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Letter from S. J. Wild, circa 30 April 1843

Source Note

S. J. Wild, Letter, , Adams Co., IL, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, [ca. 30] Apr. 1843; handwriting and signature presumably of S. J. Wild; three pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes address, postal notations, postal stamps, redactions, and docket.
Bifolium measuring 12½ × 7¾ inches (32 × 20 cm). Embossed in the upper left corner of the bifolium is an illegible circular insignia of a paper manufacturer. The document was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, sealed with a red adhesive wafer, and postmarked. The right edge of the recto of the second leaf was torn when the letter was opened, removing some of the page containing text. The letter was later refolded, used for miscellaneous notes by and , and refolded again for filing.
The document was docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865; Bullock’s docket includes the date “April 30. 1843”. The document was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) circa 1904. By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early docket, its listing in a circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection suggest continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  2. [2]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [2], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

    Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.

  3. [3]

    See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

In April 1843, S. J. Wild wrote a letter from , Illinois, to JS in , Illinois, asking for his opinion on ritual cleansing, or baptism, for purification of both body and spirit. Wild was interested in reviving the biblical practice and apparently believed that “the durability of republicanism,” or the American system of governance, was dependent upon the physical and spiritual renewal achieved through repetitive baptism and prayer. Wild wrote to JS asking if he had received “any revelation on the subject” or if he would “consult the Oracles of God on it.”
Wild regarded JS as a “great Reformer” who established “many excellent moral precepts,” though Wild’s reference to the as “your society” and other contextual clues suggest that he was not a member of the church. In his letter to JS, Wild questioned whether observing religious washing practices dictated by Levitical law would help maintain health and cleanliness, especially for people living in the marshy, wet areas near the that were subject to disease. Wild understood correctly that JS had instituted symbolic washing rituals based on biblical precedent. In 1833, JS washed the feet of the present at a meeting of the and proclaimed them “clean from the blood of this generation.” Three years later, in 1836, he introduced to the church and other men a new ritual in which they washed and perfumed their bodies and anointed each other with pure oil. The completion and dedication of the in , Ohio, provided an appropriate space for these . On occasion, some early Latter-day Saint missionaries promised potential converts that would heal their ailments. Baptism for health was commonly practiced after JS dedicated a font in the basement of the unfinished in November 1841. Latter-day Saints performed proxy baptisms for the dead as well as baptisms for healing in that font.
The precise date of Wild’s letter is uncertain since Wild only noted the date as April 1843. It was postmarked in on 4 May 1843. Quincy was approximately fifty miles from , likely requiring about two days for mail to travel. docketed the letter with the date 30 April 1843, the last day of April, which may indicate it arrived in Nauvoo in early May. There is no known response from JS.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Minutes, 22–23 Jan. 1833.

  2. [2]

    JS, Journal, 21 Jan. 1836; see also Historical Introduction to Visions, 21 Jan. 1836 [D&C 137].

  3. [3]

    At the dedication of the Kirtland temple, participants sang “The Spirit of God Like a Fire Is Burning” by William W. Phelps. The fourth verse specifically pointed to ritual washings: “We’ll wash, and be wash’d, and with oil be anointed / Withal not omitting the washing of feet: / For he that receiveth his penny appointed, / Must surely be clean at the harvest of wheat.” (Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 Mar. 1836; Hymn 90, Collection of Sacred Hymns [1835], 121, emphasis in original.)

  4. [4]

    See Stapley and Wright, “History of Baptism for Health,” 72–73.

    Stapley, Jonathan A., and Kristine Wright. “‘They Shall Be Made Whole’: A History of Baptism for Health.” Journal of Mormon History 34, no. 4 (Fall 2008): 69–112.

  5. [5]

    In a January 1842 letter from Joseph Fielding to Parley P. Pratt, Fielding compared the Nauvoo temple to Solomon’s temple and described how Latter-day Saints had already made use of the new font: “Many have been baptized therein for their deceased relatives, and also for the healing of their own afflicted bodies.” Even some outside the faith knew of the dual purposes of this font—one visitor to Nauvoo in 1842 came to see the temple construction site and learned that at this font “baptisms for the dead are to be celebrated, as well as baptisms for the healing of diseases.” (Joseph Fielding, Nauvoo, IL, to Parley P. Pratt, Jan. 1842, in Millennial Star, Aug. 1842, 3:78; Caswall, City of the Mormons, 16; see also “Part 4: 1 October–30 November 1841.”)

