Minutes and Discourse, 21 April 1834

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Minutes and Discourse, 21 April 1834
Source Note

Minutes and Discourse,
Norton Township
Area first settled, 1814. Formed from Wolf Creek Township, 1818. Reported location of “great Mormon excitement,” 1832–1838. Population in 1830 about 650. Primarily populated by immigrants from New England states. Increased German Pennsylvanian immigration...
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, Medina Co., OH, 21 Apr. 1834. Featured version copied [between ca. late Apr. and 5 May 1834] in Minute Book 1, pp. 43–47; handwriting of
Orson Hyde
8 Jan. 1805–28 Nov. 1878. Laborer, clerk, storekeeper, teacher, editor, businessman, lawyer, judge. Born at Oxford, New Haven Co., Connecticut. Son of Nathan Hyde and Sally Thorpe. Moved to Derby, New Haven Co., 1812. Moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, ...
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; CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for Minute Book 1.

Historical Introduction
On 21 April 1834, in
Norton
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, Ohio, JS presided over a
conference
A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed the elders to hold conferences to perform “Church business.” The first of these conferences was held on 9 June...
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of
elders
A male leader in the church generally; an ecclesiastical and priesthood office or one holding that office; a proselytizing missionary. The Book of Mormon explained that elders ordained priests and teachers and administered “the flesh and blood of Christ unto...
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that focused on the necessity of redeeming
Zion
A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...
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. This conference had a clear millenarian theme, with sermons indicating that Jesus Christ’s second coming was near and that the inhabitants of the earth needed to repent and gather to Zion in order to be saved. JS and other participants explained that it was imperative for church members to assist the Saints who had been expelled from
Jackson County
Settled at Fort Osage, 1808. County created, 16 Feb. 1825; organized 1826. Named after U.S. president Andrew Jackson. Featured fertile lands along Missouri River and was Santa Fe Trail departure point, which attracted immigrants to area. Area of county reduced...
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, Missouri, so Zion could be reclaimed and reoccupied.
1
For more information on the Saints’ expulsion from Jackson County, see “Joseph Smith Documents from February 1833 through March 1834.”
Such assistance could take two forms: volunteering to go with JS and others on an expedition to
Missouri
Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...
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or donating money to provision those volunteers.
2
For information on JS’s financial concerns leading up to this conference, see Historical Introduction to Letter to Orson Hyde, 7 Apr. 1834.
Without such aid, JS stated, Zion would not be redeemed and all of the church would be “persecuted and destroyed in like manner.” JS’s journal notes that “some few volunteered to go to Zion, and others donated $66.37. for the benefit of the scattered breth[r]en in Zion.”
3
JS, Journal, 21–22 Apr. 1834.

JS also spoke at the conference about some of the foundational events of the church, topics he rarely discussed in public,
4
At an October 1831 conference, for example, Hyrum Smith suggested that JS explain “the coming forth of the book of Mormon,” but JS demurred, stating that “it was not intended to tell the world all the particulars of the coming forth of the book of Mormon.” (Minutes, 25–26 Oct. 1831.)
including the
translation
To produce a text from one written in another language; in JS’s usage, most often through divine means. JS considered the ability to translate to be a gift of the spirit, like the gift of interpreting tongues. He recounted that he translated “reformed Egyptian...
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of the Book of Mormon and the “revelation” of both the
priesthood of Aaron
The lower, or lesser, of two divisions of the priesthood. Sometimes called the Levitical priesthood. It was named for Aaron, the brother of Moses, “because it was conferred upon Aaron and his seed” in antiquity. JS and other church leaders taught that the...
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, or the lesser priesthood,
5
A September 1832 revelation explained that the lesser priesthood was “confirmed upon Aaron and his sons.” (Revelation, 22–23 Sept. 1832 [D&C 84:30].)
and the
high priesthood
The authority and power held by certain officers in the church. The Book of Mormon referred to the high priesthood as God’s “holy order, which was after the order of his Son,” and indicated that Melchizedek, a biblical figure, was a high priest “after this...
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. His presentation of these topics largely followed the history he wrote in summer 1832.
6
JS History, ca. Summer 1832, 1.

Sidney Rigdon
19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...
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then spoke on the necessity of redeeming Zion, the construction of the
House of the Lord
JS revelation, dated Jan. 1831, directed Latter-day Saints to migrate to Ohio, where they would “be endowed with power from on high.” In Dec. 1832, JS revelation directed Saints to “establish . . . an house of God.” JS revelation, dated 1 June 1833, chastened...
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in
Kirtland
Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...
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, Ohio, and the
endowment
Bestowal of spiritual blessings, power, or knowledge. Beginning in 1831, multiple revelations promised an endowment of “power from on high” in association with the command to gather. Some believed this promise was fulfilled when individuals were first ordained...
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of power that would come after the house was built.

