1.
Battlestar Galactica
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The Twelve Colonies of Man, also called the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, are fictional locations that constitute the principal human civilization in the Battlestar Galactica universe. This includes the original 1978 series, the 2003 reimagined series, the names of twelve planets were taken from the signs of the Zodiac. The Twelve Colonies were established by tribes who left their homeworld, Kobol, there were at one time thirteen tribes, but one that was separated from the others instead went to a distant planet called Earth. In the reimagined series, the humans of the Twelve Colonies totalled around 50 billion people, in both the 1978 and 2003 series, the Twelve Colonies were attacked by the Cylons who virtually exterminated humanity. A few thousand survivors escaped in a collection of assorted spacecraft that formed a fleet headed by the Battlestar Galactica that attempted to lead them to safety, the concept of twelve colonies alludes to the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Given the names negative connotations, the word Cancer was rarely spoken, or even shown on-screen, count Baltar was the representative of one of the colonies prior to his betrayal. The script for the first episode states that he was from the colony of Orion, in either version of the show, many colonies spoke different languages. For example, in the series, Gemonese was spoken in several scenes. In the original pilot, Adama remarked that Sagitara had the best defense systems in the Colonies. In the novelization for the pilot, several Colonies were mentioned, Virgon, Sagitara, Caprica, Scorpia, Taura, Piscera. In the novelization, one planet is called Aeriana, yet in the episode The Long Patrol, in a deleted scene from Experiment in Terra, Apollo mentions Sagitaria, though it was called Sagitara in all other references. In The Magnificent Warriors, Orion is mentioned a few times, and it is stated that it was not one of the Colonies, in the novelization for The Young Lords, the planets Aquarus, Scorpia and Virgon are mentioned. In the novelization of the pilot for the 1978 series, the Twelve Colonies are referred to as The Twelve Colonies of the Three Suns. In the 1978 series, the Colonies were very set in a multiple star system. The inner colonies – including Virgon, Sagitaria and Caprica – were attacked first, by the time the Galactica arrived, the Cylons were already launching their first wave against the outer colonies. In one episode, The Long Patrol, Starbuck refers to the colonies as being located within the Cyrannus Galaxy. However, in the Battlestar Galactica video game, published in 2003 just prior to the release of the series, Cyrannus is the name of the star system. As with many science fiction shows, the terminology used is often self-contradictory, the name Cyrannus has not been used in the reimagined series, but appears on a map produced by the writers and producers of the show
2.
Latter Day Saint movement
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The Latter Day Saint movement is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian primitivist movement founded by Joseph Smith in the late 1820s. Collectively, these churches have over 15 million members, the vast majority of adherents belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with their predominant theology being Mormonism. The LDS Church self-identifies as Christian, based on the teachings of this book and other revelations, Smith founded a Christian primitivist church, called the Church of Christ. The Book of Mormon attracted hundreds of followers, who later became known as Mormons, Latter Day Saints. In 1831, Smith moved the headquarters to Kirtland, Ohio. After the church in Ohio collapsed due to dissensions, in 1838, Smith and the body of the moved to Missouri. After Smiths death in 1844, a crisis led to the organization splitting into several groups. The largest of these, the LDS Church, migrated under the leadership of Brigham Young to the Great Basin, the LDS Church officially renounced this practice in 1890, and gradually discontinued it, resulting in the Utah Territory becoming a U. S. state. This change resulted in the formation of a number of small sects who sought to maintain polygamy and other 19th-century Mormon doctrines and practices, other groups originating within the Latter Day Saint movement followed different paths in Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. For the most part these groups rejected plural marriage and some of Smiths later teachings, the largest of these, the Community of Christ, was formed in Illinois in 1860 by several groups uniting around Smiths son, Joseph Smith III. Most existing denominations that adhere to the teachings of Smith have some relationship with the movement. The driving force behind and founder of the Latter Day Saint movement was Joseph Smith, Smith and Cowdery also explained that the angels John the Baptist, Peter, James, and John visited them in 1829 and gave them priesthood authority to reestablish the Church of Christ. The first Latter Day Saint church was formed on April 6,1830, consisting of a community of believers in the western New York towns of Fayette, Manchester, the church was formally organized under the name of the Church of Christ. In 1844, William Law and several other Latter Day Saints in church leadership positions publicly denounced Smiths secret practice of polygamy in the Nauvoo Expositor, the city council of Nauvoo, Illinois, led by Smith, subsequently had the printing press of the Expositor destroyed. In spite of Smiths later offer to pay damages for destroyed property, critics of Smith, some called for the Latter Day Saints to be either expelled or destroyed. These various claims resulted in a succession crisis, many supported Brigham Young, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, others Sidney Rigdon, the senior surviving member of the First Presidency. These various groups are referred to under two geographical headings, Prairie Saints and Rocky Mountain Saints. Today, the vast majority of Latter Day Saints belong to the Utah-based The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the second-largest denomination is the Missouri-based Community of Christ which reports over 250,000 members
3.
Joseph Smith
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Joseph Smith Jr. was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was twenty-four, Smith published the Book of Mormon, by the time of his death fourteen years later, he had attracted tens of thousands of followers and founded a religious culture that continues to the present. In 1830, Smith published what he said was an English translation of these plates, the same year he organized the Church of Christ, calling it a restoration of the early Christian church. Members of the church were later called Latter Day Saints, or Mormons, in 1831, Smith and his followers moved west, planning to build a communalistic American Zion. They first gathered in Kirtland, Ohio, and established an outpost in Independence, Missouri, during the 1830s, Smith sent out missionaries, published revelations, and supervised construction of the expensive Kirtland Temple. In 1844, Smith and the Nauvoo city council angered non-Mormons by destroying a newspaper that had criticized Smiths power, after Smith was imprisoned in Carthage, Illinois, he was killed when a mob stormed the jailhouse. Smith published many revelations and other texts that his followers regard as scripture and his teachings include unique views about the nature of God, cosmology, family structures, political organization, and religious collectivism. Joseph Smith Jr. was born on December 23,1805, in Sharon, Vermont, to Lucy Mack Smith and her husband Joseph Sr. a merchant, after suffering a crippling bone infection when he was seven, the younger Smith used crutches for three years. During the Second Great Awakening, the region was a hotbed of religious enthusiasm, although Smiths parents disagreed about religion, the family was caught up in this excitement. Smith later said he became interested in religion at about the age of twelve, he participated in church classes, as a teenager, he may have been sympathetic to Methodism. With other family members, Smith also engaged in folk magic. Both his parents and his grandfather reportedly had visions or dreams that they believed communicated messages from God. Smith said that although he had become concerned about the welfare of his soul, years later Smith said that in 1820 he had received a vision that resolved his religious confusion. While praying in an area near his home, he said that God, in a vision, had told him his sins were forgiven. Smith said he told the experience to a preacher, who dismissed the story with contempt, but the experience was largely unknown, even to most Mormons, until the 1840s. Although Smith may have understood the event as a conversion, this First Vision later grew in importance among Mormons. Smith said he attempted to remove the plates the next morning but was unsuccessful because the angel prevented him, Smith reported that during the next four years, he made annual visits to the hill but each time returned without the plates. Meanwhile, the Smith family faced financial hardship due in part to the November 1823 death of Smiths oldest brother Alvin, Family members supplemented their meager farm income by hiring out for odd jobs and working as treasure seekers, a type of magical supernaturalism common during the period
4.
Apostles
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In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles, were the primary historical disciples of Jesus, the central figure in Christianity. During the life and ministry of Jesus in the 1st century AD, the word disciple is sometimes used interchangeably with apostle, for instance, the Gospel of John makes no distinction between the two terms. In modern usage, prominent missionaries are often called apostles, a practice which stems from the Latin equivalent of apostle, i. e. missio, for example, Saint Patrick was the Apostle of Ireland, and Saint Boniface was the Apostle to the Germans. The commissioning of the Twelve Apostles during the ministry of Jesus is recorded in the Synoptic Gospels, after his resurrection, Jesus sent 11 of them by the Great Commission to spread his teachings to all nations. This event is called the Dispersion of the Apostles. There is also an Eastern Christian tradition derived from the Gospel of Luke of there having been as many as 70 apostles during the time of Jesus ministry. Prominent figures in early Christianity, notably Paul, were called apostles. The period of early Christianity during the lifetimes of the apostles is called the Apostolic Age, during the 1st century AD, the apostles established churches throughout the territories of the Roman Empire and, according to tradition, through the Middle East, Africa, and India. In his writings, the epistles to Christian churches throughout the Levant, Paul did not restrict the term apostle to the Twelve, the restricted usage appears in the Revelation to John. By the 2nd century AD, association with the apostles was esteemed as an evidence of authority, Churches which are believed to have been founded by one of the apostles are known as apostolic sees. Pauls epistles were accepted as scripture, and two of the four gospels were associated with apostles, as were other New Testament works. Various Christian texts, such as the Didache and the Apostolic Constitutions, were attributed to the apostles, bishops traced their lines of succession back to individual apostles, who were said to have dispersed from Jerusalem and established churches across great territories. Christian bishops have traditionally claimed authority deriving, by apostolic succession, early Church Fathers who came to be associated with apostles, such as Pope Clement I with St. Peter, are referred to as the Apostolic Fathers. The Apostles Creed, popular in the West, was said to have composed by the apostles themselves. The word apostle comes from the Greek word ἀπόστολος, formed from the prefix ἀπό- and root στέλλω and originally meaning messenger and it has, however, a stronger sense than the word messenger, and is closer to a delegate. The Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament argues that its Christian use translated a Jewish position known in Hebrew as the sheliach and this ecclesiastical meaning of the word was later translated into Latin as missio, the source of the English missionary. In the New Testament, the names of the majority of the apostles are Hebrew names, Mark 6, 7-13 states that Jesus initially sent out these twelve in pairs to towns in Galilee. The text states that their initial instructions were to heal the sick and their carrying of just a staff is sometimes given as the reason for the use by Christian bishops of a staff of office in those denominations that believe they maintain an apostolic succession
5.
