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Divine
Guidance Led Joseph Smith III to Become Prophet of the Church
By Pamela Price
The saints are familiar with the accounts of the heavenly visions
which were experienced by Joseph Smith, Jr., in Palmyra’s
Grove, which caused him to become the founder of the Restoration
Movement. However, little is known about the important visions
and revelations which led his son, Joseph Smith III, to take his
place as prophet-president of the Church.
There are similar patterns in the lives of both Josephs. Both
were farmers. Both sought God as a result of reading James 1:5
which says, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God.”
Both were led by visions and revelations. Both were young when
the manifestations came to them, and both were led to become the
prophet-president of the Church.
“Young Joseph,” as he was affectionately called,
had two distinct visions and a definite revelation which guided
him to follow in his father’s footsteps. He grew up in Nauvoo
with his mother, Emma; his stepfather, Louis C. Bidamon; his adopted
sister, Julia, and three younger brothers—Alexander, Frederick,
and David. He worked at farming with his stepfather and brothers,
and studied law with the intention of becoming an attorney.
Joseph III’s First Vision
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| A drawing by Fred Piercy of Joseph Smith
III in 1853 at age twenty—about the time Joseph had
the first vision which helped him make the choice between
leadership in the LDS and RLDS Churches. Color tinted by Jan
Willey. |
During the year 1853, when he was twenty years of age, Joseph
III had an experience which helped him to decide what his life’s
work should be. In it he was shown a vision in which he saw both
a busy city scene, in which he could have renown; and in contrast,
a wide expanse of thrifty, peaceful, villages—in which he
would live a simple, humble life. He was told that he must choose
between them.
Just prior to the vision, Joseph became very ill from an attack
of fever, which caused him to lose thirty-three pounds in two
weeks. During the time that he was recovering, he had much time
to think of his future work.
Joseph wrote:
It was during this summer [1853] and fall that I had the first
serious impressions concerning my connection with the work of
my father. That spring, if my memory is correct, there was a
large emigration to Utah; a part of which was camped at Keokuk,
twelve miles below Nauvoo, on the Iowa side of the Mississippi
River. A delegation of them visited Nauvoo, and with one of
them, whose name if I learned it, I do not now remember, I had
a long conversation respecting Mormonism. I had talked with
many upon the matter; but had never taken the subject into very
earnest consideration.
This person urged that I was possibly doing a great wrong
in allowing the years to pass by unimproved. I stated to him
that I was ready to do any work that might fall to my lot, or
that I might be called to do. I had no
fellowship with the leadership in the Salt Lake Church, and
could not then give my sanction to things there; my prejudices
were against them.
In the summer and fall several things occurred that served
to bring the question up; my sickness brought me near to death;
my coming of age, and my choice of a profession were all coincident
events; and during my recovery I had opportunity for reflection,
as for weeks I could do no work. One day, after my return to
health was assured, I had lain down to rest in my room; the
window was open to the south and the fresh breeze swept in through
the trees and half closed blinds, I had slept and woke refreshed;
my mind recurred to the question of my future life and what
its work should be. I had been and was still reading law under
the care of a lawyer named William McLennan, and it was partially
decided that I should continue that study.
While weighing my desires and capabilities for this work,
the question came up, Will I ever have anything to do with Mormonism?
If so, how and what will it be? I was impressed
that there was truth in the work my father had done.
I believed the gospel so far as I comprehended it. Was I to
have no part in that work as left by him?
While engaged in this contemplation and perplexed by these
recurring questions, the room suddenly
expanded and passed away. I saw stretched out before me towns,
cities, busy marts, courthouses, courts, and assemblies of men,
all busy and all marked by those characteristics that are found
in the world, where men win place and renown. This stayed before
my vision till I had noted clearly that choice of preferment
here was offered to him who would enter in, but who did so must
go into the busy whirl and be submerged by its din, bustle,
and confusion.
In the subtle transition of a dream I was gazing
over a wide expanse of country in a prairie land; no mountains
were to be seen, but far as the eye could reach, hill and dale,
hamlet and village, farm and farmhouse, pleasant cot and homelike
place, everywhere betokening thrift, industry, and the pursuits
of a happy peace were open to the view.
I remarked to him standing by me, but whose
presence I had not before noticed, “This must be the country
of a happy people.” To this he replied, “Which would
you prefer, life, success, and renown among the busy scenes
that you first saw, or a place among these people, without honors
or renown? Think of it well, for the choice will be offered
to you sooner or late, and you must be prepared to decide. Your
decision once made you cannot recall it, and must abide the
result.”
No time was given me for a reply, for as suddenly as it had
come, so suddenly was it gone, and I found myself sitting upright
on the side of the bed where I had been lying, the rays of the
declining sun shining athwart the western hills and over the
shimmering river, making the afternoon all glorious with their
splendor, shone into my room instinct with life and motion,
filling me with gladness that I should live. From that hour,
at leisure, at work or play, I kept before me what had been
presented, and was at length prepared to answer when the opportunity
for the choice should be given. (The History
of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
[Independence, Missouri: Herald Publishing House, 1952], 3:254–255.
Hereafter referred to as RLDS Church History.)
