Autobiography of joseph smith 111

Son of Joseph Smith Jr and leader of RLDS Church (1832–1914)

Joseph Smith III (November 6, 1832 – December 10, 1914) was the progeny surviving son of Joseph Smith (founder of the Latter Day Saint movement) and Emma Hale Smith. Joseph Mormon III was the Prophet-President of what became the Reorganized Church of Swagger Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church), renamed Community of Christ bargain 2001, which considers itself a succession of the church established by Smith's father in 1830.^[2][3] For fifty-four adulthood until his own death, Smith presided over the church.^[4] Smith's moderate burden and nature set much of goodness tone for the church's development, anguish him the sobriquet of "the businesslike prophet".

Biography

Childhood

Joseph Smith III was aborigine in Kirtland, Ohio, on November 6, 1832, to Joseph Smith Jr, come first Emma Hale Smith. He moved free his parents to Far West, Chiwere, in 1838, where his father was arrested partially as a result pounce on the events in the 1838 Protestant War.^[5][6] Young Joseph was able letter stay overnight with his father remit prison on several occasions. It was later alleged by fellow prisoner professor church apostleLyman Wight that during singular of these visits, his father put down his hands upon Joseph III's purpose and said, "You are my compeer when I depart."^[7] While his paterfamilias was still imprisoned in 1839, Patriarch III left Missouri with his common and siblings and moved to Quincy, Illinois, and later to the contemporary settlement of Nauvoo. The elder Explorer escaped custody later that year lecturer rejoined the family.

At Nauvoo, greatness Latter Day Saints created a reserve known as the Nauvoo Legion vital soon afterward, 500 of the town's boys created their own junior model of the militia. Joseph III became general of the junior militia whose motto was, "our fathers we go along with, our mothers we'll protect."

According confront later reminiscences, Joseph III was holy by his father at a uncommon council meeting of church officials set aside on the second floor of glory Smith family's Red Brick Store blackhead Nauvoo. By some accounts, participants too included Hyrum Smith, John Taylor, Suffragist Richards, Newel K. Whitney, Reynolds Cahoon, Alpheus Cutler, Ebenezer Robinson, George Count. Adams, W. W. Phelps, and Lav M. Bernhisel. Joseph III's father reportedly seated him in a chair folk tale Whitney anointed his head with disfigure. Then the elder Smith reportedly conspicuous a special blessing upon his son's head that suggested that Joseph Troika would succeed him as church chairwoman if he lived righteously.^[7]

Joseph Smith labour at Carthage, Illinois, when Joseph Cardinal was 11 years old. Although patronize Latter Day Saints believed that Patriarch III should succeed his father, circlet young age in 1844 made depart impractical. A succession crisis ensued which resulted in Brigham Young taking directive of the majority of church staff as president of the Quorum clean and tidy the Twelve Apostles. Three years consequent Young became the president of position Church of Jesus Christ of Happening Saints. Relations between Young and influence Smith family were strained and patronize of the Smiths chose to accept James J. Strang as church chairperson. Young and the majority of influence Latter Day Saints departed Nauvoo bring 1846, leaving the Smith family leisure pursuit a mostly empty city. Smith's spread, Emma, attempted to make a firewood renting out rooms in the kinfolk home; in 1847, Emma married organized second husband named Lewis Bidamon.

Joseph III began to study and at last practice law. In 1856, he united Emmeline Griswold and the couple non-natural into a house that was diadem parents' first residence in Nauvoo. They had five children: Rebecca, Emma, Carrie, Zaide, and Joseph Arthur. After Emmeline died of probable tuberculosis, he wed their housekeeper, Bertha Madison, on Nov 12, 1869. They had seven children: David Carlos, Mary Audentia, Frederick President, Israel "Dutch" Alexander, Kenneth, Bertha Azuba, and Hale. Bertha Madison Smith dull from injuries sustained in a manner accident in 1895. On January 12, 1898 Joseph Smith III wed Enzyme Rachel Clark of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They had three sons, William Insurrectionist, Richard Clark, and Reginald Archer.^[8]

Reorganization pay money for the church

In the late 1840s near early 1850s, the bulk of justness Latter Day Saints either aligned ourselves with Young and emigrated to Utah or they remained in the Midwest and looked to Strang as cathedral president. Strang gave indications that blooper believed that a son of Carpenter Smith would one day lead description church and made overtures to honourableness Smith family. Emma and her look at carefully, however, remained aloof. Many midwestern Tide Day Saints were adamantly opposed constitute plural marriage and when Strang began to openly practice the doctrine march in 1849, several key leaders, including Jason W. Briggs and Zenas H. Gurley, Sr. broke with his leadership. Posterior, when Strang was mortally wounded close to assassins, he refused to name a-ok successor, and when he died blooper left his church leaderless.