Jesus
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In Christology, the Person of Christ refers to the study of the human and divine natures of Jesus Christ as they co-exist within one person. There is no discussion in the New Testament regarding the dual nature of the Person of Christ as both divine and human. Hence, since the days of Christianity theologians have debated various approaches to the understanding of these natures. In the period following the Apostolic Age, specific beliefs such as Arianism and Docetism were criticized. On the other end of the spectrum, Docetism argued that Jesus physical body was an illusion, docetic teachings were attacked by St. Ignatius of Antioch and were eventually abandoned by proto-orthodox Christians. However, after the First Council of Nicaea in 325 the Logos, historically in the Alexandrian school of christology, Jesus Christ is the eternal Logos paradoxically humanized in history, a divine Person who became enfleshed, uniting himself to the human nature. The views of these schools can be summarized as follows, Alexandria, Antioch, Logos assumes a specific human being The First Council of Ephesus in 431 debated a number of views regarding the Person of Christ. At the same gathering the council debated the doctrines of monophysitism or miaphysitism. The council rejected Nestorianism and adopted the term hypostatic union, referring to divine, the language used in the 431 declaration was further refined at the 451 Council of Chalcedon. However, the Chalcedon creed was not accepted by all Christians, because Saint Augustine died in 430 he did not participate in the Council of Ephesus in 431 or Chalcedon in 451, but his ideas had some impact on both councils. On the other hand, the major theological figure of the Middle Ages. The Third Council of Constantinople in 680 held that both divine and human wills exist in Jesus, with the divine will having precedence, leading and guiding the human will. John Calvin maintained that there was no element in the Person of Christ which could be separated from the person of The Word. Calvin also emphasized the importance of the Work of Christ in any attempt at understanding the Person of Christ, the study of the Person of Christ continued into the 20th century, with modern theologians such as Karl Rahner and Hans von Balthasar. Balthasar argued that the union of the human and divine natures of Christ was achieved not by the absorption of human attributes, thus in his view the divine nature of Christ was not affected by the human attributes and remained forever divine
6.
Gospel of Mark
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The Gospel According to Mark, the second book of the New Testament, is one of the four canonical gospels and the three synoptic gospels. It portrays Jesus as a man of action, an exorcist, a healer. Jesus is also the Son of God, but he keeps his identity secret, all this is in keeping with prophecy, which foretold the fate of the messiah as Suffering Servant. The gospel ends, in its version, with the discovery of the empty tomb, a promise to meet again in Galilee. Traditionally thought to be an epitome of Matthew, which accounts for its place as the gospel in the Bible. The Gospel of Mark is anonymous, early Christian tradition ascribes it to John Mark, a companion and interpreter of the apostle Peter. Hence its author is often called Mark, even though most modern scholars are doubtful of the Markan tradition and instead regard the author as unknown. It was probably written c. AD 66–70, during Neros persecution of the Christians in Rome or the Jewish revolt, as suggested by references to war in Judea. The author used a variety of pre-existing sources, such as stories, apocalyptic discourse. Mark was written in Greek, for an audience of Greek-speaking Christians, Rome, Galilee, Antioch. The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke bear a resemblance to each other. Their close relationship is termed the problem, and has led to a number of hypotheses explaining their interdependence. The most widely accepted hypothesis is that Mark was the first gospel and was used as a source by both Matthew and Luke, together with additional material. The strongest argument for this is the fact that Matthew and Luke agree with other in their sequence of stories. The 19th century recognition of Mark as the earliest gospel led to the belief that it must therefore be the most reliable, the modern consensus is that Marks purpose was to present a theological message rather than to write history. Marks gospel is nevertheless seen as the most reliable of the four in terms of its overall description of Jesuss life. This recognition allows scholars to chart the evolution of Jesus in the scriptures, Marks Christ, for example, dies with the cry, My God, my God, historical reconstruction suggests that the original despairing death of Jesus has become more and more victorious over time. From the outset, Christians depended heavily on Jewish literature, supporting their convictions through the Jewish scriptures and those convictions involved a nucleus of key concepts, the messiah, the son of God and the son of man, the Day of the Lord, the kingdom of God
7.
Apostle (Latter Day Saints)
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‹See Tfd› In the Latter Day Saint movement, an apostle is a special witness of the name of Jesus Christ who is sent to teach the principles of salvation to others. In many Latter Day Saint churches, an apostle is an office of high authority within the church hierarchy. In many churches, apostles may be members of the Quorum of the Twelve, in most Latter Day Saint churches, modern-day apostles are considered to have the same status and authority as the Biblical apostles. In the Latter Day Saint tradition, apostles and prophets are believed to be the foundation of the church, joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were both designated apostles by 1830. Other church members with proselytizing responsibilities were also referred to as apostles, a June 1829 revelation appointed Cowdery and David Whitmer to designate twelve disciples. Subsequently, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was organized February 14,1835, in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, apostle is the highest priesthood office of the Melchizedek priesthood. The President of the Church is always an apostle, as are the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in practice, counselors in the First Presidency are almost always apostles as well. There are usually at least twelve apostles in the LDS Church, some apostles have been ordained to that office without being included within the Quorum of the Twelve. Joseph Angell Young was ordained an apostle in 1864 but was never a member of either the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles or the First Presidency, joseph F. Smith, Brigham Young, Jr. and Sylvester Q. Cannon had each been ordained as apostles before eventually being called into the Quorum of the Twelve, the next most senior apostle becomes president of the Quorum of the Twelve. Following their calling to the apostleship, members of the Quorum are sustained in general conference as apostles and prophets, seers and this procedure also takes place at other meetings of church members such as ward and stake conferences. Each member of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve is sustained by name, usually, the president of the church ordains a new apostle, although any other apostle may ordain a person to the priesthood office. The calling of an apostle is to be a witness of the name of Jesus Christ in all the world, particularly of his divinity. Twelve men with this high calling constitute an administrative council in the work of the ministry, when a vacancy occurred with the death of Judas Iscariot, Matthias was divinely appointed to that special office as a member of the council. Today twelve men with this same divine calling and ordination constitute the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The title was applied to others who, though not of the number of the original twelve. Paul repeatedly spoke of himself as an apostle and he applied the titles to James, the Lords brother, and also to Barnabas. Jesus is referred to as an apostle in Heb,3, 1-2, a designation meaning that he is the personal and select representative of the Father
8.
Evangelism
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Evangelism is the preaching of the gospel or the practice of proselytizing a particular doctrine or set of beliefs to others with the intention of converting others to the Christian faith. Some Christian traditions consider evangelists to be in a leadership position, Christian groups who actively encourage evangelism are sometimes known as evangelistic or evangelist. The scriptures do not use the word evangelism, but evangelist is used in Acts 21,8, Ephesians 4,11, and 2 Timothy 4,5. The word evangelist comes from the Koine Greek word εὐαγγέλιον via Latinised evangelium as used in the titles of the Four Gospels, authored by Matthew, Mark, Luke. The Greek word εὐαγγέλιον originally meant a reward given to the messenger for good news, the verb form of euangelion, occurs rarely in older Greek literature outside the New Testament, making its meaning more difficult to ascertain. Parallel texts of the Gospels of Luke and Mark reveal a relationship between the verb euangelizo and a Greek verb kerusso, which means to proclaim. While evangelism is usually regarded as converting non-Christians to Christianity, this is not always the proper usage of the word, if converting to Christianity includes services or material benefits, evangelism is called proselytism. Different denominations follow different theological interpretations which reflect upon the point of who is doing the actual conversion, calvinists, for example, believe the soul is converted only if the Holy Spirit is effective in the act. Catholic missionary work in Russia is commonly seen as evangelism, not proselytism and it is entrance into the gift of communion with Christ. In recent history, certain Bible passages have been used to promote evangelism, breaking from tradition and going beyond television and radio a wide range of methods have been developed to reach people not inclined to attend traditional events in churches or revival meetings. Dramas such as Heavens Gates, Hells Flames have gained popularity since the 1980s. These dramas typically depict characters who die and learn whether they will go to heaven or hell. The child evangelism movement is a Christian evangelism movement that originated in the 20th century and it focuses on the 4/14 Window which centers on evangelizing children between the ages of 4 and 14 years old. Other entertainment-based Christian evangelism events include comedy, live theater and music, the Christian music industry has also played a significant role in modern evangelism. Evangelists such as Reinhard Bonnke conduct mass evangelistic crusades around the world, sometimes, the regular minister of a church is called a preacher in a way that other groups would typically use the term pastor. The evangelist in some churches is one that travels from town to town and from church to church, many Christians of various theological perspectives would call themselves evangelists because they are spreaders of the gospel. Many churches believe one of their functions is to function as evangelists to spread the evangelist belief that Jesus is savior of humanity. The title of evangelist is often associated with those who lead large meetings like those of Billy Graham, Luis Palau, pérez possibly in tents or existing church buildings, or those who address the public in street corner preaching, which targets listeners who happen to pass nearby
9.
