Joseph deeply loved his family, and his personal writings are filled with concerns and prayers for their welfare. Together they had eleven children (including two who were adopted), only five of whom lived past infancy. On 18 January 1827, Joseph and Emma were married. While working in Harmony, Pennsylvania, in 1825, Joseph Smith met Emma Hale. Following the publication of the Book of Mormon, on 6 April 1830, the prophet finally organized the Church and became its first president. The result of his translating efforts became known as the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, which was published in March of 1830. Shortly after obtaining these golden plates, he began translating its words by the "gift of God."ġ843 Photograph of Joseph Smith the Prophet In 1827, Joseph was finally able to retrieve the record, which was inscribed on golden plates. However, he was also told that he should wait another four years before being able to obtain the record and that until then he should return each year to the same place to receive further instructions. He was shown the forest location of the record's hiding place by the angel. Later, in 1823, Joseph Smith said he was also visited by an angel named Moroni, who told him of an ancient record containing God's dealings with the former inhabitants of the American continent. The importance of the event hinges on its definition as the beginning of the restoration of Christ's true gospel on earth, which was lost upon the death of the original apostles. This experience is called the First Vision in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and considered a pivotal event in the history of humankind, second only to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As he was praying, as he recounted later, God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to him. After reading a passage in the Bible in the book of James, instructing any who lacked wisdom to "ask of God" ( James 1:5), Joseph decided to turn directly to God for guidance.Įarly one morning in the spring of 1820, Joseph went to a secluded wood to ask God which church he should follow. Joseph was determined to know which of the many religions was right. Members of his immediate family were drawn to the Methodist and Presbyterian Churches. In 1820, at the age of fourteen, Joseph was deeply perplexed about which church he should join, and the conflicting preaching of many religious ministers increased his uncertainty. Various Christian sects sponsored tent meetings and revivals, and they competed vigorously for converts. This area was known as the "burned-over district," because it was given to frequent and fervent religious excitement. When Joseph was eleven, his family moved to Palmyra, New York, where Joseph lived almost all of his later childhood. The Smiths moved several times in less than twenty years. His mother reported that he was often given to meditation and deep study. In his youth, Joseph was largely deprived of formal education, but he was instructed in reading, writing, and the basic rules of arithmetic. He was the son of Joseph and Lucy Mack Smith. He was born on 23 December 1805, in Sharon, Vermont. Joseph Smith's ancestors were ordinary New England farm people who emigrated from England to America in the seventeenth century and settled in Massachusetts.
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