D&C 138:17 Our physical bodies are required for a fullness of joy

Elder Bednar Taught:

“Our physical bodies make possible a breadth, a depth, and an intensity of experience that simply could not be obtained in our premortal existence. Thus, our relationships with other people, our capacity to recognize and act in accordance with truth, and our ability to obey the principles and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ are amplified through our physical bodies. …

“The Father’s plan is designed to provide direction for His children, to help them become happy, and to bring them safely home to Him with resurrected, exalted bodies” (“We Believe in Being Chaste,” Ensign or Liahona,May 2013, 41, 43).

Questions and answers about the Pearl of Great Price

QUESTION: Why did Joseph Smith say he had translated the writings of Abraham even though the manuscripts do not date from Abraham’s time?

ANSWER: The Prophet Joseph Smith never claimed the papyri were indeed the writings of Abraham. He said the book of Abraham was “a translation of some ancient Records that have fallen into our hands, from the Catacombs of Egypt, purporting to be the writings of Abraham, while he was in Egypt” (Times and Seasons, Mar. 1, 1842, 704). “In 1966 eleven fragments of papyri once possessed by the Prophet Joseph Smith were discovered in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. They were given to the Church and have been analyzed by scholars who date them between about 100 B.C. and A.D. 100. A common objection to the authenticity of the book of Abraham is that the manuscripts are not old enough to have been written by Abraham, who lived almost two thousand years before Christ. Joseph Smith never claimed that the papyri were autographic (written by Abraham himself), nor that they dated from the time of Abraham. It is common to refer to an author’s works as ‘his’ writings, whether he penned them himself, dictated them to others, or others copied his writings later” (The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual, 28).

QUESTION: What did Joseph Smith do with his translation?

ANSWER: “The book of Abraham was originally published a few excerpts at a time in Times and Seasons, a Church publication, beginning in March 1842 at Nauvoo, Illinois (see [the introduction] at the beginning of the Pearl of Great Price). The Prophet Joseph Smith indicated that he would publish more of the book of Abraham later, but he was martyred before he was able to do so. Concerning the potential length of the completed translation, Oliver Cowdery once said that ‘volumes’ would be necessary to contain it (see Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1835, 236). “In addition to hieroglyphic writings, the manuscript also contained Egyptian drawings. On 23 February 1842, the Prophet Joseph Smith asked Reuben Hedlock, a professional wood engraver and member of the Church, to prepare woodcuts of three of those drawings so they could be printed. Hedlock finished the engravings in one week, and Joseph Smith published the copies (facsimiles) along with the book of Abraham. Joseph Smith’s explanations of the drawings accompany the facsimiles” (The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual, 28–29).

QUESTION: What happened to the mummies and the papyri?

ANSWER: “After the death of the Prophet Joseph Smith, the four mummies and the papyri became the property of Joseph’s widowed mother, Lucy Mack Smith” (The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual, 29). After Lucy Mack Smith died, the collection was sold to a man named Abel Combs. The collection may have been sold by Joseph Smith’s wife Emma, or it may have been sold by his brother William. Mr. Combs sold some of the collection to a museum in St. Louis, Missouri. He retained other portions and later gave some of them away. (The Story of the Book of Abraham: Mummies, Manuscripts, and Mormonism [1995], 204–9, 257.)

“Several theories have been offered regarding what happened . . . to the mummies and the papyri. It appears that at least two of the mummies were burned in the great Chicago fire of 1871 (see B. H. Roberts, New Witnesses for God, 3 vols. [1909–11], 2:380–382).

How Joseph obtained the writings of Abraham

“On 3 July 1835 a man named Michael Chandler brought four Egyptian mummies and several papyrus scrolls of ancient Egyptian writings to Kirtland, Ohio. The mummies and papyri had been discovered in Egypt several years earlier by Antonio Lebolo. Kirtland was one of many stops in the eastern United States for Chandler’s mummy exhibition. Chandler was offering the mummies and rolls of papyrus for sale and, at the urging of the Prophet Joseph Smith, several members of the Church donated money to purchase them. In a statement dated 5 July 1835, Joseph Smith, declaring the importance of these ancient Egyptian writings, recorded: ‘I commenced the translation of some of the characters or hieroglyphics, and much to our joy found that one of the rolls contained the writings of Abraham. . . . Truly we can say, the Lord is beginning to reveal the abundance of peace and truth’ (History of the Church, 2:236)” (The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual [Church Educational System manual, 2000], 28).

“the Prophet Joseph Smith never communicated his method of translating these records. As with all other scriptures, a testimony of the truthfulness of these writings is primarily a matter of faith. The greatest evidence of the truthfulness of the book of Abraham is not found in an analysis of physical evidence nor historical background, but in prayerful consideration of its content and power” (The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual, 28).

Succession the Presidency. Brigham Young is called.

1

“Sidney Rigdon, First Counselor in the First Presidency, arrived [in Nauvoo] from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on 3 August 1844. In the year before this time, he had begun taking a course contrary to the counsel of the Prophet Joseph Smith and had become estranged from the Church. He refused to meet with the three members of the Twelve already in Nauvoo and instead spoke to a large group of the Saints assembled for their Sunday worship service” (Our Heritage: A Brief History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [1996], 66).