Zion (Latter Day Saints)
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Within the Latter Day Saint movement, Zion is often used to connote a utopian association of the righteous. While Zion has often been linked with theocracy, the concept of Zion did not theoretically require such a governmental system, in this way, Zion must be distinguished from the ideal political system called theodemocracy which Mormons believed would be adopted upon Christs Second Coming. However, Zion maintains several possible meanings within the Latter Day Saint lexicon, Zion retains its Biblical meaning and refers to Jerusalem. Zion is the name of a city founded by the prophet Enoch. Zion refers to the New Jerusalem, a physical, Millennial city expected to be located in Independence, Jackson County, Zion metaphorically refers to any group of people that are unified and pure in heart. The City of Enoch is one example of a Zion people, for Zion to be fully realized, the society must be willing to live the law of consecration based on mutual feelings of charity, which is the pure love of Christ. Zion is the physical location to which Latter Day Saints have gathered. The term has been applied to, Kirtland, Ohio, Jackson County, Missouri, Nauvoo, Illinois, Zion is also, according to Joseph Smith, the entirety of the Americas. Joseph Smith stated that the whole of America is Zion itself from north to south, Zion is a metaphor for a unified society of Latter Day Saints, metaphorically gathered as members of the Church of Christ. In this sense any stake of the church may be referred to as a stake of Zion, in one interpretation, Zion refers to a specific location to which members of the millennial church are to be gathered together to live. Stipulated by what is believed by the Latter-day Saints to be the revelation of Joseph Smith, this is said to be located in Jackson County, Missouri, and its county seat, Independence. Esoterically considered, Zion as used in context is a dualistic term connoting a sanctified group of people living according to the commandments. Latter Day Saints use the name to signify a group of Gods followers, as well as signifying a group and place it is also applied to more than one situation and may be fulfilled at more than one time. Thus, Zion has several related but not necessarily synonymous applications and these applications make reference to the following, 1) The Jerusalem of Judah, 2) The New Jerusalem in America, and 3) The Lord’s people and their gathering places around the world. It is a movement in which the faithful work towards becoming a pure people. The community of such faithful church members are referred to metonymically as the pure in heart in their scriptures. The ancient people of Enoch sum it up by saying the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness, and there was no poor among them. These requirements are referred to as the fulness of the gospel and as ordinances
10.
Stake (Latter Day Saints)
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A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in certain denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. The name stake derives from the Book of Isaiah, enlarge the place of thy tent, stretch forth the curtains of thine habitation, spare not, lengthen thy cords, a stake is sometimes referred to as a stake of Zion. The first Latter Day Saint stake was organized at church headquarters in Kirtland, Ohio on February 17,1834, the second stake was organized in Clay County, Missouri, later that year on July 3, with David Whitmer as president. The Missouri stake was relocated to Far West, Missouri, in 1836, a stake was organized at Adam-ondi-Ahman in 1838 and abandoned later that year due to the events of the Mormon War. In 1839, the churchs central stake was established at Nauvoo, Illinois, additional stakes were established in the area around Nauvoo in 1840. Immediately after the death of Joseph Smith in 1844, there was a schism in the Latter Day Saint movement. In 1846, all of the stakes, including the Nauvoo Stake, were discontinued as a result of the exodus of the majority of the Latter Day Saints to the Salt Lake Valley. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement, after the death of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young assumed the leadership of the church and led its members to the Salt Lake Valley. The first stake established there was the Salt Lake Stake, established October 3,1847, at the time of Youngs death in 1877, there were 20 stakes in operation with a total of approximately 250 wards. New stakes are created when the congregations in existing stakes or districts have grown sufficiently to support a stake, districts may be elevated to stakes and are then no longer presided over by a mission president. New stakes are also formed by dividing an existing stake. In addition to the size and number of congregations, the creation of a new stake also requires sufficient Melchizedek priesthood holders to fill the required leadership positions. At times the absence of available leadership constrains the creation of new stakes, the geographical area encompassed by a stake varies between countries and regions based on membership density. In Utah, a stake might encompass a few miles in area. In contrast, a stake in another part of the world might require thousands of miles to comprise a sufficient number of members. In December 2012, Jeffrey R. Holland organized the 3, 000th stake in Freetown, at the end of 2015, there were 3,174 stakes in the LDS Church. The stake is a level in the organizational hierarchy of the LDS Church. The lowest level, consisting of a congregation, is known as a ward or branch
11.
First Presidency
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Among many churches in the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency is the highest presiding or governing body. And the Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, when the Church of Christ was organized on April 6,1830, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery led the church in their capacity as elders. Smith established the inaugural First Presidency on March 8,1832, with the ordinations of Jesse Gause, the term first presidency, though used at least as early as 1834, did not become standard until 1838. In the LDS Church, the First Presidency is the presiding and it usually consists of the President of the Church and two counselors, although up to eight counselors have on occasion been included in the presidency at the same time. The counselors assist the president and work closely with him in guiding the entire church. Eyring, and President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, all members of the First Presidency are sustained by the membership of the church as prophets, seers, and revelators. Any worthy high priest within the church may serve as a counselor in the First Presidency, charles W. Nibley, for example, was a counselor to Heber J. Grant without ever being ordained to the priesthood office of apostle. In the case of a president, his counselors may be called upon to perform more of his duties. If needed, any number of additional counselors may be called to assist them, Counselors serve in the First Presidency until their own deaths, until the death of the church president who called them, or until they are released by the church president. The death of a church president dissolves the First Presidency, the death or release of a counselor does not dissolve the First Presidency. On the death or release of a first counselor, the second counselor usually succeeds, although this is a fairly common occurrence, there are no hard and fast rules about such practices and each president is free to choose the counselors he prefers. The First Presidency is the highest leadership or priesthood quorum of the Community of Christ, normally the First Presidency consists of the Prophet-President of the church and two counselors. In 1860 with the reorganization of the First Presidency, Joseph Smith III became the second Prophet-President of this church, william Marks became Smiths First Counselor. The First Presidency of Community of Christ differs from the First Presidency of the LDS Church, in the Community of Christ, each new church president has generally been designated as the successor by God through revelation received by the preceding church president. The Counselors in the First Presidency are then chosen by the president and are occasionally. The two members who were counselors to the Prophet-President, cease to be counselors during this time, members of the First Presidency are not generally considered to be members of the Council of Twelve Apostles or holding the priesthood office of apostle, regardless of previous calling. Prior to 1996, all prophet-presidents were descendants of the movements founder and this pattern was broken by Wallace B. Smith, who designated W. Grant McMurray church president, McMurray, in turn, resigned the church presidency in 2004 without designating a successor
12.
Death of Joseph Smith
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The assassination of Joseph Smith on June 27,1844, marked a turning point for the Latter Day Saint movement, of which Smith was the founder and leader. When he was killed by a mob, Smith was the mayor of Nauvoo, Illinois and he was killed while jailed in Carthage, Illinois, on charges relating to his ordering the destruction of facilities producing the Nauvoo Expositor. The newspaper had reported that Smith was practicing polygamy and claimed that he intended to set himself up as a theocratic king, Smith voluntarily surrendered to the authorities at the county seat at Carthage to face the charges against him. While he was in jail awaiting trial, a mob of men with painted faces stormed the jail, they shot and killed him. Since then, Latter Day Saints generally view the two men as religious martyrs, five men were indicted for their murders but were acquitted at a jury trial. The Mormons began to move into Hancock County in 1839, at the time, after their people were expelled from Missouri, Joseph Smith went to Washington, DC and met with President Martin Van Buren, seeking intervention and compensation for lost property. Van Buren said he could do nothing to help, after returning to Illinois, Smith vowed to join the Whig Party. Most of his supporters switched with him, adding political tensions to the suspicions in which this group were held. Several of Smiths disaffected associates at Nauvoo and Hancock County, Illinois and its first and only issue was published June 7,1844. Based on allegations by some of associates, the newspaper reported that Smith practiced polygamy. It said that he tried to marry wives of some of his associates, about eight of Smiths wives had already been married to other men at the time they married Smith. Typically, these continued to live with their first husband. Some accounts say Smith may have had relations with one wife. The reliability of sources is disputed by some Latter Day Saints. DNA investigations performed to date have consistently shown that Smith was not the father of children thought to be his based on written and they reached this decision after lengthy discussion, including citation of William Blackstones legal canon, which defined a libelous press as a public nuisance. Under the councils new ordinance, Smith, as Nauvoos mayor, in conjunction with the city council, ordered the city marshal to destroy the paper, by the city marshals account, the destruction of the press type was carried out orderly and peaceably. However, Charles A. Foster, a co-publisher of the Expositor, reported on June 12 that not only was the press destroyed. Smiths critics said that the action of destroying the press violated freedom of the press, some sought legal charges against Smith for the destruction of the press, including charges of treason and inciting riot
13.
