Letter and Revelation to Harvey Whitlock, 16 November 1835, Page 42
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Letter and Revelation to Harvey Whitlock, 16 November 1835

Source Note

JS, Letter and Revelation, , Geauga Co., OH, to , 16 Nov. 1835. Featured version copied [ca. 16 Nov. 1835] in JS, Journal, 1835–1836, pp. 42–44; handwriting of ; JS Collection, CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS, Journal, 1835–1836.

Historical Introduction

During fall 1835, JS received a contrite letter from , who had become estranged from the sometime during the previous two years. Though little is known about the circumstances surrounding his separation, he evidently had a change of heart during the latter part of 1835, which prompted him to write to JS. In a 28 September letter, he appealed to JS to let him know if he was still “within the reach of mercy” and requested that JS “enquire at the hand of the Lord in my behalf.” Penitently, he told JS, “I am willing to receive any chastisement that the Lord sees I deserve.” On 16 November, JS responded to Whitlock’s entreaty and informed him that he had inquired of God and received a revelation that Whitlock should “speedily” return from to , Ohio. If he continued to heed JS’s counsel, Whitlock was told, he would be “restored unto his former state.”
Prior to his estrangement, had been a successful missionary, talented preacher, and prominent member of the branch of the church. He settled in , Missouri, following a summer 1831 mission to “regions west.” Whitlock regularly participated in council meetings, but after his name is mentioned in minutes of an 11 September 1833 meeting, he essentially disappears from the historical record for the next two years. Whitlock’s 28 September 1835 letter to JS offers only cryptic clues as to what might have caused him to distance himself from the church. In the letter, Whitlock obliquely mentions his “original difficulties with the church” and indicates that he was “charged with things” he was “not guilty of.”
JS’s response to ’s appeal offers insight into JS’s personality and leadership style. Though JS condemned members of the church community who openly challenged the laws of God or questioned his authority, he quickly welcomed back those who admitted their faults and made restitution. After receiving JS’s letter, Whitlock promptly obeyed the admonition to return to . During a 30 January 1836 conference of the presidency of the church, Whitlock was officially restored to full fellowship.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Letter from Harvey Whitlock, 28 Sept. 1835.

  2. [2]

    The original letter is no longer extant, but a copy of the text was inserted into JS’s 16 November journal entry by his scribe, Warren Parrish. (JS, Journal, 16 Nov. 1835.)

  3. [3]

    In early June 1831, Whitlock was ordained to the office of high priest and soon began proselytizing. As he preached throughout Ohio and Illinois, his sermons made a distinct impression on several early converts, including William E. McLellin and Joel Johnson. (Revelation, 6 June 1831 [D&C 52]; McLellin, Journal, 6–7; Johnson, Autobiographical Sketch, 8.)

    McLellin, William E. Journal, 18 July–20 Nov. 1831. William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 1. Also available as Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).

    Johnson, Joel H. Autobiographical Sketch, 1879. Typescript. CHL. MS 12931.

  4. [4]

    Hancock, Autobiography, 92; Minute Book 2, 2 Aug. 1831 and 11 Sept. 1833; Letter from Oliver Cowdery, 28 Jan. 1832.

    Hancock, Levi. Autobiography, ca. 1854. Photocopy. CHL. MS 8174.

  5. [5]

    Letter from Harvey Whitlock, 28 Sept. 1835.

  6. [6]

    Minutes, 30 Jan. 1836.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Letter and Revelation to Harvey Whitlock, 16 November 1835
Journal, 1835–1836 History, 1834–1836 History, 1838–1856, volume B-1 [1 September 1834–2 November 1838] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 42

Nov. 16th 1835
Bro
I have received your letter of the 28th Sept. 1835, and I have read it twice, and it gave me sensations that are better imagined than discribed; let it suffice, that I say the verry flood-gates of my heart were broken up: I could not refrain from weeping, I thank God, that it has entered into your heart, to try to return to the Lord, and to his people; if it so be, that he will have mercy upon you.
I have inquired of the Lord concerning your case, these words came to me
Verily thus saith the Lord unto you; let him who was my servant , return unto me;— and unto the bosom of my Church, and forsake all the sins wherewith he has offended against me and persue from hence forth a virtuous and upright life, and remain under the direction of those whom I have appointed to be pillars, and heads of my , and behold, saith the Lord, your God; his sins shall be blotted out from under heaven, and shall be forgotten from among men, and shall not come up in mine ears, nor be recorded as <​a​> memorial against him, but I will lift [p. 42]
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter and Revelation to Harvey Whitlock, 16 November 1835
ID #
283
Total Pages
3
Print Volume Location
JSP, D5:60–62
Handwriting on This Page
  • Warren Parrish

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