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

    Caswall, Henry. The City of the Mormons; or, Three Days at Nauvoo, in 1842. London: J. G. F. and J. Rivington, 1842.

  6. [6]

    Thomas Bullock did not arrive in Nauvoo until 31 May 1843 and began doing scribal work for JS and the Nauvoo City Council in summer 1843. (Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458.)

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

Page [2]

& to purify the Body continually thus Invigorating & Healthyfying it & that God commanded this to his church by Moses & that Jesus & the Apostles having belonged to this Church must have practiced it <​as a means or way to the peculiar excellense they attained to​> it [is?] likely that washing was abolished when the very first act of Obedienice in the new Church was to Baptize or Wash for I understand it so to mean— & is not this the only means by which the present selfish rough Unchristian unpolished ungentlemanly manners of the people can be altered— & is it not the way by making a mans person thorougly clean & with prayer to give him a taste for clean<​liness​> <​&​> desire for the highest improvement of his faculties & is it not the Means by which Glory & honour are to be attained in this World if universally practiced
In Leviticus Chap. 15— V. 16–17, 18 is are commands. are they not as needful now <​to​> be in force to prevent diseases as then— Gods people at that time had prayer houses near the Water that They Might wash preparatory to that exercise the Priests washed their feet before the altar & has our Climates now become so cool & Invigorating as to make all this unnecesary now— Josephus in his Antiquities Book XVIII. C. V Sec 2 says that Jno the Baptist exhorted the Virtuous & the pious to come to his Baptism for the purification of the flesh all of Which our present religionists deem unessential now by that means excluding all commands of Cleanliness from their code of Morals— H◊◊◊ thus leaving the people in a great degree filthy intemporate or lazy & a long train of other vices in the rear the leaders of the Blind being in a great degree blind themselves or I once spoke to Mr on this subject he acknowledged that the use of Water had saved his life but that at that time he could not bear it— here I think he must have been in an error for it appears to Me that at [p. [2]]
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Source Note

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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from S. J. Wild, circa 30 April 1843
ID #
1024
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D12:258–263
Handwriting on This Page
  • S.J. Wild

Footnotes

  1. [6]

    There are several instances of symbolic or ritual washing in the Old and New Testaments. (See, for example, Exodus 40:9–15; Matthew 6:17; Luke 7:38; and John 9:7; 13:5–10.)

  2. [7]

    See Exodus 30:18–21.

  3. [8]

    English translations of first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus’s works were widely popular in early America. Josephus’s Antiquities of the Jews was a highly prized book among New England Puritans. William Whiston’s translation of Josephus’s works, published in 1737, became the most common version over the next two centuries. Hyrum Smith owned an 1830 edition of Whiston’s translation; his copy can be found at the CHL. A copy with an indeterminate translator was also found in the Nauvoo Public Library. (Metzger and Coogan, Oxford Companion to the Bible, 383–384; Blumell, “Palmyra and Jerusalem,” 357–361; Flavius Josephus, Works of Flavius Josephus, the Learned and Authentic Jewish Historian and Celebrated Warrior . . . , translated by William Whiston [Baltimore: Armstrong and Plaskitt, 1830]; Jones, “Complete Record of the Nauvoo Library and Literary Institute,” 192.)

    Metzger, Bruce M., and Michael D. Coogan, eds. The Oxford Companion to the Bible. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

    Blumell, Lincoln H., Matthew J. Grey, and Andrew H. Hedges, eds. Approaching Antiquity: Joseph Smith and the Ancient World. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2015.

    The Works of Flavius Josephus. Translated by William Whiston. Baltimore: Armstron and Plaskitt and Plaskitt, 1830.

    Jones, Christopher C. “The Complete Record of the Nauvoo Library and Literary Institute.” Mormon Historical Studies 10, no. 1 (Spring 2009): 180–204.

  4. [9]

    First-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus wrote that John “commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, both as to righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God, and so to come to baptism; for that the washing [with water] would be acceptable to him, if they made use of it, not in order to the putting away [or the remission] of some sins [only,] but for the purification of the body; supposing still that the soul was thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness.” (Josephus, Works of Flavius Josephus, 367, brackets in original.)

    The Works of Flavius Josephus. Translated by William Whiston. Baltimore: Armstron and Plaskitt and Plaskitt, 1830.

  5. [10]

    TEXT: Possibly “Here”.

  6. [11]

    TEXT: The word “thus” is written over one illegible word.

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