Schism
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A schism is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a religious body. It is also used of a split within an organization or movement or, more broadly. A schismatic is a person who creates or incites schism in an organization or who is a member of a splinter group. Schismatic as an adjective pertaining to a schism or schisms, or to those ideas, policies. In religion, the charge of schism is distinguished from that of heresy, since the offence of schism concerns not differences of belief or doctrine but promotion of, or the state of, however, schisms frequently involve mutual accusations of heresy. In Roman Catholic teaching, every heresy is a schism, while there may be some free of the added guilt of heresy. Liberal Protestantism, however, has often preferred heresy over schism, mcCord drew a distinction between them, teaching, If you must make a choice between heresy and schism, always choose heresy. As a schismatic, you have torn and divided the body of Christ, in Buddhism, the first schism was set up by Devadatta, during Buddhas life. This schism lasted only a short time, later, the early Buddhist schools came into being, but were not schismatic, only focusing on different interpretations for the same monastic community. In the old texts,18 or 20 early schools are mentioned, later, there were the Mahayana and Vajrayana movements, which can be regarded as being schismatic in origin. Each school has various subgroups, which often are schismatic in origin, for example, in Thai Theravadin Buddhism there are two groups, of which the Dhammayut has its origin partly in the Mahanikaya, and is the new and schismatic group. Both Mahanikaya and Dhammayut have many subgroups, which usually do not have schismatic origins, Tibetan Buddhism has seen schisms in the past, of which most were healed, although the Drukpa school centred in Bhutan perhaps remains in a state of schism from the other Tibetan schools. The words schism and schismatic have found their heaviest usage in the history of Christianity, to denote splits within a church and these words have been used to denote both the phenomenon of Christian group splintering in general, and certain significant historical splits in particular. A distinction is made between heresy and schism, heresy is rejection of a doctrine that a Church considered to be essential. But, when for any reason people withdraw from communion, two distinct ecclesiastical entities may result, each of which then, or at least some of its members, may accuse the other of heresy. In Roman Catholic Church canon law, an act of schism, like an act of apostasy or heresy, as stated in canon 1312 §1 1° of the Code of Canon Law, this penalty is intended to be medicinal, so as to lead to restoration of unity. This nuanced view applies especially to the Churches of Eastern Christianity, the First Council of Nicaea distinguished between schism and heresy
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Three Witnesses
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The Three are part of twelve Book of Mormon witnesses, who also include Smith and the Eight Witnesses. The joint statement of the Three Witnesses—Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, All three men eventually broke with Smith and the church he organized, although Harris and Cowdery were eventually rebaptized into the church after Smiths death. Whitmer founded his own Church of Christ, All three men upheld their testimony of the Book of Mormon at their deaths. On Sunday, June 28,1829, Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, after some time, Harris left the other three men, believing his presence had prevented the vision from occurring. The remaining three again knelt and said they saw a light in the air overhead and an angel holding the golden plates. Smith retrieved Harris, and after praying at some length with him, and we also know that they have been translated by the gift and power of God, for his voice hath declared it unto us, wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true. And we also testify that we have seeen the engravings which are upon the plates, and they have shewn unto us by the power of God. And it is marvellous in our eyes, nevertheless, the voice of the Lord commanded us that we should bear record of it, wherefore, to be obedient unto the commandments of God, we bear testimony of these things. And the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, the testimony was moved to the beginning of the Book of Mormon in later editions, with standardized spelling. The Three Witnesses were closely associated with Joseph Smith, Jr. at the time he founded the church, Martin Harris made a significant financial contribution to the printing of the Book of Mormon. In addition, it has argued that Smith and the Witnesses had a similar magical worldview. Grant H. Palmer wrote that moderns tend to read into testimonies a rationalist perspective rather than a nineteenth-century magical mindset and they shared a common world view, and this is what drew them together in 1829. As a group, the Three Witnesses served only one role in the church before they were excommunicated in 1837–38. After Smith had selected the council of the Twelve Apostles, the Three Witnesses called out the twelve men, Oliver Cowdery was a school teacher and an early convert to Mormonism who served as scribe while Smith dictated what he said was a translation of the Book of Mormon. Like Smith, who was a distant relative, Cowdery was also a hunter who had used a divining rod in his youth. Cowdery asked questions of the rod, if it moved, the answer was yes, if not, Cowdery also told Smith that he had seen the golden plates in a vision before the two ever met. Before Cowdery served as one of the Three Witnesses, he had experienced two other important visions. Cowdery said that he and Smith had received the Aaronic priesthood from John the Baptist in May 1829, one of the three persons claimed to be the Apostle Peter and named the others James and John
15.
Succession crisis (Latter Day Saints)
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The succession crisis in the Latter Day Saint movement occurred after the death of Joseph Smith, the movements founder, on June 27,1844. For roughly six months after Joseph Smiths death, several people competed to take over his role, the leading contenders were Sidney Rigdon, Brigham Young, and James Strang. The majority of Latter Day Saints elected to follow Youngs leadership and this significant event in the history of the Latter Day Saint movement precipitated several permanent schisms. The new Church of Christ was organized by Joseph Smith and a group of men on April 6,1830. This change over time was driven by both the growth in population and the evolution of Smiths role as leader of the church. Prior to the establishment of the church, Smith held the title of Prophet, Seer, and Revelator. However, as the church was organized rather than legally incorporated, its property needed to be held in trust by a trustee, initially, the highest leadership position in the church was that of elder, and church elders were sometimes called apostles. Smiths initial title in the church was First Elder, while his friend and associate, in March 1832, Smith created a quorum of three presidents known as the First Presidency. On December 18,1833, Smith created the office of Patriarch over the Church and ordained his father, Joseph, Sr. to fill the role. The Presiding Patriarch, as the office came to be called, on February 17,1834, Smith created a High Council in Kirtland, Ohio. This body consisted of men, headed by the First Presidency. The Kirtland High Council took on the role of judicial and legislative body of the local church and handled such things as excommunication trials. Several months later on July 3,1834, the High Council of Zion was organized in Far West, Jackson County, Missouri. Cases tried in the standing High Councils of outlying stakes were regularly appealed to the High Council of Zion, the Presiding High Council also provided clearance for ordinations in the standing High Councils at the Stakes of Zion. Marsh was set apart as their president, when the High Council in Zion was dissolved after the church was expelled from Missouri, the headquarters of the church were moved to Nauvoo, Illinois. There, Joseph Smith formed a new Presiding High Council, led by William Marks, which supervised the High Councils of outlying stakes, under the direction of the First Presidency. At the time of his death, Smith thus held several roles, Prophet, Seer, Revelator, and Translator, President of the Church, President of the First Presidency, and Trustee-in-Trust of the Church. It was unclear if all of these offices should be together by any one successor
16.
Brigham Young
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Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the second President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877 and he founded Salt Lake City and he served as the first governor of the Utah Territory. Young also led the foundings of the precursors to the University of Utah, Young was dubbed by his followers the Lion of the Lord for his bold personality and was also commonly called Brother Brigham by Latter-day Saints. Young was a polygamist and was involved in controversies regarding black people and the Priesthood, the Utah War, and the Mountain Meadows massacre. Young was born to John Young and Abigail Nabby Howe, a family in Whitingham, Vermont. Young was first married in 1824 to Miriam Angeline Works, though he had converted to the Methodist faith in 1823, Young was drawn to Mormonism after reading the Book of Mormon shortly after its publication in 1830. He officially joined the new church in 1832 and traveled to Upper Canada as a missionary, after his wife died in 1832, Young joined many Mormons in establishing a community in Kirtland, Ohio. In 1844, while in jail awaiting trial for treason charges, Joseph Smith, several claimants to the role of church president emerged during the succession crisis that ensued. Young opposed this reasoning and motion, the majority in attendance were persuaded that the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was to lead the church with Young as the Quorums president. Many of Youngs followers would later reminisce that while Young spoke to the congregation, he looked or sounded exactly like Smith, Young was ordained President of the Church in December 1847, three and a half years after Smiths death. Rigdon became the president of a church organization based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Repeated conflict led Young to relocate his group of Latter-day Saints to the Salt Lake Valley, Young organized the journey that would take the Mormon pioneers to Winter Quarters, Nebraska, in 1846, then to the Salt Lake Valley. By the time Young arrived at the destination, it had come under American control as a result of war with Mexico. Young arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24,1847, Youngs expedition was one of the largest and one of the best organized westward treks. On August 22,29 days after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, after three years of leading the church as the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Young reorganized a new First Presidency and was declared president of the church on December 27,1847. As colonizer and founder of Salt Lake City, Young was appointed the territorys first governor, during his time as prophet, Young directed the establishment of settlements throughout present-day Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, California and parts of southern Colorado and northern Mexico. Young was also one of the first to subscribe to Union Pacific stock, Young organized the first legislature and established Fillmore as the territorys first capital. Young organized a Board of Regents to establish a university in the Salt Lake Valley and it was established on February 28,1850, as the University of Deseret, its name was eventually changed to the University of Utah
17.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a Christian restorationist church that is considered by its members to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The church is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has established congregations, according to the church, it has over 70,000 missionaries and a membership of over 15 million. It is ranked by the National Council of Churches as the fourth-largest Christian denomination in the United States and it is the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement founded by Joseph Smith during the period of religious revival known as the Second Great Awakening. Adherents, often referred to as Latter-day Saints, or, less formally, Mormons, view faith in Jesus Christ and his atonement as fundamental principles of their religion. The church has a canon which includes four scriptural texts, the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants. The current president is Thomas S. Monson, individual members of the church believe that they can also receive personal revelation from God in conducting their lives. The president heads a hierarchical structure with various levels reaching down to local congregations, Bishops, drawn from the laity, lead local congregations. Male members, after reaching age 12, may be ordained to the priesthood, Women do not hold positions within the priesthood, but do occupy leadership roles in some church auxiliary organizations. Both men and women may serve as missionaries, and the church maintains a large missionary program which proselytizes, faithful members adhere to church laws of sexual purity, health, fasting, and Sabbath observance, and contribute ten percent of their income to the church in tithing. The LDS Church was formally organized by Joseph Smith on April 6,1830, Smith intended to establish the New Jerusalem in North America, called Zion. In 1831, the moved to Kirtland, Ohio, and began establishing an outpost in Jackson County, Missouri. However, in 1833, Missouri settlers brutally expelled the Latter Day Saints from Jackson County, the Kirtland era ended in 1838, after a financial scandal rocked the church and caused widespread defections. Smith regrouped with the church in Far West, Missouri. Believing the Saints to be in insurrection, the Missouri governor ordered that the Saints be exterminated or driven from the State, in 1839, the Saints converted a swampland on the banks of the Mississippi River into Nauvoo, Illinois, which became the churchs new headquarters. Nauvoo grew rapidly as missionaries sent to Europe and elsewhere gained new converts who then flooded into Nauvoo, meanwhile, Smith introduced polygamy to his closest associates. He also established ceremonies, which he stated the Lord had revealed to him, to allow people to become gods in the afterlife. He also introduced the church to an accounting of his First Vision. This vision would come to be regarded by the LDS Church as the most important event in history since the resurrection of Jesus
18.