Sidney Rigdon called for a special meeting to be held on Tuesday, August 6, so that Church members could choose a guardian for the Church. It appeared as though Sidney Rigdon tried to hold this meeting so Church members could ratify his position as guardian of the Church before all of the Twelve Apostles would return from their missions to the eastern United States. Some Church leaders felt that Brother Rigdon might be plotting to “take advantage of the situation of the saints” (History of the Church, 7:225). Fortunately, because of the efforts of Elder Willard Richards and Elder Parley P. Pratt, the meeting was moved to Thursday, August 8, 1844, by which time most of the Apostles had returned to Nauvoo.

Sidney Rigdon claimed that because he had previously been called and ordained as a spokesman for Joseph Smith (see D&C 100:9), it was his responsibility to “see that the church is governed in a proper manner” (History of the Church, 7:229). He also claimed that he should be “a guardian to the people” and that in fulfilling this responsibility, he was doing what God had commanded him to do (see History of the Church, 7:230).

2

James Strang, who had been baptized in February 1844, was exploring a possible location for the Saints in Wisconsin in the spring of 1844. After the martyrdom, James Strang claimed to have received a letter from Joseph Smith, stating that he had been appointed to be Joseph’s successor. James Strang’s letter, which he showed to members of the Church, appeared to have Joseph Smith’s signature. James Strang claimed to be the next prophet and announced his position at a conference of the Church in Michigan on August 5, 1844.

3

Elders John Taylor, Willard Richards, and Parley P. Pratt were already in Nauvoo when Sidney Rigdon arrived. Most of the rest of the Apostles, including Brigham Young, returned to Nauvoo on the evening of August 6, 1844. The next day, August 7, the Apostles met in council at the home of John Taylor. Later that afternoon, the Twelve Apostles, the high council, and the high priests met together. President Young asked Sidney Rigdon to state his message to the Saints. Sidney Rigdon boldly declared that he had seen a vision and that no man could succeed Joseph Smith as President of the Church. He then proposed that he be appointed as the guardian of the people.

After Sidney Rigdon concluded his remarks, Brigham Young said:

“I do not care who leads the church…but one thing I must know, and that is what God says about it. I have the keys and the means of obtaining the mind of God on the subject. …

“Joseph conferred upon our heads [referring to the Quorum of the Twelve] all the keys and powers belonging to the Apostleship which he himself held before he was taken away. …

“How often has Joseph said to the Twelve, ‘I have laid the foundation and you must build thereon, for upon your shoulders the kingdom rests’” (in History of the Church, 7:230).

4

On August 8, 1844, the Saints in Nauvoo gathered at 10:00 a.m. to hear Sidney Rigdon make his claims as guardian of the Church. Because the wind was blowing toward the stand, Sidney Rigdon took his position in a wagon behind the assembled congregation so the people could better hear his voice. The congregation turned around so they could see Sidney Rigdon as he preached. He spoke to the thousands of assembled Saints for an hour and a half, explaining why he should be guardian of the Church. Several people described his speech as uninspiring.

President Brigham Young and other Church leaders came and sat on the stand opposite where Sidney Rigdon was speaking. The wind had died down by this point. After Sidney Rigdon had finished, President Brigham Young spoke. The audience turned around to hear Brigham Young speak and turned their backs toward the wagon occupied by Sidney Rigdon. (See George Q. Cannon, “Discourse,” Deseret News, Feb. 21, 1883, 67.) Brigham Young spoke briefly and said that he would have preferred to come back to Nauvoo to mourn for the Prophet than to have to appoint a new leader. He announced that an assembly of leaders and members would be held later that day at 2:00 p.m. Several members of the Church later testified that as Brigham Young spoke, they saw his appearance change and heard his voice change, and he took on the appearance and voice of the Prophet Joseph Smith. This miraculous event helped many of the Saints know that the Lord wanted Brigham Young to lead the Church.

5

Benjamin F. Johnson recalled, “As soon as he [Brigham Young] spoke I jumped upon my feet, for in every possible degree it was Joseph’s voice, and his person, in look, attitude, dress and appearance was Joseph himself, personified; and I knew in a moment the spirit and mantle of Joseph was upon him” (My Life’s Review, 104, as quoted in Church History in the Fulness of Times Student Manual, 2nd ed. [Church Educational System manual, 2003], 291).

	6

 

William C. Staines described Brigham Young as speaking in a “voice like the voice of the Prophet Joseph. I thought it was he, and so did thousands who heard it” (in History of the Church, 7:236).

	7

 

Wilford Woodruff wrote, “If I had not seen him with my own eyes, there is no one that could have convinced me that it was not Joseph Smith, and anyone can testify to this who was acquainted with these two men” (in History of the Church, 7:236).

8

In addition to this miracle, the Saints also felt the Holy Ghost witness to them that Brigham Young and the Quorum of the twelve were called by God to lead the Church. At the conclusion of the this meeting, the Saints in Nauvoo voted unanimously to sustain the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, with Brigham Young at their head, to lead the church. However, not all the members of the Church ultimately chose to follow the Apostles. Some of the people chose instead to follow individuals such as Sidney Rigdon and James Strang, who formed their own churches.