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Letter to John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff, between circa November and circa 20 December 1843

Source Note

JS, Letter, [, Hancock Co., IL], to , , and “the Saints,” [between ca. Nov. and ca. 20 Dec. 1843]. Featured version published in “To the Saints,” Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1843, vol. 4, no. 24, 376–377. For more complete source information, see the source note for Letter to Isaac Galland, 22 Mar. 1839.

Historical Introduction

Sometime between November and late December 1843, JS submitted a letter to the publishers of the Times and Seasons, and , instructing the on the importance of reading the church’s flagship periodical and following the counsel of church leaders. His letter was likely triggered by apostle ’s published rebuke of church members in the eastern who were disregarding the Times and Seasons and the Nauvoo Neighbor—the newspapers published by the church in , Illinois—in favor of the “common newspapers of the day.” First published in November 1839, the Times and Seasons was designated as a devotional periodical. JS emphasized that the paper contained “treasures”—revelations, translations, and proceedings—and that it stood apart from other publications because it spread “the words of eternal life.”
In addition to championing the Times and Seasons, JS challenged church members to demonstrate their support of church leaders. He explained that any show of support from church members was ultimately an expression of loyalty to him: “When the brethren . . . sustain the ‘Times and Seasons,’ they sustain me.” JS condemned those who read only other periodicals for patronizing “the splendor of Babylon,” while leaving “the virtue of Zion to linger for want of bread.” To JS, Latter-day Saints who subscribed to the Times and Seasons were sustaining him by extending the influence of the church’s “revelations, faith, works, [and] history.”
JS wrote the nonextant original letter, as he stated, with “my pen,” and submitted it to and for publication in the Times and Seasons. The letter was published in the 1 November 1843 issue of the periodical; that version, featured here, was undated. If the immediate trigger for the letter was ’s rebuke—which was composed “in council, at , November, 1843” but was published in the 15 October 1843 issue of the Times and Seasons, which was not printed until after 2 December 1843—then JS’s letter may have also been written sometime in November 1843. Alternatively, JS could have written and submitted this letter sometime during the next few weeks. The 1 November 1843 edition of the Times and Seasons contains information regarding the Avery kidnappings, including developments that transpired as late as approximately 20 December, indicating that this issue of the Times and Seasons was completed and issued sometime thereafter. It most likely appeared in late December.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Crawley, Descriptive Bibliography, 1:94.

    Crawley, Peter. A Descriptive Bibliography of the Mormon Church. 3 vols. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1997–2012.

  2. [2]

    Brigham Young, “To the Elders and Churches Abroad,” Times and Seasons, 15 Oct. 1843, 4:360. Immediately following Young’s statement in the Times and Seasons was an editorial from Woodruff to the elders and church members encouraging readers to assist in “circulating the Times and Seasons and [Nauvoo] Neighbor far and wide, to the extent of your influence.” (Wilford Woodruff, Editorial, Times and Seasons, 15 Oct. 1843, 4:360.)

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

  3. [3]

    The paper intended to publish articles on Jesus Christ’s gospel, the gathering of Israel, and the Missouri experience. (Ebenezer Robinson and Don Carlos Smith, “Address,” Times and Seasons, Nov. 1839, 1:1.)

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

  4. [4]

    The 15 October issue contained a letter dated 2 December 1843. (Francis Edwards, Nauvoo, IL, to John Taylor, [Nauvoo, IL], 2 Dec. 1843, in Times and Seasons, 15 Oct. 1843, 4:354.)

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

  5. [5]

    The Times and Seasons article on the Avery kidnappings summarized content from articles and affidavits dated 18–20 December 1843. (“Kidnapping,” Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1843, 4:375–376; “Kidnapping,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 20 Dec. 1843, [2]; Affidavit from Andrew and James Hamilton, 20 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL.)

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

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Letter to John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff, between circa November and circa 20 December 1843 History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 377

of Zion, is such unity—for there the Lord commanded the blessing—life forever more! Unity is power, and when the brethren as one man, sustain the ‘Times and Seasons,’ they sustain me, by giving a spread to the revelations, faith, works, history, and progress of the .— The brethren who conduct the paper have been appointed to that important station because they are worthy and well qualified, and what a blessed sign of a faithful friend to God and man is it, to see the charity of a brother support his brethren as an evidence that he means to pass from death into life?
Many of the articles which appear in the Times and Seasons, are extracts of revelations, translations, or are the united voice of , which like ‘apples of gold in baskets of silver,’ are treasures more than meet for the called, chosen, and faithful among the saints; and should be more than drink to those that hunger and thirst after righteousness. As is rising in glory and greatness, so shall I expect to see the Times and Seasons increase in circulation by the vigilance of the and saints—so as to be a herald of truth, and a standard of pure and undefiled religion. Finally, men and brethren, when you support my friends, you support me.
In the bonds of the , I am your humble servant,
JOSEPH SMITH. [p. 377]
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Source Note

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Page 377

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff, between circa November and circa 20 December 1843
ID #
1192
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D13:412–415
Handwriting on This Page
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Footnotes

  1. [13]

    See Psalm 133:2–3.

  2. [14]

    In previous discourses, JS tacitly taught that a unified membership could produce decisions in their conferences that were tantamount to his revelations and translations. (Darowski, “Seeking after the Ancient Order,” 100–104.)

    Darowski, Joseph F. “Seeking After the Ancient Order: Conferences and Councils in Early Church Governance, 1830–34.” In Brigham Young University Church History Symposium; A Firm Foundation: Church Organization and Administration, edited by David J. Whittaker and Arnold K. Garr, 97–113. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2011.

  3. [15]

    William Morgan’s exposé on Freemasonry indicates that the phrase “worthy and well qualified” was employed in Masonic ritual. (Morgan, Illustrations of Masonry, 18, 33, 46.)

    Morgan, William. Illustrations of Masonry, by One of the Fraternity, Who Has Devoted Thirty Years to the Subject. Batavia, NY: By the author, 1826.

  4. [16]

    See 1 John 3:14.

  5. [17]

    See Proverbs 25:11.

  6. [18]

    See Revelation 17:14.

  7. [19]

    See Matthew 5:6. Brigham Young referenced the same scriptural passage in his letter published in the Times and Seasons the previous month. (Brigham Young, “To the Elders and Churches Abroad,” Times and Seasons, 15 Oct. 1843, 4:360.)

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

  8. [20]

    See James 1:27.

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