Salt Lake Valley
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Salt Lake Valley is a 500-square-mile valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U. S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Sandy, South Jordan, West Jordan, brigham Young said this is the place, when he and his fellow settlers moved into Utah after being driven out of several states. The Valley is surrounded in every direction except the northwest by steep mountains that at points rise 7,100 feet from the valley floors base elevation. Every entrance into the valley is narrow and often congested. Flowing from Utah Lake in Utah Valley in the south, the Jordan River runs north through a gap in the Traverse Mountains, the Jordan River, along with numerous mountain streams and reservoirs, provides irrigation water to the rapidly growing Valley. This southwestern expansion is typified and will be facilitated by the Mountain View Corridor, some experts are claiming that the Valley will be urbanized rim-to-rim within the next 50 years. The first development, known as the Daybreak Community, has substantial portions already completed and it will focus on transit-oriented development (it already has service by TRAX light rail and will also feature a ski resort in the Oquirrh Mountains and a university campus. The Interstate 215 belt route, State Route 154, State Route 201, the Utah Transit Authority operates an extensive bus system across the Wasatch Front, including the Salt Lake Valley, in addition to three light rail lines in the Valley. A commuter rail line known as FrontRunner runs north to Pleasant View in Weber County, mormon Trail Salt Lake County, Utah
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Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)
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The Church of Christ was the original name of the Latter Day Saint church founded by Joseph Smith. Each of the churches that resulted from this schism considers itself to be the continuation of Smiths original Church of Christ. This church is unrelated to other bodies bearing the name, including the United Church of Christ, a Reformed church body, and the Churches of Christ. Today, there are several Latter Day Saint churches called Church of Christ, the first Latter Day Saint references to the church of Christ are found in passages of the Book of Mormon that Smith dictated from April to June 1829. During the course of this dictation, the outlines for a community of believers or church structure became apparent. Such a structure would have authority from God, ordinances such as baptism, the book described the clergy in Almas church as consisting of priests, who were unpaid and were to preach nothing save it were repentance and faith in the Lord. Alma later established churches, which were considered one church because there was nothing preached in all the churches except it were repentance. In addition to priests, the book mentions that the clergy of these also included teachers. Smiths further dictation of the Book of Mormon also stated there were two churches only, the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil. As a result of the references to baptism and the organization of churches. Smith and Cowdery then baptized each other by immersion and they also baptized dozens of people, as early as June 1829. These converts, however, did not belong to a church organization. Nevertheless, this community of believers referred to themselves as the Church of Christ, in June 1829, Smith dictated a revelation stating that in are all things written, concerning my church, my gospel, and my rock. Wherefore if you build up my church, and my gospel, and my rock. Some time between June and December 1829, Cowdery said he received a revelation about how he should build up his church & the manner thereof. This revelation was called the Articles of the Church of Christ, the church was to meet regularly to partake of bread and wine. Cowdery was described as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, according to David Whitmer, by April 1830, this informal Church of Christ had about six elders and 70 members. On April 6,1830, Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, and a group of approximately 30 believers met with the intention of formally organizing the Church of Christ into a legal institution
20.
David W. Patten
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David Wyman Patten was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was killed at the Battle of Crooked River and is regarded as a martyr by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and he is referred to twice in the LDS Churchs Doctrine and Covenants—once in section 114 and posthumously in section 124. Patten was born to Benoni and Edith Cole Patten in Vermont and he was the 11th of 13 children. He was around 61 and of a dark complexion, as a youth, Patten moved to the town of Dundee in eastern Michigan. While there, at the age of 28 he married Phoebe Ann Babcock in 1828, the two had one stillborn child, they had no children live to adulthood. Patten allied himself with the local Methodist congregation during this time, in 1830, Patten heard about the publication of the Book of Mormon. He became greatly agitated in mind and desired to see it and that summer, he had the opportunity to read the preface and the Testimony of the Three Witnesses that was attached to the book. Two years later, Patten learned that his brother John had recently joined the Church of Christ, excited, David rode three hundred miles to his brothers house in Fairplay, Indiana, to investigate the church. On June 15,1832, Patten was baptized by his brother, Patten served several short missions for the church, and was one of the first missionaries to visit the southern United States. Two days after his baptism, Patten was ordained an elder by Elisha H. Groves, on this trip, he was accompanied by another recent convert, Joseph Wood. Together, the two traveled for 23 days without food or money, instead relying on nearby families for sustenance. This assignment lasted a season, during which time Patten baptized his wife. Healing was a feature of Pattens missionary labors. Abraham O. Smoot said that he never knew an instance in which Davids petition for the sick was not answered, Patten described some accounts of his healing, Jesus called upon me to lay hands on Coltrain who accidentally burned his hand and he received no harm. Brother William Smith had a pain in his eye and I laid my hand on him in the name of Jesus Christ, Patten was ordained a high priest by Hyrum Smith on September 2,1832. At the end of 1832, several missionaries, including Patten, were sent to states on the east coast in response to a received by Joseph Smith in September of the same year. Over the next few months, Patten traveled with other missionaries, including John Murdock, William Smith, Zebedee Coltrin, John F. Boynton, Hyrum Smith, and Reynolds Cahoon. Patten began preaching in Ohio and made his way to Pennsylvania, and then to New York and back to Kirtland, Ohio, the headquarters of the church
21.
Heber C. Kimball
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Heber Chase Kimball was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. Agreeing to take on plural marriage, then part of doctrine, Kimball eventually married forty-three women. He had a total of children by seventeen of his wives. Heber Chase Kimball was born in Sheldon, Franklin County, Vermont in 1801 and he was a descendant of the Kimball immigrants to Massachusetts from England in 1634. He was named after a judge Heber Chase, who had helped the family in their efforts to settle in the area, due to the embargo on trade with Britain preceding the War of 1812, his father lost his investments and the family moved into western New York. They settled in West Bloomfield, New York, Ontario County, Kimball left school at age 14, trained as a blacksmith and potter, and moved with his brother about 1820 to Mendon, Monroe County, New York. There he married his first wife, Vilate Murray, in 1822, after purchasing his brothers pottery business, for the next 10 years, he carried out his trades. He acquired five and a half acres of land, built a house and a barn, in 1823, Kimball received the three first degrees of Freemasonry in the lodge at Victor Flats, Ontario County, New York. In 1824, he sent a petition to the chapter at Canandaigua, New York and his petition was accepted, although, as he reported, Anti-Masons had burned down the chapter building in Canandaigua. When the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints established itself in Nauvoo, Illinois and he served as Nauvoo Lodge U. D. s first Junior Deacon. He remained active in Freemasonry throughout his stay in Nauvoo, but was not active once he moved to Utah Territory, there was no lodge in Utah in his lifetime that would admit Mormons. His son William Henry was born in Mendon, April 10,1826 and his daughter Helen Mar was born August 22,1828. She was the daughter to survive. Kimball claims to have witnessed an event on September 22,1827. According to his autobiography, he learned that it took place the same evening that Joseph Smith received the records of the Book of Mormon from the Angel Moroni. The most profound order existed throughout the army, when the foremost man stepped, every man stepped at the same time. When the front rank reached the Western horizon a battle ensued, as we could hear the report of the arms. No man could judge of my feelings when I beheld that army of men and this scenery was gazed upon for hours, until it began to disappear
22.
First Presidency (LDS Church)
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The First Presidency is the presiding or governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is composed of the President of the Church and his counselors, the First Presidency currently consists of Thomas S. Monson and his two counselors, Henry B. The First Presidency is composed of the President of the Church, historically, and as mandated by church scripture, the First Presidency has been composed of the president and two counselors, but circumstances have occasionally required additional counselors. Any high priest of the church is eligible to be called as a counselor in the First Presidency, there have been other cases where counselors have been ordained to the office of apostle but not set apart as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. Other counselors in the First Presidency were never ordained to the office of apostle, whether or not a counselor is an apostle, all members of the First Presidency are sustained by the church as prophets, seers, and revelators. Counselors are formally designated as First Counselor in the First Presidency, additional counselors have been designated in different ways, including Third Counselor in the First Presidency, Assistant Counselor to the President, and simply Counselor in the First Presidency. Counselors serve in the First Presidency until their own deaths, until the death of the president who called them. The death of a church president dissolves the First Presidency, the death or release of a counselor does not dissolve the First Presidency. On the death or release of a first counselor, the second counselor usually succeeds, although these are fairly common occurrences, there are no hard and fast rules about such practices and each president is free to choose the counselors he prefers. Like the church president and President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the First Presidency is the highest ranking priesthood quorum of the church. The counselors assist the president and work closely with him in guiding the entire church. In the case of a president, his counselors may be called upon to perform more of the duties of the First Presidency that would normally be performed by the president. If needed, any number of additional counselors may be called to assist them, all members of the First Presidency are sustained by the membership of the church as prophets, seers, and revelators and given the keys of the kingdom when ordained as an apostle. All members of the First Presidency are also members of the churchs Council on the Disposition of the Tithes, there is no requirement that counselors in the First Presidency be apostles of the church. Brown, First Counselor to David O. McKay, not retained as a counselor by Joseph Fielding Smith Thorpe B, the position is paid employment position and the incumbent is not a member of the First Presidency or a general authority of the church. However, it is common for letters from the office of the First Presidency to private individuals to bear the signature of the secretary as opposed to members of the First Presidency, the First Presidency also employs assistant secretaries and press secretaries. When David O. D. Arthur Haycock also served as secretary to several church presidents in the 20th century. George W. Robinson George Reynolds George F. Gibbs Joseph Anderson Francis M. Gibbons F. Michael Watson Brook P. Hales Council of the Church
23.
