Why are there so many different versions of the Joseph Smith’s “first vision”?
Dear Gramps,:
Why are there so many different versions of the Joseph Smith’s “first vision”? In one version Joseph Smith Jr was 17, another version he’s 20. In one version it’s 1820, then another it’s 1823. In the 1832 account it is Joseph’s Bible reading that stirs him to seek God, while in the 1838 story it is an 1820 Palmyra-area revival that motivates him. Why is the “story” so varied? It seems that as if someone “saw” God, he’d be able to tell the story the same each time. If you can’t trust the “vision,” how can you trust the Book of Mormon? Mormon Prophet and President Gordon B. Hinckley declared: “Our whole strength rests on the validity of that vision. It either occurred or it did not occur. If it did not, then this work is a fraud” (General Conference address as published in The Ensign, November, 2002, p. 80).There are other earlier accounts of the first vision, including one handwritten by Joseph Smith Jr.himself, which makesno mention of an appearance of the Father and the Son. Instead, these earlier accounts refer to an angel, a spirit, many angels, or the Son. The story in its present form with the Father and the Son, did not appear until 1838, many years after Joseph Smith Jr. claimed to have had the vision. So which is it???
Ron, from Overton, Texas
Dear Ron,
It absolutely astounds me how so many people believe every thing they read, simply because it appears in print. It is so curious that people tend to place more faith in some reporter’s account, or in some bystander’s account, or in the account of some enemy of the Mormon Church, or in the faulty memory of anyone who recorded what someone else said back in the early 1800s when there was no mechanical or electronic manner of recording the spoken word than they do in the very prophets of God to which all these various reports refer! All they had in those days to record anything was a quill pen. (By the way, a quill pen was a feather, usually taken from a turkey, in which the stem was cut at an angle with a knife and then split up the middle for about half an inch. This was the writing tool which was dipped in ink and used as a pen. Paper was so expensive that letters were often written over themselves–the second copy at right angles to the first copy, so that both copies could be read).
From what you have said, it appears also that you are confusing several visions of the prophet Joseph Smith with the First Vision. That First Vision in which the prophet, then a boy of only 14 years, was visited by both God the Eternal Father and His Son Jesus Christ, occurred in the spring of 1820. The exact date was never recorded. Following that vision the prophet was visited on several occasions by the angel Moroni. The first visit was on the night of September 21, 1823, when he appeared to the Prophet three different times, and then again on the following day. After that Joseph met with the same angel on the Hill Cumorah on that same day for each of the four succeeding years. Following those visits, a number of angelic beings, who were the prophets of previous dispensations, appeared to Joseph Smith and bestowed upon him the keys of the priesthood authority that they possessed during the time when they appeared as mortals on the earth. In addition to these visits, the Savior himself appeared to the prophet on different occasions.
All of these occurrences are very well documented and appropriately established. You will find the official account of the First Vision in a section of the scripture, The Pearl of Great Price, entitled, Joseph Smith–History. Most of the other visits referred to above may be found in another scriptural volume called The Doctrine and Covenants. If you find any accounts differing in any way with those referred to in the above two scriptures you may immediately dismiss them as spurious.
Gramps
Interesting that you began your reply by backhandedly insulting the questioner as one of a majority of people in the world who believe “everything they read simply because they see it in print.” It astounds you that people believe “everything” they read, does it? How many things do YOU accept as true (literally or otherwise) simply because you saw them in your books/scriptures or heard a church leader say them during a general conference?
Anyhow, since we are not to believe anything but Joseph Smith’s own first-hand accounts, please share your thoughts on his handwritten notes regarding “the first vision” that appear on the LDS Church’s own website, josephsmithpapers.org. Search for “history, circa summer 1832.” When I read his writings, which wasn’t that easy to do given spelling and grammatical errors (which I quickly admit aren’t requirements for being called of God but are requirements of communicating clearly), I was intrigued by the way he worded his vision. He made no mention of a dark power battling against him so that he wouldn’t be able to utter his prayer. “He wasn’t writing the entire vision down at this time,” you might say. All right, fair enough. What’s even stranger to me is the way he refers to God and the Lord interchangeably and describes only seeing one “godlike” being, who addresses him as “son” and identifies himself as the one who was “crucifyed” for the world. Sounded more like he was visited by a catholic/trinity version of God than the one I was instructed to share during my mission.
In the version I was told to memorize and share with investigators during my time as a missionary for the church, God AND Jesus Christ appeared, God pointed to Jesus and said, “Joseph, this is my beloved son, hear him…” Very specific, very grammatically and mechanically correct, and very clear as to who was there and what was said.
One more thought. Let’s say, Gramps, that tomorrow night you received a vision in which you saw “Heavenly Father” and Jesus Christ. How long would it take you to forget the exact day on which that took place? How long would it take you to write the experience down or tell someone else who would write the experience down. I know (from your reply) that quill pens really made it difficult to record communications from the creator of the universe and all, but seriously, how long would it have taken you to record it? Lastly, how long would it take you to give a few more accounts that differ from that original one? If you had seen two “personages,” wouldn’t every account have made that crystal clear? I know MINE would have. His OWN differing versions wouldn’t pass muster in a court of law or even with a street beat cop taking witness testimonies on a mugging.
I do realize that with people of your mindset, it’s “astounding” how doubtful others can be. I also realize, too, that someone nearing the end of his life might be very hesitant to actually look objectively and think or reason about things he’s taken as absolute gospel truth since his childhood. Who wants to feel, 1, 2, 3 years before they die, that they had gotten it wrong their entire lives? So, if Joseph Smith’s OWN differing accounts (don’t blame it on secondhand reports or quill pens) don’t bother you, if it doesn’t bother you that he sealed himself to women who were ALREADY married, and if it doesn’t bother you that authorities within the church routinely make promises and “prophecies” that DO NOT come to pass (perhaps not publicly, but often in settings with young missionaries who may be disillusioned and may just need an extra little support and morale), godspeed and happy living. Oh, and let me add that my doubts as to the veracity and actuality of Joseph Smith’s claims do NOT mean that I don’t believe in following the teachings and principles of Jesus of Nazareth. Perhaps you, unlike many other fellow Mormons that I know, still have the ability to separate believing in Joseph Smith from worshiping Jesus Christ.