Before the conclusion of the conference, the participants conducted a trial of Thomas Tripp, a church member accused of improprieties with various women. After voting to exclude Tripp from the church, the meeting concluded with the blessing of children by JS and the administration of the
sacrament
Primarily referred to the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, or Communion, as opposed to other religious sacraments. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed “that the church meet together often to partake of bread and wine in remembrance of the Lord...
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. According to JS’s journal, the conference was “a glorious time.”
7

As clerk of the conference,
Oliver Cowdery
3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...
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kept the minutes.
Orson Hyde
8 Jan. 1805–28 Nov. 1878. Laborer, clerk, storekeeper, teacher, editor, businessman, lawyer, judge. Born at Oxford, New Haven Co., Connecticut. Son of Nathan Hyde and Sally Thorpe. Moved to Derby, New Haven Co., 1812. Moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, ...
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later copied the minutes into Minute Book 1.
Footnotes
[1]
For more information on the Saints’ expulsion from Jackson County, see “Joseph Smith Documents from February 1833 through March 1834.”
[2]
For information on JS’s financial concerns leading up to this conference, see Historical Introduction to Letter to Orson Hyde, 7 Apr. 1834.
[3]
[4]
At an October 1831 conference, for example, Hyrum Smith suggested that JS explain “the coming forth of the book of Mormon,” but JS demurred, stating that “it was not intended to tell the world all the particulars of the coming forth of the book of Mormon.” (Minutes, 25–26 Oct. 1831.)
[5]
A September 1832 revelation explained that the lesser priesthood was “confirmed upon Aaron and his sons.” (Revelation, 22–23 Sept. 1832 [D&C 84:30].)
[6]
JS History, ca. Summer 1832, 1.
[7]
Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Minutes and Discourse, 21 April 1834
Minute Book 1 History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834] “History of Joseph Smith”
Page 43
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Norton
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Medina Co. Ohio April 21, 1834.

This day a
conference
A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed the elders to hold conferences to perform “Church business.” The first of these conferences was held on 9 June...
View Glossary
of the
elders
A male leader in the church generally; an ecclesiastical and priesthood office or one holding that office; a proselytizing missionary. The Book of Mormon explained that elders ordained priests and teachers and administered “the flesh and blood of Christ unto...
View Glossary
of the
church of Christ
The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...
View Glossary
assembled
1
The conference also apparently included lay members, since the minutes mention the blessing of children.
at the dwelling house of bro. Carpenters
2
Possibly Richard Carpenter, the only Carpenter to appear in the 1830 census for Norton Township. A William Carpenter is listed in a financial account as a participant in the Camp of Israel, but he may have been Richard Carpenter’s son. A William Carpenter, born circa 1815, lived in Copley, Summit County, Ohio, at the time of the 1850 U.S. census and would have been about nineteen years old at the time of the Camp of Israel expedition in 1834. The 1830 census lists a male between the ages of fifteen and nineteen living in Richard Carpenter’s home. (Account with the Church of Christ, ca. 11–29 Aug. 1834; 1830 U.S. Census, Norton Township, Medina Co., OH, 191; 1850 U.S. Census, Copley, Summit Co., OH, 296[A].)
Comprehensive Works Cited
Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.
at 10 o’clock A.M.

Opened by singing, “How firm a foundation, &c.”
3
The hymn “How Firm a Foundation” was included in John Rippon’s A Selection of Hymns from the Best Authors, first published in 1787. It was also included in the first LDS hymnal, published in 1835. (Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, 537, 963–964; Hymn 82, Collection of Sacred Hymns, 111–113.)
Comprehensive Works Cited
Julian, John, ed. A Dictionary of Hymnology: Setting Forth the Origin and History of Christian Hymns of All Ages and Nations with Special Reference to ose Contained in the Hymn Books of English-Speaking Countries, and Now in Common Use. . . . New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1892.
A Collection of Sacred Hymns, for the Church of the Latter Day Saints. Edited by Emma Smith. Kirtland, OH: F. G. Williams, 1835.
Bro. Joseph Smith Junr. read the 2nd. chapter of the prophecy of Joel & took the lead in prayer; after which, he commenced addressing the congregation, as follows. It is very difficult for us to communicate to the churches all that God has revealed to us, in consequence of tradition; for we are differently situated from any other people that ever existed upon this earth: Consequently [p. 43]
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Source Note
Document Transcript
Page 43
Document Information
Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Minutes and Discourse, 21 April 1834
ID #
6709
Total Pages
5
Print Volume Location
JSP, D4:13–19
Handwriting on This Page
Orson Hyde
Footnotes
[1]
The conference also apparently included lay members, since the minutes mention the blessing of children.
[2]
Possibly Richard Carpenter, the only Carpenter to appear in the 1830 census for Norton Township. A William Carpenter is listed in a financial account as a participant in the Camp of Israel, but he may have been Richard Carpenter’s son. A William Carpenter, born circa 1815, lived in Copley, Summit County, Ohio, at the time of the 1850 U.S. census and would have been about nineteen years old at the time of the Camp of Israel expedition in 1834. The 1830 census lists a male between the ages of fifteen and nineteen living in Richard Carpenter’s home. (Account with the Church of Christ, ca. 11–29 Aug. 1834; 1830 U.S. Census, Norton Township, Medina Co., OH, 191; 1850 U.S. Census, Copley, Summit Co., OH, 296[A].)
Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.
[3]
The hymn “How Firm a Foundation” was included in John Rippon’s A Selection of Hymns from the Best Authors, first published in 1787. It was also included in the first LDS hymnal, published in 1835. (Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, 537, 963–964; Hymn 82, Collection of Sacred Hymns, 111–113.)
Julian, John, ed. A Dictionary of Hymnology: Setting Forth the Origin and History of Christian Hymns of All Ages and Nations with Special Reference to ose Contained in the Hymn Books of English-Speaking Countries, and Now in Common Use. . . . New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1892.
A Collection of Sacred Hymns, for the Church of the Latter Day Saints. Edited by Emma Smith. Kirtland, OH: F. G. Williams, 1835.