Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 1 March 1835

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Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 1 March 1835
Source Note

Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, [
Kirtland Township
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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, Geauga Co., OH], 1 Mar. 1835. Featured version copied [not before 25 Feb. 1836] in Minute Book 1, pp. 172–186; handwriting of
Warren Cowdery
17 Oct. 1788–23 Feb. 1851. Physician, druggist, farmer, editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Married Patience Simonds, 22 Sept. 1814, in Pawlet, Rutland Co. Moved to Freedom, Cattaraugus Co., New York, 1816...
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; CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for Minute Book 1.

Historical Introduction
On the morning of 1 March 1835, church members convened a meeting 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...
More Info
, Ohio, apparently as a continuation of a meeting that had adjourned on 28 February. Several men appointed to the office of
Seventy
A priesthood office with the responsibility to travel and preach and assist the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, similar to the seventy in the New Testament. In February and March 1835, the first members of the Seventy were selected and ordained. All of those...
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were given
ordination
The conferral of power and authority; to appoint, decree, or set apart. Church members, primarily adults, were ordained to ecclesiastical offices and other responsibilities by the laying on of hands by those with the proper authority. Ordinations to priesthood...
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blessings in that 28 February meeting.
1
For more information about these meetings and the Seventy in general, see Historical Introduction to Minutes and Blessings, 28 Feb.–1 Mar. 1835.
The blessings continued in this 1 March 1835 meeting, and at least thirty-three individuals, including some not designated as seventies, were blessed.
2
Although not all blessings explicitly state that an individual was ordained a seventy, it appears that the only men not made seventies at this time were John Murdock, Solomon Denton, Benjamin Winchester, Hyrum Smith, and Frederick G. Williams.
All those receiving ordinations and blessings in this meeting had participated in the
Camp of Israel
A group of approximately 205 men and about 20 women and children led by JS to Missouri, May–July 1834, to redeem Zion by helping the Saints who had been driven from Jackson County, Missouri, regain their lands; later referred to as “Zion’s Camp.” A 24 February...
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expedition.
3
Bradley, Zion’s Camp 1834, 269–275; Account with the Church of Christ, ca. 11–29 Aug. 1834.
Comprehensive Works Cited
Bradley, James L. Zion’s Camp 1834: Prelude to the Civil War. Logan, UT: By the author, 1990.
According to later reminiscences, many of these blessings were performed by members of the church presidency, including JS, his
father
12 July 1771–14 Sept. 1840. Cooper, farmer, teacher, merchant. Born at Topsfield, Essex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Nominal member of Congregationalist church at Topsfield. Married to Lucy Mack by Seth Austin, 24 Jan. 1796, at Tunbridge...
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,
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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, and
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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.
4
For examples, see Hutchings, Journal, 15 Feb. 1835; Burgess, Autobiography, 4; and “Biographies of the Seventies of the Second Quorum,” 22.
Hutchings, Elias. Journal, Dec. 1834–Sept. 1836. CHL. MS 1445.
Burgess, Harrison. Autobiography, ca. 1883. Photocopy. CHL. MS 893. Also available as “Sketch of a Well-Spent Life,” in Labors in the Vineyard, Faith-Promoting Series 12 (Salt Lake City: Juvenile Instructor Office, 1884), 65–74.
“Biographies of the Seventies of the Second Quorum,” 1845–1855. In Seventies Quorum Records, 1844–1975. CHL. CR 499.
The minutes indicate that several individuals who had recently been
baptized
An ordinance in which an individual is immersed in water for the remission of sins. The Book of Mormon explained that those with necessary authority were to baptize individuals who had repented of their sins. Baptized individuals also received the gift of...
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were also confirmed members of the church at the meeting, and the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper was administered. JS also gave instructions on the necessity of worthiness when partaking of the sacrament.

It is unclear who originally recorded the ordination blessings or the minutes of the meeting.
Warren Cowdery
17 Oct. 1788–23 Feb. 1851. Physician, druggist, farmer, editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Married Patience Simonds, 22 Sept. 1814, in Pawlet, Rutland Co. Moved to Freedom, Cattaraugus Co., New York, 1816...
View Full Bio
later copied them into Minute Book 1.
Footnotes
[1]
For more information about these meetings and the Seventy in general, see Historical Introduction to Minutes and Blessings, 28 Feb.–1 Mar. 1835.
[2]
Although not all blessings explicitly state that an individual was ordained a seventy, it appears that the only men not made seventies at this time were John Murdock, Solomon Denton, Benjamin Winchester, Hyrum Smith, and Frederick G. Williams.
[3]
Bradley, Zion’s Camp 1834, 269–275; Account with the Church of Christ, ca. 11–29 Aug. 1834.
Bradley, James L. Zion’s Camp 1834: Prelude to the Civil War. Logan, UT: By the author, 1990.
[4]
For examples, see Hutchings, Journal, 15 Feb. 1835; Burgess, Autobiography, 4; and “Biographies of the Seventies of the Second Quorum,” 22.
Hutchings, Elias. Journal, Dec. 1834–Sept. 1836. CHL. MS 1445.
Burgess, Harrison. Autobiography, ca. 1883. Photocopy. CHL. MS 893. Also available as “Sketch of a Well-Spent Life,” in Labors in the Vineyard, Faith-Promoting Series 12 (Salt Lake City: Juvenile Instructor Office, 1884), 65–74.
“Biographies of the Seventies of the Second Quorum,” 1845–1855. In Seventies Quorum Records, 1844–1975. CHL. CR 499.
Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 1 March 1835 Minute Book 1 History, 1838–1856, volume B-1 [1 September 1834–2 November 1838] “History of Joseph Smith”
Page 180
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your all to God, you shall be preserved if you keep his covenant and turn away from none of it. You shall have great power and wisdom & do great good before the Lord. You shall travel from land to land and from Kingdom to Kingdom. and you shall stand before and preach to Kings, and have power over great men, and poor men. & show forth signs and wonders to whom signs and wonders will be profitable, and in a good old age you shall return with rejoicing and bring many sheaves with you, Then shall you rest and your last days shall be your best days. Amen.