The Luminous Cloud Vision
Two years passed, during which time Joseph III studied law and
worked at various jobs, including farming. Then God gave him another
vision which definitely answered the question of whether or not
he should go to Utah and become a part of the church there. He
wrote:
In the fall of this year [1856] three events transpired that
had much to do with deciding my course religiously and aiding
me to answer the question, What part in my father’s work,
if any, I was to take. For a number of years I had been more
or less intimate with the family of Christopher E. Yates, a
friend to the saints.... With one of his sons, Putnam, circumstances
had made me well acquainted. He had crossed the plains a number
of times, had been in Salt Lake City and other parts of Utah,
and in California. He and I had frequently discussed Mormonism;
that is, some parts of it, and he had persistently insisted
that I could do a great and an excellent work by going to Utah,
and as he put it, “taking the lead away from Brigham;
breaking up that system of things there,” or to “fall
in with the style of things there, become a leader, get rich,
marry three or four wives and enjoy yourself.”
Though not a religious man himself he thought it might be
a duty that I owed the people of Utah. He further thought, that
from his experience in Utah, and the expressions he had heard
among the people there, that I would be received with open arms
and could succeed.
To this I replied as best I could, until the question, Why
not go to Utah? There are the men who were with my father, or
a great many of them. There, a large part of the family; there,
also, seem to be the only ones making profession of belief in
Mormonism who appear to be doing anything. Does not duty demand
that I go there and clear my name and honor of the charge or
ingratitude to my father’s character? Is not polygamy,
against which you object, a correct tenet? Is not your objection
one of prejudice only? These and a thousand others of similar
import were suggested, and added their weight to the difficulty
of the situation.
In the height of it, the words suggested to one who had gone
before me came to me with force; “If any lack wisdom,
let him ask of God.” Why not I? Was I not in a position
to need wisdom? And was I not destitute of sufficient to enable
me to properly decide?...
I believed that He who had enabled my father to decide which
of all [the Churches] should receive his attention, could, if
he would, enable me to decide whether I should, or should not,
have anything to do with Mormonism; and if so, what. I proceeded
upon this conclusion.
A year or two before this we had raised an excellent crop
of wheat, upon a piece of land lying in the south of our meadow,
and this man Yates had assisted in doing some of the work. While
engaged in it we had some conversation about Utah. After this,
I did not see him for some months.
One day, while pondering these questions (and
here, unlike some, I cannot certainly state whether morn or
even, only that the sun was shining,) I suddenly found myself
[in vision] sowing this [same] piece of land to wheat. My brother
and this Mr. Yates I saw [in vision] harrowing the wheat after
my sowing. In passing over the land I met Mr. Yates as he drove
to and fro, and our conversation was upon this Utah subject;
and the same arguments and statements were repeated by him [as
had actually happened previously]. To these I was urging again
my reluctance to move, and the question was again presented,
Why not go to Utah? I paused, rested the bag of grain that I
was carrying across my shoulder, upon my knee, and turned to
answer him.
I heard a slight noise like the rush
of the breeze, that arrested my speech and my attention. I turned
my gaze slightly upward and saw descending towards me a sort
of cloud, funnel shaped, with the wide part upward. It was luminous,
and of such color and brightness that it was clearly seen, though
the sun shone in its summer strength. It descended rapidly and
settling upon and over me enveloped me completely, so that I
stood within its radiance. As the cloud rested upon the ground
at my feet, the words “Because the light in which you
stand is greater than theirs,” sounded in my ears clearly
and distinctly. Slowly the cloud passed away and the
vision closed.
A few days after this occurred I met this man Putnam Yates,
and had a conversation with him in which he again urged upon
me the idea of going to Utah; and my answer was in exact accordance
with what I had seen (RLDS Church History,
3:256–259).
The Polygamy Question Answered
The question of whether or not polygamy was of God, was answered
apparently in the same vision in which the luminous cloud appeared.
Joseph related:
The other question, “Is polygamy of God?”
was as distinctly and definitely answered to me, as was the
one referred to above; and the answer was, “No,”
and I was directed that I was to have nothing to do with it,
but was to oppose it....
The question of my going to Utah in order to fill the destiny
appointed me was now disposed of, and I was prepared for two
events that occurred subsequently to what is here related....
I was visited by George A. Smith and Erastus Snow [officials
of the church in Utah].... I was at this visit asked if I did
not intend to come to Utah to see them there, the question being
supplemented by the statement that they were looking for me
to come; that I had many friends there, who had been friends
to my father; that they thought I ought to be with them, and
felt a great desire to see me among them.
To this I replied that I might some day visit them when a
railway was completed that I could go and come without let or
hindrance.
“But,” said Elder Snow, “we want you to
come and stay:’ In reply to this I stated that I could
not do that in the sense conveyed, so long as such things were
taught and practiced there as I had reason to believe were taught
and practiced."
“You refer to plurality,” said Elder Snow; and
I answered him, “Yes, I refer to the doctrine of polygamy
as it is called in the States."
“Why, you believe in the Book of Mormon, do you not?”
inquired Elder Smith.