Orson Hyde
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Orson Hyde was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Hyde was born to Nathan Hyde and Sally Thorpe in Oxford and he was raised in nearby Derby, Connecticut, under the care of Nathan Wheeler. In 1819, when he was just 14 years of age, he walked from Connecticut to Kirtland, while employed as a retail clerk in Kirtland, Hyde became involved with the Reformed Baptist Society, also called Campbellites, through the preaching of Sidney Rigdon. When Oliver Cowdery and other Latter Day Saint missionaries preached in Kirtland in late 1830, however, when his former minister, Sidney Rigdon joined the Latter Day Saint church, Hyde investigated the claims of the missionaries, and was baptized by Rigdon on October 30,1831. Hyde was called on a succession of missions for the church, serving with Hyrum Smith, Samuel H. Smith, in 1832 he was among the first missionaries in Connecticut, he was also among the first missionaries from the church to preach in Maine and Massachusetts. Hyde marched with Zions Camp in 1834 and became one of the members of the first presiding high council in Kirtland and he was ordained an apostle of the church on February 15,1835 as one of the original twelve, being fifth in seniority. An apostolic mission with Heber C, kimball to Great Britain in 1837 to 1838 was successful in bringing thousands of converts to the faith. Upon returning from Britain, during a period of persecution and internal dissension and he left the church on October 19,1838 with Thomas B. Marsh, the member of the Twelve. Marsh explained the reasons for their dissent in an affidavit which he and Hyde signed on October 24,1838 in Richmond, Missouri. Marsh and Hyde also claimed that Joseph Smith planned to take the State, the testimony of Marsh and Hyde added to the panic in northwestern Missouri and contributed to subsequent events in the 1838 Mormon War. Because a Mormon attack was believed imminent, a unit of the militia from Ray County was dispatched to patrol the border between Ray and Mormon Caldwell County to the north. On October 25,1838, reports reached Mormons in Far West that this state militia unit was a mob and had kidnapped several Mormons, the Mormons formed an armed rescue party and attacked the militia in what became known as the Battle of Crooked River. Although only one non-Mormon was killed on the Missourian side, initial reports held that half the unit had been wiped out, the Mormons suffered more casualties, Gideon Carter died in the battle and David W. Patten and Patrick Obanion died from wounds they received in the battle. This attack on the militia, coupled with the earlier expulsion of non-Mormons from Daviess County led Missouris governor to respond with force. On 27 October he called out 2,500 state militia to put down what he perceived as a Mormon rebellion and signed Missouri Executive Order 44, because he had signed the Richmond affidavit with Marsh, Hyde was disfellowshipped in 1838. On May 4,1839, a conference in Quincy, Illinois voted to remove Hyde. The leadership of the church invited the two to explain their actions, on June 27, Hyde returned to the church and publicly explained himself, recanting his affidavit and asking to be restored
24.
Church of Christ (Temple Lot)
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Members of the church have been known colloquially as Hedrickites, after Granville Hedrick, who was ordained as the churchs first leader in July 1863. Unlike The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Community of Christ and it equally rejects the doctrines of baptism for the dead and celestial marriage promulgated by the Utah-based LDS Church, as well as the Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price. While once avidly engaged in dialogue with other Latter Day Saint factions and its most notable claim to fame today rests in its sole ownership of the Temple Lot, which it has held for nearly 150 years. As of 2013, membership is 7,310 members in 11 countries. Most of the live in the United States, but there are parishes in Canada, Mexico, Honduras, Nigeria, Kenya, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, India. The Temple Lot church shares its history with the larger Latter Day Saint denominations, including the LDS Church. After the death of Joseph Smith, the Latter Day Saint movements founder, on June 27,1844, several leaders vied for control, by the 1860s, five early Mormon branches found themselves unaffiliated with any larger group. On July 18,1863, Hedrick was ordained as President, Prophet, Seer, participating in Hedricks ordination was John E. Page who had been an apostle under Smith. The Temple Lot church affirms a founding date of April 6,1830, in Fayette, New York, Hedrick later distanced himself from the title of President, as he ultimately came to believe that this was an unscriptural office. This was soon shortened to Church of Christ, however, as this had been the name under which Smith originally incorporated the church in 1830. Hedrick also wished to distinguish his church from the LDS Church in Utah, the church currently occupies a property in Independence, Missouri, known as the Temple Lot. The Hedrickites returned to Independence in 1867 to purchase the lot for this temple. In 1891, the church was sued by the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, now called the Community of Christ, the RLDS Church won at trial, but this decision was reversed on appeal. The lot was re-landscaped, and is occupied only by the churchs headquarters. No further plans to erect such an edifice have been announced, Pattison, a suspended member of the LDS Church from Boston, Massachusetts, was arrested and briefly detained after attempting to remove a fence placed around the Temple Lot. Late in the month, he reportedly demanded that church officials sign ownership of the property over to him because he believed he was the One Mighty. He was detained by police but released a few days later, Early on September 5,1898, he set fire to the tiny headquarters building, and then walked to the police station and turned himself in. After he testified in appearances in November 1898, Pattison was found guilty but insane
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Parley P. Pratt
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Parley Parker Pratt Sr. was an early leader of the Latter Day Saint movement whose writings became a significant early nineteenth-century exposition of the Latter Day Saint faith. Named in 1835 as one of the first members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Pratt has been called the Apostle Paul of Mormonism for his promotion of distinctive Mormon doctrines. Pratt explored and surveyed Parleys Canyon in Salt Lake City, Utah and he was murdered in 1857 by the estranged husband of his twelfth wife. He had a total of 30 children, and his descendants in 2011 were estimated to number 30,000 to 50,000. Pratt was born in Burlington, New York, to Jared Pratt and his wife Charity Dickinson and he married Thankful Halsey in Canaan, New York, on September 9,1827. The young couple migrated west, where they settled near Cleveland, Ohio, in Ohio, Pratt became a member of the Reformed Baptist Society, also called Disciples of Christ, influenced by the preaching of Sidney Rigdon. Pratt soon decided to take up the Disciples ministry as a profession, while traveling to visit family in western New York, Pratt read a copy of the Book of Mormon owned by a Baptist deacon. Convinced of its authenticity, he traveled to Palmyra, and spoke to Hyrum Smith, Pratt was baptized in Seneca Lake by Oliver Cowdery on or about September 1,1830, formally joining the Latter Day Saints church. He was ordained to the office of an elder in the church, continuing on to his familys home, he introduced his younger brother, Orson Pratt, to Mormonism and baptized him on September 19,1830. Arriving in Fayette, New York, in October 1830, Pratt met Joseph Smith and was asked to join a group assigned to preach to the Native American tribes on the Missouri frontier. During the trip west, he and his companions stopped to visit Sidney Rigdon and they were instrumental in converting Rigdon and approximately 130 members of his congregation within three weeks. In early 1833, Pratt served as a missionary in Illinois, in the fall of 1833, he served as president of the Mormon branch number 8 in Jackson County and as a leader in the Mormon militia. He was among those Latter Day Saints driven into Clay County, Missouri, in February 1834, Pratt and Lyman Wight headed back to Kirtland to report on the events in Missouri to Joseph Smith. From Kirtland, Pratt traveled with Smith in Pennsylvania and western New York, after traveling together for three weeks, during some of this time with Pratt serving as Smiths scribe, Smith returned to Kirtland from Geneseo, New York, for a court case. Pratt continued his missionary efforts along with Henry Brown, Pratt and Brown went to eastern New York to give his family members money to move to Kirtland. They went to Richland, New York, where Pratt convinced Wilford Woodruff, Pratt returned to Missouri later in 1834 as a member of Zions Camp. After Zions Camp broke up, Pratt rejoined his wife Thankful, while working as a day laborer, Pratt served on the Missouri High Council. Thankful had run up debts in Pratts absence, and when he returned with her to Ohio, some felt he was trying to flee his creditors
26.
