Early Mormon History
Joseph Smith’s Presidential Platform
So, I came across an interview of Richard Bushman at the Pew Research Forum, about both early and modern Mormon politics. I’ve also been reading a book called The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power by D Michael Quinn on the early leadership of the church. I want to combine the 2 sources, and talk about […]
Financial Problems in Kirtland
As a follow up to 2 of my previous posts, (Kirtland Bank Failure and Sidney Rigdon book), I just wanted to add this interesting quote from page 177. Neither Joseph Smith nor Sidney Rigdon demonstrated at any time during their careers the financial acumen that became the hallmark of millionaire Brigham Young’s thirty-year administration in […]
Sidney Rigdon, after the Martyrdom – Part 5
Ok, I know I have devoted much time to Sidney Rigdon. I think this is the last one I’ll do for a while, though I reserve the right to change my mind. Most people are aware that Sidney left the church (or should we say the church left him?), but few know very much about […]
Sidney and Joseph – A Strained Friendship – Part 4
With Sidney running the church in Quincy, Joseph and others were still in the Liberty Jail. Through the first 10 years of the church, Sidney Rigdon and Joseph Smith seem to be in lock step with each other. However, the Nauvoo period seems to show a few cracks in the friendship. Were they serious? Well, […]
Sidney Rigdon – Part 3
Ok, I’ll continue an overall review of Sidney’s life. We last left Sidney leaving Hiram, Ohio after a serious beating. He, Joseph, and the rest of the Saints gathered in Kirtland, where they tried to establish the Law of Consecration, making all things equal among them. They also built the Kirtland Temple, and had many […]
Sketch of Sidney Rigdon – Part 2
Ok, I just finished the Sidney Rigdon book, and wanted to give some of my overall impressions, as well as present some information about his life. I had intended to give an overall sketch of his life, but this post is long enough, so I will probably do this in a few parts. I like […]
Kirtland Banking Crisis Apostasy
This was originally posted at Mormon Matters Feb 20, 2009. I am reposting it here. Since Hawkgrrrl does not offer Virtual RS/PH lessons anymore, I thought I’d try my hand at it this one time. My wife was preparing Lesson 27: Beware the Bitter Fruits of Apostasy, and I couldn’t help but think that this was a […]
Kirtland Bank Failure
I was invited to be a guest contributer over at Mormon Matters. In 1838, there was a crisis in the church. A bank failure in Kirtland caused many church members to question the leadership ability of Joseph Smith. Lesson 27 deals with the crisis in very general terms, but I’ve learned much more. Five apostles […]
Was Priesthood Ban Inspired?
Wow, this is a really long post, and I didn’t cover everything, but what I did cover is quite considerable.I hope to hear some comments. I decided to update this post on 9/16 with some of Greg Prince’s insights into this topic. These updates are highlighted in orange. UPDATE: Mar 10, 2009. Black Pete and […]
Mormon Heretic 