On 12 March 1843, a of members in passed three resolutions regarding the request of church leaders that return to , Illinois. The conference sent the resolutions to the “authorities at Nauvoo,” including JS. In March 1842, organized a in the Boston area, and by September 1842 the branch reportedly consisted of seventy-seven members, “including 3 and 3 .” Adams began preaching in Boston in 1842 and participated in a highly publicized series of debates with George Montgomery West, a Protestant minister in the area. Adams left for Nauvoo later in 1842 but arrived back in Boston by 19 January 1843. That same month, Adams’s wife, , who was in , informed JS that her husband had engaged in an extramarital affair. In a meeting with the on 10 February 1843 in Nauvoo, JS decided that Adams should “be silencd & called to Nauvoo with his family.” On 10 March 1843, Adams received a letter from and instructing him to return to Nauvoo. Later that day, when Adams responded to Young and Richards, he expressed his gratitude that the direction to return was not printed in the Times and Seasons, apparently because he believed it would have damaged his reputation.

It is unlikely that Latter-day Saints in were aware of the reason for ’s summons to . The 12 March resolutions expressed deep regret that he was required to leave them and requested that church leaders allow Adams to come back to Boston or send and in his place. The local Saints also resolved to provide financial support for whomever leaders sent.

, who had been preaching in and the vicinity since 1841, apparently made a copy of the resolutions after receiving them. He then presented this copy to participants in the Boston conference on 12 March 1843. After they were adopted and signed by , the president of the Boston branch, and , clerk of the conference, they were given to Snow “to be handed over to the authorities at ,” including JS. Snow wrote an explanatory note about the resolutions and then attached the note to the resolutions before they were transmitted to Nauvoo.

The lack of postage on the resolutions indicates that they were hand carried to , perhaps by himself, who was in Nauvoo by the end of May 1843. At a council of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles held on 27 May 1843, JS said that had “come to me and made acknowledgedment, perfect satisfaction” of the charges against him, although JS also explained that Adams’s elder’s would be revoked and he would “act as [a] priest” in the church. The 1 June 1843 issue of the Times and Seasons published an authorization for Adams to accompany on a mission to Russia in which JS stated that Adams was “worthy of the confidence of the saints.” After another hearing before the Nauvoo , the 15 August 1843 issue of the Times and Seasons published a notice stating that Adams had been “honorably acquitted” of all charges. Adams, however, remained in Nauvoo and did not return to or go to Russia.