Joseph
Smith did not attempt to control or limit people's revelations except
in only one regard. When it came to revelation involving governing the
church, that was limited to him alone, as President. (See, e.g. D&C 43: 2-5; 21: 4-5; 28: 2.) Reading The Joseph Smith Papers,
however, it is clear that for Joseph, it came as a matter of some
considerable satisfaction to him that others received revelation as
well.
The declarations of Joseph's revelations raise
two interesting questions: First, if Joseph's status as the prophet, seer and revelator are foundational, then can any subsequent
person change anything restored through Joseph? Even if there is
another person elected through common consent to be the
president of the church, is such an office holder free from the obligation to receive
Joseph's words as God's words? Are we all, including subsequent office
holders, required to "give heed unto all his [Joseph's] words and
commandments, which he [Joseph] shall give unto you as he receiveth
them"? Or instead, does Joseph get relegated to obsolescence once he
has been replaced by President Brigham Young, and so on?
Secondly, the question arises whether
possession of the office Joseph held (church president) automatically
entitles such an office holder to be in every whit exactly like Joseph. That is, do subsequent office holders also get the automatic right to
claim everyone in the church must give heed to their words, too?
In Joseph's case, the only way to replace him in
his position was for Joseph himself to designate his
successor/replacement. This is set out in the revelation to Joseph as
follows: "[N]one else shall be appointed unto this gift except it be
through him [Joseph]; for if it is taken from him [Joseph] he shall not
have power except to appoint another in his stead." (D&C 43: 4.)
Implicit in the revelation, if you read it carefully, is that Joseph's
choice of the one who would succeed him would necessarily come by
revelation to Joseph. "And this shall be a law unto you, that ye
receive not the teachings of any that shall come before you as
revelations or commandments; And this I give unto you that you may not
be deceived, that you may know they are not of me. For verily I say
unto you, that he that is ordained of me shall come in at the gate and
be ordained as I have told you before, to teach those revelations, which
you have received and shall receive through him [Joseph] whom I have
appointed." (D&C 43: 5-7.)
In Joseph's case, he did receive a revelation
which identified who would replace him, just as the revelation
provided. "[T]hat my servant Hyrum may take the office of Priesthood
and Patriarch, which was appointed unto him by his father, by blessing
and also by right; That from henceforth he shall hold the keys of the
Patriarchal blessings upon the heads of all my people, That whoever he
blesses shall be blessed, and whoever he curses shall be cursed; that
whatsoever he shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and
whatsoever he shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. And from
this time forth I appoint unto him that he may be a prophet, and a seer,
and a revelator unto my church, as well as my servant Joseph..." (D&C 124: 91-94.)
Hyrum, however, died in Carthage Jail before
Joseph. The issue of "succession" was decided by common consent in the
votes taken in Nauvoo following Joseph's death. Then there is all that
stuff about Joseph giving "the keys of the kingdom" to "the council." But "the kingdom" was the Council of Fifty, not the church. The
"council" to whom Joseph made the remark was the Fifty, not the Twelve.
But we sorted that out in Nauvoo by common consent, choosing to follow
the Twelve.
Revelation is foundational to the church. No
one comes into the church without revelation. Missionaries ask
investigators to ask God, based on Moroni 10:4, and get their own
answer to prayer. A convert is expected to have received a personal
revelation before becoming a Mormon.
This gives rise to some other interesting
issues: Moroni 10:4 has as its scope the truthfulness of the Book of
Mormon. But Moroni 10:5 expands the scope so that a sincere inquirer
"may know the truth of all things." Therefore, there is no limit on
what a person might inquire about and receive a revelation concerning.
Now a convert who has discovered that they have
already obtained an answer to prayer is likely (as I was) to continue
to inquire. Converts who have had such an experience become rather like
Joseph Smith following his first vision. That is, they "had full
confidence in obtaining a divine manifestation, as [they] previously had
one." (JS-H 1: 29.) So people who have succeeded in obtaining an
answer to prayer go on to make further inquiries and get further
answers. The scope of such inquiries can be, as Moroni 10: 5 informs
us, into literally ANYTHING. They can get to know "the truth of all
things" by making such inquiries.
The interesting issue arises when the church
then informs the convert that they can't have revelations involving
things which the church wants to control. They can't ask and get an
answer about anything that contradicts or opposes what the church
says. If they do so, they are told they have a false revelation, or
they are being inspired by the devil.
A great problem arises when someone who has
received authentic revelation, and has been inspired as a consequence of
that revelation to join the church, is then told by the church that
their subsequent revelation is false, or of the devil. The convert must
then choose. Revelation led them into the church in the first instance. If the church then tells them their continuing revelation is false or of the devil, they must grapple with whether the original revelation which led them to convert was also false and of the devil? Of course, if they reach that conclusion they
leave the church. The other choice is that the revelation, both the
original and the following revelations, are from God. If that is the conclusion
they reach, then they know the church is overreaching. This gives rise to a continual anxiety
about the church's motives, and reliability about things which matter
most.
Joseph's delight in the revelations others
received is akin to Moses' delight in the same thing: "Enviest thou
for my sake? would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets,
and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!" (Num. 11: 29.) The
church's jealousy on the same topic makes an interesting contrast, where those who have revelation oftentimes know God has spoken to them,
but also know the church will not tolerate revelation which goes any
further than knowing the Book of Mormon is true, Therefore, you have
an obligation to join the institution which publishes and proclaims that
book.
These are big topics. They are worth a lot of
careful thought. One conclusion which leaps to mind, however, is that
the loose grip Joseph and Moses took on the reigns of control
extended to management decisions at the highest level. At lower levels
people were free to develop their gifts, including revelation, without
any molesting by the top. Our own scriptures say as much. To the
church is given a variety of gifts, disbursed throughout the body:
"To some is given one, and to some is given another, that all may be profited thereby. To some it is given by the Holy Ghost to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that he was crucified for the sins of the world. To others it is given to believe on their words, that they also might have eternal life if they continue faithful. And again, to some it is given by the Holy Ghost to know the differences of administration, as it will be pleasing unto the same Lord, according as the Lord will, suiting his mercies according to the conditions of the children of men. And again, it is given by the Holy Ghost to some to know the diversities of operations, whether they be of God, that the manifestations of the Spirit may be given to every man to profit withal. And again, verily I say unto you, to some is given, by the Spirit of God, the word of wisdom. To another is given the word of knowledge, that all may be taught to be wise and to have knowledge. And again, to some it is given to have faith to be healed; And to others it is given to have faith to heal. And again, to some is given the working of miracles; And to others it is given to prophesy; And to others the discerning of spirits. And again, it is given to some to speak with tongues; And to another is given the interpretation of tongues. And all these gifts come from God, for the benefit of the children of God." (D&C 46: 12-26.)
Well, if they all come from God, and are spread
to people throughout the church, it would seem incredibly wrong-headed
to condemn such things or to attempt to limit them. It is an interesting
thing to try and limit the Spirit. As Christ put it, "The wind bloweth
where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell
whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of
the Spirit." (John 3: 8.) Such things are free indeed. To hedge them
in, correlate them, and attempt to subjugate them, oftentimes does not
convince or persuade those being controlled.
Fortunately, history generally sorts it out
correctly. And today's heroes become tomorrows villains - just as
today's fools become tomorrow's venerated examples. How we sort it out
in our brief moment here is not necessarily how either the Lord or those
in the future will do so.
Well, enough of that. I do so look forward to
General Conference this coming weekend. I'm hoping to get some input on
the things which really do matter most. There are so many important
questions facing us today. It will be nice to hear what counsel we are
given on these many perplexities.