William Pratt
3 Sept. 1802–15 Sept. 1870. Schoolteacher. Born at Worcester, Otsego Co., New York. Son of Jared Pratt and Charity Dickinson. Moved to Ohio, 1830. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1831. Ordained an elder by Sidney Rigdon, 10 Feb....
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We
ordain
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you and set you apart to be one of the
70
A priesthood office with the responsibility to travel and preach and assist the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, similar to the seventy in the New Testament. In February and March 1835, the first members of the Seventy were selected and ordained. All of those...
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to preach the Gospel to the
Gentiles
Those who were not members of the House of Israel. More specifically, members of the church identified gentiles as those whose lineage was not of the Jews or Lamanites (understood to be the American Indians in JS’s day). Certain prophecies indicated that ...
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. If you seek with all your heart you shall go to other lands and preach the gospel to in other tongues & do a good and a great work. You shall have success in your ministry, and convert many in the nations who will hear you and lead the[m] to
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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the Land of your home Amen.

S[olomon] W. Denton
Apr. 1816–Mar. 1864. Printer, postmaster. Born in New York. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Boarded with JS, beginning 11 Dec. 1833, in Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio. Participated in Camp of Israel expedition to Missouri, 1834. Married...
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37
Solomon Denton (1816–1864), who was baptized in 1831, began boarding with JS in December 1833 while he worked in the church’s printing shop in Kirtland. (Lancaster and Reed, Oakland County, Michigan, 71; Trial Proceedings, State of Ohio on Complaint of Grandison Newell v. JS, Painesville [OH] Telegraph, 9 June 1837, [2]; JS, Journal, 11 Dec. 1833.)
Lancaster, Beverly, and Russel Reed. Oakland County, Michigan: Oak Hill Cemetery (Older Sections), 1822–1991. Pontiac, MI: Pontiac Area Historical and Genealogical Society, 1992.
Painesville Telegraph. Painesville, OH. 1822–1986.

We
ordain
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you to be an
Elder
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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in 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...
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. You have seen affliction with the children of
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 ...
View Glossary
.
38
Denton apparently lived in Missouri before coming to Kirtland in December 1833 after the Saints were expelled from Jackson County, Missouri. (Trial Proceedings, State of Ohio on Complaint of Grandison Newell v. JS, Painesville [OH] Telegraph, 9 June 1837, [2].)
You shall see many days & great events rolling one after another and many scenes rolling together. If you desire it with all your heart you shall stand on the land of Zion when the Lord descends. You shall have much strength. Your mind shall be filled with wisdom. You shall be as those who are raised up from infancy in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
39
See Ephesians 6:4; and Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 143 [Enos 1:1].
You shall have the ministring of Angels to prepare you for your many duties Amen [p. 180]
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Page 180
Document Information
Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 1 March 1835
ID #
6818
Total Pages
15
Print Volume Location
JSP, D4:264–279
Handwriting on This Page
Warren A. Cowdery
Footnotes
[37]
Solomon Denton (1816–1864), who was baptized in 1831, began boarding with JS in December 1833 while he worked in the church’s printing shop in Kirtland. (Lancaster and Reed, Oakland County, Michigan, 71; Trial Proceedings, State of Ohio on Complaint of Grandison Newell v. JS, Painesville [OH] Telegraph, 9 June 1837, [2]; JS, Journal, 11 Dec. 1833.)
Lancaster, Beverly, and Russel Reed. Oakland County, Michigan: Oak Hill Cemetery (Older Sections), 1822–1991. Pontiac, MI: Pontiac Area Historical and Genealogical Society, 1992.
[38]
Denton apparently lived in Missouri before coming to Kirtland in December 1833 after the Saints were expelled from Jackson County, Missouri. (Trial Proceedings, State of Ohio on Complaint of Grandison Newell v. JS, Painesville [OH] Telegraph, 9 June 1837, [2].)
[39]
See Ephesians 6:4; and Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 143 [Enos 1:1].