I was bored yesterday, and this was the result:
I’ve been a lazy blogger this weekend, and so recent posts (this one included) have been image-heavy. But more substantial posts are in the works.
In 1820, at the age of 14, Joseph Smith was wracked with religious confusion. Spurred by a religious revival in his area, he wanted to know which church he should join. Smith took up the counsel of James 1:5: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God…” and went off into a nearby grove to pray for an answer.
While in prayer, Smith was overtaken by a dark demonic power—so much so that he was rendered paralyzed and mute. He was delivered from this power by “two personages” (God the Father & the Son), who descended above him in a bright beam of light.
God told him that the “professors” of the different denominations were “corrupt” and that “all their creeds were an abomination in [my] sight;” he was commanded to join none of them. This story subjected Smith to “bitter persecution” from all religious sects in the area.
Above is the official version of the First Vision that was written in 1838, nearly twenty years after the event supposedly happened, and which today appears in LDS scriptures. The story is fundamental to the founding of Mormonism and most members accept this account uncritically. But its veracity has been the matter of much debate.
The three hardest words in the English language. You might have noticed that earlier tonight I posted about the various First Vision accounts. I made some rather egregious errors in the post, and a friend of mine was thankfully quick to catch them. Consequently, I have removed the post.
The problem: A website to which I often referred failed to include one of Joseph Smith’s First Vision accounts in full. I have to assume that this was deliberate, as the omitted portion neutralizes an alleged contradiction among the First Vision accounts—a contradiction that I originally discussed in my now-deleted post. This all just goes to show the importance of skepticism, I guess. There’s a lot of bullshit to wade through in this world (especially on the internet).
Once I revise the post, I will upload it. Sorry for any inconvenience.
Update: You can read the revised First Vision post here.
Later this week or weekend, I hope to write up a post about the First Vision. As you may know, there are several (and conflicting) accounts of Joseph Smith’s experience. But here’s one that you may not have been aware of:
