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Full-Text Articles in Religious Education
First Vision Controversies, Ann Taves
First Vision Controversies, Ann Taves
BYU Studies Quarterly
When I accepted this invitation to speak, I expected that I would focus on the methods that Steven Harper and I used to compare and discuss the different accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision. We were both quite pleased with the process because we found that careful juxtaposition of the accounts allowed us to agree on the historical data and present a case for our different interpretations. If you look at the published version of our conversation, however, you’ll see that when we attempted to date events that Smith mentioned in his 1838 history, Steve tended to argue for 1820 …
“Though We Or An Angel From Heaven”, Richard J. Mouw
“Though We Or An Angel From Heaven”, Richard J. Mouw
BYU Studies Quarterly
At a small luncheon gathering of evangelical and Mormon scholars during an annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion shortly after the turn of the century, Richard Bushman issued a challenge to the Evangelicals in the form of a question posed directly to me: “Is Joseph Smith possible for you?” In an essay that I published in 2009, I organized my remarks on Joseph Smith as a response to Bushman’s question.1
Methodism As Context For Joseph Smith’S First Vision, John Wigger
Methodism As Context For Joseph Smith’S First Vision, John Wigger
BYU Studies Quarterly
When I started looking at early American Methodism thirty years ago, the first thing that struck me was how full of vibrant supernaturalism it was. Early American Methodists lived in a world where visions, prophetic dreams, and supernatural impressions were everywhere. God spoke to them directly. They talked about these things openly, without embarrassment. Supernaturalism was a part of everyday life and central to their connection to one another.
Not The First But The Second, Richard E. Bennett
Not The First But The Second, Richard E. Bennett
BYU Studies Quarterly
Professor James B. Allen, distinguished scholar of Joseph Smith’s First Vision accounts, wrote the following in a 2012 article: “The writing of Mormon history has only begun. As in the case of other institutions and movements, there is still room in Mormonism for fresh historical scholarship. . . . What is needed, simply, is the sympathetic historian who can approach his tradition with scholarship as well as faith and who will make fresh appraisal of the development of the Mormon mind.”1 The purpose of this presentation is to provide such a “fresh appraisal” of Joseph Smith’s 1820 theophany, less perhaps …
When Did Joseph Smith Know The Father And The Son Have “Tangible” Bodies?, John W. Welch
When Did Joseph Smith Know The Father And The Son Have “Tangible” Bodies?, John W. Welch
BYU Studies Quarterly
Joseph Smith learned many things in the First Vision—it was a burst of knowledge that poured down upon him in the spring of 1820. Particularly, he was greeted by two divine beings, “whose brightness and glory defy all description.” The first of the two, “pointing to the other,” said, “This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!” (JS–H 1:17). Joseph then listened as Jesus spoke. That experience gave more authoritative answers to questions about the Godhead than anyone in the world had received since the vision of Stephen, who saw a heavenly vision of Jesus, “the Son of man standing on …
Visualizing The Vision, Anthony Sweat
Visualizing The Vision, Anthony Sweat
BYU Studies Quarterly
When a teenage Joseph Smith entered the woods on his family farm to pray over his soul and inquire which church he should join, the vision that burst forth from heaven changed his life and laid a pathway for the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The First Vision is among the scenes of the Restoration most often depicted by artists. Portrayals of the First Vision were published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Ensign magazine 167 times between 1971 and 2019, nearly double the representations of any Restoration theme other than depictions of …
The First Vision Of Joseph Smith Jr.: 200 Years On, Richard E. Bennett
The First Vision Of Joseph Smith Jr.: 200 Years On, Richard E. Bennett
BYU Studies Quarterly
This special issue of BYU Studies Quarterly features the proceedings of a conference held at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California, to commemorate the two hundredth anniversary of Joseph Smith’s First Vision. In presenting slightly modified transcripts of the papers delivered at this conference, we hope BYU Studies Quarterly readers will gain insights into both this experience of Joseph Smith’s and the various ways scholars have come to view it.
“Effusions Of An Enthusiastic Brain”, Jeremy Talmage
“Effusions Of An Enthusiastic Brain”, Jeremy Talmage
BYU Studies Quarterly
[I] wanted to get Religion too,” reminisced the Latter-day Saint prophet Joseph Smith. “[I] wanted to feel & shout like the Rest but could feel nothing.”1 A wide-eyed witness of the nineteenth-century religious revivals that enveloped western New York, Smith made this lament to a close acquaintance shortly before his death in 1844. Reflecting back on the religious excitement of his youth, he detailed how he longed for a spiritual manifestation like many others enjoyed but for whatever reason seemed unable to experience the evangelical enthusiasm he so deeply desired. As a fourteen-year-old adolescent, Smith had been torn among …