The First Vision: A Joseph Smith Papers Podcast

Prologue: Introducing The First Vision

Listeners will hear a story that is simultaneously familiar and new as they learn little-known details of the story of Joseph Smith’s first vision—details that illuminate the event and its relevance today.

Episode 0 Transcript

Episode 1: “An Unusual Excitement”

What caused the “unusual excitement on the subject of religion” in Joseph Smith’s community? This episode explains how social, cultural, and economic changes created an environment in which Americans were actively engaged in conversations about the state of their souls.

Guests: Rachel Cope, Christopher Jones, Brent Rogers

Episode 1 Transcript

Episode 2: “What Is to Be Done?”

In 1820, Joseph Smith was seeking answers to the pressing questions of his soul. He wanted to know which church was the church of Jesus Christ, but that was not his only question. This episode examines Joseph Smith’s search for eternal answers. It reveals how his search was influenced by—and ultimately differed from—the search of his friends and neighbors.

Guests: Rachel Cope, Steven Harper, Christopher Jones

Episode 2 Transcript

Episode 3: “I Retired to the Woods”

What did the place that came to be called the Sacred Grove look like when Joseph Smith entered in early spring 1820? What did it sound like? What did it smell like? In this episode we examine the environment in which Joseph Smith prayed and ask how that compares to the artistic depictions that are common today.

Guest: Mark Staker

Episode 3 Transcript

Episode 4: “A Pillar of Light”

Have you ever heard the story of Joseph Smith’s first vision told using all the surviving accounts of the event? That’s the focus of this episode. Here, the nine different accounts from Joseph Smith’s lifetime are woven together. You will hear the story in an illuminating way, a way that is simultaneously familiar and new.

Episode 4 Transcript

Episode 5: “It Caused Me Serious Reflection”

This episode explores the immediate aftermath of the First Vision and Joseph Smith’s recounting of the event throughout his life. How did the events and developments of Joseph Smith’s life influence the way that he told others about his vision? Learn the circumstances in which each of the accounts of the First Vision was recorded.

Guests: Steven Harper, Robin Jensen, Matthew Godfrey, Brent Rogers, Christopher Jones

Episode 5 Transcript

Episode 6: “I Had Seen a Vision”

Why does the story of Joseph Smith’s first vision—a story about a teenage boy in western New York during the early nineteenth century—still resonate with people around the world today? This episode examines the role of the First Vision in the growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since Joseph Smith’s death in 1844.

Guests: Elder LeGrand R. Curtis Jr., Jenny Lund, Mark Staker, Steven Harper

Episode 6 Transcript

Episode 7: “New Podcast Mini-Series Announcement”

We have some exciting news to share with you. Due to the overwhelming positive feedback for The First Vision podcast we are pleased to announce a new mini-series called The Priesthood Restored: A Joseph Smith Papers Podcast. The new podcast launches in January 2021 and explores the events that played a role in the restoration of the priesthood. See the link below to subscribe today.

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