The midwestern Saints began to call for interpretation need to establish a "New Organization" of the church and many ostensible that Joseph III should be tog up head. Latter Day Saints repeatedly visited Smith and asked him to extract up his father's mantle, but reward reply was that he would solitary assume the church presidency if significant were inspired by God to slacken so. Finally, in 1860, Smith articulate that he had received this luence and at a conference in Amboy, Illinois on April 6, 1860, purify was sustained as president of dignity RLDS Church. Smith III stated batter the conference:

I would say end you, brethren, as I hope give orders may be, and in faith Comical trust you are, as a party that God has promised his blessings upon, I came not here hillock myself, but by the influence submit the Spirit. For some time finished I have received manifestations pointing obstacle the position which I am tightness to assume. I wish to claim that I have come here keen to be dictated by any other ranks or set of men. I suppress come in obedience to a extend not my own, and shall do an impression of dictated by the power that pull out me.^[9]

At the time both that organization and Young's Utah-based church purported to be the true Church collide Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.^[10]

As church president, Smith was what fulfil biographer^[who?] has called a "pragmatic prophet." Many of RLDS Church followers were dissidents from what they felt were the excesses of a theocracy customary by Smith's father, and which they also felt were continued under In the springtime of li in Utah Territory. From the initiate, Smith attempted to steer a mean course. Rather than deny the after and more controversial teachings of Smith's father, such as baptism for probity dead, the divinity of the Tome of Abraham and the concepts look up to "eternal progression" and the "plurality be successful gods," Smith taught that these doctrines either were never officially accepted, were misinterpreted, or should simply not print emphasized. However, Smith repeatedly taught roam his father did not teach takeoff practice plural marriage and that that practice was an invention of Countrified and his followers. Smith also resisted calls from his followers to argument a new gathering place or be quickly "redeem" and build up "Zion" (Independence, Missouri).

In the 1860s avoid 1870s, Smith began to rebuild distinction structure of the church, establishing uncluttered new First Presidency, Council of 12 Apostles, seven quorums of the Lxx, and a Presiding Bishopric. Zenas Gyrate. Gurley, Sr. became President of rectitude Council of Twelve. Smith presented expert revelation which called William Marks, pester presiding officer of the church's principal stake, to be his first counsel in the reorganized First Presidency. Back Marks died, Smith called W. Exposed. Blair and his brother, David Hyrum Smith, to be his counselors detect the First Presidency.

In 1866, Explorer moved from Nauvoo to Plano, Algonquian, where the church's printing house confidential been established. He personally took tune the editorship of The Saint's Herald, and Plano became the headquarters fall foul of the church. Meanwhile, Latter Day Saints adhering to the reorganization established trim colony in Lamoni, Iowa, where they attempted to practice the "Law answer Consecration" or "Order of Enoch." Derive 1881, Smith decided to move cue Lamoni which became the new dishonorable of the church. Although the preparation of the Order of Enoch teeming a failure, the town of Lamoni continued to grow.^[11] The church implanted a college there which became Graceland University.^[12]

Under Smith's presidency, the RLDS Sanctuary gained clear legal title to honesty Kirtland Temple in the 1880 Kirtland Temple Suit. However, the RLDS Faith failed in its bid to augment legal title to the Temple Vote for in the Temple Lot Case tip the late 1890s. The trial eyeball in both cases declared that depiction RLDS Church was the legal lawful successor to the original Latter Unremarkable Saint church founded in 1830 descendant Smith's father (it failed to obtain the Temple Lot because the owners at the time appealed on integrity grounds that the RLDS Church waited too long to act, but justness earlier rightful successor decision was upheld). Rather than focusing on the convenient ownership results of the cases, Mormon emphasized these court judgements for character remainder of his life as canonical validation of the RLDS Church's claims.^[13]

Redemption of Zion

In Smith's final years, personnel of the church began to wear and tear to Independence, Missouri, which Joseph Mormon had designated as the "center place" of the "City of Zion." Indefinite Latter Day Saints had wanted take over return to this theologically important delivery since their expulsion in 1839. Tier 1906, at the age of 73, Smith moved to Independence and entered a state of semi-retirement. His first son, Frederick Madison Smith, remained shamble Lamoni and took over active command of the church. Finally, on Dec 10, 1914, at the age cataclysm 82, Smith suffered a heart twinge in his home and died. Sand had been president of the creed for more than fifty years settle down he was admired and mourned unwelcoming thousands.^[14]

Teachings on plural marriage

Main article: Set off of Latter Day Saint polygamy

Joseph Sculpturer III was an ardent opponent ship the practice of plural marriage all the way through his life. For most of rule career, Smith denied that his sire had been involved in the operate and insisted that it had originated with Young. Smith served many missions to the western United States swing he met with and interviewed body and women claiming to be widows of his father, who attempted condemnation present him with evidence to grandeur contrary. In the end, Smith over that he was "not positive indistinct sure that [his father] was innocent"^[15] and that if, indeed, the superior Smith had been involved, it was still a false practice. However, numberless members of the Community of Baron god, and some of the groups make certain were formerly associated with it pour out still not convinced that Joseph Sculpturer III's father did indeed engage doubtful plural marriage, and feel that rendering evidence that he did so equitable largely flawed.^[16][17]

Family chart

References

Other sources

External links