that [than?] what I preach in private— John was one of the men & the apos. declare they were made K. & P. unto God the Far. of our Ld. J. C. it reads just so hence the doctrine of a plurality of Gods is as prominent in the Bible as any doctrine— it is all over the face of the Bible, it stands beyond the power of controversy— a wayfaring man tho a fool need not fail— Paul says there are Gods many & Lords many— I want to set it in a plain simple man[n]er— but to us there is but one God pertaining to us, in all thro all,— but if J. Smith says there is Gods many & Lds. many they cry away with him crucify him mankind verily say that the Scrip [i]s with them— Search the Scrip &c they testify of things that apostates wo[ul]d. blaspheme— Paul if Jo Smith is a blasphemer you are— I say there are Gods many & Ld<​s​> many but to us— only one & we are to be in subjectn. to that one & no man can limit the bounds, or the eternal existence of eternal time— hath he beheld the et[erna]l. world, & is he auth[orize]d. to say that there is only God he makes himself a fool— & there is an end of his career in knowledge he cannot obt[ai]n. all knowledge for he has sealed up the Gate to [it?] [p. [1]]
View entire transcript

|

Cite this page

Source Note

Document Transcript

Page [1]

Go to next page 2

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, as Reported by Thomas Bullock
ID #
1400
Total Pages
6
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Thomas Bullock

Footnotes

  1. The referenced passage is Revelation 1:6, not Revelation 3:6. See also Revelation 5:10.

  2. Years earlier, in his revision of the New Testament, JS revised Revelation 1:6 to replace the phrase “God and his Father,” found in the King James Version, with “God, his Father.” (New Testament Revision 2, p. 149 [second numbering] [Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 1:6].)

  3. The publishers of the Nauvoo Expositor criticized the private and public teachings of JS: “We hope many items of doctrine, as now taught, some of which, however, are taught secretly and denied openly, (which we know positively is the case,) and others publicly, considerate men will treat with contempt; for we declare them heretical and damnable in their influence, though they find many devotees.” (“Preamble,” Nauvoo Expositor, 7 June 1844, [1].)

  4. See Matthew 24:37; and Luke 17:26.

  5. The first volume of JS’s multivolume manuscript history opened with an account of JS’s first vision of Deity in 1820, which stressed that God and Jesus Christ were separate beings. JS reported that in answer to a prayer about which church to join, two personages simultaneously appeared to him, the first one introducing the second as his “beloved Son.” Other accounts of this experience appeared in 1832, 1835, and 1842. (JS, History, vol. A-1, pp. 1–3; History, ca. Summer 1832; JS, Journal, 9–11 Nov. 1835; “Church History,” 1 Mar. 1842; see also Revelation, 6 May 1833 [D&C 93:12–16].)

  6. TEXT: Possibly “apost[les]”.

  7. See Isaiah 35:8.

  8. See 1 Corinthians 8:4–6.

  9. See John 19:15.

  10. See John 5:39.

  11. In an 1839 letter to the Latter-day Saints, JS promised future revelation about the temporal boundaries of the natural world: “If there be bounds set to the heavens or to the seas or to the dry land or to the sun moon or starrs all the times of their revolutions all their appointed days month and years and all the Days of their days, months and years and all their glories laws and set times shall be reveald in the days of the dispensation of the fullness of times.” The Book of Abraham further elaborated on the temporalities of astronomical objects by discussing the “set time of all the stars.” (Letter to the Church and Edward Partridge, 20 Mar. 1839 [D&C 121:30–31]; Book of Abraham and Facsimiles, 1 Mar.–16 May 1842 [Abraham 3:1–12; facsimile 2]; see also “Time and Eternity,” in Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 4:1478–1479; and Instruction, 2 Apr. 1843 [D&C 130:4–7].)

    Encyclopedia of Mormonism. Edited by Daniel H. Ludlow. 5 vols. New York: Macmillan, 1992.

  12. See Psalm 14:1.

  13. See JS, Discourse, 16 June 1844–A, [3], as reported by Thomas Bullock, draft, JS Collection, CHL. JS had previously warned that narrow-minded beliefs about God would lead to damnation. (Discourse, 13 Aug. 1843–A; Discourse, 27 Aug. 1843.)

    Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

Go to page