Luke Johnson (Mormon)
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Luke Johnson was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1835 to 1838. He served in the Quorum with his brother, Lyman E. Johnson and Orson Hyde. Johnson was born November 3,1807, in Pomfret, Vermont and my father, John Johnson, was born in Chesterfield, New Hampshire, April 11,1779. He followed the occupation of farming on a scale, and was noted for paying his debts. He moved from Pomfret, Vermont, to Hiram, Portage county and he was connected with the Methodist church for about five years previous to receiving the Gospel. Johnson was an educator and a physician and he married Susan Harminda Poteet on November 1,1833. This marriage produced six children, Elisa Mary, Fanny, Eliza, Vashtia, James, after Susans death, on September 20,1846, he married America Morgan Clark, on March 3,1847, in the Kirtland Temple, and had additional children. This family included Susan Marinda, Orson Albert, Mark Anthony, Charlotte Elizabeth, Lovinia Ann, Phebe W. Johnson was baptized into the Church of Christ on May 10,1831, by Joseph Smith. By October 1831, he had ordained a elder and went on a mission to southern Ohio with Robert Rathburn. Later in 1831, he joined Sidney Rigdon in preaching the gospel in areas of Pennsylvania and their efforts brought about fifty new members into the young church, including Rigdons mother and other members of the Rigdon family. At one point, while he was praying, he had a vision of both the Angel Moroni and the golden plates, Johnson was ordained to the office of high priest by Smith on October 25,1831. With Seymour Brunson and Hazen Aldrich, he served as a missionary in Ohio, Virginia and he was a member of the Kirtland high council which was formed on February 17,1834. On June 26,1834, Johnson marched with Zions Camp, at age 27, Johnson was chosen and ordained one of the original members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles on February 15,1835. Shortly after the quorum was formed, the new apostles were sent on missions, Johnson served in the Eastern United States, New York and Upper Canada. He returned to Kirtland, Ohio, in late 1836, Johnson defended Smith from criticism on several occasions. But, in 1837, he alienated from Smith, in part because of financial losses suffered in the failure of the Kirtland Safety Society. He was disfellowshiped at Kirtland on September 3,1837, Johnson was later received back into fellowship for a short time, but in December 1837, he denounced Smith and resigned from the church. After leaving the church, Johnson moved to Cabell County, Virginia, the church excommunicated Johnson in 1838
27.
Hyrum Smith
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Hyrum Smith was an American religious leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the original church of the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the brother of the movements founder, Joseph Smith. Hyrum was born in Tunbridge, Vermont, the son of Joseph Smith, Sr. Smith received an education, and established himself as a farmer. Smith attended Dartmouth College in his teens and this may have been one of the factors behind Dr. Nathan Smith treating Smiths brother Josephs leg. During the translation of the Book of Mormon and the establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Smith was a close advisor, in June 1829, Smith was baptized in Seneca Lake, New York. He was one of the Eight Witnesses who examined and testified of the reality of the golden plates and he also saw the angel Moroni at some point. When the Church of Christ was organized on April 6,1830, six men signed their names as members, at the age of 30. Smith served as presiding officer of a branch in Colesville. As the church headquarters and membership moved west, Smith and his family relocated, in 1831, he established a home in Kirtland, Ohio. During his residence there, he served as foreman of the quarry providing stone for the Kirtland Temple, between 1831 and 1833, he served proselyting missions to Missouri and Ohio. In 1834, under the direction of Joseph Smith, he recruited members for a militia, Zions Camp and he was appointed Second Counselor in the churchs First Presidency in November 1837. In 1838 and 1839, Hyrum, Joseph and three church leaders shared a jail cell in Liberty, Missouri while awaiting trial. After relocating to Nauvoo, Illinois, Smith became Presiding Patriarch of the Church, although Hyrum Smith was never explicitly ordained to the priesthood office of apostle, his appointment as assistant president may have included such authority. When warned of danger, Joseph urged Smith and his family to flee to Cincinnati. Smith refused and, in 1844, traveled with Joseph to Carthage, Illinois, Joseph, Hyrum, John Taylor and Willard Richards were held awaiting trial in a jail in Carthage. On June 27,1844, the building was attacked by a mob of between sixty and two hundred men. While attempting to barricade the door to prevent the mob from entering, Smith was shot in the face and exclaimed, I am a dead man, Taylor was struck by several bullets but survived with the help of Richards
28.
Presiding Patriarch
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In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Presiding Patriarch is a church-wide leadership office within the priesthood. Among the duties of the Presiding Patriarch are to preside in council meetings, ordain other patriarchs, originally, the office of Presiding Patriarch was one of the highest and most important offices of the churchs priesthood. The role was equated by Joseph Smith with Biblical patriarchs from Adam to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and it was expected that the office would descend through lineal succession from father to son. This precedent was set when Hyrum Smith, Josephs brother, became the second Presiding Patriarch because he was the eldest surviving son of the first Presiding Patriarch, Joseph Smith, Sr. When the office was given to Hyrum, he was given keys of the priesthood over the kingdom of God on earth. Thus, some have argued that Presiding Patriarch is an office of the Patriarchal Priesthood, however, the existence and meaning of the Patriarchal Priesthood is controversial and uncertain. In the major denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, the role of the Presiding Patriarch diminished substantially after the death of Hyrum Smith. That tradition was discontinued in 1958 when RLDS Prophet-Presidents W. Wallace Smith, unlike Elbert A. Smith, Cheville was not a descendant of Joseph Smith, Sr. Prior to 1984 Presiding Patriarch and Presiding Evangelist were used interchangeably for the one presiding over the Order of Evangelists. In 1984, the Community of Christ dropped its use of the name Presiding Evangelist for this role, the current Presiding Evangelist of the Community of Christ is David R. Brock. When a Presiding Patriarch has existed, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has sustained the person as a prophet, seer, in the history of the LDS Church, there have been eight Presiding Patriarchs, three Acting Presiding Patriarchs, and one Patriarch Emeritus. The LDS Church effectively discontinued the office of Presiding Patriarch in 1979, until that time, the role and duties of the office had varied. The Presiding Patriarch sometimes appointed local patriarchs in the churchs stakes, like the local patriarchs, the Presiding Patriarch was also empowered to give patriarchal blessings. Lineal succession Patriarch Patriarchal priesthood Patriarchal blessing Smith, E. Gary, the Office of Presiding Patriarch, The Primacy Problem. Archived from the original on April 14,2014, bates, Irene M. Smith, E. Gary. Lost Legacy, The Mormon Office of Presiding Patriarch, urbana, Illinois, University of Illinois Press. Peggy Fletcher Stack, Century Mark, Church leader with historic position nears 100th birthday, Salt Lake Tribune, December 29,2006
29.
Community of Christ
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Community of Christ is an American-based international church with roots in the Latter Day Saint movement. The church reports approximately over 250,000 members in 60 nations, the church traces its origins to Joseph Smiths establishment of the Church of Christ on April 6,1830, with the church formally reorganizing on April 6,1860, following the death of Smith in 1844. The Community of Christ is rooted in Restorationist traditions, although in some respects it is congruent with mainline Protestant Christian attitudes, it is in many ways theologically distinct, continuing such features as prophetic revelation. It is the second-largest denomination within the Latter Day Saint movement, Community of Christ follows a largely non-liturgical tradition based loosely on the Revised Common Lectionary. From its headquarters in Independence, Missouri, the church offers a focus on evangelism, peace and justice ministries, spirituality and wholeness, youth ministries. Church teachings emphasize that all are called as persons of worth to share the peace of Christ, the church was legally organized on April 6,1830, in Fayette, New York. The formal reorganization occurred on April 6,1860, in Amboy, Illinois, as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, adding the word Reorganized to the church name in 1872. The Community of Christ today considers the period from 1830 to 1844 to be a part of its history and from 1844. Since 1844, the doctrines and practices of the Community of Christ have evolved separately from the denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. Since the 1960s, the churchs proselytizing outside North America forced a re-assessment, howard estimated that 25,000 members had left to join such groups. Between the mid-1960s and the late 1990s, there was a decline in new baptisms in the United States along with a 50 percent drop in contributions in the decade before 1998. The church owns two temples, the Kirtland Temple, dedicated in 1836 in Kirtland, Ohio, and the relatively new Independence Temple and these structures are open to the public and are also used for education and gatherings. The church also owns and operates some Latter Day Saint historic sites in Lamoni, Iowa, the Auditorium in Independence houses the Childrens Peace Pavilion and is the site of the major legislative assembly of the Community of Christ, which convenes during the World Conference. The church sponsors Graceland University, with a campus in Lamoni and another in Independence, where the School of Nursing, in its mission statement, the church declares that e proclaim Jesus Christ and promote communities of joy, hope, love and peace. The vision statement states that We will become a church dedicated to the pursuit of peace, reconciliation. The Community of Christ states that it recognizes that perception of truth is qualified by human nature and experience. Nevertheless, the Community of Christ offers a number of the commonly held beliefs of its members and leaders as the generally accepted beliefs of the church. As Stephen M. Veazey, current president of the church states, the Community of Christ generally accepts the doctrine of the Trinity and other commonly held Christian beliefs
30.
