Discourse, 3 October 1841, as Reported by Willard Richards

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Discourse, 3 October 1841, as Reported by Willard Richards
Source Note

JS, Discourse,
Nauvoo
Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....
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, Hancock Co., IL, 3 Oct. 1841; handwriting of
Willard Richards
24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...
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; five pages; Historian’s Office, General Church Minutes, CHL.

Two bifolia, each measuring 7⅞ × 5¾ inches (20 × 15 cm). The discourse is written in very faint graphite, making significant portions of the text illegible.

The discourse is part of a larger collection of general church minutes created or collected by scribes affiliated with the Church Historian’s Office. It is uncertain exactly when this discourse was included in the general church minutes. However,
Willard Richards
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worked on JS’s history as early as 1842. Likely around that time, he added his records of JS’s sermons and writings to a compilation of documents about JS and the church. The featured document has likely remained in institutional custody since its creation.
Historical Introduction
On the morning of 3 October 1841, at a session of a general
church
The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...
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conference
A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed the elders to hold conferences to perform “Church business.” The first of these conferences was held on 9 June...
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in
Nauvoo
Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....
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, Illinois, JS gave a discourse on the doctrine of
baptism
An ordinance in which an individual is immersed in water for the remission of sins. The Book of Mormon explained that those with necessary authority were to baptize individuals who had repented of their sins. Baptized individuals also received the gift of...
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for the dead, whereby church members were baptized vicariously for their deceased relatives.
1
For more on the October general conference, see Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841; for more on the doctrine of baptism for the dead, see Minutes, 3–5 Oct. 1840.

Willard Richards
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attended this meeting and wrote down fragmentary notes from JS’s sermon in an apparent attempt to capture the church
president
The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...
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’s words as he spoke. The text featured here is one of two extant versions of JS’s 3 October 1841 discourse; the other is a printed, more polished version found in the 15 October 1841 issue of the Times and Seasons. The printed version, along with additional historical context and annotation, is found in Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 October 1841.
Footnotes
[1]
For more on the October general conference, see Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841; for more on the doctrine of baptism for the dead, see Minutes, 3–5 Oct. 1840.
Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Discourse, 3 October 1841, as Reported by Willard Richards Discourse, 3 October 1841, as Published in Times and Seasons History, 1838–1856, volume C-1 [2 November 1838–31 July 1842] “History of Joseph Smith” “History of Joseph Smith”
Page 3
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[Text in top third portion of page 3 is illegible]

born of water by proxy— A man is judged according to [2 words illegible]

Pulling them out of the fire—

Martin Luther &
Alexander Campbell
12 Sept. 1788–4 Mar. 1866. Teacher, minister, magazine publisher, college president. Born near Ballymena, Co. Antrim, Ireland. Son of Thomas Campbell and Jane Corneigle. Raised Presbyterian. Moved to Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland, 1808. Immigrated to Buffalo ...
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.
13
Martin Luther was a German theologian who opposed the Roman Catholic Church’s teachings and emerged as a central figure in the Protestant Reformation of the early 1500s. Alexander Campbell led a sizable religious group in the United States known as the Disciples of Christ. Campbell was an ardent opponent of JS and the teachings of the Latter-day Saint faith. (Bainton, Here I Stand, chap. 4; Brady, German Histories, 146–152; “Delusions,” Millennial Harbinger, 7 Feb. 1831, 85–95; Campbell, Delusions, 6–11; Letter to Oliver Cowdery, 24 Sept. 1834.)
Comprehensive Works Cited
Brady, Thomas A., Jr. German Histories in the Age of Reformations, 1400–1650. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
Millennial Harbinger. Bethany, VA. Jan. 1830–Dec. 1870.
Campbell, Alexander. Delusions. An Analysis of the Book of Mormon; with an Examination of Its Internal and External Evidences, and a Refutation of Its Pretences to Divine Authority. Boston: Benjamin H. Greene, 1832.

2d. acts—
14
This likely refers to the second chapter of Acts in the New Testament, which contains verses about the gift of the Holy Ghost.
no Holy Ghost

Dispensation
A gift of divine knowledge, power, and authority from God to humankind; often associated with a prophet and his time period. A revelation published in 1835 identified JS and Oliver Cowdery as the recipients of keys to administer a final dispensation of the...
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of the fullness of times
15
See Ephesians 1:10; and Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:41].
which reveals in that dispensations all those dispensat[ions] all things not before revealed— Adam did not attend to his progenitors <partriarchal>— Eligah [illegible] Israel out of the groves. by the Keys what Paul did not.— hearts of the children to their fathers &c—
16
See Malachi 4:5; and Visions, 3 Apr. 1836 [D&C 110:13–16].

ordinances
A religious rite. JS taught that ordinances were covenants between man and God, in which believers could affirm faith, gain spiritual knowledge, and seek blessings. Some ordinances were considered requisite for salvation. The manner in which ordinances were...
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&— all things attended to from Adam down— every genten [generation] that have rejected the children fathers must be denied. with [2 words illegible] fathers— Baptismal font Geneoly the Dead neglected their dead.
17
The printed version of this discourse clarifies, “Those saints who neglect it”—meaning baptism for the dead—“in behalf of their deceased relatives, do it at the peril of their own salvation.” (Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841.)
doc◊◊◊ed [3 words illegible] [p. 3]
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Document Information
Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Discourse, 3 October 1841, as Reported by Willard Richards
ID #
2695
Total Pages
5
Print Volume Location
JSP, D8:300–302
Handwriting on This Page
Willard Richards
Footnotes
[13]
Martin Luther was a German theologian who opposed the Roman Catholic Church’s teachings and emerged as a central figure in the Protestant Reformation of the early 1500s. Alexander Campbell led a sizable religious group in the United States known as the Disciples of Christ. Campbell was an ardent opponent of JS and the teachings of the Latter-day Saint faith. (Bainton, Here I Stand, chap. 4; Brady, German Histories, 146–152; “Delusions,” Millennial Harbinger, 7 Feb. 1831, 85–95; Campbell, Delusions, 6–11; Letter to Oliver Cowdery, 24 Sept. 1834.)
Brady, Thomas A., Jr. German Histories in the Age of Reformations, 1400–1650. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
Millennial Harbinger. Bethany, VA. Jan. 1830–Dec. 1870.
Campbell, Alexander. Delusions. An Analysis of the Book of Mormon; with an Examination of Its Internal and External Evidences, and a Refutation of Its Pretences to Divine Authority. Boston: Benjamin H. Greene, 1832.
[14]
This likely refers to the second chapter of Acts in the New Testament, which contains verses about the gift of the Holy Ghost.
[15]
See Ephesians 1:10; and Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:41].
[16]
See Malachi 4:5; and Visions, 3 Apr. 1836 [D&C 110:13–16].
[17]
The printed version of this discourse clarifies, “Those saints who neglect it”—meaning baptism for the dead—“in behalf of their deceased relatives, do it at the peril of their own salvation.” (Minutes and Discourse, 1–5 Oct. 1841.)