Joseph Smith Papers Website Publishes Documents from Community of Christ Collection

February 16, 2012, Salt Lake City

The Joseph Smith Papers Project released to its website on 16 February a dozen Joseph Smith documents owned by Community of Christ, adding to the several hundred documents already available on the site. Researchers who formerly would have had to travel to repositories across the nation to access original documents are increasingly being served by the website, josephsmithpapers.org, which is collecting into one place images and transcripts of all extant Joseph Smith documents.

The newly released documents include excerpts from the printer’s manuscript used to set the type for the first (1830) edition of the Book of Mormon, the earliest manuscript from Joseph Smith’s revision of the Bible (which includes the visions of Moses and the account of Enoch), and eight pages from the previously released Revelation Book 1, or Book of Commandments and Revelations. Several letters from Joseph Smith to his wife Emma are also part of the new release.

Some of the materials relate to the most foundational aspects of Latter-day Saint history and belief while others provide glimpses of Joseph Smith’s personality and private life. In either case the documents are a compelling read.

The document titled Old Testament Revision 1, a revelation Joseph Smith began dictating in June 1830, opens with God declaring to the prophet Moses, “Behold I I am the Lord God Almighty & endless is my name for I am without beginning of days or end of years & is this not endless & behold thou art my Son Wherefore look & I will shew thee the workmanship of mine hands.” Moses sees a vision of God’s creations, after which God and Moses have extended conversation about God’s plans and purposes.

The day-to-day reality of Joseph Smith’s life as captured in his personal papers offers a contrast to the vistas opened in his revelations. In two November 1838 letters included in the new web release, he updated his wife Emma on his location and condition after being arrested by Missouri officials. In the first of the letters, Joseph Smith gave what may have been a tongue-in-cheek description of the "kindst treatment" he had received from his captors, including a “splended perade”, and a “good house.” He also expressed his “great anxiety” for his family and fellow Latter-day Saints. Eight days later, he shared further emotions about being separated from his family: “Oh God grant that I may have the privaliege of seeing once more my lovely Family, in the injoyment, of the sweets of liberty, and sotial life, to press them to my bosam and kiss their lovely cheeks would fill my heart with unspeakable grattitude.”

Community of Christ, headquartered in Independence, Missouri, made the document images available under a licensing agreement with the project, which is sponsored by the Church History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Speaking of the agreement between Community of Christ and the Church History Department, project archivist Robin Jensen said: “The spirit of cooperation shown by officials of both institutions has been remarkable. Both have an interest in making Joseph Smith’s documents available for the benefit of church members, the broader historical community, and improving the understanding of their shared heritage.”

Both The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Community of Christ trace their origins to Joseph Smith’s teachings beginning in the 1820s and his organization of the Church of Christ on 6 April 1830. Both churches have significant collections of Joseph Smith documents.

Community of Christ maintains copyright ownership of the images they have licensed to the Joseph Smith Papers Project for use on the Joseph Smith Papers website. Research inquiries related to Community of Christ–owned documents should be directed to the Community of Christ Library-Archives in Independence, Missouri.

Besides publishing materials on its website, the Joseph Smith Papers Project is also publishing selected papers in letterpress volumes available in bookstores. The print volumes and electronic publications are an essential resource for scholars and students of Joseph Smith, early Mormonism, and nineteenth-century American religion.

To view these new additions to the website, click on the links below.

Second Volume of Joseph Smith's Journals to Be Released November 15, 2011

November 15, 2011, Salt Lake City

Landmark Joseph Smith Papers Project to Release Next Installment of Multivolume Series

Journals, Volume 1, the first volume of The Joseph Smith Papers, became an overnight bestseller. Now scholars, students of Latter-day Saint history, and casual learners alike can hear Joseph Smith’s voice in his own words and from the accounts of those closest to him. The much-anticipated Journals, Volume 2 (The Church Historian's Press, $54.95) will be available November 15 at Deseret Book and select other retailers.

Joseph Smith Papers scholars discuss Journals, Volume 2

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  Joseph Smith: Chief Justice and Mayor of Nauvoo
  Video
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  Emma Smith and the Governor of Illinois
  Video
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  Joseph Smith and the Organizing of the Relief Society
  Video
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  Reference Materials to Learn More About Joseph Smith
  Video

The Joseph Smith Papers: A Popular Topic of Discussion

October 2010, Salt Lake City

Both print and online publications have had much to say about The Joseph Smith Papers. For instance, Brigham Young University’s flagship academic journal, BYU Studies, devoted about half of an entire issue (volume 48, number 3 [2009]) to the first two volumes of The Joseph Smith Papers. See the BYU Studies website for more information.

The following articles offer a sampling of the many articles written about The Joseph Smith Papers:

In addition, editors of The Joseph Smith Papers have been interviewed by various media outlets. In this regard, a two-part interview conducted by the editors of the blog By Common Consent with two of the project’s scholars is particularly informative (part 1, part 2).

Journals, Volume 1 Honored

October 2010, Salt Lake City

Since its publication in 2008, Journals, Volume 1: 1832—1839, the first volume of The Joseph Smith Papers, has received the following awards: