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Letter to James Arlington Bennet, 17–18 March 1843, Draft

Source Note

JS, Letter,
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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, Hancock Co., IL, to
James Arlington Bennet

21 Dec. 1788–25 Dec. 1863. Attorney, newspaper publisher, educator, author. Born in New York. Married first Sophia Smith, 8 May 1811. Served as third and later second lieutenant in First U.S. Artillery, 1 Aug. 1813–14 Oct. 1814. Published American System ...

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,
Arlington House

Long Island residence of James Arlington Bennet, who corresponded with JS, 1842–1843. Bennet purchased a hundred acres of land in New Utrecht, New York, in 1825 and there built the residence known as “Arlington House.” He deeded it to his son, James H. A....

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, [New Utrecht, Kings Co.], NY, 17–18 Mar. 1843, draft; handwriting of
William W. Phelps

17 Feb. 1792–7 Mar. 1872. Writer, teacher, printer, newspaper editor, publisher, postmaster, lawyer. Born at Hanover, Morris Co., New Jersey. Son of Enon Phelps and Mehitabel Goldsmith. Moved to Homer, Cortland Co., New York, 1800. Married Sally Waterman,...

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; four pages; JS Collection, CHL.

Historical Introduction

See Historical Introduction to Letter to James Arlington Bennet, 17–18 March 1843.
Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Letter to James Arlington Bennet, 17–18 March 1843

Page [3]

in the Herald. He and all men should know that decency, virtue, honesty, sobriety and truth are among the most precious essentials of life, and especially in matters relating to eternity. There is a quid pro quo in pure religion, by which pretentions are weighed as well as actions and works; and so the promiseis, that God will bring every man into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil: and it is written in another place, that they shall be rewarded according to their works.
Your goodly expressions: ‘go ahead,’ &c, will, as has been the case, be fully verified while the Lord goes with me. And if you have a notion to join me, Count the cost, as Jesus says, and go for an eternal reward in the
celestial kingdom

Highest kingdom of glory in the afterlife; symbolically represented by the sun. According to a vision dated 16 February 1832, inheritors of the celestial kingdom “are they who received the testimony of Jesus, & believed on his name, & were baptized,” “receive...

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of God, independent of mobs, persecutions, this world’s goods, or the highest honors of the mam[m]on of unrighteousness. Were I to labor for gold, or for conquest, or for empire, like thousands who have flourished and fell, in all ages, before me, I might amass means; gather hosts; extend power, and gratify ambition, like an Alexander, or Neapoleon; and the world in its ordinary course, would soon leave me a wide waste for future conjecture, and desecration; but I stand up in the midst of this crooked and perverse generation, for a general reformation of all: by the voice of truth; by the accomplishments of virtue; by the blessings of pure religion; and by the holy [p. [3]]
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to James Arlington Bennet, 17–18 March 1843, Draft
ID #
1015
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • William W. Phelps

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