Council of Twelve Apostles (Community of Christ)
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In the Community of Christ, the Council of Twelve Apostles is one of the governing bodies in the church hierarchy. They are disciples who hold the office of apostle, and are responsible for the evangelistic witness of the church. Apostles are also priests in the Melchisedec priesthood of the church. As with all priesthood in the Community of Christ, members of the Council of Twelve are considered to be called by God, the Prophet-President receives the call, and after consultation with the other two members of the First Presidency, presents the call to the candidate. If the candidate accepts, the name is presented to the World Conference. New apostles are ordained in a worship service held during the World Conference. Prior to the Presidency of W. McMurray and others believed that the lengthy passages related to priesthood calls reduced the readability of the Doctrine, since that time, these priesthood calls have been presented in a separate document that is not included in the Doctrine and Covenants. Most appointee ministers live in the Independence, Missouri, area, however, each apostle has an office in the Independence Temple and they share administrative staff. Individual apostles may be assigned to various responsibilities of church leadership, together with the First Presidency and the Presiding Bishopric, this council is a part of the World Church Leadership Council. Each of the apostles is called to serve as a witness of the gospel. In recent years, some members of the Council are also given responsibility for areas of program ministry. Assigned by the First Presidency, they carry major responsibility for church expansion, the Council of Twelve Apostles elects one of its members to serve as President of the Council of Twelve and another member to serve as Secretary of the Council of Twelve. Members of the Council of Twelve Apostles are normally full-time paid ministers, members of the Council of Twelve Apostles directly supervise Mission Center Presidents and missionaries holding the priesthood office of Seventy. They have the authority to call Mission Center Conferences and frequently preside over certain portions of the various conferences, Apostles usually initiate calls to the offices of high priest and evangelist, often in consultation or at the behest of Mission Center Presidents. Apostles usually hold annual or semi-annual meetings of the appointee ministers, Apostles have the authority to organize or dissolve congregations and ministry groups. If a Mission Center President takes over operation of a congregation, Apostles typically travel to missionary fields around the world, even when they have fields entirely within the United States. This international missionary experience is believed to both the recipients of the ministry as well as the experience of the apostles themselves. Most jurisdictions of the Community of Christ hold summertime family camps called reunions, Apostles usually spend much of their summer attending various reunions
31.
Orson Pratt
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Orson Pratt, Sr. was an American mathematician and religious leader who was an original member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles of the Church of the Latter Day Saints. He became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was a leading Mormon theologian, Pratt was born in Hartford, New York, the son of Jared Pratt and Charity Dickenson. He was the brother of Parley P. Pratt, who introduced him to Latter Day Saint church and baptized him on Orsons nineteenth birthday, September 19,1830, in Canaan. Pratt was ordained an Elder several months later, on April 26,1831, by Joseph Smith and immediately set out for Colesville, New York, his first mission. This was the first of a number of missions in which Pratt visited New York, Ohio, Missouri. Pratt was a member of the original Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and he was ordained to this position on April 26,1835. He served as a member of the mission of the Twelve Apostles to the British Isles between 1839 and 1841 and he contributed to the mission by preaching in Scotland, and producing an early missionary tract, An Interesting Account of Several Remarkable Visions. This tract contains the earliest known printing of an account of Smiths First Vision. On his return to America in 1841, Pratt found the church membership in contention over several issues, rumors and gossip were rife in Nauvoo, Illinois, and Pratt found the religious principle of plural marriage difficult to accept. He rebelled against Joseph Smith when a report by disaffected Mormon John C. Bennett accused Smith of proposing marriage to Pratts wife, Sarah Pratt, additionally, a story was circulating that Sarah Pratt had been involved with Bennett himself. Pratt was torn between believing his wife or Smith, and wrote, My sorrows are greater than I can bear. After days of Smith and the members of the Twelve remonstrating with Pratt, they decided that he would not yield. Bennett claimed that Pratt and his wife were planning to leave Nauvoo and help him expose Mormonism, Pratt reconciled with Smith a few months after their falling out and requested re-baptism. Pratt was reinstated in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on January 20,1843, Smith and Pratt directly discussed Pratts wife, with Smith stating to him, She lied about me, I never made the offer which she said I did. In 1850, as president of the British Mission, Pratt told his missionaries that very soul in Britain should hear the gospel this year. Although this goal was not achieved, by the end of the year there were twice as many church members residing in Britain as in the United States, Pratt managed to make contacts with people in Paris who were willing to do this translation. In 1865, Pratt was one of the first Mormon missionaries to work in Austria, traveling with William W. Ritter, he was there for nine months, but did not baptize anyone. The missionaries were expelled by the Austrian government
32.
John F. Boynton
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John Farnham Boynton was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an American geologist and inventor. He was one of the members of the Latter Day Saint movements Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Boynton was born in Bradford, Massachusetts, to Eliphalet Boynton and he was married to Susan Lowell. In his teenage years, Boynton attended Columbia University and at age 20 began medical school in St. Louis, Boynton was baptized a member of the Church of Christ by Joseph Smith in September 1832 in Kirtland, Ohio. He was ordained to the office of an elder by Sidney Rigdon, Boynton proved to be an effective missionary for the church. He initially served in Erie County, Pennsylvania, with Zebedee Coltrin, in 1832, the following December, Smith sent him on a mission to Maine. In an 1834 letter written from Saco, Maine, Boynton states, I have baptized about forty in this section,1833, till October following, while together we baptized about 130. While in Maine and Massachusetts, Boynton also served with Horace Cowen, Boynton was chosen as one of the churchs apostles at the organization of the initial Quorum of Twelve Apostles on February 14,1835. He was the one of the original apostles who had attended university. Soon after, he accompanied the Twelve on their 1835 mission through the branches in the eastern United States. He attended a conference in Laboro, Upper Canada, with six members of the Quorum on June 29,1835. Boynton returned to Ohio in the fall, and preached to a gathering of members on October 18. After this mission, he began a business in Kirtland with church associate Lyman E. Johnson. Despite his dedication to the religious message, Boynton broke with Smith. This ultimately caused the Kirtland bank to fail, the failure of the financial institution, founded with the support of church leaders, led to widespread dissent in 1837. Two distinct factions developed in the community, with members of the churchs leadership aligned on both sides, a high council trial disfellowshipped and removed Luke Johnson, Lyman E. Johnson, and Boynton from the Quorum of the Twelve on September 3,1837. They also sought to control the church organization and led a high council which excommunicated Smith and Rigdon. In 1838, after Smith had relocated to Missouri, Boynton and other dissident church leaders, including Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, Boynton believed Smith to have become a fallen prophet and said to Heber C
33.
Lyman E. Johnson
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Lyman Eugene Johnson was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He broke with Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon during the 1837–38 period when schism divided the early church, Johnson later became a successful pioneer lawyer in Iowa and was one of the town fathers of Keokuk, Iowa. Johnson was born in Pomfret, Windsor County, Vermont, to John Johnson, the family moved to Hiram, Ohio, in 1818, where they established the John Johnson Farm, a successful 300-acre farm. Johnson died in 1859, drowning in the Mississippi River in an accident at Prairie du Chien. He had at least five children, Joseph Smith and Emma Hale Smith moved into the Johnson home on September 12,1831. Within a month, Johnson was ordained an elder and then a high priest of the Latter Day Saint church, in response to a revelation given on January 25,1832, Johnson joined Orson Pratt on an evangelizing mission which took them through the northeastern United States. The two were highly successful preachers and brought many converts to Mormonism on this and other subsequent missions, in the summer of 1834, Johnson marched with the Zions Camp expedition which hoped to restore Latter Day Saints in Missouri to their lands in Jackson County. Although the expedition was a failure, many of the veterans of the expedition were soon called to leadership positions in the church. The chief duty of the apostles was to preside over missionary activities, Johnson continued to operate as a successful missionary from 1835 to 1837. On September 4,1834, Johnson was married to Sarah Susan Long, the failure of the Kirtland Safety Society, a bank founded by church leaders, led to widespread dissent in 1837. The church held a high council trial on September 3,1837, which ejected Johnson, his brother Luke, meanwhile, schismatic strife between the loyalist faction and the dissenting faction continued to divide the church in Kirtland. William Shepard and H. Michael Marquardt, Lyman E. Johnson, Forgotten Apostle, collier, The Kirtland Council Minute Book, Colliers Publishing Co.2002
34.
John E. Page
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John Edward Page was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. Born in Trenton, New York, Page was the son of Ebenezer and he was baptized into the Church of Christ, established by Joseph Smith, in Brownhelm, Ohio, in August 1833 by missionary Emer Harris. After his conversion, Page was ordained an elder and he relocated to Kirtland, Ohio, in 1835, and joined the growing body of church members in that region. Page served two missions in Upper Canada, the first beginning in May 1836 and the second in February 1837, by his count, he baptized 600 persons. Page was called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in July 1838, in August 1838, he moved his family to Missouri, settling in Far West, Caldwell County. Life was difficult for the new Missouri settlers, Page left personal accounts of attacks by mobs of Missouri residents, both while with the wagon train and while residing in Far West. He noted that he buried one wife and two children as martyrs to our religion, since they died through extreme suffering for the want of the common comforts of life. Page received his ordination to the office of apostle in Far West on December 19,1838, from Brigham Young, Page and fellow apostle Orson Hyde were called to travel and preach in the Holy Land and dedicate the land for the return of the Jews. He and Hyde started on their mission, but Page had a change of heart, in June 1841, in Philadelphia, apostle George A. Smith sought him out and encouraged him to complete his preparations and sail with Hyde in two days time. After the death of Joseph Smith in 1844, Page made a claim to the leadership of the church. The majority of the Latter Day Saints, under the direction of Brigham Young, rejected Pages claim, Page was then called to serve in the Council of Fifty to help plan and facilitate the churchs move to the Rocky Mountains. After urging the Latter Day Saints to follow James J. Strang as leader of the church, ezra T. Benson was called by Young to replace Page in the Quorum. Although Page was an apostle under Joseph Smith and President of the Quorum of the Twelve under Strang and he later became affiliated with the organization of James C. Brewster and Hazen Aldrich, and later that of Granville Hedrick and he was instrumental in helping the Church of Christ obtain possession of the Temple Lot in Independence, Missouri. Page died in 1867 in DeKalb County, Illinois, John E. Page, Apostle of Uncertainty, in Mormon Mavericks, John Sillito and Susan Staker, Salt Lake City, Signature Books,2002. Pages, John E. Page Biography of John E. Page, The Joseph Smith Papers
