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Minutes, 19 February 1834

Source Note

Minutes, , Geauga Co., OH, 19 Feb. 1834. Featured version copied [ca. 19 Feb. 1834] in Minute Book 1, pp. 36–39; handwriting of ; CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for Minute Book 1.

Historical Introduction

These minutes of a 19 February 1834 meeting detail the final steps in organizing the “ of the ”—later known as the high council—and the proceedings of the first case adjudicated by the council. Two days earlier, on 17 February 1834, a council of fifty-eight holders and church members initially organized the new council. Believing the minutes contained some errors, the organizing council charged JS with making “all necessary corrections” to the minutes of the meeting, which delineated the procedures the new council should follow when dealing with church members accused of transgression. Included in the minutes presented here is the council’s discussion and acceptance of the corrected 17 February minutes as well as JS’s declaration that the high council was “organized according to the ancient order, and also according to the mind of the Lord.” The newly organized high council then heard its first case, which concerned charges against Curtis Hodges Sr. for “loud speaking, and a want of clearness in articulation” at various meetings. Several witnesses supported the charges, though no extant contemporary record identifies the precise circumstances, locations, or dates of Hodges’s offenses.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Minutes, 17 Feb. 1834.

  2. [2]

    Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102].

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Minutes, 19 February 1834 Minute Book 1 History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 37

upon the heads of the two assistant presidents and pronounced a blessing upon them, that they might have wisdom to magnify their office, and power over all the power of the adversary. He also upon the twelve counsellors and commanded a blessing to rest upon them, that they might have wisdom and power to counsel in righteousness upon all subjects that might be laid before them. He also prayed that they might be delivered from those evils to which they were most exposed, and that their lives might be prolonged on the earth.
then laid his hands upon the head of his son, Joseph, and said: Joseph, I lay my hands upon thy head, and pronounc[e] the blessings of thy progenitors upon thee, that thou mayest hold the of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven until the coming of the Lord, Amen. He, also, laid his hands upon the head of his son and said. , I lay my hands upon thy head and pronounce the blessing of thy progenitors upon thee, that thou mayest remain a of the most high God, and like Samuel of old, hear his voice, saying, Samuel, Samuel, Amen.
, also, laid his hands upon the head of his son and said, my Father in Heaven, I ask thee to bless this my son according to the blessings of his forefathers, that he may be strengthened in his ministry according to his holy calling, Amen.
The president then gave the assistant presidents a Solem charge to do their duty in righteousness and in the fear of God. He also charged the twelve Counsellors in a similar manner, all in the name of Jesus Christ. We then, all raised our hands to heaven in token of the , and the Lord blessed us with his spirit. He then said the was organized according to the ancient order, and also according to the mind of the Lord
The Case of , a , against Curtis Hodges Sen., and in the , was laid before the council [p. 37]
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Page 37

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Minutes, 19 February 1834
ID #
4114
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D3:444–448
Handwriting on This Page
  • Orson Hyde

Footnotes

  1. [5]

    Sidney Rigdon and Frederick G. Williams. (Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102:3]; see also “Ecclesiastical Organizational Charts.”)

  2. [6]

    Jared Carter, John S. Carter, Joseph Coe, Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, Orson Hyde, John Johnson, Luke Johnson, John Smith, Joseph Smith Sr., Samuel Smith, and Sylvester Smith. (Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102:3].)

  3. [7]

    Even though the minutes being approved at this 19 February meeting focused exclusively on the procedure that the high council should follow in hearing appeals on disciplinary cases, the wording here suggests that JS understood that the council’s responsibilities would be more extensive. (See Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102].)

  4. [8]

    See 1 Samuel 3:10.

  5. [9]

    This act of raising hands “in token of the everlasting Covenant” was similar to the action that those who participated in the Kirtland School of the Prophets were instructed to perform when entering the school. (See Revelation, 3 Jan. 1833 [D&C 88:132–135].)

  6. [10]

    Minutes of earlier meetings during which the high council was initially organized, including a council held on 12 February 1834 and one on 17 February 1834, record JS’s teachings on the ancient order of councils. (Minutes, 12 Feb. 1834; Minutes, 17 Feb. 1834.)

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