1. Many people believed that the book of Mormon was divine in
origin. When The Prophets son, Joseph Smith III asked his mother if the Book of
Mormon was a fake, she said, “The Book of Mormon is of divine authenticity—I
have not the slightest doubt of it.” Oliver Cowdery was one of the original
witnesses to the Book of Mormon. Even after he broke with the church, he never
denied the divine origins, later saying, “I beheld with my eyes, and handled
with my hands the gold plates from which it was translated.” Cowdery
re-affirmed his belief that the plates were genuine on his deathbed, saying,
“My eyes saw, my ears heard, and my understanding was touched, and I know that
whereof I testified is true. It was no dream, no vain imagination of the
mind—it was real"
2. The revelations of Joseph Smith jr caused him, his marriage,
his family and believers in the restored gospel nothing but misery. Joseph
Smith jr knew that his revelations were unbelievable. He probably didn’t know
how dangerous they would be. Tarred and feathered several times by angry mobs,
Joseph Smith Jr was also shot at, constantly in debt, and subjected to nothing
but ridicule for his entire life before a violent and tragic death by an angry
mob at age 38. Not only was he killed,
but his brother also died with him.
3. Yup. Joseph Smith practiced polygamy. No question about it.
Many of the teachings of Joseph Smith Jr are troublesome by today’s standards;
this might be among the most, aside from the teaching on race. More on that
later. The evidence shows Joseph Smith Jr had several wives at one time, even
though he publicly denounced the lifestyle.
This one revelation more than any other caused Joseph the most pain and
self-doubt. It devastated an otherwise healthy and strong marriage, often
stretching the marriage to point of divorce. Much is often made of the many
marriages of Joseph Smith Jr, but it’s interesting that no was has been ever
been proven to be the actual DNA child of Joseph Smith Jr, aside from the ones
he had with Emma.
4. Mormons believe Joseph Smith Jr was as prophet, which means
we think had a direct line of communication with God that no one else had after
the death of the original twelve apostles. One thing a prophet must do is being
able to see the future when speaking in his prophetic voice. LDS people think Joseph
Smith did that. While much has been written on failed prophets and prophecies,
one that is seldom talked about-and should be better known, is listed in
Doctrine and Covenants 87. On Christmas Day in 1832, Joseph foresaw that “a war
would begin with the rebellion of South Carolina” and that the “southern states
in rebellion would call on the aid of Great Britain ” (Doctrine and Covenants
87:1-3). Both events would come true. LDS apologists maintain that several
other prophecies of Joseph Smith Jr also have come to pass.
5. Joseph Smith Jr was against inter racial marriage. That’s a
shame, and even though it was commonplace at the time, it’s still not something
to be proud of. There is even some evidence that in the beginning of his life
he had some bigoted views, they were probably more of his upbringing than his
actual beliefs. Later in his life, he spoke out against slavery and even
ordained black men into the priesthood. Current scholarship shows that it might
have been Joseph Smith Jr’s successor, Brigham Young, that had some bigoted
views. Smith in his later years was fairly progressive on the issue of race for
his time.
6. Joseph Smith Jr sometimes drank beer, tea, wine, and smoked
tobacco as well. Often times in public.
Not only is this behavior unbecoming a prophet of the Lord, its also
specifically against the rules of the church he founded. To make his actions even more offensive, we
also know that several members of the church at that time were excommunicated
for the word of wisdom violations while his were treated more like an “open
secret”. No longer excommunicated for word of wisdom violations, often times converts
to the church find these rules harder to accept than any other of the church
teachings. The prophet himself at many times showed he was anything but
perfect, and his open violations remind us that he was also a man with flaws
and weakness and also an anointed Prophet.
7. He was the victim of a lynch mob. Joseph Smith Jr, along with
his brother Hyrum Smith, future church president John Taylor, and the uninjured
Willard Richards were shot and killed by a group of men with “painted faces”.
Though sadly common at the time, mob rule was seldom stopped by authorities.
This time, there was no solider with a conscience to stop the angry men. They
draped their faces in black and shot their guns in through the door, killing
Hyrum first and causing Joseph to fall towards a window. He fell out the window
to his death after getting shot again in the hip.
8. Joseph Smith Jr was a man of many passions, and we have some
letters that might indicate he struggled with a severe depression at times.
According to the brilliant “Rough Stone Rolling” by Richard Lyman Bushman, at a
time when his companion was in bed with a broken leg, Joseph felt bored and
disinterested. “With nothing to do buy mediate, old sorrows came flooding back
(Bushman 185)” One can blame a temporary feeling of sadness, but feelings of
despair and misery come up again later while the Prophet was imprisoned. “ O God, where art thou? And where is the
pavilion that covereth thy hiding place? (Doctrine and Covenant 121:1) The
entire revelation is a rather touching description of a Prophet seriously
asking God questions that all people-prophet or not-have struggled with.
9.Joseph Smith Jr. was the always on the verge of bankruptcy and
nearly almost broke. Though no one would ever say the Smith family was rich, or
even middle class, there were many other families that it worse. Joseph Smith
Sr kept his family fed, but that was it. They moved around while the Prophets
father struggled to find work. Joseph Jr probably never learned how to handle
money, and his handling of it later in life showed. Bankrupted by the temple
construction and feeding a growing family without a steady source of income,
Joseph Jr was always in debt, unable to provide Emma with the lifestyle her
middle class parents might have gotten her accustomed too.
10. Latter Day Saints view him has a prophet, but they do not
worship him. One of the biggest misconceptions of the members of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are asked is: Do you worship Joseph Smith Jr?
The answer should be obvious, we’re called the church of Jesus Christ after
all, but it probably needs to be said again, and frequently. No, LDS members do
not, have not, and never have at their time ever worshiped Joseph Smith Jr.
Faithful LDS members accept the fact that while he was a mortal man, he did
have the gift of being the anointed prophet of God.
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