I replied to him, “I believe in the book; but do not
believe the construction that you Utah people put upon it.”
Other conversation took place of a general character, mainly
between Elder Snow and myself, until they left, the interview
lasting some two and a half or three hours.
Not more than three or four weeks elapsed after the visit
of Elders Snow and Smith when I was visited by Elders Samuel
H. Gurley and Edmund C. Briggs, sent as delegates from the Reorganized
Church at Zarahemla, Wisconsin, with a commission to deliver
what they believed to be the word of the Lord to me (RLDS
Church History 3:259–260).
Joseph Was Directed by Revelation to Join the Reorganization
After receiving the above visions which made him certain that
he was not to go to Utah or embrace polygamy, he now sought for
the answer to the last remaining question, “To which body
of believers shall I unite myself?” He later gave some of
the circumstances surrounding a revelation which gave him the
answer. He declared:
I sought earnestly to determine where to cast my religious
lot.... I made the whole matter a specific study and subject
of prayer, laying it before the Almighty in the plain question:
“To which body of believers shall I unite myself!”
When the answer came I could make no mistake, for clearly and
specifically I was directly told to unite myself to the Reorganization
(Saints’ Herald, April 2,
1935. pp. 432–433).
Joseph explained further:
During the year 1859 the question of my connection with my
father’s work was finally determined. I became satisfied
that it was my duty. The queries heretofore referred to were
one by one being settled; until the final one, where and with
whom should my life-labor lie? was the only one left. This was
determined by a similar manifestation to others that I had received
to this effect: “The Saints reorganizing
at Zarahemla and other places, is the only organized portion
of the church accepted by me. I have given them my Spirit, and
will continue to do so while they remain humble and faithful.”
This was in the fall of 1859, and in the winter I resolved
to put myself in communication with the brethren of the Reorganized
Church (RLDS Church History, 3:263).
The Fulfillment of Joseph III’s First Vision
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| Apostle Heman C. Smith, Church historian,
who with Joseph lll, authored the first four volumes of RLDS
Church History. Heman was the grandson of Apostle Lyman Wight,
the husband of Vida E. Smith who wrote "The Old, Old
Path," and the father of Inez Smith Davis who wrote "The
Story of the Church." |
Joseph’s visions and revelations led him to accept the
prophet-presidency of the Church. He was ordained in 1860 and
served as prophet for fifty-four years. In 1897, forty-four years
after his first vision in 1853, wherein he was informed that he
must choose between renown in a metropolis or a humble rural life,
the vision was fulfilled. By this time the Church’s headquarters
had been moved to Lamoni, Iowa, and there he saw the actual peaceful
prairie scene that he had beheld in his vision. There also Joseph
III and the Church Historian, Apostle Heman C. Smith, as coauthors,
wrote and published the first four volumes of RLDS Church History
One day as Heman and Joseph III worked together, Heman read Joseph
III’s account of the first vision and then questioned the
Prophet.
Heman later wrote:
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| The Herald Office, Lamoni, Iowa.
Built in 1881, this building served as Church headquartes,
housing the General Church offices, archives, and printing
plant until it was destroyed by fire in 1907. From an upper
window in this building Joseph showed Apostle Heman C. Smith
the same scene which Joseph had seen in his vision in Nauvoo
in 1853. |
I turned to President Smith and said: “Have you ever
seen, in fact, the fair scene thus presented to you in vision?”
We were in the editorial room in the southwest corner of the
upper floor of the old Herald Office building in Lamoni, Iowa.
He replied, “Take your place at the south window there
and you will see the scene presented to me, only my view seemed
to be more extensive."
From about the time of President Smith’s exploring trip
there seemed to be new life infused into the spirit of gathering,
until, not only to the south of the spot where he bade me stand
and look, but to the north, east and west, there appears in
very deed the “hill and dale, hamlet and village, farm
and farmhouse, pleasant cot and homelike place,” “betokening
thrift, industry and the pursuits of a happy peace” of
this happy people with whom President Smith chose to cast his
lot, and for whom he spent a busy and devoted life, to which
our present possibilities and prospects are largely indebted
(Heman C. Smith Journal of History
[Lamoni, Iowa: The Board of Publication of the Reorganized Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, April 1916], 9:164–165).
Saints today should take courage from the history of these visions
and their fulfillment. God has invested much in His Church, and
He has not brought it this far to have it fail and allow Satan
to have the victory. Let us assist during the present crisis in
His Church by praying for guidance, as did Joseph, Jr., and Joseph
III. Let us move only in obedience to the mind and will of Almighty
God. In the meantime, we can be assured that when the Lord moves
in great power to set His Church in order, that it will not be
done in secret, known only to a few self-chosen men.
Instead, many will be informed by the Holy Ghost, as in the
days when the Reorganization began. While Young Joseph was being
directed by visions, the saints in independent Restoration branches
were being informed by dreams, visions, prophecies, and tongues
that he would become their prophet.
Since God does not work in secret, the saints who are faithful
can expect the same gifts of the Spirit to be poured out in their
midst in the future, to prepare them to accept the true leadership
which He shall send, and to be warned against false leaders. In
this way His saints will be led in the right direction, and not
be deceived. |
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